Once it was an unspoken rule to not wear team kits when out riding. They were badges of honour that you could only wear if you had earned them through blood, sweat and tears – proven only when you’ve made sure to drop a rider or two. This rule has now been scattered to the winds with the rise in cycling and, among others, the popularity of Britain’s own Team Sky.

Compounding this unwritten rule’s misery, Pinarello is releasing its new Dogma F8, also known as the Dogma F8 – TDF2015! – Carbon T11001K – 869 Rhino Paris...

The bike, with its hazard sign-like black and yellow design, certainly isn’t for the modest cyclist. Inspired by Chris Froome’s second Tour de France victory, it comes complete with decals of ‘Froomey’ and a rather intimidating-looking rhino printed on the side. Pinarello truly has made a bike for the ages.

You may think ‘what else could this bike pull out of the bag?’ Well there is the declaration that the Dogma F8 Rhino Paris could possibly be ‘the eighth wonder of the world.’

However, if you fancy a change, the Dogma does come in some slight colour variants. There’s the more unassuming ‘Dogma Rhino Yellow’ that has only slight nuances of yellow, as opposed to the whole bike. Then there is the ‘Rhino Red’, built to celebrate the polka dot jersey. This red and black creation differs from the Rhino Paris only in colour, not in braggadocio.

Pinarello certainly doesn’t mind blowing its own trumpet and, to be fair, who can blame it, having won the Tour de France twice, the World Championship, and countless pro races.

However, let’s (try) to look past the bike’s colour scheme and focus on the features. According to Fausto Pinarello, the new F8 is a ‘powerful and responsive bike for every track’, something that it claims to be a product of its work with Team Sky and Jaguar.

Fausto said that Jaguar’s partnership has allowed Pinarello greater access to aerodynamics development with its in-house wind tunnel capabilities. This would no doubt help it ‘in creating a streamlined and aerodynamic bike without losing the typical characteristics of Dogma’.

Fitted with Dura-Ace Di2 and Dura-Ace C50 wheels anyone can now pretend to have won the Maillot Jaune. If you’ve got a spare couple of grand, that is.

Price: £TBC

Do you find that your dreams are filled with you getting your hands on a bike ridden by the pros? Well with the Tour over, Canyon look ready to ship out some of their professionally ridden bikes. These bikes come with real life experience of professional racing, and some even have the scars to prove it.

First up is Alex Dowsett’s 2014 Aeroad. This medium sized Aeroad weighs in at 6.95kg and is the first generation of the highly popular bike, bearing the Englishman’s name and a few nicks to go with it.

Decked out in Movistar green and blue and running Campagnolo Super Record EPS, Dowsett’s Aeroad would be perfect for any fan of the Spanish team. Then there are the tubular Boras. To fulfil every rider’s pro-dreams the bike runs Conti’s Competition Pro Ltd Competition. These are team issue only tyres, meaning you can’t buy them anywhere, no matter what that know-it-all down your local club says.mHowever at the end of the day, the bike is a used bike and with no real provenance to say that Alex Dowsett used it as a race day bike and not a training one, may make you question paying £4,499 for a used 2014 bike.

Then there is Nairo Quintana’s extra small 2014 Ultimate CF SLX. The Colombian’s tiny bike shares the same setup at Dowsett’s Aeroad with Super Record EPS but swaps out the tubs for Campagnolo’s Eurus clinchers. This suggests that this bike might not have been a race day bike but Quintana’s training bike. Even with the drop in wheelset quality and the fact that this bike could have just been Quintana’s training bike, the German company are asking £5,599 for it.

If you’re a Team Movistar fanatic, then you may be interested. However with all this talk of ‘cycling history’ and ideas of sporting memorabilia, where does this rank in the grand scheme of things?

Step up to the plate Babe Ruth. The legendary baseball player, George Herman ‘Babe’ Ruth was arguably the greatest player of all time, a claim that is backed up by his New York Yankee Jersey that was sold for nearly $4.5million. This is the most expensive piece of sporting memorabilia ever.

Then a little bit down the list there’s the first known set of football rules written called Rules, Regulation, & Laws of the Sheffield Football Club. Hand-written in 1858, the book details the early rules of the world’s most popular sport and was sold in 2011 for £881,250.

Lastly, right at the reasonably attainable is one of Sir Bradley Wiggin’s TdF winning Dogma 2s. Having won a competition, a SKY customer received one of the bikes that Wiggo actually rode to victory in 2012. He promptly put the bike up for sale because he wasn’t going to squeeze ‘into tightly fitting Lycra and use it every now and again to keep fit.’ The bike sold for £10,400. Make the Canyons seem quite cheap don’t they?

'Babe Ruth' jersey photograph courtesy of Dan Gaken

When you can’t find a product that does exactly what you want, what do you do? Well if you’re Rob Vandermark, Head of R&D at Seven Cycles, you just make it. When building its bikes, Rob and his team wanted to use a front fork that could ride any road, but there wasn’t anything that quite fit the bill and the core feature that they felt many were lacking was? The option for mudguards.

‘There was a limited choice of high quality lightweight forks with a central fender mounting system,’ he said. ‘We looked to integrate a mount with more clearance.’

As the bicycling world slowly transitions into disc brakes, you may have noticed that very few offer mudguard mounting and if you ask a road cyclist what they want from a carbon fork, very few will say a mudguard mounting system. However with more and more of us training through winter and the UCI’s dream of disc braking road bikes edging closer, we may find ourselves contemplating over an espresso which mudguards to use.

'The new fork, called the Max 45, has clearance for a 45c tire and incorporates much of the research behind Seven’s 5E road fork while accounting for the increased torsional stiffness necessary for long-term performance on disc brake bikes.'

'Aimed at the gravel grinder/mixed-terrain market, Seven envisions the Max 45 being an attractive option for randonneurs who include dirt roads in their rides, commuters who want a weather proof option for rain, snow and ice, and the legions of riders who are riding everything from unimproved, Class IV roads to single-track on their drop bar bikes.'

Like ENVE, the brand is looking to incorporate its fork with other frame builders and has decided to stick with a 9mm quick release axle as opposed to the newer thru-axle. Plans for future models see a thru-axle being incorporated but much like its developed bike design, it wanted to play it out.

‘Thru-axle will dominate very shortly; with the 9mm you are seeing a lot of people drop it in favour of a thru-axle. We wanted to start with 9mm and develop it.’ It was clear that Rob and his team wanted to make a product that would get it right.

Being a medium sized bike company based in America you can be forgiven if you have not heard of Seven, but this company has got some experience. I wondered though, did it collaborate with anyone when it came to developing the MAX 45? ‘We have worked with people on things in the past but a lot the work was done internally. You know, we’ve made road forks for almost 20 years,’ Rob told me. It’s safe to say the guys there know their stuff.

Seven Cycles is an American bike manufacturer that specialises in creating high-end bicycle frames using titanium, filament-wound carbon fibre, and steel.

The fork is priced at $545 with the UK price to follow.

Contact: Seven Cycles

Is there any sport aside from cycling where the use of coloured clothing is so significant? The hues adorning riders’ jerseys take on great importance in competition, and spots, stripes and logos play their part too. 

