This week on Geek Warning, Dave chats with Ronan about his extremely comprehensive road tyre test, published a week ago. The conversation covers how the test was run and why the data is so reliable.

Then, Ronan and Dave chat about Silca’s acquisition and re-release of the analogue-watch-lookalike Omata cycling computer.

Midway, Escape's US-based tech writer Jack Duncan jumps on to discuss Colnago’s new Colnago gravel bike and a somewhat peculiar wheel release from Cadex.

Lastly, members of Escape Collective (on our exclusive member-only feeds) get access to Ask a Wrench, where we answer technical questions submitted by our members.

Time stamps:

• 2:30 - Ronan’s big and tiring project
• 25:30 - Silca acquires Omata
• 36:00 - Switching locations to Jack
• 39:00 - Colnago’s new G5-X gravel bike
• 45:00 - Cadex’s XC wheelset is a little weird
• 55:45 - Ask a Wrench with Zach Edwards (Member-Only)

A report published by CyclingIndustries.com highlights an extreme shortage of skilled mechanics and the issues that presents. Dave and Ronan discuss some of the challenges behind this and what it may take to better retain skilled mechanics.

Later in the episode, Dave shares why he thinks rim brakes will return in popularity, at least a little. Ronan argues why Dave’s crystal ball is faulty.

You’ll also hear a tech tip that’s perhaps more just an excuse to treat yourself. To wrap things up, and as per usual, members of Escape Collective get our Ask a Wrench section, where Dave and Zach Edwards answer technical questions from listeners.

Happy geeking!

Time stamps:

• 02:30 - Skills shortage facing the cycling industry
• 22:15 - Yet another wheelsize that’s to cause ever more havoc
• 29:00 - Will rim brakes make a comeback on the road?
• 40:00 - Your bike is only as good as its worst part (language warning for this segment)
• 47:45 - Ask a Wrench (Members only)
• 48:00 - Yet another mystery disc brake noise
• 53:30 - Chasing a stubborn creaking pedal noise
• 59:00 - Glazed brakes and how to solve it
• 1:05:00 - A rattly RockShox XPLR dropper post
• 1:11:00 - Does the suspension linkage design matter?

Many brands within the bike industry often speak about higher-performing products being stiffer, lighter, more aero, and faster-rolling. And yet when it comes to off-road disciplines, it’s rare for brands to discuss smoothness as a performance metric. It’s an area many have dabbled in over the years, but it’s tough to market a product on.

Berd, makers of rope-like spokes, recently published a white paper detailing why they believe their new gravel race wheels are the fastest for the off-road discipline. A big part of that claim relates to vibration damping and impact reduction, metrics that historically haven’t been included in the performance modelling used today to calculate a road cyclists’ speed.

In its white paper, Berd proposes that vibration damping and impact reduction should be included as a component of rolling resistance. Geek Warning host Dave Rome has long shouted as much for off-road – smoother is faster – and thought that was all quite interesting. So he sat down with Berd co-founder and CEO, Charlie Spanjers, to hear more.

An edited transcript of the conversation is also available at EscapeCollective.com.

Geek Warning is rarely about the chapter titles, but rather the expertise and information shared within. That sure applies this week, as the conversation covers the real story behind Pidcock’s recent wheel choice at Worlds, Ronan’s ideal rim widths for road racing, and what Dave considers to be the benchmark in SPD pedals.

There’s also a relatively new Good Thing for SRAM Transmission, a tech tip for anyone turning a spanner, and plenty more.

As usual, members of Escape Collective (on the member-only feed) get Ask a Wrench at the end of the episode. This week, Zach Edwards of the Boulder Groupetto returns to help answer tech questions from our members.

Timestamps:

• 00:01:30 - Ronan “working” at Road Worlds
• 00:04:00 - The rumoured story behind Pidcock’s wheels
• 00:11:00 - The UCI to review its Lugano Charter
• 00:19:45 - Enve’s new SES 6.7 Pro have us patting ourselves on the back
• 00:28:00 - Wolf Tooth trickles down its excellent ALT SPD pedal
• 00:34:00 - A tech tip to tighten up tool fitment
• 00:39:00 - SRAM has a Good Thing for Transmission users
• 00:45:30 - What Ronan and Dave are busy with
• 00:47:40 - Ask a Wrench (Member-only feed)
• 00:48:00 - Why don’t all tubeless rims have a solid rim bed?
• 00:55:00 - Shigura brakes?
• 01:05:45 - Reuse a plugged tyre?
• 1:10:00 - A front wheel causing brake resonance

Talk of big wheels continue to dominate headlines in the cycling tech world. This past week, Trek and Scott raced production-ready 32ers at the World Cup round in Utah, while Sea Otter Europe showcased other production-ready options.

With that, Dave Rome chats with Escape’s Suvi Loponen and Alex Hunt about what they each saw in person at these respective events. For Suvi, Sea Otter Europe, with about 80,000 attendees this year, offered an opportunity for a vibe check from members of the European bicycle industry.

