EF-Education EasyPost Uses $6,000 Sleep Tech to Boost Tour de France Recovery

2 articles · Updated · Defector · Jul 14

EF-Education EasyPost builds rider recovery around sleep at the Tour de France, using smart mattress toppers, custom pillows and tracked bedtime routines to keep cyclists fresh through nearly a month of racing.
More than 8 hours and 15 minutes of sleep per rider per night was the team’s average last year, with staff monitoring sleep bands, morning recovery scores, room temperature and meal timing.
Three staffers spend 1 to 1.5 hours breaking down and another 1 to 1.5 hours rebuilding each night’s sleep setup, racing ahead to hotels where teams cannot use private RVs.
The three-inch toppers connect to silent cooling units and app controls; comparable consumer products sell for about $6,000, though EF’s doctor said basics like cooling, breathwork and avoiding sleeping pills still matter most.