new Avila 72a's and Avalon 90a's

[Vlad Popov]

What wheels you ride is always a combination of skill, experience, surface and last but not least what you own.

In retrospect, riding 86As (and softer) in PRO straight tight SL at the Trocadero is not a mistake. It's a crime.

RFK racetrack in DC is grippier then the Trocadero because it's even. 90A wheels seem poopy on that track. The Trocadero's way faster because of the slope.

Patiently awaiting 94A Cambrias.

[Adam Trahan]

90a's coming my way.

HG is a really nice guy.

He told me about his experiences with Michael Dong's aluminum footblock, he really likes it.

Gees, I call the guy up for some wheels and he talks slalom, he was out back varnishing Dylan's new plank when he got pulled away to come to the phone to take my order.

Anyway, I'm just impressed, what a nice guy and a great wheel company to boot.

[Jani Soderhall]

I don't think there will be any need for a resurfacing of the Trocadero for next year, but there has always been some slight bumps, holes etc in the surface. Normally we manage to set courses to avoid them. When I was there Tuesday I noticed they had left a truck kind of thing on the slope and it had a 1 m wide and long oil spill under it, but until next year, that'll all be forgotten.

If there is a major break in the surface they'll fix it like they have done recently on the right slope (the practice slope). It was less skateable before, but now it is perfect like the other one. You can see that they fixed it with bands (approximately 50 cm wide) going across the street in 3-4 locations, but luckily they were careful when doing it so you can easily ride over the "edges". Lucas run with Kenny filming behind was on that side. Victorias pictures of Vlad taken from the Eiffeltower is also on the right slope.

If Trocadero would be completely resurfaced we'd all worry. Would they ever be able to put such a good surface back again?

What wheels you ride is always a combination of skill, experience, surface and last but not least what you own.

[Etienne de Bary]

i've had a passionate affair with the red wheels, for the 1st time i've had full control of my speed <i>even</i> in le Trocadero,
That is my tuesday session,
a giant full lenght (you'll get one next year), and i ended not having to break ! before that, i could waste a pair of shoes in one night (only one shoe really).

so i first managed to go down as slowly as i could, then i knew i was in control, i started going a bit faster, as usual it's the "very last one then i leave" that ended bad

so i guess the red were perfect for the very slow-full control first runs, not for the a-bit-faster following

The ground is a very old polished tarmac, it's really fast, but not sticky as fresh slick tarmac (and faster than fresh.)
There has been huge fireworks on july 14th, lots of trucks and machines, they left holes. The city administration takes good care of that place, so maybe they will refresh it ? it would be a major change.

in my opinion pros found it sticky enough in tight, it would maybe have been a different story had we a real long giant...

Also i must say we are rather lucky with tarmac in France. Tarmac used for sidewalks and all places closed to cars
is based on Very thin screened stones, and we get used to it.
The ground of Charlety, for instance is much better than the Troca's
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<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: etienne de Bary on 2003-07-24 12:51 ]</font>

[Guest]

john - i agree aboutthe wheels, well the hardnesses to size/shape. It is something I am only learning recently. That there is not only levels of grip from the wheels but different TYPES of grip from wheels. Grip was grip to me in the past but then I got more analytical about why certian wheels ran the way they did and it all fell into place for me.

The trocedero doesn't look like a good avalon" surface to me. Given the types of courses you could fit on it and the speeds it looks better suited for cambrias or flashbacks. In contrast to that the avila or La Costa are NOT cambria friendly places, Da Farm hill can support either but it comes down to course type on that one.

Slalom is one of those things that once you start thinking about it nd analyzing it you end up opening so many OTHERS doors that what seemed simple on the surface no longer is.

Having so many wheels right now to choose from is wonderful. Thank god we no longer have to run stradas everywhere...though strads still do have their uses...and the trocedero looks like one place where a hyper strada is still a good choice for certian courses....as are 97a rollrskate wheels...

hehe.

[John Gilmour]

The Trocadero surface did not seem changed much since I last raced on it in 1995. Perhaps there was a large event that damaged the surface?

