Bora-Argon 18 reveal 2015 team bikes

We reported earlier this year that Canadian bike brand Argon 18 would be joining forces with German kitchen maker Bora to become the new title sponsors of the Netapp-Endura team for 2015, and today Argon 18 have revealed the team bikes ready for the first team training camp.

Montreal-based bicycle manufacturer Argon 18 have clinched a three-year deal to sponsor the team, which marks their first time at the top level of the sport. The current Netapp-Endura outfit are Pro Continental status, but they were given a wildcard to ride the 2014 Tour de France, and given the way the team performed there’s every reason to suggest they might just get the chance again next year. 

The German professional team will have three bikes to choose from, the all-round Gallium Pro (above), Nitrogen aero bike, and the E-118 time trial bike. The Gallium Pro will be the mainstay of the team, it's the company’s lightest offering with a claimed frame weight of just 790g. I rode the previous Gallium Pro and was hugely impressed with the blend of speed, stiffness and comfort, and if the new lighter version is the improvement it promises to be, it certainly has the credentials required of it to perform at the top level. We'll hopefully get one in for review next year.

Argon 18’s strong brand identity is clearly evident in the paint job, in fact they don’t look hugely different from the Argon 18 bikes you can currently buy. There’s the predominantly black colour scheme with red panels and the distinctive white logo on the seat tube and white decals on the down tube.

For components the team will be riding Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 groupsets with power2max power meters and FSA K-Force Light chainsets. They stick with the FSA theme for the SL-K brake callipers and K-Force Carbon stem, handlebar, headset and seatpost. Wheels also come from FSA, albeit their Vision brand, with the Metron 40 tubular carbon wheels that the Cannondale Pro Cycling team, and Peter Sagan, used for the last couple of seasons. Tyres will be Vittoria Corsa CX 25mm and saddles are from Prologo.

The other bike the team will be able to call on is the Nitrogen. This is their recently introduced aero bike, and draws on their expertise at developing time trial bikes, with aero shaped tubes, the front mini V-brake mounted behind the fork and the rear brake flush with the seatstays, and all cables routed internally. The seat tube is aero shaped and there’s an aero seatpost as well.

For time trials they’ll swap onto the E-118 Next, their flagship time trial bike.

So that's the bikes taken care of, now we just need to wait until the team strip is revealed, which should be soon.

More about the bikes over at www.argon18bike.com