Newly crowned 2024 UCI Women's Gravel World Champion Marianna Vos used the latest €3,898 Gravaa KAPS hub system for on-the-fly tyre pressure adjustment at this year's event in Leuven, Belgium.
Gravaa's design, officially announced in July, enables a rider to deflate and inflate their tyres using a bar-mounted remote during a race.
Air, a battery and a small compressor are housed in each hub, with an airline running up a spoke.
The system works using a clutch mechanism housed within the Gravaa hub.
With the clutch engaged, the system pumps up the tyre using the rotational movement of the hub via a tube attached to the spokes. Gravaa says that the system adds less than 250g per wheel.
Speaking to BikeRadar before the race, Vos seemed unsure of when she would employ the system.
"There are some tricky sectors and also quite a lot of tarmac so then it might be useful to use it but, of course, it also adds something in your mind, so maybe I will forget it."
However, the 3-time road world champion followed up by saying "I will try to remember it in the right sectors."
The Visma Lease a Bike rider lined up on her Cervelo Aspero 5 bike complete with a SRAM Red AXS 1X drivetrain. The setup is very similar to the bike she used at Paris Roubaix earlier in the year.
The team uses a range of components from within the Pon Holdings umbrella, with Reserve providing the wheels.
Mounted to these is a mixed Dugast setup with both of the brand’s TLR (tubeless-ready) tyres coming from the cyclocross range.
Vos opted for a slightly peculiar setup, combining a grippier Typhoon on the rear with a file-tread Pipisqualo at the front.
Commonly, riders in cyclocross would use a more aggressively profiled tread on the front tyre, where grip is needed. The rear tyre would usually be the faster option to reduce rolling resistance.
The setup was seemingly the right one with Vos edging out Kopecky for the win in Leuven.
