Shimano NAHBS Newsletter #6
2010 show: Richmond, Va. Feb 26-28
In This Issue:
Don Walker Enlists Help of Olympic Medalist Erin Hartwell Multiple Olympic track cycling medalist, Erin Hartwell, and David Wiswell, a professional road and track cyclist based in NYC, will ride Don Walker Cycles custom handmade bicycles in 2010. But that's not all. Hartwell has also agreed to head up the marketing effort for Don Walker Cycles, to which end he has designed the Don  Walker booth and will appear in person to represent the brand at the show. Don Walker said, "Erin's experience speaks for itself. David Wiswell is a fresh face now back from a few years' successful campaigning on the European road and six-day circuits. His recent experience and feedback, added to what Erin brings to the table, will provide me with the necessary knowledge to develop my six-day bicycle design and hopefully open up a new market for my brand." People interested in elite cycling experiences on fixed-gear and free-hub bikes can meet Erin Hartwell at the Don Walker Cycles booth.
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Shimano Introduces Ultegra 6700 System at Shimano NAHBS Visitors to the show will have an opportunity to learn about Shimano's latest Ultegra 6700 components. Shimano's goal when making bicycle components has been to balance all of the critical performance specs and be great at each of them instead of focusing on just one facet. Having an appreciation that the bike is a series of systems, rather than a gathering of parts, is a natural progression to optimizing each system. This is Systems Engineering, a long-time Shimano philosophy.
 The Ultegra 6700 series, used by the Garmin-Slipstream U-23 team, remains a solid performer possessing many key features derived from the Dura-Ace 7900 line. Front Drive System: Although the front derailleur, crankset, bottom bracket, and chain of the Shimano Ultegra 6700 group are lighter as a set than the nearest competitor, the ultimate goal was to create optimal power transfer. With the Hollowtech II crank and bottom bracket system, the bearings are positioned as far apart as possible, providing little opportunity for any bottom bracket axle flex. Adding to efficiency are bearings that carry primarily radial load, meaning less overall bearing friction and drag. Finally, the Hollowtech II system’s wide stance enables frame builders to use that extra real estate to fortify the bottom bracket area of the frame to keep frame flex to a minimum. All of these factors contribute to high efficiency in the transfer of energy to the rear wheel. Braking System: The braking system is not the lightest, and this is deliberate. Superlight brake calipers don't effectively slow a speeding bicycle. With Systems Engineering, Shimano has developed brakes so that the rider saves energy in stopping and modulating the progress of the bike, and can use that predictable braking to confidently travel faster in a ride or race. Gear Shifting System: The effort to create a precision gear shifting system that’s light is far more technical that creating a collection of light weight parts that shift. Shimano pioneered, and has since practiced, the method of viewing the part interfaces, focusing on the performance, then moving on to each individual piece. The rider input effort has also been a long time obsession, with a goal of making the effort and shape fit the rider’s needs instead of the rider needing to accommodate the bike. Attention to these details contributes to the product efficiency in a way that simply slicing grams can’t. Learn more about Shimano's Systems Engineering approach when you visit their booth.
www.shimano.com
Fundraising and GPS Bikes at the Maitta Booth Tony Maietta believes his Maietta JetSet bicycle is the first to have a real-time GPS device embedded inside one of the tubes. The 54cm road bicycle equipped with  SRAM Red will be on sale at the show. Featuring S&S couplers and replete with a Garmin 705, Tony Maietta - a business traveller himself - reckons this is the bike for business travellers to have. "No need to worry about your premium bicycle being lost by the airline or stolen from your hotel room, you can track it online," he says.
The other complete bicycle in the Maietta booth includes a frame he made to raise funds in a raffle for a friend who sustained a severe brain injury in a cycling accident back in August of 2009. He sold over 700 tickets and raised $14,000. All tickets will be on display at his booth, and if you can find yours there he'll give you a Maietta T-shirt.
Maietta entered the custom bicycles business in 2006 after a multi-year apprenticeship under Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes and Mike Zanconato, which he did at the same time as taking a degree in mechanical engineering. He sees NAHBS as a must-attend show. "As a frequent traveller for my daytime engineering job I attend numerous such events in my field, and NAHBS is on a par with any top event in the country. It utlizes clean and modern facilities, maintains tight criteria for entry, and attracts the world's best talent. Attending NAHBS is a necessity to keep pace in this niche industry. My goal here is to spread the word of Maietta bicycles on a national level," he says.
http://maiettacycling.com
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Rolf Prima Hires Pro Help  When Rolf Prima decided to introduce two new wheels into the track category this year, they hired pro track cyclist Dean Tracy not only to help develop what they think is the perfect race wheel for the track, but also to represent the wheels at two international six-day events, in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. He took three wins and a handful of podium places, earning himself the distinction of being the only US rider offered a paid invite to the 2010 event. Tracy's carbon fiber tubular racing wheels will be on display at the Rolf Prima booth, along with the companion aluminum track wheels and others in their line.
Meet YiPsan at Bicycle Escape NAHBS Warm-up
Cyclists in Frederick, MD, will warm to the news that the Bicycle Escape will host a NAHBS pre-show featuring YiPsan Bicycles, Wed. Feb. 24th at 7:00pm.. The free event will be catered with plenty to eat and drink. Renold Yip will show some bikes and give a presentation. More information is at the Bicycle Escape Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/l/4e283;www.thebicycleescape.com
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Thank you all for reading our newsletter! We are hoping to squeeze one more in before the show. We look forward to seeing you in Richmond, Va., 26-28 Feb. 2010 ### |
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