As the world’s biggest cycling trade show, Eurobike is a chance for brands to show off their stock bikes and parts. But one of the joys of wandering the show’s massive and many halls is discovering bikes you'll struggle to see elsewhere.
These include bikes from bespoke builders, unreleased models from big brands and race bikes professional riders have specced out to their heart’s (and sponsor’s) content.
While Euorbike 2024 has drawn to a close, we thought we’d bring you four of our favourite custom bikes from the show, to give you a taste of what was on display.
Amapola Cycles’ technicolour race bike
Whatever your feelings about custom-painted components, there’s no denying that this Amapola Cycles race bike makes a strong case for a matching cockpit.
It’s hard to imagine a technicolour paint scheme like this not spilling over the bar and stem.
Amapola Cycles bikes are handmade in the Netherlands. This steel bike is fillet brazed and uses a mix of Dedacci, Reynolds and Columbus tubes for a ‘superlight’ build.
The frame is completed with a carbon fibre fork from Columbus, which – like the frame – routes everything internally.
Elsewhere, there is an integrated headset and a T47 bottom bracket, completing this modern steel road bike.
The build is completed by components from a range of brands. The painted stem and bar are from Deda. The bike has Shimano’s Ultegra groupset and C60 wheels wrapped in Continental tyres. The seatpost is supplied by Thomson, and the saddle and handlebar tape are from SQ Lab.
Giant’s prototype Trinity TT bike
Eurobike can often feel like a treasure hunt. Buried in its labyrinthine halls are yet-to-be-released groupsets, wheels and bikes, all waiting to be photographed and written about – or at least that’s our view. The brands may have a different opinion.
One example of an unreleased bike that wasn’t exactly hiding at Eurobike 2024 was Giant’s prototype Trinity time trial bike, dressed in custom colours for Jayco AlUla.
This new Trinity isn’t the biggest secret in cycling – Jayco AlUla’s Luke Plapp raced it at the Tour de Romandie in April – but it’s certainly a latecomer to road cycling’s disc-brake era.
With time trial bikes being updated less frequently than racing road bikes, the Trinity was one of the last existing models from a big brand to have rim brakes.
There are different ways of looking at this switch to disc brakes. The debates around the aerodynamics of disc brakes may have been put to bed. Developments in bike tech, such as disc-brake specific groupsets and wheels, could have forced Giant’s hand. Or maybe the improved braking and cornering that come with disc brakes are just too valuable when racing against the clock.
Whatever the explanation, the Trinity was getting old and this new version brings it up to date. We’ll have to wait for the official release to find out more.
A Sturdy Cilla with 3D-printed titanium parts
Sturdy says its new Cilla is an adventure-focused gravel bike, sharing its DNA with the brand’s Fiadh but with extra clearance, accepting tyres up to 50mm wide.
The bike is named after founder Tom’s late mother and is a “tribute to her curiosity for the great British countryside and love of the natural world”.
Like all of Sturdy’s bikes, the Cilla uses titanium tubing and 3D-printed titanium parts. The 3D-printed parts include the fork, bar, seatpost and cranks. But look closer and you’ll spot more – even the rotor lockrings are printed titanium.
The advantage of building a titanium gravel bike such as this is the geometry of every Cilla is customisable.
While it’s billed as a titanium gravel bike, Sturdy says the geometry can be tweaked to suit any riding style and that you can also think of the Cilla as an all-road, cyclocross or touring bike.
Anne Terpstra’s Ghost Lector
Alongside teammate Nicole Koller, Anne Terpstra won the 2024 Cape Epic racing this custom Ghost Lector.
As you might expect from a bike ridden at the Cape Epic, Terpstra’s Lector has a top-spec build.
The cross-country mountain bike has RockShox Flight Attendant throughout, including the front fork, rear shock and dropper post.
The Lector also has SRAM’s top-spec XX Eagle AXS transmission with a power meter crankset thrown in for good measure.
There are also SRAM Level Ultimate Stealth brakes, whose silver bodies are nestled next to Terpstra’s custom grips emblazoned with her name.
One of the most eye-catching features of Terpstra’s bike is the Bike Ahead Composites six-spoke, monocoque wheels. These appear to be the Biturbo RS wheels, which are made in Germany and cost just over €3,000.
As is a bit of a trend for pro bikes at Eurobike, the bike hadn’t been cleaned. Instead, it had all the dust and muck of racing on show. It still had Terpstra’s bottles in place, too, including a smaller top-tube mounted bottle to fit inside the small frame.
