Cycling News Roundup - 27 November 2008
Happy Thanksgiving, Team CSC, UCI Names ProTour teams, Dario Cataldo, Alan Marangoni, Giro d'Onore Awards, Rover/Orbea Continental Team, Vanderkitten Axe - Absolutis 0.9, Outlier Commuting in Style and more..

Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers in the USA... here's hoping it is a day filled with fine food, family and friends and a chance for a ride in the Fall sunshine.

Team CSC: Mission Accomplished
Team Saxo Bank-IT Factory has just completed the first mission of a new era – and everything went according to plan: Mission accomplished down to the smallest detail.

We're of course talking about the annual team training camp, which took place in Denmark this year. The training camp is not over yet but the actual survival camp headed by Ranger B.S. Christiansen is completed.

True to habit there were some very demanding assignments both mentally and physically as well as tasks of a more technical nature all mixed into a neat cocktail by B.S. Christiansen and Bjarne Riis in order to equip riders and staff for the oncoming season. The fact that the team has topped the rankings as best cycling team in the world four years running is no coincidence, but it still requires an extra effort to stay at the top of the game. Now the entire team of over 70 riders and staff is ready to take on the challenges of 2009.

"A prerequisite for everyone working together to reach the predetermined goals is knowing exactly what each individual team member is made of and capable of. Next you determine a strategy and tactics and when everyone contributes their absolute best there's a big chance of success," says B.S. Christiansen.

Everyone had to be trained as an undercover agent with special skills and knowledge in order to complete the main assignment, which was to locate and free the main sponsors, who'd been taken hostage by an unknown enemy. The team had to work together in both small and larger groups in order to complete this assignment. But in the middle of everything the enemy attacked the camp and everyone had to flee into the darkness.

Dogs and enemies constantly chased the team but after almost 24 hours on the run through unknown territory they managed to reach the coastline, where everyone jumped into the freezing cold water to be rescued by small speedboats and brought to safety onboard three larger boats. The next assignment was to set sails, navigate through the Danish sea in the dead of night, cook and get everyone safely to the destination. The final day everyone competed against each other in a match race under difficult conditions.

It's also worth mentioning that the day before the actual training camp the riders and sports directors were subjected to some extremely tough tests with the purpose of applying further pressure to the people at the top of the organization.

"I have a definite feeling that everything has gone well. Everyone's accounted for and I think we've laid a more solid foundation than ever before to remain the strongest team out there and take on whatever the future may bring us. I've subjected everyone to a lot of new challenges because a lot of changes will happen in the 2009 season. We have a new name, new sponsors, new bikes and new team members so it was essential with brand new challenges at this stage already. The way I see it we're embarking on a new era built on our accumulated experience from everything we've been through so far," concludes B.S. Christiansen.

UCI names 2009 ProTour teams
The UCI has announced the 18 ProTour teams for the 2009 season. The 18 ProTour squads for the 2009 season are:

AG2R - La Mondiale (Fra)
Astana (Kaz)
Bouygues Telecom (Fra)
Caisse d'Epargne (Spa)
Cofidis (Fra)
Euskaltel-Euskadi (Spa)
Française des Jeux (Fra)
Garmin-Slipstream (USA)
Katyusha (Rus)
Lampre-N.G.C. (Ita)
Liquigas (Ita)
Team Milram (Ger)
Quick Step (Bel)
Rabobank (Ned)
Fuji-Servetto (Spa)
Saxo Bank - IT Factory (Den),
Silence-Lotto (Bel)
Team Columbia (USA).

Garmin-Slipstream and Katyusha are new to the ProTour for 2009 replacing Crédit Agricole and Gerolsteiner. Both sponsor have left the sport after many years.

Dario Cataldo joins Quick Step
Italian Dario Cataldo is announced as the latest signing for the Belgian Quick Step team. The 23 year old former winner of the Baby Giro started his professional career in 2007 with the Italian Liquigas team and won two stages in the Tour de L'Avenir.

Cataldo brings the total number of riders on the 2009 Quick Step team to 27.

Alan Marangoni joins CSF Group-Navigare
Italian Alan Marangoni is going to ride for the CSF Group-Navigare team next season. The 24 year old is the sixth neo professional of the 2009 team. Marangoni will join the team of Bruno and Roberto Reverberei as a time-trial specialist. He won the Italian U23 Championships in 2006 as well as several national titles on the track.

Italian Cycling Federation - Giro d'Onore Awards
Alessandro Ballan, Damiano Cunego and Marzio Bruseghin will be special guests in Giro d'Onore, awards ceremony in which the Italian Cycling Federation gives prizes to the athletes that realize important performances during the season.

The three Lampre cyclists will receive awards by virtue of the results obtained in 2008 and in particular for the outstanding World Championship in Varese, with golden medal by ballan, silver medal by Cunego and with the perfect performance by Bruseghin.

