Today was the last stage in the Ster van Zuid Limburg. It was easily the hardest and longest stage with the most climbing. The pace was fast and trouble started as soon as the riders left St. Truiden. We lost Alistair due to a crash. That same crash also took out many other riders. Erik crashed a little further down the road but was able to rejoin a smaller group that made it to the finish line. Hunter was the only one who survived in the pack. Unfortunately, Matt Lipscomb, who was in second in GC also ended up in the same situation.
We finished with two riders remaining in the race, Erik and Hunter. All in all it wasn't a bad result given how badly other teams fared. Some of the best Belgian teams, like Avia and Balen lost riders in the race and some teams were out altogether. Given that more than half of our riders had never raced in Belgium before, we did pretty well. I will post a more detailed report later.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Some more on yesterday's crash
I have been trying to piece together some more info on yesterday's big crash. The crash, which involved all teams and more than 50 riders happened near the bottom of the 1st KOM. According to Hunter who was close by -he went into the ditch, it was caused by a motorcycle entering the pack and spooking riders. The motorcycles in question are signalers who rush from intersection to intersection to close the road. Several riders told me the motorcycles trying to get through the pack on the narrow roads are a problem.
When the motorcycle entered the pack, they were all spread out across the road and all went dow like dominoes. The motorcycle also hooked two riders and it went into the ditch too.
Erik was involved in the crash but he was near the very front and got up quickly. Both Alex and Kyle were also near the front -albeit a bit further back- but they were in the middle of the pile-up so it took them time to disentangle their bikes. Alistair was further back and fell on top of people, but his bike was trashed.
When we heard the announcement on the race radio, "All teams in huge crash," we rushed to the front and I ran out of the car. Then I met Alistair who was running back with a broken bike. We got him a new bike and gave a push and off he went. Then it took quite a bit of time before we were able to get going again.
In the meantime, as the remainder of the pack rounded the first corner uphill there was another crash that further held up traffic. Erik and Hunter were in a small group of 20 and they were able to rejoin the peloton quickly, so we never knew about their situation.
When the caravan got moving we sped up the road and found Alistair who was gaining quickly on the climb. We helped him along a bit but the peloton crested before he could make it to the top. The descent was very fast and he could not match their speed. We were also in no position to help much
Later on the descent we "found" Alex and a bit later Kyle. We tried to help all three but only Alistair could make it up the remaining climbs fast enough to have a chance. Kyle outclimbed Alex but he wasn't as fast.
On a later climb we helped Alistair up because his front derailleur was stuck and he could not downshift from his big ring. When Alistair crested we waited for Alex. But it was clear he and Kyle were not going to make it. Later on Alistair got close to the pack several times (always on the climbs) but just missed them going over the top. We tried to help but ultimately had to let go of him at the start of the local circuits. He still has some learning to do in working with the cars.
One team staying with us lost four riders in that crash. Two other riders ended up in the hospital with broken bones.
Last night the organizer visited us here and we gave him an AC Jersey.
Today last stage.
When the motorcycle entered the pack, they were all spread out across the road and all went dow like dominoes. The motorcycle also hooked two riders and it went into the ditch too.
Erik was involved in the crash but he was near the very front and got up quickly. Both Alex and Kyle were also near the front -albeit a bit further back- but they were in the middle of the pile-up so it took them time to disentangle their bikes. Alistair was further back and fell on top of people, but his bike was trashed.
When we heard the announcement on the race radio, "All teams in huge crash," we rushed to the front and I ran out of the car. Then I met Alistair who was running back with a broken bike. We got him a new bike and gave a push and off he went. Then it took quite a bit of time before we were able to get going again.
In the meantime, as the remainder of the pack rounded the first corner uphill there was another crash that further held up traffic. Erik and Hunter were in a small group of 20 and they were able to rejoin the peloton quickly, so we never knew about their situation.
When the caravan got moving we sped up the road and found Alistair who was gaining quickly on the climb. We helped him along a bit but the peloton crested before he could make it to the top. The descent was very fast and he could not match their speed. We were also in no position to help much
Later on the descent we "found" Alex and a bit later Kyle. We tried to help all three but only Alistair could make it up the remaining climbs fast enough to have a chance. Kyle outclimbed Alex but he wasn't as fast.
On a later climb we helped Alistair up because his front derailleur was stuck and he could not downshift from his big ring. When Alistair crested we waited for Alex. But it was clear he and Kyle were not going to make it. Later on Alistair got close to the pack several times (always on the climbs) but just missed them going over the top. We tried to help but ultimately had to let go of him at the start of the local circuits. He still has some learning to do in working with the cars.
One team staying with us lost four riders in that crash. Two other riders ended up in the hospital with broken bones.
Last night the organizer visited us here and we gave him an AC Jersey.
Today last stage.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
More shots
More shots from today (April 24):
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| Hunter hurt his wrist and we used Rocktape to stabilize it |
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| Central square Tongeren |
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| Stock Americain |
After World War II the US decided not to bring back all the army supplies they had shipped to Europe. They sold them in large lots to local stores that then sold them back to the public. The stores were known as "stock americain" or American overstock. They sold all kinds of stuff the army left behind from uniforms to jeeps to spare parts. Over time, stock americain has become synonymous with a large store where you can buy cheap goods (mostly hardware). I was surprised to find this one near Tongeren along the highway.
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| Officials before the race start in Bilzen |
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| Menu at the Begeinhof bar |
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| Tower in Tongeren |
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| Alistair and Alex before the race |
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| road to Bilzen |
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| Race starts from Bilzen |
More carnage
Wow, what a birthday it has been so far. As mentioned before John and Addison are out, so we started with four riders today. John rode in the car and Addison volunteered for feed.
