2010 Tour de France – Versus Tarmac SL3 Showcase
specialized411 wrote this 15 days ago.
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Versus shows off Alexander Vinokourov's Tarmac SL3. |
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specialized411
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| Time: 02:02 | More in Sports |
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Berner pulleys and a Rafael singlespeed
James T wrote this 16 days ago.
Photo credit: James Huang, CyclingNews.com
If you have checking out the tech sections of the various cycling sites lately, you have probably noticed the SRAM Red rear derailleurs with carbon fiber cages developed by Wolfgang Berner. Rafael Hoffleit, whose bikes I have mentioned on the blog a couple times before, points out that he is handcrafting the small carbon pieces for those rear derailleurs. He mentions that though it is a very small part, he is a bit proud:
”Now I see the absolute elite of our sport cornering around with a small piece that starts in my hands – very nice.”
Rafael also recently received recognition for the Heidelberg singlespeed, which was selected as a BrandNewAward finalist. That bike, along with others from Rafael, will be on display at the Bike Expo in Munich from July 22nd to 25th. In addition to the urban oriented singlespeed Heildelberg, Rafael also has a new track bike based on his r-011 time trial bike. The “Spyder” (pictured here) looks very nice. As with his time trial bikes, I like the integration of a fairly standard stem into the frame. Nice details all around.
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2010 Tour de France – Andy Schleck’s In It To Win It Bike
specialized411 wrote this 16 days ago.
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Andy Schleck, wearing the white jersey shows off his In It To Win It Tarmac SL3 before Stage 9 of the 2010 Tour de France. Check out our In It To Win It contest and you could win one of 21 Tarmac SL3 frames just like Andy Schleck or Alberto Contadors!
http://iamspecialized.com/inittowinit/ |
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specialized411
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| Time: 01:14 | More in Sports |
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2010 Tour de France – Lampre Gets Their Prevails
specialized411 wrote this 17 days ago.
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Specialized sponsors Team Lampre with helmets and optics. The day before the Tour de France the team got their hands on (and heads under) the all new Specialized Prevail helmet. |
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specialized411
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SCOTT Project F01 Aero Road Racing bike
James T wrote this 20 days ago.
After a disappointing Tour start this year, Mark Cavendish seems to be back on track with his second stage win in two days. The attention is back on Cav, but the bike that he is riding, the recently unveiled SCOTT F01, deserves a lot of attention as well. The new aerodynamic road racing bike, which SCOTT developed in close partnership with Team HTC-Columbia and Drag2Zero services, was presented at a press conference in Rotterdam right before the Prologue.
The goal of the F01 project was to “achieve aerodynamic performance with a light and stiff profile.” Specifically, SCOTT set out to:
•Reduce overall drag of rider and bike at 45 KPH by 20 watts, between 0-20 degree crosswind with a 20 to 30 % reduction of frame drag compared to standard tube.
•Reach Addict stiffness with only 5% increase in weight
The design was developed and tested in the Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Wind Tunnel. As you can see in the slide image from SCOTT’s presentation, it uses a 3:2 ratio tube profile that looks like an airfoil shape with the tail removed (like a very short Kamm tail profile). If you look at the picture above, the red colored sections on the backs of certain tubes indicate where the trailing airfoil edges have been removed. According to the company, the result of this project is a frame that is stiff and 20% lighter than most of the other aero frames on the market.
The bike is not available to the public yet, but it is a great example of an equipment sponsor really putting a new design through the paces during the three weeks of the Tour. That is something that I always like to see, and it really is what makes the Tour de France the race to watch for bike geeks.
Back to Cavendish though…it is no surprise that he wanted flashy custom graphics on his Project F01 bike. Check out this Bike Radar profile of his bike to see how the graphic designers at SCOTT interpreted his request for a “ninja theme.” Creating a tasteful design with splattered blood as a primary element is no easy task, but I think they did a pretty nice job with it.
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2010 Tour de France – Stage 3 Versus Roubaix SL3 Showcase
specialized411 wrote this 20 days ago.
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Versus clip showcasing the Roubaix Project Black bike ridden by Fabian Cancellara in Stage 3 of the Tour de France |
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specialized411
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2010 Tour de France – Stage 3 Contador Versus Piece
specialized411 wrote this 20 days ago.
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A clip from Versus coverage of the Tour de France |
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specialized411
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| Time: 01:36 | More in Sports |
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2010 Tour de France – Stage 2 Contador Versus Piece
specialized411 wrote this 20 days ago.
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A clip from the Versus coverage of the Tour de France. |
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specialized411
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| Time: 01:44 | More in Sports |
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John Sweet fuses love for art and cycling
Gilligan wrote this 20 days ago.
A photographer, bookbinder and fused glass artist, John Sweet is known in the Bend, Oregon art scene for his artistic talents. But the bike shop owners in town know John more for his scavenging abilities than his artistic flare.
Bike-inspired fused art glass by John Sweet
An avid cyclist, John finds inspiration for many of his fused glass pieces in both the landscapes he cycles through and the discarded bike parts he comes across in bike shop recycling bins, garage sales and more. He usually uses found objects, such as bike hubs, to display his fused glass pieces.
Spending most of his career in the construction industry, John has no formal art training. “I try to have fun with it,” he says.
John’s not alone in his lust for used bike parts—the rebike movement is growing strong, especially among artists in bike-friendly cities such as Bend. A town of about 80,000, Bend has created 21 roundabouts and three new pathway bridges; 85 percent of arterials have bike lanes; and the city recently installed a new European-style raised bike lane. It received a Silver rating from the League of American Bicyclists. It’s also home to Commute Options for central, a three-county effort to reduce reliance on the automobile.
We’d love to hear about bicycle-inspired artists and organizations in your town. Send us an email or comment below!
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Bendable bike
James T wrote this 20 days ago.
A few days ago, Carlton Reid tipped me off to this London Daily Mail article, which features a bike design by Kevin Scott, a young UK based designer. To address the rising problem of bicycle theft (according to the article, more than 52 bikes are stolen in London every day), Mr. Scott designed a bike that literally “wraps around a lamp post so it can be locked-up safely – without the need for a lock or chain.” A ratchet system built into the top and down tubes allows the frame to bend when a lever on the seat tube is released.
It seems like an interesting concept, but honestly I would probably be a bit nervous at cruising speed knowing that an accidental flip of that big switch would turn the frame into an uncontrollable mess of noodle like tubes. Maybe there could be a fail-safe to keep the switch from working while the bike is moving. I am sure there are many other issues that need to be addressed before a concept like this could become a real product, but that is what the product design development stage is for. For now, Mr. Scott has an interesting idea that I believe is worth further exploration.
Scott’s concept is a runner-up in the UK’s Business Design Centre New Designer of the Year Award. The Core77 blog also posted about this design and they point out that he is dumping the award money back into the project for further development. That is good to hear. I’ll look forward to seeing the next iteration of his design.
Image credit: Tony Kyriacou/Rex Features via Core77
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