This week's Tech of the Weekfeatures some cool innovations, including the Seabike pedal-powered propeller,aBike Radar Sensor with Lane ChangeAssist, andbike light that claims you'll be seen "5.5 times sooner" than with a standard light. But first,we're starting with a stationary bike promising to be the "future of fitness".
The "future of fitness" is...indoors, and involves hologramsaccording to this ambitious crowdfunder
We spotted the HoloBikeon Kickstarterfrom Saga (no connection to the over 50s holiday and insurance company of the same name as far as we can tell)that notonly promises to"enhance indoor training, but also give us a glimpse of the "future of fitness"... bold claims, but do they stack up?
It turns out this future looks a lot likea stationarybike featuringa 27-inch, 4K display mounted in front of the handlebars and - here's where it gets exciting -hologram technology!According to the brand, this is the first time this tech has been usedin the indoor cycling world.
"The stereoscopic viewport simulates the perception of moving through 3D space to break the monotony of stationary training", says Saga. This basically means that there's a library ofdetailed virtual rides, reconstructed in 3D from digital scans of real-life trails.
"We leverage the latest advancements in AI and procedural generation to deliver vivid digital twins of real-life trails from volumetric scans",Saga boasts.
This isn't the first time we've seen this sort of VR experience with indoor cycling, although it does typically involve using a VR headset which, let's be honest, isn't exactly ideal for a sweaty training session. Saga says that this is the "future of fitnessfree from headsets or eyewear for the firsttime."
Saga’s founder Samuel Matson has also been hard at work todesign the bike itself."Our electromagnetic resistance dynamically adapts to the virtual world for life-like hill climbs and gear shifting. And our polymer drivetrain belt enables nearly silentpedalling", he says.
We're told the HoloBike's adjustable steel frame can accommodate a height range of 4'11" (150cm) up to 6'4" (193cm).
With Saga originally looking for $25,000,pledges stood at over $37,000 last time we checked,so the funding target has been easily surpassedwith seven weeks remaining.If you want to be in line to get one, you need to pledge $2,599 (about £2,080) with expected delivery in the winter of 2024-2025.
As wealways point out,pledging money viaKickstarterisn't the same as buying a product through a reputable retailer, so do your research and weigh up the riskbefore backing anything on the platform.
>Where are they now? The best, worst and wackiest cycling crowdfunders
Dive into a new kind of cycling with the Seabike pedal-powered propeller
What. Is. This?
Okay, it looks like some kind of weapon, but the Seabike is essentially a pedal-powered propellor designed to make you cut through the water like a shark. A cycling shark. Kind of. You get the idea, anyway. You pedal, the propeller turns, you move forward –that’s the top and bottom of it.
The idea is that the Seabike allows you to swim longer distances without getting exhausted –if that could come in handy in your life. We’ve not used the Seabike so we can’t tell you how it performs; we’re just here to tell you that you’re living in a world where this thing exists.
How does the Seabike stay in position? If that has been troubling you, it attaches to your body with a belt. Phew!It means you can swim with your arms too.
You can even fit your own clipless pedals if you like, but don’t blame us if the bearings don’t like being submerged in water... and we'd say there's a very good chance that'll be the case.
How much? The Seabike 2.0 is €290 (around £250) with various other versions available at higher prices.
Oakley unveils Giro d’Italia collection
It's the time of year when the cycling world turns pink to reflect the Giro d'Italia's maglia rosa leader's jersey. On that theme, Oakleyhas introduced a Giro d’Italia collection comprising the ARO5 Race Helmet (£187)and Encoder Strike Eyewear (£248)“in a hot-pink and black colourway, featuring a distinctive pattern inspired by the challenging ascents riders face on the Italian Grand Tour”.
> Read our review of the Oakley ARO5 Helmet
When we reviewed the ARO5, we described it as “a deep-fitting Mips-equipped lid geared towards roadies with a need for speed”.
The Encoder Strike glasses feature a large, vented lens and Oakley’s ‘Unobtainium’ non-slip earsocks and nosepads.
