Friday News And Views

Image courtesy of Mondraker

Olympics And Bikes!

Mondraker Shows Off Olympic Liveries:

Tuesday Mondraker Bikes showed off two Olympic liveries for two of their sponsored riders who are contesting the games in the XCO MTB category. The bike shown is the Mondraker F-Podium and this one is done up in a special livery for rider Bec Henderson who will represent Australia. 

Comments: The Olympics are a big deal in cycling and especially for MTB. I don't really follow Pro MTB anymore, so what struck me about this announcement was how much XC-ish bikes have changed in the last ten years or so. 

First of all, Bec Henderson is 5'2" tall, and she is on a 29"er. Now, I have been amazed by all the places 29"ers have made inroads, but the smaller riders still racing 29"ers has been something of a ongoing surprise for me. I know many women were really into the stability and safer feeling of the big wheels having been told this straight from some high-profile female racers back fifteen years ago now. (15 years ago!! What?!!) 

So, it's really something when you consider many would have said "No way women should be riding 29"ers, especially shorter women!", which is something I used to hear back then. Given the existence of performance oriented tires and wheels in 650B, that's even more crazy to consider. (And yes- I am aware some folks do use those wheels) 

And then there is the bike, a dual suspension model. A dual suspension XC racer wasn't super common, back in the day, but now it seems to be at least a fairly commonly chosen option. Anyway, just noting how things have changed in that scene.  

Image courtesy of KASK Helmets.

KASK Shows New Nirvana Aero Helmet:

Tuesday also saw the announcement by KASK Helmets who now offer a new aero helmet called the Nirvana. 

KASK used CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) programs to develop the Nirvana which KASK claims has displayed a 35% more reduction in  aerodynamic drag and a 19% increase in air-flow through the helmet to make this their most aero and comfortable helmet in the category. (Compared to "best aero helmets in the category" according to the press release)

KASK does its own internal safety testing which has resulted in their exclusive Multi-Pod Technology. A new design which incorporates a 3-D printed pad which KASK claims is resistant to rotational and linear impacts, yet allows direct airflow to the rider's scalp. 

The Nirvana is available in matte black, matte white, Cherry Burst, Blueberry Fade, and Ultraviolet. The US price for the Nirvana is $400.00.

Comments: Aero is a thing in gravel, although KASK doesn't market the Nirvana helmet as being a "gravel helmet". My bet is that the fast folks will show up with these at gravel events. Notice in the image how the helmet covers the tops of the ears? That's right folks! Your ears are not aero! (HA!) Of course, anyone who has noted the time trials in the TDF recently, or at any point in the last 40 years, has already been well aware of this. It is kind of strange to me that this sort of treatment and design hasn't been utilized in road helmets much, if at all. 

No MIPS here! And did you see that price? Ouch!  

Image courtesy of State Bicycle Co.

State Bicycle Co. Debuts Titanium AllRoad:

State Bicycle Co. announced a pretty compelling AllRoad variant in titanium on Tuesday of this week. The bike features double butted, "Gr9 3AL/2.5V titanium", according to State Bicycle Co. The frame also has internally routed cables, room for 50mm 700c tires, or 2.2" 650B tires, and it has PVD graphics over a sand blasted finish. 

The carbon fork has a stealth through-axle and flat mount brakes with a internally routed cable port. 

The bike can be had as a complete starting at $2,499.00 on up or as a frame only at $1,299.00 (no fork). There are a lot of options so check out the page for the bike HERE. 

Comments: Notice the maximum tire size? This will be the new gravel bike standard going forward. Long gone are the days of maximum tire clearances being under 45mm. These new gravel bikes will be criticized and said to be "drop bar MTB's" by many folks but that just doesn't quite fit here. Too many small details separate the two things. 

I like the aggressive pricing on this bike and most of the details. I do not see 650B as being a big deal for buyers anymore and while the ability to swap in those wheels once made sense it really doesn't anymore. Once you could get that 45+ millimeter tire by going to a 650B X 47mm tire, and maybe a bit larger, but with these new rigs handling 50mm+ sized 700c tires, the question becomes more about the size and height of the rider when it comes to using 650B wheels. I still think 650B makes a lot of sense for shorter riders, but most folks that can should ride larger diameter wheels for their inherent benefits. 

Because State doggedly sticks to their "two wheel diameter - one bike" marketing schtick they have to compromise on bottom bracket drop to allow for smaller diameter wheels. And that is the only thing that would keep me off this bike. There are just too many bikes hitting all the numbers for me to compromise on a design like this State AllRoad Ti. But that's me. I still think it is a smoking hot value. 

USA Gravel National Championships Adds Spots For UCI World Gravel Championship Race:

Besides a $40,000.00 prize purse split equally between the Men's and Women's Elite classes, now it has been revealed that there will be ten spots to the World Gravel Championships to be held in Belgium for those who win those spots. 

The USA Gravel National Championships will be held on a 131.1 mile course with an estimated 5,715ft of elevation gain. The event will be held again in Gering, Nebraska on September 8th. There will be three shorter courses available for amateurs as well. 

Comments: Interesting that the USAC event now is $20,000.00 poorer than last year's event was. But how does USAC/UCI fund racing in the USA with this kind of total competitive flavor? This has been the perennial issue with racing at this level for road for decades. I see no reason why gravel should be exempt when the pattern for everything USAC is doing in gravel mirrors everything they were doing with road events.

The pot was sweetened (or was it?) by the offering of spots to the 2024 World Gravel Championships to be held in October in Flanders. Of course, that sounds all good, but I'm betting the dime to get there is on the competitors, and you'd have roughly a month to come up with the dollars to fly back and forth, get lodging, and of course, food and drink. So, it isn't that big of a deal unless someone else is footing the bill, and I suspect no one is sponsoring this. Maybe a brand of one of the lucky winners would chip in, but with the cycling industry strapped as it is? I doubt it would happen.

Okay, that is a wrap on this week! Thank you for reading the Guitar Ted Productions site!