This past weekend the racing season properly began in earnest. Not to detract from the Tour Down Under or the early season racing in warmer climates like the UAE Tour, but for many of us the season only begins when we see racers clattering over musky cobbles, and panicked Italian neo pros wearing every layer imaginable, unable to comprehend that someone would stage a bike race in sideways hail.
After a train journey, a long drive, another train journey, and another long drive I arrived in Ghent, armed with a camera, a press pass and a curious disposition. If you want to know all the tech trends from opening weekend then I've already scribbled down my thoughts on where Classics tech is headed, and what we can learn from it for the upcoming season.
Now, though, I'm going to try and bring you a flavour of what the pit area for Omloop Het Niewsblad is like. The sign-on for the men's and women's race takes place in a large aircraft-hangar-esque exhibition hall. It's a little gloomy, a little grimy, the surfaces are rough and the atmosphere is febrile; it's a perfect metaphor for the classics season, though ironically when the cycling world's elite aren't gracing it with their presence, it's commonly found housing flower and plant displays.
Fortunately, the tech was shiny, and the music wasn't overly intrusive as the riders processed through the clamouring crowds to the stage.
Have you ever tried to park a car in a crowd and got a little flustered? If you have then you can appreciate the skill of the team bus drivers, piloting the sponsor-clad, mobile team headquarters through a throng of people into increasingly tight spots. Hats off!
First up I headed to the big pink bus of EF Education-Easy Post, mostly because it's the most eye-catching. The team's Cannondale SuperSix Evo bikes have a wonderful paint scheme as always.
The Momo handlebar was launched last year along with a new, upper-tier Lab71 frameset. While EF has been using the mid-tier HiMod frameset (and continues to do so), riders are at least now starting to receive the new cockpits.
Some riders still prefer to run a separate bar and stem, usually to get a longer position. While I didn't measure it, this FSA stem looks to be a 150mm, with the hoses extremely neatly wrapped in heat shrink below.
While super long stems have more or less gone out of fashion, Jonas Rutsch is flying the flag still in a big way. This FSA stem is 170mm, and no longer produced. I got in touch with FSA recently about this, and it appears the brand has a box of old 170mm stems reserved for pro use only.
As the team is Muc-Off sponsored, it of course has to use pink valve caps. More relevant from a tech nerdery point of view is that the team was very much in the minority by opting to use the Vittoria Corsa Pro Control tyres, rather than the faster, but less puncture-resistant Corsa Pro.
The team was also one of a couple that was using an unreleased Prologo bar tape. The tape has a heavily textured finish, effectively covered in raised rubber spines, designed to work in tandem with some unreleased gloves, which I also got a picture of later on.
I don't hold marketing slogans in much regard usually, but this is one I can actually get behind.
The Van Rysel RCR Pro bikes of Decathlon-AG2R are still fresh enough, both from a model and a brand perspective, in the pro peloton to be worthy of closer inspection.
In my opinion, if you didn't know this was a Van Rysel, you could happily pass it off from a visual point of view as a top flight race bike from any of the more premium brands.
The integrated cockpit, produced by Deda, looks to be well-shaped for ergonomics. The midsection of the bars before they meet the stem appear to be rounder, perhaps a design consideration for customers who want to mount things more easily to them.
A satisfied UCI commissaire, having finished inspecting the team bikes for any hidden motors.
The team was also using the new version of the Look Kep Blade pedals.
Speaking of Look, over at the Cofidis pit area the team are still using tubular Corima wheels. In a sea of matte black ubiquity, I do love to see a glossy carbon weave.
At the Lidl-Trek pit area, most riders were using the integrated cockpit option, but one rider still opted for a separate option. Given the very deep drop of the bars, I suspect this is more to allow him to use the bar shape of his choice, rather than any concerns about durability over the cobbles.
Autograph hunters often bring strange things to sign, but this woman certainly one-upped all comers by lugging around a partially built team bike. Full disclosure, I have no idea if she's part of the team, but nonetheless, it's certainly an unusual thing to be carting around the start of a race.
Toms Skujiņš, returning from sign on, dodges the crowds at speed.
As we've learned from chatting with the Soudal-Quick Step team, Alaphilippe, like the rest of the riders, is using latex tubes and cotton tyres. Usually, the team runs 26mm, but they go wider for the cobbles.
Team mechanics tend to fall into three categories when faced with requests for bike shots. The first are a surly bunch who view any attempt from non-staff to even look at a team bike with suspicion. The second are helpful, but like to remain vigilant and hover nearby. The final cohort are rare, and will simply let you take the team bike away yourself. This chap from UAE Team Emirates I feel would fit the final category, but pressed for time with riders exiting the bus to embark to the start could only balance Nils Politt's machine deftly with his middle finger.
