The Dream

When I first started preparing for Ironman racing I didn’t really understand why so many triathletes spend so much time obsessing over changes to their bike or position or buying new and more aero equipment that saves seconds or maybe minutes over an Iron distance bike race. I understand that obsessing, talking about and planning are all part of the fun and lifestyle of the sport. But I didn’t understand why a couple minutes over a 10 hour race would really matter all too much. After I did Ironman Chattanooga, my opinion changed a little bit. I had placed third in my age group. The fourth place finisher was less than 2 minutes behind me and fifth place was under 2 minutes behind him. I was lucky enough to get a spot to Kona for my finish, but it made me look at those seconds and minutes a little bit differently. If, for Chattanooga, I hadn’t had a disc wheel, or hadn’t used an aero helmet, or had listened to my wife, and not shaved my legs, I most likely would not have received the Kona slot. Now what if I was on a faster bike, maybe I could place even higher. I began to see that little things in aggregate make big differences.

It was this reasoning, or maybe I just like buying new things, which made me start looking at what fancy new things I could upgrade for 2015. The most obvious was the bike itself: the foundation (and most expensive) of triathlon purchases.

Of course, the lure of a high end super bike is everywhere in triathlon. My research led me to a few options to drool over. I could dream of going after something tried and true like a Shiv or P5, or I could be a bit more risky with some of the latest hype over beam bikes. I started reading about beam bikes, and specifically the new Dimond and I really liked the concept and the look of the bike. It seemed like the rebirth of a great design, mixed with some new innovation. The story behind the Dimond also resonated well with me. Made in the USA by a small, emerging company.

As if the folks at Dimond were reading my mind, I got a nice informative message from them around the same time as I was doing my research on the bike. After learning a bit more from them about their bike and their company, I decided to take a big step and order my own Dimond frame, which they would make for me and have ready at the beginning of 2015. I will also say, that working with Chris at Dimond was a great experience. He was super responsive and helpful when it came to the whole process. I can’t say enough about the customer experience during the whole process.

Making it Real

While I waited for my Dimond frame to be built I had time to think about the components I wanted on it. I was really excited to be able to finally make the move to electronic shifting. I know I wanted to stick with Shimano, the real decision was Ultegra Di2 vs Dura Ace Di2. From everything I read, they seemed to function about the same. There was just a 1 pound weight difference between the 2. Deep down, I knew Ultegra would be the best option and save some money. However, I almost felt like such a high-end bike “deserved” the best of the best, which was Dura Ace. I know everyone riding bikes is very weight sensitive, and one pound is a lot of weight on a bike. However, it seems, that recently the consensus for triathletes is aero is more of a consideration than weight in most cases. Most triathlons are pretty flat with little climbing (compared to most road races). In the end I chose the more sensible route and did Ultegra Di2. Here is what else I chose:

Components: Ultegra Di2
Crank: Quarq Elsa RS with Dura Ace 53/39 rings
Wheels: Profile Design 78/Twenty-Four
Tires: Continental Gator Hardsheld
Brakes: Tririg Omega
Stem: Tririg Sigma
Bars: Tririg Alpha with Gamma extensions
Saddle: Fizik Tritone
Pedals: Speedplay Zero
Extras: D-Fly wireless transmitter, Tririg BTA mount, X-Lab cages, Lizard Skins bar tape

Even though I liked the Rotor Power Cranks on my previous bike, I wanted to try something new. Quarq had just come out with their Shimano ring-compatible versions so I thought I would give that a try since Quarq seems to get good reviews. I also chose Tririg for the entire front end of the bike. I liked the look of their bars, and the Sigma stem worked well with the Dimond-recommended Omega brakes.

I was originally going to go for some basic training wheels, but non-aero wheels just look funny on the Dimond bike. So I decided to use a set or aero wheels as training wheels, and I’ll figure out what to race on later. The Gator Hardshell tires are the best training tire (especially around here with all the broken glass on the roads).

Again, the folks at Dimond bikes were awesome to work with and helped me order all my components and even installed everything on the bike for me. When the bike finally arrived, I was surprised how small the shipping box was. It was amazing to see how small the Dimond bike broke down when the beam is removed.

Due to my personality, I actually wanted to wait to really ride the bike until after I was fully fitted on the bike (I like everything to be ready to go). The Tririg gamma bars come extra long and needed to be cut on both ends. The Dimond seat post also only has an inch or so of adjustment once it’s cut. I didn’t want to do any cutting until I was fitted on the bike.

After doing my fitting with Chris at Burnham Coaching, I felt very happy with how I felt sitting on the bike. I was able to get a little lower in the front than on my previous bike and it felt really good. He did have to cut a little on my seat post and then I got my gamma bars cut down to the right length.

It took some time and figure the best way to dremel out material from the gamma bars because after cutting, there wasn’t enough room to insert the shifters. My father-in-law brought over his dremel and carefully shaved out some carbon to get the shifters to slide in. Once that all was done, I was ready to go out and ride.

The Ride

Most people would take a new bike out on a short ride. My first ride was a 3-hour sweet spot (hard) ride. That shows my confidence in the bike and build. I think I may have kept smiling the whole ride. It really feels like you’re batman when you ride the Dimond. It just feels fast. And when you feel fast you go fast.

The Dimond is now my only tri bike and I use it for every ride (except on the trainer or in the rain). I love the way it looks and feels. The bike feels really solid. I like how it handles better than my P3. Even when the roads get rough and I get bumped around in the saddle, I feel a lot more solid than I have before on other bikes. So far so good, on this great investment in speed.