BikeRumor.com

Happy New Year!  (warning, foul language.  if you’re not sure what this is spoofing, hit ‘more’ for the original “I’m on a boat” video)

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Cannondale Bicycles announced it will be the official bike sponsor of the 2010 Bahati Foundation Pro Cycling Team.  The newly formed team, led by 2008 National Pro Criterium Champion and eight-time national champion Rahsaan Bahati, will be outfitted with the 2010 Cannondale SuperSix, the newest model in the Cannondale road race line.

The Bahati Foundation was started by Rashaan Bahati to help underpriviledged children find ways to rise above their circumstances and live positive lives and overcome poverty.

“We’re proud to support the Bahati Foundation Pro Cycling Team and support the ideals and mission of its partner organization the Bahati Foundation,” said Jeff McGuane, president of Cycling Sports Group North America. “Cycling Sports Group is committed to providing the most innovative cycling products in the world, and we are proud to sponsor a team that is dedicated to changing the world, both on and off the bike.”

FROM CANNONDALE: The 2010 Cannondale SuperSix is the ideal selection for the team and boasts the ultimate pedaling efficiency, superior comfort and refined handling.  Cannondale’s new SuperSix is the lightest, stiffest carbon road frame in the line of bicycles. New carbon-fabrification methods shave the complete frame weight to only 900 grams in 56 cm, 150 grams lighter than earlier SuperSix models.

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David Millar had his lifetime ban from the Commonwealth Games lifted last week, and he’s preparing for a real showing next October.

Interviewed by the BBC, he is quoted as saying that cycling now leads all sports in anti-doping measures and has become an example for all others.

“We have introduced some of the most advanced anti-doping methods, from bringing in the ‘whereabouts’ system early on, internal testing programs for teams and the biological passport,” said Millar.

“In a decade, we have gone from being probably what was one of the dirtiest professional sports to the sport that is at the vanguard of anti-doping.”

After admitting to using EPO, in 2004 Millar received a two-year ban from competing, and has since become an outspoken advocate for clean, drug-free cycling.

While he still has a lifetime ban from the Olympic Committee, he says he hasn’t ruled it out.  Here’s hoping the IOC has a heart…

Built as a challenge from son to father as a way to ease uphill climbs, Joules is the product of just nine months of tinkering by retired electrical engineer Carl Morgan. Total cost: $3,000.

Morgan spent months modeling how to transform a motor’s spin into pedal-pushing legs. The motor inside Joules’s torso turns a series of linked belts and chains that transfer power from one area of the robot to the next. Each upper leg pivots at the hip, raising and lowering its knee and forcing the lower legs to turn the pedals. He also added “bones” (rods on the outside) for needed stiffness.

Featured on Popular Science’s You Built What? segment, this robotic tandem stoker is capable of pedaling at 2,400 RPM, but has been restricted to just 90 RPM for safety’s sake. It uses a 14 HP electric motor, and Morgan says Joules “is so powerful, it could probably climb a tree.”  Even at the restricted power output, he says it can probably top out around 30 MPH, but he isn’t ready to find out.

Read more on PopSci.com, and check out video after the break…

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Love it or hate it, there’s a lot of work that went into the paint job on each Team RadioShack Trek Madone race bike.  I wonder if they’d still have so many stickers on them if the UCI didn’t have a minimum weight requirement?

Also makes you wonder how they’re going to replicate this process on a mass scale for team replica consumer production bikes?

RELATED: Photos of Team RadioShack bikes.

Earlier in the month, we got word that BAUFL.org was going to press with some good bumper stickers, and on December 15, they went live with the final design, shown above.  Here’s why:

Our Mission is simple. Deliver one consistent message using one million cars so that millions of drivers will get the message….. “Bicycles Allowed Use of Full Lane, Change To Pass”.

The challenge is to get one million cars with stickers on them, and the message isn’t just something made up by the campaign.  It’s actually law in California, and there are street signs to help spread awareness there (shown after the break).  As for the rest of us, BAUFL claims that most states have the same or similar laws on the books, including rules that state that an overtaking vehicle must move into the other lane to pass.  Hopefully, the stickers will find their way on to many cyclists’ vehicles and millions of other drivers will be more aware of cyclists on the road.

A 3-pack is $9.65 (includes S&H), and you can order on their website.

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“Bike sweet bike” by Ferdinando Pucci.

To see more Pics of the Day, click here, and to submit your own photo to be shown to the world, go here.

You know that Camelbak promotion we just mentioned?  Well, consider yourself lucky to be in the U.S.  The contest is indeed open to you, my compatriots, and it’s run on Central European Time (CET), which means -6  hours for New York or – 9h for the West Coast!

That means while all those EU folk are drinking themselves stoopid, we’ll just be getting ready for the evening, with plenty of time to send a quick email at exactly 1 second afterward.  So go ahead and type it up, put it in the queue, then set an alarm on your iPhone (or whatever) and go win yourself a Camelbak!

Found by Xterra triathlete stud Conrad Stoltz while lurking around Specialized HQ, this one-off carbon fiber tandem is based on Specialized’s 2010 SHIV time trial bike.

Made to be as aero as possible, everything that can be integrated is, including the computer, aero bars, brake and shifter cables and even the front drivetrain.  The leader pedals a crankset linked to the stokers’ via an internal shaft drive.

There are a couple of other interesting tidbits worth noting:  First, those are SRAM carbon deep V rims laced to Specialized’s Roval Rapid Star hubs (which, interestingly, are no longer shown on their website).  Second, the Stoker has no brake levers.

