From "Big Mig" to "Wiggo," Pinarello has been supplying bikes to some of the world's greatest cyclists for decades. Here's a glimpse into the technological advances that Pinarello has made over the years. Miguel Indurain powers up a climb (above) aboard the classic lug-and-tube constructed Columbus steel frame. Lightweight racing bikes weighed about 19 pounds back then. The only innovation visible is the flushbrazed fork crown (most forks used externally lugged crowns). His Pinarello bristles with obsolete items—downtube shifters, aluminum rims, aluminum handlebar and seatpost, aluminum brake levers and non-index shifting. Miguel’s riding position is higher and more comfortable, with the bars about 3 inches below the saddle. Indurain has his brake levers set low to give him an advantage in the drops for descending.

Fast-forward to Bradley Wiggins (above) getting it done at the 2010 Tour of Qatar aboard his Dogma 60.1 and almost every aspect of the modern road bike has been fundamentally improved. Carbon fiber replaces aluminum for the aero wheels, frame, fork, seatpost, handlebar and bottle cages. Wiggins is sporting Shimano Di2 electronic shifting with an oval chainring. Pinarello’s carbon fork has wavy blades, just because they can, and arching frame tubes complete its styling package. Wiggins uses the wind-tunnel- approved modern riding position—at least 2 inches lower than Indurain’s at the handlebar, with the brake levers higher on the drops to assist its dual-control shifting. Wiggins’ back is flat while he is on the hoods, where he will spend most of his time during a stage.

Miguel Indurain (above) simply dwarfs his state-of-theart brazed steel TT bike contesting the 1993 Tour de France. His pointed head tube and aluminum aero rims may have given him some advantage, and he is sporting first-gen TT handlebars—the rage, after Greg Lemond stole the 1989 tour from Laurent Fignon with a similar setup. The 650C front wheel, however, was borrowed from the track where the tiny wheel was used to get team pursuit riders closer to each other for drafting purposes. Any drag the tiny wheel saved was wasted by the crude cable routing and tall-stacked headset and stem. Indurain’s position on the bike is almost identical to his road racing bike, but with the arms tucked in tight and forward.

Except for his shoe covers and aero helmet, Bradley Wiggins (above) and his 2010 TT bike could be from another planet. Molded carbon fiber provides the wind-tunneltested frame and fork profiles with a measurable drag reduction—as do its internal cables, and carbon trispoke and disc wheels. Up front, aero TT bars provide a bit more speed, but the big numbers come from Wiggins’ wind-tunnel-derived riding position—low and flat, with every limb aligned for minimum drag numbers while seated and standing. Add wrinkle-free compression clothes and gloves, and Wiggins is ensured to outpace Indurain against both the wind and the clock.