{"id":26568,"date":"2025-01-07T00:27:04","date_gmt":"2025-01-06T23:27:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/challengefamily.com\/?post_type=news&p=26568"},"modified":"2025-01-13T21:19:36","modified_gmt":"2025-01-13T20:19:36","slug":"handling-matters","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.challenge-family.com\/challenge-family\/news\/handling-matters\/","title":{"rendered":"Handling Matters"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Quintana Roo V-PRi (and V-PR) are the best-handling bikes in triathlon. Pro triathlete Jon Breivold explains why handling matters, and how it helps him achieve faster bike splits and better results. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tri bikes handle poorly\u2014<\/em>some triathletes just accept this statement as a fact of life. I’m not sure why, but they just do. Triathlon bikes may be designed with aero supremacy in mind, but when it comes to handling, most tend to move like an elephant. They\u2019re not very nimble and can get a bit scary when hurtling toward a tight corner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It doesn\u2019t have to be that way though! For Quintana Roo, good handling is always a top priority. To achieve it, our engineers work with our best athletes, like former Norwegian domestic pro road racer turned pro triathlete Jon Breivold, to ensure our triathlon bikes provide the same comfort and confidence on technical courses as a good road bike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First of all, what do we mean by \u201chandling?\u201d If you have a road bike, the riding position and geometry are generally designed to make it feel easy and intuitive to lean into corners, navigate roundabouts, and carve quickly through switchbacks. Imagine the type of riding you see the Tour de France racers doing on big mountain descents. These types of bikes are engineered to feel fast and confidence-inspiring in corners. They have good handling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conversely, you may notice that most tri bikes don\u2019t handle like a road bike\u2014at all. While tri bikes can easily hold a straight line while you\u2019re in the aerobars, they\u2019re not as good (and in some cases, downright terrible and even a bit scary) at changing directions. They tend to resist quick movements and feel hesitant when diving into tight corners, switchbacks, or avoiding road hazards. Instead, tri bikes often want to carve a wide, lazy path around a turn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Truth be told, that kind of handling is fine\u2014and even ideal\u2014for a flat out-and-back course. Without any technical challenges, it\u2019s okay for steering (especially in the aerobars) to be dulled to make it easier for many triathletes\u2014especially beginners\u2014to ride.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What if we aren\u2019t racing on a simple out-and-back? That same rider needs to slow down more before corners to allow the bike to do its thing\u2014even if we want<\/em> it to respond faster. After all, we\u2019re racing, right? We don\u2019t want to hit the brakes because of the bike\u2019s deficiency; we want to attack the course and set ourselves up as best we can for the run.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enter the V-PRi, and its predecessor, the V-PR. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quintana Roo surmised that a triathlon bike didn\u2019t have<\/em> to handle like an 18-wheeler. So QR engineers designed a triathlon bike with handling closer to that of a road bike; a bit faster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we designed the V-PRi and V-PR (and by proxy, the X-PR), handling was always at the forefront of the design\u2014a rarity in triathlon. By adjusting the fork rake and using a carbon fiber frame lay-up that emphasizes compliance and stiffness without excess material to weigh the bike down, we created a tri bike that can enter corners quickly and intuitively, and track through both fast and tight corners with confidence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The V-PR was the first bike Jon Breivold rode (in 2022 and \u201823) and it was his secret weapon on technical race courses, where responsive handling was rewarded. As an all-around talent with a penchant for climbing and skills on the TT bike with the Norway-based Fixit.no domestic pro road team in 2016 and 2017, Breivold has the skills and experience to appreciate and articulate for us the value of a tri bike that feels like an extension of your body.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA lot of people don\u2019t think much about the handling of a triathlon bike,\u201d Breivold explained. \u201cBut because I have a road cycling background, I knew it was important to get the best out of every bike split. I do think there are some triathletes that don\u2019t have the experience of what good handling on a triathlon bike feels like and lose a lot of time. It\u2019s really important.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy first few years racing triathlon I had a bike and to be perfectly honest, I didn\u2019t trust it much on the downhills,\u201d Breivold adds. \u201cIt just didn\u2019t have any handling; getting around corners and switchbacks was really slow, and it actually reduced one of my advantages, which is attacking the bike. I raced in Andorra my first year as a pro, and it was the first time I\u2019d considered racing triathlon on a road bike.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Breivold joined forces with Quintana Roo, however, he piloted the V-PR for the first time and came away amazed. \u201cThe V-PR was really fast\u2014quick around corners. I rode the V-PR at Challenge Sanremo, which in my opinion is the most technical course you can have in triathlon\u2014you climb 1,000 meters in the race and descend a super technical downhill with, like, 50 hairpins. It\u2019s the kind of course I love.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the technical Challenge Sanremo course, Breivold came away with the second-fastest bike split of the day (by just a few seconds) and netted a fourth-place overall result <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI know a lot of people like to choose a road bike on courses like that, but I was so glad to have the V-PR. I got the aerodynamic benefits when it was possible, but was able to really ride the descents as fast as I wanted and was fast around corners. That\u2019s really important to me, and I think it should be a consideration for any triathlete that wants the fastest bike split they can achieve.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the V-PRi? Breivold says Quintana Roo\u2019s new flagship model \u201ctakes it to the next level.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I see courses or do races where the route is challenging, with lots of hairpins and technical descents, I always think about whether it\u2019ll be better to choose a road bike or a tri bike. With the V-PRi though, I always have the best bike as the right choice. It\u2019s fast, and adds a level of stability and control. Overall, it\u2019s truly the best bike for all courses.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So is handling important? Always! Especially if you\u2019re competing on a course in Roth, the hinterland climbs and descents of Sanremo, Gran Canaria, St. Polten, or the Austrian Alps at Kaiserwinkl-Walchsee. With the Quintana Roo V-PRi and V-PR, you\u2019ll have the ultimate triathlon bike for big alpine climbs and tight roads.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Quintana Roo V-PRi (and V-PR) are the best-handling bikes in triathlon. Pro triathlete Jon Breivold explains why handling matters, and how it helps him achieve faster bike splits and better results.  Tri bikes handle poorly\u2014some triathletes just accept this statement as a fact of life. I’m not sure why, but they just do. Triathlon […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":120,"featured_media":26569,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26568","news","type-news","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nHandling Matters - Challenge Family<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Pro triathlete Jon Breivold explains why bike handling matters, and how it helps him achieve faster bike splits and better results\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.challenge-family.com\/challenge-family\/news\/handling-matters\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Handling Matters - Challenge Family\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Pro triathlete Jon Breivold explains why bike handling matters, and how it helps him achieve faster bike splits and better results\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.challenge-family.com\/challenge-family\/news\/handling-matters\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Challenge Family\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-01-13T20:19:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.challenge-family.com\/challenge-family\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/75\/2025\/01\/3d98282b-a32d-4f9d-850d-f15fcb89c599.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.challenge-family.com\/challenge-family\/news\/handling-matters\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.challenge-family.com\/challenge-family\/news\/handling-matters\/\",\"name\":\"Handling Matters - 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