As team leader, Rui Costa is the only Lampre-Merida rider to have the new Merida Reacto KOM frame at the Tour de France - Robin Wilmott / Future Publishing
The complete KOM bike sheds around 500g in weight compared to the Reacto Evo ridden by the majority of the team - Robin Wilmott / Future Publishing
The aero S-Post remains, but the is constructed as one piece rather than two, saving 50g - Robin Wilmott / Future Publishing
As befits the world champion, rainbow coloured wheels complete the KOM - Robin Wilmott / Future Publishing
A Vision stem, FSA K-Wing bars and Di2-specific cable port cater for Costa's needs - Robin Wilmott / Future Publishing
The ports for internal routing can be swapped between mechanical and electric - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
The Reacto KOM shares the EVO's Kamm Tail-heavy aero shaping but uses lighter carbon fibre and a new layup - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
With the direct-mount rear brake tucked underneath the chainstays, engineers were freed up in their design for the seatstay/down tube junction - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
FSA wants more visibilty for its brand, but logo stickers over the top of the handlebar tape aren't exactly ideal for riders - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
A closer look at the seatpost, which is effectively a 27.2mm post with aero fairings top and bottom - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
The Prologo CPC material consists of tiny silicone tubes - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
Costa and the rest of his team have Rotor Power LT cranks, as well as Power2Max powwer meters - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
The Power2Max spider is there as a reference point against which to test data from the Rotor Power LT - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
World champion Rui Costa is racing the 2014 Tour de France on a Merida Reacto KOM, of which there are only three in existence.
Designer Jurgen Falke told BikeRadar that Merida's aim with the new bike was to create something that retained all of the aero benefits of the Merida Reacto, but also met the UCI’s 6.8kg / 15lb minimum weight limit for bikes. Despite earlier statements that the bike’s aero and dynamic efficiency more than made up for its slightly heavier than average frame, Merida claims that Costa's complete Reacto KOM frameset is about 165g lighter than his previous Merida Reacto.
Falke outlined how some of the weight savings on the new frame were made. The use of different carbon in new layups trimmed 70g from the frame, he said, and another 30g from the fork. The aerodynamic and shock-reducing S-Post seatpost has been constructed in one piece, rather than the previous two, cutting 50g more, and Merida used light aluminium headset cups weighing just 15g.
The reacto kom shares the evo's kamm tail-heavy aero shaping but uses lighter carbon fibre and a new layup: the reacto kom shares the evo's kamm tail-heavy aero shaping but uses lighter carbon fibre and a new layup - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
The truncated airfoil tube shapes of the Reacto carry over to the Reacto KOM, but in a lighter package
Falke claimed that the complete new bike is a whopping 500g lighter than Costa's previous Reacto Evo, which we weighted back in February at 7.43kg / 16.38lb, so if, as claimed, the KOM hits the magic 6.8kg / 15lb mark, there has certainly been an intensive diet.
The Reacto KOM retains the truncated airfoil tube shaping of the Reacto, which Merida calls Fastback, and the direct-mount rear brake that is tucked under the chainstays.
Production and availability information is limited at the moment, but don’t expect to see one in your local dealer until 2015.
Costa debuted this bike at the 2014 Tour de Suisse, which he won for the third successive year.
With the direct-mount rear brake tucked underneath the chainstays, engineers were freed up in their design for the seatstay/down tube junction: with the direct-mount rear brake tucked underneath the chainstays, engineers were freed up in their design for the seatstay/down tube junction - Ben Delaney / Future Publishing
With the rear brake tucked under the seatstays, Merida designers are free to rework the seatstay and down tube configurations for aerodynamic gain
Robin Wilmott is a freelance writer and bike tester. He began road cycling in 1988 and, with mountain bikes in their infancy, mixed experimental off-road adventures with club time trials and road races. Cyclocross soon became a winter staple and has remained Robin's favourite form of competition. Robin has always loved the technical aspect of building and maintaining bikes, and several years working in a bike shop only amplified that. Robin was a technical writer for BikeRadar for nearly a decade, and has tested hundreds of bikes and products for the site. He has also written extensively for Cycling Plus, Velonews and Cyclingnews.
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