The Cipollini RB1000 is the bike that Super Mario himself would ride if he were a pro today. RB=road bike, and 1000 is for the high modulus carbon-fiber cloth used Toray T1000.M46J to be specific. The bike is aero, stiff, and light. From the side, you notice the aero shaping right away. It's sexy and powerful in the way that the best Italian design is. Make no mistake, this is the rare bike that is not only designed, but entirely produced in Italy, from drawings, to molds, to fabrication, to paint. Starting at the nose cone-like head tube, all the frame tubes have been shaped with aerodynamics in mind. The fork and downtube meet seamlessly. The downtube is shaped to curve around the front wheel. Likewise, the seat tube is shaped to shroud the rear wheel. Believing that real-world testing is better than the wind tunnel, Mario took the RB1000 to the track and did two 3,000-meter timed tests at 366watts riding a 53x14 gear, one on a standard road bike, the other on the RB1000. Both bikes were identically equipped and Mario was in the same position. The RB1000 was six seconds faster over the distance, or two seconds a kilometer. It's not only fast, but stiff. As a sprinter, Mario always wanted a stiff bike, the stiffer the better. This is why he found so much success riding on oversized aluminum. But molded carbon-fiber can take stiffness to another level. To show how stiff, Mario did standing starts on a track to test out the differences. He rode a 500-meter standing start on both a standard road bike and the RB1000 identically equipped. While he did both in the same time, the RB1000 needed 68 fewer watts to achieve the same time. The stiffness has a benefit in a second place, climbing. Taking the RB1000 on a steep three-kilometer climb where 20kph is fast, it was ridden and pitted against a road bike that was even lighter. Despite ceding 600g to this other pro-level bike, the RB1000 was faster to the tune of one second per kilometer. To make sure this was correct, this test was run three times with each bike, and always the result was the same. It's more than just tube shaping and carbon-fiber plies that contribute to the stiffness of the RB1000. The 1 1/8" tapered head tube with oversized 1 1/4" to 1 1/2" bearings helps stiffen the fork, the BB386evo bottom bracket is part of keeping the cranks stiff: It's a new standard that takes the best of BB86 and BB30 and mashes them together for greater compatibility: all thru-axle cranks should work with it—if you want out-of-this world stiffness, opt for a 30mm thru-axle crank. The integrated seat mast with a carbon-fiber clamp sitting top the mast is shaped for both aerodynamics and stiffness. Even though it's integrated, you've still got 3cm of adjustment and 20mm of setback. If you choose to build your bike with electronic shifting, there's enough room to hide a battery in here, though you can also mount it to the bottom of the downtube if that's your preferred position. Likewise, whether, it's cables or wires, they run internally on the RB1000. The geometry is fairly aggressive for a road racing bike, so the bike will feel as fast as it rides. As this is Cipollini's pro-level bike, and the tool his team took to the Giro d'Italia, it has dimensions that a fit racer will find normal; they didn't need to slam their stems or put on 140mm stems to get to their happy place. The Cipollini RB1000 is the realization of what Mario Cipollini longed for, but could never find as a racer. Because of his vision, you can experience what the Lion King only dreamed of.
