Mads Pedersen
The Sigma Sports Cafe Ride
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Matt Stephens is back in the Cote d’Azur for a Sigma Sports Cafe Ride with one of the fastest men on the planet. Mads Pedersen might be best-known for his UCI World Road Championship win, and out-sprinting some of the best riders in the world to win multiple Grand Tour stages. But off the bike, his biggest passion is restoring and driving classic cars.
Desperate to impress the great Dane, Matt’s gotten his hands on a ‘classic sportscar’ of his own. Matt parked his little surprise at the top of the Col de Madone, so it’s just as well Mads has recovered from a pre-season injury in time to guide him up the formidable climb. On the way, the pair engage in a free flowing, fascinating chat that covers everything from equipment testing for Paris-Roubaix, meeting your future self, and talking your kids out of becoming pro cyclists.
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The Route
It may not have been the Sigma Sports Cafe Ride series' first visit to the French Riviera but it was our first foray inland and into the mountains that surround this beautiful part of France.
Mads took Matt for a ride out of Monaco and up the formidable Col de la Madone de Gorbio. A climb, from Menton, that is 14.5 kilometres in length and has an average gradient of 6.3%, this was a real test for the pair before they summited the peak and began their more rolling route down into the charming village of Peille.
Peille boasts a quintessentially French eating establishment, by the name of Creperie La Voute. From there it was all downhill to the outskirts of La Turbie, where a surprise lay in-store for the Dane...
The Bike
The eagle eyed among you may have recognised the bike Matt rode in this episode with Mads as being the same bike Mr Stephens clipped in on with Alex Yee. Well, what can we say, Matt enjoyed riding the Trek Madone so much he opted to take the Trek Madone SLR Gen 8 – Project One ICON Serpentine Road Bike out to Monaco for another spin. We think the Serpentine paint scheme really popped in the Cote d'Azur spring sun, what do you think?
The bike came equipped with a top-level SRAM RED AXS groupset with a power meter, Bontrager Aeolus RSL 51 carbon wheels, a Trek Aero RSL one-piece carbon bar/stem and RSL Aero Bottles and Cages.
Tech
A challenging route and a long climb required some serious pacing and as such having Wahoo on board as our tech provider for this episode was a welcome addition. The Wahoo ELEMNT ROAM 3 GPS Bike Computer provided Matt with all the key data he needed when it came to power output and his key heart rate metrics, while the navigation features on the head unit were invaluable, giving Matt exceptional levels of detail.
Wahoo also provided the pedals, with Wahoo Speedplay Zero Pedals providing a solid platform, with minimal stack height.
Ensuring he remained under threshold, even when Mads put the power down at the top of the climb, Matt chose Wahoo's TICKR Heart Rate Monitor, which provided reliable Connectivity via Multi-BLE & ANT+.
Kit
The glorious weather ensured Matt could really make the most of Velocio's range of 2026 summer clothing. Dressed in a LUXE Ultralight Short Sleeve Jersey and LUXE Bib Short, Matt complemented the look with a LUXE Ultralight Vest.
Protection up top was covered with a Trek Velocis MIPS Helmet and Matt was spinning freely in a pair of Trek Velocis Road Cycling Shoes. Finishing off the outfit, Adidas Dunamis Pro-S Sunglasses kept the rays at bay.
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Want to explore the series? Find out about the other Sigma Sports Cafe Ride guests and watch all the episodes.