Aero-Bars in 1988
I’ve already done a podcast about the first aero-bars in triathlon. And my brother wrote about us getting our first pairs in Florida in 1989.
In 1987 Scott DH or something homemade were your only aero-bar choices. Although Mike Pigg and Scott Tinley used Aerolites at Hawaii in 1987. Were these prototypes? Aerolite didn’t run an ad in Triathlete until July 1988.
And then there were MB bars. Also talked about in TSP3. And the Australian clip-ons. See Hawaii video. Which as far as I know became the generation 1 Scott clip-ons. The Greg Lemond ones. After Scott bought the idea.
For the 1988 season Mark Allen, Scott Tinley, Mike Pigg and Dave Scott were all on Profiles one-piece bar. The Aero 1. Profile almost certainly had a bigger sponsorship and marketing budget than Scott.
In 1988 Scott didn’t run a single advertisement in Triathlete (USA) magazine. But they’ll bounce back in 1989 due to the Lemond Effect.
You also had a few other choices in 1988. See the articles below. But I’m guessing that all the brands except Profile hadn’t bought into Scott’s patent. And will probably soon get shut down. I like the Sark Bars. With the stem mount. Convenient yet somewhat sketchy.
