Trek-Segafredo seen aboard brand new aero bike for first time
An all-new Trek aero bike has been spotted at the Critérium du Dauphiné(Image credit: Getty Images)
Just a couple of months after a brand new Domane was spotted at Paris-Roubaix, another Trek road bike has been spotted hiding in plain sight in the peloton. Today it's the turn of the Madone, of which it appears a brand new model has broken cover at the Critérium du Dauphiné.
The seat post appears to split, leaving a gap between where the seatpost mounts and the seat tube continues downward (Image credit: Getty Images)
Ridden by select members of the Trek-Segafredo team including Tom Skujins, the bike stands out thanks to its wild-looking junction between the top tube, seat tube, seat post and seat stays. From the images we have available, it appears the seat tube splits into two, joining the seat stays, which continue upward to join the top tube. The top tube then continues rearward and up into a floating seat tube, into which the seatpost sits. It appears that Trek's IsoSpeed technology has been removed entirely, presumably relying instead on the flex provided by this design.
The bike also has a deepened head tube, fork legs and a larger bottom bracket junction (Image credit: Sprint Cycling Agency)
Elsewhere, the bike appears to feature deepened tube shapes throughout, including a vastly deepened head tube and fork legs. The bottom bracket area also looks to have been bolstered, with the junction between the down tube and seat tube being considerably larger than before.
Here, the splitting seat tube can be seen in more detail, and the handlebar's mention of 'Madone' confirms that this is indeed the brand's aero bike (Image credit: Getty Images)
The Madone is Trek's out-and-out aero bike, sitting alongside the endurance-focused Domane and lightweight Emonda. In recent years, as the industry has seen a convergence between aerodynamic and lightweight and the Emonda was given a host of aerodynamic improvements, questions have been raised about what Trek would do with the Madone. Today's sighting leaves little room for doubt: Trek is going all-in on aerodynamics.
As yet, available images of the new bike are sparse, but we will continue to update this story as they become available.
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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.
