So…you nervous?

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Kathryn

“So…you nervous?”

 

I've been asked this question at least four times a day for the past week now. It's generally accompanied by a knowing grin and a slight eyebrow raise. Not that I mind. Everyone wants to know how I'm feeling in the last few days before I compete in my first half Ironman.

 

This race is basically the reason I moved to Girona last fall. The past few years of constant world travel have been an amazing gift, but my lifestyle hasn't included as much consistent physical activity and goal setting as I'd have liked. So after a lazy 2014 in which I (happily!) watched the pros ride their bikes, I decided it was my turn to do the same.

Packed to leave NYC

 

I'm a runner first, but I love riding and am not likely to drown any time soon, so I joined a local tri club where, by chance, the coach happened to also speak English. Under his guidance, I've spent the last four months working on my swim technique, increasing my riding endurance, changing my running stride, and building general strength. Some days have been tougher than others and I recently looked back through my training logs to realize with some surprise I've put in multiple weeks of 16-20 training hours.

 

But when you train in this open water, on these roads, and in these mountains, even the hard days are a little bit easier.

 

Of course, there's more to training that just sweating. There's also a lot of resting. Cue my yoga mat and balcony.

 

When I lived in New York, I did a handful of sprint distance tris and ran in tons of races ranging from the mile to the marathon. While I generally got faster, I never really got fast. A couple of weeks ago, I ran in a 10k where the race village was literally at my front door and the start/finish line was about 30 paces away. More importantly, I got fast! I set a new personal record of 44:12, knocking about five minutes off my old PR.

 

This past weekend saw the start of the local tri season, so I signed up and thought of the race as training. It was useful to practice transitions in a race situation, although I'm still not wild about the inevitable kicks and punches at the frantic start of a group swim. The women's race didn't start until the men's race was winding down, so I was really excited upon exiting the water to see (and hear!) the guys from my tri club had stuck around after their race to cheer for me, the only woman competing from our club.

 

I felt fresh in all three disciplines, despite a strong current, a mechanical issue on the bike, having to climb a punchy hill six times (“No, no, don't worry, the course is flat!” said my coach), and wondering mid-run if the run course was two laps or three (it was two, thank goodness). In fact my 5k run was a PR in itself (20:43) and the whole race was an overall PR by almost 40 minutes.

 

So, after all the time and effort I've put in so far, and now in the last day or so before I head to Aix-en-Provence, France to spend the weekend with friends I haven't seen in a long time, celebrate my 34th birthday, and line up for my first half Ironman, am I nervous?

 

No. I'm lucky to have the opportunity to invest my time and soul in this passion of mine.

 

 

Categories: France, Spain, USA | Tags: , , , , | 6 Comments

2015 Volta a Catalunya stage 3

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Kathryn
While I'm thrilled to have spent the past few months in Girona preparing for my first half Ironman (barely five weeks away!), my training schedule means I haven't (yet!) been able this season to run around Europe chasing the peloton as I love to do. Luckily for me, the third stage of the Volta a Catalunya started and finished in Girona so I got to catch the fourth oldest cycling stage race in the world without having to leave my backyard.
 
To make the day even better, a couple of my friends joined me. I was pretty tickled to have a new audience to whom I could explain the sport: race tactics, why there are so many vehicles in a race, yes that guy's first name really is Darwin/Winner/Ryder…
 
Lampre rolled up en masse to the sign on.
 
Armed with a shirt and a handful of permanent markers, I was in my element once more as I called out to my favorite riders for autographs and to wish them luck. Below: Larry Warbasse stuck around to chat after signing for me.

 

No matter what the race, one of my goals is always to talk with all of the riders from Cannondale-Garmin (I might even stop referring to the team as Garmindale one of these days). I hit the jackpot today and shared a word or two (or more) with all eight members of the argyle armada. Below: Andre Cardoso.

 
A fair chunk of the peloton considers Girona their adopted home and they spend the bulk of the racing season training here so this stage was close to the hearts of many today. Ireland's Dan Martin was one of those riders looking to win his local stage.

 

With the sign on competed, 187 riders gathered in the start corral.

 

Carlos Betancour still hasn't quite hit his racing weight.

 

The peloton headed out for the neutral start.

 

Larry Warbasse, Janier Acevedo, and Danish national champion Michael Valgren.

 

Nick Roche.

 

Rigoberto Uran.

 

While the finish wasn't for another four or so hours, the peloton would in fact swing through town again after completing 95 of 156 kilometers. This gave me time to catch the last 20 minutes of my Spanish class, grab a sandwich, and walk the 400 meters from my apartment to the finish line where I got caught up talking with a friend I'd bumped into. As is always the case (at least that's how it feels to me when I'm at a race!), the break was upon us in no time. Tom Danielson led Rudy Molard and Leonardo Duque, though the trio of escapees didn't last too much longer.

