Techs-Mechs: Random thoughts on the road to Hell

I have always loved the insider tech pieces that circulate this time of the year (although I haven't really seen a ton yet) regarding all the modified pro bikes for the cobbled classics.  The courses of Flanders certainly will keep the hair-trigger climbing bikes in the garage but Paris-Roubaix is an entirely different animal altogether.  Virtually flat, the racers approach the over-50km of bone-rattling/bike breaking cobbles at high rates of speeds.  An early mechanical might not be a death sentence but once you hit the Forest, only the very strongest can ride back in to contention if an equipment failure occurs.  Riders will opt for larger tires (up to 27mm wide) tradtional rims and frames with longer stays and wheel bases.  BUT this year the weather looks like it will be a dry and fast(er) day.  I suspect we will see fewer modified 'cross bikes and more traditional road bikes.  

One trend that seems to be catching on is the use of wider tubular rims.  Normal road rims are 19-20mm in width however Zipp, Bonti and other companies are offering deep carbon rims some as wide as 25mm.  The wider rim is designed to provide better tire performance, strength and a larger gluing surface.  Hed has offered this design for years but others are following suit.  Could this spell the end of Ambrosio Nemesis' from the Northern Classics?   

Will the improvements in carbon technology combined with dry road surface mean we may see more traditional road bikes and tires than in Roubaix' past?  Gearing will typically be 53/44 or 53/46t cranks with 11-21 clusters (not much climbing on Sunday..) and riders will still opt for alloy bars and stems but what more will separate Sunday's bikes from the ones they will use the rest of the month in the Ardennes?  

Walking around the pits of Rouabix post-race last year, I noted 24mm-27mm tires were the standards, and I did see some canti brakes and more relaxed frames (Liquigas pit was half Cannondale Super Six frames and half Synapse which is their comfort frame).  Will Saxo and HTC be on Specialized Tarmac SL3's, Roubaix's or McLaren Venge aero frames?  What will Garmin-Cervelo be on?  Tyler likes the aero S3, but will Thor be on the more comfortable R3 or the even more comfy RS (which was popular in the Roubaix pits last year).  

Anyhow, I will be enjoying the tech talk almost as much as the race and would love to hear from some of you tech-savvy folks about what to expect on Sunday.