A look at the dirt-covered aero race machine that the Dane raced to second
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Mads Pedersen's Trek Madone 9 Race Shop Limited for the 2018 Tour of Flanders(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The front profile of the aero-specific bike is designed to cut through the air(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The Trek Madone features an integrated aero flap for the front brake that reduces wind resistance and still allows movement via a springed hinge(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
Pedersen's hard fought second place is the most notable result of his young career(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
A closer look at the hubs of the new wheels(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
Bontrager and Trek launched the new Aeolus XXX wheel range ahead of the Tour of Flanders(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
Pedersen's bidons were still in the cages from the finale of the race(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
Here you can see how the outer tread of the Vittoria tyres are in a file pattern to help grip on the cobbles(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
A look at the Shimano Dura-Ace R9150 shift/brake levers(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
Pedersen used a Garmin Edge 520 computer(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The team printed the race course details on the stem of the cockpit setup listing each section of kasseien and hellingen(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
Pedersen opted for the integrated aero/stem cockpit system from Bontrager for the race(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The team's title sponsor decals adorn the head of the top tube(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The red frameset with white decals was complimented by the Danish flag of Pedersen(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The Madone comes with Trek's proprietary braking system(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The brand new Bontrager Aeolus XXX 6 wheels were paired with Vittoria Corsa Control tubular tyres(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
After over 260 kilometres of racing the drivetrain was suitably dirty(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
The bike is equipped with a full Shimano Dura-Ace R9150 drivetrain, including the Shimano R9100-P power meter(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
A look at the rear end and rear brake of Pedersen's Madone(Image credit: Josh Evans/Immediate Media)
Niki Terpstra’s solo victory at the 2018 Tour of Flanders may have made the headlines, but 22-year-old Dane Mads Pedersen’s second place was as impressive and perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the 102nd edition of the race.
The run into the race finish in Oudenaarde begins at the top of the Paterberg and consists of long, exposed stretches of road. Pedersen’s gap to Terpstra stuck at around 30 seconds in this finale, but with only 15 seconds on the chasing group — including Peter Sagan and Greg Van Avermaet — Pedersen being caught initially seemed inevitable.
Racing aboard the aero-specific Trek Madone, Pedersen would have been grateful of his bike choice in the final run-in, using an integrated aero cockpit, deep carbon wheels and the frameset itself for maximum aerodynamic efficiency when it was needed most.
Despite plenty of climbing along the 265-kilometre race, Pedersen opted for a slightly larger than normal 54/42 chainring combination to pair with the more standard 11-28 Shimano Dura-Ace R9100 cassette.
Shimano provides the Trek-Segafredo team with full Shimano Dura-Ace R9150 electronic groupsets and for 2018, the team switches from SRM power meters to Shimano’s R9100-P power meters.
Bontrager and Trek launched the new range of Bontrager Aeolus XXX carbon wheels ahead of the race and Pedersen ran the deepest Aeolus XXX 6 options. The wheels were paired with Vittoria Corsa Control cobble-specific tubular tyres.
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