What sort of tech do YOU guys like to read about?

[bjbbiker]

I think there has been a lot of debate over rolling resistance so maybe an article clarifying which tyres are better than others and at what PSI

Also aerodynamics, TT positioning, where to put the water bottle and most of all which wheels to use for TTs and road races with wind considerations, 30mm, 40mm or 60mm

Also there are tons of reviews on bikes and talk about certain features, going up, going down and stiffness. So what does a bike tester use to establish if a bike is stiff, like how does the bike react that makes them say it is a good descender? thanks

 

[BrandonT]

James

The Pro bike reviews are the highlight of my CN experience. The high end stuff is great to read about but some more mid-range equipment with maybe a top 3 competitor comparison would be good for P&A(maybe not bikes).
Another website did a review of 3 competitors 'Cross tubular tires and for 3 types of surface and it was a great article because it let you compare them to make a better decision. Although the article itself could have been better written the format was great.
I really like when you spot sponsored riders who have non-sponsored spec on their bike. Rebranded equipment and things like that. How many guys have Deda Bars and stems but should have FSA or Bontrager...?

What would your ultimate bike build be?

Thanks,

 

[cycocop]

colnagos in the peleton?

A writer for CN was going to expand on the suject of why there were no pro teams using Colnagos...Can we get some insights why that is?

 

[James Huang]

A writer for CN was going to expand on the suject of why there were no pro teams using Colnagos...Can we get some insights why that is?

Sadly, it sounds like it was mostly a matter of money. These days it's not enough to simply supply a team with upwards of a hundred frames and forks; you've got to come to the table with a boatload of cash, too. As you can imagine, few companies are terribly interested in discussing sponsorship terms and such but it sounds like Colnago simply got outbid and Ernesto wasn't terribly interested in playing 'the game'.

I'd imagine Colnago will be back in the top ranks before too long though.

 

[frameforum]

'Real' bike tests; not necessarily always of bikes built from unobtanium, but bikes where the writer has put the miles/km's in on the thing and can give a longer term, more balanced view of what's going on between the axles. Press release-driven 'tests' stand out a mile and can be a bit of a turn-off.

I like the approach of some sectors of the press (both on and off the web) of purchasing the goods for 'undercover' testing and reviewing. Keeps the marketing guys at bay before they can do their stuff on the tester. Not an ideal approach if you're doing regular bike reviews and don't have a great deal of ad revenue to play with, but nonetheless, a good approach for less expensive components, accessories and soft goods.

 

[cycocop]

im not a big Colnago fan anyway, but was looking to see an in depth perpspective....couple sentence work just as well....i wonder who the next big bicycle manufacturer will be leaving the pro scene....sorry for my typing. one hand in a splint...thank you and i really enjoy the forum and site.

 

[Getting fat and slow]

I second this! See RIDE mag from Australia - they do it best.

I would like to see REAL weights and a database kept. The database for the rival site that says it's all about weight is mostly out of date and a bit random, but if you guys weigh every bit and bike you review and keep the numbers readily available you will drive an increasing number of people to your site. Advertisers won't like it, but readers will. And if manufacturers don't like it, they should publish correct weights. One of the signs of a good manufacturer is accurate weights and buyers infer quality from that fact.

For example, how much weight would one really save on a bike from switching to Nokon carbon cable housing? See if you can guess from looking at other websites. Yet the weight saving is the major reason to do that switch.

James, I agree and second this suggestion. A quarterly magazine from Australia, RIDE, is currently doing it about as throughly as I've seen. They disassemble each of the 5-6 bikes they review each issue, weigh everything(!), look in and photograph all the nooks and crannies, and even flex test the frames! I think they set the standard for the technical side - however, their shortcoming is that their descriptions of ride quality are sometimes brief and the magazine is very expensive here in the States. But I'll take it in exchange for all the tech geekiness! Please start copying their format - it's a form of flattery you know...

 

[ExRower]

hi James,

I thoroughly enjoyed the review of the Tarmac. More low to mid range bikes and gear review is always welcome. Another type of "review" i'd like to see are head to head comparison tests of midrange gear vs. high end gear. I guess that's somehting us regular guys would like to see...how does our gear fare vs. the gear of the pros?

Another feature i'd like to see is "Ride reviews". Maybe you could send one of your guys out to do popular rides in other countries,not necessarily TdF or Classics routes. Would give us an interesting look at what other roadies have to deal with in their part of the world. I for one, will be happy to take one of your writers along on some of our popular routes.

 

[parawolf]

1:3 rules and specifics to frames.

Get some common TT frames (Argon18, Felt, Cervelo, Trek, Scott etc) and put them through their paces (frames specifically, things like base bars are so customisable it isn't funny).

 

[Sykkel-Erik]

I agree with Slumdog; articles about the less known brands such as Tommasini would be interesting!

Also, I would love read about how the various groupsets compare - for example, SRAM Red vs. Campa SR vs. Shimano DA.

 

[Slumdog-Zomergem]

Sadly, it sounds like it was mostly a matter of money. These days it's not enough to simply supply a team with upwards of a hundred frames and forks; you've got to come to the table with a boatload of cash, too. As you can imagine, few companies are terribly interested in discussing sponsorship terms and such but it sounds like Colnago simply got outbid and Ernesto wasn't terribly interested in playing 'the game'.

I'd imagine Colnago will be back in the top ranks before too long though.

