The spectacular triumph of the Italian quartet in the team pursuit at the Olympics has excited legions of cycling enthusiasts, made Filippo Ganna even more popular, and made known to the general public excellent cyclists and hopes for the future such as Consonni, Lamon, and Milan.
But behind this success of men and sports organizations, there is a technical and research component whose contribution is fundamental: we are talking of Pinarello bicycles. Italian excellence, founded in Treviso in 1953 and created by the professional cyclist Giovanni “Nani” Pinarello, is a brand that made the history of competitive and amateur cycling.
Pinarello bikes entered the world of professionals in 1967 and since then their rise has been relentless: how can we forget the various Bertoglio, Van Impe, Chiocccioli, Cipollini, up to the successes of Indurain with five consecutive Tour de France. In more recent times, the supply went to Petacchi, Basso, Valverde, and Quintana in the Movistar team, up to the last few years, when Pinarello joins the Sky team, then Team Ineos (including a certain Froome ...). Only this year, the partnership made it possible to conquer the Giro d'Italia with Bernal and the Olympic gold on the road with Carapaz, to then arrive at the magical Italian quartet of the track.
Continuous research, the use of innovative materials, the perfect organization of a company, are essential elements of the Pinarello factory, to reach the top of the world. And last but not least, the explosion of Ganna allowed them to focus, together with Ineos, on the most advanced search for speed in time trial bikes on the road and track.
Tokyo bikes: a blend of high technology and innovation
The bicycles of the Italian national team in Tokyo were baptized Bolide HR (Hour Record) and are an evolution of the special Bolide TT used by Ganna in the time trials on the road (and with which he won the last TT World Championship in Imola). There are also considerable differences, determined by the fact that the effort on the track is only 3km and the absence of a braking system allows you to save on the weight and design of some components. Furthermore, the speed reached after a few laps in the pursuit on the track is sensibly higher than that developed in the time trial on the road.
The technical keys of the Bolide HR are stiffness and aerodynamics, necessary to minimize friction with the air and the track and, vice versa, optimize the transfer of muscle energy to the vehicle. The frame is a Torayca T1100 1K carbon fiber monocoque: the absence of gluing allows maximum aerodynamic penetration (-7.5% less than the road model) and rigidity. The fork weighs 1.9 kg while the total weight of the bike is quantified in 7.1 kg.
The handlebar also represents an important technological threshold: made of titanium with 3D printing, with an EBM (Electronic Beam Melting) system, in which an electron beam hits the material, melting it and drawing its profile. The study, first in the design phase and then in the wind tunnel, did not neglect the important component of banking, that is, the slope of the runway of 42 °. They are aerospace-related researches, which involves studies of fluid mechanics.
The stratospheric gear ratios
But what ratios did our guys from the Olympic quartet use? From information received from Miche, technical partner of the transmission components, it appears that the crankset was 63 teeth, while the rear sprocket was a 14. Impressive ratio, which in a fast track like that of Tokyo, allowed to break down twice the world record, reaching an average of 64,856 km / h in the final round. This means that, with a standing start, in some places, they reached almost 70 km / h.
But let's get back to bicycles. Pinarello is today an industrial and technological reality known all over the world and offers bikes of all types: from the road to the track, to mountain bikes, urban city-bikes and eBikes. On EurekaBike you will find thousands of price lists, technical sheets and sales announcements of Pinarello and all the main manufacturers.