The yellow jersey is now part of the greater language of sport alongside world cups and championship trophies as signifiers of the upper echelons of performance. The Maillot Jaune (or Mellow Johnny if you say it like a certain Texan used to) is now recognisable to anyone with even the most fleeting relationship with pro cycling. Yellow has to be the colour most synonymous with the world’s biggest race, and therefore with cycling itself.

Controversially – and also a tad prematurely – Russian pro team Tinkoff-Saxo dabbled with having the exact same tone dominate their kit, before realising having every rider look like they’re leading the Grand Boucle was a bit of a faux pas. The next iteration was more fluoro.

Or chartreuse, if you buy your cycling clothing from rapha.cc. After redefining the look of cycling kit with a muted, monochrome aesthetic, the premium brand’s about-turn five years ago resulted in its first high-visibility garments in the chartreuse shade. ‘Studies have found that the rods in the retina – the part of the eye that works best in low light – are particularly receptive to the yellow/green colour,’ they said. Fine, as long as you don’t team it with shots of the authentic French liqueur that shares its name.

Before the introduction of the fluoro flash, black was the colour most associated with Rapha, and that filtered through to the teams that wear its kit, namely Team Sky and JLT-Condor (until they switched to Mavic this season). Before black became the new, er, black, there was the Maglia Nera.

None more black

The Black Jersey was awarded to the last-placed rider in the Giro between 1946 and 1951 and incredibly, it was strongly competed. Italian Luigi Malabrocca was a past-master at hiding in barns and bars to eke out his time, while none other than Giovanni Pinarello won the last one, decades before the bikes bearing his name would be ridden to Grand Tour victories by the likes of Indurain, Wiggins and Froome.

Black also extends to the bikes themselves and it’s the ubiquity of all-black frames – or ‘murdered out’ as some say – that prompted me to add a bit of shiny bling to my own carbon steed, earning me the nickname ‘Goldenhubs’ from my riding buddies. Using gold is daring, maybe even foolhardy, I know. No one is going to argue with Sir Wiggo wearing a gold helmet and shoes as he takes the Hour record, nor Spanish pro Samuel Sánchez, who still adorns himself in it, even though he won the Olympic Road Race way back in 2008.

Back to the jerseys, and red polka dots signify the King of the Mountains in the Tour (also won by the aforementioned Sánchez) although the eye-catching design is the subject of conjecture. Either it came from a chocolate brand called Poulain, who sponsored the first KOM jersey in the 1970s and had it mimic a chocolate bar wrapper, or TdF organiser at the time Félix Lévitan was inspired by polka-dot jerseys he had seen at the Velodrome d’Hiver in Paris when he was younger.

Over in Spain, the red jersey, or Maillot Rojo, is reserved for the winner of the Vuelta. Stripes, though, are really for different types of victors. National champions tend to have them across their chests in the shades of their own federation, while it’s the rainbow of blue, red, black, yellow and green that belongs to the World Champion.

Although the blue of Etixx-QuickStep is now his colour of choice, when Mark Cavendish become the first Briton since Tommy Simpson in 1965 to win the Rainbow Jersey, he wisely stopped the pristine white background at his waist and sported more traditional black shorts.

Sure, if you’re World Champion, you can do what you like, but white bibs take some pulling off, if you get my meaning. No cycling civilian should really venture into that territory. Even so, they’re not the most horrifying hue to adorn the lower portions of riders. That would be brown – fine for the legs, diabolical for the shorts. So, pity the French pros of AG2R-La Mondiale, who have no choice but to look like their thighs have been painted with Marmite. And thank the stars that you have a rainbow of other colours from which to define your own sartorial cycling style.

You can follow Matt Barbet on Twitter @MattBarbet

Cyclist: Looking back to your pro career, did you ever think cycling would become so popular in Britain?

Roger Hammond: When I was a pro in Belgium [1998 to 2004] my teammates couldn’t understand the animosity between cyclists and non-cyclists in the UK. The issue was always about reaching a critical mass. Once there were enough people riding bikes it wouldn’t matter what people in cars or the press thought about the sport. But I never could have imagined it getting as big as it is now. I remember my grandma – bless her – saying, ‘When are you going to get a proper job?’ I’d tell people I was in advertising because after years of explaining whether or not I got a salary I was exhausted. A good friend bought a new bike recently and he said, ‘Roger, I never knew you were a pro cyclist.’ We’ve been friends for decades but we’d never even talked about it. Now he’s obsessed with cycling. It’s bizarre.

Cyc: Are you happy you took the old-school route into the pro scene?

RH: Yes and no. I remember when I first moved to Belgium I wasn’t sure what was going on. There was a mix of fear, worry, aspiration and excitement. If you follow a predetermined system like today it probably takes a little bit of the magic away, but you will achieve your full potential much quicker. The magic comes when you’re winning WorldTour races, rather than still working out what food to have for breakfast when you are 27 years old.

Cyc: You had a long career, from being World Junior Cyclocross Champion in 1992 until retiring in 2010. What are your greatest memories?

RH: All the races merge into one and I can’t even remember which years I was National Champion. But I can remember sleeping in a car in Belgium when I moved over there. And I can remember the first night I turned up at the home of the Belgian family who I would be lodging with, sitting in their front room feeling awkward while they kicked their daughter out so I could have her bedroom. I loved the fact that I went from sleeping in the back of a Vauxhall Nova to floating in a yacht offshore near the Cayman Islands with the owner of Walmart.

Cyc: Was it tough to be a pro in an era wrecked by doping scandals?

RH: There was a lot of controversy and negativity associated with that era but I probably wasn’t the most unlucky one. I turned professional in 1998 [the year of the Festina doping scandal] so it was hard, but the other side of the coin is that rather than emerging into a world where drugs were part of the system I arrived at the time of a huge wake-up call. There was a big scandal and I never wanted to be a part of it. I never wanted to be in the same position as those guys who got the phone call or the letter or the knock on the door.

Cyc: Was sleeping in an altitude tent your way of trying to keep up?

RH: It was my way of finding marginal gains, but in a fair way. Altitude tents weren’t banned and I convinced myself that ethically it was OK. Some people live or train at altitude so I thought: why not bring the altitude to me? Cheating is getting something for nothing but altitude tents leave you absolutely knackered. It’s not a shortcut, that’s for sure.

Cyc: Why did you enjoy the Classics so much?

RH: They suited my skills because I came from a cyclocross background and I loved the drama. I also knew I was better off with one-day races. There are so many elements like tactics, skill, teammates, knowledge and timing, and in the bigger tours I didn’t know what other riders were up to. For me in the Classics it was more of a level playing field. I only did one Grand Tour in my whole career. That wasn’t a coincidence.

Cyc: What are your earliest memories of Paris-Roubaix?

RH: I can remember watching it on television when I was a kid. I remember the cobbles and the mud and the sheer excitement. When I got into cycling I had three goals: to win Paris-Roubaix, a stage of the Tour and the World Cyclocross Championships. It’s not a coincidence that all three of those were on television: if you’re exposed to things at a young age they capture your imagination. As a fan it’s good to watch all the Classics, though – the real drama comes from watching how tactics and form changes and how the whole story grows and evolves. That’s more interesting than just watching the last spin in the velodrome in Roubaix. 

Cyc: Can you ever be fully happy with your third place in 2004?

