Julian Alaphilippe made headlines a few years ago when he was spotted racing with a Richard Mille watch on his wrist. Since then, Mark Cavendish has also been seen on a bike with one, and sports a few different watches in his recent documentary. Fabian Cancellara partnered with Tudor to launch Tudor Pro Cycling in 2023 (with some promising early results!). UAE Team Emirates now counts Richard Mille as a main sponsor, and have become pretty popular in the Peloton in general. Watches are increasing in popularity in general, and clearly they are having a moment in Cycling as well. Several brands are participating in this trend, and one of them stood out to me: Bravur Watches. Take a look at any of their Grand Tour-inspired watches and it’s obvious that they are a step above the rest in their cycling-inspired designs – so we reached out to them.

cycling and watch brands

Tissot is the offical timer for ASO since 2016, which makes them the timer for the Tour de France, Tour de France Femmes, La Vuelta, and many other big races. (Previously, Festina watches had that contract, and Tissot had already been a timekeeper before then.) Tudor is now the new official timekeeper of RCS Sport, which includes the Giro d’Italia, Strade Bianche, Milan-San Remo, and many others. Most races (cycling and otherwise) have some sort of timekeeper agreement, since it is an obvious pairing and marketing opportunity for racing in general.

The thing is, sponsoring races is mostly where it ends with watch brands and cycling. Efforts to make a cycling-aimed watch model from the grand majority of these brands can be best described as low effort. The models amount to small changes to base models that often are intended for other sports. The Tissot T-Race, for example: it’s a chronograph originally aimed at Motorbikes. Add some yellow and red highlights in the dial and second hands and boom! Tour and Vuelta cycling watch for sale. Low effort can also be seen in the aesthetics of Festina’s Iconic Chrono Bike collection, a piercingly ugly set of watches.

Thankfully, it looks like things are changing on that front. Tudor stands out as the only large brand taking a holistic and genuine approach with their timing sponsorships, new Pro team, and a cycling-specific version of their Tudor Black Bay Chrono which is beautiful albeit un-buyable. (The watch is exclusive to their Pro team riders).

Then there’s Bravur Watches, a small brand founded by Johan Sahlin and Magnus Äppelryd in 2011. They might not be sponsoring WT races, but they are putting more effort than anyone else into bridging the gap between watches and cycling. They released 3 versions for each Grand Tour in 2023, and their passion for cycling is visible in the design and details of each one.

On the Bravur Watches website, you’ll find their entire Grand Tour collection. These were the pieces that caught my eye, and they are worth a look even if you’re not that into watches to begin with. They are beautiful and meticulously detailed with cycling inspiration for each grand tour. The Bravur team provided us with some images of those details that you can see below.

Q&A with Johan from Bravur Watches

We sent Johas a list of questions ranging from the realities of riding with watches to their thoughts on the subject in general. Johan provided us with the following answers as well as the images you see on this post.

How concerned should riders be about rattling, bumps, and weather (extreme heat/cold) damaging a watch movement while riding?

We collaborate with several WorldTour riders who wear our watches during training and even races, reporting no instances of damaged watches. While our watches boast robust Swiss-made movements and top-tier materials, it's essential to recognize the delicate nature of mechanical watches with numerous precise components. For extreme activities like mountain biking or gravel rides, we recommend leaving the watch at home to ensure longevity.

Are these concerns things that your team designs for and/or builds to support in your watches?

We are using only the best materials in our watches and reliable Swiss made movements. Additionally, our Grand Tour watches feature rubber or perforated leather straps, prioritizing comfort and optimal ventilation during cycling. The small size of the Grand Tour watch case is also made with comfort in mind plus the fact that many riders have wrists that are on the tiny side. We also wanted to add functionality to the watch and have chosen to include a 15-minute stop-watch counter on one of the sub dials making it perfect for timing your intervals.

Digital watches and cycling computers are King for cyclists, but are you seeing growing interest in mechanical watches?

While cycling computers and fitness watches dominate every cyclist's toolkit, our watches offer a distinctive appeal. Beyond practicality, they introduce a touch of style and the genuine, mechanical craftsmanship that resonates with cyclists. The cycling community, known for its style-conscious members, finds common ground with our watches..

Cycling is a historic sport with an important timing component, but there isn't very much attention to cycling by watchmakers. (For example: Even Tissot, the official TdF sponsor, only has one "cycling" watch and it's basically just a yellow-accent version of their already-existing T-Race model.) Why do you think that is?

Observing the minimal attention cycling receives from major watch brands, we recognized an opportunity to fill this niche, driven by our passion for cycling spanning three decades. We are dedicated to infusing intricate cycling-inspired details, such as the discreet polka dot pattern on our TdF watches and the symbolic upside-down no.13, paying homage to cycling traditions.

It looks like that might be changing, with brands like you and Tudor, who now sponsor a pro team. Do you see more attention to cycling from Watchmakers nowadays? Is there a trend?

The increased interest from big brands in cycling sponsorships likely stems from the recognition that cyclists are willing to invest in their passions. However, it seems none of these brands has dedicated significant effort to create a true cyclist's watch. We aim to be pioneers in this space, offering watches specifically tailored for cycling enthusiasts.

Divers have diving watches, pilots have pilot watches. There are also watches for yacht racing that are more niche. For Cycling, chronographs make sense but are there potentially other cycling-specific complications that we might see to maybe one day have a mechanical watch "for cycling"? Is there a watch that exists today that gets close?

Hmmm, good question. The historical use of chronographs for timing rides and intervals is well-established. But I question whether mechanical watches can bring any unique features beyond the capabilities of digital watches or bike computers – other than adding style of course :)

The future of cycling and watches

Johan Sahlin and Magnus Äppelryd have another cycling-inspired line launching in 2024 – we won’t spoil the details here but it sounds pretty exciting. With the increased investment and attention in this space, it’s clear a trend has begun. We’ll see how long it lasts (if it lasts!), but we are hoping that it brings us more models with the care and attention that Bravur is putting into theirs.

This post received no compensation from Bravur Watches. We wrote it because we think they are cool.