Bicycle manufacturers are good for this sport
BMC has an impressive cycling team, never once have I heard this team sponsor waver in their steadfast sponsorship of their professional cycling team. The team is not BMC dash anything, the team is simply BMC Racing Team.
BMC stands for Bicycle Manufacturing Company and was founded by American Bob Bigelow in 1986 to assemble bikes for wholesale distribution under the Raleigh brand. He later lost the Raleigh contract but developed the BMC brand slowly, missing a number of major developments in the cycling industry, but surviving. In 2001 Andy Rihs bought the company and redirected the focus back to design, emphasizing the companies Swiss roots.
Although started by an American, BMC is a Swiss bicycle manufacturer located in Switzerland. They have supported their title ProTeam since 2008. What began as a Professional Continental team, officially became a UCI licensed ProTeam in 2010. I am sure we can all remember the shock in hearing that George Hincapie had signed with a team that had no guarantee of being invited to the Tour de France. He obviously believed in the vision, because in 2011, BMC won the Tour de France. For the 2012 professional season, they have amassed quite a team.
BMC stands for Bicycle Manufacturing Company and was founded by American Bob Bigelow in 1986 to assemble bikes for wholesale distribution under the Raleigh brand. He later lost the Raleigh contract but developed the BMC brand slowly, missing a number of major developments in the cycling industry, but surviving. In 2001 Andy Rihs bought the company and redirected the focus back to design, emphasizing the companies Swiss roots.
Although started by an American, BMC is a Swiss bicycle manufacturer located in Switzerland. They have supported their title ProTeam since 2008. What began as a Professional Continental team, officially became a UCI licensed ProTeam in 2010. I am sure we can all remember the shock in hearing that George Hincapie had signed with a team that had no guarantee of being invited to the Tour de France. He obviously believed in the vision, because in 2011, BMC won the Tour de France. For the 2012 professional season, they have amassed quite a team.
BMC pro riders: Cadel Evans, George Hincapie, Alessandro Ballan, Yannick Eijssen, Greg Van Avermaet, Manuel Quinziato, Taylor Phinney, Ivan Santaromita, Amaël Moinard, Johann Tschopp, Marcus Burghardt, Timothy Roe, Chris Barton, Brent Bookwalter, Chris Butler, Mathias Frank, Martin Kohler, Karsten Kroon, Steve Morabito, Mauro Santambrogio, Ivan Santaromita, Micael Schar, Johan Tschopp, Danilo Wyss, Simon Zahner. New to the team in 2012: Thor Hushovd, Philippe Gilbert, Marco Pinoti, Tejay van Garderen, Klaas Lodewyck, Adam Blythe, Steve Cummings.
BMC recently announced that they have joined with Hincapie Sportswear, and Holowesko Partners in support of a professional Under 23 development team for the 2012 racing season. The new BMC-Hincapie Sportswear Team is registered with USA Cycling as a UCI Continental team and is the official development program for the BMC Racing Team.
Now let's look at the bikes of BMC. When I was at Interbike in Las Vegas, Nevada, last September, I spent quite a bit of time looking at the BMC time trial bikes. The design and geometry are unique to BMC.
BMC team bikes: The frames ridden in 2012 will be the same as in the 2011 season. The riders will have a choice of 2 road bikes and a time trial bike. Each rider will make the final decision on what he wants to ride in each race. His choices are:
- Impec road bike
- Teammachine SLR01 road bike
- Timemachine TM01 time trial bike
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| BMC road bike frames - SLR01 and Impec © by PedalDancer.com |
BMC Impec - road bike The Impec was re-launched again at Eurobike 2011 (and supposedly at Interbike) and will be offered in a third (white) color in 2012. Frames have new graphics/colors and upgrades on the complete bikes (Easton stem and Easton Bar, wheels). Prices for the Impec frames starts at $5,500, $7,999 for a SRAM Red up to $14,999. The Impec is available in Dura Ace Di2, Dura Ace, Ultegra Di2, Sram red, Ultegra, and Super Record. The colors offered are red, white and black. Impec is available in two different fits termed "race" and "performance," with five sizes in each line.