RH: It’s strange when I look back. I almost imagine it in the third person. For years afterwards I just remembered the pain of not winning. I felt it was a missed opportunity. But over time I recall only snapshots of the race. I can remember Peter van Petegem [a Belgian rider for Lotto] coming up to me and saying, ‘You’re going really well. On the next sector I’m going to attack. Come with me.’ This was a guy who had won it the year before and was leading the World Cup so I felt like a million dollars. I remember coming through the Carrefour de l’Arbre, taking every risk I could, riding at 60kmh on one of the worst roads in Europe, with the crowd inches away. I thought, ‘I’m dicing with death here, not trying to win a bike race.’

Cyc: Is Paris-Roubaix the hardest race you did?

RH: I’m probably supposed to say that it’s the hardest race and that the pain is ridiculous, but the truth is it was one of the easier races for me because it matched my skills as a rider. When I hit the cobbles I started to relax. You’re on the bike for about five hours but for me it felt more like five minutes. You are so focused, you can’t lose concentration and it feels like time flies.

Cyc: You’re known for your attention to detail. How important is it?

RH: You need to know every detail, every turn in the road and every possible scenario. A decision might only save you two seconds in the wind but that could be the difference. You need to know form, history and rider friendships. What happens at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad can affect what happens in Paris-Roubaix. I remember in one race a load of riders started attacking me and working together, and I couldn’t understand why. Afterwards I realised they had been roommates the season before. Little details matter. 

Cyc: What’s your biggest challenge as team manager at Madison Genesis?

RH: As a rider you are in control of everything and you have an excuse for everything because if you don’t have a reason for why you haven’t just won the race you can’t go out with the same gusto in your next race. On this side of the fence things are very different. You have to be more objective and the amount of time you put into it is not always directly related to the results. But I like to think that when I advise the guys, at least they know I have been there and done it. So when they kick my head in on a training ride they can go into a race with confidence. But I’m happy to watch now. When I see Tom Boonen battering people in races I remember the stress of what that feels like and I’m glad it’s not me. 

Cyc: What aspect of pro cycling would you like to change?

RH: That’s a whole can of worms. We need tremendous change. The sport needs to be more professionally run and we need more rider representation too. Cycling has developed so quickly and the organisers are still catching up, so it looks like they are just putting out fires all the time. But most importantly you can’t let riders avoid each other by dodging races. You need guys like Chris Froome, Vincenzo Nibali and Alberto Contador facing each other in all the big races. You wouldn’t have the Monaco Grand Prix with Fernando Alonso racing but Lewis Hamilton staying at home, or footballers dropping out of the FA Cup Final to play in another match. It’s absurd. When you think of all the new people coming into our sport, it is too confusing. We need to see the best riders, in the best races, smashing 10 bells out of each other. 

Madison Genesis recently won the Tour Series. Follow the team at @MadisonGenesis

Dear Frank

I’ve noticed more and more cyclists are posting their riding exploits to social media. Is this acceptable behaviour?

Ed, by email

Dear Ed

I went riding today, alone. It was warm, sunny. I had no plan other than to ride – no intervals, no hill repeats, no restrictions. Just a ride to reacquaint myself with the bicycle, to feel my sensations and see where the road and my mind would take me. 

I’ve been off the bike for a week, after suffering a failure of judgement and going on a hiking trip for a few days with a friend. Why two Cyclists would elect to go for a walk in the mountains without bikes and instead carrying heavy packs is beyond explanation. 

It was good to be on the bike, just myself and my thoughts. I find that solo rides provide a centring effect that I have trouble finding elsewhere in life. Being alone within the urban landscape where my life plays out seems almost like stealing something.

I have a relationship with my shadow when I ride alone on sunny days like today. I watch it to read my technique. I look at my position, I watch the fluidity of my stroke, I look at my shoulders. My shoulders are one of the things that I love to watch most – I gauge whether they are still enough when I’m riding hard. When I am thin, like I am at this time of year, they look sharp. 

Not all rides are like this, where I find insulation from the buzz of everyday life. Some days I’m so exhausted from work that I have nothing left to give once I swing my leg over the top tube. On those days, I’m happy simply to turn the pedals over. Other days, the chaos at work feeds the fire of ambition and I explore a new cavern of the Pain Cave.

When I ride with others, I am dependent on those around me and they are on me. I interact with them, I enjoy their stories and share some of my own. I take pulls on the front, I drift to the back. I might take a dig or two, just to play around, or sprint just to prove how horrible I am in a sprint. 

In a race the co-dependency shifts away from the social towards tactics. But still, the experience is largely internally focused – each of us is in a bubble of our own, floating alongside one another with the edges of our bubbles occasionally intersecting like some kind of living, 3D Venn diagram.

All this is to say that cycling is fundamentally an individual experience. We ride because we have to ride. There is something within us that drives this impulse – no external fire burns to force us to choose this life. We may well ride with others and they may inspire us to achieve more, but the drive to ride a bicycle comes from within. 

There is a positive aspect to posting rides on social media. Strava allows you to analyse historical rides and training patterns in a way that previously would have required the services of a coach and detailed training logs. It also allows friends to share in the experience of riding bikes in amazing places in a way that simply wasn’t possible before. 

This sport is principally about an individual’s own experience – nothing else. The over-sharing of rides on social media distorts this principle into a vaguely narcissistic declaration of one’s achievements on the bike. It rips it from the sanctity of our personal experience and flings it into an anonymous world of reactive Kudos, Likes, Retweets and Reblogs. 

Obviously the greatest crime here is the posting of 10km or 15km rides on Strava with a footnote that says something like, ‘Short ride before work.’ Which is the Facebook equivalent of saying, ‘That was a good sandwich.’ 

In other words, no one gives a shit.

Frank Strack is the creator, and curator, of The Rules. For futher illumination see velominati.com and find a copy of his book The Rules in all good bookshops. You can email your questions for Frank to cyclist@dennis.co.uk

We’re rather privileged as cyclists that Garmin has chosen to offer us two products. While the snowboarders, surfers and trombonists have to put up with just a VIRB camera, we also get the Edge range of bike computers too. Sadly we’re also limited by space in which to attach these items but thankfully Garmin has us covered there too with the new Virb XE cycling bundle.

The new Virb XE cycling bundle includes the standard XE package (sticky mounts, batteries, adaptors etc.) plus a microSD card, small and large tube mounts, a vented helmet strap and the new cycling combo mount. The combo mount is a Garmin Edge mount on the top, with a Virb mount on the bottom. All you do is mount the Virb XE upside down beneath the Edge unit and the camera automatically rotates the video back the right way round.

It’s particularly neat as you can use an Edge as a remote control for the Virb XE, as long as you’re using the latest firmware. Simply connect the Virb with the Edge via ANT+ and you can start and stop recording using the Edge display without taking too much attention from what is going on ahead of you.

The Virb XE cycling bundle is priced at £349.99, which is only £30 more than the standard pack. If you consider that the mount alone is £30, we think that the cycling bundle is a bargain.

We’re getting one in, so look out for a review soon.

