The front brake on this Saxo Bank Specialized S-Works Shiv was once hidden underneath a shroud before the UCI objected.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The new Cannondale Slice's perfectly upright "Naero-Tec Post" is indeed very narrow but also very short front-to-back so as comply with the UCI's 3:1 rule.(Image credit: James Huang)
The UCI informed bicycle manufacturers in a letter from UCI Technical Coordinator Matthieu Mottet on Friday that it would be relaxing rules on time trial bike fits and implementing an improved testing scheme for race officials that will be faster and more uniform from race to race.
UCI rules 1.3.013 and 1.3.023 still state that the tip of the saddle must be 5cm behind the plane of the center of the bottom bracket spindle, and arm positions are restricted by limiting the difference in height between elbow supports and the lower aero bar to +/- 10cm. They were put into place in years past to outlaw extreme arm positions such as the Chris Boardman 'superman' and Floyd Landis 'praying mantis'.
Riders (usually shorter or taller than average) have been allowed to request a morphological exemption to one of the two rules for years, but the revised rules allowing an exemption to either saddle position or bar drop in 2014 can be requested without riders having to be physically measured on the bike by the race officials.
The UCI has also struck wording that required a horizontal arm position, but keeps the overall distance between the plane of the bottom bracket spindle and tip of aero bars limited to 75cm, or a maximum of 80cm with an exemption.
"This means that, from 2014, only the bicycle will be checked and the rider will no longer be asked to attend together with his or her bicycle," the UCI letter stated. "This will mean that riders are not disturbed in their preparations just before the start of the race. These changes will afford riders more freedom while avoiding any risk of disqualification during the race due to the adoption of a non - regulatory position that is sometimes involuntary because of the effort involved."