 

Tinkoff and Movistar led the chasing peloton.

 

A well positioned Andrew Talansky looked good in the bunch.

 

There was a split in the peloton and the biggest group followed behind.

 

One final cluster of riders stuck together as best they could.

 

With some time on my hands, I headed to the buses to say hi to Biso, the bus driver for Garmindale. He was as kind as always and invited me into the bus to watch the race on TV!

 

As comfy as the bus and Biso's hospitality are, nothing can keep me from nabbing a good spot on the finish line so I joined up with a friend once more and we found a good view about five meters last the finish. My Spanish and Catalan both got a good workout as I followed the race commentary. The soigneurs, meanwhile, got to stand in the middle of the road and watch the race on a big screen that was unfortunately obscured to us.

 

With 15k to go, GC favorites like Froome, Contador, Talansky, Aru, Uran and others had gained 40 seconds on the peloton. Next thing I heard, Dan Martin had bridged across to this elite group. Contador set a high tempo and Froome got dropped. The group separated and merged over the next few kilometers until Domenico Pozzovivo attacked with 1.5k remaining. The Italian hung on and soloed to victory.

 

Three seconds later, Uran and Martin fought it out for second place. The Colombian threw his bike over the line and marginally bested the Irishman. The upside is that Martin's ride finally netted Garmindale their first World Tour points of the 2015 season, the last World Tour team to do so. The downside is that Martin probably feels even more disappointed than I do about him finishing third in the stage. Ooph, poor guy.

 

Fabio Aru finished fifth, one position behind Contador.

 

Winning the first stage on Monday after riding in the break all day and after finishing in the winning group the afternoon before in a soggy Milano-Sanremo, Maciej Paterski, who has had an impressive few days to say the least, suffered on the some of the climbs today and ultimately lost the leader's jersey to Pierre Rolland by 1:08. Below: Paterski in white.

 

Enrico Gasparotto craned his neck to see on the clock he had finished 1:34 down.

 

Pozzovivo is not on my generous list of favorite riders, so we skipped the podium ceremony and headed to the buses. Below: Martin and Talansky cooled down on the trainers.

 

Richie Porte.

 

I ran into a few people from my triathlon club wandering around the buses but I lost it laughing when I spotted the only two teenagers in our club with some of their friends dashing like mad from one team to the next trying to score water bottles!

 

A dozen moments had made my day long before the race ended but the icing on the cake was undeniable. We were casually walking away from the Volta as the finish line was already being dismantled when I turned around, hearing footsteps running towards us. A man out of breath asked, “Hablas español?” He introduced himself as a photographer and said he recognized me from the rain soaked mountain finish in Andorra in the 2013 Vuelta a España and from the 2014 Tour de France, explaining he had a couple of photographs with me in them and that he'd like to give them to me. We walked a couple of blocks back to his car where he proceeded to pull out a photo of me talking with Sebastian Langeveld (I clearly remember this conversation, too!) and one with me just behind Cyril Gautier from the Carcassone start at last year's Tour. It's incredible to think this Barcelona based photographer remembered me after all this time and then spotted me in the crowd not once but twice today (he saw me during sign on but didn't have a chance to talk to me, he explained). Even more incredible is the thoughtfulness and generosity I've continually experienced from everyone involved in the cycling community. Absolutely incredible. Thank you, Enrique.

 

Today's 45 autographs came from: 17 Mick Rogers, 21 Tejay Van Garderen, 22 Sammy Sanchez, 23 Pete Stetina, 24 Darwin Atapuma, 26 Amaël Moinard, 36 Jose Herrada, 38 Winner Anacona, 44 Richie Porte, 51 Dan Martin, 52 Ryder Hesjedal, 53 Janier Acevado, 54 Andre Cardoso, 55 Tom Danielson, 56 Joe Dombrowski, 57 Alex Howes, 58 Andrew Talansky, 61 Roman Bardet, 75 Dario Cataldo, 86 Gianluca Brambilla, 93 Alexandre Geniez, 97 Kevin Reza, 98 Lorenzo Manzin, 106 Simon Pellaud, 107 Larry Warbasse, 122 Bart De Clercq, 134 Esteban Chaves, 137 Cameron Meyer, 141 Luca Mezgec, 142 Warren Barguil, 143 Johannes Fröhlinger, 144 Lawson Craddock, 162 Fumiyuki Beppu, 171 David Arroyo, 174 Amets Txurruka, 192 Adrian Honkisz, 193 Maciej Paterski, 201 Daniel Navarro, 202 Luis Angel Mate, 204 Romain Hardy, 206 Julien Simon, 214 Leonardo Duque, 221 Pierre Rolland, 227 Cyril Gautier, and 238 Danilo Napolitano.