Two more riders crashed today, right before the 1st KOM at 40K. Both Alistair and Alex ended up in a 50 man crash that involved all teams. Alistair's bike was totally messed up (handlebars bent, wheel badly out of true, brake lever crooked) so he needed a new bike. Alex came off unscathed but both of them lost contact with the pack. With a lot of help Alistair almost bridged (he got as far as car 1) but no cigar. Though he did manage to make it to the finish line at the first of the five local circuits. There he was taken out of the race, but because he made it that far he most likely will be able to start tomorrow.
Alex unfortunately was swept up by the van so his race is over. Later during the local the circuits Hunter flatted on the second lap and he too lost contact with the furious pace and was taken out. Eric was the only who managed to finish in the pack. Several US National Team riders also suffered the same fate. Kyle was out right near where Alistair and Alex crashed, and Scott lost it half a lap past where Hunter dropped out. Cristo also stopped, apparently with a stomach issue.
Matt Lipscomb managed to get into the winning break and ended up in 8th overall. Hats off to that. More later on tonight, plus pictures.
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| Easter egg |
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| capuccino Belgian style (with whipped cream) |
Two more riders crashed today, right before the 1st KOM at 40K. Both Alistair and Alex ended up in a 50 man crash that involved all teams. Alistair's bike was totally messed up (handlebars bent, wheel badly out of true, brake lever crooked) so he needed a new bike. Alex came off unscathed but both of them lost contact with the pack. With a lot of help Alistair almost bridged (he got as far as car 1) but no cigar. Though he did manage to make it to the finish line at the first of the five local circuits. There he was taken out of the race, but because he made it that far he most likely will be able to start tomorrow.
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| My beautiful moots |
Alex unfortunately was swept up by the van so his race is over. Later during the local the circuits Hunter flatted on the second lap and he too lost contact with the furious pace and was taken out. Eric was the only who managed to finish in the pack. Several US National Team riders also suffered the same fate. Kyle was out right near where Alistair and Alex crashed, and Scott lost it half a lap past where Hunter dropped out. Cristo also stopped, apparently with a stomach issue.
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| Erik after the race, with Alex in the background |
Matt Lipscomb managed to get into the winning break and ended up in 8th overall. Hats off to that. More later on tonight, plus pictures.
More pictures
Yesterday I had a runny nose and a mildly sore throat. Last night I started coughing and it wasn't good. This morning I woke up with a headache, a stuffy nose and a sore throat. Possibly this is the same thing Addison and John had earlier in the week. I am not really sick but I don't feel great either. And breathing is definitely not easy. I hope the other guys don't get it.
Today we start with four. Here are some more pictures from the trip.
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| Tongeren: medieval gate near our hostel |
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| Washing team cars outside our window |
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| Tongeren ancient walls |
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| Team cars, someone asked if we were with Liege Bastogne Liege |
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| Massage tables in the hallway |
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| Entrance to Youth Hostel Begeinhof |
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Carnage
Every single rider on the team had a problem today, and it started right out the blocks. We had three flats, two crashes and a rider who bonked. I will write more about this later tonight but suffice it to say that tomorrow only four will be allowed to start, and two will start with a huge time delay in GC.
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| Before the carnage |
We lost John and Addison early on due to flats. At that point, getting back in was all but impossible. We were car 29 and by the time we got there the place was deserted. Billy Innes helped us out with the double whammy but to no avail. The pack was going fast and furious and the wind was blowing hard. John ended up in the broom wagon but Addison was passed by and he rode back to the start where the people at the cafe served him food and took care of him.
Unfortunately, their adventure ends here. Tomorrow they can get rides in the team car and help at the feedzone, or go on a ride or watch Liege-Bastogne-Liege.
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| Team AC Racing |
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| Start caravan |
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| Police escort bikes |
Erik and Hunter had problems about midway through the big loop. Hunter crashed and Erik had a minor crash that resulted in a bike problem. We gave Erik a new bike and together the two of them were able to rejoin the pack and finish in the middle. Alistair did not drink enough and suffered bad cramps in the second of the four final loops, while Alex crashed and got back up one half lap later. Alex was able to finish with a 10 minute time gap, but Alistair was forced to ride two 12.5 km loops on his own resulting in a huge gap, close to 20 minutes. We had originally been told riders who were back 5 minutes or more would be pulled at the finish line and be set 5 minutes back, but Alistair was forced to ride two circuits on his own even though he had lost way more than 5 minutes by his first transit. Alex too had to ride a lap and half on his own. Drafting cars on the local loops was all but impossible due to the many backups and the enormous amount of "road furniture."
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| Simon driving the car |
After the ride we had to go pick up Addison in Borlo. I tried to talk to the officials but to no avail. Two won't be allowed to start although they will be cleared and able to do local races. Unfortunately at this time of year there no kermesse races in the area where we are at.
Our best placed riders now are Hunter who is in 100nd at 1:58 and Erik who is 113th and 2:03 back. Alex is more than 10 minutes back and Alistair lost 18 minutes overall. Unfortunately we are now at the bottom of the team classification, which means we will be in an even worse position tomorrow. Our team is now 13:10 back.
Picture prologue and preps
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| with Simon, our driver at the prologue |
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| The Finish |
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| Hunter trying out the rollers |
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| The start ramp |
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| Addison was the first rider of the day |
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| Alex warms up |
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| Alex before the start |
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| Alistair warms up |
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| Adjusting the aerobars |
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| Erik getting ready |
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