There’s a new and updated beam bike in town, and it’s got a few tricks up its sleeve. Let’s take a closer look…
From £6,250reapbikes.com
There are a couple of things that make this triathlon bike particularly special. For one, British brand Reap develops and manufactures the bike entirely in Stoke-on-Trent. And secondly, the brand says this is the first bike in the world that comes with a Classified Powershift wheelset thanks to a partnership with Parcours. That means you essentially get a wireless shifting system that you can use to change gear in an instant, even under full load. It’s used with a single chainring up front but is designed to deliver performance and a gear range akin to that of a 2by set-up.
Elsewhere, the cockpit accommodates multiple adjustments, while Reap is also now offering the option of 3D-printed arm pads, allowing you to customise densities and shapes to your liking. Storage comes in the form of a carbon-fibre BTA bottle fairing and a rear dual bottle mount and toolbox.
Then there’s that beam design, which Reap says not only offers great aerodynamics, but also reduces muscular fatigue in the lower back and glutes to allow you to run more effectively off the bike. Only 25 bikes are set to be produced for 2024, costing £6,250 for the frameset only and starting from £9,750 for a full build.
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A WORD OF WARNING
I read your September article ‘Matters of the Heart’ (issue 420) with interest and wanted to place greater emphasis on your advice not to exercise with a virus.
In early 2020 I had a nasty virus (maybe Covid, but testing wasn’t available), which lasted around four weeks. I’d only just started to feel better when I jumped on my trainer for a low-intensity ride only to see my heart rate suddenly jump to 180bpm and not come down again, even at rest.
I was blue-lighted to hospital and some tests over the following weeks diagnosed atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter, which my consultant said was likely caused by the virus, as respiratory viruses can often cause inflammation of the heart muscle.
My symptoms worsened over the following 18 months and eventually I needed a rather unpleasant ablation procedure to correct the electrical pathways in my heart. The procedure seemed to work and I did my first sprint triathlon 10 months later with my first standard-distance triathlon coming up soon after.
