Team Lotto-Dstny, and specifically Maxim van Gils has been spotted at the Critérium du Dauphiné on what looks to be a new prototype Ridley bike ahead of stage one. The new bike is marked with UCI prototype stickers and features a matte black frame with chrome Ridley logos. We have also spotted a new BMC prototype bike at the Dauphine, as it seems manufacturers are rapidly gearing up to roll out new equipment in the run up to and during the Tour de France.
The Lotto-Dstny team have the Noah FAST aero bike and the lighter weight Helium to choose from. Aside from these models Ridley also manufactures the Fenix Endurance bike. This new prototype looks to clearly have different frame tubing profiles compared to the Noah FAST aero bike and could be a blend of features from a few different models in the Ridley line, perhaps replacing an existing model or bringing something new to the table.
Equipment wise, the bike build looks to be identical to the other team bikes, with the same Deda integrated handlebars and stem, Dura-Ace groupset, bling gold KMC chains and DT Swiss and Vittoria tyre and wheel combinations.
The above photo provides an interesting comparison between the teams existing Noah FAST aero bike and the prototype model. The new bike looks to have a different seat stay / seat tube join with a slightly less aero profile and slightly less seat stay drop.
The headtube is a slightly different shape too, and the top tube also seems to be more horizontal, though this could just be the camera angle. Perhaps this is a bit like the differences between the Specialized Venge and Tarmac, with Ridley streamlining the two models into just one bike.
The Prototype belonged to Maxim Van Gils, and given a race number is attached it's safe to say this bike will see action. Perhaps the whole team will be using the new bike come the Tour de France, where the UCI will roll out it's new equipment registration rules this year.
The prototype bikes looks to have an oval or teardrop shaped proprietary seatpost with a wedge clamp and rubber cover to help aerodynamics, and keep dirt and water out of the assembly.
The team also look to be running the newly launched this year Vittoria Corsa Pro tyres, which we have seen in the peloton for several months now but have only recently been officially released by Vittoria.
The frame is clearly different to the Noah and Helium Ridley models and looks if anything to have most in common with the Fenix, which is Ridley's endurance bike. It looks like more of an all rounder, rather than a hyper aero or featherweight bike.
The prototype doesn't appear to have the same fork crown with aero profiling as the Noah FAST. Perhaps this headtube and fork arrangement is actually faster. The bikes also feature the same bar and stem as the team Noah's at the race, though this unit leaves the top cap exposed and sitting slightly proud in the wind.
The above UCI prototype sticker confirms it this is a new kid on the block. The DT Swiss ARC wheels also came out top when we took a bunch of wheelsets to the wind tunnel for aero testing. Ridley has its own wind tunnel facility so perhaps it knows this already from its own testing and decided to go with DT Swiss.
As ever, stay tuned and we will update this page as and when any new information arises.
