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A TT Concept, The Million Dollar Bike and Something Else
2008-06-07 22:14:00
1. The recent edition of the RBA Mag featured a section on a future time trial bike concept. As the RBA staff looked back at time trial bikes from the last 20 years or so, they were left wondering what the future might hold.So here's their take on the future, among which are hydraulic disc brakes, integrated everything, electronic shifting and an imaginative internal drinking system for the rider. Take a look...2. Big thing on the news right now is that Dutch bike maker Koga Miyata has built the ultimate bike for track champion, Theo Bos for his Olympic run. Watch a Reuters based video of the bike here. It costs a little over 580,000 Euros. Since the dollar is sucking bad, if you do the math, that number comes around to 1 million dollars.Bike with the lowest air resistance in the world??From what I read, this bike was in the making for 3.5 years or so, during which they ran multiple wind tunnel tests and hired folks who had previously worked on the Ariane 5 Space rocket progra...
More About: Dollar , Million , Concept

Economic Cycling Stimulation
2008-06-05 21:52:00
Rich Uncle Sam and his IRS drinking buddies are sending everyone a tax rebate check this June.Oh boy, here they come with more band-aids. "Dude, but did you know I have malaria?!"You see, its like a feedzone in a long hilly road race on a hot hot day.Your water bottles are empty and someone hands you a cold drink after 70 miles of painful work. You go another 10 more, and you're still tired, managing a snail's 10mph pace.Well, turns out the big underlying problem is not thirst, its fatigue! Your urine was a weird shade of brown this morning, arrhythmic heart beats are putting bad techno music to shame, the legs are like powerless twigs in a 90mph gust, and your tongue seems like the drought ridden soil of Somalia.Basically, you are going to die so get off the damn bike already.Or.. its like a thick and mercilessly wrapped handlebar tape to solve your wrists' accumulating problems, when the fundamental fitting technique you used on the bike in the first place was completely flawed...
More About: Fun , Cycling , Economic , Perspectives

An All-Automatic CVT Based Bicycle
2008-06-04 06:38:00
Personally, I'm not much interested in wanting to have an all-auto bike. Maybe its nice to have one in my collection, if such a contraption ever exists, just for the kicks. But the very notion of riderless shifting is sort of repelling to me. But all people aren't like me, so its okay. Its nice to be sensitive to everyone when you're out to design something.A month or two back, I had written a post called "New Ideas for Cycling Products". It was mostly science fiction, which I admitted. It was fun though.Well it seems like I missed out on the All-Automatic Bicycle , a bike that thinks and shifts on its own without the rider's mechanical involvement at the handlebars.This daydreaming of mine is based on a post on Ari's blog, pointed out to readers by James' Bicycle Design. Ari calls it "The NuFixie challenge : Can you build a 'fixed effort' bicycle?"I want to take a small dab at this. Nothing is too technical or specific. I'm beating around the bush but I hope you see where i...
More About: Modern

Car Crash, Art of Peeing, Djamolidine Abdoujaparov & More..
2008-06-03 08:32:00
1. First off, check this latest CNN story out. A car with a sleepy, intoxicated driver plows into a road race at the U.S - Mexico border. 1 dead, 10 injured, and we are left with a striking picture of recklessness, injury and death all perfectly frozen in time. Some pictures silently give you a nudge pointing to you how dangerous cycling in traffic could get. This one though, literally gave me a push and had me gaping in shock.2. I was alerted to a review of my blog from none other than Competitive Cyclist. Says CC :(2) The Cozy Beehive is another daily delight for us. The King Bee clearly has a serious engineering background, but in place of wonkiness he demystifies & educates on the design elements of high-end bike gear. He's like your favorite college professor: He's full of brains, enthusiasm, and joy for the subject matter. He has a remarkable ability to triangulate the engineering qualities, marketing efforts, and practical benefits of cool bike products.I had a nice l...
More About: Modern , Crash

