The budget disparity between national teams becomes apparent in the paddock
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Outside of a traditional WorldTour scenario, the disparity between the budgets of national teams becomes apparent(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Atop the Denmark women's car, the disparity becomes most apparent: a Storck Fascenario next to a Nakamura(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
While some teams have the very best kit for their spare bikes, some have to make do with tier-two kit. This is a Trek Emonda SL with an Ultegra 6800 groupset(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Czech rider Jarmila Machacova's number-one bike is a previous-generation, tier-two Specialized Amira(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Belgian Jesse Vandenbulcke was using a Wilier Cento1Air, with sponsors' logos replacing the frame's original paint(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The Netherlands' Pieter Weening was using a hybrid of Shimano Dura-Ace 9000 and Ultegra 6800 on his spare bike(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Greek rider Polychronis Tzortzakis' tyres clearly weren't new for the Worlds road race(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Shimano's Dura-Ace 9000 series is still present in the peloton, and was a common sight among nations without WorldTour-sized budgets(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Japan's Hiromi Koneko used this Yonex for her day in Yorkshire(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The Swedish team's spare bikes included two old Specialized Tarmac bikes with aluminium wheels(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Shimano Ultegra was a common sight among the bikes in the women's race(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Not every rider gets the latest models provided by sponsors(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
This Look 585 appeared to be the oldest bike on display: a 2006 model with 10-speed Shimano Dura-Ace(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The Portuguese team had this – a Jorbi Supreme – as a spare bike(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Symptoms of an earlier crash were still visible on Croatian rider Mia Radotic's bike. (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
One rider on the Japanese men's team was using this – a Benotti Fuoco(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Another surprising find was this 2012 Canyon with 10-speed Shimano Ultegra(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Shimano Ultegra 6800 was a common sight among the spare bikes of smaller nations(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Another Jorbi: this one is the spare bike of Portuguese rider José Gonçalves(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
In a departure from custom 3D-printed Garmin mounts, this Russian rider opted for a more agricultural solution(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
This Colombian women's team's spare bike features a well used 11-speed Campagnolo Potenza chainset(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
After a crash, big-budget teams will replace components immediately. That isn't an option for other riders(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Ireland's Alice Sharp uses a Focus Cayo with aluminium rims as her spare bike(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
This Team GB car, replete with Team-Ineos-supplied Pinarello F12 bikes totalling around £60,000(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
With all five of Kazakhstan's team being contracted to Astana, all bikes were supplied by trade-team sponsor Argon 18(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The value of bikes and wheels atop the Colombian team car equals approximately £80,000(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The SRM Origin power meter was on a number of the men's bikes(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
CeramicSpeed jockey wheels were fitted to an Italian rider's bike(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
This Argon18 spare features lightweight Corima wheels(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
More weight-saving in the form of these Lightweight wheels was seen on Estonia's Mae Lang's bike(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
All of the Mexican women's team ride for the same Swapit Agolico team, and were all using the Zerouno Elite bikes (Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Moving onto some of the other standout things we found in the paddock. Lukas Postlberger has his name and the Austrian flag on his Wahoo Elemnt Bolt(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Daniel Teklehaimanot (Eritrea) has a custom top cap which includes his name and the Olympic rings(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Laser's new Genesis helmet was on display on the USA's Chad Haga's head(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The new Look SRM Exact power meter pedals are being used in the men's race(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Sara Penton (Sweden) has a bell incorporated into her Garmin mount(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Even the best don't always get the latest kit: Irish rider Sam Bennett's cockpit features the previous generation S-Works Aero handlebars(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Mihkel Raim, the Estonian who rides for Israel Cycling Academy, has his avatar adorning his top tube(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Rory Townsend of Ireland has bar tape glued to the top of his aero handlebars for extra grip and comfort(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
While Garmin and Wahoo dominate the market, Lithuania's Evaldas Siskevicius uses the Sigma Rox 12.0 Sport(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Long stems might be common place in the pro peloton, but this Brazilian rider's stem measured 70mm(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
