ALPINE AMBITIONS

Two bikes. Two men. One mighty riding challenge. Here’s how CyclingPlus’ Adrian and Pete aim to tame the 600km Tour Transalp with the help of Orbea

WITH 1,000 PARTICIPANTS from 35 nations and 150 volunteers, the 18th edition of the Tour Transalp looks set to become one of 2022’s biggest and best mass participation cycling events. And also one of its toughest, with seven daily stages, a distance of 600km and 16,000m of elevation gain all standing in the way of Transalp glory. Put simply, it’s a brutally vertiginous way to spend a week’s holiday.

That hasn’t deterred our sprightly ads stallions of Adrian and Pete signing up on the dotted line to face everything the iconic Stelvio Pass, the mountains of the South Tyrol and much more can throw their way. But to make it from Lake Reschen to the Arco finish line in Italy, the boys will need a bike that can handle the hills, offer week-long comfort and serve up some speed to make it to the cut-offs at each day’s end with plenty of time for post-ride pizza and Peroni. Step forward the Orbea Orca Aero M10iLTD.

Star wattage

Launched in late 2021, the Orca Aero M10iLTD is the latest pro-spec aero race bike from the Basque brand. Obviously inspired by Orbea’s Ordu time trial/ triathlon bike, the new model is claimed to save a hefty 15 watts worth of aerodynamic drag versus the outgoing Orca Aero at 40km/h.

The M10iLTD instantly gobbled a 4.5-star review in our April 2022 edition, our reviewer celebrating its ‘magical ability to sail along on flat and rolling roads with less effort’ and the top-draw spec. That component list includes the brand-new and flawless shifting of the Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 R9200 groupset, plus the boxfresh 50mm-deep, tubeless-ready and carbon Shimano R9270 C50TL wheelset.

The build also includes two extra aero-focused parts borrowed from the Ordu TT/triathlon bike: an aero bottle cage and bottle, and an aero storage box under the down tube, helping Ade and Pete’s fuelling needs but not at the cost of aerodynamics as, according to Orbea, the box actually adds to the aero performance of the bike.

Head to tour-transalp.de/en/ for information on the Tour Transalp event and orbea.com for more on the Spanish brand’s range of bikes. And look out next issue to see how Adrian and Pete fared on the roads – and mountain climbs – of Northern Italy.

“The new model is said to save a hefty 15 watts of drag over the previous Orca Aero”