 

Yup. I love Girona, alright.

 

 

Categories: Spain | Tags: , | 4 Comments

Revolution Series Track Cycling

Posted on February 28, 2015 by Kathryn

Recently I jumped on a plane for the first time in months and headed to London to catch two of the three track cycling sessions in the Revolution Series.

 

Friday night session

Alex Rasmussen looking particularly relaxed.

 

Glenn O'Shea and Jack Bobridge warming up.

 

How can you not cheer for a rider in houndstooth?

 

Women's scratch race

Laura Trott wearing number 121.

 

Katie Archibald went down hard on a turn and took a frighteningly long time to get up. Impressively, she got back on her bike and rejoined the field after missing a couple of laps.

 

For the remainder of the race, Trott kept an eye on Archibald. It came down to Archibald, Trott, and Spain's Leire Olaberria. Trott pulled off a stunning sprint, just pipping the Spaniard at the line. I took the below photo with no more than ten meters to go.
 
Men's flying lap
Britain's Ed Clancy won the event where each rider gets solo 3 laps to build up speed before sprinting for one lap.
Men's keirin
Sporting an unmissable kit, Germany's Maximilian Levy won the event.
 
Men's derny race
Not a surprise to see Bobridge and O'Shea easily winning their respective heats and moving on to the final.
 
A derny zooms by Rasmussen.
 
Each rider gets his own derny for the 60 lap race.
 
Rasmussen.
 
O'Shea.
 
Bobridge.
 
As the dernies got progressively faster through the race, O'Shea and Bobridge both managed to lap the field.
 
Bobridge won the event and his derny driver was thrilled.
 
Men's longest lap
This was brutal to watch. The riders line themselves up and then have to stay still until the gun starts the laps. One kiwi couldn't hold his track stand any longer and was out before the lap even began. The Irish rider was shaking like he had hypothermia but managed to hang on.
 
Jeffrey Hoogland won the sprint.
 
Men's Madison
I'd always wanted to see this event where teammates take turns hand slinging each other ahead.
 
At 120 laps though and with virtually no commentary, I couldn't keep it straight which team was winning, so I didn't really mind when the man next to me asked the inevitable question: “So which rider is your boyfriend?”
 
Saturday afternoon session
A much fuller crowd was in attendance today.
 
Men's derny heats
Reminding me of the flying monkeys from “The Wizard of Oz,” the ever popular derny riders hopped aboard their motorized bikes with stoic faces.
 
Riders and dernies finding each other.
 
Pete Kennaugh (below, left) won his heat and O'Shea took the second heat.
 
Women's UCI points race
The racers complete 80 laps and every tenth lap is a sprint, earning 5, 3, 2, and 1 points for the first 4 riders, respectively.
 
Despite the size of the field, the race once more came down to Trott, Archibald and Olaberria but, truth be told, no one could touch Trott.
 
Men's sprint heats
In his heat, Levy rode at a crawl and kept his head turned back to keep an eye on his competitor…
 
…until he swooped down to win his heat.
 
The following heat was basically a clinic in doing track stands.
 
They were so still for so long, I was able to take a perfectly focused shot of the Hungarian's face, a portrait of focus.
 
About 100 meters later, the Hungarian cracked and went too soon, allowing the kiwi to pull off the win.
 
Men's UCI points race

Three riders earned themselves 20 points a piece by lapping the field, including O'Shea and Bobridge.

 

O'Shea with the win.

 

Dame Sarah Storey's hour record attempt

Media scrum ahead of the start.

 

 

She rode the first 30 laps progressively faster and was in good shape after 20 minutes with nearly 4 seconds in hand.

 

Unfortunately, she couldn't maintain that pace and rode each lap progressively slower for the next 40 minutes.

 

After 100 laps, she was 10 seconds behind so hope lingered but her face twisted into a grimace as her legs screamed and her pace continued to decline.

 

Still, it was a brilliant attempt and she was about 560 meters short of establishing a new world record. She did manage to achieve a new British record, a master's record, and a C5 record. UCI president Brian Cookson was present to congratulate her on her efforts.

 

Storey had to be helped off her bike and could not stand up on her own immediately after completing the sixty minutes. Her legs were so exhausted that she even slid down and off the chair she was sitting in, so it's doubly impressive that she found the strength to ride (a road bike!) for an extra couple of laps to wave to the cheering crowd.

 

 

Men's derny final

The dernies and the men took to the track one last time for the afternoon.

