Fatter tyres, grip tape and mechanics' innovations
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Davide Frattini’s (United Healthcare) Wilier Cento 1 standing outside the team bus, bedecked in K-Edge components(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Luca Paolini (Katusha) had a Shimano Dura-Ace climber shift button mounted for the stage to Elmali. Got a decent -7 degree drop too. (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Omega-Pharma QuickStep opted for 28mm tyres on Zipp Firecrest 404 wheels(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Each cobble sector marked. All 28 didn’t fit, so it carried onto the top tube(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Vandenbergh opts for a double bar tape wrap(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) opted for white bar tape and hoods (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
C50 wheels for the extra rigidity they gave over C35 wheels(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Van Avermaet (BMC) opted for a remote shifter under the right thumb on his BMC GF01(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Around the front of Van Avermaet’s (BMC) cockpit was a single ‘cross brake(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Speedplay pedals with the body removed on NetApp-Endura bikes (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Wanty-Groupe Gobert riders were on a mix of Kouta road and ‘cross frames(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The Belkin squad and Sep Vanmarcke had opted for super-wide 30mm tyres, pushing clearance right to the limit. It was difficult to see daylight through the seat-stays(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Shimano Dura-Ace remote climbing shifters are a popular choice on teams sponsored by the Japanese company(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Vanmarcke (Team Belkin) had an identical cockpit set up to his BMC compatriot Van Avermaet(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Team Belkin’s super chunky tyre choice looked aggressive on the Bianchi Infinito CV(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Lotto-Belisol had all sorts of kit pressed into action and included both Ridley Fenix frames and its super-light stablemate, the Helium SL(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The Lotto-Belisol team leader Lars Bak rode a rig that looked more suited to a mountain stage in a grand tour: a Ridley Helium SL frameset and Campagnolo Hyperon Ultra 2 wheels(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
The special edition Elite water bottles with Russian dolls (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Minimal clearance inside the Canyon forks for the bigger volume tyres(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Frattini’s K-Edge stem mount replaces a spacer on the steerer K-Edge(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
United Healthcare’s solution to the annoying, dangerous bottle bounce out the cages on the pave was simple – tightly nipped cable ties(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
FMB tyres were ubiquitous across the peloton – including on Edvald Boasson-Hagen’s (Team Sky) Pinarello. (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Clearance was minimal as many teams opted for 27-30mm wide rubber, but in the dusty conditions of the race, crud build up wasn’t a concern(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Sky’s solution to bouncing bottles was grip tape on bottle cage contact points(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
A remote Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 shifter mounted the opposite way to usual on a Sky bike(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Double wrapped bar tape was a feature of most team Sky bikes(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Topsport-Vlaanderen bikes were to have the cobbled sector notes mounted on the stems(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Jelle Wallays (Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise) defies peloton convention with his ultra-short stem on his Eddy Merckx EMX(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Trek Factory Racing arrived with Fabian Canellara’s bike at the vanguard – they even travelled with his SRM in situ(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
More FMB tyres: this time 27mm at Trek Factory Racing conundrum (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Specialized had set up a formal partnership with FMB, with the French company providing the cotton tubular and the Californian company providing the treads(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Luca Paolini’s (Katusha) spare bike was a bright red Ultimate CF SLX (Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Alexander Kristoff’s (Katusha) Canyon Ultimate CF SLX was standard, apart from turning the high-mounted mechanical Shimano Dura-Ace STI levers(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Some Katusha riders mounted Cane Creek cyclocross brakes(Image credit: Sam Dansie)
Paris-Roubaix is arguably the race of the year where setup from team to team, rider to rider diverges the most. As well as using the full armoury of kit at their disposal, teams often come up with their own unique fixes for irritating problems like bouncing water bottles and fingers slipping off brake levers, and do what they can to cushion riders from the bone shaking vibrations of pavé sections totaling more than 50km.
This year FMB tyres once again came to the fore and in a range of widths, too. The French specialist – a long-time provider of tyres to the top contenders - appear to have gone mainstream. They're fitted to a large number of riders' bikes this year and set up a partnership with Specialized, too.
In general, we saw widths ranging from standard 25mm to monstrously chunky 30mm tubulars on Sep Vanmarcke and other riders at the Belkin and Europcar squads.
Mechanics trying to find ways to stop bottles bouncing out ranged from United Healthcare's quirky use of cable ties to Team Sky's more sophisticated use of grip tape.
Check out our tech gallery of bikes from Compiègne.
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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.
