WHAT'S NEW
Comments - Cakes, climbs, and race numbers
August 02, 2009
Trek and Spesh already have lots of product in their online stores, pretty much everything except frames and complete bicycles. I wish I lived in the USA so I could buy from them!
- David, Winnipeg Canada
July 30, 2009
Saturn Sit-Up - Through the 1990's, the most dominant US domestic team was sponsored by Saturn. Horner, Leipheimer, Fast Fred, Danielson, Dominguez, Nathan O'Neill etc. etc. rode for them. They were so strong, near the finish of races they were known to mass at the front, launch a rider and sit up.
- Joe, PDX
July 30, 2009
In this era of aero-everything, aren't the Mavic R-Sys wheels the least aero wheel in existance? Huge, round, non-bladed spokes - a brick, with non-aero rims to boot. And, nowhere near light enough to fight in the climber's wheel market. Even if they were 100% reliable, who would buy these?
- Chris, New England
July 29, 2009
Am I the only one who thinks the Danish anthem mix up on the podium looks like a flick for Contador's 2007 TDF victory when Rasmussen was withdrawn with only 4 stages left?
- Steve, Wellesley
July 29, 2009
Hey, if we lost cyclingnews.com we would be left with velonews and bicycling.com. Im not a fan of the change, but its good to have more than one site for ADvortainment/race results. Change isnt always a good thing, but you cant grow or get better if you dont try to.
- Hung Low, Philly
July 29, 2009
I'm neutral on Garmin, but I love Farrar and Maaskant and it annoys me to see them with so little support in the spring one days and Tour stages. Who knows what Farrar could winif he had the horsepower of a Hincapie, Gransch or Marco Velo. If the team were serious about backing their genuine sprinting hopeful they'd stock a few hunking Belgians and Dutchmen you'd never heard of in exchange for a couple of Danielsons.
- Adam, Hamilton
July 29, 2009
Add me tot he list of people tired that each week features some sort of Garmin bashing.
Parts of this blog I love, mostly the clips, images and articles you link to. Some of the bike industry inside peeks is really interesting too.
I know it's a blog though. You can write what you want and I can choose not to read it. Just be careful you don't dissuade potential customers who might be big fans of the Garmin boys.
- Jared, Los Angeles
July 28, 2009
If you reverse engineer the strategy of CN's new approach, it seems fairly clear that they are actually after a different target audience now. The original CN was designed as a resource for the hard core element and did away with the trimmings because it presumed a certain level of understanding. However, if you compare the overall spending power of the hardcore to the far more numerous enthusiast element out there, you may find that the latter is far ahead of the former simply through sheer numbers. If you're running a website for commercial reasons it would pay to make it more accessible to the enthusiast. By attracting them, you are attracting a greater volume of possible customers from a market segment that has more dollars to spend overall. This means increased advertising rates and better margins.
CN's research has probably told them that the websites these groups visit are attractive but don't require the depth of information that the hardcore want. These sites are common and still doing good business. CN wants a part of that, so they've changed. The mistake CN appears to have made though is to try and retain their current user base. Without informing their regular readers that they have a new direction - they have disaffected them. Its a common marketing problem - you really can't be all things to all people. That's why the new owners of CN don't seem to want to respond to the protests of their regular readers. Its simply not part of their strategy. My advice then, is for CN to be transparent about what they are doing and what they will be doing. If the above is correct, it will be an opportunity for enthusiasts to realize there is a new alternative to their usual fare and will meet CNs marketing objective better. Likewise, if the hardcore know that CN is gravitating away from their requirements, it will give them the opportunity to seek an alternative - or create one. The downside is that this approach is that it transmits to the competition what CN is doing and ready them for a fight. Nonetheless, as with any marketing strategy - if its really good then your competitor can see exactly what you are going to do - and can do nothing to stop you. Is CN that brave?
- Mike, Shanghai, China
July 28, 2009
Cyclingnews bugs me because:
1) New tabbed navigation - looks good
- doesn't actually work, you don't remain in context. Click road, click a link under road and you get moved back to top level. - It would be very very useful to stay in context. 2) Search... well it doesn't work
- just try to make a successful search. I dare you
3) Archives
- Try to find something that happened in March
- Try to find the previous year's edition of the race
4) Calendar
???
- Kevin, Ottawa
July 28, 2009
Agreed- Cyclingnews is totally useless. Still.
Love the site. Just wish I could afford to buy more stuff to support your efforts. I hope you're getting advertising revenue on the "blog" area.
