Defending Giro d'Italia champion Ryder Hesjedal at the team presentation for the 2013 Giro aboard his Cervélo Rca(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
2013 Scheldeprijs winner Marcel Kittel's Felt F-Series FRD bookends the Argos-Shimano fleet before the start. Actual weight without bottles is 7.50kg (16.53lb).(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
British champion Mark Cavendish on his special issue Specialized S-Works McLaren Venge(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp) carves through a turn at the 2013 Giro d'Italia on his Cervélo Rca(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp) in action during the 2013 Tour de France on his Cervélo Rca(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Thomas Voeckler (Europcar) on his Colnago C59 Italia during the 2013 Tour de France(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Team Europcar on their Colnago C59 Italias during the final stage of the 2013 Tour de France(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Tour de France leader Chris Froome on his team issue Pinarello Dogma 65.1 Think 2(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Team Sky rolled out a yellow edition of the Pinarello Dogma 65.1 Think 2 for Chris Froome's ride into Paris in the yellow jersey.(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Team Belkin was aboard Giant's Propel Advanced SL at the 2013 Tour de France(Image credit: Robin Wilmott)
2013 Amgen Tour of California winner Tejay van Garderen on his BMC SLR01(Image credit: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us)
Fabian Cancellara en route to victory at Tour of Flanders aboard a Trek Domane(Image credit: AFP)
Fabian Cancellara en route to victory at Tour of Flanders aboard a Trek Domane(Image credit: Sirotti)
John Degenkolb's Argos-Shimano Felt F-Series FRD(Image credit: Daniel Simms)
Slovakian champion Peter Sagan on his Cannondale SuperSix EVO Hi-Mod at the Tour of Flanders(Image credit: AFP)
John Degenkolb's Argos-Shimano Felt F-Series FRD(Image credit: Daniel Simms)
Froome’s Dogma 65.1 Think 2 frame is set up for the mountains(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Mark Cavendish's special 100th victory Specialized Venge bike(Image credit: Stephen Farrand)
Mark Cavendish unveiled his special edition Specialized Venge after taking the 100th win of his career at the Giro d’Italia stage 12 in Treviso in May(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Peter Sagan's (Cannondale Pro Cycling) new Cannondale Synapse Carbon Hi-Mod Evo. Cannondale supplies the rising superstar with a custom frame geometry with the more aggressive stack of a 54cm SuperSix Hi-Mod but the reach of a 58cm size.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Peter Sagan’s Cannondale SuperSix Evo Hi-Mod: looking hot in the Corsican sun(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Fabian Cancellara (Radioshack-Nissan-Leopard-Trek) is sticking with his tried-and-true Trek Domane 6-Series for Sunday's Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: James Huang)
The all new BMC SLR01 retains a familiar look but is completely re-engineered(Image credit: BikeRadar)
Thomas Voeckler's Colnago C59 Team Edition(Image credit: Robin Wilmott)
Sprinter Mark Renshaw (Blanco) is using Giant's brand new Propel Advanced SL aero road bike for this year's Tour Down Under.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The Look 695 Aerolight in Pro Team livery(Image credit: Robin Wilmott)
New to the 695 AeroLight is the Look AeroStem – an elegant, more aerodynamic evolution to the angular and brick-like C-Stem. The clamping mechanism is covered under the rubberised flap(Image credit: Robin Wilmott)
The Cervélo RCA represents the pinnacle of what Cervélo engineers can achieve(Image credit: Cervélo)
Specialized managed to topple seven-time winner Cervélo from its perch last year but the king has roared back to claim its eighth title, this time with Garmin-Sharp's ultralight Rca.
The Rca builds on the same engineering-centric design philosophies Cervélo has long used on its popular R-series: stiffness, low weight, and rider comfort. Key features include the so-called 'Squoval' tube profiles, the extra-wide and oversized BBright bottom bracket shell, huge chain stays, and ultra-tiny seat stays.
What makes the Rca model special, though, is that it's built by hand in Cervélo's California design studio by the engineers that designed it, not in some far-off factory overseas. As a result, claimed frame weights hover at an unreal sub-700g, which leaves Garmin-Sharp team mechanics plenty of latitude for some creative builds, such as the pseudo-TT setup used by riders at the USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado.
Such attention to detail doesn't come cheaply, of course, and each Rca frameset carries a price tag of US$10,000 – not that the team riders have to worry about that, of course.
Team Sky's Pinarello Dogma 65.1 Think 2 came in second again this year, despite another dominating performance in the Tour de France this year with Chris Froome. Pinarello can't claim anywhere near the Cervélo Rca's outlandish weight but its curvaceous chassis nevertheless offers one of the most planted and confidence-inspiring personalities we've encountered, plus exceptional ride quality.
Specialized fell to third place this year with its aero-inspired S-Works McLaren Venge. Designed to be a race machine above all else, the deep-profile frame is neither ultralight nor particularly light but then again, that's not the point. The aim here is only to get to the finish line first – and in this field, third place is still pretty good.
Click here for a gallery of all 10 team bikes nominated for the 2013 Reader Poll.
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