Pinarello unveil new Dogma 65.1 Think 2 frame

Those chaps at Trek aren't the only ones with a shiny new bike to get all misty-eyed about, you know. The start of the Tour is always a big time for new bike announcements and this year is no exception. Next to break cover is the new – deep breath – Pinarello Dogma 65.1 Think 2, which Team Sky will no doubt be ranting round the lanes of France over the next three weeks; it's on the UCI approved list, so it's good to go.

"It was to be no easy task to improve upon the frame that has taken the champions of both Sky and Movistar to numerous victories, seen Wiggins pedal to yellow and move the world champion sprinter Mark Cavendish to claim 'this frame is perfect' after his first ride aboard the Dogma 2," starts the press release the Pinarello sent over today. Okay, a tough act to follow, so what to do? Well the first thing was to hot foot it over to Carbon giants Toray to request, nay demand, that they improve upon their top-dollar 60-ton 60HM1K fibre, which is where the 60 comes from in the Dogma 60's name. The new bike is called the Dogma 65. Can you guess what they did?

Yup, the new frame is made from a new 65-ton Torayca 65HM1K Nanoalloy Carbon, and Pinarello claim that not only will the new frame be "more rigid, more reactive and even better prepared for the rigors of professional cycling" but also lighter because they can use less of the black stuff to make it. They didn't mention whether it'd be more vertically compliant too; we can only hope.

The other aspect of the frame that's been heavily worked on is the integration and routing for different types of groupset. Obviously a top-end frame such as this is going to see its fair share of Shimano Di2 and Campag EPS running gear, so Pinarello have made interchangeable cable stops for all types of electronic and mechanical groupsets which keeps everything looking very neat and tidy.

The actual shape of the frame is much the same as its predecessor. Pinarello are continuing to champion their asymetric frame designs - Think Asymetric is their tagline these days, after all - that they say are designed to work with the forces produced by the rider. Since the drivetrain is on one side of the bike there's a certain amount of your power going into attempting to twist the frame, and Pinarello's design philosophy is to counter that with more material where it's needed, and less where it's not. So your wonky pedalling forces are, erm, de-wonked, resulting in more linear power transfer. The Dogma was the first frame to get the asymetric treatment but since then Pinarello have been busy rolling it out across the range. The Dogma also gets wiggly ONDA forks and stays that Pinarello say improve the comfort of the bike.

If you want a new 65.1 frame then you'll have to wait for a bit. There's demo bikes available at the Eurobike show in September so if we get even half a chance we'll sling a leg over one; we don't have an on-sale date just yet. When the bike does become available you'll be able to have it in any one of 12 sizes (or 13, according to the UCI list) from 42cm to 62cm, and the paintjob and finishing kit are customisable via the MyWay tool on Pinarello's website so you can get it looking just so. Be warned: it will cost lots of money.

www.pinarello.com