It's official, the Tour de France has begun. It kicked off with a British one-two, with the Yates twins finally doing what most of the nation's cycling fans have hoped they would for the better part of a decade, breaking away together.
Cyclingnews currently has three members of the team on the ground. Stephen Farrand and Daniel Ostanek are leading the charge in the mixed zone, speaking to the riders to break the latest headlines from the race.
And I'm here on my own Tour; a Tour of the team hotels. I've brought my metaphorical binoculars and I've been trying to spot the latest tech, newest bikes, and tricksiest hacks. I've been up close and personal with various new pieces of equipment, taken a peek inside mechanics' trucks and kitchen trucks, and even visited the mobile barber brought to town by Alpecin (I forewent the offer of a haircut).
Below you'll find the fruits of my labour. I've spotted a handful of new bikes, one of which had never been seen before, and more than a handful of new components including more 3D-printed saddles, new tyres and nifty handlebars. The bit I find most interesting though is the quirky tricks and hacks; those neat marginal gains, comfort-adding changes and rider-specific preferences like adding a layer of foam to your pedals (…you’ll see!)
A prior warning here… this gallery is a big one, so feel free to grab yourself a coffee – or a Spanish Cerveza, depending on what time you're reading this – and settle in. I've segmented the page up, and you can use the links above to jump down to your chosen section.
See you on the other side…
New bikes
Let's start strong with a few new bikes, and first up. The 'prototype' Ridley, which appears to be a semi-aero, semi-lightweight race bike. This one is Caleb Ewan's and it weighed in the region of 7.5kg as you see it here.
The UCI sticker on the downtube gives us no clues as to its name, so we'll have to wait and see on that front, but it looks to be complete and ready, so we'd be surprised if it didn't launch before the end of the year.
This appears to be the new SRAM Universal Derailleur Hanger (UDH) too, marking the tech's first appearance on the road.
The second new bike is courtesy of Ben O'Connor's BMC, complete with its crazy explosion of stuck-on graphics.
It features a super deep head tube, almost certainly taking advantage of the new UCI rules.
It also features a super chunky bottom bracket area, presumably to add stiffness and aid power transfer.
This one's not quite so brand new - it launched just last week - but the Look 795RS bikes of Cofidis are also here, in a France-appropriate La Vie Claire colour scheme.
Fellow French team Arkea Samsic rode the new limited edition Tour de France Bianchis at the team's presentation, but have since switched back onto their original Celeste bikes.
Elsewhere, Mathieu Van der Poel has a stand-out white version of the Canyon Aeroad. The Aeroad is far from new, but this is a slightly adapted version with a new seatpost clamping mechanism after the original design was plagued with issues. I presume this new version will be quietly rolled out to replace the original, but we've heard nothing official from Canyon.
Another standout bike comes in the form of this limited edition Wilier Filante given to Mark Cavendish.
The final new bike is that of Simon Clarke, and for this one, we do know the name. It's a brand new Factor O2 VAM, and weighed 6.9kg.
The O2 VAM is Factor's dedicated lightweight climbing bike, and the seatmast shown here removes the need for an internal wedge clamp. It certainly has Giant TCR vibes, but the front end is integrated.
New tech
Accompanying the new bike is also a new set of wheels; courtesy of Factor's in-house component subsidiary, Black Inc.
That new wheelset leads us nicely into the other components we've spotted, and one of the most significant is the 'wet' specific Specialized tyres found at Soudal-QuickStep. They are the first wet-weather race tyre we've seen in cycling, as the sport continues to become evermore like Formula 1.
The tread appears similar to the Mondo tyre launched earlier this year, so I expect the difference lies in the compound.
The other new tyre, courtesy of Jumbo-Visma, was actually found at the same hotel as the two teams were sharing. It's a 28c version of the Vittoria Corsa Speed 'time trial' tyre. The tyre itself isn't new, but it's never been available in a 28mm width until now.
Moving back to QuickStep, and upwards on the bike, there was a new Specialized saddle aboard Fabio Jakobsen's Tarmac SL7. The European champion was using what is clearly yet another 3D-printed model, in what appears to be shaped more like the brand's Phenom model.
New 3D printed saddles are popping up all over the shop these days, and I spotted another over at the Jayco-AlUla bus. I presume this is going to bear the Cadex brandname when it eventually launches.
Another new launch came courtesy of GC favourite Tadej Pogacar, whose handlebar-stem combo is an unseen model from Enve.
There was also this new helmet from Uvex on show, the Rise Pro MIPS.
Tricks and hacks
In the Israel Premier-Tech camp, the Factor Ostro bikes have been fitted with lightweight seat posts from the Spanish brand Darimo.
