Professional Cycling - lodging & # of bicycles questions

A few questions, sorry if repeats from other threads:

1) Where do the riders sleep at night? I'm guessing the team bus takes them to a hotel, but do all the riders stay in the same hotel or does each team figure out where they'd like to stay?

2) Is food preparation for riders done on the team bus? If not, I wonder if the cooks have access to the hotel kitchens or if the kitchens cook for the riders.

3) How many bikes does a rider typically use in a Tour? I'm guessing one for most stages + one for time trials? Or will they use one for climbing days, one for flat days, one for TTs?

3a) Say a rider crashes a bike badly. He needs a new one. Does the team car have a bike for all 9 riders all dialed in and ready to go? (I'm guessing no, since they seem to carry 5-7 bikes, not 9 or so.)

3b) In terms of bikes...how long does a typical pro level rider use a bike? (I'm guessing it varies.) It seems like you'd get a bike at the start of the season and once you get it adjusted to exactly how you like it want to use that for the season. Then again, most pro riders are such machines that they might not even care as long as it has the pedals they like and the saddle height is okay.

Will a rider use one main bicycle for the entire TdF? (I mean outside of say the TT bike.)

1. Hotels. Each team makes their arrangements.
2. Each team's soigneurs prepare the food. They have portable galleys in their rigs.
3. Generally, each rider has a flats bike, a climbing bike and a TT. The contenders have a spare of each.
3a. The jersey contenders have a bike setup exactly like their own. Then the team carries a couple other general sizes, and they know approximately what each guy rides.
3b. It depends. They tweak those frames pretty good, so they probably retire the frames and drivetrain pretty regularly.

Cool, thanks for all the answers! I've had some of those on my mind and hadn't figured them out yet. Thanks:)

2003 TDF we stayed in the same Hotel as I Banesto. It was kinda cool. We watched the mechanics work on the bikes, and ate dinner in the same private room as the Team.

Their food was prepared in the Hotel kitchen by the hotel staff. I imagine the team defintiely had some say in what was on the menu, but it was basically the same stuff we got.

Interestingly, a good number of the riders had wine with dinner, although, but just one for the msot part. The team management guys drank a fair amount more wine.

As for the portable galley bit, I can tell you that wasn't the case for I Banesto.

They did have a full semi trailer which was essentially a rolling bike shop which was pretty cool.

Kind of cool? That sounds completely amazing! Wow, I only wanted to see the Tour from the road, but to be that close to the team would be even better. Thanks for the picture and information.

They eat evening meals, and sometimes breakfast at the hotel. Virtually everything they eat is prescribed by the team dietician. Each team usually does have a portable galley with them in their truck (even if it's simply a couple tables for the soigneurs to make sandwiches on). They pack each mussett with 3-4000 calories or so of food: gels, bars, sandwiches, fruit, and a bottle or two of high glucose drink (sometimes a can of Coke, usually something like Accelerade).

I believe the where & how & what of food preparation also depends to a great extent on the team's financial resources--teams with more money control the meals more or even do all the preparation, those with less depend more upon the hotel staff & menus.

I believe the where & how & what of food preparation also depends to a great extent on the team's financial resources--teams with more money control the meals more or even do all the preparation, those with less depend more upon the hotel staff & menus.

Smaller teams end up getting a few bowls of overcooked pasta after the stage.

Not as good as having the team nutritionist pick something out and watching the soigneurs whip something up, but it gets it done.

Yes, food is usually prepared in the hotel kitchen. With the amount these guys eat, there is no way you could prepare all their meals in the bus.

Hotel kitchen. Often w a team chef overseeing.

a team car(s) stay a day or so ahead of the race prepping, ordering or supplying

2003 TDF we stayed in the same Hotel as I Banesto. It was kinda cool. We watched the mechanics work on the bikes, and ate dinner in the same private room as the Team.

Their food was prepared in the Hotel kitchen by the hotel staff. I imagine the team defintiely had some say in what was on the menu, but it was basically the same stuff we got.

Interestingly, a good number of the riders had wine with dinner, although, but just one for the msot part. The team management guys drank a fair amount more wine.

As for the portable galley bit, I can tell you that wasn't the case for I Banesto.

They did have a full semi trailer which was essentially a rolling bike shop which was pretty cool.


what frame was banesto riding that year?>

what frame was banesto riding that year?>

Looks like pinarellos.

Looks like pinarellos.

Good call! It says Pinarello on the car, just to the left of Campagnolo. :thumb:

they were pinarellos. You can also see the funky curve on the forks.

Here is a photo of the inside of ONCE's team truck at the '03 Tour; it was an immaculate fully-equipped bike shop on wheels.