World Champion

A different breed.

The Worlds are going to be played out on US roads, which is fantastic and the last time it happened we witnessed a great race with a worthy winner. But the Worlds has lost a lot of its prestige since moving from late August to its current position in late September. It’s only a month’s difference, but it means that the riders who started early and raced through the summer are dialing down for the season, and only the riders who either took the Summer easy or are started racing later will be interested in racing for the bands.

It used to be that the winner of the road race wore the Rainbow Stripes in the time trial events as well, because there wasn’t a separate time trial Champion. One World Champion instead of two has the sort of simplicity to it that my twisted OCD brain can really sink its teeth into, and every rider to ever swing a leg over a top tube had that event on their list – whether they were a sprinter, a Grand Tour rider, rouleur, or domestique. I would be willing to bet that a modern champion like like Chris Froome or Alberto Contador doesn’t even have the the Worlds on their radar as a career goal.

We won’t be seeing a defending Tour champion roll up to the prologue with the rainbow stripes on their back any time soon. I vote we bring back the Summertime Worlds.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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Brendan O'Donoghue says:

Aug 28 2015 at 12:34 am

@chuckp

Read my article that I posted previously. Lots of great viewing places. Not a bad seat in the house. I’ll be down there with the family for the women’s and men’s elite races.

@LawnCzar

Really excited for the Worlds — living in DC, they’re not too far away. The family’s going to make a day of it.

Wondering where the best spots to hang out might be; it looks like to see the cobbled climb on 23rd Street you need to buy tickets to the “fan zone” there, which is disappointing, though maybe that’s just one side of the street. Looks like a proper leg / frame buster of a hill…

Ah, the GP des Nations - when Hinault had his mechanic strip the hubs and repack the bearings with light oil instead of grease . . . and nowadays Dave Brailsford gets praise for attention to detail!
chuckp says:

Aug 28 2015 at 7:58 am

@LawnCzar

The start/finish will have plenty of access to food and bathrooms, but will also be the most crowded (obviously). Shockoe will probably be the second most crowded. And I'm sure Libby Hill and 23rd Street will be absolute zoos. You may do well on W. Main on the south side of the course. Might be far enough away from the maddening crowd. Close to VCU campus so lots of places to eat.

My wife, daughter, and I will probably be back-and-forth between the start/finish and Shockoe on both Saturday and Sunday. If you're at the start/finish in the morning, stop in at LIFT and maybe we'll run into each other.

BTW, where in the DC area do you live? I'm in Arlington. We should try to hook up for a ride sometime.

Cheers!

@chuckp

I did — that’s how I knew it was only 100 meters!

Thanks for posting the article (and photos). We’ll be down there with a four year old and a two year old, so that adds a certain dynamic… access to food, bathrooms, and amusement but not too crowded while being able to see the action. Hm.

Though very young, the girls crazy, crazy, crazy about bikes and love going to see races, so that helps. The youngest can’t see a bike without excitedly announcing it (same if she sees someone in their kit) and the eldest is starting to get a sense of how the race works and use the right jargon. “Is he in the break?” she asked me, the other day. (heart explodes)
cognition says:

Aug 28 2015 at 3:28 pm

@Brendan O’Donoghue

Ah, the GP des Nations – when Hinault had his mechanic strip the hubs and repack the bearings with light oil instead of grease . . . and nowadays Dave Brailsford gets praise for attention to detail!

Don't forget that track cyclists used to use graphite instead of grease or oil, and then inflate their tubulars with helium. Neither lasted more than a half-hour, but the 4000m pursuit should be over in less than five minutes!
gilly says:

Aug 28 2015 at 4:44 pm

@RVester

Why did the race number move from under the top tube to behind the rear brake? Steel racing frames would frequently come with a cool brazed-on race card holder. A little peg under the top tube to tell everyone you are in fact riding a very high end frame. Especially if that brazed-on race card holder was fitted with a Campagnolo downtube shifter wingbolt, because you need that little bolt the be made by Campagnolo as well.

Agreed, although the same can't be said for three cable ties on TVT carbon.
Joe says:

Aug 28 2015 at 5:18 pm

Remember doing a rather painful crit in Richmond 'round '92 or so that had some "cobbles" (though not the proper baby's heads as found in the mother country). They were on a hill. I'm assuming its one and the same--in an industrial/port-like setting if I recall. Also recall losing some skin, wonder if it's still there?
chuckp says:

Aug 29 2015 at 10:11 am

@Joe

Probably the same crit I did about the same time, i.e., early 90s. Shockoe/Tobacco Row. Cobbles and hills. One of the few times I could actually contend in a crit.

Remember doing a rather painful crit in Richmond ’round ’92 or so that had some “cobbles” (though not the proper baby’s heads as found in the mother country). They were on a hill. I’m assuming its one and the same–in an industrial/port-like setting if I recall. Also recall losing some skin, wonder if it’s still there?
RichmondLaw says:

Aug 29 2015 at 12:52 pm

My office overlooks the last 100m of the courses, not that I'll be at work that week! It's gonna be awesome. I've ridden the course, and I'm just glad to say I won't have to do it 16 times!
Roger says:

Aug 29 2015 at 4:48 pm

I live and ride Richmond and have ridden all of the cobbles in the city.

The cobbles on the course are legit to say the least and will make for some interesting racing.
Jay says:

Aug 29 2015 at 5:50 pm

I am hopeful that the pro race that John Eustice is pitching, and coincidently is almost in my backyard, draws some World Tour pros looking to tune up for the worlds which start the following weekend. It would be nice to see these guys race, especially since I won't be trekking down to Richmond.