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Gallery: In the Pits, Tour de France Stage 1

A glimpse inside the calm before the storm of the biggest race of the year kicks off.

July 6, 2019 Dan Cavallari

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Brussels, — The Tour de France Grand Depart rolled out of the center of Brussels, Belgium — on cobbles, of course. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Brussels, — Teams arrived under blue skies and warm temperatures. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Niki — Niki Terpstra (Total-Direct Energie) will race the brand new Wilier Zero SLR. While Wilier developed its own wheel lineup to complement the Zero SLR, the team is contracted with FFWD wheels. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Richie — Richie Porte and the rest of the Trek-Segafredo squad are rolling on Project One Emondas and Madones for the Tour. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

What — A handful of riders are riding with onboard cameras clamped to the seat tube. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Rim — Remember when folks said disc brakes weren’t going to catch on? They caught on indeed, and a good number of riders are on them during stage 1; sprinters have been at the forefront of the switch. But Alexander Kristoff (UAE-Team Emirates) stuck with the tried-and-true rim brakes on his Colnago. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Alexander — Kristoff’s hopes focus on stage glory during the sprint stages. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

That — E-road bikes have certainly taken off. But they’re still frowned upon in the pro peloton, guys. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Greg — Greg Van Avermaet (CCC-Team) chats with the media before the start of Stage 1 of the 2019 Tour de France. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Adding — Team CCC mechanics had to add weights to the down tube of its bikes to meet the UCI’s weight regulation. The last-minute accommodation results from swapping out older wheels with the new Cadex components, which shaved a significant amount of weight from the race bikes. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Andre — Andre Greipel has a new team, but he takes the same nickname with him. Greipel the Gorilla showed off some custom graphics on his BH. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Andre — It makes the dream work. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Andre — New bike, same Greipel. The big sprinter should see some opportunities for a stage win early in the Tour. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Bradley — Sir Bradley Wiggins strolls relatively incognito through the crowds at the start of Stage 1. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Peter — He’s had a quiet season, but Peter Sagan is still a fan favorite. Crowds cheered madly for the Bora-Hansgrohe celeb. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Peter — Peter Sagan’s stem graphics may look ominious, but the message epitomizes the rider’s approach. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Toms — Trek-Segafredo’s Toms Skujins is appearing in his second Tour de France. Look for him in the breakaways. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Tony — Tony Martin (Jumbo-Visma) is a regular at the Tour de France, but he’s wearing a different jersey this year. Look for the time trial specialist to attempt to leave his mark during the stage 13 individual time trial. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Wout — Team Jumbo-Visma’s Wout Van Aert makes his Tour de France debut in Brussels. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Alexander — Alexander Vinokourov has been with the team since its founding.

Dan — Perennial contender Dan Martin (UAE-Team Emirates) returns to the Tour in hopes of making a case for the podium once the peloton rolls into the mountains. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Tejay — Tejay van Garderen is one of four Americans in the 2019 Tour de France. It’s his first time with his new squad, EF-Education First. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Tejay — What do you think: Is pink a good color for the American? Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Rigoberto — Rigoberto Uran (EF Education First) was all smiles before the start of Stage 1. EF-Education First is sturdy with GC talent between Uran and Van Garderen. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Fabio — Fabio Aru (UAE-Team Emirates) is another GC contender, but he’s coming fresh off an injury that kept him out of competition until June 9th. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Egan — Expectations are quite high for Egan Bernal (Team Ineos), who is fresh off an overall win at the 2019 Tour de Suisse. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Alexey — Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Eddy — The crowds cheered and cameras flashed as Eddy Merckx waded through the crowd before Stage 1 of the 2019 Tour de France. Merckx’s face appears just about everywhere you look in Brussels as the Tour rolls through the serpentine Belgian streets this week. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Chad — Team Sunweb’s Chad Haga scored the biggest win of his career at the Giro d’Italia. Can the American impress yet again at the Tour? Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Ben — Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

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