Triumph and Tragedy
Balance. It can be achieved by never deviating from the middle, or it can be achieved by violent swings to and fro. It is said, however, that the great peaks can’t be reached without crossing through deep valleys. Tragically, we were reminded today that our sport is one of great peaks and deep, deep valleys.
Cycling is a sport of risk and danger; the beauty and harmony of a speeding peloton masks the risks and dangers involved. Mountain descents see riders reach speeds of 80 or more kilometers per hour with little to protect them should something go wrong. Stars and watercarriers alike share in the risk; no one is immune.
You have to love this sport intensely to become a professional. The nature of road competition demands great sacrifice in every aspect of the athlete’s life; eat like birds, work like horses, and live like monks. Not only does a professional cyclist spend every waking moment focussed on their sport, but from January to October, they are away from their families as the race calendar carries them all over Europe and, increasingly, the world. This sacrifice is most often in the service of others, as the Stars are few and the Watercarriers many.
While only a few weeks ago we watched as one of these domestiques reached the pinacle of our sport by winning Paris-Roubaix, today we witnessed the tragic swing to the other end as Wouter Weylandt lost his life in the pursuit of his passion. We can be philosophical and say this man lived for his sport and died doing what he loved, but the fact of the matter is that his is a man who, at 26 years old, was in the prime of his life and that he died today is tragic beyond articulation.
As Velominati, we are disciples of cycling. Our lives revolve around cycling. At moments like these, it is unimaginable that life and sport will continue. It will, and we will again reach the peaks. But we breathe still, and our devotion cannot follow where others’ continue.
Today we walk through a valley and mourn as Velominati the tragic loss of a man who gave everything – everything – to his sport. Our deepest sympathies go out to his family, friends, and colleagues.
So say we all.
Great Post. Thank you.
Well said Frank.
And I was whining about the headwind Saturday…
Sad day for cycling. And yet another chance for Velominati to prove that good journalism is alive and well.
Great post to a terrible tragedy. Well said.
Terrible news. A fitting post Frank.
Sometimes when I hear that big rig coming from behind, I wonder if it’ll be the last truck to ever pass me. May that never happen for any of us.
Tailwinds and smooth pavement Wouter.
Spot on, Frank. Thank you for eloquently putting into words what all of us here likely believe and feel, both about cycling and this tragedy.
I haven’t watched the coverage, but I did see a clip on the Huffington Post from YouTube. I think their “Warning – Graphic Video” should be more prominent.
@michael
I’ve decided not to look at this terrible event… I’ve no desire to see someone’s life end…
PS Well said Frank
It saddens me to think he will never know his child and his child him. He was one of those guys in the peloton that would always pique my interest when I read about him. I’d think, this guys seems cool and is one to watch. Sad day indeed.
Well put. Thanks for this piece, Frank!
thanks for the post Frank, sums up how I feel about this sport and today’s news.
I’ve been looking at my twitter feed for the last few hours, reading the tweets from various pros and the whole peloton seems to be devastated.
I imagine the riders will neutralise tomorrow’s stage out of respect.
So, we knew from the route profile that this year’s Giro was going to be one of the most brutal, both in terms of elevation but technical difficulty. However, I am not convinced that we should be increasing the brutality to provide spectacle at the cost of a human life, especially as this is one of the “easier” descents over the next three weeks. Last year’s Giro proved that a hard route provides a fantastic race (cuddles’ face after the zoncolan springs to mind) but I wonder if this year is a step too far.
I’m not going to blame the organisers, not yet, but I am hoping that there won’t be further serious injury or another death.
It’s a terrible tragedy, sad sad day
Very fitting, Frank. Thank you.
I really haven’t been this shaken by the death of someone I’ve never met. The truth that he really gave everything to cycling is far too true at this moment.
RIP, Wouter.
***************
And on another note, fuck! I hate when the ONLY time cycling gets coverage by the mass media is when there is a doping scandal or a death. FUCK OFF! If you don’t care about cyclists and cycling the other 364 days a year, don’t start blabbering about it now, you fucking assholes. Instead of discussing something you know nothing about, how about you just stop buzzing all the cyclists you pass who are on “your road.”
The community’s responses as it was unfolding were very touching, as well.
Tragic. As Marko says, it’s terribly sad that he won’t meet his baby, or his baby him. My grandfather died in the war in Europe before my dad was born, and it has a lifelong effect. He never knew what it was like to have a dad, and later when he became a dad, he had to do his best without have had the privilege of having a role model to model himself after. That had an impact on us, for better or worse; the effects of today’s loss will be felt for generations.
May you rest in peace, Wouter.
And sorry to bring in the (added) negative energy to this, I’m just really worked up right now. First, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about Wouter’s crash & death since it happened a few hours ago.
And now it crushes me to see people watching replays of the crash, people who don’t care at all about cycling or cyclists, as if it’s some sort of highlight reel. Have some respect.
@ sgt – yep, me too. No desire to watch a young lad lose his life.
As a father and a cyclist today’s Giro took my breathaway as the cameras were far too close initially and then brought tears as I realized what happened….I don’t have anything else to say but there seems to be such a void….@ Frank’s post, agreed; today’s horrible catastrophe will not change any of the actions of the driver’s along my commute and that’s fucking pathetic. let’s all be careful.
