Tour Down Under 2014 – bike tech gallery II

<source media="(max-width: 320px)" srcset="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=90&resize=160%2C208, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=320%2C416 2x, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=410%2C533 3x" type="image/jpeg"> <source media="(max-width: 375px)" srcset="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=90&resize=190%2C247, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=380%2C494 2x, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=410%2C533 3x" type="image/jpeg"> <source media="(max-width: 992px)" srcset="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=90&resize=136%2C176, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=272%2C353 2x, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=408%2C530 3x, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=410%2C533 4x" type="image/jpeg"> <source media="(min-width: 993px)" srcset="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=90&resize=155%2C201, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=310%2C403 2x, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=45&resize=410%2C533 3x" type="image/jpeg"> <img class="wp-image-323991 size-portrait_thumbnail image-handler__image image-handler__image--aspect no-wrap js-gallery-grid-src-image" src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4.jpg?quality=90&resize=410%2C533" width="556" height="723" data-crop-width="" data-crop-height="" alt="Cleaning accounts for the majority of a mechanic's time. A clean bike is less likely to suffer wear and tear, so bikes are cleaned every day" title="1390871411376-1lqb25i5ghos7-23470f4" style="width: auto; height: 100%;"> Cleaning accounts for the majority of a mechanic’s time. A clean bike is less likely to suffer wear and tear, so bikes are cleaned every day David Rome/Future Publishing

As we saw with the Tour Down Under tech gallery I , racing in Australia holds many logistical restraints, and the mechanics tools and supplies are usually the first to suffer.

The mechanics, the hardest working guys of the WorldTour, leave their custom-setup trailers behind, service courses and huge range of spares, and instead make-do with the bare minimum for a week’s worth of racing on often brand-new equipment.

Our tech gallery II takes a look at what the mechanics brought, the little tricks they use and some of the jobs they do that go beyond ‘fixing bikes’.