Product Reviews

December 5, 2008

I have recently discovered the coolest, cheapest and in my opinion best option for indoor wattage training on the market right now. I recently became a retailer for Elite Trainers, and have been testing their Primo Fluid Wireless for the last couple of weeks. I’ve always been a fan of Elite due to their elastomer flywheel technology. It helps to reduce tire wear, vibration and noise, and it really does work. My trainer is so quiet you’d hardly know I was pedaling!

The best thing about this trainer is the wireless wattage data it provides. There is a transmitter built into the flywheel housing, and a receiver unit that attaches to the handlebar. Both ends require two AA batteries (included) and set up was a snap. No wires to run, nothing to plug in. Just mount the bike, attach the handlebar unit and away you go. I can be set up and on my bike in half the time it would take me on my CompuTrainer, or my old Taxc Flow. The best part about wireless is that there is nothing to unstrap from the bike if you end up with one of those perfect winter days and you want to take the bike outside. Just unhook from the trainer and away you go.

The wattage display is large, easy to read and very easy to use. It provides the rider with current, average and maximum data for power and speed, and keeps track of your distance as well. The one thing this trainer is missing is a wireless cadence feature, but for all that it does well, I’m willing to live without that one. Having a Computrainer on hand is great when I’m testing other power meters, as it gives me a great bench mark to measure accuracy against. I’m pleased to say that the Elite comes very close to the values I get from my CompuTrainer, both in testing and riding mode. The Elite tends to be about 10-15w low from what I get on the CompuTrainer, but it’s a very consistent 10-15w, so I still know exactly where I’m at, and I can still judge improvement well.

Another really cool thing with the Primo Wireless is how the rear wheel comes into contact with the flywheel. I really think this is incredibly ingenious, and I can’t believe nobody else has thought of it. Rather than having a screw knob under the flywheel that you have to dial in to get the contact, the Elite is designed with a really cool swing-arm system. The flywheel unit sits on a support that is in direct contact with the ground. The frame of the trainer where the rear wheel attaches swings back once the bike is weighted and puts the tire in contact with the flywheel in the same manner that sitting on the bike outdoors would. So, rather than trying to guess how much pressure to have between flywheel and tire, you get the same contact pressure as you would when you are riding outdoors. No calibration or guessing necessary. It is a very cool idea, and I hope the patented it!

With an MSRP of $620, this trainer is packed with features, both cool and functional and is definitely a very cost effective way of adding power to your off-season training routine.

June 30, 2008, Guru Magis reviewed

I didn’t think I’d ever love another bike as much as my Crono, but I was wrong. I finally received my Guru road bike last week, and I’ve had a chance to put about 10hrs on it over the week, and I truly love this bike!

First, a little background on the bike, as I’ve chosen to do something a little different with this one.

There are two carbon choices in the Guru line up. At the top end, you have the Crono for TT/triathlon and the Geneo in road geometry. There is no difference in the frame design, only in the geometry.

With the second level of carbon bike the frames are actually quite different. On the road side of things, they have the Evolo, a standard round tubed frame, that is exceptionally light and stiff. For TT/triathlon they offer the Magis, which is a fully aero frame in dedicated triathlon geometry.

For a variety of reasons, I chose to build up my road bike on the aero triathlon frame. One of the great things about a custom bike manufacturer is that you get to do this kind of stuff! So while it looks like their TT bike, and is technically called the Magis, it is a dedicated road geometry and set up.

Why? Well, from a display standpoint, I already have two dedicated TT bikes on the showroom floor, and only one road bike, and I wanted to show two and two, not to mention the fact that I’m using this as my road bike for the season. Also from a display standpoint, I think it’s easier to tell a prospective client that the aero frame is also available in a road specific round tubed version, rather than trying to explain the shape of the aero tubes. Everyone can visualize what a round tube looks like. The aero tubing really needs to be seen to be appreciated.