 

Kennaugh and O'Shea lapped the field.

 

The Aussie and the Brit were closely matched for much of the race but with Kennaugh pushing his derny to go faster, he pulled off the win.

 

Kennaugh celebrates.

 

Women's elimination race

 

Trott and Olaberria were the final two riders.

 

I don't think anyone, including Olaberria, was surprised to see Trott win.

 

 

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I love pro cycling

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Kathryn

I press the headphones against my ears and squeeze my eyes shut. Anything to help me hear better. The internet connection isn’t great but this is one of the better Internet cafes in Tashkent and most of them are closed at this late hour on a Sunday night anyway. Through the crackle and static, the familiar sounds of Paul and Phil’s voices transport me to the Champs Élysées where Lance Armstrong is about to win his 5th Tour de France. I stay to listen for as long as I can, until the online broadcast wraps up and I walk out of the Internet cafe full of teenage boys playing games. My eyes are a little wet, my nose sniffles. The Tour does this to me every year, whether I’m there or not.

 

I can’t tell you when exactly it happened but at some point I fell in love with pro cycling.


I come from a family of devout sports fans. Our idea of fun is to list the cities that have hosted the summer Olympics in chronological order. I’ve missed the weddings of half of my out-of-town friends, yet I have flown from New York to New Zealand for a weekend just to catch the final match of the Rugby World Cup in person. (I’m lucky to have such understanding friends!) I was raised to believe in sports as if it were my religion. Through playing high school and college sports, I found strength, courage, and confidence in myself I hadn’t known I possessed. More than a decade later, I still love to run around and be active as much as I can.


Over the past several years, I started to travel to some of cycling’s biggest races. I already loved the sport and still found myself getting more and more involved by the minute. This year I dropped all pretense and planned my 2014 completely around the peloton, hitting up over 30 races, including the spring classics, all 3 Grand Tours, national championships, and plenty of other one day and stage races.

 

So why, of all sports, do I love pro cycling so much?


What may seem like a simple race on the surface is actually full of complexities. From teams working as one in order to place their leader on the top step of the podium to others in the breakaway providing valuable TV coverage for their sponsors while secretly hoping that today is the day the peloton can’t organize itself to chase. At stage races filled with multiple competitions suited to nearly every rider, and at one day races where luck can be just as important as tactics, cycling is never dull. Learning the basics of racing is simple, even in a team sport with individual results, but understanding the nuances can take a lifetime.


With over 100 riders lining up in any given race, it’s not a stretch to say the peloton is a soap opera. The domestique who quietly gives everything day in, day out and finally gets the chance to shine. The rider who clearly struggles not to believe the damning media reports after a disappointing performance. The team leader who abandons a race only after thanking a teammate for giving such selfless support. In the peloton, there will be villains and heroes, heartbreak and redemption.


Living a self-imposed nomadic lifestyle these past few years, I’ve missed out on time with family and friends–but not for one minute have I been lonely. Among cycling fans, race staff, and even the pros themselves, I’ve found a community, generous and welcoming beyond words. Invitations from strangers to travel together or to crash at their house, which would normally be creepy, are the norm among fans. I can’t begin to name all of the people who work at the races–from the set up workers to the TV crews to the race officials–who have gladly given me VIP passes so that I could watch a stage from a new angle. A handful of riders have thanked me for my consistent support (I think they’re saying I’m loud!) at the races which means the world to me to know that I can help a rider pedal up a challenging climb or just be a friendly and familiar face. I carry this unexpected kindness with me in my heart.


While following the races means I’m usually thousands of miles away from loved ones, don’t let that deceive you. The sport brings my family together in a way that probably nothing else does. During the off season, my brother (Hermano) and I will easily exchange a dozen emails about the day’s cycling news, complete with analysis and personal commentary. After a race, inevitably the first thing I do is fire off a lengthy email to him, full of run on sentences and exclamation marks, about the day’s racing (I’m in agony on the days when I have to wait until he’s watched the stage on TV after work). I can expect excited emails from my parents in whatever countries they happen to be in and regardless of the time of day or night after I’ve updated my blog with race photos and stories. I’m not always great at telling my family how much I love them, but I’m sure it says so when they read between the lines.


