Building on their Dean TT bike, Ridley has added FAST (Future Aero Speed Technology) from its road race bike, the Noah FAST to the Dean FAST, which team Lotto-Belisol will be using for the time trial stages in this year’s Tour de France. This includes their integrated F-brake, which Ridley claims reduces turbulence and drag by 4.3%, updated with full internal routing through the stem so almost no cable is seen whatsoever and center pull actuation. The F-Split fork also comes over, which Ridley claims reduces drag by up to “8.2% by drawing turbulent air away from spokes.” The Ridley Dean FAST improves on these technologies by “elongat[ing] the split and improv[ing] the reduction of turbulence. However, the F-Brake is now operated by a center-pull mechanism with internal cable routing hidden within the head tube of the frame. The F-Surface – which previously was applied on the frame – is now molded into the down tube and seat tube, making it even more effective in eliminating drag” says Jochim Aerts.
Click through for teasers on bringing this frame to triathletes and a video of Ridley bikes in this year’s Tour.
Ridley claims the reduced drag of the FAST technology being used on the Noah and Dean bikes you see in the above video “offer[s] up to 2.8km/h advantage in the sprint, and up to 20 watts less power input needed to average a 40km/h breakaway.”
When can we see this in the market?
Ridley’s press release further teases: “Later this year the Dean FAST will come with special features to make this bike the ultimate triathlon benchmark: custom geometry (stack & reach) and custom handlebars. This will make it possible to combine superior aerodynamics with optimal fit for even the most demanding athletes.”
