Helle Frederiksen recently left the BMC-Etixx Pro Triathlon Team and she is now on a sharp looking LOOK 796 Monoblade. The split came only 6 months into her renewed 2 year deal with the team, but it was a mutual split that Frederiksen says “was the right thing for me. The team were always respectful of my focus as an athlete and I always respected the teams vision. We parted ways on great terms.”
Before joining the Belgian based squad Helle Frederiksen had a close relationship with the French LOOK brand and she is now happily back in that fold.
She won Challenge Samorin this past weekend and here is a closer look at her Shimano, ENVE, Continental, CeramicSpeed, TorHans, SpeedFil equipped LOOK 796.
The LOOK 796 Monoblade of Helle Frederiksen as it was race ready setup prior to Challenge Samorin.
Helle Frederiksen with her new race bike, but it is truly new as she has only been on it since the end of July.
Frederiksen has had 3 detailed fit sessions with Boulder based, Ivan O’Gorman. Ivan has been Helle’s go to fit consultant for the past years. The position has changed slightly. Frederiksen is longer in the front. The LOOK arm pad reach puts Helle 9mm further forward than what the BMC was and this has helped lower and lengthen Helle’s upper body.
Helle chooses the 12Nm version of LOOK’s Keo Blade 2. Due to LOOK’s ZED 3 adjustable crank, Helle has moved to 167.5mm crank arms. This LOOK crank that Helle has fitted enables her to choose between 3 settings; 162.5, 165 or 167.5mm.
Helle has been testing a number of hydration setups over the past weeks. She has settled on Torhans VR as a frame bottle for racing.
LOOK’s Aerobrake 2 is an incredibly discreet, well engineered system. For Challenge Samorin, Helle opted for a ENVE SES 7 tubular front wheel with ENVE’s carbon brake pads mounted to the brake shoes that sit inside the fork.
The bike is running CeramicSpeed throughout; Shimano 11 SPD OSPW, UFO Chain, BB and wheel bearings. CeramicSpeed’s global headquarters are located in the same small Danish town as Helle’s parents, Holstebro. CeramicSpeed first started supporting Helle in 2009 as one of the first sponsored triathletes of the company. When Helle parted ways with BMC-Etixx, CeramicSpeed quickly took the opportunity to support Helle.
The stock rear brake on the LOOK 796 has been replaced with a TriRig Omega-X. Helle is not running the aero cover as she says it dropped off during IRONMAN 70.3 Wiesbaden. The aero cover is held on by magnets.
Polar V650 is the computer of choice for Frederiksen at this time. Upon her return to the U.S. Helle is expected to ride PowerTap rear hubs for the foreseeable future.
The Speedfil Z4 has been a go to for Frederiksen since 2013. She has been testing Torhans front hydration systems for their aero benefits but is yet to get the straw far enough forward to a point where it is usable.
Helle is running 35mm of standard spacers that sit below the 8 degree angle spacer. This enables her to get to her optimal Armpad of -109mm. The LOOK base bar is flipped to the -25mm drop position.
Helle’s saddle of choice currently is a Cobb Max. It is a recent change for Helle, having run a Bontrager Hilo XXX since July 2014. The saddle has a custom grip solution applied to the surface and is tilted to a -4.9 degree as communicated by Helle, a change made after my final ride before traveling to the U.S.
The LOOK handlebar has double layer bar tape applied to provide extra comfort.
The frontal view of the LOOK 796 is incredibly impressive and insanely narrow.
ENVE’s Carbon Hub with CeramicSpeed bearings as a stock spec feature on this race setup. Helle has ENVE SES 7.8 or a ENVE SES 4.5 as race wheels in her wheel house, with a HED Jet Disc Black as her rear disc choice.
The LOOK 796 features 2 x top tube bolts for a storage solution. Helle choose X-Lab’s Stealth Pocket 500c to fit all her race hydration. One of these top tube bolts doubles as the bolt that holds in place the very smart Di2 junction box housing. Here it is sitting underneath the X-Lab storage.
The Di2 junction box sits neatly inside the top tube allowing full button functionality and visibility of the junction box lighting even though it is housed inside the top tube.
The non-drive side view of this LOOK 796.
Continental Competition Pro LTD is Helle’s go to tubular. These are not widely available, in fact somewhat of a rarity for consumers. These “Pro LTD” tubulars are typically only distributed by Continental to professional teams and athletes.
Helle’s LOOK 796 is a size XS/S, as you can see from the picture, a advertised reach of 382mm and 488mm stack. Helle is running LOOK’s own chain rings, a 53-tooth big ring and a 39-tooth inside ring. To date LOOK do not manufacture a chain ring bigger than 53. Helle has previously ridden 54.
LOOK offer two stem lengths on this 796 build, Helle opts for the longer 110mm Aeroflat Stem. As mentioned above Helle is not, at this time, maximizes LOOK’s internal routing capabilities, of which sees the cables run through the carbon base bar and inside the Aeroflat Stem exiting into the top tube. Black 3M vinyl covers the cables that run into the top tube.
According to her husband and manager, Ben Powell “It is worth noting that Helle is not under contract with any endemic company for 2017 and beyond at this time. Her move away from BMC-Etixx made her available in almost all sponsorship categories. It is exciting. Naturally interest in Helle is high. Eurobike, Interbike and Kona will settle everything in terms of industry partners. By the start of November Helle’s support team for 2017 will be in place. For us there has to be a fit. I want to see Helle representing the companies that she feels she is able to passionately and organically represent. Companies that her profile and platform can positively impact.”
