Lance Armstrong - Hautacam Attack

Blah, Blah, Doping, Blah, Blah

What can I say that has not already been said about doping in cycling?

When I started BKW my goal was simple: To shed light on the cool and often overlooked aspects of cycling. To keep all my posts positive and avoid the negatives of the sport. Focus on the little things. All well and good, but I don't think I can take much more of this doping crap. I do not even know where to begin. Do I blame the journalists, the riders, the doctors, the DS, Dick Pound, the UCI, WADA, Cyclingnews.com, that damn rock 'n roll music, MTV, or myself? Has my patience run out before everyone else's?

I would like to hear from you, so post your thoughts and your opinions. What's going on in our sport and where does it leave the diehard fans of PROfessional cycling?

Trek Prototype

Road Bike Review broke the news a few weeks ago, but we came across these pictures of what appear to be Trek's latest incarnation while crusing around a German site.


I am not sure when these images were taken, but the interesting aspect of this last image is Ekimov. In his new role as Assistant Sports Director, Eki appears to be personally involved in Trek's R&D and the selection of equipment for Discovery's 2007 season. I guess old habits die hard.

Occupational Hazard

The team here at BKW wish our dear friend AT a speedy recovery following an "on-the-job" injury sustained on January 22. Stay strong brother and we look forward to your return to the bike. Our hat is off in honor of your dedication to the people you serve.

God's Speed AT.

1987 World Cycling Championships Finish

While it is a very hard and sometimes very cruel profession, my love for the bike remains as strong now as it was in the days when I first discovered it. I am convinced that long after I have stopped riding as a professional I will be riding my bicycle. I never want to abandon my bike. I see my grandfather, now in his seventies and riding around everywhere. To me that is beautiful. And the bike must always remain a part of my life.
- Stephen Roche

ZD Does HUP PROud

Men 1973 - 1977

1 Wilfred Veldkamp (Ned) 42.23
2 Laurent Lecoeur (Fra) 0.15
3 Frankie Theot (Fra)
4 Massimo Folcarelli (Ita)
5 Loic Ory (Fra) 0.29
6 Thomas Hannover (Ger) 0.53
7 Leon Brouwer (Ned) 0.55
8 Cedric Garnier (Fra) 1.07
9 Patrick De Laat (Ned) 1.13
10 Sven Raeymakers (Bel) 1.38
11 Guillermo Alvarez (Spa) 1.43
12 Joseba Fernandez Gaminde (Spa) 1.49
13 Cees Quint (Ned) 1.55
14 Jorn Fuhring (Ger) 2.07
15 Alex De Kraker (Ned) 2.14
16 Timmy Maes (Bel) 2.31
17 Jelle Vets (Bel) 2.54
18 Sven Kuschla (Ger) 2.59
19 Tommy Jacobsen (Den) 3.15
20 Meranda Aitor Diaz (Spa) 3.52
21 Kris Ceulemans (Bel) 4.12
22 Loic Sevennec (Fra) 4.15
23 Craig Denning (GBr) 4.21
24 Gijs Jongeling (Ned) 4.33
25 Keith Murray (GBr) 4.45
26 Hugo Hocknell (GBr) 5.53
27 Tijmen Kamphuis (Ned) 6.38
28 Zac Daab (USA) 6.41
29 Davy De Rijck (Bel) 7.00
30 Christophe Lechene (Fra) +1 lap
31 Koen Kevin (USA)
32 Dennis Boeijen (Ned)
33 Harry Ruiterkamp (Ned)
34 Wander Te Boekhorst (Ned)
35 Tobias Lampe (Ger)
36 Stephane Clay (Fra)
37 Richard Bowen (GBr)
38 Fabien Melet (Fra)

Photo Courtesy Chris Milliman.

Cyclocross World Championships

ZD has just wrapped up a day at the Belgian beach. For complete coverage from the Motherland - Get the holeshot.

