More black for the WorldTour peloton; white sleeve should help with identification
Trek Factory Racing presented its 2014 team and kit at the Roubaix Velodrome, the site of its big star rider, Fabian Cancellara’s victory last April, in front of 1,200 fans, Trek retailers, and fan club members. The new American team, which takes over the WorldTour licence of RadioShack-Leopard, also takes on much of the Luxembourg-registered team’s roster, including Cancellara, 2010 Tour de France champion Andy Schleck, and German veteran Jens Voigt, who will once again be the oldest rider in cycling’s top division.
“Today is a huge day in the history of Trek and this team,” said Trek vice president Joe Vadeboncoeur at the presentation. “We love racing and can’t wait for the season to start. This is a big step for Trek and big step for cycling. We have built an international team that will work hard to make the fans part of the team.”
Andy Schleck will be rejoined on the team by elder brother Fränk, who was not re-hired by RadioShack-Leopard after his one-year ban, as well as 25-year-old Tour de Langkawi winner Julian Arredondo. The team also brings in Dutch sprinting brothers Danny and Boy van Poppel from Vacansoleil-DCM and, while most of Cancellara’s Classics squad has been retained, it will be strengthened by the addition of Belgian time trial champion Kristof Vandewalle from Omega Pharma-Quick Step.
Obviously, the team will ride Trek bikes, with Domane and Madone frames for road races and Speed Concept for time trials, which will be equipped by wheels and accessories from Trek’s subsidiary Bontrager. As with RadioShack-Leopard, the team will continue to use components from Japanese company Shimano, while Bontrager will supply all the riders with shoes and helmets.
The race kit, also made by Bontrager, follows the latest peloton trend towards black, as seen with Team Sky and Omega Pharma-Quick Step, which may make rider identification in the peloton difficult.
The Trek Factory Racing strip, with its “asymmetric pinstripe pattern,” “reflects the promise of cycling’s future while paying homage to the sport’s culture,” according to the team, while the white right sleeve should help to make its riders stand out a little in the increasingly black-clad peloton.
For a full gallery of images, click on the first photo below. See some of the team’s top riders in the new team kit, a detailed view of the jersey and shorts, the new helmets and the team bikes.