On top of all of that, there is definitely a trend in the road industry towards more aerodynamics when it comes to frames. Round just isn’t going to cut it anymore. You watch, over the next couple of years the big guns are going to be introducing more aero shaped road bikes. Finally, racing triathlon this year, I had a feeling that certain courses would be more suited to a road/multi-sport set up, but I didn’t want to sacrifice the aerodynamics of a dedicated tri-frame. So, I took the Magis frame, built it with road geometry and components, and now have, in my opinion the perfect multi-sport ride on the market. I sacrificed a bit of weight by going aero, (250grams according to Guru) but built up with full Dura Ace and the stock Reynolds wheels the bike weighs in at just over 17lbs with pedals and bottle cage mounted. Throw some race wheels on, and this is definitely a sub 16lb wind cheating machine.

The ride of this bike is just phenomenal. The fit and geometry are absolutely perfect for me. The bike tracks dead straight-I’ve always been pretty good balance wise on my bikes as far as riding no hands, taking off layers, reaching to my back pocket etc-but doing all those things on this bike is completely effortless. I can sit up, take my arm warmers off, fold them stick them in my pocket, stretch my back, grab a snack, all at 30+kph with someone on my wheel, and never change my line. This is the one truly important benefit of a custom fit bike. When you get the geometry nailed, and your centre of mass displaced perfectly over the bike, it’s a feeling like no other.

This is also the plushest rock I’ve ever ridden! Solid like a rock is a complete understatement. The power transfer feels every bit as good as my Crono, and the carbon frame does an amazing job of sucking up the bumps and road vibrations. I’ve never ridden a road bike that is so quiet. Bumps, cracks, train tracks, no matter what I ride over, the bike never makes a sound. A “quiet” bike means that all those vibrations and jolts are getting sucked up by the frame and not making it to the places that can rattle around, including my body! The litmus test for vibration absorption came yesterday when I took it out on some dirt roads in the area. Being an ex-mountain biker, I’m not one to shy away from rough roads. And being a lover of the cobblestones in France, dirt roads are generally where I like to put the hammer down. I did just that on my test ride yesterday, and the Magis was brilliant. The dirt roads felt like velvet underneath me, the bike accelerated amazingly on the rough surface, and the front wheel tracked straight and true no matter what it rolled over. I had FUN on that ride, on that bike. In fact, every ride I’ve had on the Magis so far has been fun, and that’s really the way it should be.

I also tested it out on a few sprints out of the saddle, and it was incredibly stiff and responsive. I finished my ride yesterday with a 300m uphill sprint to the house, and I was accelerating the whole way, waiting for my legs to start complaining, but it never came. The power transfer at the bottom bracket was superb, and the stiffness at the head tube was confidence inspiring. I felt no give at the head tube when I started ripping the bars side to side, and the bike continued to track in a straight line as I was throwing it side to side under my body.

In short, at just over $4000 for a full Ultegra build, this is the best value bike in the Guru line-up, and one of the best road bikes on the market. The best when you take into account that it’s made custom for you, in Canada, by hand. It really doesn’t get any better than this.

Okay, enough writing, I’m going riding again!

Guru Crono…continued

Okay, so I’ve had a chance to put some solid miles on my Crono out on the road this past month, and just completed my first race on it…survey says! I still love my Crono, in fact, I’m pretty sure I love it even more now. I’ve gotten the fit totally dialed in to the point where I’m quite happy in the aero position just about indefinitely when I’m at race intensity. The race this past Sunday in Milton had a 30km bike course, and with the exception of two climbs and a couple of corners, I was down on my Zipp Vuka Bars the whole time (btw, love these bars, stiff, tight and hyper adjustable…in my humblest of opinions, one of the best, if not the best aero bar on the market right now) and passed many an athlete on a dedicated tri set-up, sitting up on the bull-horns when riding on the flats. I continue to be amazed by the Crono’s stiffness around the bottom bracket. The power transfer from the pedals to the drive train is simply a marvel to experience, and the ride quality was to die for. If you don’t live around these parts, take my word that the vibration absorbing qualities of carbon were put to the test on Sunday. The Town of Milton decided to do some patch work on the bike course about two weeks ago, and they did the worst job I’ve ever seen. They just dropped a bunch of fresh pavement down on huge swaths of road, fairly indiscriminately if you ask me, spread it out and moved on. They didn’t even roll it, so when the heavy equipment drove over the fresh pavement, it left tread patterns in the road. It was kind of like rolling over those rumble strips they carve into roads to control driver speed, but on a bike, at race pace. The Crono excelled at soaking up all the road vibration, I felt no tingling or discomfort in any of my contact points during the bike leg. And aero, let me tell you about aero. It was a very windy day on Sunday, windy enough to blow over the biggest sponsor tent in the expo area before the race, and we were headed into it for about 12 of the 30km. I was almost giggling at one point as I realized that I could hear the wind and see the wind blowing the trees, but I could barely feel it tugging at me at all. I was carving a very clean hole through that wall of wind, and maintaining a solid speed, at a moderate heart rate with a fast cadence the whole time.

