A Tough Situation for the Giro

[Christian]

Brice Feillu: I would have prefered to continue the Giro

"You will never forget such a tragedy. I am really disappointed to leave the Giro because, in my opinion, we started to fight together and leaving like this was not the best option. I am profoundly touched by this tragedy, but once again, I would have prefered to continue and give all I have to honour Wouter's memory.

This is my opinion, but I respect the opinion of my friends and the decision has been taken. We are a team: we stick together even if, in a situation like this, we have different opinions"

http://www.lequotidien.lu/les-sports/23233.html

I was already thinking some riders must have wanted to continue, but I feel like it wouldn't have worked if 4 riders quit and 4 stayed. In this case the best was everyone or no one, and some riders couldn't bring themselves to get up and race again just yet. I probably couldn't have either. But Brice put this very nicely. Everyone copes differently, but in the end you have to respect what the majority of the team decides

 

[mewmewmew13]

Brice Feillu: I would have prefered to continue the Giro

"You will never forget such a tragedy. I am really disappointed to leave the Giro because, in my opinion, we started to fight together and leaving like this was not the best option. I am profoundly touched by this tragedy, but once again, I would have prefered to continue and give all I have to honour Wouter's memory.

This is my opinion, but I respect the opinion of my friends and the decision has been taken. We are a team: we stick together even if, in a situation like this, we have different opinions"

http://www.lequotidien.lu/les-sports/23233.html

I was already thinking some riders must have wanted to continue, but I feel like it wouldn't have worked if 4 riders quit and 4 stayed. In this case the best was everyone or no one, and some riders couldn't bring themselves to get up and race again just yet. I probably couldn't have either. But Brice put this very nicely. Everyone copes differently, but in the end you have to respect what the majority of the team decides

Thanks for posting this Christian. It's nice to read that..

 

[flicker]

I used to be a Leopard fan, Schlecks, Cancellara, etc. This team I hope they lose from here on in. Think about it, why quit? Won't change anything and the Leopard guys who were in the 2011 GIRO will feel worse by quitting.

 

[Fus087]

So when your wife/kid/close friend (or someone else you spend a lot of time with) would die (be it of "natural causes" or in an accident), you'll go to work the next day without thinking twice?

Pro cyclists often spend more time with their teammates and/or training mates than with their own family. Their fellow cyclists are their family.

Also, even if you wouldn't be as affected as others, the least you could do is respect the choices the make in a difficult situation. Brice Feillu wanted to continue too, but he pulled out together with the others as they acted as a team.

 

[flicker]

So when your wife/kid/close friend (or someone else you spend a lot of time with) would die (be it of "natural causes" or in an accident), you'll go to work the next day without thinking twice?

Pro cyclists often spend more time with their teammates and/or training mates than with their own family. Their fellow cyclists are their family.

Also, even if you wouldn't be as affected as others, the least you could do is respect the choices the make in a difficult situation. Brice Feillu wanted to continue too, but he pulled out together with the others as they acted as a team.

They are professionals, these thing happen. You see the guy go down on La Strada today.Chest first on the gravel. Professionals. Things happen. What I am stating is the guys on Leopard would have a lot more healing on the bike for the next two weeks.
It is a battle everyday for these pro cyclists, they have to be superhumans everyday.

 

[thirteen]

I used to be a Leopard fan, Schlecks, Cancellara, etc. This team I hope they lose from here on in. Think about it, why quit? Won't change anything and the Leopard guys who were in the 2011 GIRO will feel worse by quitting.

that is really rude.

i am not particularly a fan of that team, but i totally respect their decision to withdraw, o think it was a very difficult one to make and, in the end, a very mature one.

i'd much rather they leave rather than stay, distracted and depressed, and open the possibility of other injuries occurring. this is only one race.

and, perhaps, if the race had been further in, with someone in contention, the decision may have been different. they made what they felt to be the right choice.

who are you to make judgement on this group of men -- men who lost a teammate, a roommate, a friend? do you honestly know what you would feel or do in the same situation? you can intellectualize all you want, but you won't know until you're in their shoes.

your statement makes me angry because it trivializes the fact that they are human beings, not merely figures in a video game. they risk their lives frequently, yes, doing something they love and making money from it, but also to entertain us.

so you cast them aside because they didn't play robots. boo hoo.

with loyalty like yours, they've lost absolutely nothing.

 

[Escarabajo]

They are professionals, these thing happen. You see the guy go down on La Strada today.Chest first on the gravel. Professionals. Things happen. What I am stating is the guys on Leopard would have a lot more healing on the bike for the next two weeks.
It is a battle everyday for these pro cyclists, they have to be superhumans everyday.

