Il Mohoric dropper seatpost It's been the subject of much debate. Will it really be widely used in the future? Will manufacturers invest in it to reduce its weight? What's certain is that, for now, another MTB-derived technical solution has had an impact on road bikes. Francesco Casagrande he excelled in both disciplines.
We ask “Nando” what they are, in his opinion, the off-road solutions, which have left the biggest mark on the road too. And which are now essential.
Francesco Casagrande (born in 1970) still defends the colors of Cicli Taddei in MTB today 
The Tuscan, who wore the pink jersey at the 2000 Giro, more than once finished the stoppers with the brake pads "at zero"
Francesco Casagrande (born in 1970) still defends the colors of Cicli Taddei in MTB today The Tuscan, who wore the pink jersey at the 2000 Giro, more than once finished the stoppers with the brake pads "at zero"
Disk brakes
«Without a doubt I would start with disc brakes “It's the number one factor,” Casagrande says. “Braking is much improved. On wet surfaces, you brake as well as on dry surfaces. It increases safety, and you no longer have problems with carbon rims. Sure, you have a bit of a weight handicap, but I think the advantages outweigh it.”
"For me, the feeling is completely different when riding on the road with disc brakes. I also see it when I go out with good guys who still have traditional brakes. I brake at 30 meters, they brake at 50. In mountain I usually use 160mm discs at the front and 140mm at the rear, on the road both are 140mm, but they are more than enough (the system doesn't tire or overheat, ed.). However, changing the position of the levers—horizontal on the MTB, vertical on the road bike—changes the force applied."
Braking on a mountain bike is much more powerful, and in fact you only have to brake with two fingers, compared to using your whole hand on the road. It's a matter of getting used to it. But there are advantages. And yes, I happened to do some Dolomite stages and reach the bottom of the descents with my skates finished. I have always supported the album."
Short reports
«The second element that had the greatest impact it was the relationships"And here the Tuscan surprises us a little, to be honest. But his analysis isn't wrong.
«It's with the MTB – continues Casagrande – that increasingly shorter ratios began to be used, Both front and rear. We saw that they performed better, we rode more nimbly. The idea for the first 34-36s came from there. I still practice both disciplines and I noticed that when mountain bike gears started to get shorter, the same thing happened on road bikes too."
Certainly the advent of Sram It had a significant impact on the road scene. The American company has a DNA strongly linked to mountain biking and was the one to propose the first truly short gear ratios even on the road. For example, let's remember Counter, which used the 32 rear on the most extreme stages, such as Angliru or Mortirolo. And to do so, it had to fit a rocker arm from a mid-to-low-end groupset (the Rival) from the same brand. This groupset was designed for bikes with a more touring than racing vocation. Again, Sram, over the years, has launched the single chainring and the 50-tooth “Eagle” rear sprocket.
Today perhaps there is a reversal of the trend, at least on the road with chainrings, but not with rear sprockets. The average metric development of the most agile ratios is certainly shorter than it was 10 years ago.
Larger sections
«For me, next comes the tire size. I don't know if it's something directly derived from MTB, but they certainly go hand in hand: both on the road and in the mountains, the tires have become wider. And I think there is some influence. I remember when I started mountain biking there were 1.9" tires, then 2.0", 2.1"... now we're at 2.3". They count for a lot and you can really feel the difference on the road."
Casgarande's argument holds up, but it holds up even more to the extent that the entire wheel is considered and not just the tire. We would like to add that as the tyre section has increased, so has the rim section.. And this is truly an element of MTB. Just like the use of tubeless and its sealant, which are now very popular even among the pro group.
It has been seen that with a wider rim, the wider tyre bulges less, works better in terms of grip and the risk of it coming off the rim is reduced. I modern rims are wider than they were a few years ago does. The whole thing also showed aerodynamic advantages.
Telescopic and thru axle
Is that all? Not at all. Casagrande is very concerned about the technical aspect. And he's pushing forward.
«As for the telescopic handle on the road, I honestly don't think it can offer any particular advantages. At least for me. The real difference comes in mountain biking when there are really steep descents, over 25%, and technical. In that case, you let it go all the way down, you "sit" on the rear wheel and lower your center of gravity. But it's useful in some cases. Not to mention that it's heavy and you need to get used to it to really take advantage of it. Because it feels like you have nothing between your legs (it changes your balance a bit, ed.) when you ride.
"On the road, Mohoric's was a blow, but I don't think that made the difference. Again, this is my opinion."
Finally, before leaving, Casagrande mentioned another element, not at all secondary, which had an impact on the technical development of the road bike: the thru axle.
«I almost forgot – concludes Casagrande – the thru axle had a significant impactThe bike is stiffer, glides better, flexes much less, and there's much less power loss. It's a very important detail."