I could go on, but I don’t think I need to. Pro cycling satisfies both my love of competition and my desire for human interaction. With that in mind, there is much room for improvement. It’s no secret that cycling has gone through seriously troubling times in the last 20 years. I believe there is less doping in the peloton today but there are still glaring problems. The sport is not financially sustainable in its current set up. Riders have shockingly few rights and are not well represented to the key decision makers. The governing body is responsible for simultaneously promoting and policing the sport, a proven conflict of interest. Women’s cycling (to say nothing of track cycling, cyclo-cross and mountain biking) needs better exposure as does the sport as a whole in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Perhaps it’s not a surprise, but I’ve got several ideas on these topics and more. In the coming days and weeks, I will be writing a series of articles with my ideas and suggestions about how to improve pro cycling. I am excited to have Hermano’s valuable input, too, on this project so stay tuned as I publish my thoughts here. My goal is to ensure the health and longevity of the sport so that future generations of fans–and riders–can indulge their passion, just as I’ve been able to.

Categories: world wide | Tags: , | 4 Comments

Córdoba, Spain

Posted on December 2, 2014 by Kathryn

Walking around Córdoba during La Vuelta a España, I switched to black and white when I saw that the August sun was bleaching all the color from my photos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The soft colors during the late sunset were a welcomed change from the harsh afternoon sun.

 

 

It was a rushed visit, but the city was stunning!

 

Categories: Spain | Tags: , | 2 Comments

Alhambra (Granada, Spain)

Posted on November 25, 2014 by Kathryn

In August when the days were well over 100F (40C) and the nights were not much cooler, I was in southern Spain to follow the first week of the Vuelta. Before catching an overnight bus to Madrid to then fly on to Canada at 6 a.m. the next morning, I visited Alhambra on my last afternoon. To say that I was not in the mood to play tourist is an understatement. After an adrenaline filled week, I was overheated, overexcited, overtired, and pretty much over Alhambra before I even got there. But I had already purchased my reserved ticket online a couple of months earlier and figured I may as well see what all the fuss was about.


Now a UNESCO World Heritage site, Alhambra is a palace and fort that, since its original construction in the 9th century, fell into a pattern of use, decay, and revival over the following centuries.


The grounds were pretty but didn't really make me slow down too much.


That is, until I spent 20 minutes in a lengthy queue, clutching my timed entry ticket, to go in the main complex.


I had taken no more than two steps in when I gasped.

 
There is something about the geometric patterns and repetitive flow in Islamic architecture that I find so unbelievably peaceful and soothing. I think it appeals to my ridiculously extreme left brained way of thinking.
 
The complexity lies in the simplicity which, to me, is pure genius.
 
 


I'm not an especially tactile person, but I just wanted to close my eyes and let my fingers run over the intricate carvings that climbed the exquisite walls.




I love the keyhole doorways.


 

 


The coolness of the rooms alleviated my heat induced crankiness.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zooming out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zooming in.

 

 

 

 

Where different patterns and textures met, it felt surprisingly unchaotic and completely natural, like the sea meeting land.

 

 

 

Stained glass window.

 

Tiled floor.

 

The sunlight filtered in dramatically.

 

With a newfound bounce in my step, I eagerly explored the rest of the grounds, even pausing at the places I'd sped by on my way in.

 

 
 
The views from Alhambra are as spectacular as the buildings themselves.
 

 

Just think how much I'd have loved it if I hadn't walked in with a crappy mood!

 

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2014 cycling season stats

Posted on November 21, 2014 by Kathryn

This post is long, long overdue!

 

The 2014 cycling season was beyond good to me. From January to September, I followed the peloton around the world. Below I’ve listed stats and superlatives from my spectating, but this can never capture how much I appreciate the countless people I met along the way who left an impression on me with their kindness. From the race staff to the media to team staff and riders to fellow fans, I still cannot believable many people happily went out of their way to make my time at the races even better. I started following the peloton because I love to watch cycling but what keeps me going back is the generous and welcoming community I never imagined I’d find.

 

I saw 33 races* in 10 countries on 3 continents.

 

Of those races…

-7 were women’s races

-4 national champions were crowned

 

And I…

-collected approximately 633 signatures

-rode in 2 race cars during time trials

-rode in 1 team car during a stage race

-hitched a ride from 1 team bus

-received podium flowers from 3 riders

-saw Garmin on the podium 14 times

 

Favorite race: It’s a close call but Tour Down Under was a fantastic race in all regards by my standards

 

Best atmosphere: Belfast ahead of and during the opening stages of the Giro. In fact, enthusiasm spread well beyond just Belfast and every town the race would speed through had gone all out to celebrate

 

Lowlight: the Garmin crash during the Giro TTT


Highlight: this is a tie!

-Svein Tuft throwing me his flowers after he was awarded with the leader’s pink jersey in Giro

-Mike Creed inviting me to watch the final stage of the Tour of Alberta from the SmartStop team car.

 

I’m not sure what 2015 holds for me but I certainly hope I can visit my friends and bother the peloton again! I am particularly excited that Ted King and Ruben Zepuntke will be wearing argyle next year!