More pics after the break…

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Olympian Mary McConneloug and 2-Time 24 Hour World Champion Rebecca Rusch will be facing off against each other during the 2010 Trans Andes Challenge mountain bike stage race in Patagonia.  Toeing the line with them to train for the 2012 Olympics will be former Italian track star Vera Carrara, making for a very strong female contingent (though some will be riding with a male teammate).

The 2010 Trans Andes Challenge is a six day event from January 25 - 30 and runs from Pucón, Chile, to San Martin de lo Andes, Argentina.  It’s a continuation of the Trans- series that began with the TransAlps and TransRockies mountain bike races, and 2010 will be the second year for the South American venue. Registration is open and limited to 400 teams.

PedalBrain is a new iPhone / iPod app and hardware that provides a complete training partner.  The carbon fiber base houses an ANT+ receiver to pull data from compatible speed, cadence, heart rate and power meters, then displays it on screen.

You can upload workouts before the ride and have the complete timing and information for each part of your training exercise instantly.  Then, once you’re done, your workout and route info is automatically uploaded for friends, training partners and coaches to see (if you let them).

The real piece de resistance?  You can set up Team Integration and the program will use the iPhone’s GPS and GeoLocation to see where your fellow riders are and show you where your teammates are on the map!

All of the information is uploaded in realtime, too, so your coach or friends can watch online as you ride and see where you are at any given point.  Post ride, the info uploads and you can view it on PedalBrain’s website or share it via Facebook.  You can also download it in SRM and WKO+ formats for integration into other workout programs.  Pedal Brain is a member of the ANT+ alliance and is fully compatible with ANT+ cycling sensors such as SRM, PowerTap, Quarq, MetriGear & Garmin.

More pics, info and pricing after the break…

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“Winter Exploration” by Jeff Moser / Bike Carson.

Check out Jeff’s Tips For Bicycle Commuting in Snow and Ice. They’re great tips–and he should know, he does a lot of riding in the snow and ice!

To see more Pics of the Day, click here, and to submit your own photo to be shown to the world, go here.

The UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team Presented by Maxxis returns a solid core of veterans to work with a strong new crop of young riders for the 2010 season.

“One of the things this organization has always done well, from day one, is to blend veteran professionals with younger riders into consistently strong teams,” said team directeur sportif Mike Tamayo. “The new group we have coming in has a lot of talent. When you put them together with guys like Rory (Sutherland), Tim (Johnson) and Chris (Baldwin), they not only have a chance to learn how to race from some of the best, most professional riders in the country, but also how to win.”

Leading the new group will be young sprinters Jake Keough and Eric Barlevav. At 22, Keough comes to the team from Kelly Benefits, for whom he put up strong results in 2009, including three stage wins at the Vuelta Ciclista del Uruguay. The 23-year-old Barlevav, in his first pro season with Mountain Khakis in 2009, showed that he was turning into a formidable sprinter, winning the finale of the USA Crit Series, while showing consistency throughout the year.

They’re joined by another young fast man, Jonny Clarke, who, despite just turning 25, has a wealth of experience at the pro level, particularly in his time racing with the South Australia-AIS squad. In 2007, he delivered a stage win in the Jayco Tour Down Under, and he’s shown that he’s more than capable of winning sprints or providing lead-outs.

“We’re excited about these three young guys,” Tamayo said. “Eric and Jake both have really good speed, and Jonny has a good sprint and is solid tactically. He’s still finding where he fits in with his talent, and we’re looking forward to shaping his career.”

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Scottish urban trials phenom Danny MacAskill was featured in the New York Times today.  Here’s how it begins:

Like his fellow Scot Susan Boyle, who made a meteoric entry into show business, the stunt bicyclist Danny MacAskill can divide his life in two: before his YouTube video and after.

Eight months ago, MacAskill’s daily routine was fairly predictable. He would leave the apartment he shares with a roommate, hop on his bike and maneuver through strangling traffic to his job as a bicycle mechanic.

Along his route, he passed a metal fence with a spiky top. He had eyed it for years.

“I’d look at it and say, ‘I can ride that rail,’ ”said MacAskill, 24. read more…

The video that started it all is shown after the break…

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The Cardinal combines Gargoyles top-tier lens performance and features into new sunglass built for cyclists.

The Cardinal uses Gargoyles Toric Curve lens, which  allows light to transmit directly to the eye. No refraction, no distortion.  Precision-molded and hand-finished, this design provides 210° of seamless wraparound protection.

The Cardinal also incorporates Gargoyles’ Ballistic Defense technology into their lenses, making them 5-6 times more impact resistant than regular polycarbonate lenses.  Developed from a superior blend of polymers by Carl Zeiss Vision®, the Gargoyles Ballistic Defense lenses are designed for military, safety and sport applications and exceed all ISO and ANSI test standards, as well as the MIL-STD 622 ballistic test, which consists of stopping a .22 caliber bullet at 20 feet.

Adjustable, nose pads with a stainless steel core help to create a custom fit, making the Cardinal great for cyclists or others engaged in high-speed, aggressive pursuits.

The Cardinal comes in two lens color technologies, Signature Green and Drive. Gargoyles’ Signature Green lens provides a unique balance of target and background brightness to help in the tracking and location of objects in motion against a variety of outdoor backgrounds including Earth, sky and water.  The Drive is Gargoyles’ smoke colored lens, which reduces light intensity without altering the color of objects.  This lens technology has been formulated for varying light conditions provides the most natural color vision possible.

All Gargoyles lenses guard your eyes from 100% UVA, UVB and UVC light.  The lenses utilize a scratch-resistant and anti-fog coating, which offer 30% more protection than conventional lens coatings. MSRP:  $110