Two Elite Custom Cages carry the drinks(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Neat work where the internal routing junction meets the frame on the Think2 models(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Froome’s Dogma 65.1 Think 2 frame is set up for the mountains(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The bike’s only deviation from Sky team issue uniformity are the privately-sourced Osymetric chainrings – 42-54, the mechanic told us(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The 11sp compatible C24 wheels are part of a new range announced two months ago(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The 11sp compatible C24 wheels are part of a new range announced two months ago(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Nothing but top of the range Shimano Dura Ace Di2 11 speed for Sky’s leader(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The 1,100g Dura Ace C24 tubular wheels shows this bike means business in the mountains. They’re shod with team issue Veloflex Carbon tyres(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The 28-year-old’s bike carries the number 1 dossard thanks to Bradley Wiggin’s win at the race last year (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Clean leading edge at the front of the bike(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Clean leading edge at the front of the bike(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Shimano’s subsidiary component maker Pro makes Sky’s stem and bar combinations (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The handlebars on Froome’s bike are narrow – just 40cm centre to centre. (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
A well-worn Fi’zi:k Antares suggests Froome’s settled on the option(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
For the fifth stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné, Team Sky's Chris Froome had his bike set up with a 28-tooth big cog in preparation for the HC summit finish at Valmorel. After Froome’s success in the previous day's time trial, jumping from 11th to second thanks to a powerful performance on the flat course, he’ll be hoping to consolidate his position as the eight-day race really starts to head upwards.
When BikeRadar visited the Team Sky hotel in Chambéry the night before the fifth stage, Froome's bike was prepped and ready for a day in the mountains. A 1,100g Shimano Dura-Ace C24 tubular wheelset and an 11-28t 11sp cluster at the back were the giveaways, and together with Froome's engine they should be enough to cope with the road to Valmorel, which has an average gradient of around seven percent for most of its 12.7km length.
Sky bikes set a standard in uniformity in the peloton and Froome’s bike doesn’t deviate far from the roster of parts the British squad pulls from: Pinarello and Shimano and Japanese component maker’s subsidiary, Pro. The exception of course are those standout Osymetric chainrings, which are bolted onto a Dura-Ace SRM power meter crank.
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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.
