Here is an update on the changes to UCI track cycling
https://www.uci.org/track/news/2020/...g-world-league

It is interesting to see GCN's involvement because I've noticed they increased mention of track cycling in recent months.

I had been wondering why they had increased their track content recently.

Nice... now you can show up with only four riders to a event.

I can’t get my head around how they are not doing a full omnium. This at least would be in line with the olympics and would help to develop the discipline.
also no madison?! What’s more spectacular for tv viewers?

lets see what events the other new format will hold. But I guess we won’t see as much progress in the next Olympic cyclus as we saw in this one.

Molds cost more, the sprint frame is very different on the inside and much stiffer than the pursuit bike.

That look pursuit bike at the time was a slightly modified road TT bike.

I could see the cost of a second mold being an excuse for entry level bikes, but not these elite bikes. These companies poop out a stable of new road and TT frames literally every year. Not just one, multiple frames to meet various price points in their product offerings. They use the same track molds for 4 or more years.


As were the first LOOK 496 (the road TT frame was also called 496) and Felt TK1 (modeled after the Felt DA).


On a related note, when Hoy started his bike company, I really wished that he would have created a top tier sprint frame (and line of components) that a person on his level would want to use. I do appreciate him making quality, inexpensive bikes for beginner and intermediate racers, but I just really thought he was gonna make a Dolan/UKSI/FES/LOOK challenger.

Oh well.

Speaking of FES, that's what it looks like when your engineers make a dedicated sprint bike.

4 or more years of one track bike may sell less than one year of an entry level roady though, even cervelo stopped producing track bikes because they just don't sell. The 'elite' track frame market is minuscule and companies just won't bother unless it makes financial sense.

3T discontinued the Scatto bars because they didn't make sense financially, even if they are one of the most popular track bars around.

Yeah, I think one of the issues particular to the Scatto was - if you wanted one, you probably have one by now.

Still... you would think that at what they msrp at, you'd just keep the mold ready and make a couple when you get an order.

When they came out they were a bit of a revolution and everyone jumped on them. Perhaps their problem is that they're so robust that they last forever and there's so many out there on the market that there's no need to buy new any more. That, and there's so many other options out there now to compete with that I could see that it easily wouldn't make sense to continue production.

I was talking to our shop 3T rep and he hinted that the whole 3T bar lineup is being revamped and the first bar they stopped making is the scatto because of its lower sales. The rep hinted at a Q2 release date.

Interesting track news portal - lots of links
 

The Aerocoach „Vorzug“ Track pursuit bar didn’t get a mention yet... but the only other track specific pursuit bar I know of is the use Tula track.
even the handlebars on most super bikes are just road versions.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...055c91a36.jpeg
Ordered one just to support that they are investing in track (with probably low reward financially).

I missed this at the time but at the UCI mountain bike eliminator world champs last year Büchli and Hoogland took part with the latter finishing 8th! Impressive technical skills, although i suppose that is to be expected from someone that started out in BMX

You can watch Korea Pro Keirin races here
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYV...Q5VwfCeuVDABbg

Fun video I saw on FB. Nothing like a 1' Max effort to remind you how slow time really moves.

I've been stuck trying to break 700 for a while now... that last 8-12 seconds I always fall to pieces.

New Vittoria pista tyres for the ultra high end.

only in 23mm, the pista is still available in 19mm.
think the Australians are still on 19?

Praying 19mm stays in production...

Might want to go ahead and stock up now.

23mm would look like a monster truck tire on my early 2000's (??) era IO. Please track cycling gods, have pity!

Baby Puke the good news is even if tech on 19mm tyres stopped right now, the Pista Speed Vittorias are very good, it'll be many years before they aren't at the very very pointy end. That said, even the last bastion (track) seems like it's finally joining the wider trend. Makes sense overall, but does indeed suck for older narrow wheels like the (non-rio) iO and trispokes.

I have one of the last IOs before the Rio. 23s aren't that bad on it. I'm not sure if my version is wider than yours though.

Well, 19 is perfect on mine, so 23 would be..., not perfect. Yours must be wider.

Yes, we make a 4-Bolt and 5-Bolt version of the adapter. It goes 110BCD to 144BCD with space for Sram and Quark PM electronics.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c8c529f7a.jpeg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...974fb6a53.jpeg

Claudio Imhoff Setting Swiss Hour record on aerocoach pursuit bar. Guess the whole pursuit squad is on these now. Also received mine.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c78466273.jpeg
Argon 18 Electron Pro (not the Australia Version, no mention of it in the catalogue) now with a sprint specific layup.
geometry is the same as pursuit.

I'm pretty sure it's the same bike as the pursuit, it just doesn't come with the pursuit bars.

I don’t think they would do that and there would be no reason to market this as a different lay up, they could claim its stiff enough as many sprinters used the “pursuit” frame.

I’ve met the product manager and he told me about the carbon lay up and the stiffness requirements for the AIS bike. I guess they took the knowledge from this to update the bike they supply to the Canadian team, as the AIS bike remains exclusive to the Aussies. (till after Tokyo?)

They tweaked the marketing language, but the frames are the same. The sprint version just does not include the pursuit bars, and it's the same frame the Canadians and Danes are riding. Also, Argon isn't producing any more track frames until after the Olympics. It's unclear whether that version of the Electron Pro will still be available after this year. Last I heard, there were only a couple frames left for purchase - and none in the "sprint" version.

And if you think about it, there is no benefit or rationale to building two different versions of the same frame with different layups. The Electron Pro is a very low seller. If they produce and sell 1000 frames a year, I'd be surprised. So, I cannot see them justifying two different carbon layups for so few frames.

Also, I have the frame.

guess a weight check would clear this, but I also haven’t seen any pricing (which might confirm this).

But look also did two layups in the past... talking about rationales, having a Track Frame in the collection never makes much sense sales wise.

I guess a lot of track frames won’t get produced this year anymore. Companies are using all their production slots for road and gravel, sales are crazy this year.

with you owning the frame, do you think it is in need of a different lay up?