Alessandro Petacchi’s (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) Specialized Venge stands in the rain in Peebles(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Rapha-Condor-JLT rider Hugh Carthy left it late to get to start on his carbon Condor Leggero. Team rider Kristian House is rumoured to be opting for a steel Super Acciaio later in the race(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Philip Deignan’s (United Healthcare) aerodynamic NeilPryde Alize was dripping before the stage start(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Deignan – who’s off to Team Sky in 2014 – is a Rotor Q-Ring user (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
United Healthcare use exotic TRP R970EQ brakes which are claimed to weigh 116g per unit(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
TRP R970EQ are machined magnesium arms with titanium bolts (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Dan Martin’s (Garmin-Sharp) Cervélo R5 lies propped against the team bus(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The Irish AN Post-Chain Reaction squad ride Vitus Vitesse bikes – a brand made famous by the team’s godfather figure, Sean Kelly(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Thomas Lövkvist’s (IAM) Scott Addict with DT Swiss RRC 46 tubular wheels was one of the stealthier bikes at the Tour of Britain(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Lövkvist’s SRM speed sensor was mounted on the front wheel(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
MTN-Qhubeka’s Trek Madone 7-Series were propped up and ready to go as the rain fell a little harder just before the start(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Rapha-Condor-JLT rider Hugh Carthy left it late to get to start on his carbon Condor Leggero. Team rider Kristian House is rumoured to be opting for a steel Super Acciaio later in the race(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The internal cable routing port on the Militis Team exits the chainstay from a fairly central location(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Scully is using an FSA K-Force Light SRM crank(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The frame uses Raleigh’s full carbon C6 fork (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
39-year-old Petacchi (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) removed the integrated aerodynamic spacer on the Venge (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Mark Cavendish’s (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) CVNDSH branded Specialized Venge (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
A mechanic checks the SRAM brakes on Cavendish’s Venge.(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Alex Dowsett (Movistar) is a rider who likes a long stem(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
A Movistar rider with the day’s obstacles noted down.(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Nairo Quintana (Movistar) heads to the start with an aero version of the Catlike Whisper(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Domestic team IG-Sigma Sport use a mixture of Specialized Venge and Tarmac SL4 framesets. (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The Node4-Giordana team ride the same Pinarello Dogma 65.1 frames as Team Sky, but match theirs with a Campagnolo Super Record 11-speed groupset (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The Italian flavour on the Node4 bikes continues with this one-piece stem and bar provided by Most, Pinarello’s component arm(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
In 2014, Raleigh’s top bike will be the Militis Team, an electronic groupset-compatible update, ridden at the Tour of Britain by Australian Tom Scully (Team Raleigh)(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Crowds packed into the picturesque Scottish Borders town of Peebles to wave off Tour of Britain riders on a wet and wild stage 1 to Drumlanrig Castle in Dumfriesshire this morning.
Check out our gallery of the tech at the start of the 10th Tour of Britain.
Raleigh used the opportunity to show off the new Militis Team bike that will crown Raleigh's 2014 road range. Raleigh claims the frame weighs 880g for a size 53cm and the accompanying C6 fork, 385g.
Philip Deignan (United Healthcare) – who will bolster Team Sky’s climbing power in 2014 – was running rare and expensive Magnesium TRP R970EQ brakes on his NeilPryde Alize.
Alessandro Petacchi (Omega Pharma-QuickStep is back in the peleton after a three month retirement and his Specialized Venge had some neat touches to help him get as aerodynamic as possible.
Meanwhile Kristian House (Rapha-Condor-JLT) had a made to measure steel frame riding spare on the team car – which BikeRadar will feature later in the race.
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Sam started as a trainee reporter on daily newspapers in the UK before moving to South Africa where he contributed to national cycling magazine Ride for three years. After moving back to the UK he joined Procycling as a staff writer in November 2010.
