In my continuing fascination with the Pro Tour it’s time to look at some of the other kit on the bikes and that is the computers each team use.
The SRM seems to be the computer of choice for many of Pro teams but at around $1000 it’s going to be out of reach most average riders. While power output is always going to be the best measure for training, the next best option is heart rate. It is for this reason I think the Garmin and Polar units are a better choice for the average rider. Both track heart rate but have the option to measure power but at around $300 represent much better value for money. In addition both units are GPS enabled which is always popular with the average rider.
For me, the noticeable absence is Cateye and maybe VDO, who are both well known cycle computer manufacturers and in my opinion much better than BBB computers, but I guess that is sponsorship for you. The BBB unit just looks cheap and is pretty featureless. I guess this is vindicated by the fact that Quickstep maybe sponsored to use BBB but you’ll still see Polar units on many of their bikes.
| Company | Used by | Model | Notable features: |
SIGMA Sport |
AG2R La Mondiale Other notable teams include TEAM EUROPCAR |
|
|
| SRM
|
HTC-HIGHROAD |
|
|
| Polar
|
EUSKALTEL-EUSKADI MOVISTAR Other notable teams include FDJ and Cofidis QUICKSTEP also use them even though they are officially sponsored to use the BBB computer |
|
|
| Garmin
|
GARMIN-CERVELO |
|
|
|
BBB
|
VACANSOLEIL-DCM |
MICROBOARD TEAM |
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Where did you get this information, specifically how did you know which teams were using the SRM PowerControl 7? I work in the Marketing Dept at ANT+ Wireless and am trying to find a way to reach you asap to find this out – please email me ASAP! We’re doing a post-race press release for our members/newsletter etc on the devices that have ANT+ in them that were used by teams at the Tour de France. My email is tess.adam@thisisant.com (I’ve also tried you on Twitter too…sorry for the initial stalking!)