Contact: Garmin

Silca has made a bit of a name for itself of late for transforming mundane, every-day tools into things of beauty. I already own a track pump - it does a perfectly good job - but that doesn’t stop me wanting the £300 SuperPista Ultimate track pump. Why? Because it’s the best that a pump can be. Every bit of it thought about and carefully crafted into a no expense spared super tool. Now Silca has turned its attention to the humble allen key and brought us the HX-One tool kit. 

Often overlooked, allen keys are staple of every toolkit. Cheap allen keys are often poorly made, so they are a bad fit inside bolt heads. Once the torque starts creeping up on soft alloy bolts, the heads are quickly deformed by the poor fit of the cheap allen keys and the bolt is ruined. A properly made allen key fits the head of the bolt better, so the likelihood of rounding out the bolt is greatly reduced, although well made allen keys are not cheap. The HX-One kit is priced at $125 (UK pricing to follow) but you get more than just some chromed S-2 steel allen keys for your money. 

Included with the kit is the Silca 17-4 stainless magnetic adapter that turns the 6mm allen key into a ¼” socket drive.  The adapter opens up the use of the 6 Torx bits, 2 Philip head and 2 Flat head drivers included, plus any standard ¼” driver bit. All this is packaged into a CNC machined Beech wood box.

Silca claims that its goal was to create a set of tools that would last a lifetime and if its pumps are anything to go by, we think it’s probably true.

Contact: Silca.cc

The microprocessor is dead. Long live the master cylinder! Rumours emerged [these are no longer rumours – Rotor has confirmed the groupset – update below] recently of a hydraulic groupset from Rotor and after a bit of digging, we found the patent documents, plus a few other interesting items from Campagnolo.

The Rotor hydraulic groupset is rather fascinating, as it differs quite dramatically from the prototype we saw from Acros a few years ago. The Acros system used two hydraulic lines and the indexing was done in the shifters, like conventional mechanical groupsets. In the Rotor patent files, you can see there is only one hydraulic line and the indexing takes place at the derailleur, which means you can use multiple shifters on one derailleur (such as on TT bikes).

The Rotor shifter bears a striking resemblance to a SRAM unit (Rotor actually mention it in the application) and operates in a similar fashion. The derailleurs as you can see house all the gubbins to sort the indexing.

UPDATE

Rotor has officially annouced its hydraulic groupset as the Uno. Rotor has partnered with Magura on the brakes and the UNO will be available with hydraulic rim and disc brake options. Little else is known about the groupset at the moment, although we've got some time booked with Rotor at Eurobike next week so we'll bring you an update then. In the meantime, here are a few photos of the finished units.

The Campagnolo items are allusions to the much rumoured hydraulic disc brake options. With the testing period in full swing, we think Campagnolo is going to have to show its hand fairly soon. The first patent drawing is for the integration of a hydraulic master cylinder in an EPS shifter.

There is nothing of the actual brake unit itself although we’ve heard rumours that it’s being produced by Brembo (it patented a bicycle disc brake about 10 years ago).

Campagnolo also filed a patent for a handlebar with hydraulic controls built into it. The idea being that the much larger space available in the handlebar means you can install much larger master cyclinders which offers more braking power than would be available from the tiny hydraulic systems fitted inside shifters.

Best start stocking up on your DOT fluid.

Founded in 1952, Italian marque Colnago is one of the most prestigious names in world cycling, and its new CLX is a bike that performs at the highest level whether you’re racing or out for a Sunday ride. And courtesy of the Cycle Show, we’ve got one to give away to one lucky reader!

The winner also receives two free tickets to the Cycle Show at NEC Birmingham on 25-27 September - visit Colnago at stand H71.

Click here to enter: Win a Colnago CLX

There is a story that when it came time for Mazda to update its legendary MX-5, the chief engineer has an idea that if it was to shave 1g off each component part it would add up to huge weight saving off the whole car. As it happens, due to various increases in safety concerns, the car put on 150kg but the theory still stands strong enough that Fuji gave it a try on the new SL.

Fuji actually call the process ‘Fuji High Compaction [HC] Molding’, which eliminates the wrinkles that are usually common in high stress areas with tight bend, such as the head tube or bottom bracket. All those wrinkles end up full of resin, which all adds to the weight – or not if removed - the SL frame comes in at a claimed 695g.

Fuji has been using HC on its Altamira since 2013 but it has extended this to the seat tube and fork crown on the SL. The SL also eliminates half of the bonded joints on the Altamira (four down from eight). The seatstays and chainstays are moulded from two hollow pieces, which adds up to a claimed saving of 237g over an equivalent Altamira.

It’s not all just gram shaving though; Fuji claim the new SL is 9% stiffer that the Altamira in the head tube, 11% stiffer in the BB30 bottom bracket and 18% stiffer in the fork. The frame stiffness is down to the octagonal down tube and the fork stiffness is thanks to a Reinforced I-Beam (RIB) that runs down the length of the fork blades. There are other neat touches too such as stops that switch from mechanical to Di2 routing, an integrated chain catcher and chainstay protectors.

It’s not all stiffness, stiffness, stiffness either. The SL has ovalised chainstays in an attempt to increase comfort and each frame size benefits from different tube diameters and fibre layups to keep the ride quality the same between different sized tubes. People who ride smaller frames aren’t stuck with poor handling either as Fuji has invested in two fork offsets (52 and 43) to keep the trail consistent across the range (~58mm).

The SL has seen some early action at the USA Pro Challenge under Kyle Murphy but it will officially debut with Caja Rural-Seguros RGA at the 2015 Vuelta a Espana. Stephanie Genuardi said “We chose the Vuelta to launch this bike not only to show what our new bike can do on a world stage… but also it was at the Vuelta four years ago that our Altamira frame won us our first Grand Tour.”

The Fuji SL range comes to the UK with five models available that are expected to be available from October:

Fuji SL 1.1 - £8,499.99 – SRAM Red - 4.96kg

Fuji SL 1.5 - £3,399.99 – Shimano Dura Ace 9000 - 6.58kg

Fuji SL 2.1 - £2,599.99 – Shimano Ultegra Di2 - 7.50kg

Fuji SL 2.3 - £1,599.99 – Shimano Ultegra - 8.12kg

Fuji SL 2.5 - £1,499.99 – Shimano 105 - 8.10kg

Contact: evanscycles.com

2015 is a big year for Giro as it’s the 30^th anniversary of the company so it seems a fitting time to unveil the new Chrono range that’s been in development for the past two years. Giro says it’s very proud of what it has achieved with the New Road collection (now called Venture – more on that later) but it wanted to bring a complete option for riders who might own a Synthe helmet or Empire shoe. It wanted to take the time to focus on the details, offer a premium performance line alongside entry level options and make sure there was a parity between the male and female lines.

The new Chrono range is the first road clothing range that they’ve run through their in house development lab, the Dome. The Dome housing over 50 test fixtures, 3D printers a (small) wind tunnel and the Therminator (used to test airflow in helmets). Giro is keen to get more people to ride with its new collection, but it doesn’t want people to feel like they’re wearing a uniform. The Chrono collection is what it describes as a ‘mixture of science and soul’.

So without further waffle here are the highlights of the collection:

Chrono Pro jersey

The Chrono Pro jersey is made from a custom blend of fabrics that Giro had made up by their mills in Italy – it’s 80% polyester & 20% elastane, which it thinks is the perfect blend for performance riding. Giro described the fit as a ‘contoured race fit’ .

