Spanish crank manufacturer Rotor will soon have a left-crank-only power meter called the Power LT that will retail for £799/€990/US$1,490.
BikeRadar reported at the beginning of the 2014 Tour de France that Lampre-Merida riders are using Rotor cranks with Power2Max spider-based power meters and Rotor Power left cranks on their bikes.
“We are developing a left-crank-only power meter and are using Power2Max to compare the data,” Rotor president, Ignacio Estellés, told BikeRadar before the start of stage 1 in Leeds. "The team is part of the process. But pro riders don’t want to try prototypes; they need gear that works. We know Power2Max is 100 percent accurate, so we are happy to work with them.”
The new Power LT should be available with a few weeks, with a claimed weight of 520g for a 172.5mm crank model.
In addition to lowering the price, having a left-crank-only meter lowers the weight. World champion and Lampre-Merida rider Rui Costa is racing the Tour on a new Merida Reacto KOM with the system. "In the Tour, the difference is in the little details," Costa said in a press release. "I needed a light bike without sacrificing state-of-the-art technology. Now my bike will maintain the 6.8kg weight minimum without giving up a power meter in the hard mountain stages."
The power meter market has exploded in recent years, with left-crank-only Stages jumping into the game along with Garmin and its Vector pedals, plus PowerTap has lowered its prices. Rotor currently has a power meter, the Rotor Power, that measures left- and right-leg power.
Rotor Power is currently a left/right crank based power meter. Soon there will be a Power LT, a lower-cost option, on the left crank only
“We will continue to have our first-level power meter, Rotor Power, with left/right measurement,” Estellés said. “And with Power LT, we can be competitive with some of the other products out there. It will be good for us to have a family of power meters.”
BikeRadar reported in March that Rotor is developing a complete road group.
