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| *Vultures Knob>>>Cycling |
In the tour de france, after someone crashes how do his teammates bring him back into the race?? |
I always hear the team being credited for bringing the fallen cyclist back into the race... how do they do this?? i dont get it... do they ride for him or something?? Notably when Robbie Mcewen crashed in stage 1 of the tour this year, after winning, he thanked his team for bringing him through the group?? Busterdomino gave a very good explanation of how a team can pull a rider back to the group. The team leader will sit in the slipstream of his teammates, who will alternate taking turns at the front. The team leader never comes through to take his turn at the front. He sits at the back conserving his energy. On his own, he would not be able to catch a fast moving peloton. His teammates sacrifice themselves to get him back to the group. That's one reason why having a strong team is important. Your example of Robbie McEwen is a good one. But let's look at another example. Remember stage 11, when Vino and the Astana team attacked in a strong crosswind and managed to catch Christophe Moreau at the back. Ag2r sent 5 or 6 teammates back to help pull Moreau back to the group, but they weren't able to do it. If you remember the TV coverage, at one point Ag2r was only about 100 meters behind the group, but they could never close that gap. Then slowly they lost ground, until Moreau ended up 3 minutes behind. The reason that they couldn't catch up was twofold. One was Astana keeping the pace very fast in the front group, and the second reason was that crosswind. It's very hard to ride in someone's slipstream in a crosswind. Mainly because there just isn't much of a slipstream there, the wind disrupts it. Consequently, riders never get a chance to rest like they would if there was no wind. They're constantly fighting the wind. If there had been no crosswind, Ag2r would almost certainly have gotten Moreau back to the group. That's the importance of riding in someone else's slipstream, and that's how teammates can "pull" a rider back to the group. But once Robbie McEwen got back to the group he had to get through all those riders, to be at the front for the sprint. It doesn't matter how fast you are, if the road in front of you is packed with other riders, you have nowhere to go. Getting through those riders takes a combination of muscle, guts, bike handling skills and speed. Here again, your teammates can help you. They can do it by letting you ride in their slipstream, just like when they were pulling you back to the group. They can also literally muscle people out of your way if necessary. Usually they don't have to physically move another rider, move close enough, and your obvious intention can intimidate another rider into moving out of the way. But if necessary a teammate can ride alongside another rider and then turn/lean into them, to physically move them , allowing the team leader to get by. It was an awesome display of teamwork, and Robbie's own bike handling skills that allowed him to work his way through to the front, for the sprint. The more that you know about the tactics and skills involved in cycling, the greater appreciation you'll have for some of the amazing things that pro cyclists can do, and the more enjoyment you'll get from watching them race. a second bike if his first bike is damage in the crash Firstly, if it needs replacing, one of his team will give up his bike if the team car is not there. Secondly, they "tow" him back to the bunch by have him sitting behind a teammate whilst the team takes turns at the front to maintain a fast speed.If you are in the slipstream of another rider, you are using 15-20% less energy. A group of 3-4 riders leading this way could average 35-40 miles an hour for a limited period, faster than the main peloton is generally going.This enables them to regain contact. One thing most people forget about the tour over here is it really is a team race. Everyone on the team is there to support one or two members of the team, sometimes for different specialties. The Domestiques will sacrifice themselves, burn themselves out and even give up their bikes if necessary for a team leader. This allows the leader to save as much energy as possible for crucial moments. For the Green Jersey contenders (like Mcewen) that means the sprints at the end of the flat stages, for the Polka Dot Jersey men those are the big climbs and especially summit finishes and for the Yellow Jersey contenders to keep them out of trouble, chase down threats and give them lead outs for the big mountain stages where the tour is usually won or lost. |
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