I knew it was a hot bike, and a good bike, but I have to say that it completely surprised me at just how well it performed in race conditions. I can honestly say that without that bike, I would not have put in the bike split that I did.

I’m looking forward to many more races atop my new favourite steed.

Sable Water Optics Swim Goggles

Well, I’ve had three sessions in the pool with these new goggles, model 101^ST in Emerald to be precise, and I’m very impressed. The fit was superb, right out of the case. They have excellent suction around the eye socket, without giving me goggle eyes at the end of my swim! Absolutely no leakage at all, and a very comfortable and unobtrusive double strap retention system that is very easy to adjust. Every pair of goggles comes with three different nose pieces, Small, Medium and Large, in order to offer a truly custom fit with every pair.

The best part of these goggles though is the optical clarity. I’ve pretty much been a simple Speedo guy all of my life when it came to swim goggles. Partially just to keep things simple, and partially due to my Scottish (cheap) heritage. I’ve never really paid much attention to optics before, mostly figuring that bad vision through my goggles was due more to my bad eyesight than the clarity of the lenses. Boy, was I wrong!

I was immediately blown away with how clear my underwater vision was with the Sable goggles on. I could see every little speck of dust and lint on the bottom of the pool-not necessarily a good thing if you’re germ-phobic- but I thought it was pretty cool. I also had no problem seeing the clock that was up one level, one room over, through a glass partition-Premier doesn’t seem to think a pace clock in the pool is necessary- and being near-sighted, that really impressed me. I had been very excited about the availability of prescription lenses for the Sable goggles, but now that I’ve experienced the clarity of the normal lenses, I’m not sure I need to go the Rx route.

These goggles are not in the $20 cheapo/Speedo price range, but now that I’ve had the opportunity to wear them, I can honestly say they are worth every penny. Excellent optics, comfortable fit, customized sizing, and the option of prescription lenses. This is exactly the kind of product that “fits” with the philosophy here at Younique Cycles, and I’m very happy to have them in the product mix this season.

Selle SMP saddles.

I can honestly say I haven’t had that much time on these new saddles yet, but that’s the great thing about them. They feel amazing almost immediately after installing them. I’m currently riding the Carbon model on my Crono, and just put the Evolution model on my ‘cross bike. I have a Composit sitting here waiting for the arrival of my Guru Evolo road bike.

First, the Carbon. Weight in at 165g, this is the most comfortable, stable lightweight saddle I’ve ever been on. This is the perfect saddle for a TT/triathlon bike, when all your riding is aggressive and under pressure. Due to the lack of padding, I would not recommend this particular model for an everyday training bike, but for an aggressive racing bike…this is the saddle. This is the most comfortable saddle I’ve ridden in the TT position, hands down. The full length groove take pressure away from the soft tissue and keeps the blood flowing freely no matter how low I get. The saddle is nice and slender, allowing for a clear pass for the thighs as they move through the pedal stroke. I think this is especially important for Triathletes, who tend to be wearing shorts with a shorter inseam. A narrow saddle means less chance of chafing on the thighs. Plus, with the smooth carbon finish, any contact between saddle and thigh will be relatively friction free. The best feature of this saddle however has to be the drop nose design. This isn’t even a tri-specific saddle, but I believe it’s the best tri-specific design out there. Most tri saddles beef up the nose with a bunch of foam, and gel. Personally, no matter how soft it is, it’s still pressure. The problem with padding is that you eventually compact that padding and get down to the hard surface, which is when the discomfort and numbness will start to set in. With the SMP saddles, between the full length groove, and the drop nose, there is absolutely no pressure where you don’t want it, no matter where you position yourself along the saddles length. Just as it should be.

