Sports

While commuter bicycles can generally get by with a rear-wheel-only coaster brake, mountain and cyclocross bikes require both front and rear brakes – along with the hand levers used to activate them. Although this doesn’t pose much of a challenge for most riders, it does for those who only have the use of one hand. One possible solution is to use a system that joins both brake cables to one common end, which then goes into a conventional lever. Another solution, however, is to use Paul Component Engineering’s dual-cable Duplex lever. Read More

This sleek, human-powered missile on wheels is called Eiviestretto and it's one of the world's fastest recumbent bicycles or HPVs (human powered vehicles). On August 2nd, Francesco Russo of Switzerland rode this custom-built streamliner to beat the world record in one-hour cycling by covering a distance of 91.556 kilometers (56.89 miles). The new record was set on the DEKRA Test Oval track in Klettwitz, Germany. Read More

While many mountain bikers like so-called “clipless” pedals, in which cleats on the bottom of their shoes click in and out of a mechanism in the pedal, others prefer the unfettered feeling of platform pedals. Generally speaking, the two types of pedals are about the same thickness. Given that platforms don’t need to contain any springs or other cleat-retaining gizmos, however, they could be much thinner ... if only it weren’t for that axle running through them. Well, Tioga has done away with the axle, in its new ZEROaxle MT-ZERO pedal. At a maximum thickness of 7 mm, it’s being billed as the “world’s thinnest dual-concave mountain bike pedal.” Read More

Serious road cyclists tend to like using cycling computers (or "cyclometers") to provide them with performance data such as their speed, cadence, distance traveled and power output. Swimmers can also get their pruned-up hands on tech that makes keeping tabs on training sessions much easier and this example from Speedo will appeal to pool-goers for one reason in particular - it automatically counts laps. The Speedo Aquacoach watch uses technology developed by UK-based Swimovate to automatically detect the stroke and - along with counting laps - calculate distance, speed, number of strokes and calories burned. Read More

Valuable a conditioning tool as stationary bikes are, any avid cyclist will tell you that they’re nowhere near as good as being out on the open road. One of the differences between real cycling and indoor training is the fact that when riders are on the road, the topography of the area determines the pedaling effort required. By contrast, when on a stationary bike, riders usually just vary their output as they feel like it. In an attempt to make indoor training more like the real thing, Pro-Form’s Le Tour de France Indoor Cycle lets users choose or create real-world routes using Google Maps, then adjusts the angle of the riding platform to replicate the experience of riding up and down those roads. Read More

If you’ve ever watched the Tour de France and winced as all those skinny-wheeled racing bikes bounced over the cobblestone roads ... well, you were right to do so. Not only are such hard, rough surfaces capable of bending rims, but they’re also hard on hub bearings – as the axle shaft flexes ever-so-slightly in response to hitting bumps, the ball bearings that encircle it are pressed against the hub’s bearing races, both causing friction and potentially damaging the bearings. Japan’s Kondo Machine Corporation, however, has created a product that is claimed to minimize this problem. It’s the “jet-engine-inspired” GOKISO Aerospace Hub, and we spied it last week at the 49th Paris Air Show. Read More

Stationary bicycle trainers are an invaluable tool for cyclists who wish to stay in shape over the winter, or who even just want to work on their technique on rainy days. There are a variety of options available, including old school exercise bikes, rollers/resistance trainers that the cyclist's existing bike can be mounted on, or ... things like the Wattbike. Essentially a high-end indoor bike that is set up to replicate the feeling of riding a road bike as accurately as possible, one of the Wattbike's unique features is the fact that it measures and displays its rider's power output in watts - hence the name. Although it's been around in the UK since 2008, it is only now becoming available in the U.S. Read More

There’s no denying that listening to some motivating tunes can help make the time fly by, when you’re working out or going for a run. Probably just about everyone who has ever worn a personal music device when doing so, however, has had this happen at least once: you go to move your arm, and it catches on your earphone cord, causing your earphones to be violently yanked out. JayBird’s new JF3 Freedom Bluetooth Buds are designed to keep that from happening. Read More

The evolution of the human body as measured by how fast we can run or how high we can jump is glacially slow, despite vastly improved knowledge of human physiology, diet, and training techniques. By contrast, the rapid evolution of extreme sports has seen regular quantum progress as barrier after barrier falls. Indeed, in the world of stunts, things not thought possible quickly become commonplace once they are achieved. Yet another such "four minute mile" fell recently when Jed Mildon performed the first triple backflip on a BMX bike. Jed wore a ContourHD helmetcam for the stunt, so if you want to know what it's like to watch the world swirl 1080 degrees in 1080p in two seconds ... Read More