Nat Bromhead
Norwegian pro cyclist Alexander Kristoff is a very lucky man for a number of reasons. Not only is he an ultra-talented rider and powerful sprinter, he gets to ride one of the most enviable bikes of the pro peloton, the latest Canyon Aeroad CF SLX. On top of this, his team have a mobile cafe that serves one of the best brews of coffee on the planet!
As 2017 Tour de France festivities slowly began to wind down on the Champs-Élysées, we at Bicycling Australia went snooping around the team cars to see what bike bling we could find.
In it’s bright red livery the Katusha team car stood out like a beacon. It was parked conveniently close to Katyusha’s aforementioned cafe and the Russian barista was as fascinated by Australia as I was about how he made such a perfect coffee.
Sipping the last of that desperately-needed caffeine fix, he pointed towards the cars and suggested I look at Alexander Kristoff’s bike before the team left for post-Tour festivities.
Adorned with a fleet of Canyon bikes that would make even a complete stranger to the sport look twice, Kristoff’s Aeroad CF SLX was positioned on the left side of the lead team car.
The bike’s painted in Katusha’s unmistakable fire engine red. With sponsors names & logos subtly adorning the seat stays, the bike screams ‘look at me’ but in a stylish, sophisticated, almost shy way.
It’s fitted with SRAM Red, wireless eTap, a Selle Italia saddle and bar tape and full in-house Canyon components.
Wheel wise, Kristoff rides nothing but the best. One of the few bikes of the Tour de France to wear them, the bike features Zipp’s top-of-the-range 454 NSW wheelset shod with Continental Competition Pro Ltd tubulars.
If you’re anything like me you’ll probably wake up in a cold sweat, at 2 o’clock tomorrow morning, imagining yourself riding this bike. If so, don’t say we didn’t warn you.
