Skjelmose describes having to be carried off his bike at Flèche Wallonne

[robt57]

This is nuts!

Check out 'X' post/vid lower on link/page.

https://www.stickybottle.com/latest-...allonne-video/

[Baron Blubba]

I suggest not watching the X video post. It's terrifying. Just read the description, no need to watch someone in such a state of suffering. I've never had it quite that bad, but have been in similar situations and it's, to use the word again, terrifying.

[Alistair]

I don’t understand the clothing choices. The race winner was wearing full winter kit - insulated jacket, looked like insulate tights, etc. Half the peloton looked like it was in gilets and bare lower legs. Did the weather not match the forecast? I understand heat management is critical, but that goes both ways.

[robt57]

Only 44 finished I read..

[charliedid]

Horrid

I was watching and riders couldn't even put on jackets etc. Every weather imaginable.

What a sport.

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by Alistair

I don’t understand the clothing choices. The race winner was wearing full winter kit - insulated jacket, looked like insulate tights, etc. Half the peloton looked like it was in gilets and bare lower legs. Did the weather not match the forecast? I understand heat management is critical, but that goes both ways.

From what I read, the weather changed rapidly, and depending on the road situation and team car situation, I think certain riders were better positioned than others to get a jacket.

Obviously in retrospect, get dropped to get a jacket is a better decision than keep racing until you dnf with hypothermia, but these are really tough calls to make in real time.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by charliedid

Horrid

I was watching and riders couldn't even put on jackets etc. Every weather imaginable.

What a sport.

One downside to all of the aero and tight fitting outerwear the teams have adopted in recent years is the much increased difficulty of putting these items on when on the move. When the rider is on the move and already wet, well it's that much harder.

You'd think the teams might keep in reserve some old style shell type jackets that are much easier to put on for when things are so diabolical that survival in the race, and not aero, is the primary consideration.

[charliedid]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

One downside to all of the aero and tight fitting outerwear the teams have adopted in recent years is the much increased difficulty of putting these items on when on the move. When the rider is on the move and already wet, well it's that much harder.

You'd think the teams might keep in reserve some old style shell type jackets that are much easier to put on for when things are so diabolical that survival in the race, and not aero, is the primary consideration.

No doubt.

[benb]

It says it dropped to 33 degrees and rain.. what was it at the starting line?

That is soft shell winter cycling jacket + thermal tights + wool socks territory + winter gloves and ideally a helmet cover and/or neoprene booties.

If it dropped from 50 degrees you're talking pulling over and it takes 5-10 minutes to change clothes to put that level of winter clothes on.

The coverage just isn't that great.. I don't see any articles saying just how much it dropped. The decision to wear clothes that warm at the beginning would have been tricky or totally obvious depending on the starting temperature and forecast.

Whoever is responsible for carrying emergency clothes in the car on some of these teams must be getting reamed out. There is basically no excuse for this when other teams were prepared.

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by benb

It says it dropped to 33 degrees and rain.. what was it at the starting line?

That is soft shell winter cycling jacket + thermal tights + wool socks territory + winter gloves and ideally a helmet cover and/or neoprene booties.

If it dropped from 50 degrees you're talking pulling over and it takes 5-10 minutes to change clothes to put that level of winter clothes on.

The coverage just isn't that great.. I don't see any articles saying just how much it dropped. The decision to wear clothes that warm at the beginning would have been tricky or totally obvious depending on the starting temperature and forecast.

Whoever is responsible for carrying emergency clothes in the car on some of these teams must be getting reamed out. There is basically no excuse for this when other teams were prepared.

Per this article from Escape Collective, it was 16C (~60F) at the start, and sunny, before dropping.

https://escapecollective.com/from-th...s-living-room/

As the breakaway entered the finishing circuit, the temperature plummeted in the matter of minutes. “All of a sudden the sun disappeared, and it went from feeling like 20 degrees [68°F] – the real temp was 16 but the sun made it feel like more – to 0 [32°F]… the real temp was 2, but the wet snow made it feel colder than a -5 degree day in [his European base,] Andorra,” Whelan explained. TV pictures showed the rain and sleet coming down in droves, and Whelan trying to get a jacket on to warm up, struggling to get his arm in the sleeve for what felt like minutes. That battle forced him off the back of the breakaway, where he dangled for 20 minutes, trying to regain contact. Just as the snow started to fall he made the connection, held on for 10 minutes, before finally getting caught by the reduced peloton on the second lap of the circuit. 130 km at the front of the race for no result – but the worst was yet to come.

If you watch the replay (it's on Peacock), at about 125k to go, it still looks nice. By 110k to go, it's looking overcast, and at about 105k to go, it's dark and dumping rain and hail.

[hoonjr]

It also doesn't help that all these riders are likely under 5% body fat.

[rothwem]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

One downside to all of the aero and tight fitting outerwear the teams have adopted in recent years is the much increased difficulty of putting these items on when on the move. When the rider is on the move and already wet, well it's that much harder.

You'd think the teams might keep in reserve some old style shell type jackets that are much easier to put on for when things are so diabolical that survival in the race, and not aero, is the primary consideration.

What's the point of "surviving" the race if you're going to be slower than everyone else in a big flappy jacket? Seems like the better choice would be to just pull out if you're not going to win.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by rothwem

What's the point of "surviving" the race if you're going to be slower than everyone else in a big flappy jacket? Seems like the better choice would be to just pull out if you're not going to win.

Well, if you can survive in a race like last week's FW, when a lot of other riders and teams are pulling out, a team can hoover up some good points that will come in handy in ensuring that it won't get relegated when the next three year cycle is up.