The new Vento™ and Khamsin™ wheels

New Campagnolo Vento and Khamsin wheels which is lighter and its predecessors.


The official Campagnolo web site - Bicycle Parts and Components Cycling - The new Vento™ and Khamsin™ wheels

Campagnolo Shamal Ultra Bikeradar review

Campagnolo’s Shamal Ultra is a far cry from the original 1990s Shamal, which had highly polished deep rims and was arguably the first factory aerowheelset. 

Instead, the modern incarnation is a 2-Way Fit affair (ready to accept tubeless or clincher tyres) with an undrilled rim bed, and tubeless valves fitted. Ceramic Ultra Smooth Bearings (USB) ensure effortless spinning for a long time, and carbon hub bodies reduce weight

Read more here

Pinkbike Visits The Santa Cruz Test Lab Video

A friend of mine shared with me this video about Santa Cruz mountain bike frame.

How the Pro's Started Bike Racing

Nice video

Specialized Allez Compact - Beginner Road Bike

For those who wanted to buy Specialized Road Bike but are new and on a tight budget, the bike below might be worth considering. It cost less than RM2,600.

The bike weighs in at about 9 kg+ and comes with alloy frame. This frame is similar for all Allez models.

This bike comes with 8 speed Shimano 2300 STI which is the lowest groupset in Shimano Road Bike groupset line-up and tektro pivot brakes.

This bike is for those who are looking to start riding road bike and yet on a budget or don't want to spend too much money in case they road bike riding is not to their liking.

Giant Propel Advanced SL 3 2013

The £4,499/US$5,150 Propel Advanced SL 3 is Giant's first aero bike, launched with claims that it's the fastest in the world.

In their quest to produce an aero bike that minimizes the amount of weight compromises from its shaping, Giant went through 80 different designs before they arrived at this one. The geometry mirrors the Giant TCR and the frame and forks are made out of Advanced SL grade carbon.

The cockpit is made by Giant – it has a solid P-SLR carbon stem and as you may expect, in keeping with the frame's sculpted form, the bar has been subject to some aero shaping.

Read more below:-

http://www.bikeradar.com/road/news/article/giant-propel-advanced-sl-3-just-in-37531/

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/showcase/Propel-Advanced-SL/

10 top myths of fat loss

Go this 10 myth of fat loss from Bikeradar

http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/article/nutrition-lose-the-pounds-to-gain-speed-and-power-24762/

10 top myths of fat loss

1 Rapid weight loss is good: Rapid weight loss is often due to dehydration followed by loss of functional lean muscle mass that contributes to the largest component of weight lost. This will result in a reduction in performance.

2 Going without breakfast will aid weight loss: Skipping meals will reduce your metabolic rate and lower your glycogen stores (carbohydrate energy in the muscles and liver). It’s important that you feed your muscles regularly to aid performance so that you don’t overeat later in the day and risk excess storage of fat.

3 Reducing carbohydrate considerably will aid weight loss: If carbohydrate stores are low you will fatigue faster and recovery time will increase. You may also risk the loss of muscle as it starts to be broken down as a source of fuel.

4 Avoiding dietary fat completely will assist weight loss: Dietary fat plays an integral role in maintaining optimal function at rest and during physical activity. Reducing the intake of dietary fat too much can hinder performance and, therefore, weight loss.

5 Using sweat bags or saunas will aid weight loss: This will only lead to dehydration, which results in a reduction in performance, further hindering weight loss.

6 Lifting weights will bulk you up and not aid weight loss: Resistance training should form an important part of your fat loss plan to increase energy expenditure and build more muscle. Muscle tissue is very metabolically active and will increase your resting metabolic rate.

7 Fad diets are good: Fad diets often lead to a yo-yo effect of weight loss and weight regain. Restricting certain food groups so severely also means you will lose muscle and lower your metabolic rate, which makes it harder to achieve further fat loss.

8 Eating after 8pm is bad: Fuelling your muscles after exercise is really important. Low glycogen stores lead to poor recovery and reduced performance on subsequent training sessions. This in turn reduces energy expenditure and fat loss.

9 Muscle can be converted to fat: Muscle and fat are two different tissue types. An increase in physical activity will cause an increase in muscle tissue and a decrease in fat tissue.

10 A high consumption of dietary protein will lead to large gains in skeletal muscle: As long as there is adequate protein in the diet, muscle will adapt and hypertrophy (get bigger). A consumption of more than 2g of protein per kg of body weight will not lead to greater gains in muscle mass but may increase fat storage.

Source: Gavin Reynoldson MSc, University of Bath, Department of Sports Development

Campagnolo Athena EPS - Eurobike 2012

Volcano Glory Fashion Bike 24 Speed

I went with my friend to a bicycle shop in Bayan Lepas as he wanted to look for a bike. The boss then recommended this one to my friend as he is looking for something that could be stored easily.

This is the first time I've seen a bike with this type of frame. The design is unique.
This bike comes with Shimano gears with 24 speed and mechanical disk brake.

The price of this bike after discount is around RM1000+ which I think it is reasonable with the accessories given.

The seat is also very comfortable. Therefore if you require a town bike but you would like to take it for a long distance ride once a while. This bike could be considered as one of the candidate beside folding bike.

BH Prisma Concept carbon road bike 2013

This is a new bike just arrived at KSH Bkt Minyak. This bike has just been unpacked when I was there to send my bike for service. This is XS size which is suitable for smaller size person or women.

This bike is come with carbon fibre frame.

This bike comes with Shimano 105 components except the crankset is FSA Glossamer. 

This bike is slightly different compare to the one in the website. Hoong the manager of the store inform me this bike is Japanese specs.

The price for this bike is less RM4,700 which i think it is very reasonable for the spec given. The weight of this bike is less than 9kg.

In my opinion, this bike is suitable for beginners who don't want to spend too much but still want comfort of a carbon frame. This is one bike you can consider.

United Dominate Mtb - Excellent for Newbies

This United Dominate bike really good value for money. With a price of RM2,700, you will get almost full set of Shimano Deore components plus a SLX rear derailleur. 

The picture below showing Deore brakes and shifters.

This bike comes with Rock Shox XC 28 coil fork. If you don't like it due to the weight, change it to a lighter air fork.

I my opinion, once you buy this bike, you don't have to do any upgrades for now as the accessories given are already very good. The only thing I will upgrade later will be the suspension fork and the frame.

Norco Team 9 XC 29er - Carbon

I saw this bike at KSH Juru. This 29er bike caught my interest because the price is quite reasonable. This bike frame is made of carbon fibre and comes with Manitou Tower Air Fork. 

The drawback is that this bike comes with 27 speed instead of 30 and the gearset is mixed of Shimano and SRAM. But with a price of less than RM5,000. I don't think there is much to complain.

However, if you want a 29er bike with carbon frame and a good suspension fork, this bike is a good choice. The groupset can be changed later if you are not satisfied.

For more information you can refer to the website below:-

http://www.norco.com/bikes/mountain/race-xc/team-9/team-93/

Polygon Helios A5.0

My friend told me of a reasonable priced road bike near Super tanker food court in Penang. So one day I decide to drop in and take a look at it. This bike below is the Polygon Helios A5.0, 2013 model.

This bike comes with mix of Shimano 105 and Ultegra rear derailleur. The brakes is normal shimano brakes.

The frame is made of alloy and comes with a carbon fibre fork. This bike weighs around 8.6 kg. This also comes with a standard non-series shimano wheelset. In my view this bike is good for beginners who want a bike with good groupset and value for money.