You can also expect I’ll be posting regularly once again.

 

*2014 races

New Zealand national championships: U23 & elite men’s

Tour Down Under People’s Choice Classic Crit: women’s & men’s

Tour Down Under (all 6 stages)

Paris-Nice (2 stages)

Ronde Van Vlaanderen

Scheldeprijs

Paris-Roubaix

Brabantse Pijl

Amstel Gold

Flèche Wallonne: women’s & men’s

Liège-Bastogne-Liège

Giro d’Italia (3 stages)

Criterium du Dauphiné (2 stages)

UK national championships: women’s & men’s

Tour de France (all 21 stages)

La Course

Clásica San Sebastián

Tour de Pologne (4 stages)

La Vuelta a España (7 stages)

Tour of Alberta (all 6 stages)

GPCQM (all 3 races)

World Championships (jr men’s TT, elite women’s TT, elite men’s TT, jr women’s road race, U23 men’s road race, jr men’s road race, elite women’s road race, & elite men’s road race)

Categories: world wide | Tags: , , | 4 Comments

2014 Ponferrada Worlds: Men’s road race

Posted on September 28, 2014 by Kathryn

The marquee event! Fourteen laps of the 18.2k course to determine the owner of the rainbow stripes for the next 12 months.

 

14 laps to go

 

Two Colombians and a Croatian had attacked from the gun and had just a couple of seconds by this early point in the race. Christian Meier led the peloton.

 

Eric Marcotte.

 

Johan Vansummeren.

 

13 laps to go

The 4 man break of Carlos Quintero (Colombia), Oleksandr Polivoda (Ukraine), Matija Kvasina (Croatia), and Zydrunas Savickas (Lithuania) had an advantage of 1:30.

 

Poland in the peloton.

 

Brent Bookwalter.

 

Representing 3 different countries, 4 Garmin riders: Dan Martin (Ireland), David Millar (UK), Andrew Talansky & Alex Howes (USA).

 

12 laps to go

The break was building their advantage and now had 6:15 while Georgios Bouglas and Michal Golas tried to bridge.

 

Germany's Christian Knees in the peloton.

 

Michael Albasini, Greg Van Avermaet, and Kiel Reijnen.

 

Michal Kwiatkowski.

 

11 laps to go

The peloton had eased off even more and the break now enjoyed 14:00.

 

Poland riding on the front.

 

John Degenkolb.

 

The course wasn't hard enough for Talansky and Rory Sutherland!

 

Vincenzo Nibali, Ramunas Navardauskas, Cyril Gautier, and possibly a few other were involved in a small crash at the start of the lap. These 3 managed to Below: Gautier's kit bears evidence of the crash.

 

10 laps to go

With 182k remaining, the break's 16:00 advantage wasn't a worry for the Polish lead peloton.

 

Andre Greipel.

 

Daryl Impey.

 

Johannes Fröhlinger.

 

Italians Nibali and Giovanni Visconti.

 

9 laps to go

Slowly, Poland began to reel in the break and cut their lead down to 14:00.

 

Simon Gerrans.

 

Alex Howes.

 

Spaniards Ion Izagirre, Jesus Herrada, and Luis Leon Sanchez.

 

Defending world champion Rui Costa and teammate Andre Cardoso.

 

Purito Rodriguez, Christian Meier, and Simon Geschke.

 

8 laps to go

Poland continued to pull in the break who were now at 12:00.

 

Geraint Thomas with his British teammates.

 

Carlos Betancour, Jack Bauer, and Albasini.

 

7 laps to go

For the first time today, the peloton got serious and picked up the pace. They were positively flying up the hill.

 

Nacer Bouhanni.

 

Adam Hansen and Kevin Reza.

 

Paul Martens and Geschke.

 

6 laps to go

With Poland setting tempo at the front, the break was down to 9:15 and losing ground. The weather had forecasted rain all morning, followed by storms in the afternoon. The rain had started in some parts of the course and everyone had a good deal of mud and grit splattered on their faces.

 

5 laps to go

Down to 6:10, the break passed on the beer and kept going.

 

Cadel Evans.

 

Navardauskas trying to negotiate his rain cape.

 

4 laps to go

Italy came to the front and helped bring the break to within 2:00. The pace was starting to pull the peloton apart and groups of dropped riders were starting to form.

 

Belgians in the rain: Philippe Gilbert, Sep Vanmarcke, and Jan Bakelants.

 

Fabian Cancellara.

 

Hansen and Navardauskas.

 

Millar.

