Once a stalwart BMX company, then for years a budget-bike brand, this week Diamondback Bicycles announced its top-end road bike is going pro.
Optum Pro Cycling, a team that finished 2013 as number one in the USA National Racing Calendar, will outfit its men’s and women’s squads with Diamondback Podium Equipe bikes.
Like all pro-level bikes, the carbon frame Podium Equipe is fast, feathery, and stocked with top-end components. It retails for more than $10,000, though we’re sure Optum will customize its bikes even more for the rigors of the race season.
The team — full name: Optum Pro Cycling presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies — was launched in 2007. They are based in Minnesota and race all major North American circuit events.
For 2014, on the new bikes the team hopes to win and get on podiums at events including the Tour of California, Tour of Utah, and the USA Pro Challenge.