- Anthony, Napa
July 28, 2009
As to the R-SYS, maybe it's akin to what the CC FAQs say about carbon handlebars, but more so: pro-level equipment that needs pro-level amounts to TLC and vigilance. For me, at least (and I suspect most of CC's customers, regardless of how fanatical they are), that's just too much to ask. I do use carbon bars, but I won't be getting the R-SYS.
- Joe, DC
July 28, 2009
Dudes, you really need to put down the hatorade with the whole Garmin thing. That shit is getting tired. Wiggins put the South in everyone's mouth with his ride this year. From pursuiter to 4th place in the Tour? Respect, y'all...
- Jason, Seattle, WA
July 28, 2009
what is a saturn sit up???
- Nico, Waterloo, ON
July 28, 2009
JB - Interesting post. Lance is a very medi saavy guy who has built a very strong personal brand. The problem is that deep down he is much more complicated than the brand image. The blind Lance Lovers adore him for his athletic prowess, his "I'm going to kick those Euro's ass" attitude or for the fact that he is the most famous cancer survivor/advocate on the planet.
The problem is that deep down this is like the cycling kit he wears to work... a cover for the real man underneath the hero's cape: He's clearly a narcissist of the highest order and although generous to his inner circle, he's clearly willing to actively destroy those who he perceives to appose him. Oliver Stone should make a movie about him ala his recent pic on George W..... he could call it "Seven".
- Hemanth, Madison, WI
July 28, 2009
Alain - great question! I've been riding Easton wheels for years - love them!
- Chris, Brooklyn
July 28, 2009
Damn, I thought it was just me that hated the new cycling news format! I've tried without success to find somebody to complain to, even contacting one of the editors via his personal e-mail. It's a mess on a pc and totally unusable from a Blackberry
- JB, North Little Rock, AR
July 28, 2009
Hey JB from Montreal, thanks for the heads up on that article. But I caution you that you will never sway the opinion of Lance Lovers. You could tell them in his spare time he tortures small animals and they could never turn on their hero. Sad but true.
- Dexter, Madrid
July 28, 2009
While on the subject of carrying certain brands of wheels, any particular reason why you don't carry Easton wheels?
- Alain, Montreal, QC
July 28, 2009
"- I think maybe I'll run for the USA Cycling Board of Directors and my platform will be 1 issue deep: Henceforth race numbers shall only be pinned to pockets, and touch no other portion of the jersey. etc...."
I will manage your campaign and probably fund it too.
On the timing chip thing, I actually looked into that, but its impossible because chips can't be used to determine the winner of a race. The rule about the leading edge of the tire breaking the plane of the finish line must be done visually, since you cant attach the chip to the leading edge of the tire. I asked if it could be the skewer, since with 700c wheels the skewers are equidistant to the leading tire edge, but I was told there's no chip system accurate enough to distinguish a tire width's difference at 40+mph.
- Kit Sensitive, NYC, NY
July 28, 2009
Final thought about the Tour de France: In an era where enormous cost is spent to ensure that every last time-trialing detail about a rider's clothing, equipment, and position has been fine-tuned for aerodynamics, why oh why do so many ride with round bottles in the race of truth?
Sometimes, technology makes no sense practically. If I were a racer, I'm sure I would fumble with trying to hold a bottle that is not round and won't fit in my hands properly. Arundel is a great aero design but it isn't what cups and bottles are usually made like. When it comes to a 40K TT, I would want to drink water and lots of it, plus I dont want it to drop from my hands and cause a safety situation.
Ron
Cozy Beehive
- Ron, NY
July 27, 2009
Kudos to Josh from NY on expressing his worry as to how much you deem it necessary to criticize Garmin. It's as if your week is defined by a bubbling, ever increasing hatred which finally explodes into one of these overly predictable posts. It's really getting old... So I happen not to like Lance very much, and you know what my friends tell me when I constantly complain about him: "Shut Up!" So as I friend, I might recommend the same advice to you.
- Ryan, Harrisonburg, Va
July 27, 2009
Love the new logo on Contador's disk wheel and hat--but I think he used the wrong finger. Maybe next year?
www.pavepavepave.blogspot.com
- WSY, Phoenixville, PA
July 27, 2009
JB, interesting post. Thanks. If you do the math, its clear, RadioShack better have those Garmin TT experts. Without the TTT, Lance would have been toast. (Other than that stage, did Lance ever look strong?) Contador rode the tour alone, that was obvious. So did Evans, but Contador "made it happen". LA owes Kloden everything for motor-pacing him for 2,000 miles-- a 2,000 mile personal lead-out train. Schleck owes Spartacus big-time, too, for the TTT.
