In the past few days we’ve been featuring some of the interesting and unusual bikes that were on display at Sunday’s Tour of Flanders. In this instalment CyclingTips’ roving reporter Dave Everett learns a little about Sep Vanmarcke’s custom Bianchi Infinito CV.
Over at LottoNL-Jumbo’s hotel on the eve of the Tour of Flanders, one bike that stood out among the celeste green Bianchis was that of Sep Vanmarcke. The Spring Classics hopeful had his Bianchi Infinito CV custom painted to celebrate his week at Flanders. Sep is the only rider on the team to use a Infinito CV throughout the entirety of the year, even for standard road stages.
His bike for the Classics has a paint scheme that, I was told, is supposed to look like the paint is being stripped away by the speed he travels at. Others at the team hotel suggested it looked more like it had been abused by a wire brush.
On the top tube Sep has in bold letters the words “Less Fatigue. More Control”, just one of several details on the Belgian’s custom frame.
For those that are wondering, Vanmarcke went on to finish a disappointing 53rd at the Tour of Flanders, roughly three and a half minutes behind the eventual winner, Alexander Kristoff (Katusha). You can bet Vanmarcke will bounce back at Paris-Roubaix this Sunday where he’ll be hoping to improve on his fourth place in last year’s race and his second place in 2013.
I hope you enjoy the photos of Vanmarcke’s bike below.
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- The rear stays on the Infinito CV are extremely square and chunky which is quite different to the majority of manufactures who are making their rear stays skinnier.
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- Only the pros get custom FSA K-Force stems.
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- Shimano satellite shifters are placed so Sep can change gears while on the tops of the bars.
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- The bottom bracket area on the Infinito CV is massive.
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- The iconic Bianchi head badge sits proudly on the scratched head tube.
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- Some light reading for riders who may get bored in the peloton.
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- The seatpost on the Bianchi Infinito CV look massive, compared to the smaller sizes many bikes are trending towards now.
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- Even the forks have been given the overhaul with the new personalised look.
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- Sep Vanmarcke had his name proudly on displayed on the head tube.
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- This top tube detail gives Vanmarcke something to read other than the usual race route information that many riders stick to their top tube.
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- Sep only has a single layer of bartape wrapped for the Tour of flanders. We will check back to see if this is the same for Roubaix.
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- New cages from the team’s sponsor Tacx. Like Lotto Soudal, they have been supplied with new cages that grip more firmly.
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- LottoNL- Jumbo were on Shimano’s C50 wheels for Flanders, shod with Vittoria tubulars.
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- Vittoria are the tubulars of choice for the LottoNL-Jumbo team.
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- Some of the team riders had dropped off their home training bikes to be spruced up by the team mechanics. You can see these are last year’s bikes by the old colour-way and the new decal stuck over where the Belkin was in 2014.
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- I thought this might have made some noise rattling over the cobbles on Sunday, but it turned out to be on a riders home bike, brought in for a tune-up.