Multisport Bicycles
Multisport is a term that encompasses the wide variety of sports that involve running, biking, and swimming in some combination whether it is triathlon or duathlon (the two most common). Multisport requires specific bikes and equipment for maximum speed, efficiency, and comfort.
Take a look through this page to see what we have to offer to make your chosen.
Argon 18
Canadian company, Argon 18 has three dedicated multisport bikes
in their line. The award winning Element and Mercury have both been ridden at
Ironman Hawaii to the best split times for the bike section and the Mercury has held the course record
as well. Argon is the choice of many top international and Canadian triathletes.
Scott
Scott services the multsport market with the very popular Plasma line of bikes.
These full-carbon triathlon/time-trial bikes are amazingly light, stiff
aero-dynamic and definitely have the best paintjob you will ever see on a
production bicycle of any type. Scott is quickly gaining popularity in the ranks of triathletes and is one of the five most popular bikes at Ironman.
Converting a Road Bike to Multisport
The multisport bikes listed above are cool, but they are not in everyone's price
range and really aren't a good choice for your first road bike. A dedicated
multisport bike is not the best option for riding with groups (which makes
training more fun) and tend not to be as comfortable for training.
A good option for your first road bike or if you want to use your bike for a variety of riding is to convert a road bike to be suitable for racing in triathlons. Take a look at the photo to the right, the athlete is using a road bike with Profile clip-on bars, bladed spoke wheels, skinsuit and shoecovers to win the 2006 provincial 40km ITT championship.
The conversion is simple - you need some clip-on aerobars to start with and they range in price from $69-$240. These will make you way faster, immediately! Looking for more speed, then buy a good set of deep-dish, bladed spoke wheels. They are more expensive, generally starting at $400 and going up from there, but they will make your bike feel like a $3000 race machine! There are all sorts of other things you can do to go faster, but they don't make as much difference as the two listed above.
Parts and Accessories
We carry a wide variety of accessories, clothing and bike parts that are of interest to the multisport athlete, whether you are just starting out or are a seasoned competitor.
Aerobars - There is an aero-bar for every use and person, which is why we carry five different styles and we can special order more if we don't have the exact one you want. Remember that an aero bar can easily knock two minutes off your time during a 30km ride which makes them the cheapest speed improvement you can make to your bike.
Wheels - Want to make you bike feel like a super-expensive race machine? Put some fast wheels on it and you will find it hard to keep the smile off your face every time you ride. Good Aerowheels start at around $500 for a pair and have deeper aero rims, fewer bladed spokes, and lighter parts - all of which make your bike faster. We carry a selection of Ritchey wheels but can also order Bontrager, Shimano and Zipp wheels.
Clothing and Shoes - Looking for tri-shorts, tops, or some more comfortable clothing for training? We have a wide selection to meet your needs and desires including both men's and women's specific pieces. We carry a wide size selection of tri-shoes so you can get on your bike faster for that big event! This is new for 2007 and we are very excited that you can buy tri-shoes without having to spend $300, our Shimano shoes are only $160 for a full featured tri-shoe!
Accessories - We have all sorts of little accessories to make life easier on your bike from clips to mount your bike computer on your aerobar, food bags that mount on your top-tube within easy reach, aero-bottles, color matching bottle cages, vibration dampers to reduce road vibration on your hands, to aero helmets and shoe covers for the ultimate in speed!
The Bontrager Speedbottle not only aids you in keeping hydrated while you
compete, it is also makes your bike faster. In windtunnel tests comparing a bike
with no bottle and cage to the Bontrager Speedbottle, the speed bottle produces
less drag. This eliminates the concern as to whether putting that bottle on your
bike for that triathlon, duathlon or timetrial will make you slower.
Profile
Designs is a leader in clip-on aerobars and we carry five different models
in-store! This wide selection will get you the bar that best suits your needs,
and maximize your comfort while using them. Remember that an aerobar is the
biggest speed improvement you can make to your bike and costs a fraction of what
a good set of wheels or timetrial frame would cost.
A Profile Design has a full line of wind-cheating devices that includes
the Aquarack. While not as aerodynamic as the Bontrager Speedbottle the
Aquarack allows you to mount two more bottles behind your seat which is a
reasonable compromise between speed and staying hydrated on a longer event or
ride where one bottle is not going to last long enough. Remember that one of the
best ways to improve speed ot to properly fuel the engine!
Bontrager
Buzzkills borrow technology long used in sport and hunting bows. These
harmonic dampers inserted into your handlebars vibrate at the frequency of the
road noise and cancel it out. Reduced vibration of the hands makes for a more
comfortable ride and less fatigue, especially on our rough Saskatchewan
highways.
The Bontrager Isogel handlebar tape places a layer of gel between you and
the handlebar. This layer of gel absorbs shock that would be normally
transferred directly to the palm of your hand and thereby improves the comfort
of your ride. It also makes the handlebar diameter slightly larger which many
people have found to me much more comfortable to hold.
A Carbon Seatpost is another method of reducing the amount of
vibration that is transmitted to you from your bike. Traditional aluminium posts
are super stiff and transmit shock very well. The carbon post is also super
stiff, but does not transmit vibration nearly as well as aluminium and thus
provides a more comfortable ride.
A Selle Italia saddle is probably the nicest thing you can buy for
yourself. Remember that your primary contact point with the bike is the seat,
and then ask yourself if you even like your current seat. The proper seat can
make a huge difference to the comfort of your bike and whether you look forward
to your ride, or dread it. Our favourite is the gelflow design which has a
cut-out center and both men's and women's models to account for different
spacing of hipbones and such. Stop by and try a few out, your butt is worth it!
