Fabienne and her Cannondale CAAD3 Silk Road –

Man and machine are often one. Whether it’s a crush or a financial constraint, a production bike or a custom build, every rider, every triathlete has very personal reasons for choosing one bike over another. In this section, we give you the opportunity to explain your choice and what you appreciate once you’re on your steed. Meet Fabienne Voillot, 27, at the handlebars of her Cannondale CAAD3 Silk Road 800… equipped with front suspension!

By Pierre-Maxime BRANCHE. Photos: 3bikes.fr

In 2014, Fabienne, originally from Lyon, was an intern in Grenoble at Schneider Electric. A sportswoman at heart, between tennis, badminton, swimming and running, she attended a works council meeting presenting the various possible activities. Cycling? Why not! Accompanied by colleagues who lent her a bike, she discovered, explored and climbed her first cols in Isère. “I really got hooked. I loved this sport for the discovery of a region or different landscapes during the same ride,” she recalls. Unfortunately, a fall while horseback riding resulted in a double fracture of her elbow and wrist. Then, her studies took her to Paris and London. In the Queen’s country, the little queen was put away.

Dad’s bike

Now settled in Ariège, the opportunity was too good to pass up. After borrowing a friend’s bike again, she tested a Van Rysel. “I was able to try it for a week, with no obligation to buy, but it had a double chainring. I felt limited on climbs. I wanted a triple, even though the salespeople told me they weren’t made anymore.” During a conversation with her father, a former cyclist from Orléans, he offered her his old bike: a 1999 CAAD3 Silk Road 800 with a triple chainring.

Front suspension!

Today, Fabienne rides through the Ariège countryside with this atypical frame. A bike from the former American professional team SAECO and its charismatic Italian sprinter Mario Cipollini, this model features front suspension integrated into the head tube, designed to filter vibrations and improve road holding.

This disengageable mechanism offers 15 mm of travel in the form of a cartridge combining elastomer, spring and oil, all fully integrated into the head tube, just like the annular bearings of the headset. The stem is topped with a rotating dial that allows the suspension to be locked or unlocked while riding. “Unfortunately, I ride with the suspension locked, so I can’t benefit from this technology on the often uneven and difficult roads of Ariège,” she regrets.

Adapted gearing

Despite everything, this doesn’t stop her from climbing the local slopes and descending the hills. “I’ve conquered the Col de Port, the Prat d’Albis, and next year I’ll tackle the Mur de Péguère. I can feel that this bike is heavy, especially when I compare it to my friends’ bikes, but with my triple chainring, I climb at my own pace. I have a gear range adapted to my speeds,” she says, satisfied.
Although the riding position comfort is not optimized for her, Fabienne has perfectly adopted her CAAD3, which could, however, return to its peaceful retirement. “If I ride more and more regularly, I would still like to have my own bike,” she says. The opportunity to switch from a triple to a double chainring…