People cope different with pain. Not everybody is the same. Get it.

 

[Escarabajo]

I used to be a Leopard fan, Schlecks, Cancellara, etc. This team I hope they lose from here on in. Think about it, why quit? Won't change anything and the Leopard guys who were in the 2011 GIRO will feel worse by quitting.

People cope different with pain. Not everybody is the same. Get it.

 

[flicker]

that is really rude.

i am not particularly a fan of that team, but i totally respect their decision to withdraw, o think it was a very difficult one to make and, in the end, a very mature one.

i'd much rather they leave rather than stay, distracted and depressed, and open the possibility of other injuries occurring. this is only one race.

and, perhaps, if the race had been further in, with someone in contention, the decision may have been different. they made what they felt to be the right choice.

who are you to make judgement on this group of men -- men who lost a teammate, a roommate, a friend? do you honestly know what you would feel or do in the same situation? you can intellectualize all you want, but you won't know until you're in their shoes.

your statement makes me angry because it trivializes the fact that they are human beings, not merely figures in a video game. they risk their lives frequently, yes, doing something they love and making money from it, but also to entertain us.

so you cast them aside because they didn't play robots. boo hoo.

with loyalty like yours, they've lost absolutely nothing.

Sorry, warriors. These guys take it hard every day, worlds toughest sport.
I can see quitting if they are emotionally upset, need to mourn and feel that is a safety issue.

 

[thirteen]

Sorry, warriors. These guys take it hard every day, worlds toughest sport.
I can see quitting if they are emotionally upset, need to mourn and feel that is a safety issue.

if you can see it, then what's your problem?

even Superman had kryptonite.

 

[Christian]

I used to be a Leopard fan, Schlecks, Cancellara, etc. This team I hope they lose from here on in. Think about it, why quit? Won't change anything and the Leopard guys who were in the 2011 GIRO will feel worse by quitting.

Schlecks and Cancellara had nothing to do with this, neither had anyone else except the 8 riders who were on the team. It was their decision and no one else's (not the DS, not Nygaard's, not Becca's) and they decided they couldn't do it. Everyone copes differently with this kind of situation.

Why you wish failure on the entire team now is beyond me. What about Tyler Farrar? Do you hate him too now? Or have you always hated him? What about Team Sky? I assume you must really loathe them, their guy wasn't even a rider

 

[Scansorial]

I'm no Leopard fan, but it's hard to hate on them for their decision. They were certainly put in a difficult situation and people do cope with disaster differently.

Here's the way I look at it: If their minds weren't in the race, they would just be putting themselves and the whole peloton in danger. It only takes one moment of inattention for an accident to occur.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Team Sky pulled out en masse from the Vuelta last year.

Of the nine riders that pulled out, you had Tyler Farrar, who lost his best friend. You had Fabian Wegmann, who roomed with him and couldn't face the night alone so moved in with other teammates. You had Bruno Pires, who has now raced alongside a teammate that has died on the bike twice in three years. These are just the stories that we know. Everybody else will have stories about how they knew Wouter, how they've been linked to the tragedy or previous tragedy that they've been reminded of.

Leopard Trek announced that they'd give the riders the chance to choose what to do. Evidently Brice Feillu wanted to carry on in Weylandt's honour, but was outnumbered. Hell, I'm sure the likes of Farrar (I know he's not a Leopard rider but nonetheless), Wegmann and so on wanted to carry on too - they just couldn't bring themselves to do it, or didn't feel ready to.

I don't recall any real criticism of the Sky team for withdrawing from the Vuelta, so I don't think there should be any criticism of Leopard for withdrawing from the Giro.

 

[flicker]

I'm no Leopard fan, but it's hard to hate on them for their decision. They were certainly put in a difficult situation and people do cope with disaster differently.

Here's the way I look at it: If their minds weren't in the race, they would just be putting themselves and the whole peloton in danger. It only takes one moment of inattention for an accident to occur.

That is an excellent reason to withdrawl, I wish they had made a statement to that effect. I believe that is probably the issue. In that case I am the bonehead.

 

[El Pistolero]

Or they want to go to his funeral you know...

 

[WinterRider]

That is an excellent reason to withdrawl, I wish they had made a statement to that effect. I believe that is probably the issue. In that case I am the bonehead.

Thanks for admitting that. Your first post was the most insensitive thing I've read in many a year, and I was about to PM the mods to ask them to ban you short term if that was to be your stance.

Wishing bad things to a tight knit group of men who feet they need to mourn the sudden and shockingly gruesome death of a close friend is the lowest thing I have ever read on the CN forums.

