Racing, schmacing: Let’s talk about tech at the Tour

07/06/23 • 79 min

The Tour de France can’t be that big of a deal. After all, they couldn’t even sign up 200 participants! But despite the low turnout, there’s quite the disproportionate amount of new tech to discover there, including a mysterious new Ridley aero all-rounder road racer, new tires and saddles from Specialized, a hint that a new SRAM Red groupset may be pending, new aero helmets, comfy-looking shoes, and upsized wheels from Campagnolo.

We also discuss Pinarello and Tune recently changing hands, how everything new in the MTB world seems to be designed for e-bikes, the return of CNC machining, and why your suspension fork is probably feeling sadly neglected.

3:50 — A sneak peek at Ridley’s new semi-aero all-rounder

7:09 — Specialized now has road tires just for wet conditions

15:50 — Yet another 3D-printed saddle model from Specialized

21:16 — Is a new SRAM Red groupset coming soon?

27:15 — Some funky new shoes from Q36.5

29:13 — Ekoi’s got a new aero road helmet

30:31 — Campagnolo is going wide with its new Bora Ultra WTO 45 wheels

32:31 — Mmm, built-in satellite shifters

36:34 — Pinarello has a new owner

42:40 — Lightweight has purchased Tune to create a German weight-weenie powerhouse

45:35 — Garbaruk has a new CNC-machined road and gravel crankset

49:30 — CNC machining is back in a big way

56:21 — UDH isn’t coming for road bikes; it’s already here

1:05:35 — MTB R&D seems mostly aimed at e-bikes these days

1:13:49 – Your suspension fork probably isn’t working as well as you think it is

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

3:50 — A sneak peek at Ridley’s new semi-aero all-rounder

7:09 — Specialized now has road tires just for wet conditions

15:50 — Yet another 3D-printed saddle model from Specialized

21:16 — Is a new SRAM Red groupset coming soon?

27:15 — Some funky new shoes from Q36.5

29:13 — Ekoi’s got a new aero road helmet

30:31 — Campagnolo is going wide with its new Bora Ultra WTO 45 wheels

32:31 — Mmm, built-in satellite shifters

36:34 — Pinarello has a new owner

42:40 — Lightweight has purchased Tune to create a German weight-weenie powerhouse

45:35 — Garbaruk has a new CNC-machined road and gravel crankset

49:30 — CNC machining is back in a big way

56:21 — UDH isn’t coming for road bikes; it’s already here

1:05:35 — MTB R&D seems mostly aimed at e-bikes these days

1:13:49 – Your suspension fork probably isn’t working as well as you think it is

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Previous Episode

The Eurobike show!

James and Ronan attended the Eurobike trade show last week, and oh boy, did they come back with a lot to talk about. E-bikes were definitely a major theme at this year’s show – again – but there was also a bunch of high-performance goodies, tons of electronic doodads, and as always, cargo bikes galore.

Also: Dave secretly wants to become a firefighter.

7:18 – A convenient way to measure saddle position

9:10 – Ronan likes the looks of the new Look

12:09 – 3T goes fully internal

13:08 – An unlikely new line of bikes from Marcel Kittel and Tony Martin

19:26 – So many amazing kid bikes

22:58 – Who said electronic shifting has to be expensive?

30:10 – Shimano’s 105 mechanical road groupset goes 12-speed

33:53 – There’s a revolution in tires coming, courtesy of Schwalbe

37:20 – Look, ma, no valve stems!

42:15 – A truly promising rethink of the rear derailleur

46:30 – Gearboxes and motors go together like peanut butter and jelly

54:01 – Cargo bikes galore

1:01:30 – NFCs are not the same as NFTs

1:03:15 – Cheap e-bike batteries can be very, very sketchy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Next Episode

A climbing bike too light for the pros, but carbon inspection for everyone

Factor’s new O2 VAM sounds like quite the climbing bike: light, stiff, comfy, and newly aero. But is it too light for the pros? Maybe. There doesn’t seem to be any debate about wider tires at the Tour, though, as even 28 mm doesn’t seem like enough.

SRAM has also brought its innovative Transmission mountain bike drivetrain technology down to the GX level, an Australian company wants to bring high-tech carbon fiber inspection to the bike shop level, and James gripes about water bottles.

4:15 — A roundtable on the new Factor O2 VAM climbing bike

16:25 — Even Tour racers have adopted big tires in a big way

27:00 — GX is now the least expensive Transmission version, and it might be the best one

35:55 — Is ultrasonic carbon fiber testing coming to bike shops?

49:26 — Zach has some thoughts on ever-widening cranks

59:15 — Water, water, everywhere, and too many leftover drops to drink

1:01:05 — Check your chain wear, folks!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.