The SCOTT Plasma RC TT – How Team DSM contributed to the fastest bike to date

Nothing beats a Time Trial (TT) bike for pure speed. With even the smallest margins having massive consequences, every part of a TT bike must be carefully examined. As Team DSM always challenges established norms through scientific knowledge, our experts contributed to the creation of the fastest bike to date: the SCOTT Plasma RC TT. To learn more about this speed monster, we spoke with Team DSM R&D expert Piet Rooijakkers.

The SCOTT Plasma RC TT was officially unveiled the day before the start of the Giro d’Italia, just in time to make its debut within the first stage’s time trial from Fossacesia Marina to Ortona where Andreas Leknessund finished only one minute and 18 seconds behind eventual winner Remco Evenepoel. This first ride not only meant the start of the Giro d’Italia, but also the end of an exciting development process, Piet says: “The fun thing about developing a new TT bike is – because it’s built for such a specific group – that we were able to go all the way. It is designed for riding TTs and not for the bigger road racing public, just the people who want to go really fast. That’s also the task we gave to SCOTT’s engineering team: make it as fast as possible”.

The development process

According to Piet, once the (UCI) regulations are met, the rest is all about speed and aerodynamics: “We are not looking at aerodynamics as we did in the 2000’s, as we are now also integrating the bike fit to have a stable position. That is the next level of TT riding”.

Before the team went on the hunt for the pink jersey on the new SCOTT Plasma RC TT, a longitudinal development process with SCOTT came first. The starting point: input from Team DSM. For this, Piet and the team did a background study using five years of data on WorldTour TTs. “We had quite a big set of data because of our Men’s, Women’s and Development programs. We had bike fit data of sixty riders in total which we also used for the outliers to have the best possible bike fit as a time trialist.”

Afterwards, the team created requirements around aerodynamics where factors such as altitude metres, elevation and wind angles were incorporated. “These also gave insights about aspects that we hadn’t done optimally in the past, looking at wind angles at certain speeds for example. It really was an eye-opener, not only for our team but also for our partners and we could give them some added value.”

As the requirements were handed in, SCOTT’s engineers and designers began to work creating a 3D version and a process of trial and error. A phenomenal performance, Piet says: “You maybe don’t see it directly, but this process really stood out. “They used computer modelling and tried every option you could think of. Eventually, they ended up with the final version of this SCOTT Plasma RC TT. This part before the final product, is the hidden gem that nobody ever sees.”

Features of the fastest bike to date

Understanding the real speed of the new TT bike was quite difficult at the beginning of the development process. Piet explains: “This was because we only had 3D models, which were non-rideable. So it was really hard to see if this bike would be faster than the current bikes in the WorldTour peloton. But once we added mannequins, the real added value became clear as we could save over eight watts: that’s really a lot.”

Some specific features Piet is really enthusiastic about are the narrow head tube and semi-custom cockpit that SCOTT came up with. “For the latter, SCOTT took all bike fits – from the smallest rider to the biggest one – alongside the UCI rules and then made it adjustable. So, the riders still have that full forearm contact for aerodynamic and control reasons, but the aero gap is closed which is covered by the various settings possible for this cockpit.”

So how do the riders feel about their new TT bike? “The Plasma RC TT not only rides faster but the adjustable cockpit and the increased trail of the fork also make it more comfortable and stable”, Juliette Labous says. “The resulting handling is very good, particularly in the corners, on downhills but also in the aero position on the flats. The bike is stiff, light, and smooth, allowing me to focus on pushing harder, getting the maximum out of its aerodynamics and performing at my best.”