The call for riders to be given yellow and red cards as warnings and sanctions in a bike race got a few laughs last week. Unlike other sports where play can be stopped you can’t stop a race unless in the most severe of circumstances so seeing officials waving cards could be a symbolic gesture at best. But that’s the very reason why we need them.
The Moment The Race Was Won: Paris-Roubaix
An 11 man group with three riders from Omega Pharma-Quick Step forms with 9km to go. Niki Terpstra attacks with 6.5km to go, nobody follows and he quickly builds a lead. This was the moment the race was won.
Paris-Roubaix Preview
The last act of madness and also the last cobbled classic of the year. Paris-Roubaix is a wild race with a touch of the circus and it’s not just because the riders circle Roubaix’s concrete ring for the finish. It’s the greatest one day spectacle of the year. Fabian Cancellara may seem irresistible but he’s going to meet some immovable objects as well as plenty of tough riders and teams desperate for a last chance win.
The Last Act of Madness
There’s no other race like Paris-Roubaix. The severe cobbles, the velodrome finish, the bleak landscape and the soil. It seems old-fashioned but here is an event that’s made for TV and it thrives because of its exceptional character.
Wednesday Shorts
Marcel Kittel wins the Scheldeprijs. Three is the magic number today because he wins the race for the third year in a row and because it’s the team’s third win today with Jonas Ahlstrand winning Stage 2 of the Circuit de la Sarthe and Kirsten Wild taking the win in the Energiewacht Tour.
Book Review: The Monuments
The Monuments – The Grit and The Glory of Cycling’s Greatest One-Day Races by Peter Cossins
With calendar changes promoting and relegating different events from year to year there are five one day races that sit above all of the others. These “Monuments” have stood the test of time and built a considerable capital of prestige, history and legend and this book is their tale.
Tramadol
One of the unwelcome side effects of following pro cycling is a passing acquaintance with medicine. In recent years it’s been haematology first with the haematocrit count then EPO and DIY blood doping. Now a quick look at analgesia thanks to Tramadol, a powerful painkiller that’s being used and abused in the peloton. It seems a ban is only a matter of time.
The Paris-Roubaix Rain Dance
The Atacama desert. The Sahara. These are some of the driest spots on the planet. How about Roubaix in the north of France? It hasn’t rained there since 2002.
Vuelta al Pais Vasco Preview
No daily previews but a quick look at this special race in the Basque Country. A big field, a tough course and one of the hotbeds of cycling in Europe make this one of the best spring stage races. It’s live on TV too.
The Moment The Race Was Won: The Tour of Flanders
400 metres, 300… 250… 200 metres to go. Suddenly the four riders launched the sprint and Fabian Cancellara accelerated, took the lead and kept it to celebrate as he crossed the line. This was the moment the race was won.
The finishing straight was a nail-biter but anyone who watched the race live would have felt the tension for much longer, the quartet’s late sprint for the line was only the final act in a race of tension, drama and surprise.