fredly is also a great bike fitter, and rode 53min up big pines hwy, which is only 8min slower than bjorn and jordan rode it, and about 5min slower than the tour of calif peloton rode it (at the pointy end) so he's a pretty good bike rider as well.

and, all as a vegan. which can be an issue when he and i end up in texas, or mexico, or the places he and i have been for one adventure or another.

fredly, i'm behind on my announcement on the new aero road bike, for reasons which may become plane in due time. (busy day today.)

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Hi Matt,
A couple questions about the vortex generators on the downtube of the IO and the drag curve shown in the marketing materials:
- The video and white paper show the options being tested without bottles in place. Do bottles change their effectiveness?
- Is the drag curve shown with, or without bottles?
- Is the drag curve with, or without fixture tare removed (I know LSWT will provide data either way)?
- What wheels and tires were used in the testing?

Thanks!

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http://bikeblather.blogspot.com/

no mention of the Serios...was that intentional?

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--------------------------------------------
TEAM F3 Undurance

We'd be more than happy to field questions about the Serios, thanks for pointing out the oversight!

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
Coaching and bike fit - http://source-e.net/ Cyclocross blog - https://crosssports.net/ BJJ instruction - https://ballardbjj.com/

Fredly:
Diamondback is a valued partner in next week's 2017 Slowtwitch Kona Gathering at the GU house, so can we look forward to meeting you there?
Be there, Aloha.

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Karen ST Concierge

Thanks for coming on to answer questions.

What was the reasoning behind choosing an off the shelf round seat post for this bike I stead of an aero post to match the frame? What's the impact on CdA?

Do you have any benchmark wind tunnel testing against other aero road bikes?

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Ed O'Malley
www.VeloVetta.com
Founder of VeloVetta Cycling Shoes
Instagram • Facebook

Hi Karen,
I'll be there, with schwag in hand. Looking forward to it!

M

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
Coaching and bike fit - http://source-e.net/ Cyclocross blog - https://crosssports.net/ BJJ instruction - https://ballardbjj.com/

I'm also interested in TomA's questions. Also, is this bike UCI legal? What is the target market for this bike?

is the Rally pro team going to ride the IO? I saw another person asked to confirm it was uci legal -- so assuming it is (although if it is disc brake only - i guess that is still a uci hurdle (in certain races??)), i'd be curious whether the Rally pro men and women would ride this or the good old podium.

and - as the Rally team cant ride the andean - are there any updates to the serios (that stem? disc brakes? anything else?).

are disc brakes uci legal on a tt bike - if they are will we see uci pro teams on disc brake tt bike?

thanks for willingness to answer questions - sincerely, rick

Hi Matt,

my question is more about post-sale service/support/warranty for a bike that's not sold through a shop. It's not unique to Diamondback; I'm curious how any of the direct to consumer brands (Dimond, Canyon, Tririg, etc.) make this work.

I'm shopping for a new tri bike and so I've visited bike shops near me for bike fits, test rides, etc. for the models I'm interested in that they carry (Cervelo P5/P5x, Felt IA, QR PR). The Andean is also on the short list of bikes I'm interested in. I'm also not enough of a bike mechanic to be independent of a local shop, so I'm still dependent on the continued existence of one for non-trivial diagnosis and repair work.

In a couple of casual conversations I've had with mechanics at a few shops, I've asked if they've seen an Andean in the wild or if any have been brought in for service. The literal answers to both were "no"; their added and unsolicited commentary was a mixture of dismissive ("they're just a mountain bike company") and almost hostile to the notion of buying a bike direct from a vendor and then bringing it in for service. I don't understand this attitude.

In another conversation I've had with a bike shop owner that did my FIST tri bike fit, we chatted during the fit and I asked if he had considered carrying or been approached by any of the direct to consumer brands about carrying their bikes. He said that he had been approached by one (he didn't name who) but declined. He said that over the many years he had been in business he had seen brands come and go, but that when he sells a bike to someone and they have a problem with it, they come back to his shop. He then is dependent on the vendor for parts, getting questions answered and warranty support and can act as the knowledgeable intermediary on behalf of the buyer. He saw the relationships he had built with the vendors over the years as making this work better.

I can understand that at least some of the above two kinds of reaction to the direct sales model are attempts to protect the business model they have, and that it may represent "their side" of the advantages of their model as they see them.

However, as an end buyer that is more interested in riding the bike I buy than diagnosing problems and ordering/installing parts, how is it that my service / repair / warranty needs get met?

Will the Andean be ITU non-draft legal (like the P5X, Reap, and Ventum)? If there are plans for that, when will testing happen?

I grew up in Washington near y'alls head quarters. Worked across the street st the Amazon plant for a while. I've loved the direction the business is heading, and since I have friends that work down there, I'm hoping for a good, successful future.

Going to keep it simple for ya with two very open ended questions.

As a road bike racer that exclusively races usac sanctioned races, should I buy the io?

As a bike racer with thoughts about eventually returning to triathlon and plans to do sanctioned tts, why should I buy a tt bike for you with new, more modern options available from other vendors?