 

3 laps to go

An attack during the previous lap saw Tony Martin shoot off the front and gain about 20 seconds on the chase group which included Geschke, Visconti, Vanmarcke, Albasini, and Peter Kennaugh among others.

 

The chase had 40 seconds on the peloton.

 

2 laps to go

Visconti attacked and now it was his turn to dangle off the front by 20 seconds.

 

Tony Martin led the first chase group.

 

Two more chase groups followed in furious pursuit. Below: Van Avermaet.

 

Navardauskas and Bakelants.

 

Rigoberto Uran and Vansummeren.

 

Dan Martin.

 

Last lap!

Despite the on again/off again rain, a great crowd had stayed put to catch the final lap!

 

Vasil Kiryienka led a 4 man break which included Gautier, Italy and Denmark.

 

Geschke, Gerrans, and company in the first chase group.

 

Van Avermaet, Bouhanni, and Navardauskas.

 

Suffer face from Hansen.

 

I ran as fast as I could to get to the finish. It was pretty packed all along the course so I climbed a billboard near the podium and waited. If I contorted myself and then craned my neck a little more, I could see the final kilometers on a big screen. I held my breath listening to the commentary from Juan Mari Guajardo and Anthony McCrossan. Kiryienka's group had been eaten up and now attacks were flying from Kwiatkowski, Rodriguez, Gilbert, Valverde and others! With about 4k to go, Kwiatkowski quietly grabbed a few seconds and never looked back. The young Polish rider crossed the finish line just ahead of Gerrans and Valverde to claim the title of World Champion! Below: Cancellara, Michael Matthews, and Navardauskas catch their breaths after a frantic finish 7 seconds behind the gold medalist.

 

Howes, Kristoff, and Edvald Boassen Hagen.

 

Happily the storms never materialized but the rain came back with a vengeance within minutes of the race's end and everyone cracked open an umbrella.

 

No, really, everyone.

 

For the third time in 3 straight years, Valverde received the bronze medal. Gerrans has had a phenomenal season–starting with winning the Australian national championships and the Tour Down Under, all the way to pulling off the first ever double victory at the GPCQM 2 weeks ago–but the Aussie was disappointed to have lost the Worlds by 1 second.

 

Standing on the podium, Kwiatkowski still couldn't believe it! He kept cupping his face in his hands as if he didn't know what he'd see when he opened his eyes again.

 

The podium: 1st Michal Kwiatkowski, 2nd Simon Gerrans, 3rd Alejandro Valverde.

 

I have to say it: Three cheers for Poland!

 

 

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2014 Ponferrada Worlds: Junior Men’s road race

Posted on September 27, 2014 by Kathryn

The sun was bright but it was cold enough that I could see my breath when I arrived at the start of the Junior Men's road race. Over the next 3 hours, the peloton would ride 7 laps of the same 18.2k circuit used in the Junior Women's and U23 Men's races yesterday.

 

7 laps to go

Rolling out a few hundred meters after the start.

 

Uzbekistan had 3 riders participating! (Please don't ask how many of them would finish.)

 

Unlike the cyclists who had to pedal for the next 27 minutes to approach the finish line, I just had to cut across a field and a mall where I met up the families of 2 American riders to watch the race together. Below: no attacks yet on the completion of the first lap.

 

The tail end was a bit stretched out.

 

6 laps to go

The peloton was still together but the Americans wanted to control the tempo so they sent their climber, Adrien Costa, silver medalist in the TT on Tuesday, to the front for the climbs.

 

Why the grandstands are just opened up for the Junior Men's and Women's races I don't know.

 

5 laps to go

I'm not sure if Costa was trying to attack or if he just dropped the whole peloton, but he soloed away and it took Kazakhstan's Grigoriy Shtein visible effort to bridge.

 

The peloton was less than a minute behind.

 

4 laps to go

The pair continued to work well together and had about 45 seconds on the peloton.

 

The peloton.

 

3 laps to go

Shtein was worn out by Costa's pace but the American was joined by a few other riders as a chase group encroached.

 

The peloton.

 

2 laps to go

The field had come together again but there seemed to be no end to the attacks.

 

Last lap! The finish!

Plenty of riders had been dropped or abandoned over the laps, but a pack of more than 30 riders roared up the finishing straight to sprint it out for the rainbow jersey.

 

I didn't know who he was, but I knew that a German had just claimed victory!

 

Once the medalists walked onto the stage, I realized I did in fact know him–he and another rider had been on my flight to Madrid on Monday! It's hard to forget such shockingly blond hair.

 

The podium: 1st Jonas Bokeloh, 2nd Alexandr Kulikovsky, 3rd Peter Lenderink.

 

The ongoing Nations' Cup series had wrapped up and the winning teams were now called to the stage. Frnace took the victory followed by runners up Denmark and Germany.

