Team Garmin-Chipotle unwraps its new kit

Published July 3, 2008 07:38AM

American pro continental team Garmin-Chipotle presented by H30 made its Tour de France debut Thursday afternoon in Brest with the unveiling of its newly designed jersey.

Flanked by Jon Cassat, Garmin’s vice president of communications, team manager Jonathan Vaughters introduced the recently re-branded squad, which has been run as Slipstream-Chipotle since the outset of the 2007 season. The team recently announced a three-year deal with Garmin, a GPS company based in Kansas.

“We’ve been slowly and methodically looking for a partner that was appropriate for what our team is, and the innovation we try to put into everything,” Vaughters said. “We’re very happy to have a first-line title sponsor for the Tour de France and the next two years in Garmin.”

Cassat echoed Vaughters sentiments, adding, “We are the world leader in car navigation, but we see this as an opportunity to let our technology work in a new field. And we hope the Tour elevates the Garmin brand throughout Europe.”

Team owner Doug Ellis was in attendance, but did not join Vaughters on the dais. Team leader David Millar did, however, taking the stage alongside Vaughters and Cassat to display the new Pearl Izumi team clothing. With its white background and white shorts, the Garmin kit differs starkly from the blue and orange kits Slipstream has worn this year. The team’s trademark argyle motif remains, however in a more subdued fashion.

“It feels a little strange, looking at the whole team now,” Millar said. “It’s been a rapid development of what Jonathan and Doug have done. It was odd to look out the window of the chalet we stayed in the other night and see this fleet of Garmin vehicles. I think this new jersey and colors are representative of how far we’ve traveled and where we are now. We’ve become a prominent team in cycling and carry an important message. It’s not a new start, but it is another step up on the ladder of our success.”

Asked of the team’s chances during the Tour, Millar spoke of eight weeks of training camps that he and three of his teammates — Christian Vande Velde, Danny Pate and Ryder Hesjedal — have undergone following the Giro d’Italia.

“We have Christian Vande Velde, who can do well, I think he’s never gone so well in his life, but more than anything we want to be protagonists,” Millar said. “We want to race with panache and be a part of the race.”

A new start for the sport, as well?

As one of the first professional cycling teams to implement a third-party blood-monitoring program, beginning in early 2007, Garmin-Chipotle’s anti-doping stance is widely viewed as a positive step to stem the tide of doping scandals the Tour has encountered in recent years. Vaughters said that while he can’t predict the future, he senses that there is “a positive cultural shift” happening in pro cycling, and that this Tour’s story lines could stick to the racing.

“I’m proud that we were a catalyst of that happening,” Vaughters said. “I’m also proud of the fact that the sport as a whole has felt that change in the wind, a change in the spirit. I am extremely hopeful that this is going to be a fun Tour de France, and that the journalists are going to get to write stories about tactics and strategy and equipment and technology — and how we are going to have a leg up because of our new GPS technology.”

A GPS advantage?

Pressed to elaborate on how Garmin’s GPS technology could provide the team with an advantage, Vaughters explained that radio communication between riders and team directors largely involves letting riders know about upcoming road and wind conditions.

“Right now we are the only team that has a unit on their bikes that can measure power, speed, cadence, heart rate, temperature, elevation gain and upcoming terrain changes,” he said. “Our riders can look down and see all of this information. And for anyone who has ever been in the race caravan, you realize how fraught with error radio technology is. Sometimes the radios work, sometimes they don’t, sometimes you’re dealing with different languages.

“I know people think team directors are in the car controlling their riders with a joystick over race radio, but that’s not the case. Riders are more in control of tactics than directors, but riders need good information from directors to make good tactical decisions. Now they can make decisions based on what is in front of them. I know it seems small, but you would be amazed what a difference little things make in bike racing.”

Team Garmin-Chipotle unwraps its new kit

A new start for the sport, as well?

A GPS advantage?

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