In any normal year, Challenge Daytona would not carry the prestige that has been bestowed upon it for 2020 by the PTO. In a year where most of our plans have been ravaged by a global pandemic, this year’s race at the Daytona Speedway sticks out as the season’s highlight in place of an Olympics or Kona.
Whilst a normal December would see a lot of athletes taking a well earned rest, the social media feeds of some of the world’s finest athletes tells the opposite story, with a of a lot of pent up race energy ready to be unleashed on the Florida circuit this coming Sunday. Fenella Langridge makes up the 102 professionals named in an absolutely stacked field which features some of the fastest athletes in the world. REAP will make it’s North American debut under the charge of the British athlete and we can’t wait to see what Fenella’s REAP Gen 1.0 will do as a final ‘Hoo-Rah!’ at it’s final competitive outing before she upgrades to the new Vulcan in 2021. Fenella was equally excited by the prospect of putting rubber down on American tarmac and has high hopes for what promises to be a fast and furious race. “Excited is an understatement” Fenella told us, “It’s been a rollercoaster of a year. Training has been consistent which has got me here feeling super confident and happy to be lining up at the start.” The experts are predicting an intense race in which the pace will be high from the gun and Fenella hopes her strong swim and fast bike will put her at the pointy end of the pack for what is sure to be a race which will go down to the final stages of the run. “I’ll be trying to swim at the front of the pack which will set me up for a fast and tactical bike; then it will be a quick run where every second will count.”
You can see what else Fenella had to see in her ‘Breakfast with Bob’ interview with the one and only Bob Babbitt below.
The PTO has done a fantastic job of getting this race the coverage it deserves and should be commended for all their hard work supporting the athletes and organisers. Head over to their website this Sunday to follow the race live.
Engineered carbon:
materials & method
Because attacks and sprints place such great loads on road race bikes, we drew on the engineering of our Vulcan tri bike to make the Vekta massively stiffer than any rival. We used the technology that made a beam bike ride like a road bike to make a road bike ride better than any before. We achieved this in two ways: material selection and construction method.
Carbon fibre comes in many grades and, as with everything, the best fibres are more expensive. At REAP, all materials are selected by engineers, not accountants, and the Vekta is made with a blend that is over 80% ultra-high modulus Toray M40J unidirectional fibre. That’s a vastly higher percentage and grade than most manufacturers use in their top models.
Our raw material cost is around 50% higher yet the Vekta is very competitively priced; it’s a reinvestment that we can make because we sell direct to you and, unlike the vast majority, we don’t outsource production – we are our own factory. Expert deployment is crucial to get the best from these materials and that’s where our 25 years of composite engineering experience are invaluable. The carbon fibre lay-up is intuitive to us.
The performance of the carbon fibre lay-up is boosted significantly by our trade secret manufacturing method, a hugely effective innovation that’s unique to REAP. We can’t tell you what it is, but we promise you will feel the difference it makes.
As a true monocoque, the Vekta is made in a single piece, whereas mass-produced bikes are made in a number of pieces and then joined. Our way is more difficult, but the result is an optimised frame, free from parasitic weight – mass that is made necessary by compromised design and doesn’t add value.
Every element of the Vekta is designed for maximum performance. Sure, there are slightly lighter aero-road frames, but none that come close to the way the Vekta feels. We chose to invest a little frame weight to achieve a huge increase in stiffness which results in levels of steering precision and power transfer efficiency you’ve never even dreamed of. We know that you’ll feel it as soon as you stand on the pedals.