The pavement is very fast- faster than one would expect for the same slope.

Mollica's video shows the true speed of the slope and the runs when he shot following runs of Luca. Unfortaunately for the videographers there was not a lot of room with two dual courses set to get a good following angle low and from the side with a wide lens to convey the speed. I think I was within .4 sec of Luca in the parallel yet the runs look much slower due to the camera angles. In order to get the angle Kenny would have had to plow through the spectators (If anyone could do it..) or go in between and risk being pelted by cones from both sides. Kenny had a bad wipeout from doing a following run and injured his foot.

Because of Avalon's width for the same duro they appear harder (less pressure per square inch). So surfaces should be pretty good to run harder Avalons and maintain traction if there are large offsets. Or it could be very hot making the wheels run softer.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: John Gilmour on 2003-07-24 11:37 ]</font>

[Guest]

To add to Howard's post harder wheels are also more predicatable in a slide. They will SLIDE but are easy to judge how much and when to hook them back up. Softer wheels tend to bounce and stick in a slide which makes for a not so fun time.

This is all for slalom too with the lipped wheel like the 3dm cambria/avalon/avila. Downhill and sqaurelipped wheels (abec11 flashbacks, hyper stradas) are another story all together).

I've heard the Paris surface to be the best in the world for slalom? Having seen the DVD I can see where on a windy day the fountains would make the surface "damp" but in general I have had 4 people tell me it is the fastest/grippiest surface they have ever slalomed on...90a + wheels are too soft for it....

Has this changed in2 months?

[Howard Gordon]

Etienne -

On smooth concrete, harder wheels often have better traction because they have less "rebound". In those conditions, softer wheels will start to slide in a strange bouncing manner, while harder duros will not bounce so much and therefore regain traction faster.

Howard

[Etienne de Bary]

it is with a bit of smile i read this, as i just managed to break a tiny piece of bone in my shoulder tuesday night in le Trocadero after an unexpected rear slip, using, ... 74a Avalon, in a kind of ...quite tight giant

Well i dare speak here as a normal rider when i'm really a terrible turtle, but i note that what i read here is a bit contradictory with other things i did read on this same forum a while ago: "chronos had stated: hard Avalon were slower..."

For the Trocadero, i just discovered that there has been one more victim of the contest, which makes 5... the ground is kind of foam when the original stones of the tarmac are gone and only the cement remains, this gives a very fast but rather unreliable ground. Whatsoever it has been injured here and there by machines on 14th july WE and might well be redone before next year, i guess.
To be very honest there was unprecise traces of oil too, and the wind had brought some wet from the fountains, which might really explain my situation, actually.

[Howard Gordon]

We'll run 94a Cambrias in the next batch. I'm not worried about selling them - I know the Italians will take some

Also, we'll run some 78a Avalons for Attila.

[Guest]

ditto to all of vlad's points. Precision trucks (including 8mm axle upgrades on standard trucks) and torsionally stiffer decks are allowing some riders to really push wheel hardness up higher. In most of those cases soft (sub 85a wheels) just don't work given how much energy you can transmit directly to the wheels with a stiff deck (plank, etc) and precision trucks you generate SO much force onto the wheel that soft (sub 85a) wheels just can't take it. Not only are they slower but they actually bounce instead of slide AND tear on the riding surface quickly. That being said there is a point when a wheel gets TOO hard.

However given the Cambria's design I think that "too hard" point is higher than the older strada hub La Costa. By design the 94a cambria is going to be a softer more figiving ride than the 94a La Costas ever were. Not only that but the shape of the wheel is going to give it better grip. Add in the proper deck and truck setups and now youa re really talking.

I think the 94a Cambria is a good semi-hard wheel which can be used for planks in front and back (in some cases) and in front of softer more twisty decks for straighter courses. I think there is room for a 97a Cambria as well, this one could be done is small proto batches given it's major use if for that Italian guy and as a front wheel (in most cases) for the rest of us.

