Recently on Cyclingnews.com |
 Giro finale Photo ©: Bettini |
Tech News – March 2, 2005Edited by John Stevenson Got tech? Send press releases, news, and tech questions to the Cyclingnews tech desk. Livestrong bike shipping
Here's as blatant a piece of bike porn as we've seen in many a week. This is the production version of the gold-finished 'LiveStrong' bike that Lance Armstrong rode into Paris last year when he won his sixth Tour de France. To commemorate that achievement, Trek is making a run of 600 of these bikes, each individually numbered, and signed by the Boss himself.
The frame is a production Madone SL with Shimano Dura-Ace equipment, but that's where the resemblance to anything else in Trek's range ends. For starters, the frame is decorated with handmade, 23 karat gold frame panels, along with a sticker that designates the frame in its sequence of build. Each bike is outfitted with a collection of special edition yellow Bontrager components including the carbon crank, stem, handlebar and seatpost, plus wheels that uses custom painted yellow spokes to tie a Bontrager Race Lite Aeros to carbon hubs.
Trek designer Chad Bailey is responsible of the graphic design of the LiveStrong. "We've been making special Paris bikes for Lance for the last three years, each year it's been a totally different look," said Bailey. "As Lance's popularity as grown, so too has the interest in these historical bikes continued to grow. Of the three Paris bikes we've created, the LiveStrong bike is not only the most unique, but also the most impressive!" As for what it costs, well, if you have to ask, you probably can't afford it. The LiveStrong will cost the best part of ten grand: $9,499.99, to be precise, though that includes a $500 donation to the Lance Armstrong Foundation. For that wallet-worrying figure you also get an autographed and numbered photo of Lance riding into Paris, and a certificate of authenticity. And you get to own a piece of history, always a tricky thing to put a price on! More info: www.trekbikes.com More LiveStrong picsImages by Trek
Hincapie wins with Bontrager
As well as being Discovery's first victory, George Hincapie's win at Kuurne Brussels Kuurne was also the year's first success for Bontrager components, which has increased its involvement with the team for 2005. At KBK Hincapie was equipped with Bontrager fork and wheels plus Bontrager oversized carbon stem, handlebar, tape, cages, and Buzz-Kill harmonic handlebar dampers. "Harmonic what?" Quite. Derived from an archery technology pioneered by bow company Mathews, these are plastic and brass or aluminium widgets that fit inside the ends of the bar and are claimed to cancel high frequency vibration and so improve comfort. The idea makes a certain amount of sense. If you add a weight to the end of a tube that's supported at one end (which is the situation with a bike handlebar) then it's going to have a different, and probably lower, harmonic frequency. Bontrager supplied Hincapie with some specially overbuilt 'Classics' wheels for the cobbles of KBK, but the rest his gear is available to the rest of us, with details at the newly-redesigned Bontrager website. More info: www.bontrager.com Gully gets HutchedMountain bike and cyclo-cross racer Marc Gullickson, who retired from competition last year, has a new career with tyre make Hutchinson. As of the end of last month, Gullickson is the new manager of marketing and communication activities for Hutchinson Tires North America in Trenton, NJ. Gullickson who will be responsible for launching a new product development team, the Hutchinson INFLOW Team which will involve selected sponsored riders, trend-setting dealers and hand picked ex-professional racers in increasing the flow of information to Hutchinson's product developers in France. Pearl Izumi thins outRead a few on-line forums where road cyclists hang out and you might pick up an undercurrent of grumbling about recent shorts designs. While the cut, fit and fabrics going into today's best shorts are pretty much hard to complain about, very experienced riders are often unimpressed with the thick liners sitting between them and the saddle. If you grew up with shorts liners that comprised a single layer of real or synthetic chamois leather, some of today's thick foam pads can sure feel bulky, and some riders just don't get on with them Someone at Pearl Izumi has been listening as the company has just announced a line of shorts that use its new 3D Pro Chamois, which the company describes as a "low-profile, minimalist chamois designed for the elite rider". With dual density padding and four-way stretch materials, the 3D Pro Chamois is used on four 2005 Pearl Izumi models: the $139.99 Microsensor 3D Pro Short; Microsensor 3D Pro Bib Short ($159.99); HeliArc Short ($199.99) and HeliArc Bib Short ($219.99). More info: www.pearlizumi.com Larsen tests for Scott USAIn the latest move in its campaign to reconquer the US market, bike manufacturer Scott USA has signed Steve Larsen as an R&D product tester. Larsen has an extensive history in cycling, having won the NORBA national championships twice, ridden on the road with Motorola and most recently placed ninth in the Ironman triathlon. Larsen will be giving input on future designs from Scott USA, as well as promoting the brand in all segments of riding in which he participates. Scott Montgomery, general manager of the U.S. bike group, added, "I've known Steve for a long time both as an athlete and as a retailer. He has a genuine understanding of cycling's many disciplines and can help us promote our current range and develop new products for us in the future." More info: www.scottusa.com Morningstar gets onlinePaul Morningstar, maker of cult and nifty bicycle tools, has finally got himself a website. Morningstar is best known for the Freehub Buddy, a tool that allows you to properly lubricate freehubs without taking them apart, but he also makes someother rather handy widgets, including levers for straightening mountain bike brake discs and a dial gauge device for truing discs and wheels in the field. Morningstar describes his site as "as humble as my packaging" but the essential info is all there. More info: www.morningstartools.com |
||||