Black is the new... black?

Lugano 1996 - Johan Museeuw

Note the Lightweights and Euro disco.

Cyclocross World Championships

Our man in the two-zero-six is headed to the Motherland at the end of this month to compete in the Cyclocross World Championships. Racing will take place in the town of Zilvermeer, Belgium, January 27-28, 2007. Ace Photog CM will be on hand to capture all the action and bring it home. CM has an eye for cross racing that only a true cyclocross fanatic can see. The staff here at BKW wish them well and we're looking forward to the dispatches from HQ. Safe travels fellas.

View more of CM's work.
View the two-zero-six HQ.

Fumiyuki BEPPU (JPN)

PRO

Today I came across a website called Daily Motion and found some great cycling videos. Check out this video of Fumiyuki BEPPU from Japanese television.

The Art of Bar Rotation

For decades, road bicycles were assembled using a set of rules that were standard in every bicycle shop and home work shop. These rules were understood as law and any mechanic worth their weight in beans respected and followed them. The brake lever position is a classic example of this. When mounting the brake lever on a pair of drop bars, the bottom of the lever was always positioned evenly with the lowest portion of the drop bar. Most mechanics utilize a straight edge (e.g., steel ruler, headset wrench) flat against the bar and lowered the lever until the bottom touches the flat edge. Tighten, done.

But in 1999-2000 riders began to roll the bars upwards, in essence, raising the location of the hoods. I have a few theories on why this was done.

In 1997, Shimano released the DA9 group and with it came the new standard for brake lever ergonomics. Shimano bulked up the hood giving it a wider, more comfortable feel and giving the end of the hood a rounder, taller profile. This increase in size gave the rider's hands more to hang onto and, during hard efforts, something to rest against and provide leverage. For the Spring Classics, the new hood design improved control and provided support on the pave.

In typical McCoy/Hatfield form, Campagnolo releases a complete revamp of the Record group in 2000. Like DA, Campy hoods recieved a make-over as well, bulking up like their DA counterparts. Absent though was the pronounced mass on the end of the hoods. Instead Campy focused on keeping it smaller and more nub-like. The new, rounder profile was a welcomed improvement over the older, pointed version. However, this difference in lever profile was the impetus for the trend of rotating the bars.


With the smaller nub on the end of the lever, the rider doesn't have the same leverage point on the lever under hard efforts or during the rough sections of pave. Enter the gradual rise of the levers position on the bars and the ever-increasing rotation of the bars. It seems that the rotation of the drops varies from 5-15 degrees and the higher position of the lever ranges from 2 mm to 1 cm above the bottom of the drops, thus bucking the traditional lever-bar relationship.

Another industry change that paralelled the new lever design was the advent of threaded headsets. Threadless systems removed the adjustability of the quill stem, eliminating the rider's option of 1-2 cm of height adjustability. Rotating the bars also increases the height of the hoods. The downside of this is that the drops also move further away from the rider.

The positional change is an easy fix for times when the rider needs an increase in bar height. The best example of this is Tyler Hamilton's bar rotation following his broken collar bone and the alterations in Floyd's 2006 Tour when his hip was causing him pain.


I'm a fan of the new bar position. The increased height of the hoods coupled with the rotation of the bar feels better on my wrists, and provides a noticable increase in the usefulness of the hoods when under a hard effort. Another bonus is the transition created between the shape of the bar and the hood itself. The added height makes the transition from bar to lever almost seemless depending on the type of bar the rider chooses.

Tom Steels and Tyler Photo courtesy Cyclingnews.com
Photo courtesy ADA Wheels - www.ada.prorider.com

1987 Paris Roubaix Finish

What better way to ring in 2007 than with a blast from the past. Check out this classic Roubaix finish from 1987. Make sure to stick around long enough to see Hardman Bobke Roll finish 39:00 down from Vanderaerden. The event crews are literally tearing down the event as Bobke comes home.