 

[thirteen]

Or they want to go to his funeral you know...

which is when (do you know)?

 

[thirteen]

That is an excellent reason to withdrawl, I wish they had made a statement to that effect. I believe that is probably the issue. In that case I am the bonehead.

most people didn't need to have it spelled out. or spoon fed.

 

[El Pistolero]

which is when (do you know)?

Family still has to decide.

 

[flicker]

Thanks for admitting that. Your first post was the most insensitive thing I've read in many a year, and I was about to PM the mods to ask them to ban you short term if that was to be your stance.

Wishing bad things to a tight knit group of men who feet they need to mourn the sudden and shockingly gruesome death of a close friend is the lowest thing I have ever read on the CN forums.

Sorry, rest in peace Weylandt peace to his family and friends.

 

[profff]

i am really surprised by what have read in different post and threads
.
as an introduction, i want to say that i was really shocked and my heart and soul went to pieces because of WW death.
When i think to WW I still feel sad and my heart is full of emotions, even if i have to deal every day with life and death in my profession.
I love cycling and cyclists, i have been racing myself , i keep on racing even if i am 53 and i have watched races since i was a child .
having said that, i cannot understand how the majority of comments are dominated by emotion and we are not able to cope rationally with the problem.

WW lethal fall happened during a normal downhill road: i have done once this road and it is like the mayority of italian downhills: narrow, with lot of turns and sections where you can go very fast. weylandt father went there and he said : i cannot understand, it is not a dangerous section.
every weekend, when i go racing or just training with my friends, we do downhills road like that one. most italian roads are like passo bocco descent.
remember 2009 year giro: the roads of the ITT in cinque terre were not different, the descent from pramartino to pinerolo ( when di luca won) it is more dangerous and this year TdF will do thie same road in the stage to pinerolo, after the sestriere.
wouter did not die because it was choosen a dangerous road, he died because of the nature of road racing..
going downhill70/80km/h could be very dangerous, especially if you are on a bike with small tubes. unluckily the poor wouter turn his head to check the situation: everybody has to be very careful in doing that : something went wrong and the poor walter fell.
he just turned his head back because he thought there was no danger there, he lives on a bike and a pro racer can do thing on a bike that we cannot even think of. he lost his life because of fatality and because of the nature of road racing itself.

we have to accept that and to deal with the nature our sport: bike racing is a trip, anadventure and if you go fast a trip can be dangerous. roads are replete with obstacles,guardrail, walls and so on.

bike handling skills are part of road racing: every descent is dangerous. you must rule your speed according to the road nature and path.
if you do not accept that reality, racing in italy, where we have geography repleted with everything from small hills to big mountains it will be virtually impossible.
racer must know how to handle a difficult downhill road: you need to modulate your speed to go as fast as you can without falling. you must not go down as a kamikaze or a playstation hero: road racing has nothing to do with that.
to risk but not too much, that is bike handling skill.

I climbed many cols in the alps, in italy, france, switzerland: when you go down from 2000m of altitude , to find narrow, twisty and dirt road is a normal situation. there are many sections exposed, where you know that if you fail a turn , you can go down for hundreds of meters: nobody has gone down from the col d’ allos to praloup, from fauniera to demonte, ,from valparola in the dolomites and i can go on citing hundreds of dangerous sections in every part of the alps. nobody remembers augustyn falling out of the road on la bonette going down to jausiers?
and what about the pyrenees?
modulate the speed, handle the bike, handle the road, that is the answer, not to forbid climbing the alps.

this forum voted the stage of montalcino as one of the best of last year season: this year everything is changed and strade bianche are a non sense?
the giro has become dangerous because on a straight section with perfect road slagter hit a soigneur ( the euskaltel one), trying to give him a bottle?
same accident as many years ago jaja against a policeman in a sprint, luckily today the speed was lower.
i feel very sorry for the young dutch, but please come back to rational thinking, even if we all still cry for wouter weylandt.

everybody in this forum want to see big climbs enchained in a single stage: that means going down from small, dirty twisty roads with possibly a “orrido” on one side.

i cry for wouter , but I still love cycling and understand his nature.

 

[Archibald]

I'm no Leopard fan, but it's hard to hate on them for their decision. They were certainly put in a difficult situation and people do cope with disaster differently.

Here's the way I look at it: If their minds weren't in the race, they would just be putting themselves and the whole peloton in danger. It only takes one moment of inattention for an accident to occur.

That is an excellent reason to withdrawl, I wish they had made a statement to that effect. I believe that is probably the issue. In that case I am the bonehead.

this isn't meant to sound cold at all, but he was at Leopard only this season, and yet we hear nothing of the teamates on Quickstep that he spent years with...
Any reason why they've been so quiet?

