Trans Am Bike Race / TransAm / TABR

Interesting.
Provides some substance to my vague concern about small frame builders. Idk who is behind Laverack but there is a certain learning curve in these things and, IMHO you want someone who has learned from the mistakes by making loads of frames and seen what goes wrong

Has Kristof said he's definitely doing TCR this year?

Shame he's gone over to ti / disc, but sponsors need to sell bikes!

I’d ride campag disc if they paid me 10k.

Assuming he’s getting 10.

Sure, it's not as if it makes any meaningful difference!

Marcel Graber's leaving Newton, more than 100 miles ahead of Peter Andersen.

hippy's moving again, 10 miles out of Walden, should be over the penultimate Rockies col soon. Breckenridge still awaits, but after that he'll probably make up a few places, velomobile style.

he'll probably make up a few places, velomobile style.

His blob-like shape is probably nearly as aerodynamic

I would have thought he'd do it more because of his immense weight rather than aerodynamics.

Has Kristof said he's definitely doing TCR this year?

No. He's not said he's racing yet. But...Sponsors need to be kept happy I suppose.

If he's been sponsored he must be riding something and I think the line ups for everything else have been announced.

I kind of assumed he would be riding but I don't know him well enough that I'd ask him. In which case it will be very interesting with the old master returning to take on the young champ! And a few other contenders no doubt.

But that's another race, I wonder who is winning this one now, how Gucci is doing, etc...?

I believe Laverack contract out fabrication to the far east, nothing wrong in that, but does makes quality control harder.

In which case it will be very interesting with the old master returning to take on the young champ!

That would be amazing.

I believe Laverack contract out fabrication to the far east, nothing wrong in that, but does makes quality control harder

Sure, not many people make frames here now but the question is who is designing them and decided to do the internal cable routing (if that is a no-no with Ti)?

To be fair, after looking into this, a lot of people offer internal routing as a option now.
Although when I ordered my Jones, they refused to even drill for di2.

Stephen Haines in 8th, riding back on himself. Not sure why?

Perhaps he forgot something in the last town?

hippy's crested the penultimate climb, now for Breckenridge.

Sugar City. Some great names out there.

He's passed through Sugar City and is now in Ordway. Perhaps he has to go back even further?

His last stop was another 35 minutes down the road in Olney Springs, maybe there...

[EDIT] Nope, going past there. "Tyre problems I believe" according to someone on FB.

Maybe he's going as far back as Pueblo.

That sucks. Bad luck. But yes, perhaps the next good bike shop is in Newton and that would have been very far.

Despite tyre problems, he still seems to be going very well, though.

Internal routing isn't necesssarily a no-no with Ti - but the way laverack have done it leaves the frame weaker and prone to cracking in that area.

It's not a QA issues - it is a design one, imo.

it is a design one, imo.

Not sure about you but I'd really be not expecting any design flaws in a £2k frame.

Fuck that!
(taken from the TABR Facebook page)

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Either way. Really good to see the manufacturer going above and beyond to get him a new frame. I think Darren has some ‘relationship’ with them, so good to see them do him right.

Shame about he velo mobiles. Hopefully Nathan puts them in a different category and doesn’t let them take the overall and cr.

I’d love to race a velo mobile but I am struggling to get excited by them, while they’re in the main category.

There's obviously this whole history about recumbents (whether faired or not) being faster, which first led to them getting banned from racing in the 1930s. They never acquired critical mass to swing the decision the other way. History repeating and all that.