Fondriest TF2 1.0
The Fondriest brand is named after the legendary
Italian cyclist Maurizio Fondriest. I first
remember hearing the name when he shot to
prominence by winning the World Road
championships in 1988 at the age of 23. While
his performance on the day was exceptional, he
was perhaps fortunate to have won.
After seven hours of racing he approached the
finish line in the company of the local Belgium
hero Claude Criquielion and Canadian Steve
Bauer. As Bauer started the uphill sprint to the
line with just 200m to go Criquielion was
straight on the wheel while a small gap opened
to Fondriest. What happened next was surreal.
Bauer led the sprint from tight against the left
barrier straight across to the right side of the
road. Then with 100m to go he moved back to the
centre. Criquielion saw his chance and began his
move on the right of Bauer quickly coming
alongside, when Bauer suddenly hooked him into
the barriers. Criquielion, left with nowhere to
go collided with a marshal and fell to the
ground. Bauer hampered by the collision was
slowed and Fondriest swung left to overtake the
pair in spectacular fashion to take the win.
While this victory was a surprise, there was
little doubt of Fondriest’s talent. During his
12 year professional career he won 69 races
including Milan San Remo and was crowned the
winner of the World Cup in 1991 and 1993.
As a rider he always looked exemplary on a
bicycle, as if the machine was an extension of
his body. His own personal professionalism and
attention to detail has been reflected in his
bike business, where each of the various models
in the Fondriest range exudes quality and
innovation.
The TF2 1.0 model tested here is a significant
upgrade on the TF2 tested in Bicycling Australia
issue #155. It features a light 950g frame and
345g fork (claimed) and comes decked out with
Shimano Dura Ace. It’s targeted at the high
performance end of the market, for those looking
for every advantage. The first thing that struck
me when looking at the frame was the incredibly
large and square down tube. There is a lot of
material there and yet the low weight of the
frame is impressive...............Click
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