A bike computer can be a cyclist’s best friend. It allows you to keep track of your power numbers, speed, cadence and almost every other kind of data you can think of while on your rides. However, lots of people don’t make the most out of their bike computers, so if you use a Wahoo head unit on your rides, this is a video for you!
From BikeRumor.com
We’re sure many of you know the Roval Rapide CLX II wheels — super light, stable in the wind, and already have Tour stage wins and Grand Tour victory on their palmares. The premium performance comes at a premium price though, and for most, the slight weight savings isn’t enough to justify the $2800 price tag. That’s where the new Rapide CL II comes in. The new wheels bring along the same rim as the Rapide CLX and DT-Swiss hubs, for a lot less.
The all-new Rapide CL II wheelset brings the same Rapide CLX II speed and handling but at nearly half the price. Built on the same rims as the Rapide CLX II, the performance is similar, and the build is robust.
We’ve seen this before from the team at Roval; take the top-end wheelset (in this case, the Rapide CLX II), use the same rim, and swap out the DT-Swiss 240 hubs to a DT-Swiss 350. Mating the lightweight, performance-driven rim with a more economical hub creates a fast wheel that can take a beating and is much more cost-efficient.
Image courtesy of Specialized.
From BikeRadar.com
By Paul Norman
We’ve finally got our hands on Shimano’s latest 105 Di2 R7100 groupset and weighed all the shiny bits and pieces
Shimano’s new 105 Di2 groupset adds a long-anticipated third tier to the brand’s electronic shifting. Sitting below Dura-Ace R9200 and Ultegra R8100, it shares a lot of tech with those two groupsets, just with slightly fewer flashy materials and increased weight.
It’s that weight we’re going to focus on here – Shimano supplied claimed weights for all the components when Shimano 105 Di2 12-speed was launched back in June 2022. Now we’ve got a complete groupset in for review and we’ve started off by putting everything on the scales to find out how much each component actually weighs
Here’s a run-down of key features that Shimano 105 Di2 has to offer.
First up, it’s semi-wireless with a non-wired connection between the shifters and the rear derailleur driving shifting.
The shifters lose some functionality seen on Ultegra and Dura-Ace, such as a third button and the option to add satellite shifters.
In compensation, 105 Di2 levers have space for two coin cells rather than one, doubling battery life.
There are 50/34t or 52/36t chainset options with a wide range of crank lengths, but there’s no power meter.
That’s paired with cassettes offering 11-34t or 11-36t range, although without the faster-shifting and smoother Hyperglide+ technology of Ultegra and Dura-Ace.
Like those groupsets, 105 Di2 uses brake rotors and chain borrowed from Shimano’s mountain bike groupsets – in this case SLX.
The new 105 Di2 groupset doesn’t offer rim brakes and its disc brakes don’t have the Servowave tech of its more expensive siblings, but as with them, the brake pads retract 10 per cent further, so you should get less brake rub.
Image courtesy of Shimano
Recently we tested a retro time trial bike against a modern superbike, and rather unsurprisingly the superbike easily won. But what about a bike just a few years newer, a TT bike with the latest innovation, the tri bar? We borrowed one of Greg Lemond’s retro TT bike to find out whether that bike can finally beat a modern superbike!
We are working to change the bike industry. We believe that anyone who wants to ride a bike should be able to, regardless of their size or weight.
We are creating inclusive bike communities from the inside. As this community grows, we’re focused on keeping the members at the center of our efforts. We want to hear from you and be sure you feel heard. Send Marley or Kailey an email – let’s chat friend.
To make that vision a reality, All Bodies on Bikes:
1)Fosters an online community: ABOB established and maintains a strong presence on Facebook and Instagram with the goal of providing inspiration to people of all sizes, a place for online discussion, and to increase the representation of larger bodies in cycling. ,
2)Fosters an in-person community: ABOB hosts social bike rides where everyone is welcome to move their bodies joyfully at a pace that is comfortable and safe for them.
3)Educates the cycling community: ABOB provides educational resources, consulting, and leadership to the bike industry and cycling community at large on best practices in size inclusive bike communities through workshops, consulting, and educational seminars.
Let’s make Sunset Boulevard a safer place to shop, dine, and travel. A protected bike lane could safely, efficiently connect ~100,000 Angelenos with billions of dollars in new rail investment.
Protected bike lanes reduce the number of bikes & scooters on the sidewalk by up to 90%
Image courtesy of sunset4all.com
For cyclists, there is something mythical about riding 100 miles. Completing a century, a ton, or 160.9km if you prefer the metric system, is a huge achievement for a cyclist and takes hard work to get there. Manon outlines her tips for training for your longest ever ride, to help you break new ground on the bike!
From Tallahassee.com
By Mari-Jo Lewis-Wilkinson
September 22 is World Car-Free Day. It is an opportunity to give up your car for a day by walking, bicycling, or taking public transportation and observe Tallahassee from a different perspective other than through a car windshield. Here are a few ideas.
Whether walking or bicycling, the old adage, “Safety in Numbers,” rings true. So how about a group walk early that evening to remind drivers there are pedestrians out there on the sidewalks? Florida is second in the nation in pedestrian fatalities. But studies have shown pedestrian crashes and fatalities decrease where there is a heavy pedestrian presence. Gather several neighbors for a short walk to a local park, shop, or restaurant, or just around the neighborhood. Fresh air, friendly conversation, and a fun way to welcome the fall season.
Or maybe you want to form or join a neighborhood “bike bus” that day — a group of kids biking en masse to school. Check out this video about Portland, Oregon’s “Bike Bus for Earth Day.” You’ll wish you hadn’t spent so many hours of your life sitting in the student drop-off lane. https://youtu.be/XNRnKXd9sHE
If you like that idea, consider emulating bigger cities like Chicago that have a monthly “Critical Mass” bicycle ride — hundreds of bicyclists non-confrontationally and cheerfully sharing the road with drivers in a leisurely evening ride through downtown streets.
From Protocol.com
By Lisa Martine Jenkins
A few tweaks could make no-carbon transit a lot more appealing and safe.
Google Maps has a suite of features to make driving easier. The app gives users options to avoid tolls and highways and even recommends low-emission routes where available.
Bikers using the app, though, have far fewer options, particularly when it comes to determining how safe a route is. Fixing that could get more people on bikes and e-bikes, two of the most accessible forms of no-carbon transit available today. Given that the transportation sector is the biggest contributor to U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, encouraging the use of alternatives to driving — especially driving gas-powered cars — is more urgent than ever.
With its abundant data and mapping resources, Google Maps is well-poised to create a powerful tool that keeps people safe while navigating their city by bike. Doing so could encourage the use of one of the most reliable zero-emissions transportation technologies, a benefit that dovetails nicely with Google’s ambitious emissions reduction goals.
That’s not to say it’s a cut-and-dried task, though. The puzzle of how to set up a mapping algorithm for driving is relatively simple compared to doing so for biking. Estimating roughly how long it will take to drive somewhere requires little more than knowing speed limits and whether or not intersections have stop signs or stop lights. For biking, though, finding the “right” route is a lot more qualitative.
Photo by Manny Becerra on Unsplash
For a time in the 1990s titanium was thought to be the next big thing in cycling frame material, but since the widespread adoption of carbon fibre, titanium has taken somewhat of a backseat. But there are still those who swear by it’s properties as a bike frame material, not least Moots Cycles. Manon visited their factory in Colorado to find out how titanium frames are made, and what makes their bikes special.