 

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2014 Ponferrada Worlds: Women’s road race

Posted on September 27, 2014 by Kathryn

Representing 39 countries, 133 cyclists took to the start of the 127.4k women's road race.

 

7 laps to go

I was back on the hill today so it's not a surprise that just 3k from the start, the peloton was still together.

 

There was a good crowd which made for good people watching–and good dog watching, too. This guy was riding around town with 4 of them in his little trailer.

 

There were a lot of characters watching the race today.

 

6 laps to go

There were a few riders hanging off the back but for the most part, nothing had changed at this point.

 

It's inevitable that you'll strike up a conversation with your neighbors when you spend an entire afternoon standing shoulder to shoulder, so as I was cringing at my poor command of the past tense in Spanish while talking with the guy next to me, a sudden lack of motion caught my eye. The big screen has no speakers, so we couldn't hear any updates, but the picture had stopped advancing on the screen because the peloton itself had stopped advancing. A devastating crash on a flat section wiped out or affected probably two thirds of the peloton. Riders were flung about the ditches and on the road. The neutral service mechanics didn't know where to start and sadly, neither did the paramedics as several riders were carted off to the hospital.

 

5 laps to go

Without audio commentary, I couldn't be sure of how many riders had been forced to abandon so I had no idea how big of a peloton to expect when rbey next came through. I'd estimate about 40 riders were unscathed and riding along as usual.

 

Suddenly, though, there were huge time gaps. All told, it was about 11 minutes from the front of the peloton until the last rider. That's a massive deficit to make up when you're riding solo or in pairs at best. Below: Evelyn Stevens.

 

Looking for her third consecutive rainbow jersey, Marianne Vos.

 

Kathryn Bertine was on the cusp of being off the back when the crash happened, so it only held her back momentarily at worst. She's a fascinating character who came to ride for St. Kitts and Nevis (she's American born and raised) through very unconventional means and has since produced a well received documentary called “Half The Road” about women's cycling.

 

The crowd was so supportive and sympathetic to the riders off the back and gave a mighty roar when Alison Powers pedaled up the climb. Despite having left part of her kit and her backside on the asphalt, the American TT and road race champion wore an enormous grin.

 

Aussie Loren Rowney led a group up the climb.

 

A Belarussian rider who had hit the deck.

 

Among the spectators, I spotted Mario Spengler who competed for Switzerland in the Junior Men's road race in the morning.

 

Between laps, this Italian guy had been covering the road with Visconti's name ahead of the men's race tomorrow. He was obviously getting into the spirit of things as he started taking requests about which name he should paint next. He did Vos and when he painted Valverde's name, the crowd happily insisted he also paint Purito for good measure.

 

He was so wrapped up in his efforts that he didn't realize how close the peloton was until the crowd starting to yell that the cars were coming. He jumped over the fence, but not before a police motorcycle slowed down to talk to him.

 

4 laps to go

No changes: still a big pack of survivors riding together and many off the back.

 

Chasers.

 

3 laps to go

The lead group had picked up the pace and was now down to about 20. A few riders had tried attacking but no one had gained much time or stayed away for long.

 

2 laps to go

An attack from a still smiling Powers! She must have known she'd be swept up before long, but it was still incredible to see.

 

The chasing peloton.

 

As much as she probably wanted to, Daiva Tuslaite didn't stop for a beer and carried on climbing instead.

 

The crowds this week have been supportive but thin in numbers. Not today! There was a fantastic turn out and everyone was cheering, yelling, and clapping for every rider to crest the climb.

 

Last lap!

 

As soon as the front group had passed, I ran towards the finish area and figured out a shortcut that shaved off at least a kilometer. Hurray! Thank goodness I'm tall enough that standing in the second row behind short people still give me a good vantage point. Across the street was reserved for the athletes who watched eagerly to see which nation would earn the rainbow.

 

A break of 4 big names had tried to escape but were swallowed up by about 10 chasers within the final kilometer. It came down to a bunch sprint with Vos in the lead at 150 meters to go, but she faded and Pauline Ferrand-Prevot narrowly took the win over Germany's Lisa Brennauer and Sweden's Emma Johansson. Vos finished in 10th.

 

Beyond the finish line, riders, photographers, and staff roamed around in search of one another.

 

Both of Hungary's riders waited at the fence to watch the medal ceremony.

 

This is Brennauer's third medal this week after winning gold in the team and individual time trials.

 

Johansson turned to sneak a glance at Ferrand-Prevot as La Marseillaise played.

 

The podium: 1st Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, 2nd Lisa Brennauer, 3rd Emma Johansson.

 

 

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