In an ideal world I want to see the following (though I do realize that this probably won't happen);

97, 94, 90, 88, 86, 82, 78, 75 Camrbias

(f/b)
-97a/97a - super smooth surfaces with good grip or parallel slalom on fast hills. Works on HOT surfaces!
-97a/94a - same as above ith extra grip for small offsets
-94a/94a - more room for error than the 97a combo same uses
-94a/90a - all around plank (torsionally stiff/stiff deck) use, handles moderate offsets like velcro even on none perfect surfaces
-90a/90a - the all around "soft" combo good for anything and everything on planks and straight/flat on soft decks
-90a/88a - same as above but rougher surfaces
-88a/88a - sticks like glue and almost anything with stiff decks
-90a/86a - colder surfaces and rougher surfaces
-86a/82a - winter riding and VERY rough surfaces

the softer ones are best for lighter riders, riders who don't generate alot of downforce and super rough surfaces (which probably need avalons anyway)


Until someone makes a 62mm Hyper strada clone WITHOUT the hub the Cambria is the only TS wheel out there. Due to it's design it flat out performs on courses needing alot of side to side grip (see vlad courses) but due to that design it is slower in parallel slalom than the hyper strada design. However if you up the duros of the cambria above 90a you have just made a wheel that can outperform the strada in stright cones. It is still slower edge to edge but the harder urethane makes up for it given it won't deform as much.


I think the Avalon line now in 90a, 85a, 80a, 75a is perfect....you have all your bases covered and nearly everyone is happy with those choices. Given the course types the Avalon performs in you are dialed.


Avilas....I rarely ride them but have found the 80a/76a combo is nice for SGS riding and crusing...


<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Chris Stepanek on 2003-07-02 12:27 ]</font>

[Gary Holl]

I agree, a harder, say 94a Cambria would be nice on the right surface but in terms of selling them...I owuld guess the market would be real small.

On the other hand I cant wait to get some 90A Avalons...with some wheel trimming and they'll be the ticket for a fast hybrid. I think I can here the FedEx truck pulling up with my wheels right now....later.

3dm wheels rule!

[Vlad Popov]

Howard,

I tried 94A La Costas and wanted to use them as front wheels a while ago. But then 90A Cambrias came out. They are as fast (close) as 94A La Costas. So there was no reason to get La Costas anymore.

However, Dr. Gilmour used 94A La Costas to win Da Farm II and to score a podium in Paris.

I would love to have a pair of 94A Cambrias. They might end up being slow-sellers because a) there's not much demand for them and b) they will be used as front wheels by normal people and as rear wheels by one guy from Italy who happens to be beyond the normality range in terms of his physical abilities and slalom skills. And 94A front wheel will last a long long time.

On the other hand, harder wheels are going to win more and more races. Torsionally stiffer and more damp decks, lower camber, redesigned rear truck position and precision trucks along with a constantly rising skill level afford to use 90A and harder wheels in many today’s races. In addition, there are some hills that beg for harder wheels, the Trocadero hill being a perfect example of that.

If you need/want anyone to test 94A Cambrias or prototypes (for grip, use, limits, ect.) before their release, I’m your guy. Or one of them, if there is a line.

Bozi will be harassed for hard Avalons soon.

Vlad.

[Howard Gordon]

Hey, Vlad. I'm getting some requests for harder Cambrias. We poured 94 La Costas a long time ago, but I don't know if you ever had a chance to try those. What do you think abour 94a Cambrias ?

[Vlad Popov]

Finally!

[Howard Gordon]

The new 75mm Avila 72a's are now in stock, plus we also have new 68mm Avalon 90a's.

<img src="http://www.3dm-sport.com/images/avila-72-sm.jpg"><img src="http://www.3dm-sport.com/images/avalon-90-sm.jpg">

Check with our retailers for availability - you'll find a complete dealer list
<a href="http://www.3dm-sport.com/e.html"><img src="http://www.3dm-sport.com/images/3dm_small.gif"></a> here.