Quite a few teams including Trek-Segafredo are using Shimano's power meter - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Katusha announced last week they'd be using Wahoo Elemnt Bolt computers - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Team Sunweb are all riding Giant's TCR Advanced SL 0 in Adelaide, with none of the new Propel's to be seen - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
All the riders are on the SLR0 Aero tubulars, which the women's team were riding last year - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Movistar had the new (as of October 2017) Aventor lids laid out for Wednesday's training ride - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Katusha is a SRAM sponsored team, but its Canyon Aeroad bikes have direct mount brakes which SRAM doesn't make. So the team uses these debadged Dura-Ace 9000 brakes - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
A few of the Dimension Data riders were spotted using these carbon fibre Rotor chainrings - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Bora-Hansgrohe where riding a previously unseen Specialized branded power meter - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Katusha were wearing the new Oakley ARO5 lids - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Peter Sagan was wearing a Specialized Evade and of course 100% sunnies - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Being world champ he's got a custom helmet - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
A few of the other riders were wearing what appears to be an Evade 2 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Many of the teams are still arriving and the mechanics are busy at work trying to get the bikes race ready - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Bora-Hansgrohe is also riding with Wahoo Elemnt Bolts for 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Many of the Astana riders were wearing the new Limar Ultralight Lux. We're not sure what the red bumper in the vent is however - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
UAE Team Emirates were sporting the MET Trenta 3k Carbon helmets - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
George Bennett and Craig Geater are stoked for the racing in Adelaide - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Will Sunweb live up to their hashtag? - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Dimension Data also had a few riders in the new Oakley ARO5 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
They also had a few sporting ARO3 which is said to be a bit more ventilated - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Team Sky have swapped from PRO components to Pinarello's house brand Most - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Dimension Data has ditched Fizik saddles for Astute for 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Trek will be riding only the disc brake version of the Emonda for 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Giant had specific race-only stickers to prevent the valves from rattling - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Michelton-Scott were running the same PC8 headunits as last year - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Caleb Ewan has a custom painted one-piece Syncros Bar and Stem combo - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Both Caleb Ewan and Daryl Impey were running an older Dura-Ace R9000 SRM power meter - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Dimension Data had kit bags laid out for the riders and labelled which cars they'd be going into - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Lotto-Jumbo were using Pioneer meters despite being sponsored by Shimano for components, shoes, kits and sunglasses - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
A few of the BORA-Hansgrohe riders had GoPro's on their bikes, however, the mechanics tell us it's just for training - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Katusa wants its riders to wear Sidi shoes, and if they don't they've gotta wear shoe covers - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
It's not often that you actually see pro riders using lights, here Nathan Haas is making sure he's fully visible out training - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Pro riders use frame pumps and saddle bags too - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Vittoria tubs waiting to be glued - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Organized chaos, LottoNL-Jumbo getting the bikes and equipment ready for the riders - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
FDJ uses old T-shirts to pad their bikes in transit - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Quite a few brands are jumping on short, wide saddles, here's the Prologo Dimension spotted on an FDJ bike - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
LottoNL-Jumbo are on the latest Fizik saddles - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
The Aliante Open has a new shape - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
All the new Fizik saddles have plastic bumpers - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
No outlet to charge electronic drivetrains? No problem, just us a power bank - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Katusha had custom red and baby blue Selle Italia saddles - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Lotto-Soudal has swapped from Lazer to HJC lids for 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
The entire Trek-Segafredo team was training with the Flare R rear lights - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
And Ion lights on the front - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Trek-Segafredo's Fumiyuki Beppu opted for a standard bar and stem on his Madone over the one-piece bar/stem combo. That means not only do the aero spacers not work, the cables also can't be routed through internally - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
The majority of the teams use the Subaru Outbacks provided by the Tour Down Under as team cars for the race, however Team Sky brought their own stickered up Fords - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Bahrain Merida riders are using blinged out SRM Origin power meters for 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
The LottoNL-Jumbo mechanics are very organised - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
It appears Syncros has its own version of the short, wide with a large cutout saddle - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Last year Team Sunweb played a pivotal role in designing the Giant Neostrack computer. This year they are using Sigma units - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
K-Edge out-front mounts are one of the more prominent brands in the WorldTour peloton for 2018 - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Peter Sagan and his Bora-Hansgrohe teammates are mostly wearing these eye-catching yellow and orange fluoro fade new S-Works shoes - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Sagan has also gone for the same custom finish he used in the 2017 season - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Nearly all the Bora-Hansgrohe riders' bikes were equipped with the oversized PRO Vibe Sprint stem - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Sportful has made socks in a fluoro finish to match the finish on the new S-Works shoes - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Specialized has also given Peter Sagan's saddle the world champion custom treatment - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Former world champion Rui Costa had an all white pair of the S-Works shoes with neat silver Boa dials - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Several WorldTour teams now have specific training jerseys, usually in a more visible design than their race jerseys - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
While his Team Sky teammates use Shimano Dura-Ace R9100 pedals, Owain Doull opts for Speedplay - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Team Sky have gone for a white and blue finish on their Kask Protones for 2018 to match their updated jersey design - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
A Quick-Step mechanic uses a power drill to speed up wheel changes on thru-axles - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
Each bike needs to be built and setup accurately for each rider following shipping the bikes to Australia for the WorldTour opener - Josh Evans/Immediate Media
AG2R is running the older Dura Ace 9000 SRM Origin power meter - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Last month Shimano said it would be providing power meters to Team Sky, however all the team bikes were equipped with Stages meters - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
It’s January and that means that the WorldTour descends on Adelaide for the Tour Down Under. The racing itself doesn’t get underway until Sunday, but as the riders begin to trickle in so does a boatload of new gear.
