Mambo95 said:
All that proves is that there are a lot of guillible people.
Anyone with any clue about engineering or TV could tell that the Italian report was a hoax. A glimpse of the battery packs (disguised as bidons), visible wiring, barely suppressed smirks. A few other things too. No shame in missing this stuff - it's not your field.
Seriously. There is no electric (or otherwise) powered bike that exists that could be passed off as a regular bike. If you think there is then show me the patents for it.
Don't agree. Any one who takes a brief five-minute look at the remote-controlled hobby aircraft section of their local bookstore will think this
could be a credible problem.
Miniaturized batteries have revolutionized the hobby in the last few years. Electric battery power aircraft have now supplanted gas-powered ones, largely because of lithium polymer battery packs.
Just take a look at the power/watts stats of these electric motors when they profile these planes and you'll be amazed. I can't remember precisely, other than that they put up many hundreds of watts, and can easily be way above 500 watts. These planes have huge power/weight ratios, largely from the revolution in battery power (miniaturized, light weight, with huge outputs and endurance that can now rival gas-powered planes). The profiles of individual planes give all the stats, including power/weight ratios, LOL.
I remember when looking at these articles thinking: "These things are putting out a hell of lot more power than Armstrong's fearsome legs".
The batteries are miniaturized. Can very easily fit in a seat tube. And seat tubes are long. There's lots of room.
These things would have no problem putting out more than enough power to push a cyclist, and if they modulate it for JUST
an extra 50-100 watts, the endurance/length of the boost would be impressive (far in excess, a huge multiple, of the extra weight).
LOL, I remember Devolder's comment before Flanders that if Cancellara is TT'ing at 60km/hr, he and Tom would be chasing at 50km/hr. These guys don't believe Cancellera, and this, from guys who are unlikely to be clean. Doesn't look like Armstrong/Michael Rogers believe him either, given their quips on Twitter vis a motorized Cancellara. They don't believe him.
Also: see these odd PRE-PLANNED bike changes like a F1 pit stop. Why?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T25fqnRb-mU
I remember the rumour once about Heras' bike change at the top of mountain in the Vuelta, and some of his Liberty Seguros colleagues as well, and descending like rocks then, with Dennis Menchov not knowing what hit him. The rumour was they'd switched to bikes with heavy wheels. Ha, ha, ha.