ROTOR Q-Ring Rode to Victory

Clearly Johan Van Summeren knows how to pick good equipment. We noted earlier this week he was wearing the Castelli SpeedSuit and now ROTOR has noted that the Paris-Roubaix winner pedalled his way on the French cobblestones with 3D+ cranks and Q-Ring oval chainrings!

ROTOR stated:

“Q-Ring has now conquered one of the toughest races in the world, the ‘Hell of the North.’ This is certainly a coming of age for our groundbreaking, proprietary oval chainring technology.

“Cobblestone sectors are always a threat to drivetrain reliability, so perfect shifting and stability are required to traverse them successfully. This huge victory on the pave proves that Q-rings performance advantages come at no cost to reliability, with stability on a par with round chainrings thanks to our subtle ovalization, flawless tooth profiles and highly refined shifting ramp designs.” Continue reading ROTOR Q-Ring Rode to Victory

Swing Like a Pro… an aG Balance Pro

While not everyone can be a golf pro, aboutGolf will let you get the pro treatment with aG Balance Pro, a new dual force plate technology that the company introduced this week. This new platform, which features Perform Pro software that can be integrated with any 3Track-powered aboutGolf ball tracking including the aboutGolf simulator and aG Studio, uses dual force plate technology that provides detailed analysis of weight transfer during the swing.

“With aG Balance Pro, it is now possible to specifically understand the impact of balance on the golfer’s swing,” says Chuck Winger, aboutGolf’s Vice President of Performance Products. “For the first time, we can see force distribution on the front, back, right and left of each foot, helping us better assess the impact of balance on the golfer’s performance and provide proper instruction.”

aG Balance Pro’s data is presented in easy-to-understand visual graphics, as well as detailed data tables to support scientific analysis. All swing/balance data is time stamped and synchronized to the swing motion from backswing to follow-through, including a clear indication of weight transfer and foot forces at the time of ball impact. The Perform Pro software also supports integration with the optional aG Flix module, providing time-synchronized swing video for analysis side-by-side with aG Balance Pro. Continue reading Swing Like a Pro… an aG Balance Pro

Wall of Bikes – For Storage

Many of us have a “wall of bikes” in our garage, basement or extra room. As apartment dwellers know, using the wall saves a lot of room. So how about using the outside wall of an apartment building or office structure for a wall of bikes?

This is the idea behind a Ferris-wheel design by Manifesto Architecture, which was submitted to a recent design competition in Seoul, South Korea. The result would be vertical bike storage that could hold 20 to 35 bikes. The bikes would be rotated up and out of the way. So instead of needing to take nearly an entire floor to store the bikes, they could be lifted up and out of the way in a space in an alley or rear of the building.

The issue of course is that many cities – including New York – don’t actually have an abundance of alleyways – despite what Batman comics might otherwise suggest. But there are plenty of nooks and other spaces. And this would certainly make good use of every inch of urban space.

And the designers even thought of worst case scenarios – such as a power failure. The Ferris-wheel system could even be cycle powered, so you have to sit and spin to get to your bike!

[Via Cyclelicious: Bike Hanger vertical bicycle storage]

Visit New Amsterdam Bicycle Show

New York, originally called New Amsterdam, will play host to the New Amsterdam Bicycle Show on April 30, later this month. The event benefits Transportation Alternatives.

If you’re in New York at the end of the month, it will be worth attending to check out new bikes and gear. Exhibitors include Adeline Adeline, Alternate Needs Transportation, bcycle, Bern Unlimited, bfold, Bamboo Bike Studio, Basil, Bicycle Habitat, BicyclePaintings.com, Bike By Me, Bike Doctor NYC, Light & Motion, Bikes to Rwanda, biomega, Biria, Bowery Lane Bicycles, Carjacked, Chelsea Bicycles, Chrome, Continuum Cycles, Cooper Bikes USA, cyclelogical and plenty more. Big names such as Specialized, Raleigh, Sram, Jamis, and others will also exhibit.

The show will be held at Center 548 on West 22nd Street way over by the Hudson. Check out the New Amsterdam Bicycle Show site for more details.

