Pauline Ferrand-Prévot is a French Superstar

[Unchained]

Yes it is different between men and women, absolutely. It's irrelevant for this tho.
I take no joy knowing that a female athlete went to such lengths that she's missing her period. But what can you do about it? Are you going to start testing for periods? At the same time, are you going to exempt from testing if said female rider is on the pill (or even ban the pill)?

It is OK to not be willing to take the same risks as other competitors, but there are consequences to it.
Did you see Sarah Gigante at the Tour? She was not willing to descend as fast as every other rider in the GC group. Should there be a speed limit going down to prevent a certain amount of risk?

At the end of the day, this is a pro sport. Conditioning is a huge part of it.

All 3 of the last posts really nailed it. Oldman's boiling it down further, PFP explained herself, with necessary detail, you either accept it or not.
There is something socially brutal about all of it, this established fantasy, fantastic bike racer who can bury herself on a mountain bike, cross back to battle Roubaix roads with reflex and ability to blow your mind!!
Turns her life upside down, like a storied character, repeatedly training on TDF specific roads, she literally eats, sleeps, lives TDF to achieve the most difficult achievement in bike racing and her recognition from a measurable group is her to apologize for her machine like dedication to win. She needs to elaborate about why did you take it as far as you did..
Side note nothing Dirt says can be believed..150!! Where do you even buy clothes with that body weight!!
I have been in contact with major American clothing manufacturers expressing the dire need for 50x 25 pants!! I think 50 waist is OK. Maybe with elastic!!
And I wonder if readers outside US know of this latest phenomenon of clothing and shoes that slip on!!
We can't be bothered with physical ability to tie our shoes when there is technology in place that makes bending over unnecessary!!
Sidi and Skechers working on cycling shoes that slip on!!
I was almost in a fist fight at local club ride when guys started making fun of my sheepskin bike seat cover and I have my bars turned up in that old school bullhorns look that was popular way back..

View: https://m.youtube.com/shorts/hrikqEKVZRU

Sweet ride!! Bike has it all!!

 

[jmdirt]

Side note nothing Dirt says can be believed..150!! Where do you even buy clothes with that body weight!!

Are you kidding, I haven't bought cloths in years, they cost too much!

 

[Unchained]

Are you kidding, I haven't bought cloths in years, they cost too much!

It doesn't take a genius to sense my jealousy!!
But on topic when I see what Pauline Ferrand Prevot has accomplished on the bike I am equal parts envious and filled with admiration for her dedication!!
Certainly a special specimen to master everything at the highest level!!
She is the definition of discipline!!!

 

[Links2003]

Well, an argument isn't valid if it isn't based on data/facts.

She stated that she lost 4 kg. How much was fat and how much was muscle? What was her starting point? 53 kg? 54? How long did she take to lose 4 kg, 90ish days? She was clearly still quite strong so if it was too drastic, she would not have ridden so well.

I can understand your concern for others who might try to copy her, but the world is littered with influences that may be unhealthy for people. I'll take a person who can pedal the crap out of a bike over all of the others.

Irrelevant and boring to follow:

I've shared this several times before (short version).
-I was a school sports, gym rat, moto teen at 165 lbs.
-Army basic training trimmed that by a few pounds.
-Back in the gym got it back.
-In my pro dirt days I raced at 145 (mid 90s-early 2000s).
-I haven't been over 155 since, and mostly live at 150.
-Unhealthy?

Of course, every case must be evaluated in some way. Of course, you're right that weight alone doesn't mean anything. That's why yours can't be evaluated either.

But as I've said countless times, I'm not talking about Pauline here. And the topic is too serious to say “there are external influences everywhere.” Of course. But to say that you would then be unable to perform is wrong. That may be fine if you're at the limit and not completely over it. But it's no longer healthy in the long run. And when it comes to weight in particular, the physical and mental problems often only become apparent much later. For women in particular, it can also completely disrupt and interrupt the menstrual cycle, for example.
We're not getting anywhere here. It doesn't help the overall debate to keep going off on tangents.

I wish Pauline continued success and hope that this issue will be seriously examined and a decision made on whether rules are needed, as in other sports, and whether they can even exist.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

She beat Wiebes and Kopecky in the Etten-Leur crit today, do she must be back to her Roubaix weight already 😉

However she should have been DQed for not wearing the yellow jersey when both Wiebes and Vinke showed up in theirs from the Tour.

 

[Tonton]

PFP says she is not going to Africa.. Concentrating on European championships

Yes, Pauline doesn't want to get bilharzia and win 4 Tours...she only has three years...

 

[jmdirt]

But to say that you would then be unable to perform is wrong.

That is actually very correct. It happens to all endurance athletes (been there, done that). For PFP to climb like that over several days she clearly wasn't in the danger zone.

I know that doesn't help the ladies who try to copy PFP, but like all endurance athletes, they will learn their limits (weight/body fat %/muscle...). I am curious what 'physical and mental problems that occur later' you are referring to? I'm sure that there are cases of that, but if its as bad as you are stating it, I feel like we would be hearing more about it. Just training for years on end can have detrimental psychological effects if you are unable to manage the demons (yourself/family/friends/professional counseling).

No tangent, straight up facts.

 

[Oldman]

Well, an argument isn't valid if it isn't based on data/facts.

