Re:
This is one sport where little has been done for years to add protection for riders. Speeds have increased yet protection hasn't. I know of no sport, even full contact sports like American football, where broken bones and major abrasions are so accepted as part of the sport. Where is the advances in clothing protection? Why not fabric with kevlar to protect when falling off the bike. Some type of tape for legs and arms, elbow pads and such would certainly help avoid injuries in crashes. Course design would also help. Seeing those pillars in the middle of the road after the high speed crash made me wince. Not sure how they made it through without another crash. There is really no reason for the amount and severity of crashes in the peleton if rider safety was really paramount. The old school approach that it was good enough in the good old days and it should be good enough now holds little sway. There needs to be serious attention placed on rider safety, how to avoid and mitigate crashes and make the pro peleton a safer place. Not many sports where the major players are taken out of contention because of crashes. A level playing field would certainly help the competitive nature of cycling and give one the strongest field in races. This way, major races are often decided by crashes and such where "bike handling" is blamed. Why not just add to the spice and put drunk drivers that hate cyclists on course? Make it a true blood sport? (kidding but highly sarcastic). This would not be acceptable in any other sport, even the fighting sports where you try to kick the crap out of your opponent. Something needs to be done!
reshp1 said:
This is one sport where little has been done for years to add protection for riders. Speeds have increased yet protection hasn't. I know of no sport, even full contact sports like American football, where broken bones and major abrasions are so accepted as part of the sport. Where is the advances in clothing protection? Why not fabric with kevlar to protect when falling off the bike. Some type of tape for legs and arms, elbow pads and such would certainly help avoid injuries in crashes. Course design would also help. Seeing those pillars in the middle of the road after the high speed crash made me wince. Not sure how they made it through without another crash. There is really no reason for the amount and severity of crashes in the peleton if rider safety was really paramount. The old school approach that it was good enough in the good old days and it should be good enough now holds little sway. There needs to be serious attention placed on rider safety, how to avoid and mitigate crashes and make the pro peleton a safer place. Not many sports where the major players are taken out of contention because of crashes. A level playing field would certainly help the competitive nature of cycling and give one the strongest field in races. This way, major races are often decided by crashes and such where "bike handling" is blamed. Why not just add to the spice and put drunk drivers that hate cyclists on course? Make it a true blood sport? (kidding but highly sarcastic). This would not be acceptable in any other sport, even the fighting sports where you try to kick the crap out of your opponent. Something needs to be done!
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