There’s a custom hem gripper to prevent the jersey riding up, open mesh side panels for extra ventilation and a tapered collar. The Chrono Pro jersey is super lightweight (just 117g) so is best in warm conditions. Giro also wanted to bring attention to the zip as it’s been specially designed so it doesn’t buckle, fold over or snag when in an aggressive position. It has the usual three pockets at the rear, plus an extra zipped pocket that is lined to keep phones/money dry 

$180 - available in both men’s and women’s fit.

Chrono Expert jersey

The Chrono Expert jersey borrows features from its more expensive sibling: it’s got the same front zipper, same four pocket rear and it’s the same race fit but it’s made from a heavier weight material that’s 90% polyester, but it’s still a respectable 160g. The colours and designs are a little bolder and more expressive, with a few colours that match the updated Synthe and Empire range. It’s also been designed so that you can mix levels (Expert jersey & Pro bibs for instance) without it looking odd.

$100  - available in both men’s and women’s fit. 

Chrono Sport jersey 

The Chrono sport jersey is a great example of how much attention to detail Giro puts in, even at the lower price points. The material is a 90% polyester – 10% elastane blend; Giro experimented with a cotton blend but decided it wasn’t good enough. It’s still got the same great zip as the Expert and Pro jerseys, but it does lose the fourth zipped pocket.

The cut is still racy, but it’s been opened up by about an inch on all sizes and the higher polyester blend is very stretchy. It’s available in a variety of colours, including the all important fluoro. 

$80 – 150g - available in both men’s and women’s fit.

Chrono base layer 

For the Chrono base layer, Giro experimented with various merino blends but wasn’t happy with how damp the wool became. In the end it decided to create its own fabric it’s dubbed ‘wikpro’ - the final production piece is 60% nylon, 30% polyester and 10% elastane.

The Chrono baselayer is currently only available as a sleeveless crew neck (they tried a short sleeve option but it bunched up too much) and they’re working on a long sleeve option for late 2016.

$60 - 90g - available in both men’s and women’s fit.

Chrono shorts

Giro says this is one of the hardest products it has produced.  The team tried it, tweaked it and then tried again. Only when they decided that it was the best bib short they’d ever worn was Giro happy.

Chrono Pro bibshorts

From the top, Giro had to create custom straps that were comfortable, stretchy and breathable. It has used a very soft nylon blend and tested four different strap placements before it was happy with them. The lower back has what it describes as a ‘contoured lumbar panel’ that is made from stretch woven, rather than knit, material to provide extra compression, and increase bloodflow to the area, to help prevent fatigue.

All the pads in the Chrono bibs come from Cytech. The Pro two different thicknesses in the pad (3 & 14mm) and three different weights of padding (60g, 80g & 120g).

The legs are made from Midi lycra (200g/m2) that is produced with black yarn (not dyed black). There’s a custom leg gripper, reflective logos and a radio pocket – all sizes have a 10.5” inseam. 

$250

Women’s Chrono Pro shorts

Very similar to the men’s but without the bib straps. The leg grippers are lighter than the men’s to prevent it from squeezing in and it’s fitted with a women’s pad. The inseam is also a little shorter at 8”.

$150

Chrono Expert bibshorts

The Expert bib uses mesh straps rather than the custom nylon ones on the Pro. The leg gripper is also a lighter weight. The Expert pad is made with two thicknesses (3mm &12mm) and from two weights (60g & 120g).

$150

Chrono Sport bibshorts

The Chrono Sport bib shorts are aimed at those who are new to bib shorts. The material is soft and breathable. The lycra is not as compressive as the Pro or Expert although it is the same weight material. The Sport pad is made from two thicknesses (3mm & 11mm) and two weights (80g & 70g)

$120

Chrono outerwear

For new the outwear line is just windproof items but there is a rain jacket coming for Autumn 2016.

Chrono Wind jacket

The Chrono Wind jacket has been designed to be lightweight & packable. There’s a 2-way zipper and vented back. The cut is performance race fit again. The material weight is 52g/m2, which is what Giro thinks is as light as it can go before there are durability problems.

$120 

Chrono Wind vest

Very similar to the Chrono Wind jacket, although without arms. The front of the Chrono Vest is the same but the back is mesh rather than stretchy material. The cut at the lower back has been engineered to fit over the top of three full pockets.

$100

Venture Expert jersey

Lastily, Giro also chose this time to rename its ‘New Road’ line ‘Venture’. The Venture Expert jersey is a performance merino blend – 100% merino was found to get too wet and not wick quickly enough. The final blend is 53% merino 47% polyester. (Not pictured)

$120 - 165g

We’ve been in Switzerland for the last few days putting the Chrono Pro range to the test, so look out for a first ride review soon. The Giro Chrono collection should be available from retailers from September 15^th– UK pricing to follow.

Contact: Giro.com

Sram baited the hook more than a year ago, when the first glimpses of something that looked like electronic shifting began appearing in prototype form on pro’s bikes. But it was clever with its disguises, fitting fake cables and wires, plus placing empty junction boxes on bars and stems to keep us all guessing. But its much-anticipated electronic shifting system is finally here. It’s called Red eTap, and it’s wireless. Not wishing to simply bring a ‘me too’ product to market Sram has sought to leapfrog all of its competitors. With its Red eTap shifting components, Sram has not just nudged the goal posts along a bit, it’s playing on a whole different pitch.

Electronic shifting is still highly divisive, despite Shimano’s Di2 having proved itself over five years in the market, and Campagnolo’s EPS now well-established too, plus other systems from Rotor and FSA also recently released. But wireless? Well, that’s just about as tasty for the naysayers as it gets. You can almost hear the gathering hoards drawing breath, ready to launch into an attack about how it will never catch on and couldn’t possibly be reliable. But Sram knows this. Plus, there’s that little elephant somewhere over in the corner of the room regarding its previous disc brake product recall. Of course that has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with its electronic offering, except the fact if we are to be 100% certain about anything, it’s that Red eTap would never have made it this far unless Sram could bet its bottom dollar (potentially, literally) on its absolute reliability and flawless functionality.

Development

Brian Jordan, Sram’s advanced delevelopment manager, joked, ‘We had to buy a lot of paper some time in 2010’, hinting at when the project began, but directly referring to somewhere in the region of 250 different patents its competitors had already taken out, amounting to nearly 20kg of paperwork for the design team to scrutinise. Sram was far behind and with so much patented technology it was forced to take a different tact.

Sram’s road brand director, Chris Zigmont, says, ‘We wanted to improve the riding experience, but technology shouldn’t clutter the bike. A bicycle is supposed to be simple.’ Going wireless immediately removes the need for finicky internal wiring, junction boxes, stashing batteries, plus the fact connectors are the number one failure point of any wired system, but potentially it also brings a whole new set of problems. But Sram knew if it could pull it off, wireless shifting alone would bring a true advancement over its competitors. Yet it’s engineers still sought to look beyond simply electrifying the existing components and do something that would not be possible with a mechanical set-up. 

Their focus turned to how to initiate the shift and inspiration was taken from the paddle buttons used in F1 racecars and fighter jets. Only having a single shift lever on each side means less confusion. One shifts up the other shifts down. Simple, effective and intuitive. And for the front derailleur? Simply press both levers together.

