- We think that pro cyclists have got it all sorted.
Don't we?
I mean, they're the pinnacle of the sport.
They've got the best coaches, the best trainers,
the best nutrition, the backup, and the best tech.
- [Matt] Do they really lead the way when it comes
the best bike tech though?
Here are five items of tech that we think
the pros should be using.
- [Simon] Firstly, a simple piece of tech
that answers an age old conundrum.
The most aerodynamic position on the bike
requires you to tuck your head in,
looking down at your stem.
Very fast, but not ideal for turning corners.
- So, what we need is a piece of tech
that allows us to look forwards
while simultaneously keeping our heads tucked in.
- What we need, Matt, is a piece of tech just like these.
Belay glasses, actually designed for rock climbing
but first seen in the cycling world used by Mark Beaumont;
not actually to need to get more air,
but actually to rest his head.
- And the mirrors means that their angle of vision
is directed, slide just a bit more, at 90 degrees.
- There you go Lloydy.
Knock yourself out, mate.
- I bet he looks good.
Yeah, he looks good in those as well, doesn't he?
- Yeah, good lad.
Off ya go.
- Dan?
- [Simon] Watch out, mate! (glass shattering)
- Yeah, care a lot speed through that corner, isn't he?
- Arrow?
Okay, that first one's a bit dodgy,
but we're gonna get you now.
Parameters are shaping bike racing more and more.
For better, or potentially, from the sake
of the spectator, for the worse.
It's undeniable that they help to extract the
ultimate performance from both rider and team.
Question is then, can we take it to another level?
- The tech is already here.
Live rider telemetry.
On Si's bike, we've got a Quarq Collector
which captures ANT+ data, so heart rate, and his power,
and then transmits it via the cellular network
to a remote device, I.E. the smartphone here
so we can see Si's metrics and data
from the comfort of the team car.
- Come on! (horn honking)
Not going very hard, is he?
So if you've got someone in your team
who's not very good at tactics or using their own head,
Si, in this particular example,
it doesn't matter because we can tell them exactly when
they need to put power through the pedals,
how much power, and when to attack.
'Cause in advanced, we are going
to know what their threshold power is,
and what their max heart rate is.
- [Matt] Si, you're 5% below threshold!
Come on!
- [Simon] What?
- [Matt] Dan, we need a better of communicating.
- Well race radios do already exist,
but to be perfectly honest, they're pretty rubbish.
Come on, Si! (horn honking)
Wanna see you on your threshold!
190!
- [Matt] Come on, Si.
- You what?
You want me to do what?
- 190!
- [Matt] Let's ditch.
- Do you remember these?
Matt and Si use them to navigate
around Berlin in the super commuter video.
- Well, I didn't exactly use it to navigate around Berlin.
Pop it on.
- Hello! - Good to go.
Si, you're currently 20 watts under threshold, come on!
Press on!
- 20 watts?
Are you takin' into consideration the altitude?
- It doesn't matter about the altitude, Si,
I need some more, come on.
- His ankles are looking big though, look.
- [Matt] Your ankles are looking thick
from the altitude as well, you need to press on.
- My ankles?
(Simon panting)
(bright music)
- [Dan] Here is a great piece of tech for you.
I mean, imagine if someone told you
you could have a greater degree of control,
greater safety, and that you could slow down
just as well in wet conditions as you do in the dry.
- [Simon] Well, that technology exists.
Disc brakes.
But, the pros seem strangely reluctant.
- Well, to be fair to the pros, there are
quite a few reasons why they
might be reluctant to use them.
So for example, if things like disc alignment,
or even just wheel changes, not something
that's gonna concern us whilst we're out training,
but for a pro rider in the pro peloton,
they can make life very difficult very quickly.
- Yep, you can't help but think, especially when
their riding in the high mountains in the pouring rain,
that why not use disc brakes?
One final bit of tech you might have noticed
at the beginning of the video that Lloydy was riding,
this rather futuristic looking Cervelo P5X.
One of the fastest time trial bikes in the world,
but one that you're not actually allowed
to use in road races.
- No, the international cycling union have got a lot
of rules in place which govern the shape, etc.,
of road bikes and indeed time trial bikes.
And this thing contravenes over 1,000 of them, we think.
What do you think, though?
Should pro riders be able to use machines
which look like this?
Let us know in the comment section down below.
- Well Dan, I think that there does need to be rules.
I think they should be progressive.
But ultimately, if they weren't in the rules
and regulations, we could all end up riding on recumbents.
- Or with these.
- Yeah, no one wants either of those frankly, do they?
Right, make sure you give this video a thumbs up
if you agree with our tech that pros should be using,
and if you think we've missed anything,
stick that in the comment section down below as well.
- Yeah, if you've yet subscribed to the channel,
you can do so now by clicking on the,
I can't actually see where the globe is,
and if you want some more content from us,
just down here is our weird
and wonderful tech from Eurobike.
- Yeah, and for our Berlin commuter challenge
with added tech, click just down here.
Don't forget to like and share.
You see now, then?
- Yeah. - Good lad.