Although the road season is now over, for Remco Evenepoel the holiday is only just beginning. Earlier this month, the Belgian was still in Germany for the team days of his new squad Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, after which he headed to the United States for some important wind tunnel tests at bike manufacturer Specialized.
In his quest for the last marginal gains, Evenepoel flew to San Francisco for a five-day visit to the headquarters of bike producer Specialized. "I don't think any rider has been here as often as he has," says Leo Menville from Specialized, in an interview with the Walloon newspaper La Dernière Heure. "Remco is one of our ambassadors, but our relationship goes further. We are very close."
At the headquarters of the American bike manufacturer, the agenda included photo shoots, video recordings, meetings with staff, a videoconference with representatives of Specialized, and a bike fitting session (analyzing his current best position on the bike). And perhaps even more importantly: the essential wind tunnel tests.
Attention to detail
Evenepoel spent no less than fifteen hours in Specialized's wind tunnel to further optimise his position on the time trial bike. "Remco’s days were well filled, but he often wants to do even more," describes Menville. "His commitment and attention to detail are impressive, especially since he is already a three-time world time trial champion and has won most time trials with a comfortable margin."
"You might think that means you’re on a solitary high and can ease off a bit, but with Remco it’s the exact opposite. He is as precise as a Formula 1 driver. [...] I can’t say much about what we’ve tested over the past few days, but we can quickly and quite easily develop prototypes since we have a laboratory and all the engineers are present. Remco is here to understand everything. He is very good at giving feedback, but he also trusts others."
