Training Rides of the Pros: Adam Cianciarulo's Specialized S-Works Tarmac 14

It may not have an engine, but it's trick as can be and still on two wheels

The majority of motocross pros have some sort of bicycle in their garage for training, and wether it be a mountain or road bike...quite a few are pretty trick, even by cycling standards. We had a chance to shoot Adam Cianciarulo's latest ride, after we delivered it to him as a surprise from Specialized. Scroll below to learn more about the bike, a little bit about the brand, and a quick video with AC.

Specialized is fairly recognizable in the motocross industry, due partially to the sheer number of pros swinging a leg over their bikes. While some, such as Adam Cianciarulo, are directly supported by them; many others just choose their bikes due to two things...the quality of the bikes and the down-right cool factor with the red "S". Specialized got its earliest start in 1974, when Morgan Hill, California's Mike Synard sold his VW bus to gather cash to cycle around Europe. While there, he struck up a deal to import rare high-end bicycle components by Cinelli. Things took off from there as the company started selling tires in '76 and finally their first road bike the Allez in '79 (a model which still exists today, albeit quite few generations of designs from then). Finally, the biggest milestone in the companies past was the introduction of the first mass-produced mountain bike, the StumpJumper, in '81. Since then, the company has grown tremendously with over 1,000 employees and multiple offices around the world. But the main HQ is still in Morgan Hill, just a couple miles from the original home of Fox Racing. Over the years there's been a close tie with motocross as many employees, both past and present, have come from the moto industry and with that the company is a strong supporter of the sport. In this time, they've worked with some of the royalty of our sport; including Johnny O'Mara, Bob Hannah, Ricky Carmichael, Ryan Dungey and more...

(Scroll below all the bikes photos for an interview with Specialized's Sean Estes about their involvement in motocross)

Video - Surprising Adam Cianciarulo with a Specialized S-Works Tarmac

We had a little fun helping Specialized get this bike into Adam Cianciarulo's hands at a recent media event in California.

 

Adam Cianciarulo's 56cm Specialized S-Works SL-6 Tarmac Disc is actually an off-the-shelf model, albeit the highest end version of the Tarmac that Specialized sells. S-Works signifies the top level build for all of Specialized's carbon framed bikes and it typically includes the best-of-the-best in components. Specialized is well known for making most of their own components; meaning things like the cranks, tires bars, saddles, and more are all Specialized branded...even the wheels, Rovals, is a company owned by Specialized. There's only two brands on the bike that aren't theirs; the drivetrain, controls, shifters and brakes are from Shimano. Then there's the rear derailleur cage and larger pulley wheels made by SLF Motion, which is owned by one of our own forum members: MOTO120

As mentioned in the short history lesson above, one of Specialized's original products was tires. Which they still produce today and are considered some of the best in the industry.

The usual Specialized branding is swapped for the "S-Works" logo to signify a different level/make-up and carbon used throughout the frame.

Shifting is handled by Shimano's best, their Dura-Ace Di2. The Di moniker stands for electronic shifting and running a small wire from the hoods down to the front and rear derailleur, Shimano actuates each to do their job just by a small press of the paddles. The right side triggers control the rear shifting while the two triggers on the left hood control the front cog shifting.

AC hit quite the growth spurt since he turned pro, thus the 56cm frame.

Get with the times! Disc brakes are relatively new to road bikes and in the past two-to-three years have taken up the majority of sales and development from manufacturers. The last generation SL-5 Tarmac had a disc version introduced later into its lifespan while the new SL-6 frame had a version built around disc brakes.

Roval was originally a French company, purchased by Specialized back in 2005 to give them their own in-house wheel brand. Since then the brand was revamped and slowly upgraded, now sitting as a legit contender at the top of the wheel market in both road and mountain. This S-Works Tarmac comes standard with their 50mm dished wheels, called the CLX 50s.

Specialized makes their own bars and stems with multiple levels available. Of course, their top of the line versions carry the S-Works label as well.

Roval even makes their own hub bodies, stuffed with DT Swiss 240 internals and ceramic bearings.

Out back there's a 11-30 Shimano Dura-Ace cassette, the largest spread in the DA range.

The only parted swapped over from the top-of-the-line S-Works build was the rear derailleur cage and pulleys, which we swapped out for a HSS (Hyper-Speed System) from SLF Motion. The large pulleys with ceramic bearings and the longer cage allow for a straighter run of the chain after leaving the cassette and offer less resistance...which equals more watts from the rider! (AKA more power and speed with less effort)

#FlipFlopLife


Slideshow: Specialized Bicycles and Motocross

 

Check out Specialized's range of bikes

Learn more about Retul

Follow Adam Cianicarulo on Instagram

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