Jack Bauer required several stitches after falling face-first into a barbed wire fence.
If that sounds like a scene from American TV series 24 then think again. Instead, it was fate suffered by the fictional hero’s namesake, Garmin-Sharp rider Jack Bauer, at the Tour de France.
Bauer crashed on the descent of the Col du Glandon on stage 19 and was forced to abandon the race less than 48 hours from Paris. However, the Kiwi returned to the peloton at the RideLondon-Surrey Classic, which gave us a chance to take a closer look at his bike.
Bauer brought a Cervélo R5 – the Canadian firm’s lightweight climbing bike – to London. The frame was dressed in an 11-speed Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 groupset, bar the Rotor QRings and Flow cranks.
We reviewed the Flow crankset earlier this year and found the the cranks to be stiff, light and easy on the eye but, for an average rider, the aero savings are difficult to deduce. Every watt counts in the pro peloton, however, and a number of Garmin-Sharp riders, including Bauer and David Millar, use the Flow cranks on their road bikes.
Otherwise, Bauer’s bike was equipped with Mavic Cosmic Ultimate wheels shod with Mavic Yksion tubular tyres, 3T finishing kit and Garmin-branded pedals made by Exustar. The pedals are the same as those to be supplied with the Garmin Vector pedal-based power meter and Garmin-Sharp riders have been testing the pedal body for spring tension, feel and wear, but not the force meters which, of course, come as part of the long-awaited power package, available in UK shops from next week.
A bike fit for an action hero? Open the gallery above for a closer look.