The face of the collection is Mark Cavendish, who has 17 individual stage victories to his name at the Giro, although he’s not there this year. Cav is currently racing the Tour de Hongrie in his preparations for the Tour de France.
Continental's newTPU inner tubes weighjust 35g
Germany’s Continental has just introduced TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) inner tubes that are designed for road, gravel, and mountain biking.
Continental says that it has “deployed the highest grade of micrometer-thick TPU across seven sealed layers to maximise airtightness and durability” for its ContiTPU inner tubes.
“The tubes are uncoloured to further ensure the highest material quality and prevent air retention issues caused by dye-related surface imperfections,” says Continental. “Every ContiTPU tube is quality-checked post-production.
“The base of the valve shaft is slightly conical in shape to improve fit to the wheel rim and reduce unwanted movement, while the valve is internally threaded to allow for the use of valve extensions or a replacement valve core.”
> Butyl v latex v TPU inner tubes: which should you choose?
A repair patch is supplied with every pack.
Conti claims a weight of just 35g for the 700C x 25-35mm version. It cautions that TPU tubes should never be used with rim brakes because excessive heat exposure can lead to a sudden loss of air pressure.
Price? We’re working on it.
Are these the most Star Wars-esque helmets yet?
Rudy Project's new Wingdream time trial helmet made its official debut yesterday in the time trial on stage 7 of the Giro d’Italia. Spotted for the first time in a ‘wrapped’ version at Tirreno-Adriatico, the final version of the helmet was used by Team Bahrain Victorious.
“The result of two years of development and numerous indoor and outdoor tests, the Wingdream takes the studies of aerodynamics applied to cycling helmets to a new level compared to previous catalogue models, improving the management of turbulence at the athlete's back, as well as its air penetration coefficient,” says Rudy Project. “The helmet's special shape directs the airflow towards the athlete’s shoulders, enhancing aerodynamics.
> Is Jonas Vingegaard’s latest time trial helmet one step too far?
“From internal tests conducted in a wind tunnel, the new helmet allows an energy saving of almost 10 watts compared to Wing [the previous time trial model]. This translates to about four seconds saved every 10km, equivalent to more than a minute, for example, over an Ironman distance [180km/112 miles].”
Rudy Project does its testing at45 km/h over a yaw sweep of -20° to 20°.
“When compared to a traditional road model, the new Wingdream allows a gain of 306 seconds over an Ironman distance (180 km), assuming a constant power of 200W.”
The Wingdream will be available to the public from October 2024 in two sizes and two colours, but we don’t yet have a price.
If you think the Wingdream looks sci-fi, check out the new Limar Alien used by Astana-Qazaqstan riders. We’ve yet to hear Lamar’s claims on this one but we’re getting Darth Vader vibes.
Check out the bike light that gets you “seen up to 5.5 times sooner” than normal
The Flock Light, which aims to highlight your legs as you cycle to improve your visibility, is now available to buy online.
We first covered Flock Light back in 2022 when it was looking for Kickstarter funding. It smashed its target.
> Can this bike light really get you seen by a driver 5 times faster?
The team behind the product says, “The Flock Light sets itself apart by lighting up your legs at night while you ride, making you more visible. This innovation allows cyclists to be seen up to 5.5 times sooner than with standard lights, making cyclists recognisable as humans, not just flashing points.”
Inventor Tim Ottaway says, “Research has shown that enhancing the visibility of a cyclist’s biomotion significantly increases their conspicuity. By highlighting human movement, we engage the brain’s innate ability to recognise and react to human activity, fundamentally changing how cyclists are perceived in traffic.”
The Flock Light offers four lighting modes and the USB-C rechargeable battery has runtimes ranging from four to 100 hours.
The Flock Light is available for AUD $129.99 (around £68.50) on the Project Flock website.
Do you want Lane Change Assist on a bike?
