NYC Hour Record: The Bike Behind The Attempt
In case you haven’t been following, this weekend was an exciting one for TBD that saw Ben topple a 14-year benchmark and clinch the New York hour record at Kissena Velodrome. While hour records obviously present huge physical and mental challenges, they are also the preserve of the gear-obsessed. That showed on Sunday as questions came flooding in about the bike, the wheels, the bars and just about every other component. So here it is. Our complete guide to the Affinity Kissena that was ridden during Ben’s record-setting attempt.
Before diving in, thanks again to Jason Gallacher at Affinity Cycles for generously providing his time and the setup needed to take on this ambitious challenge.
The Affinity Kissena Hour Record Build
Frame: The frame is a 56 Affinity Kissena in the 2022 green and gold colorway.
Gearing: By far the most-requested detail. Ben ran a 15-tooth cog along with a 59-tooth Affinity chainring.
Wheels: The front wheel was a Zipp 808 and the back was a Zipp 900 disc wheel
Bars: Zipp Vuka
Tires: Vittoria Pista Control Tubulars at 100 psi. (This will seem very low pressure to the track fans out there, but it’s worth noting how uneven the surface at Kissena is.)
Chain: KMC (waxed, of course).
Pedals: Garmin Rally
Stem: Zipp service course, 120mm
Crank: Dura Ace, 167.5mm
Saddle: S-works Power with Mirror