BBC Boston/Colden Part 2
2008-06-03 01:45:00
Contd from Part 1BBC Boston /ColdenMay 25Result : 14th in the Cat4/5 raceIt was a nice day for racing on the 25th of last month. The course loop was short but quite hilly, some sections being particularly steep. The B race did the loop some 3 times.One road was a fun, crazy downhill where I reached 60mph on two occasions. To top that with some danger, there was a railroad track running diagonally across the road! On the first lap going down that road, I lost my water bottle. Thats okay. I was safe on the bike. Phew.. You really have to come to these races prepared with good bike handling skills and a confident mindset. Otherwise, you're in for a nasty medical treat.Course ProfileI came to the race with not much training as I had other things to do that previous week. Still, I thought it was nice that I was able to get on with a breakaway group early in the race, when we dropped pretty much half the field right then and there.My friend Dave Horn attacked right off the bat, going up t...

BBC Boston/Colden Part 1
2008-06-03 00:59:00
Image Dump-nationBoston /Colden Race (Buffalo Bicycling Club)May 25, 200830 miles2500-3000 ft of climbing Results in Part 2Very nice and bright morning in BostonRace organizer Duane W. (sitting)I carpooled to the race with fellow UB-er Dave Van Horn. He would later win the race.Bike check, bike check...Its nice to see everyone from the South towns riding and racing..Dave smiles after owning everybodySomeone took a bad spill (downhill?)Local champs (from left) - Dave Horn, Cameron Townsend and Dr. Steven Brooks (Phd at UB's Microbiology HQ)View results in part 2. NEXT MORNING.....I go for a 2 hour mountain biking session. I miss the other side of the grass (no pun intended).Hunter's Creek, decent place to do some serious MTBA map of Hunter's Creek. If you don't know your way around, its easy to get confused...Me with a nice bike to ride for the day, courtesy of good friend Larry Mordue from WNYMBAVery beautiful, technical trails

Why Rapha is 'Made in China'
2008-06-01 21:50:00
Attention : This maybe a spoiler for some but there are reasons to change the mindset.UK based Rapha is made in China . Now its easy to get all offensive about that. China, while competitive, has also shown in the past how to make poor quality products, sometimes even dangerous to health.Well, if you're thinking just in terms of manufacturing costs, yes, products should be cheap.But there's more to the story. Think about it. There are many luxury brands out there that are made in China but they get back home here or elsewhere and are slapped with the most insane prices one'll ever see. I hear one of them is Banana Republic. They're so expensive for the common man that one can sell his house and sit on the street with a new BR Tuxedo.One side of the truth is how you market yourself, who your customer base is, what your product is and what materials it uses, and knowing that someone will pay that much for it.Seriously, Rapha seems very much for the upper high class cycling enthusia...
More About: Made , Manufacturing , Made In China

An Open Letter to Velo News : The Journal of Competitive Men
2008-06-01 00:14:00
..Dear Velo News ,I'm sick of seeing man after man after man across the pages of your commercial "Journal of Competitive Cycling".Now I'm not what you call a long term reader of your magazine, but wanting to see what all the fuss, gloss and color are about, I picked up two copies from the local supermarket during grocery shopping, over a period of maybe 2-3 weeks.If you want to know how bad this problem is, here, I inspected two issues from the recent past, Vol 37, no. 7 and 8 dated April 29 and May 13.In 98 pages of no.7 above, 2 teeny weeny sections on 2 pages were devoted to female pros.In 110 pages of no. 8 above, one, I repeat, just one page was devoted to women.Whats worse, it was an ad for Continental tires that featured two of the most ugliest, wicked looking, fattest women I have seen in my entire life. It beats me how they can promote tires!After seeing that, I had to puke my Cliff Bars out, the only time I have ever thrown up such magnificent food.If this is some weird p...
More About: Open , Letter , Open Letter

The Foxy Win
2008-05-31 09:12:00
"According to Visconti, Voigt was also complaining that he didn?t feel good. When the German attacked, they didn?t believe he?d have the legs to hold off a chase...." - VelonewsPhoto Courtesy : Philippo Monteforte (AFP)
More About: Tactics , Foxy

