Cycling news Archives - Page 3 of 4

Garmin Vector: 2013???

Garmin Vaporware finally condensing?

From Garmin's German website, it appears like the Vector pedal based power meter, which had been grossly delayed several times, may finally see the light of day. While the price has yet to be released, it will likely stay at the $1500 mark as had been reported earlier.

The biggest problem with the Vector is that it has been delayed on numerous occasions. Looking at the screen grab from the German version of Garmin's website, you'll see in bright red print, January 2013.

This is probably good news for those who are still interested, but I can't help thinking the release of the new Red Quarq (and subsequent dropping of the Cinqo Saturn prices) along with the lighter, smaller Powertap G3 have severely cut into the market for the Vector. On top of those releases, the Polar Power Pedals and Power2Max crank based units are starting to become more widely available, further shrinking Garmin's market share before they even have a product on the shelves.

Honestly, if you're in the market for a power meter, don't waste your time on the Vector. It's already been delayed several times for what has been described as “significant problems.” First adopters will have to deal with those bugs and issues, and the last thing anyone wants is a buggy power meter.

Get yourself a Quarq, SRM or Powertap and enjoy it. You'll be glad you did.

Tags: components, news, power|

Look 675 Unveiled

As the Tour de France approaches, teams and companies alike debut their newest products, and Look is no exception. While last year brought the ultimate in integration via the 695 i-pack, it also brought an Everest-steep price tag and a super stiff racing chassis. This year, Look is positioning itself more squarely in the comfort bike market with the new 675. Let's take a look at the new, eye catching offering.

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Tags: bike, news, road bike|

Tour de France Prologue

Wiggins was the big winner

WARNING: SPOILERS

With the Tour de France starting today in Leige with a short prologue time trial, arguably the most important race of the year is underway. 6.4 km isn't much, but it has already given us an early indication of who's ready and who's not. Surprisingly, it might not be who you think.

Spoilers after the jump:

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Tags: news, pro cycling, racing|

Trek Madone 7 series

The Dauphine is often a proving ground for new technology ahead of its debut at the Tour de France in 3 weeks time. This year, along with a number of teams debuting Dura Ace 9000 groups, Trek has put several Radioshack Nissan riders on what appears to be the new Madone. Supposedly dubbed the 7 series, it's currently unknown if this aero offering will replace the current 6.9SSL or be an addition to the lineup.

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Tags: bike, components, pro cycling, wrenching|

Dura Ace 9000 Electronic: Dura Ace 9070

After the much hyped Dura Ace 9000 has been floating around for a while, details were released today about the new Di2 group which will be numbered 9070. Expect significant changes in the styling and functionality of the group; the most significant highlights are discussed here.

DA 9000 crank

You've already seen the crankset several times in the past. But now we get more information on it: Shimano is offering the crank in a single BCD. That's right, gone is the standard and compact options, replaced by a single 110mm, 4 bolt BCD. The hollow chainrings will be available in a multitude of sizes from compact to cyclocross, standard and TT configurations. Supposedly, the chainring design allows any chainring produced to be stiff enough to work with the compact BCD. Be wary though, those chainrings won't be cheap, so choose your gearing very wisely or be prepared to lay out a large sum in order to change it out.

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Tags: components, road bike, wrenching|