Couldn't have done it without you... Pollit is a rangy rider, with one of the more extreme positions in the peloton. Note how far backward his saddle is slammed.
Now, I didn't take a protractor with me, but I'm pretty sure Tim Wellens' levers aren't UCI-compliant anymore. Regardless, it didn't appear to be a rule the commissaires were interested in enforcing on the day; I didn't spot any jigs being used.
Any guesses as to the content of Wellens "XX" bottle? Answers on a postcard.
Over at Ineos, the only real change in setup was in the tyre department. Here Tom Pidcock is running 30c Continental GP500 S TR tyres.
The new paint of the DSM-Firmenich squad is a real fan favourite, and drew a crowd.
As with most of the Vittoria sponsored teams, the Corsa Pro was the tyre of choice
At Lotto-Dstny some round bars were also evident. Someone needs to stick that finishing tape down though...
Over at Bahrain Victorious, Matej Mohorič shares a joke with 5x Serbian road race champion Dušan Rajović.
The gloves to match the new Prologo bar tape. Apparently, Mohoric has been using these since Roubaix last year and is very much a fan. From what I can gather the raised spines on the glove and tape are designed to mesh together to increase grip, and therefore decrease the force needed by the rider to grip the bars.
British champions rarely get a bike quite so distinctive as Fred Wright.
There is absolutely no mistaking this for any other bike. God save the King, beans on toast, apples and pears etc. ad. infinitum.
While the giant Union Jack catches the eye most, it's the little details that make the bike meaningful. The date and location of his national championship win is tucked away above the bottom bracket.
A Prologo Nago R4 137 saddle - Not a model that exists currently in the Prologo range.
While he didn't make waves at the pointy end of the race, Belgian superstar sprinter Jasper Philipsen's bike is certainly eye-catching compared to the (admittedly also lovey) iridescent purple of his teammate's machines.
Despite the roughness of the cobbles, Philipsen opts to use the 13g, 3D printed plastic Canyon computer mount
Sadly following the start of the men's race the crowds dissipated, though not entirely. It did mean however there was a bit more breathing space to look for anything noteworthy in the women's peloton.
Obviously, given the teams dominance and roster, SD-Worx was the first port of call. Here's the bike of world champion Lotte Kopecky, which I was absolutely not allowed to move.
Classics can be won on fine margins, and a few small layers of electrical tape keep Kopecky's computer rattle free in its mount.
Only Kopecky gets an oil-slick, rainbow SRAM Red cassette.
Her hoods are turned in, but not to an extreme amount. In contrast, her teammate Demi Vollering's hoods were arrow-straight.
The local crowd were keen to get an autograph, a photo, or just a glimpse of their world champion.
In contrast to the male riders, the women seemed to be a little more self-sufficient when it comes to race notes. Most of the men had theirs applied by mechanics, preferring to shelter in the team busses until the last possible moment. Here, though, Vollering, undoubtedly one of the biggest names in the sport, applies her own handwritten notes to her stem.
If anyone can decipher Vollering's notes I'd be most grateful.
Despite a mostly dry forecast, Christine Majerus was the only rider I saw the whole weekend opting to add a few grams for the sake of a dryer rear end.
Being meticulous is what makes a great WorldTour mechanic. Following sign-on, where the riders have ridden over the floor of an old, debris-strewn aircraft hanger, the mechanics wipe the tyres to clear them of anything sharp that could cause a puncture later on.
Curiously this Argon18 TT bike was leant up against the side of the Proximus-Cyclis team bus. The team is Ridley-sponsored, but it could easily be destined for a staff member.
Canyon-Sram always knocks it out of the park when it comes to paint. Only one rider, Tiffany Cromwell if memory serves me correctly, was opting to use the far more jazzy Ultimate.
The rest of the squad opted for the more aero, and slightly more plain Canyon Aeroad.
At the Uno-X bus, a stack of autograph cards lies in wait next to an extremely well-cleaned bus wheel.
These bars were likely the narrowest I saw all weekend, even more so when you factor in the inward tilt of the levers.
The UAE Team ADQ bar tape is a firm favourite of mine, though I imagine it's an absolute pain to wrap it as neatly as this.
At the finish, last year's winner Dylan van Baarle chats to (I assume) his parents.
Oliver Naesen's shoe cover game was top-notch, too.
Is there anything we've missed? Let us know in the comments below, and stay tuned to Cyclingnews for all the race results, news and features from our team on the ground throughout the classics season.
Thank you for your Cyclingnews subscription. We use our subscription fees to be able to keep producing all our usual great content as well as more premium pieces like this one. Find out more here.
