We are often asked what’s the most important consideration when buying a bike, and without hesitation, we always say fit. If you cannot stay aero for the length of your race, all the technology in the world cannot help make you faster. But until now, there have been few if any products that actually help you keep track of your time in aero. At Interbike 2016 we saw a product that hopes to change that – the Aerobar Edge.
The Aerobar Edge
The Aerobar Edge is as simple as it is useful. On one end of a cord you have a pressure switch, and on the other you have a data logger. Simply mount the pressure switch under your pads, find a spot for the data logger to sit on your cockpit, and you are set. The Aerobar Edge will keep track of when you are putting weight on your pads and for how long.
The Aerobar Edge will then upload the data via a custom mobile app and combine it with data from Strava (Training Peaks coming soon) to tell you not only your total time in the bars (and percent of ride in the bars), but your heart rate, power, cadence, and speed (both when tucked in aero or sitting on the pursuits).
The Aerobar Edge team is taking preorders at $219.99, and units should start shipping in 4-6 weeks.
Our Thoughts
If we had a nickel for the number of times we have watched training partners pull stem spacers to slam their cockpits and then spent half the time in their pursuits – let’s just say we probably wouldn’t be sitting here writing articles. The whole goal of the aerobars is to spend as much time as possible in them. And the Aerobar Edge, at first glance, appears to be a product that will help keep you in them.
We have a number of questions that we hope to settle during our review, including how intrusive the pressure sensor is under the pad, and how well the integration between Strava \ Training Peaks and Aerobar Edge really is. But if it works, we are going to be very excited about the results.
Stay tuned for a full review in the not-too-distant future when we get an Aerobar Edge in house for testing. And also be on the lookout for more Interbike 2016 coverage as we continue to work our way through all the great products we saw out in Las Vegas.