I was really hoping Cataldo (QS) would win in Orvieto when he attacked towards the end

 

[El Pistolero]

this isn't meant to sound cold at all, but he was at Leopard only this season, and yet we hear nothing of the teamates on Quickstep that he spent years with...
Any reason why they've been so quiet?

I was really hoping Cataldo (QS) would win in Orvieto when he attacked towards the end

Tom Boonen decided to drop a program he was going for the radio tomorrow and doesn't want to talk to the press.

Paolo Bettini(retired, but still ex team mate) was very sad and signed his number on the check in thingie.

Seeldraeyers was pretty devastated as well

 

[Ferminal]

Tom Boonen decided to drop a program he was going for the radio tomorrow and doesn't want to talk to the press.

Paolo Bettini(retired, but still ex team mate) was very sad and signed his number on the check in thingie.

Seeldraeyers was pretty devastated as well

Bettini looked in a bad way on Stage 4 when he was sitting on the RAI set.

Visconti would have been at Quick Step at the same time too.

 

[zapata]

i am really surprised by what have read in different post and threads
.
as an introduction, i want to say that i was really shocked and my heart and soul went to pieces because of WW death.
When i think to WW I still feel sad and my heart is full of emotions, even if i have to deal every day with life and death in my profession.
I love cycling and cyclists, i have been racing myself , i keep on racing even if i am 53 and i have watched races since i was a child .
having said that, i cannot understand how the majority of comments are dominated by emotion and we are not able to cope rationally with the problem.

WW lethal fall happened during a normal downhill road: i have done once this road and it is like the mayority of italian downhills: narrow, with lot of turns and sections where you can go very fast. weylandt father went there and he said : i cannot understand, it is not a dangerous section.
every weekend, when i go racing or just training with my friends, we do downhills road like that one. most italian roads are like passo bocco descent.
remember 2009 year giro: the roads of the ITT in cinque terre were not different, the descent from pramartino to pinerolo ( when di luca won) it is more dangerous and this year TdF will do thie same road in the stage to pinerolo, after the sestriere.
wouter did not die because it was choosen a dangerous road, he died because of the nature of road racing..
going downhill70/80km/h could be very dangerous, especially if you are on a bike with small tubes. unluckily the poor wouter turn his head to check the situation: everybody has to be very careful in doing that : something went wrong and the poor walter fell.
he just turned his head back because he thought there was no danger there, he lives on a bike and a pro racer can do thing on a bike that we cannot even think of. he lost his life because of fatality and because of the nature of road racing itself.

we have to accept that and to deal with the nature our sport: bike racing is a trip, anadventure and if you go fast a trip can be dangerous. roads are replete with obstacles,guardrail, walls and so on.

bike handling skills are part of road racing: every descent is dangerous. you must rule your speed according to the road nature and path.
if you do not accept that reality, racing in italy, where we have geography repleted with everything from small hills to big mountains it will be virtually impossible.
racer must know how to handle a difficult downhill road: you need to modulate your speed to go as fast as you can without falling. you must not go down as a kamikaze or a playstation hero: road racing has nothing to do with that.
to risk but not too much, that is bike handling skill.

I climbed many cols in the alps, in italy, france, switzerland: when you go down from 2000m of altitude , to find narrow, twisty and dirt road is a normal situation. there are many sections exposed, where you know that if you fail a turn , you can go down for hundreds of meters: nobody has gone down from the col d’ allos to praloup, from fauniera to demonte, ,from valparola in the dolomites and i can go on citing hundreds of dangerous sections in every part of the alps. nobody remembers augustyn falling out of the road on la bonette going down to jausiers?
and what about the pyrenees?
modulate the speed, handle the bike, handle the road, that is the answer, not to forbid climbing the alps.

this forum voted the stage of montalcino as one of the best of last year season: this year everything is changed and strade bianche are a non sense?
the giro has become dangerous because on a straight section with perfect road slagter hit a soigneur ( the euskaltel one), trying to give him a bottle?
same accident as many years ago jaja against a policeman in a sprint, luckily today the speed was lower.
i feel very sorry for the young dutch, but please come back to rational thinking, even if we all still cry for wouter weylandt.

everybody in this forum want to see big climbs enchained in a single stage: that means going down from small, dirty twisty roads with possibly a “orrido” on one side.

i cry for wouter , but I still love cycling and understand his nature.

Great post. What happened to Wouter Weylandt was a horrible thing, and I still feel like crying when I think about it, but it was not the fault of the course. Just one of those things that can happen at any time to any one, but thankfully, thankfully rarely does.