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Tech gallery: More pro bikes at the 2012 Tour of Flanders

published 3 April 2012

Rabobank, Europcar, Lampre-ISD and others

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Rabobank riders were evenly split between the TCR Advanced SL and the Defy Advanced SL for Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Shimano's new wheels weren't hard to spot what with their stark white 'Shimano' logos.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Movistar used a mix of Pinarello Dogma 2 and Dogma K machines at Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Movistar's Campagnolo Record EPS front derailleurs are aided by these minimalist chain keepers.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

24mm-wide Vittoria Pavé Evo CG 'Team Prototype' tubulars for the Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator team, wrapped around traditional box-section aluminum rims.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator used a mix of Eddy Merckx EMX-5 and EMX-7 rigs at Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Rotor 3D+ cranks and Q-Rings are mounted on this Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator Merckx EMX-5.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Lotto Belisol riders mostly used the softer riding Ridley Helium at Ronde van Vlaanderen but there was at least one spare Noah perched atop the team car.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Landbouwkrediet-Euphony riders used Shimano Dura-Ace equipped Colnago M10 bikes.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Judging by this sheet, though, it looks like there was a plan to swap over to softer tires later in the race.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Lampre-ISD mechanics inflated the team's tires to standard pressures at the start of the race. (Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Danilo Hondo's (Lampre-ISD) Campagnolo Ergopower levers are each wrapped with a single rubber band.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Mechanical Campagnolo groups for Lampre-ISD.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Lampre-ISD used these Wilier Triestina Cento1 bikes for their run at Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Tidy cable routing on this Movistar Pinarello Dogma K.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Movistar was fully equipped with Campagnolo Record EPS electronic groups.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

A handful of Rabobank riders used Shimano's new prototype carbon fiber wheels at Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

The Rabobank team paint scheme unfortunately isn't available to regular buyers of Giant's TCR Advanced SL.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Very wide spoke flange spacing on Rabobank's prototype Shimano rear hub.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Rabobank's Giant Defy Advanced SL frames feature dramatic shaping that foster flex at the seat cluster for greater comfort.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Rabobank rider Jos Van Emden apparently has a strong affinity for San Marco Regal saddles.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

The Giant Defy Advanced SL is built with a longer head tube than the TCR Advanced SL but Rabobank team riders seem to be getting on with it fine. The tapered steerer tube measures 1 1/2" at the bottom but an unusually girthy 1 1/4" up top.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Critical sections of the race are marked on this Rabobank rider's cheat sheet.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

25mm-wide Continental Competition Pro Limited ProTection tubulars with Gatorskin sidewall protection for the Movistar team.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

This new SRM was a joint collaboration with Campagnolo, who had to build specific crankarms to fit.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Who says pros don't ride saddles with cutouts? This Movistar rider would beg to differ.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

The swoopy stays on Movistar's Pinarello Dogma 2 frame stand in stark contrast to the simpler lines of the Dogma K behind it.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Wilier claims the round-to-square head tube and similarly squared-off fork crown shapes enhance steering precision on Lampre's Cento1 machines.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

More aluminum Elite Ciussi bottle cages, this time on the bikes of Lampre-ISD.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Euskaltel-Euskadi's Orbea Orca carbon fiber seatposts work with either conventional rails as shown here or Selle Italia's Monolink design.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Euskaltel-Euskadi rode their trusty Orbea Orcas during the Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Who said we were only interested in bike tech? Four-wheel steering helps driver navigate the giant team buses through tight and often crowded European streets.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) rolls his Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL4 to the start line of Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Astana's Corima wheels feature paired stainless steel spokes joining carbon fiber tubular rims to aluminum hubs.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Ronde van Vlaanderen winner Tom Boonen's Omega Pharma-QuickStep team wasn't the only one on Specialized. The Morgan Hill, California company also sponsors the Astana and Saxo Bank teams, too.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

The Accent Jobs-Willems Veranda's team is using bikes from Belgian company Zannata.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Argos-Shimano also had traditional box-section tubulars prepared as spares.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Fat 25mm-wide Vittoria Pavé Evo CG tubulars for Argos-Shimano, glued up on all-new wide-format Shimano carbon fiber tubular rims.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Selle Italia saddles were fitted across the board at Argos-Shimano but Tom Stamsnijder apparently prefers the radical looking shape from Adamo.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Argos-Shimano was among several teams at Ronde van Vlaanderen sporting new Shimano carbon fiber tubulars.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Primary bikes for Argos-Shimano were finished in a relatively quiet matte black with neon green accents whereas these spares practially blend in with the team bus.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Europcar's Alexandre Pichot appeared to the be only person on the team running this Deda integrated bar and stem.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

The Campagnolo EPS battery and 'brain' is mounted underneath the down tube on Thomas Voeckler's Colnago M10.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Campagnolo once doubted how many riders would choose the dual-pivot rear brake option but the entire Lampre-ISD team did so at Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

FDJ-Big Mat bikes are equipped with PRO cockpits.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 satellite shifters on this FDJ-Big Mat Lapierre Xelius.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

FDJ-Big Mat's Lapierre Xelius frames feature integrated seatmasts.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Lapierre carries its logo all the way from the tapered head tube through the fork blades on FDJ-Big Mat's Xelius frames.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Sturdy aluminum Elite Ciussi bottle cages are fitted to the Lapierres of FDJ-Big Mat.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Hutchinson tubulars and Campagnolo Hyperon Ultra Two carbon wheels for the bikes of Team Europcar.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Campagnolo's new Record EPS group finds its way on to the bikes of Europcar.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Europcar captain Thomas Voeckler's second spare Colnago M10 was fitted with a mechanical Campagnolo group.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Europcar captain Thomas Voeckler's main spare bike was equipped with a Campagnolo Record EPS group.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

The chain keeper on this Europcar Colnago M10 comes courtesy of French company Aivee. Note the locking mechanism and dedicated concave washer.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

By the looks of things, this Europcar team vehicle was in a bit of a fender bender.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

Argos-Shimano's (formerly Project 1t4i) Felt F1 team bikes sit at the ready prior to the start of Ronde van Vlaanderen.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)

This article originally published on BikeRadar

Tech gallery: Pro bikes at the 2012 Tour of Flanders

Mild weather prompted teams and riders to stick to rather conventional gear once again for this year's Tour of Flanders, with just a few concessions made for the tricky cobbled climbs.

Fatter tubular tires were inflated to lower pressures, a few teams opted for modified or more 'Roubaix style' frames, and aggressively aero wheels were replaced with ones that would better cope with typically windy conditions.

We brought you a look at many of the bikes from key teams and riders at the Ronde van Vlaanderen earlier this week but here's a look at what else we spotted on race day.