The Tour de France has become a melting pot for experimentation – not just from manufacturers and teams, but the riders, too, who sometimes implement some ingenious hacks and adaptations to gain an advantage over their chief adversaries. While we expect to see a host of new bikes at this year’s edition – the Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL9 and new Orbea Orca Aero have already officially broken cover – there’s always an unexpected prototype or two lurking in the paddocks and peloton, and we’ll break that news as we spot it.
New frameset liveries have already started to break cover with none other than Tom Pidcock and Pinarello Q36.5 doubling up with a limited-edition Tour de France kit, too. As the race unfolds, we’ll see more special colorways as riders vie for the various Tour de France jerseys – Green (points), Polkadot (mountains), and White (best young rider) jerseys. We expect the GC leader after Stage 1 to be kitted out in yellow-themed paraphernalia come Stage 2.
Having spent a good few days this year trawling the paddocks at the biggest races, there have been some common themes seen employed by teams to ensure better integration and uniformity. Sometimes, manufacturers treat computer mounts and number holders as afterthoughts and don’t look at the details, which means riders and team mechanics need to get creative to ensure that slippery frame remains as fast once on the road.
This year, we’ve predicted what we expect to see based on common themes already employed, not to mention the hot weather and the most climbing metres we’ve seen from a Tour de France route in recent history.
3D-printed Leap Components computer mount
(Image credit: Aaron Borrill)
More 3D-printed components and accessories
Clever solutions to number board holders, computer mounts, chain keepers, and other nifty features have risen in prominence across the board in the WorldTour. We’ve seen many 3D-printing specialists coming out of the UK (RaceWare) and Europe too with Neat and Leap components – these companies step in when innovation fails to grasp the needs and ergonomic requirements of riders.
We expect to see a host of smart solutions employed during the TTT on Stage 1 and ITT on Stage 16. Keep an eye out for our mega tech gallery from the Grand Depart where we’ll unpack all the best tech hacks and finds.
(Image credit: Aaron Borrill)
The rise of stem spacers
Slammed front ends matched to long stems were standard practice in the past, allowing pro riders to funnel themselves onto smaller frame sizes to achieve a more forward-based position – which delivered a snappier, more manoeuvrable bike. As the science of the sport has progressed with more focus on biomechanics and rider comfort, as well as a better understanding of aerodynamics, riders are seeing greater benefits by utilising higher stacks from adding spacers under the stem.
Not only can this improve comfort but in certain instances, it can also boost aerodynamics, allowing riders to hold a better position for longer periods of time. With a race as long as the Tour de France, comfort will ultimately make riders faster in later stages of the race, meaning less aggressive setups will potentially lead to fresher riders come the last week of the Tour.
(Image credit: Aaron Borrill)
Wider tyres are here to stay but 28mm still has a place
While we did see a few riders using 28mm tyres at Opening Weekend in Belgium early in the season, the bulk of the peloton was using 30mm, with some using tyres as wide as 32mm. We expect to see 30mm used across the board at the Tour, as this width provides a good balance between aerodynamics, rolling efficiency and grip when paired with lower tyre pressures.
As always, time trial-specific tyres will be used by some teams, too – most notably by Continental and Vittoria tyre-sponsored teams and while these options are lightweight and offer better rolling resistance, puncture protection is not as good as regular compounds.
That said, we also do expect a few outliers to run 28mm tyres – particularly for the steep mountain stages where weight trumps aerodynamics. Considering the possible weight savings of up to 100g per pair over the 30mm equivalent, there’s potential to reduce weight without impacting performance by switching to 28mm on the high-mountain stages.
Return of the climbing bike
While last year was ruled by the lightweight aero bikes from Colnago, Cervelo, and Giant and all-rounders from Specialized, Cannondale, and Trek, we expect to see the return of a dedicated climbing bike – well, for some brands at least. Uno-X Mobility has an extraordinarily fast aero bike in the Ridley Noah Fast 3.0, but it’s fairly heavy, with weights exceeding 8kg in certain build specifications, putting the team at a significant disadvantage. Decathlon CMA CGM has the same issue with the Van Rysel RCR-F Pro, and Paul Seixas will want the lightest bike possible for the mountains.
With new dedicated climbing bikes spotted at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (formerly Dauphiné), Uno-X Mobility and Decathlon CMA CGM riders will now have the option of using a lightweight climbing/all-rounder bike for the high mountain stages of which there are many this year – with much steeper gradients and two ascents of Alpe d’Huez on Stages 19 and 20.
(Image credit: Specialized Bicycles)
Vented aero helmets
The aero helmet has come a long way, moving from solid shells to mildly vented options. Given the extreme heat expected this year and the faster speeds of the peloton, out-and-out aero lids are no longer paramount, and extra venting for cooling can provide a significant performance boost in the right conditions.
With more riders still wanting the fastest option but with added cooling for marginal improvements, helmet suppliers have looked at ways of preserving aerodynamics while adding extra vents – Specialized’s Evade 4 and Met’s new Manta are cases in point. While we expect dedicated aero road lids to become more versatile going forward, we also expect to see a similar approach adopted for time-trial helmets.
EF Education-EasyPost’s Ben Healy went all in on stage 6, utilising a POC Procen Air road lid, a Rapha Pro Team TT Aero skinsuit with cut sleeves and aero socks to secure stage honours
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Faster, cooler fabrics and rider kit hacks
This is one of the most rapidly developing areas of pro cycling, and it’s something we’ve covered in detail over the past year. Take Jayco AlUla for example and the Maap Pro Aero jersey that was developed for the team and used at last year’s Tour de France With a possible heat have hitting this year’s Tour de France, we foresee most teams rolling out special fabrics to keep riders cool as well as their skin protecte from harmful UV rays – while still offering aerodynamics gains at the typical pro peloton riding speeds.
Furthermore, on some of the breakaway days, we may yet again see riders getting creative and modifying their TT-specific skinsuits to combat the heat while keeping the tripping properties intact for extra watt savings. We saw this with Ben Healy, who masterfully trimmed the sleeves of his Rapha Pro Team TT Aero skinsuit to stay cool without negatively impacting the aero benefits – small yet effective modifications that helped him solo away from the group and win stage 6 in Vire Normandie.
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