More info on electronic Campagnolo and custom Katusha Focus bikes
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The Sky team has switched its trademark color from blue to green to bring attention to the Sky Rainforest Rescue Project, which aims to save a billion trees in the Acre region of Brazil.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Team Sky captain Bradley Wiggins prefers his bars to be double wrapped at all times.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Friction tape is proving to be a popular add-on on time trial bikes at this year's Tour de France - hope the riders have good gloves!(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Movistar's fleet of Pinarello Graal time trial bikes lie in the wait for Sunday's team time trial.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
A little bit of wire wrap keeps things tidy on this Movistar Pinarello Dogma2.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
UCI frame certification stickers are widespread at this year's Tour de France - but they're not on every frame.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
It's hard to see but Pinarello says the top tube on the new Dogma2 is shifted slightly to the right - and the ribbing on the sides is different from one side to the other, too.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Even if you were to remove the logos, there'd be little mistaking the make and model of this frame.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Seat stays on Pinarello's new Dogma2 are notably asymmetric.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Campagnolo's electronic rear derailleur is thoroughly modern and yet somehow manages to retain the company's sense of aesthetic.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Movistar's Pinarello Graal time trial bikes are equipped with Campagnolo's new bar-end shifters - though they're still mated with 10-speed rear ends.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Not every rider on Movistar is apparently ready to make the move to Campagnolo's new bar-end shifters.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
SRM power meters are virtually requisite pieces of equipment for the Sky team.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The Sky team set off on Stage 1 with a mix of Shimano 50mm-deep carbon tubulars and also some handbuilt wheels using HED rims and standard Shimano Dura-Ace hubs.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The Sky team's Deda stems are labeled "Zero100 Blue" - but they're green.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Sky saddle sponsor Prologo has a number of saddle shapes to choose from with this channeled Scratch Pro TR being one of its latest variants.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Sky saddle sponsor Prologo has also joined in the team's efforts to save the rainforest with these green saddles to match.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Even the Sky team rider decals have been swapped to the new color.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The Sky team is on Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 componentry exclusively with some riders also adding the sprint or satellite shifters, too.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Pinarello's latest Dogma2 head tube grows in diameter relative to the original Dogma.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Gary Fisher isn't the only bicycle company who can put a little face on the back of a seat tube.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The red LED on Campagnolo's electronic junction box indicates that the system is in setup mode.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Pinarello has increased the lower steerer diameter on the new Dogma2 from 1 1/4in to 1 1/2in for additional handling precision. (Image credit: Jonny Irick)
As finished as the group looks, Campagnolo's electronic group is clearly still undergoing final tweaks.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Campagnolo has tidied up the battery mount on this latest version of its electronic group.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Just in case you couldn't tell by observation, Pinarello wants to make it very well known that its Dogma2 frames aren't symmetrical.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Confirmed! We surmised several months ago that the battery on Campagnolo's electronic group wasn't readily removable from the frame and the behavior of the Movistar mechanics seems to back that up. Extension cords were strewn throughout the team area with individual chargers hooked up to each bike. Potential buyers had better make sure to have a plug handy where they store their bike.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Focus uses fully split seat stays on Katusha's team-issue Izalco Team frames.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The four special Focus Izalco frames in Katusha's arsenal have each been personalized in terms of stiffness and ride comfort based on specific rider requests.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The seat tube on Katusha's Focus Izalco Team frames are highly asymmetrical.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The molds on Katusha's specially tweaked Focus frames are identical to consumer versions so there's little distinguishing the differences on the surface.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Pinarello's Dogma2 flagship still sticks with conventional threaded cups.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Even Movistar's brake pads are finished in white.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
At first, we thought this small button on the hoods of Campagnolo's upcoming electronic group controlled a computer head but it's actually used for setup - hold it down to enter the adjustment mode then move the paddles to tweak the cage position.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Movistar's new Pinarello Dogma2 machines undergo final tweaks on the day before the start of the 2011 Tour de France.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Campagnolo has yet to announce that its electronic group will be available to the public, though we expect to see it displayed at Eurobike nonetheless.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Interesting - Campagnolo's electronic front derailleur attaches to the mounting tab with a nut, not a bolt.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The fork blades on Pinarello's new Dogma2 are still curvy but they've lost some of their shaping on the sides - supposedly to help with aerodynamic performance.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Do the left and right fork blades really undergo different forces or affect aerodynamics in distinct ways? Look closely - Pinarello seems to think so.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Carbon dropouts are used on Pinarello's new Dogma2.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The chain stays on Pinarello's new Dogma2 retain the predecessor's characteristic curves.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Pinarello makes sure consumers are well aware what type of carbon fiber is used in its frames.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Four Katusha riders in this year's Tour de France have specially customized versions of Focus's Izalco Team frame - and we're not just talking paint.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Sky and Movistar's Pinarello Dogma2 machines retain their unmistakably curvaceous personalities but undergo a number of changes that are said to make this new version a little more aerodynamic and lighter, too.
