Week in Tech: Keyless entry for your bike, POC’s new TT helmet, Retroshift rebrands and debuts hydraulic brake levers
A keyless bike lock from Skyless, POC's new TT helmet, Retroshift's hydraulic brake levers, and Mt Borah's new skinsuit
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Here’s your Week in Tech — all the gear news, tips, and announcements you need and none of the marketing gibberish you don’t.
Skylock Bluetooth bike lock
Keyless entry for your bike. Skylock is a U-lock that, through the wonders of Bluetooth and wireless internet, locks and unlocks by simply walking up to your bike (assuming your phone is on you). If your phone isn’t in your pocket, you can enter your passcode on the side keypad. The lock is locked and unlocked through Skylock’s bluetooth application.
Skylock runs on solar power, so there’s no need to take it in and charge it with your LED lights, but we would recommend not locking it up in a garage for extended periods of time, either.
An accelerometer in the lock informs the owner if anyone messes with the bike after it is locked up, but this requires syncing the lock to a WiFi network, which could be a big ask in areas where you’re locking up your bike in different locations every day.
The same accelerometer that monitors anti-theft also works as a crash sensor, similar to an ICEdot Crash Sensor. The Skylock can sense if you’ve fallen and can notify emergency contacts of your location if you cannot turn off the crash system.
Pre-orders are open now, but you won’t be receiving one until early 2015. Skylock’s founders, who are former engineers from Boeing and Jawbone, have started a crowdfunding campaign through their website, and the lock will retail at $160 for those who pre-order, and $250 when it hits the market next year.
POC Cerebel time trial helmet
When we saw POC’s first road helmet, the Tempor, at the 2012 Olympic time trial, we all had our jokes about the oddly shaped aero lid. POC’s sponsorship of Garmin-Sharp has already brought forth a new, smaller time trial helmet, the Cerebel, which the Swedish brand officially launched this week.
The Cerebel was designed with the cooperation of the Garmin team, a program known for its aerodynamics guru Robbie Ketchell, and Volvo Car Group. Volvo helped Poc with its wind tunnel testing. The partnership between the two Swedish brands was originally announced as an information sharing agreement wherein POC and Volvo would work together to further develop Volvo’s Pedestrian and Cyclist Detection technology.
The Cerebel has already seen a podium by Rohan Dennis at the Amgen Tour of California, but we don’t expect to see it in the bike shops until spring 2015.
Retroshift rebrands, launches hydraulic brake levers
Retroshift has had almost a cult-like following in the cyclocross community, so it’s a surprise to us that the brand has changed its name to Gevenalle.
The brand explained the change in a press releasing, saying, “Gevenalle, derived from two Dutch words and translates to ‘Give All,’ reflecting the brand’s commitment to creating innovative and performance-enhancing shifting solutions for cyclocross.”
Simultaneously with the re-branding, Gevenalle released its CX1 and CX2 shifters, designed for hydraulic brake systems. The CX1 is designed for single-chainring drivetrains, while the CX2 is for double chainrings, and the systems will retail for $400 and $450, respectively. The systems are Shimano compatible and come with TRP brake calipers, rotors, and brake hoses.
Watch a video on the Gevenalle Shifting system >>
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Mount Borah clothing launches OTW Speed Suit
In the aerodynamics world, clothing is king. A correctly cut piece of apparel can have a larger impact on reducing drag than aerodynamic wheels. Mt. Borah clothing, sponsor of Optum-Kelly Benefit Strategies, has observed this and is throwing its hat in the ring of brands offering a speed suit with the new OTW.
Borah sought to focus on the cut of the OTW Speed Suit in an effort to reduce drag, as do many brands offering similar speed suits. The Borah OTW is stitched in Borah’s Wisconsin factory and will retail between $135 and $175, depending on quantity ordered. The OTW will be available for custom team orders soon, and should bring a lower-priced aerodynamic piece of clothing with some good Made in the USA vibes.