New Arrivals – April 4, 2007 Edited by James Huang Got Tech? Send press releases, news, and tech questions to the Cyclingnews tech-heads. Welcome to New Arrivals, a section showcasing the latest equipment that's landed on the Cyclingnews tech desk. Look out for reviews over the next few months when we've clocked up some saddle time with this stuff. Cervélo SLC-SL frameset Cervélo's light and slippery SLC-SL Photo ©: James Huang You voted Team CSC's Cervélo as the 'Best Team Bike' of the ProTour for 2006, so naturally we felt the need to add the company's top-shelf offering to our review queue. In creating the SLC-SL, Cervélo took the best traits of its two top-selling race models to produce a frame that offers the slippery aero performance of the Soloist Carbon, but shaves 200g to yield a final weight approaching that of the R3. Moreover, Cervélo even manages to improve the SLC-SL's bottom bracket and torsional rigidity by a claimed 5-10% over the standard Soloist Carbon while also remaining "incredibly strong". Our SLC-SL test frame isn't the lightest available at 980g (54cm, with seat collar, derailleur hanger, and hardware), but Cervélo co-founder Gerard Vroomen puts it this way: "There are two bikes you can build: the lightest or the fastest (which would be pretty light but not at all costs). The first would win the 'let's hold our bikes over our head' contest, the second would win the bike race.' Based on Team CSC's performances last year, we're certainly not going to argue. The SLC-SL frameset (also available as a complete bike) includes Cervélo's 348g Wolf Superlite full-carbon fork made by Alpha Q, an aero-profile micro-adjust carbon seat post, as well as an integrated FSA cartridge bearing headset. Now at this point, you may be wondering to yourselves, 'why did you guys just get a bare frameset and not a whole bike like you usually do?' Well, funny, you should ask. Patience is a virtue… Price: US$4500 (frame, fork, headset, and seatpost) BBB Winner optics The BBB Winner Quick-Step leaves little to be desired Photo ©: James Huang Ever wondered what sunglasses Tom Boonen was wearing in all of those sprint finish photographs? They're from team sponsor BBB out of Holland, who also supplies the team with a number of other accessories including bags, pumps, and tools. The Winner Quick-Step is one of two models used by most of the team and uses a Grilamid frame to house a pair of interchangeable polycarbonate lenses. BBB includes four sets of lenses for varying conditions, including clear, yellow, orange, and a Smoke Blue MLC which incorporates a nine-layer 'Multi-Layer Coating' to increase contrast and reduce glare. A separate Winner PH model includes a single set of photochromic lenses that BBB says self-adjust from 17-85% light transmission in only eight seconds. All of the Winner models include rubber-coated temples and an adjustable nose piece for a customizable, slip-free fit, as well as a soft carrying bag and hard case. Eleven non-PH color options are offered to suit a wide range of tastes. Price: US$79.99 (Winner Quick-Step); US$143.99 (Winner PH) BBB Protector optics The BBB Protector is similarly well-equipped Photo ©: James Huang The Quick-Step team's alternate eyewear of choice is BBB's Protector, which offers similar styling to the Winner model but with additional coverage for larger faces or just more… protection! The Protector uses a Grilamid nylon frame like on other BBB models, but this now secures a single-piece shield-type polycarbonate lens instead of the separate lenses used on the Winner. Three lenses are packaged with the Protector, including smoke, yellow and clear. BBB coats the temples and nose piece of the Protector with rubber to prevent slipping, and the nose piece is, again, adjustable for a custom fit. A soft carrying bag and hard case are included as well, and BBB offers the Protector in nine different colors. Price: US$93.99 Cole Products Shuriken Carbon Lite T50 tubular wheels Cyclocross sensation Marianne Vos Photo ©: James Huang "We do things a little differently," says Cole's Ivan Harms. Indeed, the Shuriken Carbon Lite T50 doesn't look like most other wheelsets on the market with its unique Dual-Spoke "DS" hub flange design that supposedly makes for a stronger and noticeably more rigid wheel. Instead of using elbowed spokes that mount directly in an aluminum flange, the dual-threaded spokes are mounted into a pivoting anodized 7075 aluminum insert at the hub which is said to allow more precise spoke alignment and a stiffer connection. At 1550g for the pair (664g/886g front/rear, without skewers), the Shuriken Carbon Lite T50 also doesn't weigh what most consumers would expect from a set of carbon-rimmed tubulars. However, it looks like much of that heft is concentrated around the hub so we're expecting these wheels to feel much lighter once we begin testing, and the 50mm-deep 'Organic Carbon' rims should cut through the air quite nicely. More importantly, though, the extra mass resulting from Cole's unique design clearly hasn't kept sponsored rider Marianne Vos from wiping the floor with most of her competition on the cyclocross circuit (Vos used the deeper T85 wheels last season and is reportedly switching to the T50 this time around). Price: $1650 A Sunday in Hell DVD A Sunday in Hell Photo ©: Greg Johnson Danish filmmaker Jørgen Leith brings the drama of Paris-Roubaix to the comfort of your living room with this powerful account of the 1976 edition. 