Seal of Approve To Puncture Resistant Tubes

Nothing can ruin a nice ride in the woods like a puncture. If you’re like too many riders that could mean having to walk back to the car, or worse home as you probably didn’t bring a spare. But Michelin’s new Protek Max inner tubes could actually change this, offering a tube that promises to be more resistant to punctures and could hold air pressure if punctured!

The Protek Max features a “bumpy” service that creates a compressive force in the tube wall, and thus doesn’t want to stretch when there is a puncture. Instead with a small puncture there is compression, and thus the tube will retain its tire pressure and not lose air – at least not so quickly.

The Protek tubes will be available in 700×35-47c and 26×1.4-2.125-inch sizes, and will retail for $8.99. Both Presta and Scharder will be available – but sorry, for now it will be those who venture off road who will get the puncture-free treatment. Hopefully we’ll see a road version down the road.

Michelin Bicycle USA Protek Max Official Website

[Via BikeRadar.com: Michelin’s new Wild Race’R tire and Protek Max inner tube]

Garmin Off and Forerunning Again

Serious runners will now have a serious time piece to add to their wrists. Garmin International Inc. announced this week the Forerunner 610 sports watch, a slim and robust water-proof touchscreen solution for serious runners. This watch can stand up to rain, sweat and splashes, yet is responsive enough that it can be operated with running gloves.

“Running with Forerunner 610 is like having a coach with you every step of the way,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin’s vice president of worldwide sales. “From giving the basics such as pace, distance and time to monitoring your effort through heart rate, creating interval workouts and racing a friend on the other side of the world, Forerunner 610 becomes a necessary partner for all serious runners.”

The watch has already won the Red Dot Design Award, which is a compliment to its marriage of style and functionality. The Forerunner 610 uses a vibration motor for alerts such as heart rate, pace and distance when audible tones cannot be heard (heart monitor included in some bundles or available separately). Continue reading Garmin Off and Forerunning Again

Carbon Fiber Headset Offers Style and Balance

We at KineticShift love carbon fiber. It is the space age material that just makes everything better, lighter and stronger. OK, maybe not everything can benefit from carbon fiber, but we like it with bikes, tennis racquets and other sports and fitness gear. We also see that what works for fitness is translating into other sectors as well.

We also like Bluetooth, the wireless technology that is great for near area communications. So this week we saw something that turned our heads, namely a Bluetooth carbon fiber headset!

At the Hong Kong Electronics and Global Sources Fair this week Bluetrek Technologies introduced the CARBON, the world’s first Bluetooth headset made of carbon fiber. It promises to be equipped with the best in class audio enhancement technology so both the user and receiver can have crystal clear audio. . In addition, the patented mechanism embedded in the carbon fiber tube allows extended talk time, yet reduces weight to less than 6grams while retaining a slender aesthetic to the ear piece, warranting long time wear with superb comfort.

While CARBON might not be the most ideal fitness headset, we hope that this will just be a proof of concept. Bluetrek are you listening? If you had CARBON as a headset we think you’d hear us loud and clear.

Bluetrek Official Website

SpeedSuit Up From Castelli

This past weekend Johan Van Summeren won the famous Paris-Roubaix road race. No doubt he won it with his legs and his absolute effort, but as our friends at BikeRadar.com noted this week the suit may have made the man in the famous race on French cobblestones.

And obviously this wasn’t a suit and tie, but rather a SpeedsSuit from Castelli, which is the uniform material of choice for the Garmin-Cervelo riders, who first wore it in last month’s Milan-San Remo. As BikeRadar noted, “Castelli claim the suit can save 10-15 watts at 40 km/h, and it seemed to do the trick for Van Summeren. It’ll be used exclusively by the peloton this season, but is set to be made available to the masses in 2012.”

So in other words most of us will have to settle to seeing others wear it this season, but next see it will time to SpeedSuit up!

[Via BikeRadar.com: Did Castelli SpeedSuit help Van Summeren win Paris-Roubaix?]

Cool It Down in Hotter Weather

As warmer temperatures replace cooler ones, you have different reasons to cover up. In between seasons like spring and fall call for transitional layers. Arm warmers and leg warmers are good options since you can peel off the layers when you warm up.

