Eager consumers interested in picking up a Rabobank Giant time trial bike of their own will soon have their wishes granted.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
The radical front end that is such a defining trademark of Giant’s slippery time trial bike will make its way into production.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
As far as we’re aware right now, the integrated carbon aero bar setup currently used by the Rabobank team is among the items that will make it into the production version of the bike.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Many team bikes have their rear brakes conventionally mounted on the back of the seat stays but production bikes will see them moved to below and behind the bottom bracket.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Rabobank team bikes were a mix of generations.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
The relocated rear brake presumably produces less drag than before and there will also be an available integrated mount for a Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 battery.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Unless something has changed with the bike’s overall configuration and cable routing, the unique scissor-type front brake is likely to be included in the package as virtually nothing else on the market will work. Don’t count on the trick orange and blue anodising, though.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
The protruding Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 control box probably doesn’t have the aero effect Giant originally was hoping for but it has to be exposed in case an adjustment is needed. Perhaps this will be relocated in production.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Internally routed Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 wires make for a cleaner package.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
These strips of electrical tape will ultimately be replaced with a much neater molded rubber gasket.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Electrical tape is useful for a lot of things, including covering up the bolt holes on the stem to ever-so-slightly reduce drag.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
SRAM is providing certain members of the Astana team with custom finished versions of its top-end Red group.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
SRAM road PR man Michael Zellman says well more than forty man-hours of work went into repainting each group. Production components were fully disassembled and refinished at SRAM’s Chicago headquarters.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Even the back of the crankarms don’t go unnoticed.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
While Lance Armstrong’s groups get yellow accents, Alberto Contador’s groups get finished in white.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
The effect is subtle but the white accents undoubtedly look good on Contador’s custom white Trek 6 Series Madone.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Other Astana and all Saxo Bank team bikes were recently retrofitted with team-only lever blades sporting far bigger logos that are easier to spot.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
SRAM-sponsored riders will use the company’s smooth-sided outer chainrings for time trials as usual.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
More aggressive machining will save 25g per ring, however, bringing them down to a more reasonable 140g or so apiece.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
SRAM has also provided the Astana team with custom anodised crank hardware.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Giro debuted a new time trial helmet at the opening stage of this year’s Tour de France.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
According to Giro, the new as-yet-unnamed helmet’s unusual shape better accommodates the wide range of positions used by today’s riders.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
The tapered lower section supposedly performs better than traditional aero helmets when the rider’s head is down, and especially so at greater yaw angles.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
There are no front vents on the new Giro helmet – just a pair of rear exhaust ports. Rather than draw air in through the front of the shell, this new design instead essentially sucks hot air out of the back.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
The key to the ventilation performance of the new Giro helmet is these incredibly deep channels that run through the entire length of the helmet. Riders can reportedly actually feel air being draw in through the front of the helmet around their foreheads and over the top of their heads.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
The visor smoothes airflow even further and it’s apparently available in several tints. Of course, it can also be removed in case the rider – or sponsor – prefers standard sunglasses instead.James Huang/BikeRadar.com
Covering the underside of the tail is wind tunnel-proven to reduce drag so Giro built it into the new design. A strip of stretchy fabric seals the area tightly against the back of the rider’s head while a retention system keeps the helmet securely in place.James Huang/BikeRadar.com