exclusive peek inside riders’ luxury shared bikes for tour of guangxi

A few days ago, Bass Cat introduced the 18 teams' bikes for the Gree-Tour of Guangxi Road Cycling World Tour. However, there is still a 'mysterious' blue team that hasn't been introduced. Who are they?

Look at the picture below: Friends who are familiar with sports bicycles will certainly recognize the famous 'Shimano' logo. Yes, this is the world's largest bicycle parts manufacturer, the Japanese brand 'Shimano'.

Despite the large lineup, this team did not send a single rider to compete. What's going on? Actually, this is the neutral support team for top road cycling races. They provide wheelset and bike replacement services to any rider experiencing mechanical issues during the race, regardless of the team they belong to. In other words, they are the 'shared bikes' for the riders during the race.

Professional World Tour races select top-tier parts manufacturers as neutral support teams. For example, in the Tour de France, the French brand 'Mavic', known for producing high-quality wheelsets, has always played this role.

The configuration of the Shimano neutral support team for this race is quite moderate but very practical. The main structure uses an aluminum alloy frame. Although it doesn't match the pedaling performance of a carbon fiber frame and lacks an exaggerated aerodynamic appearance, it is sufficient for emergency use.

However, the drivetrain systems of these neutral bikes are top-notch. Most of them use the Shimano Dura-Ace R9000 series drivetrain/electronic shifting components (Bass Cat also saw a version with mechanical shifting components at the scene). As Shimano's top road bike components, Dura-Ace has become a must-have for most professional teams.

In professional road cycling races, riders wear clipless shoes that are fixed to the pedals to improve pedaling efficiency. However, each brand's clipless shoes and pedals are independently matched and not interchangeable. Thus, there have been embarrassing incidents where riders couldn't use the neutral support bikes because their cleats didn't match the pedals, including the famous Tour de France champion Froome. Therefore, in addition to providing their own Dura-Ace pedals, Shimano also equipped the bikes with Speedplay Zero pedals, commonly known as 'lollipops'.

If a rider has a flat tire during the race, the neutral support team only needs to replace the wheelset for them. Therefore, Shimano carries multiple Dura-Ace C35 wheelsets on the neutral support bikes. The 35mm rim height is sturdy for both flat and climbing sections. Although they are clincher tires (with inner and outer tubes, unlike the tubeless tires commonly used in professional road cycling races), they are sufficient for emergency use.

The tires are Vittoria Corsa clinchers. The tubular version of these tires has been chosen by many teams in this year's Tour of Guangxi.

The connection between the top tube and the seat tube of the frame is marked with the frame size 'CT: 52cm', which indicates the length of the top tube. Shimano provides spare bikes in various frame sizes to accommodate riders of different heights.

These luxuriously configured 'shared bikes' will provide excellent neutral support services for the riders during the race.

According to Shimano's staff in China, the neutral support team sent to the Gree-Tour of Guangxi Road Cycling World Tour is their European professional support team, which has experience in providing technical services for top-level races. This shows how much UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) values this race.

Good logistical and technical support is very important for professional cycling races. The work capabilities of these professional technicians are also impressive. Bass Cat once watched a video of Shimano's neutral support team replacing a wheelset for a rider during a race. From stopping the car, opening the door, the technician getting out, taking the wheelset from the roof rack, running to the faulty bike, and completing the replacement, it took only about 10 seconds, showcasing their superb skills!