Handlebar videos from inside the pro peloton have been around for a while, but Team Sunweb and LottoNL-Jumbo have now taken things a bit further with the first 360-degree video filmed within a race.
Filmed at the Abu Dhabi Tour last month, Velon mounted GoPro Fusion cameras on the bars of Team Sunweb pro Lennard Hofstede and LottoNL-Jumbo's Antwan Tolhoek, with the results now available to view online.
Both of the videos have been shot in 4k ultra-high res definition, giving fans an incredible glimpse at life inside the peloton as they relax ahead of the start and ride along and chat on one of the stages through the desert.
Unfortunately neither video features any footage from the sharp end of the action, so we'll have to wait a little bit longer for a first 360-degree view inside the cut-and-thrust of a bunch sprint.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UnwEt335wk
Tolhoek's is the longest of the two videos (which you can watch at the top of this page) and shows him riding out of the starting area before a moment of panic as a number of riders, including Alexander Kristoff, avoid crashing, and a few riders having to bunny hop a stray bottle in the road.
However for the most part the riders in the peloton look relaxed, with a number such as Team Sky's Jonathan Castroviejo and fellow GoPro-er Hofstede coming up for a chat and to take a look at the camera mounted on his Tolhoek's bars.
This isn't the first time that we've seen riders mount 360-degree cameras on their bikes, with Alex Dowsett often using them on training rides, and Manuel Quinziato producing a really cool video of a motor-pacing session back in 2015.
We'll be hoping to see more of these sorts of videos in the future, hopefully involving bunch sprints and big crowds to give an even more in-depth look at what's it like to be in the middle of the action.
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