While the main controversy surrounding the 2010 Tour de France concerns safety, a less troublesome topic still fills the air: technology. Winning the coveted yellow jacket that signals the front-place cyclist is not easy, it takes determination, duration, focus and a lot of athletic ability. Despite all of these qualities, the last man biking in yellow will undoubtedly also have access the most technologically advanced gear out there.
Trek Bicycle Corporation (responsible for the bikes American cyclist-Lance Armstrong rode to victory on all of his seven Tour de France wins) manager-Scott Daubert, tells Scientific American that "There is a mad dash to be the most technically advanced...It doesn't matter if you are talking about the bike, the frame, fork, wheel, helmet on the rider or the clothes they are wearing. There's a lot of research, time and money going into making the fastest products you can legally ride."
Technological advances in bicycle engineering have made this choice more difficult with a different design for any type of terrain a cyclist could confront. Spokesman for Specialized Bicycle Components-Nicolas Sims tells Scientific America that the recent use of carbon “has allowed us to dramatically save weight and make exceptionally stiff frames...If it comes down to a sprint finish in a road race, that person will want a really stiff frame so they get good power delivery."
During the next, mountainous seventh Stage of the Tour, cyclists will want to use the lightest frames possible. According to Scientific American, “climbing frame[s] use different geometry than either road or time-trial bikes to create a bike well-suited to negotiate twists and turns.” No doubt then that having the right bicycle at the right moment with the latest, legal technology gives riders a huge advantage.
That is the key word -legal. The technological advances in bicycle engineering over the years have also brought about allegations, skepticism and doubt. Upon winning the yellow jacket after Saturday’s leg of the Tour, Swiss cyclist Fabian Cancellera’s mind-blowing speed through the course was called into question as his bicycle was pulled in for inspection inside a nearby tent.
Cancellera and his Saxo Bank team called the inspection “ridiculous” when asked about the incident by The New York Times. His was not the only bicycle to be searched for a concealed motor, 14 bicycles were inspected on Saturday alone-every single one passing inspection.
Former Irish professional cyclist, Patrick McQuaid added that he did not believe technology to be as advanced as the suspicions indicate: “I honestly don’t believe that there has ever been a motorized bike in the peloton because the technology is not there yet to do it secretly...But in cycling, if the suspicions are there, we’ve learned that we have to deal with those suspicions. These, like the others, are just another cloud over the sport that has dampened the sport. We’re doing all we can to get rid of those clouds.”
And that is exactly what many feel technology has done to the sport. Many think that the latest gear and lightest bicycle render the sport more about who can get their hands on the most recent technological advancements rather than who has natural ability and speed.
The International Cycling Union (UCI) cannot do anything to remove technology’s hold over the cycling world but they can at least try dispel any rumours of illegal enhancements. But are they able to succeed?
While McQuaid thinks that technology is not a threat, Jonathan Vaughters, CEO of team Garmin Slipstream explains the new cutting-edge technology called ‘electronic shifting’ to Popular Mechanics: “Battery-powered buttons trigger a solenoid that sends signals to the derailleur...shifting is the thing that has the most potential right now to give a rider a competitive advantage.”
Sounds like cycling’s engineering world is advanced enough to maybe even have a few enhancements that the UCI is not advanced enough to detect. And with partnerships between professional cyclists and engineering firms growing, the technology is advancing every second.
Among less controversial technology advances to the professional cycling world comes the latest application for Microsoft “Bing Maps.” This advanced application lets the user follow the various stages of the race with result and weather updates, as well as an elevation profile that lets you see where the particular climbs and falls sit on each Stage. That’s one technological update everyone can agree on.
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