Guido Belcanto Sings for Pantani
2008-05-30 20:38:00
Dove posso comprare un album? ...poco homoerotic ma la relativa approvazione!! Hehe...Old video. Guido travels all the way to sing a song. Pretty touching and fun, but the late Pantani had to put up with this after a stage on the Cipressa. I would be eating+sleeping!!! Btw, Pantani could sing you know. I posted one before. Happy weekending, ya'll!Marco PantaniUploaded by burnie87
More About: Fun , Music , Sings

Cycling and Relationships : A Tough Question
2008-05-30 07:12:00
Suppose : Your new life partner, apple of your eye, but obviously not as crazy as you about cycling, tests your commitment in relationship. One day, in a very serious tone, he or she asks you to drop your passion altogether. Its either him/her or bicycles, not both. Its a one way street.You've finally found a perfect mate after years, but cycling is another thing that keeps you alive. How will you reply and act? Will you do the obvious - say yes and keep riding (hehe) or will you give in, either to your urges or their demands .Many, if not some, may already have gone through this situation. Because lets face it - serious cycling is a lot of investment in time. If you have not realized that by now, I don't know what to tell you. You don't necessarily have to be pro to decide to do every race in the local calender or ride 10,000 miles every year, not including the hours that go in training, preparation, reading cycling blogs and magazines, watching bike races and hunting for new eq...
More About: Relationships , Question , Cycling , Tough , Perspectives

Feel It
2008-05-29 13:33:00
Whatever you are looking for in life, include your two wheeled companion on the journey.Chill with Schiller.
More About: Music , Feel It , Feel , Relaxation

The PRO Mechanic
2008-05-29 06:57:00
So you want to be a PRO mechanic?Afterall, someone's got to do it.Boy, how do I even start telling of the wondrous things they do?Like a woman is behind a successful man, mechanics complement the riders with their talents.You NEED the energy to go, whenever, wherever. "Problem on his bike? No problem. Where? Middle of the peleton? 12% gradient? No problem, give me the job."When riders sleep, you prepare their equipment, wash their bikes, grease its bearings, lube the chain.You know torque specs like they were on the back of your fingers. You inspect sprocket wear and remember everyone's favorite saddle height. Not a millimeter more, not a millimeter less.Like the rider is fond of the bike, the bike is your baby too. You put it to function, gave it that white handlebar tape, put the shine on the chain and the gloss on the top tube.You adorned her with cables and cut it to perfect length and saw that the brakes kissed the rim perfectly.The words "straight", "length" and "centered" a...
More About: Fun , Mechanic , Perspectives

Wolf SL Fork Failure
2008-05-28 20:11:00
How it happened (described by user) : "Wolf SL (all carbon) on a Cervelo Soloist Carbon. About 8,200 miles on the fork. Installed per instructions with the epoxied aluminum insert at a reputable shop (bought new at my LBS). VERY short (I run no spacers at all). FSA OS 115 stem torqued to spec. 155-165# rider. Stopped at an intersection, heading for some hill riding (Indian hill area of course for the Cincy peeps). Started and torqued the bars some to get a jump through the intersection at the green light - SNAP! Down, right in the middle of the intersection. Just about got ran over by the minivan behind me (tire about 2 inches from my leg). Didn't know what happened."Long Story Short : Steerer tube on a Cervelo TT bike failed where an aluminum insert ended, at the top of the headset. Cervelo doesn't apparently make these forks, True Temper/ Alpha Q does for the former party. The Al insert didn't extend past the upper headset. There was a difference of opinion between the companie...
More About: Failure , Modern

Pedaling History Bicycle Museum
2008-05-27 18:47:00
For those of you cyclists who do come up here to Western NY, you should definitely visit Pedaling History , the world's largest bicycle museum. Its just 15 or 20 miles from where I live, maybe we can meet up and catch a cup of coffee too?Anyway, watch curator Carl Burgwardt (also a retired Buffalo executive) give us a sweet introduction to historical bicycles with an excellent video, courtesy of River Wired TV. (It may take a little while to load but you can try refreshing the page or click the direct link here)
More About: Classic , Museum , Bicycle