In the summer heat, there’s no option to add or remove layers to beat the heat. That is unless you pull on one of Craft Apparel’s Body Control Coolers. While they have other garments, the arm coolers and leg coolers are a good choice. The Body Control Coolers feature a compression fit, super-cooling fabrics, silver ion technology and sun protection. Continue reading Cool It Down in Hotter Weather

Cycle Goes Round

Bicycles have lots of round parts. There are obviously the wheels, but there are the chain rings, cassette, hubs and in many cases, even the tubes are round. But Lou Tortola, an avid cyclist who put in more than 3000 miles on his road bike last year, has another idea. The inventor and entrepreneur from Windsor, Canada has created a revolutionary bicycle frame design that he says will increase comfort, while retaining lateral stiffness and pedaling efficiency of the standard diamond frame bicycles.

The result is the Roundtail, which he says should provide more shock absorbing than traditional straight seat stays.

Tortola uses his computer to draft up a prototype of the twin ring design, and with his years of experience in metals and fabrication produced tooling to test his concept. Custom bike builder Paul Taylor helped bring the Roundtail to life.

The bike made its debut at the San Diego Custom Bicycle Show this past weekend. Titanium and carbon fiber versions, with mountain bike and hybrid models will be available later this year at Interbike.

Roundtail Official Website

Kinetic(Mis)Shift: Heelys Not Just For Kids – Really?

We’ve heard that the folks over at Heelys have gotten requests for shoes in “larger sizes,” and the company has decided to accommodate those requests. Heelys, for those not in the know, have been popular shoes for the tween crowd and are the shoes with the build in skate wheel in the heel. No doubt marketed at those without nice hardwood floors, the shoes have been the bane of existence of schools and shopping malls since they were introduced.

According to a story from MSNBC.com back in 2007, there have been some tragic accidents as well: “From September 2005 through December 2006, one death and at least 64 roller-shoe injuries were reported to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.”

We hate to be a “Negative Nelly” about the shoes, but we question whether any teen other than Urkel from that TV show with Urkel would be caught dead wearing shoes with wheels in the heel. Now the company is looking to go extreme, with larger size shoes and even the new Nano that stays connected to the wearer’s shoe. In the video below it does look kind of cool – but notice the disclaimer says “performed by professional stuntman.” That sort of says, “Don’t try this at home, “which really defeats the purpose. In the end, would any adult really need wheels in their shoes?

Kinetic(Mis)Shift are products that we think deserve to be called out for their utter lack of fitness benefits.

Bike Industry Magic – Merlin Brand Rebirth Underway

Apparently I have been living under a rock lately, but it appears that one of the first manufacturers of titanium bicycle frames has been sold…again. Back in March the high-end online retailer, Competitive Cyclist of Little Rock, AR, announced that they had negotiated the rights to the Merlin Metalworks from the American Bicycle Group (ABG) based in Chattanooga, TN

Merlin has changed hands multiple times since it was founded in 1986 by Gwyn Jones, Gary Helfrich, and Mike Augspurger in Cambridge, MA followed a year later with the partnership with Tom Kellogg. Back then they were one of the first manufacturers to create titanium bicycle and wheelchair frames using TIG welding to create small, uniform and aesthetically pleasing welds.Merlin has created frames that have been ridden by Lance Armstrong, Greg LeMond, Steve Hegg, Ken Carpenter, Rob Kish (Race Across America 1995 winner) and Bob Hall (the first person to enter the Boston marathon in a wheelchair). Continue reading Bike Industry Magic – Merlin Brand Rebirth Underway

The Lutsen 99er Mountain Bike Race in Minnesota

Just one mile shy of a century, A new mountain bike race in Minnesota, the Lutsen 99er, will take its course along the shores of Lake Superior on Saturday, June 11. The race, organized by Life Time Fitness, aims to promote mountain biking both nationally and in Minnesota.

The crushing 99 mile racecourse starts at Lutsen Mountain’s Bridge Run, then takes participants along the shores of Lake Superior before climbing into the Sawtooth Mountains. Just following the ridgeline, the course takes advantage of glacially-sculpted terrain and rolling hills of the Boreal Forest. Cross the finish line in front of Papa Charlie’s at Lutsen Mountain. Continue reading The Lutsen 99er Mountain Bike Race in Minnesota