She stated that she lost 4 kg. How much was fat and how much was muscle? What was her starting point? 53 kg? 54? How long did she take to lose 4 kg, 90ish days? She was clearly still quite strong so if it was too drastic, she would not have ridden so well.

I can understand your concern for others who might try to copy her, but the world is littered with influences that may be unhealthy for people. I'll take a person who can pedal the crap out of a bike over all of the others.

Irrelevant and boring to follow:

I've shared this several times before (short version).
-I was a school sports, gym rat, moto teen at 165 lbs.
-Army basic training trimmed that by a few pounds.
-Back in the gym got it back.
-In my pro dirt days I raced at 145 (mid 90s-early 2000s).
-I haven't been over 155 since, and mostly live at 150.
-Unhealthy?

Looks like a healthy outcome. Your family hasn't initiated a body-image intervention? That's good 'cause it's better than what you'd get if you ride less hours than you spend in a take-out line at McFarters or whatever dispenses 'Murica's diet. Turn that throttle to max until the 2-stroke blows, I say.
It only takes 7 hrs/week of zone 1 to fun zone to keep at 142. Still on the tequila and donut regime so maybe it's just regularity and a little genetic competitive rage that make it work? Glad we can still have these talks....

 

[Oldman]

Yes, Pauline doesn't want to get bilharzia and win 4 Tours...she only has three years...

....and she's the toast of Paris. Only rock and movie stars get that treatment and she is both. Why leave the 'hood?

 

[Oldman]

She beat Wiebes and Kopecky in the Etten-Leur crit today, do she must be back to her Roubaix weight already 😉

However she should have been DQed for not wearing the yellow jersey when both Wiebes and Vinke showed up in theirs from the Tour.

She seems like her ego doesn't need self-stroking. Who wears a jersey from another race unless it's a Nat/WC jersey?

 

[Wyndbrook]

She seems like her ego doesn't need self-stroking. Who wears a jersey from another race unless it's a Nat/WC jersey?

Its a post tour crit, years and years of tradition say you wear your tour won shirt, especially if you are the preselected race winner.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Its a post tour crit, years and years of tradition say you wear your tour won shirt, especially if you are the preselected race winner.

But to be fair, there could of course be a legitimate reason for why she wasn't wearing it, and since her Visma kit is yellow anyway it shouldn't have been hard for the spectators to spot her.

 

[jmdirt]

Its a post tour crit, years and years of tradition say you wear your tour won shirt, especially if you are the preselected race winner.

22, 23, 24 before this year.

*not counting one back in the 50s, and a couple in the 80s, but these ladies weren't even alive for those.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

22, 23, 24 before this year.

*not counting one back in the 50s, and a couple in the 80s, but these ladies weren't even alive for those.

It was the 17th edition for the men though, but I don't know if the Tour winners have been present for all of them.

 

[Wyndbrook]

22, 23, 24 before this year.

*not counting one back in the 50s, and a couple in the 80s, but these ladies weren't even alive for those.

OK, technically I guess you are correct, but....

 

[Oldman]

OK, technically I guess you are correct, but....

I understand, now. Never knew it was a thing; aside from most of them being prearranged cycledramas.

 

[Tonton]

It was the 17th edition for the men though, but I don't know if the Tour winners have been present for all of them.

...any normal being would show up, get the prize lap 6, your own weight in artisan sausage ropes...yummy...and regain 4 kilos...

 

[Oldman]

All 3 of the last posts really nailed it. Oldman's boiling it down further, PFP explained herself, with necessary detail, you either accept it or not.
There is something socially brutal about all of it, this established fantasy, fantastic bike racer who can bury herself on a mountain bike, cross back to battle Roubaix roads with reflex and ability to blow your mind!!
Turns her life upside down, like a storied character, repeatedly training on TDF specific roads, she literally eats, sleeps, lives TDF to achieve the most difficult achievement in bike racing and her recognition from a measurable group is her to apologize for her machine like dedication to win. She needs to elaborate about why did you take it as far as you did..
Side note nothing Dirt says can be believed..150!! Where do you even buy clothes with that body weight!!
I have been in contact with major American clothing manufacturers expressing the dire need for 50x 25 pants!! I think 50 waist is OK. Maybe with elastic!!
And I wonder if readers outside US know of this latest phenomenon of clothing and shoes that slip on!!
We can't be bothered with physical ability to tie our shoes when there is technology in place that makes bending over unnecessary!!
Sidi and Skechers working on cycling shoes that slip on!!
I was almost in a fist fight at local club ride when guys started making fun of my sheepskin bike seat cover and I have my bars turned up in that old school bullhorns look that was popular way back..

View: https://m.youtube.com/shorts/hrikqEKVZRU

Sweet ride!! Bike has it all!!

Is the pad on the top tube for any specific body part?

 

[Oldman]

So PFP has changed her mind and doing World's? Seems like after she won a tremendous Tour against all legitimate comers, then endured petty analysis by concerned people and jealous combatants; she's managed to get most of them for Round 2. Not quite Ali/Foreman Rumble but this has to catch a few riders off guard.
Definitely adds some spice to a hilly race.

 

[Oldman]

So she's not doing Euro champs or MTB? Maybe the WCRR is safer?

Weiterleitungshinweis

I'm not sure road racing is safer but she doesn't look starved or whimpy in these shots.