WorldTour riders are obligated to wear 2017 sponsor gear up until 31 December, even if they've transferred to a new team, so the Tour Down Under is often the first time we see riders in their new kit.
We’ve been in the pits with our eyes peeled and cameras ready, and have spotted a few interesting bits of tech so far.
Helmets, helmets and more helmets
Dimension Data also had a few riders sporting ARO3 helmets, which are said to be a bit more ventilated than the AR05 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Dimension Data and Katusha-Alpecin have swapped to Oakley lids for 2018, and Lotto-Soudal have changed from Lazer to HJC.
Based in France, HJC has been making motorsports helmets since 1971 and have three cycling lids in its catalogue. The helmet adorned by Lotto-Soudal is yet to appear on the company's website, but features similar design elements to the Giro Synthe.
Lotto-Soudal has swapped from Lazer to HJC lids for 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
A few riders from Bora-Hansgrohe are wearing a previously unseen model, which appears to be an update to the Evade, with a smaller profile and snub tail that has proven to be the fastest design in the past few years.
Movistar has updated its colours for 2018 and has outfitted its TDU team with the latest Abus Aventor, which was launched back in October.
Movistar had the new (as of October 2017) Aventor lids laid out for Wednesday's training ride - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Saddles
When it comes to seating arrangements, every rider has their own preference, and this is the place where mechanics are typically forced to utilise the most magic marker to make things sponsor-correct.
It appears Syncros has its own version of the short, wide ,with a large cutout saddle - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
It seems quite a few riders are big fans of short, wide saddles like the Specialized Power, with riders from FDJ sporting the new Prologo Dimension seats. Mitchelton-Scott’s bikes are adorned with a previously unseen Syncros saddle.
Among Dimension Data's new sponsors for 2018, the team has partnered with Italian saddle maker Astute, known for using tri-density memory foam in its perches.
Dimension Data has ditched Fizik saddles for Astute in 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
LottoNL-Jumbo have swapped from San Marco to Fizik saddles for 2018 and many of the riders are on the new Arione and Antares Open, which feature plastic bumpers on the edges that so often get ripped and slightly updated shapes.
Power meters
Last month Shimano said it would be providing power meters to Team Sky, however all the team bikes were equipped with Stages meters - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
In December, Shimano told us it would be supplying its power meters to six WorldTour teams; FDJ, BMC Racing, Trek-Segafredo, Mitchelton-Scott, Team Sunweb, and Team Sky.
Of those, all but Team Sky and Mitchelton-Scott were sporting the Shimano meters. Sky were still running Stages power meters on Shimano R9100 cranks while Mitchelton-Scott were running Dura-Ace R9000 SRM meters paired with PC8 computers — it does appear that Mitchelton-Scott are riding last year's bikes though, because the Orica logo still appears on the fork.
Both Caleb Ewan and Daryl Impy were running an older Dura-Ace R9000 SRM power meter - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Spotted for the first time was the ultra Gucci SRM Origin power meter which was paired with Shimano’s R9100 chainring on the Bahrain-Merida bikes. AG2R-La Mondiale are still running Dura-Ace R9000 chainrings with the same SRM meters.
Bahrain Merida riders are using blinged out SRM Origin power meters for 2018 - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
House brand components
House brand components are having a strong showing in the WorldTour for 2018 with the Trek, Giant and Specialized sponsored teams running their own components, saddles and wheels.
Will Sunweb live up to their hashtag? - Colin Levitch / Immediate Media
Mitchelton-Scott is running Syncros components and saddles with Shimano Dura-Ace wheels.
Originally from Denver, Colorado, Colin now resides on the Gold Coast in Australia. Holding a media degree, Colin is focused on the adventure sport media world. Coming from a ski background, his father a former European pro convinced him to try collegiate crit racing. Although his bright socks say full roadie, he can often be found exploring singletrack or grinding down a gravel road.
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