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BMC 2012 Time Machine TM01

Cadel Evans rode his way to the Yellow Jersey on BMC`s speedy TM01.

Cycling enthusiasts got to see just how fast BMC’s speedy TM01 was at the Tour de France this year when Cadel Evans rode his way to the Yellow Jersey during the final time trial. Finishing well ahead of Andy Schleck, Evans secured the title at the world’s most prestigious bike race. While the rider had a lot to do with the final result, BMC pulled out all the stops with his bike to ensure they wouldn’t be to blame if he came up short.

A few weeks before Evans ripped up the roads in France, Andreas Raelert was doing the same at Challenge Roth, where he set a new world-best Ironman time of 7:41:33 and posted one of the fastest bike splits in Ironman history – his 4:11:43 works out to an average of a shade under 43 kph.

BMC has covered all the bases when it comes to the TM01 to ensure that if you’re on one, you’ll be able to go fast.

Rider position

When it comes to a fast time trial or triathlon bike, the most important factor is rider position. At 32 kph, 85 per cent of your energy goes into breaking the wind. For Andreas Raelert to ride at almost 43 kph for over four hours, cutting through the wind becomes critical not only so he can ride fast, but also so he can conserve enough energy to run a 2:40 marathon after the incredible bike effort.

BMC has designed the TM01 with lots of adjustability so that the rider can find the optimal position for aerodynamics and comfort. Using what they call the “Tri Angle Concept,” the integrated stem on the TM01 can be adjusted in 30 different ways. (For Evans, who rides in a ridiculously low position, all that adjustability still wasn’t enough, so BMC built a new front end so his handlebars would sit halfway down the head-tube.) That adjustability goes for the saddle, too – the seat can be set in four different positions and for each position the offset of the saddle can be adjusted another 21 mm forwards or backwards. This way the bike can be set to meet with UCI regulations for someone like Evans, or in a more extreme, forward position to satisfy Raelert.

Cheating the Wind

Once you’ve got your position dialed in, the aerodynamics of the bike, and the rider on it, become the next issue. The super-thin TM01 frame cuts through the air, and there’s almost no part of the bike that offers any extra wind resistance. The teardrop, truncated tube shapes still comply with the UCI 3:1 ratio, so the bike remains quick, and legal, for all types of racing. With a special compartment for a Di2 battery along with hidden brakes and cables, everything about the TM01 screams speed.

Put it all together and you have a record-setting bike that has only one downside: you’ll have no excuses after the race.-KM