Evans' team, Silence-Lotto, is somewhat of a rarity in that it aimsto win on all fronts: from the high-octane sprinting in
the springclassics all the way through to overall victory in the Grand Tours.As such, team bike sponsor Ridley needs to
supply the team with awide variety of machines to suit each rider's individual aims andcharacteristics. Where the sprinters
and classics riders likefellow Australian Robbie McEwen and Belgian Leif Hoste typicallyride the company's powerhouse Noah
frame, all-rounder Evans prefersthe lighter weight Helium as the road heads skywards. Ridley launched a redesigned Helium at the end of last season, justin time for Evans' overall ProTour victory. Much of the
bulk aroundlast year's bottom bracket has been shaved away and the new headtube is full-carbon, right down to the headset
bearing races. Eventhough the new frame is lighter than the previous incarnation,Ridley claims it's also more rigid thanks to
more efficient use ofthe remaining material and more careful selection of carbon fibretypes. The Helium's more rounded tubes look far different from the deepaero tubes of the recently overhauled Noah but the two frames
sharea number of features nonetheless. Both use a fully integratedseatpost for modestly lighter weight and a firmer pedaling
platformas well as a tapered-and-oversized 1 1/8"-to-1 1/2" front end formore precise handling. According to Evans, the
slightly curvedforks were personally selected by both himself and McEwen overRidley's more commonly used straight-bladed
models and so thosewere the ones that the company ultimately decided to spec asstandard. Despite weighing a claimed 900g for the medium size with an uncutmast (Evans' small-sized frame is even lighter), Ridley
claims thatits tests show that the Helium is "the most durable lightweightcarbon bike on the market". Not surprisingly, Evans
appreciates thereliability, saying that it's no good building something 200glighter and then having to change it halfway up
the mountainbecause it's broken. Having said that, the Australian's bike tipped the Cyclingnews scales at a barely-legal 6.81kg (15.01lb) without the benefit
ofweight-weenie extras. The full 10-speed Campagnolo Record groupsetis only interrupted by a pair of smoother-spinning (and
slightlylighter) FSA jockey wheels with ceramic bearings. Standard 53-and39-toothed chainrings on the Record Ultra Torque
chainset and afairly wide-ranged 11-25T cassette provide Evans with a gooddescending and sprinting gear at one end of the
range and acomfortable climbing one at the other. Like most Campagnolo-sponsored riders in the peloton, Evans has apair of Record Ergopower levers with those distinctive red
graphicsthat show they have a slightly stiffer action than standard. Withthe recent launch of Campagnolo's new 11-speed
groupsets , this will presumably be the last season we'll see thiscurrent-generation lever shape among the top pros (although
anumber of holdouts lingered after the last shape change severalyears ago). It may even be possible that some will be riding
theupcoming Tour de France with the new components but we'll have towait and see. Campagnolo also supplies Silence-Lotto with wheels, and its HyperonUltras are some of the lightest available. With carbon-
bodied hubsand full-carbon rims they are a claimed 1120g per pair for thetubular version that Evans uses. The team uses 21mm
-wide VredesteinFortezza Pro Tricomp tubular tyres, which at 270g each comparefavourably with most of the other brands out
there in terms ofweight.