Uno-X have done a similar thing, using seat posts from AX Lightness instead
Richard Carapaz, who has unfortunately already been forced to abandon, had Di2 Satellite 'sprint' shifters hacked into the rubber on the inside of his Shimano hoods.
Uno-X meanwhile had these super-neat handlebars with the Di2 satellite shifters fully integrated into the tops.
SRAM, meanwhile, offers a full-wireless version of its 'Blip' shifter, which Movistar have glued to the underside of this Canyon Ultimate's aero bar.
Jumbo Visma take marginal gains very seriously. On Jonas Vingegaard's Cervelo S5, mechanics have taped over the bolts instead of using the provided rubber bungs. This is a hack that probably saves less than 10 grams.
UAE's mechanics have also gone the extra mile on saving weight. This headset's upper bearing cover is 3D printed from thermoplastic, which is likely a touch lighter than the carbon fibre one supplied.
Most of the UAE team were also using aftermarket carbon fibre chainrings from Carbon Ti to save even more grams.
They're also using brake rotors from the same company.
Rather than removing weight, AG2R Citroen have added a small amount courtesy of this piece of fabric inside the out-front computer mount. The reason for this will be to hold the computer more securely, maybe even stopping it from rattling inside the mount.
Israel Premier-Tech have done the same thing, but in this case they've added tape over the top of the screws. We're unsure if it's because the screws come loose, or in order to hold the computer more securely.
AG2R have been forced to adapt their setup here in order to have a power meter on their bikes. The new Campagnolo Super Record Wireless groupset doesn't (yet) come with power, so they've paired the new shifters and derailleurs with the old crankset. They're also using the older cassette, too.
If you look closely here, you'll see '50T', which is the size of the single chainring that Jonas Vingegaard used on Stage 1.
That was paired with what looks to be a new, perhaps lightweight, 10-36T cassette.
All bikes in the race are required to have a race number mounted at the rear, and while most teams glue - or zip tie - a race number holder in place. AG2R have gone one step further by integrating the holder into the seatpost wedge with this clever machined version.
Bikes are also required to have a transponder mounted to the fork leg. Most teams will wrap this in a piece of inner tube to smooth out the airflow, but Astana have also added a piece of grip tape onto the fork to hold it more securely.
We're not sure exactly what's going on here on Caleb Ewan's Ridley. It looks as though the third bottle cage mount has been taped over, but the raised centre suggests that they've not actually removed the bolt from underneath. Perhaps it's a marginal aero gain, or perhaps Ridley is trying to hide the details of its new frame.
Israel Premier-Tech are definitely not using Continental GP5000 S TR tyres 👀
Dylan Groenewegen's Dura-Ace pedals have been given a layer of foam beneath where his foot goes. This is presumably to increase how tightly - or securely - his feet are locked into the pedals to make sure they don't come out when sprinting.
At the Lotto Dstny bus, a slow cooker was on the go, cooking up Molten SpeedWax for Victor Campanaerts' waxed chains. Interestingly, the mechanics told us that only Campanaerts get this treatment, while all other riders are stuck with the factory grease.
Uno-X, meanwhile, use CeramicSpeed's UFO service to wax every rider's chain, with a constant cycle of chains being returned to the Danish brand after a few hundred kilometres have been raced.
More cool finds
I'm a huge fan of Olympic Champion Richard Carapaz's golden-touch paint job.
I'm on the fence about this one, but given it was designed entirely by artificial intelligence, I'm going to tell people I like it, just in case the robot uprising does eventually come.
It features bands of pink floral touches.
As well as blue bands made up of mechanical details like gear cogs.
Love it or hate it, this is by far the most bling paint job in the bunch.
It's paired with an equally bling cassette and chain, which we're told are only available to current or former world champions.
Slightly less flash but equally notable is the new 'Team Pearl' paint job for Bahrain Victorious.
Alpecin-Deceuninck's flashy pearlescent purple paint is accompanied by these oil-slick Elite bottle cages.
This Morgan Blue chain keeper is far from bling, instead putting form over function as a way to keep the chain protected when the rear wheel is removed.
I spotted this GoPro atop the roof rack of the EF car before stage 1. We're unsure if it's for Netflix, for EF's own video content, or for race recon reasons. Whatever it's for, we're sure it'll capture some interesting footage.
There was another GoPro on the handlebars of this Team DSM bike at the Teams Presentation on the Thursday before the race. I didn't catch whose bike it was, but the camera was pointing at their face, rather than the crowds. 🤷♂️
Also at the start of stage 1, a team mechanic did a quick check of the tyre pressures. 4.0 bar was a little too high, so he dropped a little bit of pressure out afterwards.
The tyres in question were the GP5000 TT TR, otherwise known as time trial tyres. The stage certainly wasn't a time trial, but my colleagues saw riders using these very tyres at Strade Bianche, proving they're more than puncture-proof enough for a day on Basque tarmac.