The major engineering advancements in the frame of the Impec was in the manufacturing of the carbon tubes and joints. Those bulky joints are referred to as "high-density half-shells" or " Shell Nodes" and reportedly result in flawless frame joints on the Impec. Marketing on the Impec seems to have more to do with construction of the carbon frame, and less about how that technology transfers to performance, although words such as comfort, stiffness, low road noise, and fast descents are associated with the design. According to Bicycling. com, one of the design decisions in making the frame was to have a complete bike weigh in right at the 6.8-kilogram (14.99-pound) UCI limit.
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| BMC impec Super Record in red |
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| BMC impec Ultegra Di2 bike in white |
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| BMC Impec high-density half-shells Photo by BikeRadar.com |
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| BMC - the impeccable Impec road bike 2011 © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC Impec at ATOC 2011 © by PedalDancer.com |
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| © by PedalDancer.com |
BMC Teammachine SLR01 - road bike: The SLR01 is the bike frame that Cadel Evans rode to win the 2011 Tour de France. The BMC website describes this bike as, "It’s all about efficiency in propulsion and maximum stiffness at minimal weight." The Teammachine SLR01 is available in Ultegra Di2, Sram Red, and Ultegra in red. The (SWA) models come with Dura Ace Di2, Dura Ace, and frameset only. The SLR01 has a BMC special edition Easton wheel EA90 SE (red nipples - black spokes - upgraded hubs). The final price depends on what wheels are chosen, Zipp 404 or Mavic Cosmic Carbone, and which saddle - 3 options from Fizik. Prices range from $3400 for a frameset, $3800 to $6900 for a build.
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| BMC Teammachine SLR01 Ultegra Di2, Cadel Evans TDF bike © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC teammachine SLR01 (SWA) race series, Dura Ace © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC teammachine SLR01 (SWA) race series, Dura Ace © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC teammachine SLR01 (SWA) race series, Dura Ace © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC teammachine SLR01 (SWA) race series, Dura Ace © by PedalDancer.com |
A bit of trivia: BMC never made the SLR01 frame in the World Champion stripes for Cadel Evans, because the UCI would not allow BMC to make a full World Champion model using the WC colors/stripes in 2011 for sale. However 141 Tour de France Teammachines were made, signed by Cadel Evans, and sold worldwide (in honor of Cadel Evan's #141 dossard number at the 2011 Tour de France). Twenty-five of the 141 bikes were available for sale in the USA, and still might be found for sale if you must have one.
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| Cadel Evan's yellow SLR01 2011 Tour de France model BMC bike © by PedalDancer.com |
Other BMC frame models: BMC also offers a few other frame models for consumer sale including:
- racemachine RM01
- roadracer SL01
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| BMC racemachine RM01 Sram red © by PedalDancer.com |
SL01 The roadracer SL01 is available with Ultegra D12, Ultegra, 105, and Tiagra in white, read, and naked. (The SL02 is no longer offered, it was the same frame as the SL01 but with a different build). Prices range from $2100-$3300.
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| BMC roadracer SL01 © by PedalDancer.com |
BMC TIME TRIAL BIKES
BMC TM01/TT01- time trial bikes
The timemachine TM01 is the model that the BMC ProTeam used in the 2011 Tour de France. The geometry of the frame of the TM01 is configured for extreme time trials and for Ironman distances. With a steep riding angle of 77°, the BMC website states that the TM01 permits a suitable triathlon seated position that stretches the rider less and is thus more comfortable. Cadel Evans used the TM01 at the 2011 Tour de France and at the 2011 USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado.
The BMC timemachine TM02 is available in Ultegra / 105, in silver or white frame colors.
More images of the BMC timemachine TM01 (taken at Interbike 2011 by PedalDancer.com)
Adjustable fitting
The big deal about the TM01 is the flip-flop stem heads in different sizes and interchangeable shims and wedges allowing for a variety of bar position adjustments to fit the individual rider on the BMC Timemachine TM01. There are over 32 different positions possible to achieve a just right fit.
