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Tour bike: “Purito” Rodriguez’s Canyon Aeroad

Joaquim Rodriguez rides aboard a stiff and aerodynamic Canyon Aeroad. The Spaniard will retire at the end of the season.

July 13, 2016 Dan Cavallari

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Tour — Team Katusha’s elder statesman Joaquim Rodriguez prepared for a training ride the day before the 2016 Tour de France Grand Depart. After the Tour’s first week, Rodriguez announced he would retire at the end of the 2016 season. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Purito's — Rodriguez, who earned the nickname Purito when he raced on Team Once, rides a Canyon Aeroad CF SLX. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Compliance — Rodriguez’s Aeroad combines the lithe agility of an all-rounder with the wind-cutting touches of an aero bike. Notice the aero shaping on the seat tube, and the dropped seat stays for both aero advantage and a bit of compliance at the seat post. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Branded — “Purito” means little cigar, a moniker Rodriguez earned after making a cigar-smoking motion toward his teammates on a climb early in his career. His teammates didn’t take kindly to the motion, meant to indicate the climb was easy. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Mud — Purito’s custom seat wears a spray guard during a training ride before stage 1. The conditions at the start of the 2016 Tour de France more closely resembled conditions you’d expect at the spring classics. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Little — Purito rides a Selle Italia saddle emblazoned with a cigar. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

SRAM, — Team Katusha runs SRAM drivetrain components. While some on the team have stuck with mechanical shifting, Purito opts for SRAM’s wireless eTap group. His crankset pairs with a Quarq power meter. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Wireless, — Rodriguez was using an 11-25T cassette for his early-tour training ride, though it’s likely he’s changed that out by now as the peloton tackles the big climbs. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Dimension — Behold the magic wand of the peloton. Like every rider, Purito’s saddle houses a transmitter that sends Rodriguez’s speed, location, and other information for both fans and teams to see in real-time. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Fin. — Television audiences have the advantage of knowing what’s coming; riders need to do their homework beforehand. Many riders tape papers to their stems with the stage’s big climbs, sprints, or key course features. Oh, and the finish. That’s an important one. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Blip — Rodriguez has some Blips remote shift buttons tucked away underneath the tops of his bars for easy shifting on climbs. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Zippy — Team Katusha riders are rolling Zipp 303s or 404s most days. Notice Purito’s not on Zipp’s new NSW wheels; that’s because the NSW wheels aren’t available in a tubular option. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Notice the material around the valve stem. It adds a small amount of weight, but it saves some sanity: without it, the valve can rattle around in the valve hole, making a noise that can drive the rider nuts by the end of the stage. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Slowing — Unbranded Shimano Dura-Ace calipers are Katusha’s brake of choice. The team breaks with its SRAM build here because SRAM does not yet make a direct-mount road brake. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

Hit — A big bottom bracket makes for responsive pedaling. This comes in handy on fast ascents or sprints, but can also lead to a fairly harsh ride quality. Photo: Dan Cavallari | VeloNews.com

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