Why Look Back?

The question was posed after a viewing of the above video, "why do cyclist keep looking back when they race?"

How could I resist using a video of the highlights of my favorite racer to discuss this as it can be several reasons.

The video start with what I believe is the 2008 Milan-San Remo. A Euskatel rider attacks the group and at about the 10 second point looks back to see if a) he has a large enough gap to continue his effort? and b) is there anybody else with him? As he and the other Liquigas rider look back to see how big the gap is and if they caused any damage, Cancellara attacks and gains the winning break

At the 1:00 minute mark you see the Lampre rider on the front of the chasing group look back which is a signal to the guy behind him to move up and take a pull.

At the 1:30 mark Cancellara looks back to check his gap, looking back repeatedly after a gap has been established can be a sign of fatigue. He looks back repeatedly in this case to judge the gap and if he will need to sprint for the finish or if he can have a victory salute as he crosses the line.

Being Cancellara, of course he has a big enough gap for a victory salute.

The second highlight appears to be the 2006 Paris-Roubaix. An emphatic victory with no need to ever look back.

The third highlight is the closing meters of Stage 3 of the 2007 Tour de France in which you have a breakaway being caught and the riders are looking back as the sprinters teams set up for the sprint. This is an acknowledgement of being caught and sometimes looking for one last opportunity to counter or looking for a safe way to join the faster moving peleton.

At the 4:30 mark Cancellara attacks out of the defeated break and goes for an improbable victory foiling the sprinters. He takes one quick glance to confirm the gap to do a quick salute at the end.

Next highlight is Cancellara completing one of his many TT victories in which he will commonly average over 50 kph or 31 mph for close to an hour.

The following highlight I'm not sure which race it is but you see both Cancellara looking back to see if he has established a gap as he chases a Francais de Jeux rider who has a gap and then the Francais de Jeux rider frequently looking back as he fatigues and gets overtaken by Cancellara.

It concludes with Cancellara winning either a World Championship or Olympic TT.

To conclude, looking back after an attack typically is to gauge the success of the attack. Looking while leading a group can be a sign for the next rider to pull through. Looking back when a gap has established can be a sign of fatigue. Looking back right before a finish is to see if you can celebrate early.

Viva La Tour

This week the Tour de France concludes 3 brutal weeks of racing. Tomorrow is the 40.5K Time Trial in Annency. Time Trials are unique in that they are the most individual part of road racing. Road racing is not a man against man sport. A smart team of decent riders can defeat a much stronger solo rider. Take the team tactics to position the best rider and combine it with the individual riders physical ability, mental toughness, and even a little deceptive acting and you have the ingredients of a road race.

Time trials on the other hand removes the team tactics. It is each rider solo against the clock. A rider and his bike battle the course, the wind, and himself. It takes strength, mental toughness, patience, flexibility, and dedication to the art. Many of the overall riders will be in the spotlight for what they can gain (Alberto Contador, Bradley Wiggins, and Lance Armstrong) or what they can loose (Andy Schleck, Carlos Sastre, and Luis Leon Sanchez). However, the win on these stages usually go to time trial specialist such as current TT World Champion Bert Grabsch or Fabian Cancellara.

Fabian Cancellara....

Let me express my man love for this specimen of a rider. His startling acceleration to beat the sprinters in the 2007 Tour, or his solo bridge to the lead group in the Bejieng Olympic Road Race and then still have enough to podium are just a few of his legendary moments. If I could adopt the skills, limitations, and results of any rider it would be Cancellara. He is an incredible time trialist with a mind blowing mix of power and flexibility that allows him to tuck himself into incredibly aero positions while crushing the pedals. It is he that inspired my love of the time trial. So in this stage in which someone other than the climber and the sprinter get to shine, allez Cancellara, allez!!!!

Tubie Adventures

So I broke a spoke on my carbon tubie rear wheel back in April at the Fayetteville Stage Race (the climax of my worst race weekend this year). I decided to teach myself to rebuild the wheel, after much trial and error finally had it right. Now thanks to my new Park Tool Tension Meter (love the Park Tools), I'm confident enough to actually ride it. While this was all happening I managed to put a nice big puncture in my front carbon tubie in the parking lot before the last Britton's TT. Time for some tubie work.

1 new Vittoria Open Corsa CX tubie came in and it was time to glue. But wait, the new tubie didn't have a removable valve so it wouldn't work with the valve extenders. This project was growing from a quick glue to something more complicated. I pulled the tubies off my low profile back-up tubie wheelset and glued them onto the carbon tubies and glued the new tubies onto the backup set. This all worked fine except that now my carbon tubies have black & yellow Vittoria Open Corsa's on them. Not very pro but oh well, you work with what you got. So I spent this afternoon brushing Continental Rim Cement (the container warns that "vapors may cause drowsiness and dizziness) onto tubies and mounting them on the rims. Gluing tubies truely makes you feel like a legit wrench. Now I'm all ready for the final push of the road race season.

Introduction

How did it all begin?

It started in the spring of 2006. I had always been active growing up but 1 year after graduating college and getting married soon after, I found myself sinking into the lethargy of 'mature' adult life. Lifting weights wasn't keeping the weight off and inter mural sports at work mixed with my hyper-competitive personality was threatening to derail my career aspirations.

My athletic tailspin righted itself thanks to a coworker named Frankie B. Frankie is an avid cyclist who loves both the smooth speed of the road and the fat knobby trail time. Hanging out in his cubicle one day he ignited my old memories of riding around the neighborhood with friends on mountain bikes that were to big for us. My curiosity was peaked.

After months of agonizing and hours of internet research (perusing photos and catalogs of shiny bikes) wondering if this was really me, I bit the bullet and purchased my first bike in the spring of 2006. It was a black Cannondale F400. While it was entry level it was more than I had ever owned before and I began riding it on local easy trails every weekend. This was the first riding I had done since before I had a car. I still didn't want anything to do with those "Lycra wearing roadies".

That fall Frankie invited me to come spectate at a local Crit. I went out and watched as the riders wove around a course in a church parking lot. It was the first time I had ever been around a road bike and there was something very sexy about a road bike. It was light, agile, and screamed "faster, faster..." The competitive side of me believed I could beat these guys so I started looking into road bikes. After much research I found a new Cannondale CAAD8 frame and proceeded to build up my first road bike. Here it is in its original form. So raw, so new, so alluring.

I bought my first pair of cycling shorts and was introduced to my first chamois. For you non-cyclist out there the chamois is the pad in the cycling shorts that is most "intimate" for a cyclist and invokes strong opinions and loyalty among riders when the perfect fit is discovered. Now I have hours of chamois time and much prefer the miles passed under the pedal. Thus begins the "Chamois Chronicles"