Geek Warning

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

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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

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For this week’s Geek Warning, James and Ronan were en-route to Eurobike, and so Dave was left talking to himself. After he submitted a three-hour rambling episode about his colour-coding preferences for hex keys, the team suggested that he record a new episode with Brad Copeland.

In the episode, Dave and Brad chat about a lust-worthy new tool from Abbey Bike Tools, Wolf Tooth’s new LoneWolf 1x Road chainguide, and the next frontier of XC race tech. Of course, Brad and Dave also share what’s on their mind, and there’s a PSA that’s likely relevant to many.

3:38 - The biggest things at E-urobike

10:03 - Abbey’s biggest tool yet

19:23 – 1x chain guides for road

26:30 - Bike selection and other tech at the World Cup in Leogang

43:30 - What’s on Brad’s mind? Road Tubeless.

51:30 - What’s on Dave’s mind? You can probably guess.

57:42 – PSA to check those cables! 

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SRAM’s new Apex redesign brings AXS wireless electronic shifting to the masses, but there’s also a new mechanical version, and it’s all 1x12 – and we’ve got all the details. Commencal has announced its first gravel bike that’s “not just another gravel bike” (even though it mostly is), RockShox’s Flight Attendant automatic electronic suspension is coming to XC, someone lost something in Lenzerheide, and Ronan outlines some of the tech decisions from his recent record-setting ride in Ireland. And finally, is UDH coming to road bikes now? (Hint: yes, it is).

12:45 – New SRAM Apex!

31:30 – Commencal gets into gravel

37:33 – RockShox’s updated SID spotted in the wild

43:46 – A big oops on the start line in Lenzerheide

48:17 – Ronan optimizes everything for his 15-hour time trial

1:02:15 – SRAM’s UDH is now coming for road bikes, too

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There is so much new stuff to talk about this week! Unbound Gravel was a smorgasbord of fresh gravel good, including new bikes from Canyon and Santa Cruz, and a sneak preview of Shimano’s new 12-speed GRX groupset.

We’ve also recently spotted new road bikes from BMC and Factor, and Silca aims to make chain waxing (a lot!) easier. And speaking of Unbound, what was the true material cost of entry for this year’s event? Hint: It's almost certainly much, much more than most participants expected.

Timestamps:

6:40 – What’s this new BMC race bike?

13:20 – Will the new Factor 02 VAM be even lighter?

17:44 – Shimano GRX 12-speed spotted at Unbound, plus our thoughts on 1x vs 2x for gravel.

28:05 – A more mountain bike-like Santa Cruz Stigmata on the way?

30:05 – Canyon Grail is due to get one less handlebar.

34:30 – Silca’s new Chain Stripper, the future of chain lubes, and why Caley is back on wax.

45:15 – Highlights of the Handmade Bicycle Show Australia.

54:12 – On your mind, and over the head of your family: Caley gives a shout-out to modern mountain bikes.

58:42 – James asks whether event participants consider the true cost of entry.

1:08:32 – PSA for your spare inner tube.

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Our trio of diehard in-house tech geeks – James, Dave, and Ronan – are on hand this week to talk about the dropped chain that nearly derailed Primož Roglič’s Giro d’Italia, Campagnolo’s new (and outrageously expensive) Super Record Wireless electronic road groupset, fancy new spokes from DT Swiss, and our new comprehensive guide to buying your first custom bike.

Also, all three of us apparently have issues staying upright, Ronan has thoughts on disc brakes in road racing, and a PSA on hidden caffeine.

6:58 — Roglic’s nearly disastrous chain drop

20:37 — Campagnolo goes wireless and ditches the thumb buttons

43:40 — New high-end MTB spokes from DT Swiss

48:37 — The impending return of the Handmade Bicycle Show Australia

49:59 — The return of Matt Wikstrom!

