Where to buy cyclist Chris Froome’s full UAE Tour kit, from bike to bibs
Shop the legendary cyclist’s bike, jersey, wheels, bidon and more
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It’s 2018 and it’s stage 19 of the Giro D’Italia. Chris Froome, after three weeks of injury, is hoping to win another Grand Tour by snatching the pink jersey away from fellow Brit Simon Yates. What happens next will prove to be one of the greatest sporting comebacks of all time.
Froome makes a break with 80km to go – up the mountains and down again, alone, he rides like a man possessed. He crosses the finish line three minutes ahead of his nearest rival, proving, to one and all, why he is a legend of the sport.
This is how we think of Chris Froome – with the white and blue colours of Team Sky (now the Ineos Grenadiers) on his back, riding his Pinarello dogma.
But after 10 years, the seven-time Grand Tour winner has moved on and this year made his racing debut for his new team, Israel Start-Up Nation (ISN).
After his devastating crash in the fourth stage of the 2019 edition of the Critérium du Dauphiné in France, Froome has once again fought his way back to fitness, trying to regain his previously dominant form and begin his season at the UAE tour in February, marking the beginning of a run that will see him once again target a win at the Tour de France in June. He has claimed that he feels he has recovered fully from his crash, so we will see if he can compete once again at the top.
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But with a change of teams comes a change of kit and tech. It will be strange to see Froome in his new colours, but perhaps that change is exactly what he needs. And we’ve got our hands on the exclusive list of what he’ll be using in the United Arab Emirates.
The big change, of course, is the bike: previously on the Pinarello dogma F12, Froome will now be riding the Factor ostro VAM with disc-brakes, something that will take some getting used to after years of rim brakes. And because Froome has a reputation – rightly or wrongly – of staring at his computer, it is important we talk about his new unit, the Hammerhead karoo 2, made by a young brand trying to take on the likes of Garmin and Wahoo.
Most importantly, everything Froome will be using on his debut with Israel Start-Up Nation is available for you to buy. We can’t promise this kit will make you ride like Froome, but it will surely bring you closer.
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Bike
Factor Ostro VAM: From £5,200, Factorbikes.com
Froome will be riding the super-light aero ostro VAM in a 56cm frame. From the British manufacturer Factor, this is a bike which seeks to be good at everything; light enough for the climbs, aero enough on the flats and comfortable enough for a long day in the saddle. It is part of a generation of bikes – similar to his previous Pinarello dogma F12 or the Scott foil – which seeks to be a jack of all trades.
One of the great benefits of this bike is the ability to fit 32mm+ tyres, meaning you can adjust the comfort of your ride between the road and the cobbles. It only comes in a disc-brake model – as is the case with many new bikes – which, depending on your opinion, is either a plus or a minus.
Wheels
Black Inc thirty tubeless wheel: From £1717.35, Blackinc.cc
Along with the Factor frame, Froome will be using the lightweight Blank Inc thirty wheels in the UAE, of course with disc-brakes. However, the rim-brake model claims its textured brake track, which gives some abrasion to the surface where the brakes grip, offers an eight per cent braking performance increase in the dry and 13 per cent in the wet. The wheelset, as well as looking incredibly sleek, is also optimised for 28mm+ tyres, allowing a touch more comfort and flexibility.
Cycling computer
Hammerhead karoo 2: £359, Hammerhead.io
This year Froome will be using the karoo 2. Made by the new US-based technology company Hammerhead, the karoo 2 aims to be the “world’s finest cycling computer”. What does that mean for us consumers?
Let’s start with the bad: it is a bit fiddly to set up, and just not as simple to prepare as the Wahoo and Garmin, and took a bit of time to get the screen to show exactly what we wanted. The battery life is not quite up to scratch with the other computers – we got about 9 hours of use out of a single charge, which is more than enough for us – but is something to bear in mind.
But now for the good: The screen is simply the best on the market, with incredible resolution, and also smartphone-like touchscreen responsiveness. It is a delight. Typing and navigating felt like using a phone – simply exceptional – and the maps are fantastically clear. We also just really loved the look of the device, it is a bit chunky but looks great out front, looking and feeling like a premium product.
Once we had figured it all out, the data screens and options are everything you would want, and the choice of riding “profiles” is a nice touch. We feel that over the next few months, with the constant updates that are coming, it will only get better, and will soon be able to take the fight to the likes of Garmin and Wahoo. It’s a product we feel it’s worth to spend some time with.
Clothing
Jinga: From £12.96, Shop.israelcyclingacademy.com
So you’ve got the bike, and you’ve got the head unit, but now you want to be wearing what Froome is wearing too. This year it’ll be Jinga clothing, a brand founded by a retired Israeli rider who knows a thing or two about kit. Fortunately, you can get all the Israel Start-Up Nation-branded gear online – even including an ISN face mask for your café stops. The jersey uses Jinga’s most lightweight, breathable material and the bib shorts offer a middle channel in the chamois pad to allow for more “active” riding.
Jersey, £64.99 –Buy now
Bib shorts, £107.29 –Buy now
Socks, £12.96 –Buy now
Face mask, £32.40 –Buy now
Helmet
HJC: From £180, Wiggle.co.uk
HJC, a brand which has been manufacturing helmets since 1971, has teamed up with Israel Start-Up Nation this year to create two models that combine safety and aerodynamics while remaining ultra light. The two that Froome will be using are the furion 2.0 and ibex 2.0, both of which you can also own.
The furion 2.0 is great for racing – you’ll sacrifice a bit of comfort for performance and airflow, but for your serious training rides and races it is an excellent, well-built helmet. We tested it in our round-up of the best helmets and found that while it felt strange at first, we grew to like it.
The ibex, meanwhile, is a great option for longer days in the saddle – we also think it looks nicer than the furion. Both use the “selfit” system which does away with the usual dial but finds a precise fit every time via its snap mechanism.
Furion 2.0, £180 – Buy now
Ibex 2.0, £220 – Buy now
Water bottle
Elite fly 550ml bottle: £3.99, Bikeinn.com
A staple in the professional peloton, the Elite fly bottles Froome will be using will of course be ISN-branded. We have found that the Elite fly is one of the easiest bidons to drink from while in the saddle. It’s incredibly lightweight plastic makes it easy to hold with one hand and simple to get back in your bottle cage, while its cap is super easy to open and close with your teeth. You certainly don’t feel like you’re about to yank out your incisors, like with some other brands.
Nutrition
Maurten try out box: £10, Sigmasports.com
The final bit of kit you need to ride like Chris Froome is nutrition. At the UAE Tour, Froome and the rest of his team will be supported by Maurten products, which makes a mix of drinks and gels. While testing a variety from the company’s try-out box, we found they weren’t as acidic as other products on the market, meaning our teeth felt better after a ride than usual. The gels were not perhaps as nice as those from SiS, but they left less of an after-taste.
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