Arashiro rode Merida's aero Reacto in Adelaide(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
No surprise to see 53-39t chainrings on Arishiro's bike and in the mechanic's defence we grabbed right after the team returned from a training ride(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Arashiro is rolling on Fulcrum Speed 40 tubulars (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
The Reacto's rear brake is hidden under the bottom bracket(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Arashiro's SRM speed sensor is zip-tied to the chainstay(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
The Bahrain bikes are getting a lot of flack for being ugly, but we think the paint job is pretty cool (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Peaking through the Prologo One Touch bar tape is a Di2 sprint shifter (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Arashiro's bike is still sporting the old Di2 shifters as well. It doesn't look like this set has hit the ground(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
The Japanese rider's Prologo Nago EVO saddle is covered in the CPC (Contact Power Control) panels(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Gold paint marker makes setting Arashiro's saddle height quick and easy(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
As with the majority of the peloton, Arashiro is running 25c Conti Competition tubs(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
The cranks on Arashiro's SRM power meter appear to be THM Clavicula's which are claimed to weigh 99g per arm(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
The Japanese rider is still riding Dura-Ace 9070 Di2 (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
To add a bit of vertical compliance to the aero seatpost, there is a cutout that's filled with a rubber bumper (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Arashiro's saddle is pushed all the way forward, which is interesting because the seat clamp can be flipped on the Reacto's seatpost to change the setback (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
The only Dura-Ace 9100 component on Arashiro's bike was the front brake(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Gold seems to be a recurring theme on the Bahrain bikes(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
At the beginning of the season, each Bahrain Merida rider was given a Gold SRM PC-8(Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Arashiro is riding 420mm Vision Trimax 4D handlebars (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
His stem is slammed, but the steerer is uncut (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Elite Custom Race Plus bottle cages carry Arashiro's drinks (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
The Reacto's cable routing doesn't allow for the brake and Di2 cables to be shrink-wrapped together (Image credit: Colin Levitch / Immediate Media)
Riding for the new Bahrain-Merida squad Yukiya Arashiro started his 2017 racing season in Australia at the Tour Down Under. Following a crash at the 2016 Tour of Qatar, which resulted in a broken femur, he managed to get back on the bike in time for the Tour of Japan in June where he took a stage win before going on to race both the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.
While the Japanese rider is no longer riding in the pink and blue this year, his Merida Reacto frame is largely unchanged, bar the paint job. He is still riding the same Dura-Ace 9070 Di2 drivetrain as last year, although he did manage to score a 9100 front brake.
Arashiro's got a new power meter, which is the latest SRM with carbon cranks that appear to be a collaboration with German carbon specialist THM — each crank arm is said to weigh just 99g. The whole Bahrain-Merida squad also received custom gold anodised SRM PC-8 headunits.
The finishing kit on Arashiro's Reacto comes from FSA, while the seating arrangements and bar tape come from Prologo with the Nago EVO CPC saddle and One Touch bar tape. Interestingly, Arashiro's saddle is pushed all the way forward on the rails, even though the saddle clamp on the Reacto Carbon Race seatpost can be flipped to offer a set back or set forward position.
The seatpost also has a distinctive cutout, called S-Flex, that's filled with a rubber bumper and is said to allow a bit of flex. Rolling stock is provided by Fulcrum and the Speed 40 tubulars are finished with 25c Continental Competition tyres. Spinning on carbon hubs, the Speed 40s are complete with Campy/Fulcrum's ultra smooth CULT ceramic bearings.
Click or swipe through the gallery above to see more of Arishiro's bike.
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Critical measurements Rider's height: 1.70m / 5ft 6in Rider's weight: 64kg / 141lbs Saddle height from bottom bracket: 690mm Centre of saddle to centre of bar: 720mm
