Pinarello

Limited Edition RHINO Dogma F8 Road Frameset - 2016

Despite the fact that the frame's design and layup were developed in partnership with Jaguar, Pinarello's Limited Edition RHINO Dogma F8 Road Frameset's story hinges on a different animal: the rhino. The rhino graphics on this frame serve as publicity for United for Wildlife, an anti-poaching organization that aims to protect the wildlife populating Froome's home continent of Africa, and we applaud Froome's decision to use the platform of his latest Tour win as an opportunity to perform a bit of charitable activism. We've opted to stock the predominantly black paint scheme he rode during the middle of the Tour, when he was actually doing the work to win the race, rather than the all-yellow affair he rode on the celebratory processional up the Champs-Élysées after he'd already effectively won.

Other than the limited edition paint scheme, this is the same frameset the monolithic Team Sky rides daily. It improves on Pinarello's previous flagship bike, the 65.1, by mating its Tour-winning geometry with material upgrades and fresh tube shapes for a claimed 47% improvement in aerodynamics, a 16% more balanced feel, and a 12% increase in rigidity — all while shedding a claimed 120g. The Dogma F8's carbon fiber is provided by another proven industry partner, the venerable carbon geniuses at Toray, whose Japanese factory produces arguably the most consistent, highest quality, and safest carbon in the world. The F8 is made from an all-new Toray masterpiece: T1100 1K Dream Carbon with Nano-alloy technology.

While the name is certainly impressive, its application is even more so. T1100 is the current go-to outer skin for many modern aircrafts, and its stiffness-to-weight ratio is as remarkable as Froome's attack up the Col de Soudet on the tenth stage — an effort all the more impressive when you consider the virtually flat stage that led up to the climb. The new Dogma F8 also mimics Froome's own weight loss between Barloworld and Sky, dropping 80 claimed grams compared to the Dogma 65.1.

This frame isn't all about Froome and rhinos, though, as Jaguar's engineering expertise came into play through the use of CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics). Using the existing 65.1 Dogma as a baseline, the team of Jaguar and Pinarello engineers plotted 70 frame configurations and 300 CFD analysis cycles to tease out the most versatile aerodynamic tube shape, which has been given the utilitarian name of FlatBack. This is an apt description, as a cross-section view of this shape reveals an ovalized face paired with an abruptly truncated back half. This shape manages the detachment of turbulent lamina at multiple yaw angles, reducing the drag effect of dead air in the tubes' wake.

As important as weight and aerodynamics have become in top-end bikes, power transfer may still be the most important aspect of a racing machine. Since the power data from certain Sky riders has been made available through leaks and official release, it's apparent that the F8 doesn't disappoint. The asymmetric design philosophy is apparent throughout the Dogma F8, and Pinarello's engineers revisited the forces in action as a rider grinds up climbs, torques the bars during sprints, and muscles the bike through corners. FEA (Finite Element Analysis) confirmed that the 65.1 Dogma's asymmetrical design was beneficial in leveling the variances in frame deflection from one side to the other, which is why the F8's tubes have been arranged in a similar, albeit more asymmetric (16% more), layup to better balance drive-side forces.

Aerodynamics and efficiency are combined with comfort in the rear triangle, where a pair of fat, asymmetric chainstays are matched with the new Onda RS F8 seatstays. The seatstays are positioned low — meeting the seat tube farther down — and describe a subtle, sinuous curve as they travel from the seat tube to the rear dropout. This rear triangle makes for increased rear stiffness and better power transfer without sacrificing vertical compliance. It also effectively hides the brake cluster and allows for repositioned seat tube water bottle cage bosses. The hidden brakes confer obvious aerodynamic advantages, and Pinarello claims that the lower bottle position also makes for less drag.

The Dogma F8 Frameset is finished off with a redesigned Onda F8 fork, which enjoys a claimed 10% reduction in weight and a 40% reduction in drag. We suspect that the weight reduction comes courtesy of the T1100 carbon, but the improved aerodynamics are definitely the result of some creative cross breeding between the old Onda fork and the TT-specific Bolide fork. The new Onda's blades are slightly convex, which Jaguar's engineers say creates the sweet spot where air stays attached — reducing the size of the wake — without creating too large a leading face.

For all this talk of developing new technologies, the bottom bracket is one area where Pinarello has thankfully refused to "innovate," sticking with the classic threaded Italian option. It's proven, it's stiff, it's Italian, and it stays. That's not to say that the F8 is a last-gen machine — quite the contrary. Its internal cable routing accommodates either mechanical or electronic shifting systems, and the carbon Air8 seatpost accepts both Shimano Di2 and Campagnolo EPS battery packs.