PRO BIKE CHECK: A 1X GRAVEL DRIVETRAIN ON MARTA SÁNCHEZ'S CUSTOM V-PRi
Spain’s Marta Sánchez is one of the most exciting new athletes to join the Quintana Roo Team. She’s a consistent podium threat in middle- and long-course racing, and she’s an absolute beast on the bike. In fact, on her way to a 3rd place finish at IRONMAN Lake Placid last July, Sánchez set the fastest bike split, riding faster than the current IRONMAN world champion, Solveig Løvseth.
To maximize her potential, Sánchez wants to ride the world’s fastest triathlon bike. That's why this year, she’s racing aboard the record-breaking Quintana Roo V-PRi. At Quintana Roo, we’re all about customization, and Sánchez’s V-PRi has one of the most unique custom builds we've ever put together. Let’s take a closer look.
Marta Sánchez’s Giraffe-Themed Paint
The stand-out feature of Sánchez’s V-PRi is, of course, her custom giraffe-themed paint job. We pride ourselves on our unmatched custom paint selection, which gives every athlete the opportunity to personalize their bike and make it uniquely theirs. Sánchez took her paint to the next level, though, and requested a fully custom scheme. This is where our Studio NEXT team came in and knocked it out of the park with a giraffe-print fade.
Why giraffes? A few years ago, Sánchez was questioning her future. She explained that the animal took on a special meaning for her after a 2023 training trip to Kenya reinvigorated her competitive drive.
“I saw a giraffe while out for a run in training, and having it become a representation of my intention to train and race with purpose was random,” she said. “A Kenyan told me giraffes see things from a different perspective. It changed something in me, and gave me confidence.”
A 1x SRAM RED XPLR Gravel Drivetrain
As a bike geek, what immediately caught my attention was Sánchez’s drivetrain. 1x drivetrains aren’t new to triathlon. Many athletes choose 1x for specific performance advantages. On the men’s side, Kristian Høgenhaug is another Quintana Roo athlete who regularly competes on a 1x drivetrain. What sets Sánchez’s 1x setup apart, however, is that she has chosen to use a gravel-specific drivetrain rather than a road-specific option.
Sánchez’s V-PRi is equipped with the latest 13-speed SRAM RED XPLR AXS derailleur and cassette. This 1x drivetrain is designed for gravel racing, so it has gravel-specific features like a wide-range (10-46t) cassette, a sturdy full-mount rear derailleur that uses no derailleur hanger, and a derailleur clutch for increased chain retention.
Some top road racers have been experimenting with SRAM XPLR for specific races, but it is still considered a gravel groupset and largely favored by gravel racers. Sánchez’s bike is the first example I’ve seen of SRAM XPLR being used by a triathlete at the elite level, and it makes me incredibly excited.
The current generation of 1x13-speed gravel groupset might actually be a great option for a 1x triathlon setup. The 13-speed XPLR cassette potentially solves two of the biggest limitations of a 1x setup: limited gear range and large steps between gears.
With the wide 10-46t range of the XPLR cassette and an appropriately sized chainring, this setup easily matches, and even exceeds, the overall gear range of many traditional 2x setups. Since the 13-speed cassette is designed for gravel racing, the steps between gears are kept smaller to reduce cadence changes. In fact, the first seven gears have the same ratio as a more standard 11-33t cassette. This means Sánchez can tackle any course, from fast and flat to hilly and technical.
The Full Mount design of the XPLR rear derailleur also offers a couple more advantages. SRAM’s Full Mount derailleurs mount directly to the frame, clamping it on both sides (note: this is only possible on frames with UDH dropouts, and the V-PRi is one of the few triathlon bikes capable of fitting a Full Mount derailleur). This increases stiffness over a traditional derailleur hanger, which allows the XPLR rear derailleur to execute faster and more precise shifts. This marginal advantage can be incredibly valuable for top athletes fighting for seconds.
The Full Mount design is also incredibly robust. It can survive impacts and crashes, and maintain perfect shifting (while a traditional derailleur hanger will bend and affect shifting). This is ideal for an athlete regularly packing up their bike to fly around the world. With a clutch designed for off-road riding, the XPLR rear derailleur also minimizes the risk of dropped chains, especially on bumpy road surfaces.
Sánchez pairs her 13-speed SRAM RED XPLR AXS derailleur and cassette with a rainbow SRAM RED Flattop chain, and a ROTOR Aldhu crankset with super short 155mm crank arms. If you need evidence that Sánchez is a watt monster, just check out that massive 54T 1x chainring! That’s the size many World Tour-level men are using. Power meter duties are handled by Favero Assioma PRO-RS pedals.
More Custom Components for Fit and Speed
The 1x gravel drivetrain isn’t the only wild and progressive part of Sánchez’s V-PRi. She has a few more custom goodies that are unique to her.
To place her Fast TT extensions (the premium option offered on Studio NEXT V-PRi bikes) in the perfect position, Sánchez is using a custom 3D-printed titanium reach extender made by prints4watts.
She has added an XLab Torpedo and AeroTriad BTA FrontPack Aerodynamic Bento Box to her Quintana Roo BTA Bottle System to carry even more nutrition in addition to her V-PRi’s built-in FuelBay storage. Her IIC base bar is capped off by custom Aero Grip Shifter base bar grips made by Leap Components that are emblazoned with her name.
Out back, Sánchez is using a Quintana Roo Aero Post Combo made by Dash Cycles. This is a fully adjustable carbon post and saddle combo that eliminates the traditional saddle rails and clamp to save weight.
The build is completed with a set of HED’s Vanquish V84 Pro and Disc Pro wheels, set up tubeless with Continental’s super-fast 28mm GP 5000 TT TR tires.
Sánchez’s V-PRi is definitely one of the fastest triathlon bike builds we’ve ever seen. It’s already been put through its first trial at IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside, and we’re sure to see it fight for fastest bike splits many times throughout the season. You can follow Marta Sánchez and her giraffe V-PRi on Instagram and YouTube!