In what is quite a serious flex, Mark Cavendish is the only rider in the peloton to get cycling shoes from Nike, the brand that famously doesn't make cycling shoes. This particular pair, though, was designed specifically for the Tour de France by fashion designer Sophia Webster.
Ironically, it's the shoes that give Cavendish his wings, not his energy-drink-sponsored helmet, because while Wout Van Aert and Tom Pidcock are here with Red Bull helmets, Cav's is adorned in Monster branding.
Sticking with the Manxman, and alongside his new helmet, new shoes and his new limited edition bike, Mark Cavendish also had this new British edition SLF pulley wheel cage.
Not everyone has the luxury of new things, though. This Intermarche Circus Wanty rider's derailleur had evidently been in a crash at some point during its life.
On the same team, this bike didn't have a power meter fitted. It's the only one we've seen all Tour that doesn't.
UAE Team Emirates aren't the only ones to have swapped their chainrings for an aftermarket option, Astana Qazaqstan have too, but in this case, alloy ones from their sponsor Miche.
There were plenty of new computer mounts on show. This one isn't brand new, it was first seen when Canyon launched the Ultimate, but I think it's pretty neat. It's 3D printed, and this particular one looks to be slightly different - perhaps lighter - than the rest of the team's.
This one on Jonas Vingegaard's bike had a slight aero shaping to it and looks to be made from carbon fibre.
I think this one's the most interesting though, mainly because I have heard its backstory. It is made by titanium specialist, Tom Sturdy of Sturdy Cycles, then cerakoted black. They were originally made to fit the Edge 1040 GPS computers, but the team's resident marginal-gain-seeker, Dan Bigham, told Sturdy to shorten them so that riders could only use the smaller (and lighter) Edge 540 and 850 models.
I also spotted this mega-slammed Vision one-piece bar-stem combo. I didn't manage to get the dimensions, but reckon it's a -20 degree angle. #CertifiedSlammed indeed.
Behind the scenes
This next section can be seen as an ode to the team mechanics. They put in a serious shift in the days leading up to the race in order to build the bikes, keep them clean and maintained after each training ride, and ensure all marginal gains are readied in time for each stage. They have more than 60 road bikes to maintain, plus time trial bikes, and around 100 pairs of wheels.
Keeping them clean is a neverending process. Luckily, pressure washers speed up the job. It's not something we'd recommend you try at home, though, as the high-pressure water will remove grease from areas it's supposed to be, and accelerate wear on your components.
This AG2R Citroen mechanic was being extra thorough when preparing Ben O'Connor's new BMC for me to photograph.
This QuickStep mechanic gave me a good soaking shortly after this shot. It probably served me right for being nosy.
Compressed air was the usual method of drying groupset components after their wash, but this mechanic chose the old-school rag-in-hand method.
This ain't no way to treat a bike. Try harder Groupama,
The way the AG2R mechanics stacked these bikes and wheels was both aesthetically and functionally pleasing.
As was this line-up of Astana's bikes.
I was given permission to look around the inside of Uno-X's mechanics' truck. Danny, seen here, described it as a 'suitcase' because "everything is just stuffed inside." My favourite part was just how centrally on the workstation the coffee machine was placed.
That's probably because the actual tools were on this table outside, where the mechanics were actually working.
Here's one of them dialling in the geometry of one of his riders' bikes.
Meanwhile, other mechanics check the weight of their lightweight race bike. It is a bike that has no paint on the frame, nor the handlebars, and is fitted with an AX Lightness seatpost. Can you guess what it weighs?
6.91kg. Did you guess right?
How quickly do you think you could change a wheel if you had this?
Spirit levels don't come much more techy than this, do they?
Compared to the toolbox above, the QuickStep mechanics had a fairly similar setup.
While at QuickStep, I also stopped by the kitchen truck, which had been busy making these poke bowls. They looked even better in real life, and smelled amazing, though it probably didn't help that it was around 2 pm that I took this photo and I hadn't eaten lunch.
On this Specialized Tarmac SL7 at QuickStep, the seatpost was hanging by the Di2 battery cables while a mechanic worked on it. He wouldn't divulge the problem.
Strangely, two of that same bike, belonging to QuickStep rider Andrea Bagioli, were here propped up against a wall at the Astana hotel. Some impending transfer news perhaps? I'm unsure.
One of the more unusual finds was this mobile barbershop, which was parked up at the hotel where Astana and Groupama were staying.
It had a fridge full of Alpecin products, as well as a coffee machine which did a very good job of enticing a crowd.
And finally, I will end on what is perhaps my favourite find. We all know riders like to keep their shoes as white as they come, but we've never seen anyone go to these lengths to keep them that way.
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