"I'd rather be seen on my bicycle than on a park run" - Quote from the dark side

Monday 22 January 2018

Cyclists are tough


As I was watching and celebrating Daryl Impey's victory of the Tour Down Under yesterday, I couldn't help to think about his GC win at the Tour Of Turkey in 2009 when he was pulled onto the barriers in the final sprint by Theo Bos. We won't get into that...




Yet, here he was years later, still giving his all and winning the TDU overall. Make no mistake, these guys are tough. Just Saturday I was thinking the same when I saw the young Movistar rider, Nuno Bico, crashed in the breakaway, but after some treatment continued racing.



This made me think of some of the crashes and "tough rider moments" I've seen that I remember more than others for whatever reason.

The massive crash in the Tour de France 2015...





British rider Lauren Dolan crashing but finishing the junior world championship time trial last year...




Alberto Contador often racing while looking like this...



The magical story of Keagan Girdlestone who almost died after crashing through a team car's back window. Now he is starting to race again!






Now he is racing again!

The moral of the story is that cycling is dangerous, but also made great by people like these. Hard and tough. Somehow their experiences motivate me to get out there and train. No excuses because the wind is blowing too hard or the sun is too harsh or the temperature too low.

Get out there and ride! At the same time, stay upright and be safe!

Happy training everyone!

3 comments:

Kate Geisen said...

I've seen most of those pictures, but I still find them terrifying. Have you read Phil Gaimon's book "Draft Animals" about his experiences as a pro? Funny and good, but what really stuck with me is the whole "cyclists are tough" thing and the way pros are expected to ride after the kind of crashes that would put me on the couch for a week or two at least.

Karien P. said...

Go, Daryl!!! :)

coach dion said...

how many crashes have you had?

I'm to scared to crash!