Peter Reid rode to Kona victory on a Specialized M4. It is an aluminum bike, and is pretty much set up like a road bike, with some differences.

Specialized has an in-house custom shop, for building the odd one-off as needed. That is where this frame came from. "Longer and lower top tube," says Peter, "with a 76 degree seat tube angle. One of my all time favourite frames." That's saying a lot, as Reid has 7 bikes in his garage. "I am a total bike geek," he says.

Peter rides with a geometry that is becoming more popular in Hawaii -- not road, not all-the-way tri-specific, but right in the middle -- a geometry that fits in well with the course. Hawaii's bike ride is long, the road is a little rough as you get past the airport, and it's a hot, humid ride. Spencer Smith, who won his biggest races on a 78-degree bike, but chose a standard road geometry for Hawaii this past year, is also getting a 76-degree bike built from Sigma, his sponsor.

Peter's bike features a Profile Design Carbon X handlebar, tilted flat, or even slightly downward in the front. His component group in Kona was Campy 10-speed. We asked him how his bar-end shifters worked. "Extremely well" is his characterization.

Interestingly, though, Peter's bike clearly has Dia Compe #188 brake levers on it instead of the much better Profile Design Quick Stops.

Peter Reid's M4 has an aero tube with a cut-out for the rear wheel - the bike has 700c wheels to accommodate the 6'2" Reid - and a round seat post covered by an attachment with the same profile as the seat tube. This is a standard feature on the M4.

Peter's bike had a Profile Design BDC fork, and he raced with Campy Bora wheels. These are a rare set of Boras that Reid actually borrowed from Greg Welch for the race. They were outfitted with Continential GP 19mm tubulars. He says that he's had, "the best luck with these tires."

Peter ran 54X39 chainrings, which is a very big jump, but the Campy Record front derailleur and crank can handle this with no problem. The smallish cage on the rear derailleur might be a problem with a wider-ratio cogset, but Peter ran 11-21t in the rear. With 10 speeds, that means Peter almost ran a straight bloc! He was only missing a 20-tooth cog.

Peter could've run a 54 (needed for the tailwind coming back from Hawi) with a 42-tooth inner, except for that nasty little hill a mile from the end of the bike. That makes the Kona course rate with Zofingen as among the hardest courses for which to gear.