- Jay, Needham
July 27, 2009
Taking a cue from the Boston Globe, I will henceforth be referring to Astana as "Kazakh cycling team Astana." For make benefit of cycling, natch.
- Nicolas, Ottawa
July 27, 2009
cyclingnews annoyance: How do I get to archived Tech articles? James Huang's equipment reviews are awesome, but anything except the most recent is buried in some random archive page (only searchable by week, from what I can tell). The old site showed all the tech stuff for a given year on a single page - please bring something like that back. Better yet, have summary pages for each type of tech article (bike reviews, clothing reviews, gear reviews, Pro Bikes, etc) that shows all the reviews ordered by date.
- Chris, San Francisco
July 27, 2009
lance fan boys....i hope contador rides for garmin next year. 2nd strongest gc team
2nd fastest sprinter.....not bad for a 1 year old pro tour team the real LANCE.......not televised or blogged about above
A Tale of solitude
http://www.diariosur.es/20090727/deportes/ciclismo/fiesta-privada-contador-20090727.html
It happened on Thursday, a few hours before the Annecy ITT. Contador came downstairs to the entrance of the Palace of Menthon, the luxurious Astana hotel. The Tour was on. He looked right, then left. Nobody, nothing. No Astana cars or helpers. Cold sweat. Quick time check. Where are they? The hotel is several kilometers from the start. There he was, the leader of the Tour, in flip-flops, bag in hand and alone. He went to the hall looking for an answer: Armstrong had ordered the helpers to go pick up his wife, kids and friends to the airport.
Contador left his room last because he was the last one starting the ITT. Armstrong had managed to take away his means of transportation. The straw that broke the camel’s back. Hot flashes, he was rabid. He called his brother Fran. He came to pick him up by car and took him to Annecy in a private vehicle. He left last and finished first. His best victory. In the ITT. In solitude. The same way he has won his second tour.
Contador’s toughest climb was not recorded in images. It was narrated by others. It was fought in the hotel and the bus: during one stage, Armstrong sat his guests at the very back of the bus, right in Contador’s usual seat. One more provocation. Armstrong to the luxury suite. Contador to sleep with Paulinho, the only ally. Same deal during the entire tour. Mouth shut, listening to Armstrong’s jabs: “It doesn’t take a Nobel prize to figure out what happens with side winds”. Contador didn’t reply in the hotel. He did on the road. He attacked in the first mountain finish in Arcalis. Without permission from Bruyneel, Armstrong’s DS. That night the Astana hotel was a funeral. Red eyes from the Texan (anger? crying? not sure). The first cyclist that stood up to him. And he did it in silence."
Not in the article – apparently LA did not attend the team dinner in Paris to celebrate Contadors victory.
- jb, montreal
July 27, 2009
Silly Rabbits. Garm*n's blunder comes at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo7uff0ynjs#t=5m54s. Really, it's HTC's Georg Hincapie's genius move rather than G's cat nap way out in the middle of the road that killed any chance G had at redeeming their TdF. // Maybe those collapsable spokes on the R-SYS could be viewed as a _feature_. Wheels can sometimes be _too_ tough. Really. My Ksyrium SL spokes almost killed my Scott CR1 Limited frame when my derailleur got caught up in the spokes. (No more dirt roads for a while.) K-SL spokes are insanely tough: folded the hanger into the cassette before ripping the derailleur off of the hanger completely. Almost hacked the chainstay in half, bent my chain in four or five places, exploded the derailleur cage. The R-SYS spokes would have saved me a lot of ching on that day ;-)
- M, You Know
July 27, 2009
Round versus "aero" bottles. Research completed by cyclists and engineering students at MIT determined that round bottles offer lower overall grams of drag than so called "aero" bottles in many real world and wind tunnel tests. In the most surprising of all results, adding a round water bottle to certain frames actually improves aerodynamics over no water bottles. Looks "modern/aero" does not equal "out performs". As much as I like the fact that that you are promoting a cycling brand that is named for one of my family members and the county that bears her name . . . it is best to leave the engineering to engineers . . . better yet to engineers who put the fact that wheels are an essential component of a bicycle into their design constraints.
- G Calvert, Baltimore, MD
July 27, 2009
I enjoy and look forward to your posts, particularly those relating to the bike business, but I have to remark that your criticism of Garm*n is bordering on the obsessive. Yes, Garmin did some notably stupid things during the Tour, but they also landed two riders in the top ten, one of whom was one of the best stories in the Tour (Wiggins). Keep it fair and balanced and your criticism will be taken more seriously.
