Tour de France 2023: Which Smart Trainers do they use?

Dive into all the behind-the-scenes details from the trainers to the cooling vests, fans to secret trainers in team vehicles, to how exactly the riders get to the starting lines.

I take you step by step through the team technical zone to show how it all works, from warm-up to UCI checks, to the starting line.

In this video I dive into all the behind-the-scenes bits on time-trial day, including which smart trainers they use. However, realistically, it’s actually quite a bit more than that in this video. I look at an interesting new trend in how the warm-ups are done, as well as some of the crazy cooling gear athletes and teams use. Plus, what happens step-by-step from when a rider steps out of the team van and to their trainer, all the way up to the starting line.

Interestingly, this is the first year we’ve seen a trainer in the technical zone that’s not from one of the big legacy trainer makers (Wahoo/Garmin-Tacx/Elite/Saris), so that was kinda fun to check out. Here’s the full listing of exactly what they’re riding, with all of these highlighted up in the full walk-through video above:

Elite Teams:

AG2R Citroën Team: Elite Suito
Arkéa–Samsic: Elite Suito
Israel–Premier Tech: Elite Suito
Cofidis: Elite Direto XR
Groupama–FDJ: Elite Justo
Intermarché–Circus–Wanty: Elitę Suito
Movistar Team: Elite Suito
Team Bahrain Victorious: Elite Suito
Team DSM–Firmenich: Elite Justo
Team Jayco–AlUla: Elite Suito
UAE Team Emirates: Elite Justo

Tacx (Garmin) Teams:

Astana Qazaqstan Team: Tacx NEO 2T
Ineos Grenadiers: Tacx NEO 2T
Lotto–Dstny: Tacx NEO 2T
Soudal–Quick-Step: Tacx NEO 2T
Team Jumbo–Visma: Tact NEO2T
Team TotalEnergies: Tacx NEO 2T
Uno-X Pro Cycling Team: Tacx NEO 2T

Wahoo Teams:

Bora–Hansgrohe: Wahoo KICKR V6
EF Education–EasyPost: Wahoo KICKR V5/V6
Lidl–Trek: Wahoo KICKR V6 + Wahoo ROLLR

Zwift Teams:

Alpecin–Deceuninck: Zwift Hubs

Interestingly and totally unrelated, this was one of the quietest years I’ve seen in the technical zone at a TdF time trial day. I’m not sure if it was because everyone was simply out on the course, or perhaps the location, or what. Ironically, it was BY FAR the most spectator-friendly technical zone setup for a TT stage I’ve seen in years. It varies by every single stage/day/town layout, and is often just a product of available land for all the team buses. But someone could have shot the same video as me from the sidelines without a media pass – a rarity most days. Still, there were very few people around. TV coverage does seem to indicate most were up on the course.

#cycling #tourdefrance #tourdefrance2023