It eliminates any chance of an accidental front derailleur shift, and from my first rides, it took very little time to re-adjust my mindset to the new way of shifting at both ends of the drivetrain. You could even argue for the rear derailleur it’s more intuitive than existing shifters as the left shift paddle simply moves the mech left, - inboard, towards the top of the cassette - and the right paddle moves the mech right - towards the lower end of the cassette. Inside of my first hour of riding I’d stopped having to think about it and by three hours it seemed my brain had already completely remapped my shifting predispositions.

Airea wireless technology

First things first, it’s not Ant+, or Bluetooth, or Wifi. Sram Red eTap uses Airea wireless technology, chosen for its highspeed (low latency), reliability and low power usage. It’s also a high power signal with a range of 100m, so there’s little doubt it can cope with just over one metre, from front to back of a bicycle. The questions on everyone’s mind though, were fixated around reliability. What if the signal fails? How long will the batteries last? What about cross-talk between bikes in the peleton? Could the signal be jammed? What about crashes? Heavy rain?

Needing to get up to speed quickly on electronic testing protocols, Sram borrowed expertise and technology from other industries. Automotive and mobile phone companies are already applying the most stringent tests possible for things like vibration, battery life, dust ingress, waterproofing, chemical compatibility, corrosion resistance, thermal endurance, and thermal shocks. Sram admits, of course, along the way there were failures, but there’s always that dance to do with new products. Failures are actually fundamental to the process. ‘You want to see things fail,’ says Zigmont, ‘so you can say, yep, we saw that. And we fixed it.’ Suffice to say it would appear no stone has been left unturned in testing eTap, through around 700real iterations and three generations of prototyping, culminating in well over 200 bikes in the field totalling nearly one million kilometres of real-world riding.

The transmission signal uses an encryption that, Sram claims, is more secure than an ATM machine. The mechs will only pair to one pair of shifters at any one time, so there’s no chance of team mechanics accidentally pairing more than one set.

Sram developed a test platform to simulate 28 shifters being actuated simultaneously, distributed over 15 channels, equating to around 448 concurrent shifts, with no interference. It put hackers in team cars in the middle of pro races to try and jam signals and trace any potential sources of interference. The outcome, Sram claims, was flawless, and actually the wireless part was not the biggest challenge in the development of these products. Waterproofing, and battery retention in crashes, it says, proved trickier. When AG2R la Mondiale’s Alexis Vuillermoz won Stage 8 of this year’s Tour de France, riding eTap, Sram was happy it had its final rubber stamp, and had ticked every last box.

Installation

With so much new technology it’s easy to overlook another huge benefit of wireless – the ease of installation. It will take longer to remove your old components than to fit and set-up an eTap drivetrain. The derailleurs and shifters fit exactly like current Sram Red22 components. In fact in terms of ergonomic development, Sram has made only very subtle changes to the shape of the Red eTap lever hoods compared with its mechanical Red22 currently available. 

All that’s initially required is to set the mech stop screws (as per any mechanical system) and perform the wireless pairing for the individual components. The rear mech is the brains, so it’s all done from a small button there. Pairing takes only around 15 seconds. A really clever feature is there are no on/off buttons. Sensitive accelerometers monitor movement, automatically waking up and shutting off the power. It’s also a big part of the extended battery life, which Sram claims is around 1000km of riding, impressive for something so small and light. Gears adjustments are simple, done with the function buttons on the rear of the shift paddle, which also means you can make tweaks on the fly.

Each derailleur has it’s own battery. These are small, neat and easy to remove for charging (Micro USB charger takes just 45 mins). Crucially this means you don’t need your bike to be near a power source. The batteries are also interchangeable so if your rear mech runs low on a ride you can switch it with the front mech battery. SRAM spent a lot of time perfecting the battery attachment system - the heavy duty clip is designed to keep dust and water out, while also keeping the battery incredibly secure. The shifters are powered by coin cell (CR2032) batteries that have a lifespan, based on 15 hours per week riding, of two years. 

All things considered this is an incredible advancement that blew away my expectations. It’s been a long while since I was this excited by any single development in the industry. And it’s not at a ridiculous cost – even comparing favourably to its competitors wired systems. And as costs for this type of technology will inevitably fall over time the potential is enormous. I’d wager we’ll definitely be referring back to this product as a game changer in ten years time, for sure.

Overview

Shifters:

260g set.

£410

Right paddle for upshifts, left paddle for downshifts

Slightly reduced hood diameter. Maintains reach adjust.

Carbon levers. Larger shift paddles

Each requires CR2032 coin cell battery (user changeable) – claimed up to two years lifespan on 15 hours per week.

Front Mech:

180g

£265

No need for trim as per the Red22 Yaw front derailleur.

Aluminium and stainless steel cages

Interchangeable battery pack 

Rear Mech:

239g

£420

Master device of the whole system.

Jockey wheels and carbon cage as per Red22

Interchange battery pack

Installs just like any other derailleur

Blips:

6g

£150 (set of 4)

Remote shift buttons that plug into eTap shifters

Versatility - can go under the bar tape, or on top. Fit wherever (inc. aero bar extensions)

Blip box required if not plugged into eTap shifters.

Contact: Sram.com

Eurobike is something like Aladdin’s cave meets Trotter’s Independent Traders. If you’ve never been, there are 12 halls in total (A1-A7 and B1-B5) each with a speciality – bike technology, clothing etc. Within each one are the big brands and various other small brands to fill in the gaps, so to give you a taste of the Friedrichshafen experience we’ve compiled our favourite items from Eurobike.

Canyon

As well as displaying some serious prize winning bikes ridden by Alexander Kristoff and Nairo Quintana, the Canyon stand also held some really exciting new tech.

First up was a disc-brake Ultimate CF SLX Disc that was placed alongside 'Projekt 6.8'. Projekt 6.8 was Canyon’s first foray into disc brakes back in 2006, which was made almost entirely in-house using some hacked up Campagnolo levers. Canyon has come a long way since then with the Ultimate, but it was keen to say that although it has been slow to bring a disc road bike to the market, it wanted to wait until it was fully happy with the product. We should see the Ultimate CF SLX Disc in the pro peloton quite soon.

Canyon also showed a bike with in-built sensors that is able to broadcast data to an appropriate head unit, almost like F1-style telemetry. Canyon were quite coy on how it all works but expect basic numbers, such as speed, mixed with power output and even lean angles.

The most exciting thing was the Canyon integrated head unit. In simple terms the head unit is a dumb screen that displays whatever app is currently running on the phone that it is connected to. This means the head unit doesn’t need much computing power, or big batteries, so it can be quite small and sleek. Canyon displayed it running Strava and Google Maps but there were suggestions it will also be able to repeat SRM information for use by the pros.

Contact: Canyon.com

Rotor

We first looked closely at the new Rotor Uno groupset in our ‘The future is hydraulic’ article a week or so ago but Eurobike was the first time we were able to get our hands on the groupset. The Rotor Uno is a hydraulically actuated 11- speed groupset that promises a virtually maintenance free experience thanks to a closed hydraulic system.

