Pro Cycling Ebike doping ?!?!

[stokepa31_mk2]

Mr Cancellara is being accused of using an ebike in winning two classics this year.

have a read of this thread which includes a video. I would be interested to hear thoughts on the potential for this. Wonder if we'll see bike scanners soon on the start line

Cancellara Caught?? | Pro Race | Road | Forums - BikeRadar

 

[HarryB]

Surely the gruber assist is a low powered motor. I think it would be impossibe to create a stealth bike that could outpace a fit rider. I don't think the people making the comments understand the first thing about electric assist - unless the designers have access to some amazing new technology with super magnets/batteries etc.

 

[flecc]

I'd seen this before Paul, but I think it's a false accusation. There's nothing possible I know of which is silent enough and yet powerful enough to help a pro like Cancellara. Small enough motors that could fit inside frame parts are invariably somewhat noisy, the motors used in models being typical.

Easily checked by post event scrutineering with X-rays though.
.

 

[Tex]

other forums have all knocked this rumour on the head. it may be a danger for the future, but not a reality now. my god these guys do 40-50kph for 200+ kilometres. my "bleeding obvious" high power bionx is one of the best kits around and is only good for the lower end of that and for only 10-20% of that distance. i'd still be dropped on the col du gallibier too.

and now the authorities have this on their radar in the future they can add flecc's check to their current bike check systems: remember bikes are currently checked for weight and time trial bikes for aero limitations on design (aspect ratio of parts, seta set back, etc)

 

[joab]

I'd seen this before Paul, but I think it's a false accusation. There's nothing possible I know of which is silent enough and yet powerful enough to help a pro like Cancellara. Small enough motors that could fit inside frame parts are invariably somewhat noisy, the motors used in models being typical.

Easily checked by post event scrutineering with X-rays though.
.

At this level its all about details and if you can get 100w for free for 20km, that is a lot.
The grubber assist is noisy but in a race like tour of flanders or Paris - Roubaix there is so much noice nobody will notice it. I'm not saying he used it but I would not be suprised if he did.

Grubber assist: Gruber Antrieb - Gruber Assist - Fahrradantriebe » Englisch

Regards,
Jo

 

[NRG]

100w is not enough to accelerate him as fast as those videos depict. The distance he pulls out from the rest of the riders indicates a lot more power which would require a substantial battery. I suspect all the power comes from those legs of his.

 

[joab]

100w is not enough to accelerate him as fast as those videos depict. The distance he pulls out from the rest of the riders indicates a lot more power which would require a substantial battery. I suspect all the power comes from those legs of his.

I'm sure his legs produce 500w but then just add 100w from the little engine and you get 600w. That is 20% more.

 

[HarryB]

I'm sure his legs produce 500w but then just add 100w from the little engine and you get 600w. That is 20% more.

But it never seems to work out like that. Even with a Torq (de-restricted) with nearly 600 watts peak and me - say a measley 200 watts peak, so a total of 800 watts - could not keep pace with some fit commuter cyclists on their journey home. How do you think the motor would be set up - for ultimate speed or for hill climbing - you cannot have both. I think anybody who has experienced electric bikes over the years will realise that the whole story is a bit of a nonsense (for now at least).

 

[joab]

But it never seems to work out like that. Even with a Torq (de-restricted) with nearly 600 watts peak and me - say a measley 200 watts peak, so a total of 800 watts - could not keep pace with some fit commuter cyclists on their journey home. How do you think the motor would be set up - for ultimate speed or for hill climbing - you cannot have both. I think anybody who has experienced electric bikes over the years will realise that the whole story is a bit of a nonsense (for now at least).

I don't agree, I'm a racer myself and with my ezee kit in derestricted mode I get support up to 32km and with my 25kg bike I can do about 38km. But this grubber system just adds 100w at whatever speed. And these bikes are only 7kg. Again I'm not saying he did it and I was very skeptic but now I'm in doubt.

 

[flecc]

But this grubber system just adds 100w at whatever speed.

Not so. Like any electric motor it has it's maximum output at one point in it's rev range, for something powering to 25 kph for example, that's typically about 13 kph. The power output graph is a curve with a peak somewhere along it's arc, and that tiny 200watt gross Gruber motor is unlikely to manage more than 100 watts peak net output after that inefficient tiny diameter bevel transmission and bicycle transmission and friction losses.
.

 

[carpetbagger]

i past somebody the other day in a similar fashion,but no slick hand movements........i was already in medium power and went past like he was stopped up quite an incline.. !
seriously though they scrutinise the bikes like dope testing so unless they had a duplicate and managed to swap it i think its unlikely...maybe the hand movements on the second clip were the result of no suspension on a cobbled road....

 

[joab]

i past somebody the other day in a similar fashion,but no slick hand movements........i was already in medium power and went past like he was stopped up quite an incline.. !
seriously though they scrutinise the bikes like dope testing so unless they had a duplicate and managed to swap it i think its unlikely...maybe the hand movements on the second clip were the result of no suspension on a cobbled road....

That is the strange thing, they did swap bikes in the tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. In the tour of Flanders Breschl (Cancellera his team mate and also favorite) his bike swap was dramatic, he got the wrong bike, had to change again and never got back in the front.
Cancellara his mechanic says that in the tour of Flanders they both had a problem with the brakes coming lose… and in Paris – Roubaix Cancellara broke a wheel. Make sense but still…

 

[carpetbagger]

great for electric bikes if it happened,what more publicity could you want....in a few weeks......electric bike wins Tour De France....marvellous !!

 

[joab]

The winner is the grubber assist, their website is down for maintenance... battery low?

 

[carpetbagger]

no ..they are just having a blood transfusion !!