(Dronten, Netherlands) ADA, the Dutch designer and maker of customized carbon fiber bicycle wheels, today announced that its high-performance racing wheels have been chosen as part of the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum's exhibition on "Extreme Textiles: Designing Performance." This is the first museum exhibition devoted to the subject of technical textiles-engineered materials designed for ultimate performance in extreme conditions.

"The goal of this exhibition is to reveal the incredible breadth of areas in which textiles are being used, and to provide inspiration for new approaches to design," says Matilda McQuaid, Exhibitions Curator and Head of Cooper-Hewitt's Textiles department. The objects featured in the exhibition are organized in terms of their high-performance characteristics-stronger, lighter, faster, smarter, and safer.

"I'm honored that our wheels are considered 'museum quality,' says Cees Beers, designer and builder of ADA wheels, "but I'm equally excited by how we've managed to combine cutting-edge textile technology with functional practicality. For instance, world-class riders can use our multi-purpose wheels as a front wheel or a rear wheel in a wide range of cycling disciplines, from track racing in an Amsterdam velodrome to a Tour de France time trial." ADA wheels have been ridden to victories by the world's leading professional cyclists, including Tour de France champions Jan Ullrich and Bjarne Riis; World Champions Johan Museeuw, Richard Groenendaal, and Danny Nelissen; and Classics' winner Frank Vandenbroucke.

In more than 15 years of working with technical textiles, Beers has perfected a technique that allows him to mold a rim from a single piece of carbon fiber, resulting in a seamless wheel that is stronger, lighter, and safer. ADA wheels also include round carbon fiber spokes that are wrapped in a braided Kevlar casing and bonded to the seamless rim during molding. The mix of fibers in the rim and spokes is customized to the weight of each rider and the intended use of the wheels.

The exhibition also marks the introduction of the ADA 120-gram cassette that is milled from a single piece of titanium and includes a 10-tooth cog.