According to Diamondback, modern bicycle designs force cyclists to choose between a road bike optimized for stiffness and weight savings, or a triathlon bike designed for aerodynamic efficiency. With its new IO, the company argues that it has broken the barriers of bike design to create a ‘radical ride that cuts through the wind, but still climbs, descends and handles like a performance road bike’.
“The groundbreaking design of our Andean triathlon bike solved several aerodynamic puzzles for our team,” said Steve Westover, Diamondback Vice President of Marketing. “With that experience, we wanted to push even further, fusing those innovations with several new ground-breaking technologies. The result is the IO – a bike that is unlike anything else on the market – a wicked-fast, lightweight and slippery road bike.”
Diamondback’s engineers worked closely with renowned bicycle designer Kevin Quan and a team from the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies to design and test several distinct innovations in the IO. The team focused their efforts on what they call the SpeedCore, the area of the frame below the top tube.
The first unique element of the SpeedCore is the Diamondback Wake Control System – ‘strategically shaped depressions in the bike’s carbon fibre tubing that create mini areas of counter-rotating turbulent flow.’ When precisely placed in a specific pattern, Diamondback adds that the counter-flow areas interfere with natural air flow across the frame and significantly reduce the wake that leaves the bike, improving the bike’s aerodynamic performance.
In addition to the tubing, the Diamondback team also considered the bike’s frame shape itself. By significantly lowering the bike’s seat stays, engineers optimized aerodynamic efficiency, while maintaining the lateral stiffness and vertical compliance needed to deliver precise handling.
Similar to the Diamondback Andean, the IO also features an oversized, aero-shaped, in-bike storage area above the bottom bracket, seen as being ideal for tools and repair kits, as well as a specially designed aero top tube storage compartment that is accessible for nutrition. Finally, the cockpit includes an aero handlebar, which works with the Covert Routing Process internal cable routing system designed around a proprietary stem.
The result is a bike that is claimed to be 20% more aerodynamic than Diamondback’s award-winning Podium road race bike, but only 10% less aerodynamic than the brand’s best-selling triathlon bike, the Serios.
Pricing for the IO starts at US$3,999 for a SRAM Force gruppo and goes up to US$9,749 for a build with a Dura-Ace Di2 drivetrain and brakes, with Enve carbon wheels. The IO will be available with customizable build options through Diamonback’s online Custom Studio. Custom bikes can be shipped to over 100 countries worldwide.
After ordering a Diamondback bicycle online, the Ready Ride packaging system delivers it to consumers’ doors ‘95% assembled’. Included tools and a comprehensive online support system with chat and how-to videos, means that ‘anyone can build their new bike in four steps that take a matter of minutes’. Consumers can also choose to have their bike assembled at their local bike shop or built and delivered by Beeline Mobile Delivery Service (where available) for no extra charge.
