The professional cycling peloton is about to set off on its 104th Tour de France and there’s plenty to get excited about. The first stop for this unique travelling circus is Dusseldorf, where the racing kicks off with a 14km individual time trial. The Tour then visits Belgium and Luxembourg before arriving in France at the end of stage four. Nine out of nineteen of the road stages are listed as flat, offering up more than enough opportunities for the fast men to take the glory, while the three summit finishes promise to create some drama at the top of the general classification.
Both the German-registered team of Rafal Majka and Peter Sagan, and the superteam built around Marcel Kittel and Dan Martin, will be riding top-flight Specialized bikes in their quest for stage wins and the green jersey of the points classification.
Here’s the top tech being raced in the Tour, all of which you can actually own.
S-Works Tarmac Di2
The S-Works Tarmac is one of the most successful bikes in existence. It has been ridden to countless stage wins, multiple Grand Tour victories and is the bike of choice for many of the world’s best bike riders. Its Rider-First Engineered™ design ensures peak performance across every size of frame, and is partnered with the exceptional precision of the Dura Ace Di2 11-speed groupset. Sitting astride Roval CLX32 Win Tunnel Engineered carbon wheels and award-winning Turbo Cotton tyres, the S-Works Tarmac Di2 is the pinnacle of complete road bike performance.
S-Works Tarmac Frameset Bora-Hansgrohe
Only the best is demanded from the best cyclists on the world stage, and the S-Works Tarmac provides just that. There’s not much you can do to improve the most successful frameset in the world, but the bells and whistels on this particular machine come in the form of team livery. The Bora-Hansgrohe colouring, which wraps this FACT 11r Tarmac frame, might not offer any physical performance benefits, but the psychological effect of the race-proven turquoise and black will do even the least superstitious riders the world of good.
S-Works Venge Vias Pro Disc UDi2
For riders after pure speed, the S-Works Venge Vias sets the bar incredibly high. Two of the peloton’s most revered fast men will be sprinting with the Venge for company this year in Peter Sagan and Marcel Kittel. In fact, few would bet against the Venge crossing the line first on at least one occasion in the next three weeks. Every aspect of the Venge has been tested in the aptly-named Win Tunnel in order to create a machine which is almost unbeatable. With the FACT 11r frame, aero bars and Roval CL64 deep section carbon wheels, the S-Works Venge Vias is the stiffest and most aerodynamic frame Specialized has ever produced. This is one outstanding racing rig which will have its rider slicing through the air like a hot knife through butter, relentlessly outperforming competitors and the clock.
S-Works Venge Vias Frameset – Sagan Superstar
A brand new addition to the Specialized range, just in time for the Tour, is the celebratory Sagan Superstar edition of the S-Works Venge Vias frameset. This frame is the result of a collision between ground-breaking aerodynamic innovation and the personality and palmares of a charismatic two-time world champion. This frameset is the disc version, giving the machine superior stopping power to complement its mind-boggling aerodynamic advantage. Designed to pay tribute to the incredible Peter Sagan, this is the fastest and best-looking frame money can buy.
Be sure to tune into the racing from this weekend and look out for the Specialized teams who will rarely be absent from the pointy end of the peloton. Will one of these bikes once more carry Peter Sagan to green jersey glory?
