CCC mechanics add weights to bring Geschke's bike up to the UCI weight limit
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Simon Geschke's weight-limit-pushing race bike(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
400 grams of weights added at the bottle cage mounts bring the bike up to the UCI's 6.8kg limit(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Tubeless wheels and tyres are from Giant's new components brand, Cadex(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Top-tier Shimano components are used throughout(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
The Shimano Dura-Ace R9100-P power meter captures the data(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
CCC team are all using rim brakes here in Adelaide, but we've seen that a disc brake model also exists(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Giant's ISP (Integrated Seat Post) remains a feature of the new TCR(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Complete with seat-mast topper compatible with carbon rails(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
In this instance, it is topped with a Giant saddle. 'Forward' denotes it's suitability to an aggressive forward position on the bike(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
It is the Giant Contact SLR Forward with carbon rails(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
The downside to a seat mast is the need to cut the post to the desired length - you don't have a lot of room for adjustment(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Disc brakes seem to be taking over the peloton, so the rim brake will be thankful for Giant's faith (Image credit: Colin Levitch)
As always at men's WorldTour level, Dura-Ace is the order of any Shimano-specced team(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Geschke's Garmin computer was unavailable(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Geschke's climbing shifters offer easy gear adjustment while on the tops(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Those CCC branded Elite bottles look great in the Australian sunshine(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
A race number is superglued to the rear of the seatpost(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Separate entry points for brake cables and Di2 wiring(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Like the bike, Geschke's CCC team use lightweight bottles - these are the Elite Fly(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
The new frame has an integrated down tube port for your junction box(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
This Giant bar tape is exceptionally grippy(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
The 130mm Giant stem provides a total saddle-to-bar reach of 560mm(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
The Giant Contact SLR handlebars are 40cm wide(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Geschke is running a standard 53/39 chainring configuration(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
RideSense is a speed and cadence sensor that connects via Bluetooth or ANT+ (Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Geschke's 11-30 cassette is still probably cleaner than yours(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Tubeless tyres are slowly taking over the pro peloton(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Shimano's Dura-Ace R9100-P Dura-Ace power meter provides left- and right-sided measurement(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
This is Geschke's number one bike(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
And that reference GIAN-026-RD matches the TCR Advanced SL from the UCI's list of approved frames and forks(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A new iteration of Dura-Ace hasn't shown its face as we'd hoped, but let's be honest, 9100 is more than good enough(Image credit: Colin Levitch)
Way back in June of 2019, the UCI's list of approved frames and forks saw one of its regular updates, and with it, the eagle-eyed among us noticed a new listing among Giant's fleet of UCI-legal models. A new MY21 TCR. For months, information was sparse and rumours simmered, would it follow the industry trend of dropped seatstays and aero cues?
The bike looks to be an evolution rather than revolution, in that Giant has bucked the industry trend of dropped seatstays in favour of the more traditional double-diamond frame. Giant's ISP (Integrated Seat Post) remains, although it has been treated to an update. The old model's seat tube and seat post are different thicknesses, whereas the new model sees them both sharing the same form.
Other differences include an updated more bow-legged fork, with integrated hose routing for the disc brake version, and an integrated down tube port for your electronic groupset's junction box.
Of all the bikes we got our hands on here in Adelaide, at 6.9kg, the new TCR was the lightest - even with the addition of bottle cage-mounted weights totalling 400 grams and tubeless wheels. Speaking with the CCC mechanics, we learned that with tubular race wheels and no added weights, Geschke's bike comes in at a feathery, yet UCI illegal, 6.4kg - considerably below the UCI weight limit of 6.8kg.
As yet, Giant has announced nothing official about the bike's release, and the model year of 2021 suggests the official launch won't be any time in the immediate future. The UCI sticker's frame code matches that on the approved list, but whether Giant make any minor - or significant - changes between now and the launch date remains to be seen. What we do know, is that the new TCR is race-ready and will be put to the test this week by Simon Geschke and his teammates here at the Santos Tour Down Under.
CCC-Team's Giant bikes aren't alone in their groupset choice. Fourteen WorldTour teams are running Shimano groupsets in 2020, and it's little surprise to see the top-tier Dura-Ace spec providing the shifting and braking. The carbon wheels and tubeless tyres come courtesy of Cadex, although we're told these are only training tyres - normal service will resume with Vittoria providing the race rubber on race days.
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Click through the gallery above for a closer look at Simon Geschke's Giant TCR
Simon Geschke's Giant TCR full bike specifications
Frameset: Giant TCR Advanced SL MY21 Rim
Front brake: Shimano Dura-Ace R9100 Rim
Rear brake: Shimano Dura-Ace R9100 Rim
Brake/shift levers: Shimano Dura-Ace R9150
Front derailleur: Shimano Dura-Ace R9150
Rear derailleur: Shimano Dura-Ace R9150
Cassette: Shimano Dura-Ace R9100 11-30
Chain: Shimano Dura-Ace HG901
Crankset: Shimano Dura-Ace R9100-P dual-sided power meter
Bottom bracket: Shimano Dura-Ace
Wheelset: Cadex 42 tubeless
Tyres: Cadex Race 25 tubeless
Handlebars: Giant Contact SLR 40cm
Handlebar tape: Giant
Stem: Giant contact SLR 130mm
Pedals: Shimano PD-R9100
Saddle: Cadex Boost
Seat post: Giant ISP
Bottle cages: Giant Airway Sport
Bottles: Elite Fly Team
Rider height: 1.71m
Seat height (from bottom bracket at centre): 720mm
Based on the Gold Coast of Australia, Colin has written tech content for cycling publication for a decade. With hundreds of buyer's guides, reviews and how-tos published in Bike Radar, Cyclingnews, Bike Perfect and Cycling Weekly, as well as in numerous publications dedicated to his other passion, skiing.
Colin was a key contributor to Cyclingnews between 2019 and 2021, during which time he helped build the site's tech coverage from the ground up. Nowadays he works full-time as the news and content editor of Flow MTB magazine.
