April 2nd 2007
- The Tech Pages
- Dream Ride Chronicle
- Pimp my Argon 18
- When Athletes Take Control
The Tech Pages
HDS : one of the pillars of optimal balance
HDS-short for Horizontal Dual System- is the primary principle behind the optimal balance of ride caracteristics in Argon 18 bicycles. For a decade, the HDS concept has remained the central, unchanging tenet behind all the development work at Argon 18. HDS is what makes the difference between a good bike and an optimally balanced Argon 18 bike.
The basic idea is simple: different frame tubes carry different loadings and stresses and one way to differentiate between the two primary types of loading is to divide the frame in upper and lower sections along a diagonal line spanning the frame from the upper headtube to the rear dropouts. Below this line, the priority is to fully transfer the cyclist's power to the rear wheel for maximum forward motion; this requires rigidity. The upper section primarily bears the rider's weight and must be compliant, in order to absorb and dissipate road shock and vibration.
A number of elements are involved in achieving this: the materials used, the composite layup scheme (in the case of carbon fiber), as well as tube form and tube size. Argon 18's exclusive Nano-Tech composites are the invisible part of HDS and will be the subject of a coming Tech Pages column. Here, we'll have a closer look at the visible part of the HDS equation, which is to say tube size and shape.
Visible HDS: tube shape and size
Two frames can serve to illustrate HDS used in two different ways: The Platinum and the Helium. The former is a sprinter's frame, the latter is Argon's comfort special. Both bikes look and feel quite different, but both achieve their respective ride qualities through HDS design. For a given material, a larger-section tube will be more rigid; but too big a tube makes for an overly-stiff, unbalanced and uncomfortable bike. Our cycling experience and knowledge, our sense of what a bike should behave like on the road helps us fine- tune our designs. Here then, are two areas of particular concern, as regards the visible aspects of HDS:
1) The main triangle
Whether it's the Platinum or the Helium, the overall volume of the downtube is substantially greater than that of the top tube. Lets compare the tubes width. The result is an increase of the downtube's width of 81% on the Platinum and on the Helium*. Doing this, we reduce weight and allow for maximum power transfer while also ensuring a good measure of comfort. Note also that both tubes have different shapes at each extremity.
2) The rear triangle (chain- and seatstays)
Rear triangle design is just as involved. Tube sizes are smaller but the specific demands are just as important as with the main triangle. In the case of the Helium, the width difference between chain- and seatstays is 29%. With the Platinum, 10%**. The specific shape given to each tube is designed to further enhance the characteristics obtained by that tube's size.
Selecting specific tube shapes and sizes therefore makes up the visible component of the HDS concept. While it remains invisible, the other half of the story is all about the formulation and layup of our carbon fiber composites. Achieving Optimal Balance is a balancing act, a delicate tweaking of many factors and details. The real value of all this is something you can readily feel on the road.
*Measurements taken in the middle of the toptube and near the bottom bracket.
** Measurements taken under the brake bridge and near the bottom bracket.
-top-
Dream Ride Chronicle
F-1 cycling in Montreal
Since 1978, Montreal has hosted a leg of the international Formula 1 race series. Sitting as it does on Notre-Dame island on the St-Lawrence river just a stone's throw from city center, the Gilles Villeneuve racing circuit famously offers breathtaking views of the Montreal skyline. In fact, video-game F-1 racers probably know each view and every course detail as well as the actual F-1 drivers themselves!... but when the roar of the engines fades away and the F-1 circus moves on to its next stop, it's the cyclists, the most frequent users of the circuit, who come in droves every evening to take over the city's smoothest road.
The 4.361 km loop is paved with an amazingly flawless coat of asphalt that lets riders keep top speed. The Villeneuve circuit is a veritable urban sanctuary for riders and it's no unusual sight to find upwards of a hundred cyclists hard at it on any given weeknight or weekend. Chaingangs readily form and the pace is quick, often over and sometimes well over 40 kph. Performance is the order of the day, and that's not even counting those who come to do intervals and specific race training.
It's THE place to meet bike junkies of all kinds. The facilities, the surroundings are impressive and full of F-1 history; even on a bike, inspiration comes from memories of Schumacher's victories and Gilles Villeneuve and Ayrton Senna's classic races.
As an urban rider, this place is the perfect training spot for me. There is only the occasional car, so it's very safe; sometimes we pass the cars as we hammer on in our paceline.
I suggest you join us on the city's most perfect road, particularly on a Saturday morning at around, oh, ten o'clock. We'll blow away a few cars and talk about... bikes, what else?
Yanick Perreault, Argon 18
-top-
Pimp my Argon 18!
The Pimp my Argon 18 page is all about serious cycle customizing at its artistic pinnacle, no compromises. An Argon 18 is a thing of beauty. A pimped-out, hopped-up and tuned Argon is better still; but YOUR pimpy Argon.well now, my friend, that is the ultimate right there, isn't it?