The event will take place on Friday 28th of november at Villa Fenaroli Palace Hotel in Rezzato (Brescia) at it will be live on Rai Sport Più.

Team Rover/Orbea - New UCI Continental Team
It's official Team Rover/Orbea Benefitting the Lance Armstrong Foundation application was finalized on 11/25 for 2009. Team manager Norene Godfrey has announced the team will start with 11 guys on the team for 2009 a 50% increase for us.  t

Storck Delivers for Vanderkitten
Storck Bicycle and Vanderkitten Racing have announced a multi-year sponsorship deal that will place the Elite Women’s Team on Storck road bikes beginning with the 2009 racing season. Vanderkitten Racing was established in 2007 and finished the 2008 season with a first place team ranking in the USA Crits Series. The team has enjoyed immediate success and remarkable popularity. Plans for 2009 include the creation of Vanderkitten Club Teams in various cities across the US. The title sponsor, Vanderkitten, designs cycling apparel and lifestyle clothing for “women who kick ass” and is available direct, via retailers, and through The Hawley Company.

“Our organization enjoyed a terrific 2008 season and we are confident that 2009 will be even more successful now that we will be riding Storcks”, said Robin Zellner, Managing Director - Vanderkitten Racing.

“We are delighted to be associated with this first rate team and are looking forward to a strong partnership which will benefit both our dealers and consumers”, said Dave Goeppner, GM for Storck in the US.

Storck Bicycle is a German brand that has experienced a surge in popularity in the US. Storck has a reputation for making the world’s lightest and stiffest bikes. The brand recently released the new Fenomalist and Absolutist road bikes to rave reviews.

The Vanderkitten Diva's have chosen the Absolutis 0.9 as their weapon of choice for the 2009 season. The all new Absolutist 0.9 is the latest evolution from Storck.  Featuring an all new advanced monocoque production technology, we were able to create shaped tubing that maximizes stiffness while minimizing weight and not compromising ride quality. 

The Absolutist 0.9 is a stellar example of form following function. The bike has a very smooth ride with precise performance. The new monostay is designed to be stiffer and lighter. The unique headtube and headset (from 1 ¼” to 11/8”) adds even more stiffness and improved handling. The model includes an oversized Stiletto Aero fork that works in harmony with the 1 ¼” lower bearing – adding even more stiffness. This is a remarkable racing machine that will impress you on every ride. The Absolutist 0.9 is the new, modern race machine.

The Vanderkitten Vlkyrie Axe

Features:
- Frame set:: Absolutist 0.9 including fork Stiletto Aero
- Integrated headset
- Storck Carbon 3k fiber weave top layer
- High Modular premium fibers
- Proportional tubing
- Sloping top tube geometry
- 1 ¼” lower and 11/8” top bearing headset
- Super size chain stays
- Oversize fork for 1 ¼” lower bearing
- Carbon rear entry dropout
- Replaceable hanger
- Bottom bracket 68 mm, BSA
- Seat post size 31,6 mm
- Seat post clamp 36,6 mm
- Weight (frame) from 950 grams

Price: $3,200 Frame /Fork/Head Set

http://www.storck-bicycles.de/ - USA Sorck Bikes
Vanderkitten Team
STORCK Fascenario Frameset Launched

Science of Sport - Swimming vs athletics
World records in swimming compared to records in athletics - interesting observations
Two days ago, I did a post looking at the absolute "cleansing" of the record books in the sport of swimming this year. 70 records in 2008, 66 Olympic records in the recent Beijing Olympics, and swimmers who began the year as world record holders (think Alexander Popov) suddenly find themselves outside the top 10 in that same event by the end of August! It has been an unprecedent explosion in the sport, one which I do believe is bad for the credibility of swimming.

That post got some good feedback and questions, and hopefully prompted some thought about the causes. There are some who have claimed that this astonishing "record-rush" is the result of better training and better athletes. Yet that implies that swimming legends like Alexander Popov, Pieter van den Hoogenband, Ian Thorpe, Janet Evans, were "inferior" only a few years ago. The problem is the timing, not necessarily the concept - evolution in training, generation of better athletes, only works when you look back over many years.

For example, we can compare the current marathon world record holder, Haile Gebrselassie, to Jim Peters, who held it in the 1950s, and then it's appropriate to say "better athletes and better training". The fact is that great swimmers who were world record holders at the start of 2008 (like Alex Popov) are now not even in the top 10 in their events! Better training, which by nature tends to evolve slowly, especially in a mature sport like swimming (this is not BMX racing with rapid growth opportunities), doesn't demote you from best EVER to outside the top 10 in a few months.