Colnago doesn't really need Pro Team exposure , their mainstream buyers are doctors , lawyers, etc & I would hazard a guess that 75% of Colnago owners will never enter a race so if some Ukrainian superstar is using the brand is pretty irrelevant to them.

 

[Big Cee]

As far as reviews go I agree with the writer who suggested that mid-price bikes also be reviewed. On a personal note, as a very heavy rider, it is essential for me to get information on how heavy riders a certain bike is best suited for. This is frequently done in som German bike magazines. As biking gets more popular it isn´t unfathomable that this kind of information is of interest to a lot of new riders who consider what bike to buy.
I realize that we are in a minority and there is no need to be too specific; Just a mention: "Great for the big guy" or "Not for anyone over 100kg" would be enough.

 

[James Huang]

As far as reviews go I agree with the writer who suggested that mid-price bikes also be reviewed. On a personal note, as a very heavy rider, it is essential for me to get information on how heavy riders a certain bike is best suited for. This is frequently done in som German bike magazines. As biking gets more popular it isn?t unfathomable that this kind of information is of interest to a lot of new riders who consider what bike to buy.
I realize that we are in a minority and there is no need to be too specific; Just a mention: "Great for the big guy" or "Not for anyone over 100kg" would be enough.

Thanks Big Cee, your suggestion is duly noted. While I personally am pretty far off of that figure, I'll see what I can do to get some of our 'bigger boned' staff members involved when the situation presents itself.

 

[St. Elia]

James

I think most of us want to see reviews of a mix of stuff and it seems that many of us want to see the high end stuff in particular. The pro mechenic angal seems to resinate with lots as well and I put my vote behind both of these ideas.

for me the most important thing is giving us a real review about products and the short comings and there strengths, for example the review you did on the DA group was great, good job. Doing what Ride does would also be fantastic but the numbers need to mean something to people. So keep it really.


Thanks for asking and keep up the good work.

L

 

[poki..]

Good work so far. I like the articles about pro bikes, this is really interesting. Thank you!

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

Why no feature on Devolder's (winning) Specialized from Flanders? It would be nice to see the bike from a back to back winner of the Ronde, rather than Cancellara's.

 

[the_kman]

i love the tech features. like to hear updates on whats comming and especially what the pro's are riding on. the reviews are also real great. I usually skip the non road related stuff and things that arnt mechanical such as apparel and lighting etc

 

[ElChingon]

The reviews have been good, especially the bike porn pictures

What needs to be added as most have stated is the why and numbers behind the reviews. Most reviews state stiffer or supple but there is no hard number on it and we all know there are tests the manufactures perform to pass a frames/wheels/components, maybe just maybe the manufactures pushing the test equipment can provide some of this so we have the measure in front of us. Yes sometimes the numbers do not correlate to a nice ride or the proper bike for riding in certain conditions for certain people but we'd have the number for reference.

Then there are the UCI test, like those on wheels to show they are safe, we all know the Spinergy spinning Ginsu knives were outlawed (unfortunate for Michele Bartoli's knee). Then there are the recalls, why components are recalled and how they were improved in the next release would be very nice. Having more information on Fabian's broken chain incident would be good as well, I now its a slap in the face to the component maker but its also a great chance for them to improve it and show us how they did so they don't loose total street cred, so to speak.

I would also like to see more interviews with the Team Mechanics, they see what component is fragile or tops and having them interviewed to state why they use certain components for different race conditions would be very informative. Again, I know if we see odd labeled bikes (ala QuickStep's first year with Specialized, cough cough Time) it would be good to know whats going on with these odd labeled frames/components.

As tough as it maybe some transparency in the reviews is warranted, because if someone buys something based on your review it will come back to bite you. Some of us don't let things like that slip by unnoticed.

 

[ElChingon]

Here's one, how about getting more info on this

Nuyen's Wood block under the saddle at Gent Wevelgem.

 

[James Huang]

Ask and ye shall receive

I spoke to one of the Rabobank mechanics a few days later about this and he said the block of wood is in there just to modify the shape of the saddle a bit. Nuyens apparently likes his saddle *perfectly* flat from front to back and the block of wood prevents any sag whatsoever.

 

[Black Dog]

That explains the block! A few of us thought that it was to prevent the saddle from bottoming out on the seatpost head.

 

[oxlabs]

Hi all,

First off, glad to see that a fair number of you are finding our new forum a good place to chat. Please feel free to lob over suggestions for improvement as we move forwards; this area is more for you all than it is for us.

Anyway, as technical editor for Cyclingnews (and BikeRadar) I'm always keen to hear what you, the reader, are most interested in reading about in terms of bikes and assorted gear. Fire away!

James, I'd like to see info, factory tours, etc of the factories in China and Taiwan, owned by or sub-contracted to Speciaiized, Cervelo, Sram, FSA, etc that are actually making the stuff.

 

[Ride24]

I would love to see reviews on things that I don't see everyday. Things like Whipperman Chains and a Rohloff Hub (love to build a bike around one but they are really expensive). These belt drive bikes are also very cool but I have heard nothing on there durability. I love to see a long term test of one, if it breaks you can't really fix it on the trail.

 

[Morati]

Touring !
Lots to know. The bike itself, racks, panniers, lights, tools that might be needed....etc.

 

[Martin318is]

What you need is a combination of two review types that are already out there.

You need the RIDE magazine detail inspection and review, combined with an on bike review in the style (and quality) of Marcel Wust's reviews in Cycle Sport.

Trust me, the readers will love it.