First impressions are good – the groupset looks well built and appears well thought out, for instance the hydraulic shifting lines are the same size as Di2 cables to maximise compatibility with existing frames. The chain is made by KMC, and Rotor is producing its own cassette but to the Shimano pattern. Magura makes the brakes and you can choose between hydraulic rim and disc brakes.

Shifting is smooth but a little heavy on the prototype samples we tried, although Rotor assured us that the shifting would be considerably lighter by the launch. The shifting works in a similar fashion to Sram (short push for a harder gear, longer push for an easier gear) and you can shift down four gears at a time. 

Contact: Rotorbike.com

Tacx

Tacx used Eurobike as an opportunity to fully unveil its latest turbo trainer, the Neo. The Neo is the first true magnetic direct drive turbo trainer on the market, as well as being a huge step forward for Tacx virtual reality machines.

Tacx told us that direct drive is a big leap for real road feel. On a normal turbo trainer the roller is usually attached to the resistance unit and flywheel via a belt, which means that the heavy flywheel is spinning a much greater RPM than a normal wheel would. By matching the weight of the flywheel on the Neo to that of a regular wheel, and mounting the cassette directly, the Neo offers a feel and spin down effect very close to riding on the road.

The Neo is compatible with various VR programs such as Zwift and Trainer Road, along with the new Tacx app. The Neo is capable of generating its own power from the pedaling action but you need to plug it in for the motor to simulate descents. Thanks to the shape, it's also one of the neatest folding turbo trainers we've ever seen. Tacx is sending us a Neo to review, so we’ll explore the full range of options once it arrives.

Contact: Tacx.com

Garmin

Garmin had a few new items on its stand including the Varia light range and Virb XE camera. We’ve currently got those in for review but also new on the stand was the Edge Explore 1000.

Garmin describes the Edge Explore 1000 as being ‘ideal for touring and adventure’. The unit comes preloaded with Garmin Cycle Map road and bike paths as was as points of interest. The other big news is that the Explore 1000 is the first Garmin device to offer incident detection capabilities. The Edge Explore 1000 can detect an accident using the integrated accelerometer and then send a cyclist’s location to emergency contacts.

The Edge Explore is expected to begin shipping this autumn with an RRP of £349.99.

Contact: Garmin.com

Lifebeam

Lifebeam specialise in wearable tech – specifically in hiding sensors in items of clothing that are then used to measure your body’s various states. It’s been doing this for the US military and Air Force with great success for a number of years and now it has partnered with Lazer.

The Lazer Lifebeam partnership has been going for a little while but until recently you had to buy the helmet with the heart rate monitor preinstalled. Now there is an update to the product so that you can retrofit it to numerous Lazer helmets. Just pop off the cover near the sizing adjuster and clip in the Lifebeam unit – it can be easily accomplished in under two minutes. Don the helmet, connect it to your head unit and hey presto you can see your heart rate.

Lifebeam has given us a sample to try out, so look out of for a review over the coming weeks.

Contact: Lazersport.co.uk

Check back tomorrow for the bikes, wheels and accessories round up.

Carrying on from yesterday’s tech round up, we’ve moved on to bigger things: Bikes and wheels. Same idea – we’re bringing you the things we found genuinely interesting or ground breaking. So without further ado:

Lightweight

There were a few interesting products at Eurobike from Lightweight this year. One of our favourites was the ‘Gold Edition’ Urgestalt frame with matching Obermeyer wheels. There are 24 Gold Editions available, each hand inlaid with 24k gold and they cost? You guessed it - €24,000. Lightweight claims it has already sold quite a few to collectors.

Also exciting from Lightweight was its new Meilenstein Pro front wheel. The spokes and rim bed are reinforced to resist damage in a crash and also to prevent any sharp splinters flying off in the event of a smash. Lightweight was coy about which, if any, team might be using its wheels next year although it was quick to point out that BMC’s Rohan Dennis has been using its disc wheel with great success.

Contact: Lightweight.info

Merida

The showpiece on the Merida stand was the hyper light Merida Scultura LTD. The frame already weighs a miniscule 680g, which combined with a Sram Red groupset, Tune wheels and AX Lightness finishing kit gave a full build weight of just 4.55kg.

Strangely enough Lampre-Merida riders don’t actually get to use the LTD frame as it would be just too heavy – they use the team version instead that still weighs a rather impressive 750g.

Also exciting was its new cyclocross range, which is headed up in the UK with the full carbon Cyclocross 6000. It’s fitted with the Shimano Ultegra hydraulic disc brakes and it’s as on trend as can be with bolt through axles front and rear. Pictures simply don’t do the colours justice.

Contact: Merida Bikes

Ridley

The Ridley Fenix SL was first seen back in April being ridden by various Lotto-Soudal riders in the Spring Classics. The Fenix SL is something of an amalgam of the Noah, the Fenix and the Helium.

Visually it appears like a mix of all three models and Ridley described it as being a core bike in their range. It sees the Fenix SL as a master of all trades with a lean towards endurance thanks to the ability to accept 30mm tyres.

Contact: Ridley Bikes

Rolo

Rolo were particularly excited to show us some wheels and what these wheels mean for disc brake frame development. Shimano recently updated its frame manufacturers hand book with the full specifications for the FlatMount system, and Shimano has said that for a proper chainline on a disc brake road bike, using a 135mm hub, the chainstays should be no less than 415mm, which is quite long.

Rolo intends to use discs on its next generation of frames, but doesn’t want to compromise on handling so it has been experimenting with BiTurbo wheels from Bike Ahead Composites. These wheels are a full carbon monocoque, tubeless ready and weigh approximately 1100g for the pair. Most importantly due to their construction they allow Rolo to use short chainstays while still maintaining the appropriate chainline, althought Rolo did admit it has the disadvantage of locking customers into one pair of wheels.

We’ve just reviewed a Rolo frame in Issue 40 of the magazine that’s available at various outlets on 16^th of September.

Contact: Bike Ahead Composites

Check back tomorrow for clothing, shoes and accessories.

Last but certainly not least, it’s time we brought you our favourite items of clothing, shoes and accessories from Eurobike.

Castelli

Castelli was really excited to show us its new range of winter wet weather gear. Castelli has put together a full rain outfit that consists of the Tempesta (Italian for storm) waterproof jacket, overshorts and leg warmers. It’s all covered in a reflective material and is designed for long miles in the pouring rain. One of our favourite touches was the magnetic latch on the drawstring cuff.

Castelli also showed us an update to the Gabba called the Perfetto. The new Perfetto is made from a thinner Windstopper material on the main body, so it's better suited for when it’s damp but perhaps a little warmer. There was a rather depressing suggestion that it would be perfect for the British summer.

Finally we were introduced to the new Mondiale short. The Mondiale uses the same pad as the top end Body Paint short but uses a heavyweight lycra for a more supportive fit. The heavier lycra also means that Castelli are unable to sublimate any patterns onto the material, so it only comes in black - shame...

Contact: Castelli cycling

Giro

As well as unveiling its new Chrono range (full range here– first ride review here) Giro also updated some of its shoes and accessories to go with the new kit. We really liked the new Empire ACC shoes that now come in a reflective option. The interesting thing is that the reflectivity is in the material, rather than just a stuck on finish, so doesn’t rub off and it carries on working even if you scuff the material.

