The Week in Tech: Win $1 million, Speedplay light action, and Pearl's special edition shoes

Pearl Izumi PRO Leader Tejay edition shoes

BMC Racing is backing Tejay Van Garderen at the Tour this July, and team clothing sponsor Pearl Izumi is supporting him as well, releasing 100 pairs of special edition PRO Leader shoes, to be sold at R&A Cycles, Art’s Cyclery in San Luis Obispo, and Pearl Izumi’s website.

In addition to the asymmetric colors and samurai warrior graphics, the Tejay edition shoes sport a brand-new Boa reel design. Pearl refers to the graphics as a celebration of Van Garderen’s “zen warrior” mentality, and while we cannot comment on Van Garderen’s Eastern combat training, the asymmetric design is a nice step out of the design box.

The new Boa reel packs all of the features of prior models into a single, central dial. The new Boa reel can tighten one click at a time, loosen one click at a time, and pop out, releasing all tension. Until now, Pearl has only used a single click tighten, and pop-out design, which didn’t allow for as much fine-tuning on the bike as we’d like. Placing the reel on the tongue also helps protect it in crashes — a common issue with buckle and Boa designs that are placed on the outside of the shoe.

The Tejay edition shoes are available now at those select retailers for $300. For those not wishing to sport a zen warrior on your sole, the standard PRO Leader shoes are still available for $270, but lack the latest Boa reel found on the Tejay edition.

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Speedplay Ultra Light Action pedals

Speedplay has updated its Light Action pedal system with new Ultra Light Action cleats, which decreases engagement effort by 50 percent while retaining the same retention security.

The company’s lollipop-shaped pedals were already an excellent option for new clipless users thanks to their dual-sided entry. Easier engagement is icing on the cake.

Win $1 million from RoadID

VeloNews is in no way affiliated with this contest, but it’s just too good not to pass along. Pick the top 10 of this year’s Tour de France, in the right order, and RoadID will hand you a million dollars.

The idea came from Warren Buffet’s “perfect bracket” challenge, wherein he offered a billion dollars (he’s slightly richer than RoadID) to anyone who came out of March Madness with a perfect bracket.

The chances of picking the top ten at the Tour, in the right order, are extremely low. But RoadID is offering up prizes for the three closest brackets as well, so don’t let the laws of probability stop you.

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Schwalbe’s dual-chamber tires

Some information about Schwalbe’s imminent dual-chamber tire system, dubbed Procore, is already floating around the Internet, and the company released further details on Friday.

The concept is simple: an inner chamber holds 55-85 psi, warding off pinch flats and the like, while an outer chamber can be run at less than 20 psi so the tread stays supple. It’s intended to offer the best of both worlds, and has already been used in top-level enduro and downhill races by sponsored riders Sam Hill, Emmeline Ragot, and Nico Lau.

Tire pressure can be run as low as 14 psi, and a lighter tire can be used since the inner core protects both the rim and sidewalls. The tires can be run even if the outer chamber flats, though we imagine the tread would slip around quite a bit on the harder inner chamber.

Procore can be mounted on any conventional rim with an internal width of 23mm or more. Weight per wheel is about 200 grams, and the system will be available for all three wheel sizes.

The official launch of Procore will take place at the Eurobike tradeshow at the end of August.