I’ve been with Scott for the last four years, so I can’t really do a fair comparison to other brands. But, for me, the Foil is the perfect bike for ITU racing.
It has an aero road frame, is stiff and responsive but doesn’t compromise on comfort – it really is amazing! I’m usually in a small breakaway off the front during an ITU race’s bike leg, so having the Foil underneath me gives me so much added confidence.
The comfort factor is actually my favourite thing about the Foil. I spend hours on the bike and love to venture onto dirt roads and cobbles – the fact that an aero road bike is comfortable on bumpy roads is incredible. Plus, it’s easy to take apart and pack into a bike box, and then to travel with.
Over the winter I changed my bike set-up quite a bit. I went down a frame size (I ride an extra-small now), lowered the front end and pushed my saddle forward (see the image above), so it’s a little closer to my TT position. The goal was to make it a little more aerodynamic to suit my racing style. It took a bit of getting used to but now I’m really enjoying it.
1. I race the new C40 Dura-Ace tubulars with 26mm tyres. The rims are quite wide, and provide more stability and grip on the road. For training? Shimano C24 clinchers.
2. I added little TT bars (ITU style) to my bike this year. I’m still on the fence if they’re worth it, so I’m experimenting this year.
3. The design is special to me, because the flowers represent the Bermudiana (our national flower), the geometric shapes on the fork are inspired by the Bermuda triangle, and the light blue colour represents the Bermudan sea.
4. I race short course so I don’t need any nutrition storage, but I do tape a gel to my top tube while racing. The most important nutrition is my Osmo hydration in my bottles (two when racing).
5. The groupset is Shimano Dura-Ace Di2, cranks: 165mm, chainrings: 53/39T, cassette: 11-25T. I always race and train with power, and have a Stages power meter on all of my bikes – road, TT and both of my mountain bikes.