Weekly Picks, Promos & Premes presents some of the new products that amateur racers like us will either lust after, or at least be able to afford. Designed to be a good mix of the rational and the aspirational, it will help you save money on gear - and then show you where to spend those savings.
VCRC Alloy Stem
VCRC is known principally for their ceramic bearings for wheels and bottom brackets, but they also produce alloy and carbon fiber components, including handlebars, seatposts and this here stem. It's featured this week because the winter is re-fitting season, and many folks are tinkering with their setups or getting cozy on a new ride. The stem is a big part of that equation, and if you're in the market the VCRC is a worthy value-conscious inclusion. Originally retailing north of $100, the VCRC stem is the same weight as the vaunted Ritchey WCS 4-Axis stem. But the company has just introduced white stems, and the remaining black ones are priced to move, at only $39.95. It has a -8 degree rise and isn't flippable so even if you want a fredlike incline in your stem you can't have it. Available in 100mm, 110mm, 120mm and 130mm.
MSRP $39.95
More at www.vcrc-bike.com
DeFeet CalfSkins
The problem with compression socks is that they're, welll, socks. Feet don't need the compression. It's the calves that need the squeezy goodness. In the spirit of not buying more than you need, DeFeet offers CalfSkins, compression socks without the footie parts. You can wear them with your cycling socks, or with no socks at all if you're cooling down after a ride. You can also wear them with your kit and a pair of Crocs as soon as you finish a race, and I will award a GamJams water bottle to the first person who sends me a photograph of such.
MSRP $14
More at www.defeet.com
Cervelo P1
The P3 you know, of course. The P4 you'll begin to see soon enough under racers who need even more speed than the P3 affords. But what is this P1 of which I speak? 1) It's the bike Danny Pate rode to the Espoirs TT World Championships in 2001. 2) It incorporates the same SmartWall aero tubing found in Cervelo's other bikes. 3) It has TT-specific geometry, including a 2-position seatpost that allows seat tube angles of 75 and 78 degrees. 4) It's a complete bike, with an Ultegra gruppo and FSA cranks (compact, which you'll want to swap out in order to pound out the 53x11), 5) The complete bike retails for $1750. 6) See #5.
MSRP $1750
More at www.cervelo.com
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I'll stick with compression socks. There is something to be said for a pressure gradient. If you start compression at the ankle, you are squeezing some of the vasculature at its midway point. This can cause your blood to pool in your feet. This would be more noticeable in someone who is prone to swelling in their legs...but even in us young'uns without swelling, it is probably not a great idea to compress from the ankle up.
Posted by: Beth | January 30, 2009 at 07:47 PM