Cycling is a team sport; races may be won by individuals, but those individuals generally would not be successful without the support of a good team behind them, a team not only of riders but of support personnel as well, from the Directeurs Sportif, to the mechanics and soigneurs.
The father of the Tour de France, Henri Desgrange, likely turned over in his grave when the first Mavic Neutral Service car joined the caravan in 1973. In the early years of the Tour, riders were responsible for conducting their own repairs and were forbidden any outside assistance. So how did that first Mavic Neutral Service vehicle come to be?
“Boring boring boring … Chaos! Chaos! Chaos!” This was how Competitive Cyclist Racing Team director Gord Fraser described what can be a typical day in team car behind the professional peloton; especially on a long, hot, hilly day, like the first stage of the 2012 Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah.
Robin Williams died today; news reports are indicating that it was a suicide. Robin was one of our clients when I worked at A Bicycle Odyssey in Sausalito. He was a great client for the shop. The time he spent at the shop after closing included some of the most enjoyable conversations about bicycles and movies I’ve ever had. Robin had a genuine love of all things bike, and I think he really appreciated the way that we treated him as bike rider, and not as a celebrity.