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Train hard to Race harder

"To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift" - Pre

Howdy folks,

Thanks for joining us! We're going to kick off the AMA with Diamondback design team leader Kevin Quan now, starting with the questions that have already been posted up on this thread. If you have any more questions, or follow ups to the questions already asked, please respond and we'll answer!

I'll field "insider" type questions as best as I am able, and Jordan Rapp will also provide his expertise on the thread.

Here we go...

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
Coaching and bike fit - http://source-e.net/ Cyclocross blog - https://crosssports.net/ BJJ instruction - https://ballardbjj.com/

Tom,

- Bottles on the downtube negate the effect vortex generators on the downtube but vortex generators on the bottles themselves are a future possibility. The VGs on the fork and seat tube remain effectual.
· Drag curve is depicted without bottles
· Fixture Tare has been removed
· Hed Jet 6 Plus Wheels with 28c Continental GP4000 S2 tires. This could explain why the CdA is higher than you are expecting.

Wake Control has application to any blunt body on the rider-bicycle system. Think of anything that is not ordinarily streamlined and it could be improved aerodynamically with a wake control system. However, it has not been perfected. It is literally system 1.0 of a nascent technology.

Thanks,
KevQ

RowToTri,

Diamondback Podium customers consistently list round 27.2 seat post as a very desirable feature. Some of the advantages:
o Low possibility of slippage vs aero posts with wedge-style clamp.
o Higher compliance
o Easy to replace in the field

Our CFD tells us that for every 10cm of exposed round seat post yields 15g of drag at 13 m/s (CdA 0.00132). An equivalent sized road aero seatpost is 14g of drag at 13 m/s (CdA .00124). So the difference between an Aero Seatpost and Round Seatpost is around 0.05% of total rider-bike system drag. It might look out of place, but for this application the round post wins the cost/benefit analysis.

We have benchmark wind tunnel testing against Podium and competitor bicycles - but not IO in the same session. With limited tunnel time at LSWT, we decided to prioritize other subjects.

Thanks,
KQ

Thanks Kevin!

Followup questions:
- What's the effect of bottles drag-wise then? Higher, lower, neutral? And, by how much approximately?
- 28c Contis (which measure oversize) on an "aero road bike"? On Hed Jet Plus wheels? What were you thinking?? ;-)
(I'll bet those things measured ~32-33mm, or MORE actual width...this isn't a cross bike)

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http://bikeblather.blogspot.com/

GreenPlease

The IO is currently not UCI legal. The tube shapes stray outside the 'boxes' rules.

The IO was designed to cross the gap between TT and Road. It can be used for racing or race specific training for Draft Legal triathlon like the ones popular in Mexico and Europe. I hear a series may even start up in the US.

It is also ideal for ultra-endurance self-supported racing like the Transcontinental. Or, for anyone who just wants to go fast on a more road-oriented machine than the traditional Time Trial frame.

Thanks,
KQ

Hi TToc6,

Thanks, and always nice to hear from a local, or former local!


The IO is a great bike for the vast majority of racers in the United States. It is not UCI legal, but those rules only apply to a very small number of races held in the United States -

That's not many of us!


We think that our Andean Tri bike is the cutting edge of new, modern options available!

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
Coaching and bike fit - http://source-e.net/ Cyclocross blog - https://crosssports.net/ BJJ instruction - https://ballardbjj.com/

Plus, you can put a Redshift seat post in there and have a really nice dual-purpose bike.

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Jim Manton / ERO Sports

fredericknorton

Rally cannot ride the IO yet. The UCI has solicited feedback from the industry regarding the relaxation of frame rules however the process is slow and ongoing. Diamondback has decided not to wait for things to happen but to make things happen.

The IO is a forerunner of things to come for Diamondback. Technology like the Covert Cabling and DB Wake Control system will soon find itself on the next generation Serios, Podium, and Andean platforms.

Disc brakes are UCI legal for Time Trial. The Disc Brake trial period was extend for the 2018 race season. I can't speak for others but I would anticipate C'dale will ride disc brake TT bikes.

Thanks,
KevQ

 
SBRcanuck

Andean is LEGAL for ITU non-draft .

We can thank the Purple Tiger - Rachel McBride for riding point on that.

-KevQ

Could you explain the rationale behind the non linear Frame XY progression?

Tom A,

The thing to note with water bottles is that they are very wide relatively (70mm dia) and round. Unless you want to balloon your downtube to 70mm, bottles will ding you for about 30g (CdA .00260) at zero yaw.

The IO has a maximum clearance of 31cm for tires. Better compliance and low Crr.

Re:Crr, our tire partners tell us that there is *no limit* to improved Crr with larger diameter tires. I haven't tested it myself, but I don't think we've come to the end to the debate.

-kq

I'll do the best I can to answer this one but I reserve the right to correct this tomorrow!

You'll find many road bike geometry very bunched up at the low end of the chart. This is because in order to have a small frame with 700c wheels, some hard decisions need to be made to avoid toe overlap. A combination of different front centers, fork rakes and head tube angles are all combined to create a semblance of progression. But it won't be linear this way.

Perhaps, with greater acceptance of smaller wheels (650c and 650b), this would be corrected. Some other brands have gone in this direction - is this the way to go?

-KevQ