Trek Madone Review

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For the aero Trek Madone, the KVF (Kamm Virtual Foil) tube cross section used for the Speed Concept has been reworked to meet the demands of regular road use.

The Trek Madone KVF profile has a much shorter tail; while less aerodynamically-efficient than the Speed Concept section, it means the tubes are box-like rather than long and thin, ensuring that they are more “bendy “ along their length. This, in turn, makes the frame torsionally stiff but able to deflect in its vertical plane to absorb bumps.

It’s a trade-off; the frame tubes given the KVF profile ((fork blades, head tube, down tube, seat tube, seat stays) could

Airflow velocity around the KVF tube profile

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have been made more blade-like but at the expense of ride comfort (and steering response). And weight; longer is heavier. They weren’t; all have a rounded nose and flat, cut-off back with sides that start to taper before the cut off.

If not quite as sleek and slender as that of the Speed Concept’s tubes, it’s a shape that, according to Trek, means a rider on the new Trek Madone needs produce 25 fewer watts than on the old at 40kph – at 10degrees of yaw.

That’s a saving of around 16percent, which is not far short of the weight saving the new Trek Madone 7 fuselage offers over the old one. Oddly enough, the Trek Madone launch presentation

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barely touched on the reasons for the massive reduction in weight and, when it did, majored on the savings achieved through a new process called U5 Vapor Coat that leaves a decorative finish weighing just 5g.

Surely as interesting in terms of weight saving is the move to net-molded full carbon-fibre for the dropouts and front derailleur hanger, the discarding of the rear brake bridge and the use of carbon-fibre for the neat 3S chainkeeper. No? Alright, a super-thin paint coat of mist and vapour wins.

The new Trek Madone is available in 7, 6 and 5 Series models made using 700, 600 and 500 Series OCLV construction respectively.

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Full details of sizing and geometry at
trekbikes.com
Words by Richard Hallett

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