Gear

The 14 tech innovations that changed road cycling

Fourteen bits of kit that make the bike of today

9. TT bars

Disc brakes and Di2 - two of the tech innovations that make the modern road bike
The safety bicycle was developed in the late 1800s (Pic: H. Clarke via Wikimedia Commons)
The invention of the pneumatic tyre significantly improved comfort
The invention of the rear derailleur made it much easier to change gear
We may take the QR for granted but it revolutionised things back in 1927
The yellow jersey is worn by the leader of the Tour de France
Helmet design has come on a long way since the ‘leather hairnet’ style of the 1970s
French company LOOK pioneered the design of the clipless pedal
The Shimano Total Integration system was introduced in 1990
Greg LeMond first used TT bars to effectively win the 1989 Tour de France
German company SRM developed the first power meter in the 1980s
View image | gettyimages.com
Garmin GPS computers are now almost ubiquitous
Shimano brought the first successful electronic groupset to market back in 2009
The future is here: disc brakes are to be trialled in professional road cycling in August and September

9. TT bars

You all know the story. At the Tour de France in 1989, American Greg LeMond went into the final time trial into Paris trailing France’s Laurent Fignon by 50 seconds. The stage was only 25km long, and it was generally assumed that there was no way LeMond would make up that much time.

But the American showed up at the start with a set of TT bars on his bike and an aero helmet, stark contrast to Fignon who opted for his standard road bike and let his flowing golden ponytail loose in the wind. LeMond gained 58 seconds over the course of the stage and claimed his second of three Tour victories.

What that win emphasised to everyone in the cycling world was that aerodynamics were every bit as important as riding ability, especially in solo time trials. In fact, it’s arguable that LeMond’s victory laid the original seed that today has grown into ever more intricate TT bikes, helmets, skin suits, aero road bikes and much, much more.