The Evolution is the choice for your road bike/training bike. A little heavier at 230g, but padding and comfort will always come with a weight penalty. The immediate comfort of this saddle was incredible. I put it on my ‘cross bike and set it up on the trainer about an hour before going for a two hour LSD ride this past Sunday. There was absolutely no break in period at all. The instant I sat down on it, I knew there wouldn’t be any issues. I felt no pressure anywhere I didn’t want to, no pain or discomfort at all. The only pressure was right on my sit bones, exactly where it needs to be in a road position. Two hours with no saddle sores, chaffing or other issues. Now, if I could just find something to help the legs!

One quick note on these saddles. Due to the shape, with the scoop in the middle and the drop nose, set up can be a bit finicky. The ultimate comfort of this saddle will have a lot to do with how it gets positioned underneath the rider. Fore/aft is important to get right, as this will insure that your sit bones are positioned properly over the saddle. The other trick to get right is the nose angle. This is going to be fairly personal, but in general terms, for a road set up, you’ll want to get the sit bone pads fairly level, which will actually create a slight upward tilt at the nose. For a TT/tri set up, you’ll want to level the nose area, which will create a downward tilt to the sit bone pads. Ideally, you should purchase this saddle from a shop that will do a set-up and fit consult on your bike for you at the time of purchase, just like we do here at Younique Cycles.

April 11, 2008.

I love my Crono.

Plain and simple, I can’t put it any other way. I’ve always been a fan of Guru, and I’ve had the pleasure of riding some great bikes in the past, but the Crono takes the cake, hands down.

I’ve only had two rides on it so far, one test run, and my first TT, but I can already say with confidence that I’ve never experienced a better ride quality. The Crono is by far the stiffest frame I’ve ever had the pleasure of pushing a pedal on. There is no noticeable flex anywhere through the drive-train. The bottom bracket is rock solid, and the chain stays feel as stiff as solid steel beams. The head tube/fork complex are exceptionally solid, creating very smooth and intuitive handling characteristics. With all this lateral stiffness, the truly amazing thing with this bike is how smooth it is on the road. If you’ve ever been up in the Halton Hills area in early spring, you’ll know just how “great” the roads are here. Honestly, some of our roads are on par with the Forrest of Arenburg and the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix. Trust me, if you haven’t ridden up here, I’m not exaggerating. And I’ve ridden Paris-Roubaix! The bumps, pressure cracks and potholes are all turned into smooth road underneath the exceptional ride quality of the Crono. The standard Chip-Tar roads around here feel like perfectly smooth, fresh pavement. The pressure cracks, even though I feel the wheels bump over them, very little of that “bump” actually makes it’s way through the frame to my contact points.

The fit is superb. Even though this is my display model, I had it made custom for me, as I will be racing this at the Muskoka 70.3, and as a bike fitter, fit and positioning are exceptionally important to me. The guys at Guru nailed the geometry and sizing. This bike climbs solidly, and descends with a very smooth, predictable feel. Even though my position is fairly aggressive, I’ve never been more comfortable on a bike of any kind.

To top it off, the aerodynamics of the frame, and the rider/bike interface are astounding. Both of my rides have been in very windy conditions, and even though I was riding into the wind, I couldn’t feel the wind pulling on me the way it does when I’m on my road bike. I could literally feel the wind slipping past my body as I sliced my way through it. I truly felt like I was cheating the elements, and what a great feeling it was!

In a nutshell, the Guru Crono truly does offer one of the best ride qualities on the market today, and when you couple that with a perfect, custom position, I really don’t believe there is a better TT/Tri frame on the market today.