Plan de Corones - Giro d'Italia 2008 Stage 16 TT
2008-05-27 10:50:00
What : A never before used 8 mile uphill GRINDER with almost 3600 feet of climbing.In Layman's Terms Please ? : "Hmm. let?s see? why don?t we start off with a gentle 16% hump leading up to a moderate 20% incline and finish up the stage on a 24% gravel road?" - Velo go goIdeal Road Surface : Must be a little wet. Too wet or too dry both will result in loss of traction.Gearing Used (Pro only!) : Bettini went with 34 x 28 T, Leipheimer apparently chose the same too - Cycle ToDanilo Di Luca, after a scout on the climb earlier this year, immediately said 34 x 29 T was ideal for him - EuroSport Gearing (homely humans) - Multiply above with any number greater than 1.A Nice PreviewVideo courtesy : HolimitesActual Stage 16 (English Coverage)GIRO THE ITALIA 16.etapaUploaded by miha2007Video Courtesy : Miha2007
More About: Plan , Races , Giro , 2008

Meet USA Cycling President Mark Abramson
2008-05-27 10:17:00
Picture courtesy : Cycling NewsNow I've seen Mark Abramson a number of times in some of my collegiate Easterns. I was pretty surprised when I learnt that he took over the new role this March (Read this cyclingnews article). I think his personality and passion for the sport will fit very well for the governing body of cycling in this country. Congratulations!I didn't tell many people this but I'll put it out here anyway. Funny resemblance, and sometimes a little scary - When Abramson puts on his sunglasses, he has this uncanny ability to look like Lance Armstrong. You won't tell the difference from the crowd. I've been fooled pretty well on a couple of occasions.
More About: President , Buzz , Meet , Advocacy

Swisstop GHP Pad Testing
2008-05-26 06:18:00
What : Green High Performance (GHP) - Green compound the rubber mixture of the superlative for all aluminum and ceramic rims. Excellent brake power in dry conditions and unbeatable in rain. Very low pad and rim wear. [From Manufacturer's Site]Who : Swiss Stop pads are made by a Swiss company named Rex Articoli SA. Their 70 years of experience in technical compounds allows them to produce brake pads with highly fine tuned performance characteristics. Swiss Stop pads have superior stopping power, low pad-wear rates, very linear brake response, and a smooth, quiet performance. [Competitive Cyclist]Below are test setups to measure pad co-efficient of friction. The facility is able to simulate wet conditions as well. Brake pad wear is measured to within 1/100 gram accuracy. Courtesy WorldClassCycles.I'm wondering how they make these pads but ingredients are often closely guarded manufacturing secrets.
More About: Testing

'Wheel-Ax' with Mozart
2008-05-24 02:32:00
I'm going to try and steer some interesting articles to the blog next week. But for now, I bring to you Mozart . Tada! While cycling is refreshing, adding long mileages and high intensity work outs week after week can be stressful too.I put together some of Mozart's pieces here. Ideas were taken from the "Strengthen the Mind" CD, one in Don Cambell's "Music for the Mozart Effect" Collection. Whether it be for a relaxing pre-nap session, clarity in thinking, visualizing your victory in the next big race on the calender, or gaining the confidence to go downhill at 70mph (see Bugno and music therapy), this will do some good or plenty of good. Approach with an open mind. You can top all this with some deep, belly breathing to make things more interesting. Credits to IMEEM.And you could tell me how it went after all that. Ciao amici!1. Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major, K216 (Allegro)Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major, K216--Anne-Sophie Mutter, violin, and conducting the London ...
More About: Wheel , Relaxation

