{"id":714265,"date":"2026-06-04T09:57:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T09:57:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/714265\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T09:57:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T09:57:13","slug":"classic-short-distance-tt-bike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/714265\/","title":{"rendered":"Classic short distance TT bike"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ken Evans, editor of Cycling Weekly<\/a> throughout the 1970s, was an ardent short-distance time trials enthusiast, so it\u2019s no surprise his custom 1971 Carlton is a paean to head-down, straight-line speed. Lightness was a consideration, but stiffness, for maximum power transfer, was the priority.<\/p>\n

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\"Ken\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Future \/ Richard Butcher)<\/p>\n

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\"Ken\n<\/p>\n

No power needed. A classic odometer is all the data a time triallist needed<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Future \/ Richard Butcher)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe frame is incredibly unusual,\u201d notes current owner Dave Marsh, of the Universal Cycle Centre, Rotherham. \u201cRegular steel frames are built with different diameter tubing; the top tube, for example, is usually 1\u201d. But, here, all three primary tubes \u2013 top, down and seat \u2013 are 1 1\/8\u201d Reynolds 531<\/a> double-butted tubing. This provided a greater surface area for the beautifully lugless, fillet brazing and would have made the frame considerably stiffer.<\/p>\n

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Because the frame was built exclusively for Evans, Carlton was able to incorporate a continuous seat tube, perhaps to introduce some compliance. It\u2019s a novel approach \u2013 only decades later did Gerard Vroomen design something similar with Open\u2019s MIN.D frame.<\/p>\n

Latest Videos From\"Dave<\/p>\n

Owner of the Universal Cycle Centre in Rotherham, Dave Marsh has spent his life either racing and riding bikes or working in the cycle trade. He has an extensive collection of immaculately restored classic bikes, many of which are feature in Cycling Weekly.<\/p>\n

The sleek, albeit somewhat bizarre, cable routing for the rear brake is typical of Carlton manager and designer Gerald O’Donovan. \u201cHe was such a creative talent,\u201d says Marsh, \u201calways experimenting. The cable navigates two eyelets on the top tube, before passing through a tiny pipe brazed directly through the seat tube.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether this solution is more aerodynamic or delivers more power in the braking, due to the direct, straight-line routing, remains uncertain. It is certainly more striking.<\/p>\n

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The direct-mount brakes are genuinely innovative, a full 40 years ahead of their time. \u201cO’Donovan removed the backplates from a pair of Universal callipers,\u201d says Marsh, \u201cmounting them on prongs brazed to the forks and stays. I\u2019m sure the resulting stiffness improved performance considerably.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Ken\n<\/p>\n

The rear brake cable guide runs clean through the extended seat tube<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Future \/ Richard Butcher)<\/p>\n

By comparison, the rest of the build risks appearing humdrum. Campagnolo throughout \u2013 a mix of Nuovo and Super Record \u2013 except for the aluminium 3ttt bars, stem and factory-drilled Mafac brake levers. The Campy large flange 28-spoke hubs, another nod to stiffness, are laced to lightweight, French-made Super Champion Arc-en-Ciel rims shod with later-era Vittoria Competition Rally 21 tubulars.<\/p>\n

The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ken Evans, editor of Cycling Weekly throughout the 1970s, was an ardent short-distance time trials enthusiast, so it\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":714266,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,82],"class_list":["post-714265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cycling","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/714265","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=714265"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/714265\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/714266"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=714265"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=714265"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=714265"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}