Jumbo-Visma may not to off to the start they had hoped in the 2023 Tour de France. Whatever rumored tension there might be within the team certainly isn’t based on their bikes: the Cervélo S5 and the Cervélo R5 road bikes.
Pictured below is the Cervélo S5 aero road bike Wout van Aert has ridden a majority of the time. The S5 is the go-to bike for a majority of stages of the Tour, while the lighter R5 road bike is ridden predominantly for mountain and climbing stages. This Cervélo S5 features a Sram Red eTap AXS drivetrain with 1x gearing, Reserve wheels, a Fizik saddle, and Wahoo Speedplay pedals.
See all the details below regarding why Jumbo-Visma chose a 1x drivetrain and more.
Here is the Jumbo-Visma Cervélo S5 ridden by Wout van Aert in the 2023 Tour de France. While the paint scheme looks similar to Jumbo-Visma’s normal black and yellow bikes, there are a number of little stars atop the otherwise-black frame, special paint for the Tour. (Photo: David Everett)Let’s talk about the 1x drivetrain choice, which outside of the Aqua Blue Sport and 3T sponsorship, hasn’t found much traction in the pro peloton. (Photo: David Everett)We first saw Wout van Aert riding a 1x drivetrain in Milan-San Remo earlier this year, but other Jumbo-Visma riders have used it to great success earlier this year. Out back is a 10-36t cassette, but its construction method – machined from a single steel block rather than pinned together – indicates it isn’t a stock Sram Force-level cassette. This is possibly a custom-made cassette with Sram Red-level machining and material choice, which I’d estimate saves around 50 grams of weight. And just above the chainring is a Wolf Tooth chain guide. Wolf Tooth tells me they thought they’d need to iterate this multiple times, but Jumbo-Visma loved the first one so much that they’ve stuck with it. It is designed to work specifically with the Cervélo S5 rather than needing a braze-on front derailleur mount, again for aero benefits. (Photo: David Everett)Wout van Aert has elected to use a 52tT Sram aero chainring up front. The rest of the team seems to go back and forth between 46T and 52T rings based on the stage climb profile. Attached to the chainring is a Sram Quarq Red AXS power meter. (Photo: David Everett)Why go with a 1x drivetrain? There could be myriad reasons, but a large advantage has to be with aerodynamics. Removing the front derailleur and second chainring is a marginal gain. Remember, these gains add up! (Photo: David Everett)Another marginal gain: Wahoo Speedplay Aero pedals. How much benefit do the aero pedals provide? Unsure, but anything helps. (Photo: David Everett)The Cervélo S5 is one of the most aero road bikes in the pro peloton, but based on our experience with it, the S5 is surprisingly light as well. (Photo: David Everett)Much of that aero benefit comes from an impressively-integrated handlebar and stem combo (Photo: David Everett)A key difference here between stock bikes and this bike is the bolt covers. Stock Cervélo S5 bikes look good, but the use of what looks like vinyl wrap makes airflow just a little bit smoother. Jumbo-Visma use Garmin computers; Wout van Aert has elected to use a Garmin Edge 130, the smallest computer in the lineup. (Photo: David Everett)The fork and nose cone area are integrated into one piece, again aiding in aerodynamics and offering more support for the iconic ‘V’-shaped stem. (Photo: David Everett)A cut-out downtube further smooths airflow from the fork and wheel through the rest of the bike. (Photo: David Everett)Saddles vary depending on the rider, so while others may be on Fizik’s latest 3D-printed saddles, Wout van Aert has opted for a tried and true Fizik Antares with carbon rails. (Photo: David Everett)In case there was any doubt as to whom this bike belonged. (Photo: David Everett)Wout van Aert’s bike here features a Reserve 52|63 wheelset, with a 52 mm rim depth up front and a 63 mm depth out back. Vittoria Corsa Pro tires in 28 mm should provide a nice, aero tire and rim profile with the wheel’s unusually wide 35 mm external rim width. (Photo: David Everett)Reserve wheel logos are generally limited to the small ‘Reserve’ name just by the valve hole. But the extra logos here give Reserve its sponsorship money’s worth. (Photo: David Everett)It’s a good-looking bike! (Photo: David Everett)
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