The Dane will be racing on a rather special, custom-painted Trek Madone SLR
(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Trek has followed the trend of manufacturers unveiling new bikes and custom equipment at the Tour de France. The American brand and co-sponsor of Trek- Segafredo which has become Lidl-Trek, unveiled a seriously eye-catching custom-painted iridescent Trek Madone SLR for Danish star Mads Pederson ahead of the race's first stage in Bilbao.
The Tour de France usually sees teams and individual riders issued with special equipment and one-off bikes. Due to its position at the tip of the WorldTour pyramid, the biggest bike race in the world presents an excellent shop window for teams, brands and manufacturers to release designs and equipment that stand out from the rest.
Pederson will surely arrive at the Tour with hopes after taking a stage win at the Giro d'Italia in May, becoming the 105th rider to win a stage at all three Grand Tours. A few days later, the ex-world champion then had to abandon the race ahead of Stage 13, it's probably safe to say Pederson will arrive at the Tour looking to add to his stage win last year
Tech Editor Josh Croxton is on the ground for Cyclingnews in Spain ahead of the races Grand Départ and managed to get some close-up snaps of the custom Trek Madone.
Pederson's bike appears to be a stock Madone SLR with an outrageous paint job. We think this looks close to the 'Ultra Iridescent' option from Project One custom paint programme. This custom option looks to cost around $3,850 alone. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
We are told Sram only supply these gold cassette and chains to current or ex world champions. This combo combined with the paint job takes the bike to the next level. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Pederson's bike appears to use the same components he's been running this year, we featured his rather special chain and cassette in our Tour of Flanders bike gallery earlier this year. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Check out that blue! Pederson is running his usual integrated Madone integrated handlebar and stem. The bar is pretty much slammed, and the bars themselves look to have quite an aggressive, deep drop. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Project One is Trek's custom paint programme, and from what we can make out, this is one of the most expensive options from the top tier 'ICON' range. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A big chrome 'Trek' logo will stand out in the crowd. Note the Lidl branded water bottles after the team's recent sponsorship deal with the supermarket chain. We hope to see these for sale in Lidl stores. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A name sticker is one thing, your name painted onto the frame is surely a step up. Note the eye-catching IsoFlow seat stay junction which rolled out when the Madone was launched at last year's Tour (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A piece of rubber - most likely cut-up inner tube - covers the fork leg transponder. There's a painted on Pirelli logo on the forks and Pederson's Bontrager RSL 51 wheels at least for now are shod with Pirelli P Zero Race tyres (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The team use Sram Red AXS groupsets and equipment. But Pederson's cassette and chain look to have received some sort of Nitride coating. Nitride coatings increase hardness and wear resistance on metal components (and also just look bling) (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
This looks like quite a low and aggressive position, especially when on the drops. The handlebar drops down from the highest point of the stem. The Madone has a deep, aero headtube junction, but the team also have the lightweight Emonda model for the high mountains. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The IsoFlow seat tube technology is eye-catching and was a key talking point for the Madone last year when the new version was launched. The diamond-shaped hole is said to aid compliance but also improve aerodynamics for the aero-focused Madone. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
This rearward shot highlights the diamond-shaped IsoFlow cutout. The project one paint transitions from a red / orange down into a blue with hints of purple around the edges. Bikes are tools for pro riders, but we don't fancy trying to touch up any paint chips on this bike. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
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Tom joined the Cyclingnews team in late 2022 as a tech writer. Despite having a degree in English Literature he has spent his entire working life in the cycling industry in one form or another. He has over 10 years of experience as a qualified mechanic, with the last five years before joining Cyclingnews being spent running an independent workshop. This means he is just as happy tinkering away in the garage as he is out on the road bike, and he isn’t afraid to pull a bike apart or get hands-on with it when testing to really see what it’s made of.
He has ridden and raced bikes from an early age up to a national level on the road and track, and has ridden and competed in most disciplines. He has a keen eye for pro-team tech and enjoys spotting new or interesting components in the wild. During his time at Cyclingnews, Tom has already interviewed some of the sport's biggest names including Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogačar and Alberto Contador. He's also covered various launches from brands such as Pinarello, Ridley, Specialized and more, tackled the Roubaix Challenge sportive aboard his own rim-brake Cannondale SuperSix Evo, tested over 20 aero helmets in the wind tunnel, and has created helpful in-depth buying advice relating to countless categories from torque wrenches to winter clothing.