So I firmly believe that the suit is a large part of the "problem", whether it's a placebo effect or a real one (I believe it to be real) is another debate. But the latest news is that the USA are pressing FINA into banning the full body suits, and as mentioned the other day, the big swimming nations might yet step in to 'save the day' for swimming.

The influence of doping: Swimming flies under the radar
One interesting aspect of this debate is that little mention is made of the possible impact of doping in swimming's record-explosion. If it was cycling or athletics, the noise would be far louder, the accusations far more frequent and much more intense.

I have no doubt that doping happens in swimming, just as it does in all sports. But massive doping scandals are conspicuous by their absence - the Chinese swimmers of the 1990's are perhaps the most recent large scandal. Jessica Hardy missed the Olympic Games for a positive test, Ian Thorpe defended himself for an alleged EPO positive, but other than this, I can recall few high profile cases.

I suspect that a big part of the reason for this is that doping is far less beneficial for swimmers than it seems to be for track and field athletes. This is not simply a bald assertion, it is a conclusion drawn from the analysis of world records, which I discuss below. So before leaping onto the attack, consider the follow story, told by numbers:
Read the complete article here.
The Science of Sport Dr. Ross Tucker Dr. Jonathan Dugas

Bike Biz News
Outlier - Winterweight Dry Pants
Commuting in Style
Made in New York City these pants are designed for life both on and off your bike, all winter long. It might be freezing as you cross the bridge, you might need to dodge a couple taxis and of course you'll pass your coworkers trapped in traffic, but when you walk into the door at work you'll be feeling and looking great in your OG Winterweight Dry's.

Crafted with care and the classic Outlier attention to detail, they are styled to work everywhere from your office to a night in the city. The OG Winterweight Dry's are made with a hardcore technical fabric that will keep you warm and dry no matter where you ride. They have a 40% stretch so you can move freely. Yet hold up to the repetitive motion of cycling and still look sharp and refined.

The Dry treatment is directional. It pushes water in just one direction, away from your body. It wicks away the sweat and moisture, breathes as well as you do, and is seriously water resistant. Most rain, snow or slush just beads up and rolls away. It's a softshell so eventually it will saturate in intense conditions but when it does get wet, you'll find yourself dry in 10-20 minutes when safe from the elements. The fabric includes cordura grade nylon for major durability. The weave is such that the tough nylon is concentrated on the outside, while the inside is a fuzzy heat retaining fleece for warmth and comfort.

This is Outlier's original garment, the OG Pant now available in our 4Season Black Lotus fabric. A garment designed to work as well in a board meeting as it does on a bicycle. Wake up and throw them on, regardless of whether you plan on climbing a mountain or running a business.
Our goal has always been to make future classics, clothes that work as well yesterday as they will in a few years. Only time will tell if we succeeded but we certainly think we are on the right track.

Made in New York City with Schoeller Dryskin Extreme fabrics, these pants are designed for the ultimate in versatility, both socially and technologically. This is the best technical fabric around, you'll stay cool and dry no matter how hard you ride. The Lotus or Nanosphere coating is "self cleaning" (that's the technical term no lie.) The surface is coated in nanoscopic spikes that prevent grease and stain molecules from bonding to the fabric. Water just rolls off, taking with it any dirt that might remain.

It's water resistant and quick drying, so no worries if the sky turns against you. As a softshell it will eventually saturate in the craziest storms, but get indoors and you'll find yourself dry in 10-20 minutes. Light rain? Forget it, that stuff just rolls right off, just like the coffee or red wine you might have spilled upon it.

You could call this cut a true medium. It stretches as you ride, but drapes beautifully off the bike. You could rock it with a sport coat and oxfords or a hoodie with sneakers. More importantly you can wear it without thinking, wear it like a second skin, wear it like a classic that works in any occasion.

Sizing wise, these should fit similar at the waist to a Levis 501 jean of the same size. Because they stretch some people like to size down one size to get a slightly slimmer profile. The inseams on our pants are a minimum of 34" and like most high end pants are designed to hemmed to length by you.

About Outlier - In statistics an "outlier" is a result that lies outside the norm, and we certainly are trying to create garments far better than those you normally encounter. Historically however, an outlier was also the term for someone who lived in the outlying areas, someone who lived somewhere besides where they worked. An outlier was the original commuter.

Outlier was founded largely on the belief that the bicycle is the best way to navigate a 21st century city. We love our bikes not because we race them, ride trails or perform tricks with them, although sometimes we do all of that. But we love our bikes mainly because they are our transportation, our freedom, our way of moving through the spaces we call our home.

What we aim to do is make clothing for a world where bikes are the best mode of transit through our public spaces. Clothes that work as well in board rooms as they do on bicycles. Clothes you can buy based on their classic styling and construction, and appreciate their performance with a cool discretion. We are starting with pants, but if things go well, expect plenty more from us here at Outlier. http://outlier.cc/

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