Taiwan’s Terasilichas unveiled a new Bike Radar Sensor that offers features such as Lane Change Assist and Rear Collision Warning, automatically switching between modes based on the situation it detects for safety.
As the name suggests, Rear Collision Warning alerts you when vehicles get within a set distance, the idea being to help you avoid being hit from behind. Brands like Garmin and Trekalready use radar technology to let you know what’s going on behind.
> Read our review of the Garmin Varia RCT715
Lane Change Assist is intended to warn of approaching vehicles when you’re moving across the road. This technology is found increasingly in cars,
Terasilic makes parts for other brands to include in consumer products, rather than selling directly to the end user.
“It's important to note that while we provide the radar module, the ultimate design and integration of our sensor into the final product, whether it includes LED warning lights or camera functionality for dashcam purposes, is at the discretion of our customers,” Andy Chen, director of business development, told BikeEurope.“Both of the products are now market-ready.”
Do you reckon this technology is useful for cyclists?
3T brings more production back to Italy with Strada Italia road bike
3T has added a new model to its made-in-Italy portfolio: the Strada Italia road bike that, it says, offers “a perfect balance between comfort and aerodynamics”.
The Strada has been in the 3T range since 2017, but this version is made in the same Bergamo factory as the existing Racemax Italia and Extrema Italia.
“It shares the same filament winding and Resin-Transfer-Moulding (RTM) technology which has allowed us bring much of our production back to Italy,” says 3T.
“The Strada Italia sports a design optimised around tyres with a 30-35mm WAM (Width As Measured), a fitting studied to enable strong riders to maximise their performance, and aerodynamic tube shapes designed to optimise the speed in real-world conditions.
“The layup in the lower seat tube area has been refined, most significantly in the curved aero cut-out: this section gives the Strada Italia significant engineered vertical compliance without compromising energy transfer.”
Ah, our good old friend vertical compliance.
The Strada Italia comes with a new frame geometry, with a higher stack height than the existing Strada in most frame sizes. As you can see, the head tube is among the deepest known to man. The bike is designed exclusively for electronic groupsets.
A 3T Strada Italia frameset is priced at £5,487. Complete bikes start at £7,226.
Our man Aaron Borrill has been riding one over recent weeks and we'll have a review here on road.cc soon.
Prologo gets on board with Ineos Britannia for the America's Cup
Prologo –you know, the Italian saddles (and other stuff) brand –supports loads of top teams but the latest on the roster is surely the most unusual: the Ineos Britannia sailing team that’s hoping to challenge for the America’s Cup.
Cards on the table, we're not massively knowledgeable about sailing here at road.cc, but we do know that for the 37th America’s Cup, the rules have been changed to allow “grinders” to use not only their arms but also their legs to power the hydraulics that control the movement of sails and foils. Hence, there’s a new role: cyclors, who are cyclist-sailors. Every day’s a school day, huh?
This is where Prologo comes in, providing its CPC saddles and Onetouch 3D handlebar tape to the cyclors. This will enable “Ineos Britannia's four cyclors to maintain maximum saddle and handlebar grip during all phases of regattas, even when modern yachts fly over the sea at over 50 knots,” according to Prologo.
Prologo willalso provide the saddles for the team’s road and gym training.
Ineos Britannia will race four other teams later in the summer to determine which will challenge for the America's Cup in October.
Check out the £400 3D-printed saddle that weighs just 100g
off.road.cc's Matthew Page spotted the Ginger brand of saddles when he was at the Traka gravel event in Spain recently and they certainly look interesting.
Even by 3D-printed saddles standards, the Ginger PRNT’s £405 price is right up there. Why would you want to consider it?
“We have achieved an extremely lightweight design by reducing the area of the pad, interlacing it with the core structure, using high-tensile carbon fibres and the best layup for the shell and rails,” says Ginger.
The narrowest PRNT – it’s available in 137mm, 142mm, and 151mm widths – is a claimed 100g.
If that’s too hefty for you, the full-carbon FLLC (£330) –without a seat pad –is a claimed 72g.
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