52:10 — Dave fell down

53:41 — James fell down

54:43 — Ronan fell down

55:12 — Ronan has thoughts on road racing with disc brakes

1:00:03 — Seat tube angles aren’t always what they seem

1:02:20 — Ronan needs to start reading the fine print

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Lots of new stuff to chat about this week! Specialized’s Allez revamp is hardly revolutionary, but there’s a lot to be said for a no-frills and accessible bike that’s executed well. Dave has some (bad) ideas for Kask on how to market its new Elemento flagship helmet, Wahoo’s founder owns his company again, and Trek makes an interesting move with the Bontrager brand name.

We also chat about Aerocoach’s latest round of rolling resistance tests, and Fairwheel Bikes’ intriguing crank stiffness tests. And finally, Dave shares some thoughts on cross-country mountain bike suspension, Zach reveals his secret love of cheap track bikes, James revisits his weight-weenie past, and we all take a leap through the Ring of Death.

2:45 — Specialized Allez

16:52 — Kask Elemento

22:11 — Trek vs. Bontrager

27:52 — Wahoo is back?

30:54 — Aerocoach measures the Vittoria Corsa Pro

35:16 — Which crank is stiffest?

43:40 — Dave likes things saggy

48:30 — Zach likes inexpensive track bikes

55:08 — James slips back into weight weenieism

1:02:34 — The Ring of Death, revisited

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This week’s episode of Geek Warning sees former World Cup mechanic, Brad Copeland, join the team to talk all things bike tech. With Brad onboard, it was time we kicked off the first "Ask a Wrench" segment, which answers questions from our live audience of Escape Collective members.

Before the geeks get to answering questions, they discuss some of the latest tech seen at the opening round of the mountain bike World Cup.

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Don't you dare call it a tire; it's "endurance engineering"!

Jokes aside, Specialized and Vittoria are upping their games when it comes to high-end road tires that (supposedly) won't leave you stranded, Chris King is expanding its range of thermoplastic carbon wheels with a new aero all-road model, we debate the pros and cons of the latest crop of fancy bike care products, and Ronan outlines the UCI's latest foibles. And as always, Dave has tools on his mind.

A manually curated list of time stamps:

2:30 - The narrow tread of the new Vittoria Corsa Pro tyres.

13:00 - “Don’t call it a tyre!” Specialized’s Mondo tyre.

21:42 - Chris King brings thermoplastic rims to road

29:22 - CeramicSpeed’s new Bike Care line and a discussion on wax lubes.

42:57 - The growing segment of Bike Care products.

46:50 - More price drops! This time it’s Salsa.

47:53 - Rome gets excited about new bearing removal tools.

50:37 - An update on the peculiar new UCI product registration rules coming to the TDF.

56:45 - Does the UCI need a Jig for its Jig?

1:02:45 - On Rome’s mind and over the head of his family.

1:08:07 - News for next week’s episode!

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Modern cross-country mountain bike racing is absolutely on fire these days. The riders are faster, more skilled, and more interesting than ever; the courses are technical and physically demanding; and the bikes are so capable they'd put the "trail bikes" of yesteryear to shame. But one has to look no further than some dyed-in-the-wool road brands to see how hot the segment is right now, because even they're getting into the game.

Also, in this week's show: (some) bikes are getting cheaper, there are prototype cross-country suspension forks everywhere, and the UCI dropped a logistical bomb on teams just weeks ahead of the Tour.

Episode time stamps (oh, that’s new for us!):

2:35 - BMC’s TT bike and company news.

13:30 - Pinarello is returning to mountain bikes.

16:35 - What are P1 Race Tech mountain bike wheels?

19:29 - Cervelo getting deeper into XC.

21:23 - A flurry of forks and the boom of XC.

30:35 - Lauf drops Seigla prices in the USA. Plus other price drops.

35:30 - Will we see new UCI technical controls at the TDF?

49:45 - The growth of tyre inserts.

60:00 - On our minds and debating cup and cone bearing hubs

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