An offcut from a latex inner tube is a good way to hide your transponder(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Italian rider Marta Bastianelli's Luigino Verducci custom shoes are about as bling as they come(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Estaban Chaves (Colombia) was riding a custom Scott Foil RC Disc(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
The colour scheme is a nod to the Esteban Chaves Foundation(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Here's a look at the head tube badge(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A USA-branded bike was centre-stage on the roof of the USA team car(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Rohan Dennis (Australia) rode aboard a BMC Gran Fondo – a bike designed for long days in the saddle(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Defending champion Alejandro Valverde swaps the rainbow stripes for a more subtle Spanish theme(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Alice Barnes had custom GB-themed Boa dials on her Fizik shoes(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A close-up of this Lapierre's standout colour scheme(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
This pink Trek Emonda was spotted atop a team car(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
One of the women on the French team was also using custom Boa dials(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Hannah Barnes (Great Britain) was also using custom Boa dials along with Kalas aero socks(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Edvald Boasson Hagen (Norway) was using custom decals on his Enve wheels(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A Greek rider was seen using this wheel-valve balancing system(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
With the forecast looking bleak, riders took plenty of weather-proofing precautions(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Cycling caps under helmets were plentiful(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Greek rider Stylianos Farantakis had a makeshift fender(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Whereas Norway's Edvald Boasson Hagen had a sponsor-branded version(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
There were gloves aplenty at the start line(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Riders from naturally warmer climates were especially wrapped up(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Australian Jack Haig wore neoprene gloves at the start(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Adam Yates (Great Britain) started the day wearing multiple layers with even more stashed in his pockets(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Poland's Maciej Bodnar used Shimano's XTR disc brake rotors for as-good-as-possible stopping power(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
A number of the Bora-Hansgrohe riders were using their team-issue Velotoze overshoes(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
Castelli, the pioneer of the 'rain jersey', was a brand being worn by a lot of the riders on the start line(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
When your overshoes don't quite fit, the humble safety pin is your friend(Image credit: Josh Croxton)
An apparent budget disparity in the paddock
Walking through the team paddock at the UCI Road World Championships, it's easy to be distracted by the rows and rows of £10,000 bikes, with their pristine components, polished frames and brand-new tyres that have seen little more than a scoot across the car park.
But hidden between the luxury buses, crammed into car-park corners, sit the lesser-represented nations, rarely with more than a solitary vehicle to transport the entire team and staff, bikes and all. It is here you'll find the riders without that big-budget WorldTour contract – and some even without a bike sponsor.
These are the nations whose entire World Championships budget would fail to pay for the spare bikes sat atop Team GB's support car, yet it shows you really don't need the latest kit to ride at the top of the sport.
Federations such as the Netherlands, Germany and Slovenia's support vehicles were laden with spares for their star riders. A quick tally up of the retail value of these bikes sat at around £80,000 per car. Compare that with the Russian women's team - two of whom finished a race in which 63 riders didn't - whose support car sported a 13-year-old Look 585 running 10-speed Shimano Dura-Ace, worth considerably less.
Wet-weather gear
On a day when every Briton's favourite topic was the early talking point, with the weather causing a shortening of the route and the forecast looking to remain bleak, the start line for the men's elite road race was awash with wet-weather gear. Overshoes, fenders, rain capes and gloves were the order of the day as riders expected a grim day in the saddle.
Scroll through the gallery above to see all the tech on display over the final two days at the UCI Road World Championships.
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Josh is Associate Editor of Cyclingnews – leading our content on the best bikes, kit and the latest breaking tech stories from the pro peloton. He has been with us since the summer of 2019 and throughout that time he's covered everything from buyer's guides and deals to the latest tech news and reviews.
On the bike, Josh has been riding and racing for over 15 years. He started out racing cross country in his teens back when 26-inch wheels and triple chainsets were still mainstream, but he found favour in road racing in his early 20s, racing at a local and national level for Somerset-based Team Tor 2000. These days he rides indoors for convenience and fitness, and outdoors for fun on road, gravel, 'cross and cross-country bikes, the latter usually with his two dogs in tow.
