“Are you havin’ a dig at me?” It’s a good old phrase that one. I hear it occasionally, usually in response to some jest, part of the banter that me and my friends enjoy on a regular basis. It can be used as an off-the-cuff remark, clearly meant in a jocular way, or can carry with it a more sinister edge, a way to make a point that just needs to be made, but wrapped in enough humour to soften that edge but still prick the skin ever-so-slightly and deliver the message. “You sure you’re not havin’ a dig at me?”
The Dig is a beautiful thing when it’s employed in Cycling. Every ride will contain a dig. No matter if you’re out on a supposed cruisy lap, or a long and hard slog, there will always be a dig waiting to be unleashed, or perhaps unfurled. The way it is delivered can be predetermined, even conspired with another, or it can be completely desultory and spontaneous, taking everyone by surprise, even the schlepper making the despatch. It can be timid, or tumultuous. It can be the most subtle of moves, gracefully administered from the saddle with nary a hint of movement or sound to indicate that it is even happening, or it can be more apparent, yet never a violent, aggressive action; that would be an attack.
The Dig is meant to test rather than defeat. It’s a way of saying “there’s more to come, suckers” or to find out what others may have in reserve. Or it’s just a way to niggle, to tease and tempt, to draw a comparison between you and your comrades, who could at any time transform into adversaries, either by your or their doing. It can be one of your most valuable weapons when deployed correctly, or, like holding the grenade and throwing away the pin, a dangerously inept move should you not treat it with care and respect.
All you need to do is pick the right time. Tactics, a trump card for the smartest if not strongest rider, come into their own here; looking for the right opportunity to throw in a Dig is as important a skill as the Dig itself. Most will expect that if the gradient goes up even a small amount, that someone will be willing to Dig. Most though will, all too predictably, want to attack. You can nullify the attack through vocalisation, using the mouth rather than the legs. “We should just take it easy today” is an age-old and proven nullifier. “I’m not getting involved in that” as the first accelerations come. When you’re sure that your comrades have taken the bait, don’t make it blindingly obvious that you are going to up the pace… just a slight increase in tempo will do the trick, and even if only one or two are sent scrabbling for the last wheel, then the Dig has been successful. That small amount of energy used to get back on is a withdrawl from the V-bank, yet leaving just enough to instill a belief that there’s sufficient to cover any more bills that may need to be paid later. It’s a false sense of security that will be the downfall of the economy when further Digs are deployed. And like shareholders in Lehmann Brothers, they won’t see it coming until it’s too late and the coffers are empty.
After a rolling series of Digs, then it’s allowable, and advisable, to pick the last bits of rotting flesh from the carcasses, and hammer the final nail into the collective coffin. If you’ve dug properly, you will have much more Essence of V left than your now tiring and mentally confused adversaries. You can attack. But if you’ve not been absolutely discerning with your digging, then all you will appear to be is an asshole who couldn’t cash the cheques you were so willing to write at will earlier, and you’ll be left desperately scrabbling on the ground for the fives and dimes scattered at your feet.
*One of the best examples of The Dig employed by Bjarne Riis at Hautacam in Le Tour 1996. The way he torments his rivals, goes back to check them out three or four times, then delivers the killer blow is classic Digging.
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View Comments
@Beers
That's priceless!
@frank
a big +1 to you Frank.
Without those years I'd still be bimbling about on a cross country mtb muttering about how boring it must be on a road bike.
Only time I get a chance for a physical dig is in roller territory where the guy on the front hits the bottom of a rise & drops a gear or two, my favourite tactic is to take advantage of the momentum I'm carrying & roll past on the tops pushing a bigger gear all the way to the top. This is best completed with the hand on thigh look back @The Grande Fondue was referring when you crest the rise.
Now on to the video.
1. The muppet introducing the video is Mike Tomolaris for the benefit of the non Aussies here who, despite having been hosting SBS' tour coverage for over 20 years, still knows less about cycling than my 10 month old child.
2. Interesting to note that one of Lance & Stuey's most vociferous supporters Pat Jonker hanging with that select bunch for a fair while. If he was managing that clean (as he's always ardently claimed), I struggle to see why he's so keen to support the aforementioned duo...
@Mikael Liddy
Yes! That's what I was talking about.
Has he been particularly ardent? I had the impression his was more of the "I never saw nothing" type of denial.
And yeah, 12th at the '96 tour was quite an accomplishment. As was 1st at the '98 Dutch Championship.
@The Grande Fondue it definitely was based on the 'saw nothing so didn't happen' school of thought, but it was more that he would then follow that up with comments along the lines of "given the health issues he'd been through, I can't believe he'd do something so risky..." Basically he was in flat out denial right up until the Doprah interview.
He's also been one of the cheerleaders of the "Don't condemn Stuey for making one mistake" squad, so essentially he seems to think everyone should just trust whatever comes out of the rider's mouths no matter how many times they've lied previously.
@VeloSix
His description is right - yours is something different.
Half-wheeling is when you're two abreast riding in a group at a steady pace and the person next to you just keeps upping it a little and putting their wheel slightly ahead of yours.
You either pick it up a little, which increases the overall speed and creates a surge in the group, or you ignore it but then it might look like you can't take the heat.
Read Tyler Hamilton's description of Lance Armstrong doing it and him doing it back.
My response to being half-wheeled - and this is where power and computers are handy - is when I know I'm doing a decent power and the person next to me is probably not capable of maintaining their little extra effort. I keep it at the same rate, let them get a wheel ahead, even more and then watch them start breathing heavily, rocking around and gradually coming back and then falling behind my wheel. But I'm not then half-wheeling them because they have dropped off the pace.
@ChrisO
you're both right- there is half wheeling when u just keep pushing ever so slightly. part of learning to be a pack dog. there is also imperiling oneself by overlapping your front wheel with rear wheel of a rider in front of you. that is a hard lesson about to come about. I only knew of the latter until I got yelled at and then punished in the hills.
@gaswepass
Your latter is just referred to as overlapping wheels. And is usually alright if you watch and trust the line in front of you -- and the rider in front can trust the line behind as well. Otherwise it's not good and one of the riders will either concede or surge ahead.
@unversio
Yes, half wheeling is what @ChrisO describes, the other is, apart from being dangerous, called overlapping wheels.
Not to nitpick, but knowing the correct term for both of these is important as after the guy who was overlapping you crashed and tries to blame you for deviating and causing his crash, you can point out that he was overlapping, cause them great shame and expose them to ridicule. Which of course is forbidden per Rule 43 but still, you want to call out the right infraction to avoid confusion.
@ChrisO
I don't think I've ever had this bother me too bad, although I've been conscious about not doing this move myself. When I do catch on to this move (that I never knew to be a dig), I also take your approach, and just let the other guy have that little bit of "lead" by not matching the line, but still holding the speed. Sometimes I take the bait, and match them, but usually just those staring at their power meter.