Behind the Scenes of Pro Cycling: 5 Surprising Facts About Bike Ownership

by Danny G.

Alright, let’s get one thing straight: cycling is as glamorous as a puddle of sweat on an asphalt road in the middle of July. The riders, the bikes, the flashy teams—it’s all smoke and mirrors.

Behind the high-speed chases, the grueling climbs, and the endless miles, there’s a world that most people don’t understand. And it’s not pretty. You want to know about bike ownership in pro cycling?

Well, sit down and listen, because it’s a damn mess. It’s more bureaucratic than an insurance form and less sexy than the ride back from a bad date. But it’s real, and that’s what we’re here for.

You’ve seen those pro cyclists, right? Pedaling like gods, leaning into the wind, making those bikes hum and whimper under them. You probably think they own those beautiful, carbon-fiber monsters—sleek, shiny, like they just fell off a spaceship.

But here’s the cold truth: most of them don’t own a damn thing. Let’s break it down for you, piece by piece. Hold on to your handlebars, because this ride’s going to get a little rough.


1. The Team Owns the Bikes—For the Most Part

Let me paint a picture for you. You’re a pro cyclist. You’re sweating like a pig, riding for hours, keeping that heart rate up, battling the elements, and all the while, you’re not even in charge of the bike you’re riding.

Think about that. You’ve got the legs, the lungs, the will, but the bike? The bike belongs to your team. And in some cases, it’s not even your team’s property—it’s the sponsor’s. Oh, the sweet irony of being a professional athlete with no say over the equipment you’re using.

Sure, you get assigned one or two bikes at the start of the season, and yeah, they’re nice bikes. But they’re not your bikes. No, no. They belong to the team, and if you’re lucky, at the end of the season, you might be able to buy them at a discount—if you’re still on the team.

Otherwise, they go back into the team’s storage, or worse, into the hands of someone else. It’s like being given the keys to a car and being told, “Don’t wreck it, but you can’t keep it.”

You might hear about the big-name riders getting to keep their bikes, but that’s a rarity. Most cyclists? They ride and return. That’s the deal. It’s not about ownership. It’s about making sure the wheels keep turning.

Pro Cyclist Bike OwnershipWhat They OwnWhat They Don’t Own
Entry-Level TeamsDiscounted bikes, sometimes at costNo ownership, unless agreed upon
World Tour TeamsA few personal bikes (for training)Race bikes, often team/sponsor property
Retired ProsSome old race bikesRace bikes (usually returned)

2. Race Bikes: The Temples of Speed, Used Only for Sacrifice

Now, let’s talk about the race bikes. These are the pristine, beautiful machines that the team mechanics sweat over—every screw tightened, every gear adjusted, every chain polished until it gleams like a set of freshly buffed teeth.

But here’s the kicker: these bikes are treated like museum pieces. They’re only used for the race itself. Don’t think for a second that these bikes are seeing the light of day during training rides.

The moment the race is over, those bikes get tucked away, cleaned, and pampered—ready for their next big day. They’re like racehorses that only run once a week, and once they’ve crossed the finish line, they get the spa treatment.

The team doesn’t want them getting dirty or losing value. They might even get shipped off to the sponsor for promotional purposes, displayed in some office like a trophy. Yeah, nothing screams “we’re better than you” quite like seeing a race bike sitting behind glass.

The end of the season? You think you can take your race bike home as a memento of your glory? Think again. That bike’s probably going to be sent back to the sponsor, broken down for parts, or sold off to a lucky fan who can afford it.

Most pros are so tired of their race bikes by the end of the season, they don’t even want to look at them again. One rider even admitted, “By the end of the season, I don’t want to ever see that thing again.”


3. The ‘Winner Gets the Bike’ Myth – The Prize Bikes

Okay, here’s where things get a little more romantic, and by “romantic,” I mean absurd. You see, if you’re a big name in cycling, you might just get a bike for winning. That’s right. If you crush it in the Tour de France or win some major stage, there’s a chance the sponsor might say, “You know what? You’ve earned this bike. It’s yours.”

This isn’t the norm. In fact, it’s a rare little treat that only a few cyclists get. But it happens. You might see a rider get a special edition bike with custom decals or a shiny new frame, all glittering in the afterglow of victory.

It’s like winning the lottery, but with more carbon fiber and fewer taxes. And once they’ve had their victory lap, they might take that bike home, put it in their garage, and let it collect dust like a proud relic of their time in the sun.

But for the rest of the peloton? They’re back on the same bikes, the same contracts, the same grind. Because the truth is, bikes are tools. The riders are tools. The teams are tools. But the real owners? They’re the sponsors, and they’re not letting go of that sponsorship money anytime soon.


4. Training Bikes – The Workhorse Nobody Talks About

Now, let’s talk about the other bikes—the ones you don’t see in the highlight reels, the ones that don’t make it onto the podium. The training bikes.

These are the beaten-up, worn-out, sad sacks of metal and carbon that pro cyclists abuse during their daily grind. They’re not flashy, they don’t have the same love as the race bikes. But they’re necessary. Without them, the pros wouldn’t be able to build the kind of endurance and strength it takes to ride those race bikes.

A training bike is like the office chair you sit in every day—the one that creaks and smells faintly of coffee. It gets the job done, but no one’s asking for its autograph.

At the end of the season, some teams will let their riders keep these bikes. It’s part of their compensation, a small reward for all the blood, sweat, and tears spilled during the year.

They might even sell them off to make a quick buck. But those bikes, the ones they’ve ridden for thousands of miles, are rarely celebrated.


5. Prize Bikes and Marketing – More Than Just a Trophy

And then there are the “prize bikes.” These are bikes given out for special achievements—like a rider winning a monumental stage, or a special commemorative bike designed for a cause.

Think of it like a bike that’s too fancy to be ridden, too flashy to be ignored. These bikes are more about marketing than anything else. They’re the corporate trophies, the “look at what we’ve done” pieces of art that only the most successful riders get their hands on.

Some riders might even get these bikes for promotional purposes. These bikes aren’t meant for the road; they’re meant for display, to hang in an office or a showroom, or maybe on the walls of a sponsor’s headquarters.

They might be given to a rider as a reward for something special, but they’re not for racing. They’re for showing off. And let’s face it, if you’re a pro cyclist, showing off is part of the game.

Bike Ownership in Pro CyclingTraining BikesRace BikesPrize Bikes
Pro CyclistMay Own After the SeasonTeam Owned, Only Used for RacingSpecial Edition, Gifted After Big Wins
Team’s RoleIssued for TrainingAssigned per Rider, Maintained by TeamPromo Material, Often Displayed
What Happens at the End of SeasonRider Can Buy or SellReturned to Team, Sold or RepurposedSometimes Kept as Trophies

In the end, it’s simple: professional cyclists don’t own much. They ride, they race, and they return.

The bikes are part of the machine, part of the circus.

But there’s something beautiful about it all—about the workhorse training bikes that get no love, the shining race bikes that are used for a few hours and then tucked away, and the sentimental prize bikes that hang like trophies on the wall.

It’s a cold, corporate world, sure, but it’s a world that spins on two wheels. And if you’re lucky enough to be a pro cyclist, you get to ride in it. Even if you don’t get to own anything.


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