Members on our member-only feed will also hear Ask a Wrench, this week with Zach Edwards.

Time stamps:

• 00:02:00 - Big brand 32ers revealed
• 00:09:45 - Sea Otter Europe
• 00:14:00 - Suvi rides a 32er
• 00:18:00 - Other big things seen at Euro Sea Otter
• 00:19:00 - Tyre options are growing quickly
• 00:23:00 - Industry vibe check at Sea Otter
• 00:27:00 - On-the-ground interviews
• 00:51:00 - Ask a Wrench (members only)
• 00:53:00 - How to service a cartridge bearing
• 00:59:00 - When to measure chain wear (and our go-to tools)
• 01:08:00 - How to deal with a rusty part

Welcome back to Geek Warning. This week, Dave Rome and Ronan McLaughlin talk through Shimano’s new road pedal system, which will eventually supersede the now two-decade-old SPD-SL. Dave has been hands-on with the new pedals and offers insight into how nuanced the differences are.

Dave is then joined by Suvi Loponen to discuss the new Canyon Grail gravel bike along with a number of other standout bits of tech news from the week.

At the end of the episode, and for those listening via a member-only feed, we have an interview with Bill Alcorn of BikeFlights about how air freighting and door-to-door bike delivery have changed, and potentially how to mitigate those increased costs.

Timestamps:

• 02:00 - Shimano SPD-SLR, ridden and explained
• 18:00 - The potential performance gain of lower stack height
• 22:30 - Shimano’s three shoe widths, wide going wider.
• 25:00 - Suvi joins to discuss the new Canyon Grail gravel bike
• 37:00 - Scott’s interesting return to cable routing options
• 41:00 - Specialized goes internal routing with Future Shock
• 43:30 - Wolf Tooth gets into hubs
• 48:00 - Members-only section: Talking bike freight

This week, Caley Fretz returns to Geek Warning alongside Jack Duncan and Dave Rome. It’s been a week full of big new bike launches (all of which Escape Collective attended) and there has been some equally big industry news.

The geeks discuss new bikes from Scott, Factor, and Enve, and how each finds (or doesn't) a balance between performance and enjoyment. Plus, there’s a shift in product from WTB, some somewhat sad news out of an Australian business, and we speculate over why Specialized’s founder has returned to the helm.

As usual, members of Escape Collective have access to the exclusive member-only feeds of the podcast, and in this we answer a number of technical questions in the Ask a Wrench segment.

Happy geeking!

Time stamps:

• 00:02:00 - New bikes, new bikes everywhere
• 00:03:15 - Talking two different approaches to gravel with the Scott Addict Gravel and Factor Elara
• 00:16:30 - Adding the new Enve Melee to the conversation
• 00:20:00 - Feelings or performance. Can it be both?
• 00:29:00 - WTB doing aero wasn’t on our bingo card
• 00:38:00 - Sad news from Fumpa
• 00:44:15 - Big changes at Specialized and a fun theory from a dude
• 01:02:00 - Members-only section and Ask a Wrench
• 01:05:00 - Our thoughts on running mismatched tyres
• 01:11:20 - “Critique my chain waxing”
• 01:12:15 - Gravel handlebar recommendations that keep the levers straight

This week sees a big first for the Geek Warning podcast as the entirety of Escape Collective’s tech crew meet up in person over in Takayama, Japan. With that, we recorded live in front of a select group of Escape members!

It’s certainly been a huge week on the tech front for our entire tech team to be away riding bikes at the annual Member Summit. Not only is the Vuelta a España in its first week (where new Dura-Ace prototypes were seen), we also had the last Mountain Bike World Cup round prior to the World Championships. And if that wasn’t enough, MADE was held over in Portland, Oregon, the past weekend.

Given the special circumstances, our usual member-only ‘Ask a Wrench’ segment was replaced with an ‘Ask us anything’ from the live audience. Be sure to listen on the member-only feed for the full episode.

So with that, join the tech crew of Alex Hunt, Jack Duncan, Ronan Mc Laughlin, and Dave Rome to hear about the week in tech. And yes, Suvi Loponen was there, but sadly couldn’t jump on the recording.

Time stamps:

• 00:03:30 - New Dura-Ace R9300 breaks cover
• 00:23:00 - Leadville wasn’t the expected 32er domination, and that doesn’t matter
• 00:33:05 - Fox is seemingly returning to electronic suspension for cross-country
• 00:35:00 - Abbey Bike Tools’ new budget disc brake mount facer isn’t quite it
• 00:40:30 - Going into the member-only section with a live audience
• 00:42:00 - Ask us Anything!
• 00:44:00 - Are carbon spokes a fad?
• 00:50:00 - Silca’s entry to tires
• 00:53:00 - Can grease be too thick?
• 00:55:00 - Is there any further tech that road should expect from MTB?
• 01:03:30 - How are we addressing the spectrum of gravel?