'A Sunday in Hell' follows the battle between Eddy Merckx, Roger De Vlaeminck, Freddy Maertens and Francesco Moser across the bone-shaking pavé of northern Europe complete with inside footage of each team's preparation before the event This special edition DVD also includes the bonus film 'Vive le Tour' a short but revealing impression of the Tour de France, directed by Louis Malle. The special version of "A Sunday in Hell" is available for sale to Cyclingnews readers in Australia and New Zealand from the Cyclingnews store and for readers in the USA, the original version, but without the Louis Malle documentary, is available from World Cycling Productions. Price: Australian version AUD$34.95, US version USD$29.95 Enigma Eulogy Enigma is a new company based in East Sussex, England Photo ©: Ben Atkins Out of the ashes of the Omega Cycle Works comes Enigma Bikes, a new company set up by former frame and component importer Jim Walker and named after the somewhat "enigmatic" qualities of titanium, its material of choice. Frames are designed in the company's headquarters in East Sussex, England and built in Taiwan. Sitting on top of Enigma's entirely titanium range is the Eulogy, built from double-butted 3Al-2.5V titanium 'Enigma Shaped Tubing' (EST) and a carbon rear triangle. Interestingly, Enigma equips the Eulogy with a visually striking integrated seat tube, a popular choice on carbon frames but not often seen on titanium ones. According to frame designer Mark Reilly, the carbon rear end and integrated seat tube are chosen to "ramp up the stiffness", and is apparently an answer to a request by local boy Sean Yates (who also happens to be Discovery Channel Directeur Sportif) for a titanium frame that was as rigid as possible. Our test bike is built up in Enigma's standard configuration with a full Campagnolo Record groupset and Fulcrum Racing 1 wheels. Deviations from the standard spec - but available as options - include a Look HSC5 fork, ITM Visia handlebar and stem, and some trick Enigma-branded parts like its Evolution titanium headset and skewers that weigh just 38g a pair. Our medium test frame hits the scales at about 1.3kg (not featherweight, but not bad for a titanium frame with an integrated seat tube), and comes fully built at just over 7.1kg without pedals. /BA Price: £1485 (frame only); £3785 (for standard build without upgrades) Photography For a thumbnail gallery of these images, click here Images by James Huang/Cyclingnews.com Cervélo's light and slippery SLC-SL in stealthy black and white. Big chain stays and relatively slender seat stays grace the rear end of the SLC-SL. Where'd it go??? The SLC-SL blends carefully engineered aerodynamics with sub-1kg weight. Want to look like Tom Boonen… but don't have the chiseled face, killer smile, and picture-perfect hair? Well, at least you can have his sunglasses from team sponsor BBB. The BBB Winner Quick-Step leaves little to be desired , including four sets of sets in all, a soft carrying bag, and a hard case. BBB uses adjustable nose pieces for a customized fit. Multi-Layer Coating on the BBB Winner Quick-Step lens is said to cut down on glare for better contrast. The BBB Winner PH ditches the multiple lenses in favor of a single photochromic set that offers an exceptionally wide 17-85% transmission range. The BBB Protector is similarly well-equipped , with two additional lenses, soft carrying bag, and hard case all included. The Protector offers the same general styling cues as the Winner, but with a single shield-type lens and extra coverage. BBB uses an adjustable nose piece on the Protector, too. Cyclocross sensation Marianne Vos will power the Cole Wheels Shuriken Carbon Lite T50 wheels through the sand for 2007. Cole Wheels' unique 'Dual-Spoke' hub flange supposedly adds a noticeable amount of stiffness relative to conventional elbowed spokes. Images by Greg Johnson/Cyclingnews.com A Sunday in Hell - a 92-minute documentary on the 1976 Paris-Roubaix. Images by Aztec International Entertainment Historical footage from the battle between Merckx, De Vlaeminck, Maertens and Moser. Images by Greg Johnson/Cyclingnews.com The special edition DVD includes a bonus feature 'Vive le Tour' (available to Australia and New Zealand only). Images by Ben Atkins/Cyclingnews.com Enigma is a new company based in East Sussex, England , and its Eulogy is its top-of-line frame, using shaped 3-2.5 titanium tubing and a carbon rear end. Integrated seatposts are becoming increasingly common in carbon framesets, but Enigma's Eulogy translates the idea into titanium.