KILLER RADONS FROM HELL!
We've marvelled at the refined, classic lines of Andy Portess's Argon Titanium, now feast your eyeballs on this pair... a double-barrelled shot of tricked-out Radon bi-sickles courtesy of tuning freaks Eric Moody and Bruno P.
What is it that most draws the eye on these two machines? Is it the Gallium monocoque fork substitution (they just couldn't leave it alone)? Is it the Zipp stuff?... or the sophisticated choice in stems and bars? Maybe it's just the Mutt and Jeff-style discrepancy in frame size! Maybe it's all of the above, given that nothing has been left to chance, here.
So, just who are these obsessive customizing geeks? Be it known that Eric Moody is a cycle surgeon/ mechanic/miracle worker at Cycles Gervais Rioux in Montreal-that's the tall bike. BrunoP.(that's the small bike),your not-so-humble servant, is the writer of these lines, and is very much unaccustomed to speaking in the third person when writing about himself!...
Check 'em out.
the Specs
The Small One, Bruno P
Frame: Radon alu/carbon 2006 white size S
Fork: Gallium S3 monocoque carbon 2005 black
Wheels: Mavic Ksyrium E.S. Tires : Michelin Lithion 700x23 (You need good tires in Montreal at this time of the year!)
Gruppo: Campagnolo Chorus, with Zipp 300 (170mm) crank and bottom bracket
Accessories: Selle Italia SLR 135 gr saddle, Alien Use seatpost,Zipp (110mm) stem, ITM alu/carbone (42cm) handlebar, Cane Creek IS2 headset,BBB alu water bottle cages
Pedals: Look Keo Carbone/Chromoly
The Tall One, Éric Moody
Frame: Radon alu/carbon 2006 white size XL
Fork: Gallium S3 monocoque carbone 2005 black
Wheels: Zipp 404 with Zipp tubulars
Gruppo: Shinamo Dura Ace (175mm crank)
Accessories: Selle Italia SLR GelFlow saddle,FSA SLK Super Setback seatpost,Pazzaz RAS-23FCB (130 mm) stem, Bontrager Race lite OS Flat-top (46 cm) handlebar,FSA Orbite I carbone headset, Cinelli et BBB alu water bottle cages
Pedals : Look CX7
PowerTap equipment for training
-top-
When Athletes Take Control
In every issue of the newsletter, an Argon 18 athlete will be given free reign to speak frankly on a topic he or she wishes to deal with; it's a sort of open forum exclusive to the Argon 18 website. This week's guest is Anne Samplonius, an experienced regular with the international pro womens' peloton:
Inside the Pro Women's Peloton
by Anne Samplonius, Team Expresscopy.com
So what exactly is it like to be a woman training and racing a bicycle as one's profession, especially since we are not making the dollars like the male side of our sport? Well, to put it bluntly, you have to make more sacrifices. Women throughout history have been on the short end of the stick when it comes to sports (amongst other things!) and cycling is no different in this matter. There has been endless debates to the reasons why, and I could give my long-winded opinion on that too, but I will leave that for another day. The bottom line is we are always overshadowed by men and we have to fight hard to generate outside interest in what we do. The result is that we have to struggle in our daily lives to find the time and money to do what we love as we just do not compare dollar for dollar to the men's side of cycling. We need to keep in mind that if we take time off now to train and race full-time what happens in the future when we stop? Will we have a job or some sort of work to fall back on? Will there still be time to raise a family? Can we even afford to go into cycling full-time? These are serious questions that we have to ask ourselves and this is why you will find amongst the majority of women who race that we are balancing work, education, and for some, a family, all while trying to reach the top level of our sport. Not an easy feat.
With sponsorship like Argon18 the Expresscopy.com pro women's cycling team is one step closer to bridging the gap between men and women's cycling. Argon18 have realized that women are as marketable in the cycling industry as their male counterparts (many more women are now buying and riding bicycles then ever before) and have noticed that the women are every bit as professional and dedicated as the men, and in many cases more so as we are balancing much more then simply racing our bikes. I have been racing in the professional women's peloton for 13 years and for most of those it has been a struggle to make ends meet. I am able to do what I do thanks to generous sponsors like Argon18 and Expresscopy.com, from living a minimalist lifestyle (I still do not own a car), and from pure love of the sport of cycling.
Where is the future of women's competitive cycling headed? That is a tough question to answer but if I look back over my career I have witnessed a ton of growth already. There have been good years and not so good years in term of sponsorship dollars but remember we have only been in the Olympics since 1984! We are extremely young when compared to the men. There is a lot of opportunity to continue the upward trend with women's cycling, in both competitive and recreational, and Argon18 have realized this in their support of the Expresscopy.com team. They have taken us seriously and now it is up to me and my teammates to show the world that the Argon18 bike will be a force in the 2008 Beijing Olympics!
-top-
|
NZ 
