Rare is the Pro Tour team that has not one or two, but three road bikes for the team to choose between. And that's just what Team BMC has for their squad that includes 2009 world champ Cadel Evans and 2009 U.S. national champ George Hincapie. Both riders started the year on different bikes (Cadel the all-carbon Pro Machine, George the Aluminum/carbon Racer SLX), but then the new Team Machine showed up at their training camp (RBA, May '10) and from the looks of it, the switch was on. First George jumped on the new bike for Paris Roubaix and then Cadel used his to race and win Fleche Wallone. New to the peloton and already with some major podium time to it's credit, what's the story with the new 2010 Team Machine?


George Hincapie attempts to chase down the leaders at the Tour of Flanders on a Team Machine.
Photo: Yuzuru Sunada

BMC’s “Tuned Compliance Concept” is the basis for their frame design, which seeks to optimize the ride quality through strategic use of different types of carbon and frame tube shapes. The Team Machine shares the signature triangulated seat/top tube frame section and dropped seat stay design as BMC’s other pro offerings. From the stepped seat stay yoke to the relief on the backside of the seatpost, all the frame features evoke a sense of purpose over style. Although under the plain black guise the BMC frame looks pretty straightforward, it is actually a collection of shaped tubes, each designed specifically for the job at hand. There’s no part of the BMC frame that isn’t worth gawking at.

The best way to look at the BMC frame is when the sun shines on the uni-directional carbon tubes. On both the fork and chainstays, you can see 3K carbon wrap that has been applied as part of BMC’s “weave compliance.” Just short of being defined as “massive,” the box section chainstays are still of ample size, as they taper to carbon dropouts and are in stark contrast to the pencil-thin seat stays. As is common with the majority of pro-level bikes today, the BMC runs with a tapered head tube, a BB30 bottom bracket, bonded cable guides and a replaceable derailleur hanger.

THE PARTS
Unlike the full Easton spec found on the BMC team bikes, our test bike rolled on Shimano Dura-Ace carbon 1380 wheels. Official BMC team spec parts included an Easton EC90 stem and bars, and a Selle Italia saddle. We remain impressed with BMC’s proprietary Streampost seatpost. With its internal expander design, the seatpost is a wonder of simplicity that, by no longer necessitating a traditional seat binder, maximizes weight savings while providing sheer ease in function. The only downside is that the post is a dedicated shape and design, so aftermarket choices are limited to it.

THE RIDE
Much like the carbon/aluminum RaceMaster we tested previously the Team Machine exhibited excellent cornering prowess. In fact, the bike’s purest sense of performance was exhibited one particular day as we descended the notoriously tight, curvy and off-camber Decker Canyon Road (which will be used for the final stage of the Tour of California). This is a treacherous descent, but the BMC proved both courageous and capable in attacking each of the corners, holding its line and efficiently sprinting towards the next challenge. In a word, brilliant.

An area where the ride quality differed from the hybrid RaceMaster was in comfort. Despite specific frame features that BMC says were designed to maximize comfort (stepped fork crown, dropped seat stays and a turned-down seatpost), the Team Machine had a consistently sharp feel over rough road sections. We swapped out the wheels and found some relief, but in terms of sheer bump force transmission through the handlebars, “comfort” wasn’t a word that leapt to mind.