Originally Posted by
American Euchre
Do you think there is a conspiracy against the major manufacturers to ban disks?
A significant percentage of racers don't want them. They can't speak out openly for obvious reasons: can't bite the hand that feeds them.
But they do have concerns about safety. Road racers face the risk of high speed pileups after crashes, where riders can fall in very close proximity to their fellow riders. MTB racers and cyclocross competitors don't face the same type or level of risk as pack riding is not the norm in those events. Not to mention speeds are much lower.
Bicycle racing is inherently dangerous: adding another variable, this one involving hot, slicing disks, would give anyone pause.
If the competitors are concerned, disks should be placed on hold until their safety concerns are properly addressed.
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As far as the disk proponents on this forum: feel free to state your preferences. DO NOT expect to pass off wild exaggeration and bizarre fear mongering to go unquestioned.
If you can't handle having your unsupported and wildly exaggerated claims being questioned, don't air them here.
Has anyone seen a hot slicing disk hotly slicing anyone? Or is that hyperbole? Has a majority of the riders protested the tests, or is that unsupported and assumed? What is more fear mongering than saying the peloton or even assuming, and we know what assuming is, that a majority, that cannot be determined because they are afraid the UCI doing I don't know what is against disk brakes? Has a petition been signed? To date many cycling sources only list a few vocal riders with opposition. It doesn't sound like a ground swell. And still disks will be back in June. They will be tested and evaluated, like it or not. If they don't work because they slow down wheel changes or for some other racing related reason they will be discontinued at the team level even if allowed by the UCI.
As far as MTB racers and CX racers have you tried it? Do you know what things they face or how close to disks their legs are every race? Sure it isn't the same but they are often flying past each other in the air or in a full slide side by side. Sometimes the CX racers jump off of their smoking hot disk brake bikes and toss the bike over their shoulder to jump over a log or run up a muddy hill. So if they were slicers and dicers we should see more slicing and dicing here as well. Just picture a CX race start.
https://www.google.com/search?q=JPG+...D3PjE7XCwlM%3A
Yes road racing is a different beast and yes the pro peloton is often in close contact and often subjected to big crashes. But without testing you aren't going to prove if they are a safety concern or not. But to date more riders have been injured by support vehicles than disk brakes.