- Josh, NY
July 27, 2009
Knowing the industry as I do, its clear the big brands know that they can't operate online retail with the quality of CC -- at their scale. They'd need call centers multiple times bigger than their inside sales groups, just to start. They need LBSs. Not as many as they have now, but the majority of them. Also, where the retailers pre-order at Interbike, and pay inadvance, the brands would be left holding massive amounts of inventory until it actually sold to an end customer. I don't think they can make this business model shift. Additionally, only fanatics like us (who read and post here) know enough (especially about sizing) to buy online. If you've worked a big shop on a busy weekend (200 units), as I have, then you know most people need A LOT of help in buying a bike. Again, its all about scale.
- Jay, Needham
July 27, 2009
Other things I would pass on to a CN rep: that the live updates no longer auto refreshes to the latest update, instead you have to hit refresh and then look to see if another numbered page has to be added and then click that one. I get that the lead box is meant to be reserved for the newest or hottest stories, so why is a picture of a yellow Felt occupying a slot for the entire duration of the Tour? Finally, I noticed that in their brief reports right after a stage concluded that they would use old stock images of riders without providing a caption of saying so (noticed it when Cunego was in the background of one. That's maybe fine if you're alerting the reader to the fact, but otherwise it seems a little too Jason Blair.
- Adam, Hamilton
July 27, 2009
i miss the only cyclingnews.com too. I like the craiglist.org look. it was too easy to find the info we were looking for. the new version is too visually confusing.
- bill, nor cal
July 27, 2009
Why use a round water bottle? In Armstrong's case, the answer is very simple: sponsorship. The round bottle was from FRS, that energy drink thing that he's the spokesman for. http://bicyclespokesman.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/lance-armstrong-frs-ad.jpg
He was drinking from that bottle very clearly before the start of the TT. If you see other pictures, you can see the logo more clearly. I know others use round bottles too...but as far as Lance goes, that's your answer.
- Sleeper, Pittsburgh, PA
July 27, 2009
What's a Saturn Sit-Up?
As to the Volvo: Emotionally healthy terroristic threatening, I'd say.
- CDA, Brooklyn
July 27, 2009
i too was surprised that LA elected to pair up with radio shack. i cant fathom a reason to shop there. i would have expected the likes of apple computer, google or amazon as lead sponsors... its amazing to me that mavic is still pushing the r-sys - it doesnt matter what the cause was, there was still a catastrophic failure that would not have occurred with a traditional wheel. regarding wheel companies why do you put up with I9 - they seem to be similarly difficult and slow in shipping products or with promised product development (think road wheels).
- bob, little rock
July 27, 2009
Jens was day dreaming, bump in the road, front wheel lifted and landed on white stripe of paint but already out of control at that point. He did not have both hands on, basically, it happened like it always does, when ''it's not supposed to''...
Also, I hope Allen Lim gets the boot from Garmin, I can't help but think that the team is annoyed by that guy. He seems so anal, I mean, Wigoo must just want to brake a pint of guiness on his head !
- Marc, Montreal
July 27, 2009
Tapping the window of a homicidal motorist is dangerous, even if it's a Volvo.
That said, I still do it on occasion. (Of course, always with my Kimble spray from CC as back-up).
- Carson, JHole, Wyo.
July 27, 2009
Who's down with sporting some Radio Shack gear! Anyone? Speak Up! When i was under the age of 10 the only thought for Radio Shack was "let's go down to the ratshack and check out the rc cars and the 200 in 1 electronic kits...". That was a long time ago. Can't remember the last time visiting a ratshack.... a long time ago....
- joe, black
July 27, 2009
Actually the Radio Shack sponsorship is a good risk reward for everyone. I follow RSH stock and it's not immune to economy of course, the high short interest is actually bullish. People sponsor things, teams, races etc for brand awareness. Cycling is a fairly good value (unless there is a big doping blow up and those tend to not kill a brand entirely). Lance haters can short RSH. Considering the brand awareness at Radio Shack is pretty low this sponsorship will only help. Good for everyone.... including American cycling.
- Tom, New York
July 27, 2009
Does anybody know what caused Jens Voight to crash?
- Pete, Owego
July 27, 2009
the CN that keeps bugging: wtf is the copy editor? If it's a news site, copy edit, otherwise call it a blog.
- mrg, sf
Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
Flickr
RSS
