New Gear: Electronic Gear Shifting for Cyclists

In The New York Times, Ian Austin comments on the arrival of Shimano’s new battery-powered derailleur on the pro cyclists tour and notes that some cycling purists are not happy with even the smallest addition of energy in the human-powered equation: “‘People choose bicycles precisely because a bicycle’s motion requires only human effort, and nothing could be more simple, independent and autonomous’ Raymond Henry, a cycling historian in St. Etienne, France, wrote in an e-mail message. ‘Any source of external energy, however weak, runs counter to this philosophy.’”