Verve Cycling has launched the Track version of its InfoCrank power meter. Building on the company’s relationship with British Cycling, the Great Britain Cycling Team will premiere the InfoCrank Track model at the upcoming UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, on 28 February to 4 March 2018.
According to Verve, ‘Five years of study, research and modelling have now resulted in the game-changing Track InfoCrank becoming available to federations, clubs, and track cyclists all around the world.’
Bryan Taylor, President of Verve Cycling said, “I am very pleased to finally reveal the Track InfoCrank. Our engineers and staff globally, combined with the Team GB engineers and technical staff and mechanical staff at the UCI World Cycling Centre worked through two generations of designs and numerous iterations to produce this product. We all knew that something more was needed in the world of track racing to take the sport to a new winning edge, and this is the result. Everyone had a wish list, but it was harder to achieve than we all thought.”
Dr Oliver Caddy coordinated the efforts of the British Cycling Team on the project and said, “The promise of far greater reliability and precision in our data was before us and has now been achieved. This is more than an incremental step forward for the team, and athletes at every level will benefit.”
Ian Dyer, Head Coach of the Great Britain Cycling Team commented, “InfoCrank power data is trusted to be accurate under all riding conditions and is a vital element in setting training programmes for our athletes. It’s no longer acceptable to just have consistent data, all our power meters have to be accurate all of the time. This allows us to compare performance improvements over time and between riders.
“InfoCrank has eliminated data drift and the need for re-calibration, enabling detailed analysis of our true performance on the road and in the velodrome. We have worked closely with the engineers who developed the InfoCrank and they have proven to be committed to achieving best in class in this increasingly crucial area.”
The first batch of Track InfoCrank have been purchased by institutes and private individuals who entered into the pre-production order round last year. Verve notes that purchasers are from the UK to Australia, and include riders and federations from countries such as Switzerland, the USA, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany and Hong Kong.
Verve adds that it is ‘very thankful for their support in bringing this product to the wider track riding community.’
In addition to Verve’s partnership with British Cycling, the UCI World Cycling Centre has also ‘supported the project from the beginning as different crank models were built and trialled. Constructive advice and support was given by both organisations.’
Verve continued, ‘The Track InfoCrank is the first purpose-built torque transducer formed as a crank available in the highly competitive and measurable world of track cycle racing.’ The company adds that ‘true and precise measurement of crank torque can only occur by measuring the forces applied through the crank itself… This requires not only precise placement of high quality strain gauges, but also consistent dimensioning and proportioning of the crank.’
The firmware is the same as that found in the Road InfoCrank.
Every InfoCrank purchased by British Cycling undergoes a full load test to ‘plot accuracy and over time to ensure consistency. The Verve team and British Cycling continue to work to improve accuracy.’
The preliminary load and accuracy reports on the first batch of cranks indicates ‘an accuracy of less than 1% at all operating levels’.
The first batch of Track InfoCranks has almost sold out and is currently being delivered. The crank will now enter into normal production and be available in sizes from 155mm to 180mm. Most Track InfoCranks will be made to order – with delivery estimated within 6 weeks. Sizes 165 and 170mm may be available from stock.
