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.
I know as well as any of you that I've been checked out lately, kind…
Peter Sagan has undergone quite the transformation over the years; starting as a brash and…
The Women's road race has to be my favorite one-day road race after Paris-Roubaix and…
Holy fuckballs. I've never been this late ever on a VSP. I mean, I've missed…
This week we are currently in is the most boring week of the year. After…
I have memories of my life before Cycling, but as the years wear slowly on…
View Comments
@andy
Trying to pin this on the course layout is pretty weak... While it does nothing to diminish the tragedy the fact is that it was rider error that caused this crash... He sat up and looked back as he considered joinging the approach group and just swayed into the left wall at high speed, a horrible moment of poor execution with unimaginable consequences by someone who handled a bike better than any of us could dream to.
Rather than trying to take this as your moment on the pulpit to whine about some imagined injustice by the powers of cycling, we should all recognize that a man fell victim to a horrible moment of chance that we're all, unfortunately, infinitely more likely to see in person than we ever ought to have been on the tele. As someone who's left far more than my fair share of sidewall rubber on the road from overly aggressive descending, I'll certainly be riding my bike with a new eye towards just how much is at stake from here on out. I know I'll never handle a bike as well as Wouter did drunk and tired and I'm suddenly all too aware of just how needless and foolhardy some of the risks I've taken in pursuit of speed on the way down have been.
RIP Wouter, may the road never end and the sun never set. All my thoughts and prayers to your family.
Thanks Frank, RIP Wouter, and my condolences to his family and teammates.
RIP Wouter.
It's good to know Zomegnan is leaving it up to the peloton as to how they want to respect Weylandt tomorrow. Good call on the part of the Giro organizers.
sad day indeed.
Very sad day indeed. Deepest condolences to the family and friends, and my thoughts are with the riders and Wouter's nearest and dearest as they go on.
Thanks frank. A fitting piece. My condolences to his family, friends and team mates.
@Frank - A-Merckx
@ Troy - Agree with your sentiments
@Ron - Nice, best way to remember someone, for the good times.
@cyclops - I hear ya
@everyone - Although this is a tragic death, the best way we can honour his memory is to get on our bikes (albeit difficult when you hear this news) and ride. Dedicate your next commute/group ride/race win to him. Wear a black armband. Do what you think honours him, but remember to keep riding. I don't/didn't know Wouter, but this is what I would have wanted the Cycling community to do for me.
Keep doing what you love.
@Wouter where-ever you are, may you never have to change out of the Big Ring and all your winds be tail winds. RIP. A-Merckx
Thanks Frank - fitting words.
I agree with JIPM about the coverage. The pictures were shocking and were cut straight away while the commentary was suitably respectful. When I saw the paramedics on compressions my heart sank. Its a long way back from there...
I rode at dawn this morning and thought of Wouter all the way. But I clipped my helmet a little tighter and watched the road a little more intensely.
The thread is so fine. Ride on...
Just put in a slow, somber 30 k. Felt good to be on the bike, but I thought of nothing else but Wouter's death the entire time.
Also just checked VeloNews for the first time. Jeez, Farrar's piece was really, really sad. I've actually thought about losing a training partner, since we all know how close we sometimes get to bad things out there. Can't imagine how Tyler is feeling right now.
I also think about death fairly frequently on the bike. Anytime I see road kill I say a small blessing for the departed critter & for my good luck thus far, knowing I could be that squirrel or rabbit or fox or snake very easily. From behind the windshield, I think cyclists have about as much value as those animals to many drivers. We're all just something slowing them down.
Keep riding everyone, but please do so as safely as possible.
Frank - I think the valley and peaks idea is perfect. I actually read a book of daily Tao entries and one of them is about this very idea - you have to know the low spots in life to appreciate the pinnacles. Today is definitely as low as it gets.
RIP, Wouter.