Wow, the B2 may be better looking than the DA with a set of race wheels on it, if it had the new front end(steer tube/fork) on it. It'll be interesting to see where the S32 ends up for price point considering the utter lack of competition the Tri bike world has at under $1600.

So what good does/did it do to increase the "aspect ratio" of the front wheel+downtube if it made no difference in drag? IOW, why not just run the downtube a little higher like almost all other bikes, versus bringing it closer to the front wheel and thus necessitating a "cut out"?

HOLY Sugar those are purdy.

Not much change in pricing - except for the B2, but it's going in a direction you wouldn't expect.

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Jim Manton / ERO Sports

Do you have a pic of the DA you can post? I know it's already up but I'd like to see the front end with better resolution.

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Shawn
TORRE Consulting Services, LLC
http://www.TORREcs.com

I really don't . All of these photos are from Felt's European website. The best one I could find is no better than the ones already posted.

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Fortitudine Vincimus

There will be more configurations for this frame. What retailer do you shop from that won't allow you to select your own aerobar for your new bike?



-SD

Because you can cheat the rules. The downtube's angle of attack was already increased as we lowered it below the BB to additioanlly shround the rear wheel. We had airflow unlike any other tested bike with this fork, the front end went through countless revisions to utilize all that this feature had to offer.



-SD

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

$3100? That'll be close. I think the price of the B2 will have everyone dumbfounded.

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

I've looked and can't find it..what's Felt's European website?

http://www.felt.de/...p?home_international

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Fortitudine Vincimus

http://www.felt.de/....php?de_triathlon_07

Perfect, thanks a lot!

Interesting geometry, especially the STA as it goes from 52 to 54 then up to 60.

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Shawn
TORRE Consulting Services, LLC
http://www.TORREcs.com

OK...dumb question but what is the difference between the DA and B2. From the pix they look a bit similar.

The modulus of the carbon used varies. The DA gets a hybrid blend, and of course the Bayonet Integrated front end on the DA completely changes the bike's leading edge as well.



-SD

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

So will this be available as a frameset only? I certainly hope so, but I'm not optimistic.

Call me dumb, but I still don't understand. Lowering the rear end of the downtube would reduce, not increase, the chord, at least as measured parallel to the ground. Moreover, you said previously that how the downtube was positioned had no impact on the drag...so what am I missing?

No need to connect the dots--I've been in the industry long enough....

Still, I think it's a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy that a product is "invalid" if it's not UCI compliant. That's not the real reason Softride went belly-up!

How did your bike fare against the Lotus you have in the tunnel??

when you have a bike sitting under your desk that is four sizes too big, anyone could crush you. Oh, wait, what am I saying, I don't have abike to ride right now either. Bring your cross bike over, I'll cable it up for you.

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Ladera Cyclery...Gone but not forgotten..
F.I.S.T. Certified, UBI Trained Mechanic

SD-

Thanks for the touchy/feely on the '07 bikes yesterday, especially the DA and B2, but I'm super excited about the entry level models as well. This whole line-up is rediculous!

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Ladera Cyclery...Gone but not forgotten..
F.I.S.T. Certified, UBI Trained Mechanic

Esmart can't go anywhere without getting abused, I love it.

I would never call you dumb AG, please keep in mind, I am the stupidest guy on staff here at Felt so if I fall short of adequate explanation in my answers, it wouldn't be for lack of information or accuracy, rather lack of acumen. You are correct that by lowering the rear of the downtube to further hide the leading edge of the spinning rear wheel the resultant drop also decreases the horizontal aspect ratio, so to get that back we lowered the front of the downtube. As we did so the front wheel gets in the way. We've left it at the full cross section in models, and dropped it further in others. We've got tests with the downtube literally on the tire, and tests with the larger gap you see here that made production. We are talking about small gains here, just slightly lower drag than testing tolerance, but repeatable and measured nonetheless.





-SD

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

Okay, I got it now: the purpose of the "dropped" downtube isn't to improve the aerodynamics at the front of the bike, but at the rear. So that raises another question: were the wind tunnel tests conducted with a pedaling rider on the bike? Obviously, behind/below the whirling feet is one place where an interaction between the bike and the rider seems likely.

But you're the SECOND best looking.

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"....No longer easy on the eyes but these wrinkles masterfully dusguise the youthful boy below."~Death Cab for Cutie

http://www.a1cyclery.com