Gugie's comment about defects in the material is very telling. In the aerospace industry, component parts are subjected to non destructive test (ultrasonic, CAT scan, etc) to ensure that there are no voids in the epoxy, there's full penetration into the fibers, no gaps in the fabric layup, etc.

I am pretty sure that does not happen in the bike industry. And for the most part that's OK, there's adequate margin in the design to protect against catastrophic failure.

And while a racer may not worry that his ultra light frame has the risk of failure, I am not willing to accept risks like that. One of the fun things about vintage bikes is that today's carbon bikes will probably have all failed long before they get to be vintage bikes, 40-50 years hence.

Assuming climate change, nuclear war, or alien invasion don't get us first.

great ride today

Mark Petry
Bainbridge Island, WA USA