The key structural change is a move to a 1 1/8-to-1 1/2in tapered front end from the previous version's 1 1/4in lower steerer diameter. The fork crown has been beefed up accordingly and it also flows more smoothly into the similarly enlarged – and notably lower – down tube. Taken in total, Pinarello claims a 19 percent boost in stiffness under braking.
In addition, many of the original Dogma's pronounced ribs have been toned down in the interest of improving airflow. Changes in the lay-up schedule supposedly beef up certain sections subject to the most stress while still shedding 30g of weight in total.
Movistar's Pinarello Dogma 2 on the rack
Otherwise, Pinarello not only retains the first Dogma's uniquely asymmetrical approach to frame design but perhaps even expands on it. The driveside fork blade and seat stay are visibly puffed up as compared to their non-driveside counterparts, the chain stays are asymmetrical as usual, but even the top tube is slightly shifted over to the right with different ribbing on either side.
According to Pinarello's official marketing line, this "leads to an increase in the symmetrical pedal action of six percent".
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The head tube on the Dogma 2 has been beefed up compared to the previous version
Team Sky has also made a fundamental aesthetic change for this year's Tour de France, switching from its characteristic blue to a bright green to draw attention to the new Sky Rainforest Rescue Project. We're not just talking bikes, either – the team kit has been updated, too, as well as all of the support vehicles and online communications.
In cooperation with the World Wildlife Foundation, Sky is looking to raise 4 million Euros that will be used to save over a billion trees in a region of Brazil – and the habitats of the people, animals, and other plants that call that area home.
More clues revealed on Campagnolo's mysterious electronic group
Campagnolo still has yet to officially reveal a shred of technical information on its new electronic drivetrain and while we've been able to figure out various pieces of the puzzle by inspection, there are still many remaining – but a couple fewer now.
As we previously suspected, it appears that the system's rechargeable battery is hard-wired with the rest of the harness and indeed is not readily removable from the bike as Movistar mechanics had a web of extension cords and chargers strewn about their work area at the team hotel Friday afternoon. What does this mean to consumers? Probably not much if the battery life is as generous as Shimano's Dura-Ace Di2 but either way, potential buyers will want to make sure they've got a plug handy wherever they happen to store their bike.
We also assumed earlier that the buttons on the inner sides of the hoods were to be used as remote switches for an as-yet-unseen computer head. As it turns out, they're instead how you enter into setup mode to adjust the derailleur positions. We stood watch as a Movistar mechanic put the final touches on one team bike: push and hold down the button until the LED lights up on the display, then push the paddles to make microchanges in position.
Sorry, folks, that's all we've got. Baby steps…
Truly customized bikes for some Katusha riders
Four Katusha riders have specially customized versions of Focus's Izalco Team frame
Four Katusha riders started this year's Tour de France with starkly finished black Focus Izalco Team bikes instead of the usual – and far more colorful – white, blue, and red livery. As it turns out, these are four structurally distinct frames that Focus created at the specific request of some of its riders.
According to Focus marketing head Herwig Reus, team riders actually have their choice of five different lay-up schedules in total (with one being stock) – all using the same mold so at least on the surface, they're indistinguishable from consumer versions. Reus tells us that on average, the other four variants are about 10 percent stiffer in the bottom bracket but other parameters such as front triangle stiffness and ride comfort vary depending on preferences.
Each frame uses "10 to 15 percent" more carbon fiber to hit those stiffness numbers so the raw chassis are heavier. Since those four customized frames are only covered in decals and clearcoat, though, Reus says the finished weights are about the same (which tells us there's probably a difference of about 100-200g raw).
Reus adds that one or more of these variants might make it into the consumer channels depending on how much practical sense each rider's requests make to the general public. Stay tuned.