Rim Heating During Hard Braking
2008-05-22 03:58:00
While I don't know "how-much" brake shoe fins may help for their intended design (whatever that is), a general increase in surface area should aid heat dissipation/transfer to the air. I love it when readers help me fill my own limited knowledge. Take a look at the comments beside yesterday's post on brake shoe fins. See if you can come up with some more "possible" uses. :)However, the subject of heat production in rims is real. I realize that a few riders out there may still not have come to terms with this. Allow me to wander and bore you.Think of a 15% gradient downhill slope, narrow and curvy. Now think about your total weight,speed,drag co-efficient yada yada. Think about 60+ mph. Now think a sorry looking deer popping out of no-where just 200m in front of you. Rapid deceleration needed or you and the deer won't make it. Either deer will end up inside you or you'll end up inside the deer through the wrong side and it'll make for an interesting news article.Picture a sorry ...
More About: Hard , Heating , Perspectives

Form and Function
2008-05-21 07:31:00
From Villin Cycle Works, FL. Very nice.
More About: Modern , Form , Function , Bling Bling

Brake Pad Friendliness And The Splintering Bell Sweep
2008-05-21 06:45:00
1. Little things make a difference for different people. Sometimes, these little things go unnoticed. As an example, look at those protrusions on this Jagwire brake pad holder. One wonders what possible use could two shark fin like elements contribute to cycling enjoyment.Well, it turns out that only when you begin to install conventional brake pads do you realize the slight effort needed to hold it in place at the brake bracket while tightening the screw and washer with an Allen key.One of the sillier uses for these little things is that they let you hold on to something to keep the shoe with the pad in place while you're tightening the screw. Some kind of human factors engineering right there.2. I love my Bell Sweep R helmet.Used for less than a season, I was disappointed when things started falling off its shell as I inspected it this morning. Like this piece of foam!What the hell? Are you kidding me? It has never taken a spill, not even dropped, neither do I have huge ugly fing...

Why I ride?
2008-05-21 06:27:00
"I ride because life is too easy when all you have to do is push the gas pedal down and turn the heat up to the last notch on the dial."- Luke Harris, cyclist (courtesy RBA)
More About: Ride

Cardboard Bicycle
2008-05-20 00:59:00
Talk about going green! Ryan Perkins of Pacific SouthWest Container made this cardboard single speed from a PDF CAD drawing done on Bike Forest Pro. Excellent craftsmanship and attention to detail, I must say.Now if you have to ride it, you'll have to go on one of Carmichael's diet program. Or you know what'll happen. It is also so lightweight that to effectively lock it in place, you'll need two 500 kilogram weights on each side of the fork as shown in the picture. One will not do since it'll mangle the fork on one side and then the bike will only go round and round. Okay, wait...they're made out of cardboard too. (Jeez, that poor bike is being raped by chains)Jk..See more pictures at the Bike Forest Blog.
More About: Fun , Cardboard , Bicycle

How Bicycle Helmets Are Made
2008-05-19 21:39:00
In a previous post, we looked at how bicycle helmets protect the head. Now lets look at how they're produced. Surely any helmet design will look good on paper but effectively manufacturing it under cost and time constraints is entirely another thing. But I must admit I have something against the way that shell and foam are attached, as in taped (watch the video)! Of course, there are other ways to piece them together. Bell uses what they term 'co-molding'. That drop test also seems insufficient, keeping in mind the many scenarios in which a cyclist can crash. Video courtesy of user RameshKumar123.Now one wonders how popular cycling helmets out there are so expensive. Does R&D and testing take up the costs or are there more factors involved? And what is so state-of-the-art about the latest research on bicycling helmets? Isn't the same knowledge used pretty much year after year or is it otherwise? Marketing trendiness of "pro-helmets" with a thousand vents must also be near th...
More About: Made , Manufacturing , Helmets , Bicycle , How Its Made

