Bikeradar gallery

Tour tech: Kirchen gets a yellow streak

…but the SwissStop brake pads are!

  • Kim Kirchen (Team Columbia) set out from Brioude aboard a suitably bright yellow machine to start the day
  • Yellow handlebar tape is in keeping with the yellow front end.
  • Things are not quite so yellow towards the back
  • All the leading edges on the front of Kirchen's bike are picked out in yellow
  • Sadly, the saddle isn't yellow as well…
  • …but the SwissStop brake pads are!
  • A PRO Vibe carbon stem dresses up the front end
  • Kirchen's bike is SRM-equipped…
  • …and even the transmitters used during the Tour are now aero
  • …while Team Columbia has its own little widgets mounted behind the seat tube.
  • Who said it had to be fancy? Three zip ties work just fine for Barloworld
  • Lapierre's number holders are the only ones we saw that used a traditional top tube mount.
  • CSC-Saxo Bank prefers a small bit of metal to get the job done…
  • Cofidis rider Sylvain Chavanel started stage 7 with this specially finished KOM Time but he finished the day one point behind new leader David De La Fuente (Saunier Duval-Scott)
  • el ran Fulcrum RacingZero aluminum tubulars on stage 7
  • White tape, black levers, red accents… anyone else see a trend here?
  • A polka dot seat-post…
  • A KOM bike should naturally be fitted with a lightweight saddle.
  • Time's headset requires no compression plug to preload the bearings

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…but the SwissStop brake pads are!

© James Huang