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The Factor 001 is a $34,000 bike designed and made by Formula-One engineers at bf1systems. It was built “without compromise”, ignoring the UCI (cycle sport’s governing body) rules in order to come up with what is possibly the most technically advanced “training device” ever. The most amazing thing about the design is that it looks - in essence - just like the bike I used to ride to school as a kid.

A bike’s basic two-triangle design is almost perfect, but that hasn’t stopped the bf1 guys from going all high-tech on its ass. Almost the entire bike is made from carbon fiber, but is still strong enough to take out on a real road (although NYC potholes might prove a problem). The bike also has a lot of electronics inside, from power meters to built-in GPS to a handlebar-mounted touch-screen. This bike isn’t meant for racing: it’s all about training.

There are a few departures from conventional diamond-frame design. The head-tube is gone, and instead the forks go all the way up to the handlebars. Apparently it is more efficient than the standard design, but it looks rather more primitive, too.

Gears? Shimano Di2 of course — the electronic Dura-Ace. These are combined with some truly weird-sounding tech. The aluminum cranks, for example, have an “embedded wireless torque system that is usually fitted to F1 driveshaft systems.”

I’d love to take it for a spin, and the Factor 001 would surely be light enough to carry up the many flights of stairs to my apartment (exact weight isn’t given as it depends on the custom spec). But $34,000 for a bike? That seems like crazy money, and takes away one of the best parts of cycling — you don’t need to be rich to afford the best bikes in the world.

And if you think you might need this to improve your performance, consider the story of Luke Whyte, the British biker who entered a South African road race at the last minute, even though he only had a knobbly-tired mountain bike. Despite this “handicap”, Whyte came in first.

Factor 1 [Factor 1 via Oh Gizmo!]

The Factor 001 is a $34,000 bike designed and made by Formula-One engineers at bf1systems. It was built “without compromise”, ignoring the UCI (cycle sport’s governing body) rules in order to come up with what is possibly the most technically advanced “training device” ever. The most amazing thing about the design is that it looks - in essence - just like the bike I used to ride to school as a kid.

A bike’s basic two-triangle design is almost perfect, but that hasn’t stopped the bf1 guys from going all high-tech on its ass. Almost the entire bike is made from carbon fiber, but is still strong enough to take out on a real road (although NYC potholes might prove a problem). The bike also has a lot of electronics inside, from power meters to built-in GPS to a handlebar-mounted touch-screen. This bike isn’t meant for racing: it’s all about training.

There are a few departures from conventional diamond-frame design. The head-tube is gone, and instead the forks go all the way up to the handlebars. Apparently it is more efficient than the standard design, but it looks rather more primitive, too.

Gears? Shimano Di2 of course — the electronic Dura-Ace. These are combined with some truly weird-sounding tech. The aluminum cranks, for example, have an “embedded wireless torque system that is usually fitted to F1 driveshaft systems.”

I’d love to take it for a spin, and the Factor 001 would surely be light enough to carry up the many flights of stairs to my apartment (exact weight isn’t given as it depends on the custom spec). But $34,000 for a bike? That seems like crazy money, and takes away one of the best parts of cycling — you don’t need to be rich to afford the best bikes in the world.

And if you think you might need this to improve your performance, consider the story of Luke Whyte, the British biker who entered a South African road race at the last minute, even though he only had a knobbly-tired mountain bike. Despite this “handicap”, Whyte came in first.

Factor 1 [Factor 1 via Oh Gizmo!]