When an Olympic and World Champion and a Tour de France stage winner test ride a TT bike and say it’s the fastest they’ve ever ridden, it’s an impressive statement – but then the 2009 Focus Izalco Chrono is an impressive bike.

Nicole Cooke and Team Milram captain Linus Gerdemann recently put the Chrono through its paces during a test ride at Buttgen Velodrome near Milram’s base in Dortmund, Germany. Developed by Focus engineers in Germany together with Andy Walser, a mastermind in TT bike engineering, the Chrono exceeds all expectations.

The riders’ words speak for themselves – Gerdemann, a 2007 Tour de France stage winner, said:

“I’m delighted to be riding the fastest TT bike ever built,”

while Cooke’s first words after leaving the track were:

“I can’t wait to race on it”.

Both Gerdemann and Cooke took to the track while experts analysed their power output, speed and position in a bid to find optimal wattage and aerodynamics. Focus engineers, alongside Walser, tweaked bike positioning and settings as the riders completed lap after lap at speeds in excess of 45kph.

Cooke and all riders on her newly-created team – Vision 1 Racing – will be training and racing on Focus frames this season, so she is delighted the Chrono performed so well.

She said:

“I have followed the development of Focus over the last two years and have been impressed with their technology and quality of bikes. The Chrono is a very responsive bike which is so important when riding at your maximum, I can’t wait to race it this year!“

Linus Gerdemann rides:

Frame: Focus Izalco Chrono, new Time Trial Carbon Frame

Drivetrain/brakes: SRAM Red, high
performance, race-ready
componentry

Handlebars: 3T, elegant, solid and
aerodynamic handlebars

Wheel set: Lightweight, world’s fastest wheel set

Pedals: Speedplay, extremely lightweight pedals

Nicole Cooke rides:

Frame: Focus Izalco Chrono and Focus Cayo, new Time Trial and Road Bike Carbon Frames

Drivetrain/brakes: SRAM Red, high
performance, race-ready
componentry

Handlebars: Ritchey, unrivalled bars
combining performance
and ergonomics

Wheel set: Haico, ultimate race wheels

Pedals: Speedplay, supplied by Wiggle.co.uk

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 10th, 2009 at 1:08 pm and is filed under News & Press, Nicole Cooke Vision 1, Press Releases. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.