Einstein, That Fast Kid And The Horrible C35
2008-05-18 00:57:00
1. Pro Cycling Manager 2008, update to the PC based game developed by Cyanide Studios is scheduled to be released in June. The game is basically a sports simulation where you'll play as the general manager of one of 65 official cycling teams and will handle all aspects of a professional team's season. I don't play computer games these days apart from a little chess now and then, but when I did try some PCM in the past, it was with the 2006 edition. The game was so horrible back then that riding my trainer for 4 hours was more interesting, and not even marginally.Courtesy : Gamespot2. Tired? Bored of riding long miles? An interesting picture slapped onto the top tube of a TREK by an Ebay seller. He's been riding for 2 years, it seems, until he ended this fling.3. Dave Z recounts his prematurely ended Giro. He's having tough times, but somehow manages to hold on to artful humor. Some mighty words from the mighty Z:"So we won the TTT at the Giro, which is pretty cool. The next da...
More About: Fun , Einstein , Modern , Fast

1950's Production of Columbia Bicycles
2008-05-17 23:06:00
A 1939 Columbia Westfield Compax TravelerGet ready to ride back in time to the America of the 50's. Here's a nice, historical 6 minute video hosted by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) which documented how the Columbia line of bicycles ("bringing health and pleasure to millions of Americans") were produced. West Field Manufacturing , at West Field Massachusetts, was the first company to produce an American bicycle (Columbia highwheel) The video shows how ribbons of steel were seamlessly welded into tubes of various diameters and then cut and shaped to assemble frames, how handlebars were chrome plated, how spokes were connected to the rims and trued as well as glimpses of other cutting operations to yield chain rings and cogs, all over pleasant, soaring music and a serious, hurried narrator.To see the video, go to the NAM host page here and hit "Click to View". If you're interested in knowing more about vintage Columbia bicycles, click this page.Check out this old Co...
More About: Classic , Bicycles , Production

Stretch the PRO Way
2008-05-16 05:04:00
Even Belgian Knee Warmers wouldn't have touched upon this aspect of PRO.See, to be a complete PRO, you've got to learn some gimmicks of the trade while in office.For instance, to stretch like this. This is no BMX circus act. You can't stop, neither can your legs take the blows any more. Miles lie ahead of you.Only one option left...Here, #186 Danny Pate shows how its done.Courtesy : Slimstream Photos (Giro)Caution : Do not try this with poor flexibility or saddles with cut-outs. If stuck, pedal with one leg, then stop at a feedzone or something and ask a spectator to untangle you.
More About: Fun , Tactics , Stretch

Millar's Chain Failure
2008-05-16 03:43:00
"After looking at the chain that Mr. Millar broke today, the mechanics are plain dumbfounded. It didn?t break on the pin, but right in the middle of the link."- Jonathan Vaughters, Team SlipstreamA broken chain with 800m to go dashed all hopes for a possible stage 5 win for David Millar in the Giro d'Italia. Critical point, critical equipment misbehavior. What are the odds?!Now I wonder whether his mechanics forgot to put the Powerlink onto the chain. But notice that Vaughters says it broke right in the middle of the link. It escapes me other than the possibility that its a fatigue failure. Its sad to note that modern chains are simply not as durable as they were some years back. Does anyone else notice this trend or is it just me?Millar, in a fit of rage and disappointment, throws his expensive Felt into the bushes by the side of the road. Some lucky Italian will have walked away with it. Dang... Now notice that a possible injury that could result out of this is your tush hitting...
More About: Failure , Chain

Brooks Supports The Bicycle Film Festival
2008-05-15 23:49:00
"The Green Swallow is a Limited Edition of the Swallow Classic, normally sold only in the traditional Brooks colours (black, brown and honey). The 100 pieces are sold in cooperation with the Bicycle Film Festival in NY (May 28-June 1). For each sold saddle BROOKS will devolve 100 $ to support the Bicycle Film Festival .The Swallow reproduces the timeless design of the daddy of all modern racing saddles, first in production in 1937. This limited edition features the original chrome plated steel metalwork. The tensioning plate on the underside still bares the original patenting information retaining the word DEPOSÉ, as the patent for this model was first registered in Paris. Back then many of Brooks saddles in fact were exported to the continent for the use of racers in the tours."Read more here. If you're interested in seeing how Brooks saddles are made, check out a nice Flash based factory tour on their homepage menu. This will give you an idea of the manufacturing processes involved.
More About: Manufacturing