There was a particular chill within the air as followers hurriedly made their method via the streets of Gent on the primary chilly however vibrant Saturday of March. Omloop Het Nieuwsblad marks the beginning of the European Classics season, one of the thrilling durations within the WorldTour race calendar. The lads’s race kicked off first simply after 11 am, adopted afterward by the ladies’s race.
Omloop begins subsequent to the well-known ‘t Kuipke Velodrome in Gent and takes place in an previous plane hangar-style constructing subsequent door. The huge curved ceiling allows mild, but it surely’s nonetheless a bit dingy within the far corners. Earlier than lengthy, the workforce buses and vehicles are pulling in, racking up the workforce bikes and making their remaining preparations because the riders signal on and put together for the race.
The WorldTour season kicked off in January, and we’re at this level conversant in the vast majority of new bikes and element permutations; nevertheless, the classics create their very own particular calls for, and larger tyres and some tweaks right here and there are nonetheless the order of the day.
I toured the pits earlier than the primary race of Opening Weekend and noticed as a lot fascinating tech as I may. First up, I am going to say it now: I believe riders are beginning to run extra headset spacers to assist them keep aero positions for longer. There have been loads of wholesome spacer stacks within the pits. I additionally discovered there are new tubeless tyres from Specialised within the works, which had been getting used at Pink Bull-Bora Hansgrohe, in addition to some thriller Roval wheels that the workforce remained tight-lipped over.
There’s loads of fascinating tech to pore over in right here, I’ve my eyes on a number of extra fascinating bits of tech for the second installment, which can come after Kuurne- Brussel-Kuurne tomorrow.
The vast majority of groups pull into this huge hangar-style constructing subsequent to the velodrome. Earlier than lengthy, the constructing was full of excited followers, busy workforce employees and numerous media retailers.
First, I visited Cofidis, the one WorldTour squad working Campagnolo Tremendous Report WR tools this 12 months. The workforce was utilizing 30mm Vittoria Corsa Professional tyres, and due to the sealed rim mattress, their Bora wheels don’t require tubeless tape.
Spot the protecting tape on the rear of the Look fork, it appears to be like prefer it escaped the mechanics final wash, although…
The Groupama-FDJ Wilier Triestina paint jobs look incredible. The workforce welcomed new wheel and element sponsor Miche onboard in the beginning of the 12 months.
A pleasant customized contact right here on Luxembourg nationwide champion Kevin Geniets’ machine
Stefan Küng had round 30mm of spacers beneath his stem, he wasn’t the one rider with a wholesome spacer stack both. Slammed entrance ends could also be much less fashionable than they as soon as had been.
The Unibet Tietema Rockets Cannondale Supersix bikes stand out, the color co-ordinate Imaginative and prescient wheel brand’s match completely.
Good Pirelli / Imaginative and prescient coordination.
EF Training-Easypost Cannondale’s with 54/40T FSA Ok Pressure chain-rings.
Just a little additional branding by no means hurts, proper? That is an additional sticker on the EF MOMO carbon fibre handlebar.
3D printed saddles are extremely popular now; this might properly be a brand new Fizik Adaptive mannequin.
An Intermarché-Wanty rider drew the brief straw and appeared to have been chosen to run this digital camera for onboard footage through the workforce presentation. That is actually not aero.
These followers had been additionally wanting bemused on the unusual version on the Dice Litening Aero’s handlebars earlier than the race rolled out.
A neat Effetto Mariposa sicker serving to the Intermarché-Wanty mechanics to trace sealant modifications and ranges.
This is a fast shoutout to Matteo Trentin for having presumably the classiest handlebar setup on the race for Tudor. Spot the superbly even handlebar tape wraps, too.
This appears to be a reasonably particular fueling technique. Get your self over the Muur, and also you’re on the house straight.
The UAE mechanics instructed me they’re nonetheless receiving Y1RS bikes and that not each rider has one but. Additionally they mentioned the primary few bike builds had been difficult, however that they’re getting used to the brand new machines now.
I believe it is a customized aero transponder attachment for the UAE Colnago Y1Rs fork legs.
The neat UAE aero laptop mount was manufactured by Hinloopen Design.
Pink Bull-Bora Hansgrohe are at present utilizing some new, as but unannounced Roval wheels and Specialised Turbo tyres. They would not inform me a lot, however we are going to study extra because the season goes on. Spot the contrasting tyre colors right here.
Brief cranks could also be all the trend for the time being, but it surely appears there are nonetheless some 175mm crank arms within the peloton.
The Pink Bull mechanics weren’t giving a lot away, however there is a new Turbo TLR tubeless tyre within the works, and that is it.
The tread nonetheless appears pretty tremendous, and the mechanics wouldn’t say something concerning the tyres’ predominant function. I think it is a new race tyre.
The Lidl Trek bike additionally had a normal Zipp stem and one other wholesome spacer stack.
I headed outdoors at this level to attempt to discover the groups who hadn’t had room to slot in the hangar. First up was Uno-X Mobility, who’re racing on the brand new Ridley Noah Quick this 12 months. The brand new Noah should have the deepest head tube round for the time being, it really is a sight to behold.
A freshly waxed chain and CeramicSpeed OSPW for Uno-X. The setup helped Søren Wærenskjold take an surprising victory within the males’s race.
That is the brand new Ridley Nimbus cockpit, which pairs properly with the dropped headtube. It appears not the entire workforce riders have them but.
Some bikes had commonplace stems and various spacers, which in all probability is not fairly as quick. Although it did not sluggish the lads’s winner down.
Belgian bikes, Swiss wheels, Norweigan energy.
The Ineos Grenadiers Pinarello Dogma’s regarded as clear as ever, spot the carbohydrate combine quantity written on the bottles.
Ineos bikes use a neat built-in race transponder mount on the body’s drive facet fork leg.
The Ineos tubeless valves had been by far the shortest round. A slight marginal aero achieve, maybe…
That is Josh Tarling’s bike. At properly over six ft tall, he, as you may think, has fairly an extended stem and an aggressive place.
Astana’s X-Lab bikes are the most recent entry to the peloton, changing Wilier in the beginning of the 12 months.
The X-Lab AD9 has a deep aero-profiled fork dropout.
Astana are working Dura-Ace cranks with Miche chainrings with electrical tape over the logos to remain sponsor appropriate. Spot the tape on the highest left of the chainring.
The Workforce Flanders-Baloise workforce race on Eddy Merckx branded bikes…
However they’re really Ridley Falcn RS frames. A brand new Merckx body is in growth for the workforce for the time being. Ridley and Merckx are owned by the identical father or mother firm.
Lastly, I do not know what this implies, however a cheerful tyre should absolutely be a quick tyre.
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