Giro also showed us the Foray helmet, which is basically a cheaper version of the Synthe. You can see the same design cues and style as the Synthe, it’s just made from less exotic materials. The Foray is available in two versions: one with a MIPS liner and one without.

Contact: Giro

Pearl Izumi

The Pearl Izumi 2016 collection is more of a gentle refinement than any enormous changes but we think some of their top end kit, which has been designed in conjunction with the BMC pro team, is really interesting. The Pro Speed jersey has a cut that tapers in across the chest to help the arms stay in an aero tuck and the very material the sleeves are made from is claimed to be slippery to give a few more aero gains.

Contact: Pearl Izumi

Primal

Primal has totally redesigned and rebranded for its new 2016 range. Primal said its been working with some fashion trend forecasters lately and its got some really exciting new designs to come a little later. A look around Eurobike certainly suggested it is on to something with the dot-matrix camo pattern.

The other highlight was its packable jacket, which looks like a great back up jacket if the weather suddenly turns. The material is thin and light, but still weatherproof so it will keep all but the worst of conditions at bay. Better still, the jacket folds up into its own pocket in a matter of seconds – when folded up there is an elastic strap to wrap around your arm - although there was a suggestion this may be swapped to a Velcro strap to attach it under a saddle.

Contact: Primal Europe

Pro

As a subsidiary of Shimano, you’d think that Pro would be fitted OEM to almost every bike available but that’s not the case. It’s because of this that perhaps Pro doesn’t get quite as much after market attention as it deserves. The top end Pro carbon kit is amongst the lightest and stiffest available, and its revamped mid-range PLT kit looks great.

They also had a range of new bar tapes including this LizardSkin-esque tacky finish tape. UK pricing and availability has yet to be confirmed.

Contact: Pro Bike Gear

Santini

Santini was really keen to show us the work its been putting into its latest pads. The latest Santini C3 chamois pads are made from three different thicknesses and weights of foam but, unlike many other manufacturers, the edges of the different thicknesses are tapered so that you don’t get a big step from one thickness to another. They’ve also added a new anti-bacterial layer to the top of the pad, so Santini recommends avoiding using chamois cream.

Carbon fibre is infiltrating every element of bicycle construction and it’s even managed to sneak into clothing too. The Photon range from Santini utilizes carbon fibres in the areas under the arms, allowing them to thin out the material and increase the cooling capacity without decreasing the material strength. For all out aero capabilities they opted for a ¾ arm on the jersey and it said it’s had great feedback from the Lotto-Jumbo riders who used the Photon range at this years Tour de France.

Contact: Santini SMS

Shimano 

A few new models from Shimano along with a really nice range simplification. To help simplify the shoes in customers’ minds, they’re recommending pedals and groupset levels to identify where the item is placed in the range. For instance Shimano recommends the new RP9 shoes be paired with the Ultegra 6800 groupset and pedals. It’s particularly helpful at the lower end range where there are numerous non-series pedals. The RP9 shoes are very similar to the R321 but with a less technical upper and a more flexible sole. They also come in a rather dashing white.

Shimano also had the new W884 women’s shoe to match the men’s R321. The shoe is much the same, but it's built from a women's last, and comes in a little cheaper. Rumour has it that the men's shoe will drop down to match the women's shoe for price.

Contact: Shimano

Sportful

The big changes from Sportful come in its Fiandre range. The Fiandre Extreme Neoshell jacket is a totally new model to the range with a new water shedding finish and externally taped seams. The zip has also been upgraded and the entire jacket has a soft internal liner so it can be worn next to the skin. If you opt for a long sleeve base layer, Sportful claim you can wear the jacket quite comfortably to 5c.

The Fiandre NoRain bib tights have also been updated. The first big change is the flap placed over the rear of the seat pad to protect you from rear wheel spray. It works in a similar fashion to a long tail flap on a jacket but they claim it doesn’t get caught up on the saddle as easily. There is also a double thickness material on the shin that keeps the worst of the spray from penetrating onto the material that is in contact with the skin.

Contact: Sportful

The Collins English Dictionary defines being reborn as to be "born or as if born again, esp. in having undergone spiritual regeneration". Zipp's 'Firecrest Reborn' campaign tells us about updates to its well-respected Firecrest line up, together with the release of the Course 30 wheelset and Tangente R28/30 tyres. 

The entire Zipp Firecrest range, 202 Tubular and 30 course wheelsets have been updated with new 77/177 hubs. The new hubs promise a reduction in maintenance from improved bearing protection. Previously hub iterations had suffered from bearings being overtightened by consumers, Zipp recognised this so the cartridge bearings in the new hubs have the preload set at the factory, so they shouldn’t require attention until it’s time for them to be replaced. Visually, the hubs are an amended shape with some fancy new graphics to boot. Also, being bigger means shorter spokes and Sapim CX Sprint lacing replaces the CX-Rays previously used (the exception here is the on the 202 tubs).

The quick release skewer technology from Zipp's new disc brake wheels has been extended across the rest of the range, giving additional leverage so that your wheels don't slip (an imperative for disc braking). 77/177 hubs can be teamed up with an XD driver body, which opens the opportunity for wall-climbing cassette options of up to 10-42.

Zipp has joined the rim braking tubeless-ready party a little later than most with the launch of their 30 Course wheelsets. It shares similar rim shape technology with some of the Firecrest range, with an internal rim width of a chunky 21mm. Check out upcoming Cyclist Issue 40's article on wider rims and why this (and not simply wider tyres) is such a vogue topic.

And speaking of tyres, completing the line up are the Tangente R28/R30 tyres. Most of us have just about got our heads around swapping 23mm rubber for 25mm, but Zipp are focussing on going even wider. On the assumption that disc brakes just around the corner, Zipp are banking on up 30mm tyres being the norm on the road;  the reported benefits being reduced rolling resistance and the ability to run at lower tyre pressures. The Course R28/R30's have a slightly more expensive older brother in the Speed R28. The difference? A claimed reduction of 44g in weight and approximately 11.18 watts of rolling resistance at 40kmh. 

Does all of this constitute spiritual regeneration, as Zipp claim? Perhaps this is a stretch, but these updates certainly at the least reinvigorate (in the case of the hubs) and bring Zipp into line with current market rim and tyre trends.

Specs:

Zipp 202 tubular

Weight: 1,180g
Price: £1,600

Zipp 202 Firecrest clincher

Weight: 1,450g
Price: £1,680

Zipp 303 Firecrest clincher/tubular

Weight: 1,625g/1,390g
Price: £1,680/£1,600

Zipp 404 Firecrest clincher/tubular

Weight: 1,690g/1,505g
Price: £1,680/£1,600

Zipp 808 Firecrest clincher/tubular

Weight: 1,885g/1,700g
Price: £1,920/£1,840

Availability: September 2015

Zipp 30 Course rim-brake tubular/clincher

Weight: 1,490g/1,570g
Price: £800

Availability: November 2015 (tubular)/October 2015 (clincher)

Wheels include:

Quick release skewers
Valve core extenders and wrench
Rim tape for clinchers

Tangente Course R28/R30 tyres

Weight: 260g/306g
Price: £44

Tangente Speed R28 tyres:

Weight: 216g
Price: £52

Availability: October 2015

Contact: zipp.com