The world technological He does not stop making proposals to sport, and cycling is no exception. Lately the galactic helmet has become famous Visma time trialand now the next revolution can come from the hand of “airbag” for the runner, an element that is already used in sports such as skiing or motorcycling.
The airbag is in full development in cycling and the idea is to present it this year, according to the engineer and businessman. Bert Celis in Sporza.
Airbags are used in vehicles.
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The recent falls, especially that of the Belgian Wout van Aert in Across Flanders, with a fractured collarbone and ribs, have sparked the debate about the little protection that cyclists use, only wearing helmets.
The aforementioned engineer is about to propose to the cycling world the use of a protective “airbag” to take better care of the neck, back, chest, hips and pelvis. Something similar to what the skiers and motorcyclists.
According to Celis, Ineos has shown interest in the invention and would like to use it for the British squad, especially after the serious accident that Egan Bernal had.
“They gladly accept a weight gain of 500 to 600 grams, especially during training,” he says.
The airbag would consist of a cartridge that can be quickly removed. Once the team has plugged in a new cartridge, you can safely get back on the road, he says.
Freire: “When the airbag exists, everyone will use it”
Óscar Freire, triple World Champion, is clear that “technology has to reach cycling more.”
“I remember that at the beginning of my career the culottes did not have padding or padding in case you fell and I used to put some kind of gauze then. I think that prevention is not bad at all, and if there is an airbag, why don't you go for it to use? It doesn't exist yet, but when it comes out everyone is going to use it,” says the Cantabrian champion.
Purito: “Everything for safety in sports”
Joaquín “Purito” Rodríguez, 15 years in the professional peloton with 2 victories in Il Lombardía among other triumphs, has no doubts when he assures that “for safety an airbag for the cyclist should be welcomed.”
“Of course, I think that for the safety of the cyclist, it would be phenomenal. It already exists on motorcycles and the airbag explodes if they fall down. 300 per hour and nothing happens to them. It would be necessary to control the weight of the device and where to place it, but anything that is safety for the athlete is good,” he commented.
Pereiro: “Cycling has changed, it goes faster”
“When I was still a child and a cadet, they started with the helmet issue and said that the problem was the heat. We are seeing that the bikes are getting faster, the runners are going faster, and so are the races. For me there is a change very big in cycling from the 90s to the 2000s,” says the former Galician cyclist.
Pereiro explains that “the total speed in the stages is much higher now than before, and by this I mean that before there was more relaxation in the stages, but now the vast majority of races are run at full speed from the moment you leave until you arrive.” , therefore the risk is much greater, more kilometers and more speed”.
In conclusion, “it would be good to wear a vest, an airbag, something like that, but the problem is whether they will be able to make something like that that is breathable. A Moto GP race lasts 1 hour, in cycling we are talking about 5 hours in stages of the Vuelta to Spain or Tour de France”.
“It is a question for the engineers to study, and for the cyclist to be more protected, I don't know if with an airbag, if with
a carbon shell that weighs little or some system, but obviously it would be good because in the end we have evolved in everything, but the cyclist remains taking a tremendous risk in the falls.”
EFE
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