BMC's older version time trial bike was the timemachine TT01 a custom made time trial bike with a more traditional TT bike look. It took 3 years of design and analysis for the engineers at BMC to redesign this time trial bike into the new TM01 for "maximum speed." Although the TM01 might be the latest engineering, the old TT01 was still in use in competition during the 2011 season.
- Timemachine TM01
- Timemachine TM02
The timemachine TM01 is the model that the BMC ProTeam used in the 2011 Tour de France. The geometry of the frame of the TM01 is configured for extreme time trials and for Ironman distances. With a steep riding angle of 77°, the BMC website states that the TM01 permits a suitable triathlon seated position that stretches the rider less and is thus more comfortable. Cadel Evans used the TM01 at the 2011 Tour de France and at the 2011 USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado.
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| BMC 201 timemachine TM01 time trial team bike - BMC team model |
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| BMC TM02 with the more traditional headset and stem |
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| BMC TM01 timemachine time trial bike © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC TM01 timemachine © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC TM01 timemachine fork © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC TM01 timemachine seatstays © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC TM01 timemachine handlebars © by PedalDancer.com |
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| © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC TM01 timemachine © by PedalDancer.com |
The big deal about the TM01 is the flip-flop stem heads in different sizes and interchangeable shims and wedges allowing for a variety of bar position adjustments to fit the individual rider on the BMC Timemachine TM01. There are over 32 different positions possible to achieve a just right fit.
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| BMC Timemachine TM01 adjustable stem |
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| the older version - BMC TT01 custom made time trial bike |
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| The TT01 timemachine still in use in 2011 at the USPCC © by PedalDancer.com |
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| an older model of the BMC timemachine used at the USA Pro Cycling Challenge in 2011 © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC TT bikes in Colorado © by PedalDancer.com |
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| at the USA Pro Challenge 2011 © by PedalDancer.com |
BMC Impec – First ride review by BikeRadar
The BMC Impec Review - Cycling Tips
BMC TeamMachine SLR01 review by BikeRadar
Tour de France tech: New aero kit at team time trial review by James Huang
The BMC Impec Review - Cycling Tips
BMC TeamMachine SLR01 review by BikeRadar
Tour de France tech: New aero kit at team time trial review by James Huang
More PedalDancer.com photography of team BMC:
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| HTC and BMC teams depart Palmdale at the Amgen Tour of California in 2010 © by PedalDancer.com |
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| the old 2010 BMC SLX01 road bikes models at the ATOC © by PedalDancer.com |
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| George Hincapie warming up on his time time bike 2010 © by PedalDancer.com |
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| George Hincapie at the ATOC Los Angeles ITT in 2010 © by PedalDancer.com |
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| Taylor Phinney on his Teammachine SLR01 2011 © by PedalDancer.com |
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| a truck full of BMC bike parts © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC Swiss Cycling team car © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC team car with bikes © by PedalDancer.com |
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| BMC racing through the streets of America © by PedalDancer.com |
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| Brent Bookwalter and his BMC Impec at the ATOC © by PedalDancer.com |
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| More Impec at the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine in France © by PedalDancer.com |
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| © by PedalDancer.com |
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| Cadel Evans in the ITT on Vail Pass 2011 USAPRO in Colorado © by PedalDancer.com |
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| Taylor Phinney's 2010-11 BMC US National Champion time trial bike at ATOC © by PedalDancer.com |
Forum discussions: RoadBikeReview (road bikes) and Weight Weenies (TT bikes)
Update 01/19/12: BMC Racing: 2012 team bikes By CyclingNews
Update January 2012: An amazing line-up of racers for 2012 - behind the scenes at the BMC camp By VeloNews, or BMC training in Denia By CyclingNews.com
Philippe Gilbert 2012 Custom BMC bike
Related posts by Pedal Dancer:
View all the other ProTeam Bikes from 2011
Learn about Specialized bikes
Learn about Colnago bikes
Learn about Pinarello bikes: Pinarello Dogma2
See some wonderful photographs by PedalDancer.com of Team BMC in Belgium the day before the Tour of Flanders here: BMC solid through 2016