@Ron
@sgt
I was half watching it live while writing a job application this afternoon and so I only caught the initial crash out of the corner of my eye. After seeing it again and the actions of the medics, I turned the tv off and didn’t watch the rest of the race, and I certainly had tears in my eyes. absolutely tragic. I honestly wish I could unsee it.
gutted. Well said Frank.
Well said. Sad day indeed for cycling
Very, very well put, Frank. I did not see it as work was busy this morning; thankfully, it turns out. No desire to watch it now.
I’m also reading “The Rider” from Tim Krabbe at the moment. Between that book, applying Sur La Plaque to my life both on & off the bike, and the passing of Wouter, I think I have all I need to know about life.
Ride hard, work hard, and enjoy every rotation of the cranks, because you don’t know when your number is up.
Well put. Sad and tragic and not what any sport should ever be about. RIP, WW.
truly sacrificial…
Rust in vrede
Well said Frank.
I just woke up and saw the news of this, and could not believe what I was reading. I’m in shock.
RIP Wouter.
Thank you, Frank.
I watched the coverage on Eurosport today. I thought David Harmon and Sean Kelly were duly respectful and understated. Just like the rest of us, they saw the few seconds of Italian TV showing the medics working on Weylandt. From that point on, I think Harmon and Kelly knew this wasn’t just another bike racing accident. I was very proud of how they carried on through the rest of the broadcast.
I give credit to the Italian TV producer who turned off the camera feed at the accident site. Yes, we saw what happened, but the camera didn’t linger. He could have been horribly disrespectful, but he wasn’t.
I also give credit to the Giro organizers who cancelled today’s podium ceremony. I trust they’ll neutralize tomorrow’s stage.
I’m a little more than shaken, and I’m having second thoughts about this evening’s ride, but I’m heading out just the same. I’ll see other cyclists tonight. No doubt we’ll talk about Weylandt’s passing. Otherwise, I think tonight’s ride will be pretty quiet.
I’ll say more prayers for Wouter Weylandt and his family. But honestly, I wish it hadn’t happened.
@Ron
I was going to say the same thing – it is frustrating to see sites like the Huffington Post not give cycling any coverage, than treat this like some sort of snuff film. How many viewers and commentators even knew there was a major race underway? Reminds me of why I hate the media (sorry to any of you who are journalists, etc. no offense intended).
I was watching this live on Eurosport this afternoon. As ever, the camers initially closed in on the incident, but it was immediately obvious that this was far more serious than usual, and that was, thankfully, all that was shown. It became clear as the rest of the stage unfolded that things were looking bad, and it was very sad to have our worst fears confirmed after such a short time. Its hard to know what to say, but I know there are many of us out there who would have loved to have been in the peleton today, even knowing the risks. There’s no one to blame,these things are, sadly, part of the game. I think Frank’s post says it all. Everyone of us will be thinking about this next time we feel the wind on our faces, and the next time we are longing for a tail wind to blow us home. Remember today, but above all remember that this is still a beautiful sport. Forza Velominati.
A-Merckx to that!
Wouter, I hope you’ve bridged up to cycling nirvana by now…podium girls all around!
(not trying to make light of this, just trying to think of happier times)
Thanks, Frank. RIP, Wouter.
I wonder how many of you grasp the weight of my initial response “And I was whining about the headwind Saturday”? I am a firm believer that my greatest sin (and I mean “sin” in the biblical/need for a Savior sense) is ingratitude. I make 11 bucks an hour and yet I am in the top 1% of the world’s richest people. But all I do is piss and moan about petty stuff. Minute by minute I am given the gift of life but I am a malcontent – never satisfied with what I’ve been blessed with. I take for granted that I have a job, a roof over my head, and a nice bike to ride.
Let us remember that we are VERY fortunate that we can indulge in the thing(s) that we love and give thanks.
A sad day indeed.
oh my god. first look at Giro news today and see this… life goes on; we accept the dangers of our sport… but oh my god. his poor wife, and rest of his family… shit. That is all.
Very well put. This is tragic at all levels. Thoughts and prayers to the family of Mr. Weylandt.
so very sad, i salute him
Honor him pause, breathe then ride.
Honor him with a pause, breathe then ride for our fallen brother.
Well said frank. We will keep him in our thoughts.
Thank you, Frank.
Very well done.
Well said Frank. This is a sad day for all Velominati and the whole cycling world.
RIP Wouter, Peace, Blessings and Prayers to your Family.
@Jeff in PetroMetro
i have to agree with you that it has shaken me to the point that i didn’t go out for the evening ride, it shakes us to the bone that this can happen to the pro’s and disturbs our own sense of invulnerability when out knowing that anything can happen but ignoring it
It is tremendously sad and frankly sickening to the stomach
Thoughts and prayers are with his spirit and his family
vale, vale, vale Wouter Weylandt.
Great post. My condolences to his family and cycling community. R.I.P.
Very nice tribute. Ride in his memory.
eightzero:
A-Merckx to that!
Seen in isolation by non-cyclists, this tragedy may confirm the popular impression of cycling being undertaken by careless risk-takers. Truly the deepest insult.
Sadly, he also leaves a young partner and unborn baby.
Good post by Matt Seaton in the Guardian putting the safety issue in perspective: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/bike-blog/2011/may/09/wouter-weylandt-giro-ditalia