You must travel to the vineyards by tractor, or opt for a mountain bike if you prefer two wheels. Use as wide tires as possible to stay balanced on rocky ground where studs can bite into tubes. In top-tier races, whether men or women race, rough sections off paved routes require careful management. One story is the epic of the ‘Hell of the North’ with its stones, while another is the persistent attempt to define unpaved stretches that should not be labeled as ‘sterrato’, far from the rustic lands of Tuscany.
The Spanish cycling scene has long stalked the intimidating Tour. Since those days, riders like Alberto and Purito Rodriguez have left the race behind. There is no turning back because a pattern repeats itself, a pattern that shatters the hopes of many cyclists like Blue García, who, though narrowly missing catastrophe, still carries a tough general classification after a near miss versus the leaders. In this rare moment when he joined the elite riders on unpaved sections, four favorites had planned to push ahead; at least a few misfortunes followed. A day to forget, with lingering pain from falls, and the fear that injuries from two crashes might sour the rest of the season more than the usual ache of a fall.
Blue García’s fall happened beneath his team’s car, a moment captured in the chatter of fans and analysts alike. pic.twitter.com/kGedB9pisV
— Welder’s Goggles (@lasgafasdesolda) 27 July 2022
two faults
The rider endured a malfunction in the first of four segments and then a puncture in the next-to-last one. In a relentless chase to catch the group ahead, the issue did not appear catastrophic at first. Marianne Vos, unexpectedly struck by her own team’s car, turned the day into a reminder that even champions can be knocked off balance. The sight was dramatic: the UEA car came from the front, lightly tapping the rear wheel of her bike, delivering a sharp elbow jolt and, more than anything, revealing how the peloton slipped away as she tried to sort out the problem. The scene ended in a tense, almost cinematic moment.
Blue García ended up marked by the early exit and the victory of Olympic time trial runner-up, Swiss Marlen Reusser. In stage four he snapped the chain and slid from sixth to eleventh place overall. The narrative grew heavier that Thursday, though the account on paper appeared somewhat less tangled.
You must travel to the vineyards by tractor, or opt for a mountain bike if you prefer two wheels. Use as wide tires as possible to stay balanced on rocky ground where studs can bite into tubes. In top-tier races, whether men or women race, rough sections off paved routes require careful management. One story is the epic of the ‘Hell of the North’ with its stones, while another is the persistent attempt to define unpaved stretches that should not be labeled as ‘sterrato’, far from the rustic lands of Tuscany.
The Spanish cycling scene has long stalked the intimidating Tour. Since those days, riders like Alberto and Purito Rodriguez have left the race behind. There is no turning back because a pattern repeats itself, a pattern that shatters the hopes of many cyclists like Blue García, who, though narrowly missing catastrophe, still carries a tough general classification after a near miss versus the leaders. In this rare moment when he joined the elite riders on unpaved sections, four favorites had planned to push ahead; at least a few misfortunes followed. A day to forget, with lingering pain from falls, and the fear that injuries from two crashes might sour the rest of the season more than the usual ache of a fall.
Blue García’s fall happened beneath his team’s car, a moment captured in the chatter of fans and analysts alike. pic.twitter.com/kGedB9pisV
— Welder’s Goggles (@lasgafasdesolda) 27 July 2022
two faults
The rider endured a malfunction in the first of four segments and then a puncture in the next-to-last one. In a relentless chase to catch the group ahead, the issue did not appear catastrophic at first. Marianne Vos, unexpectedly struck by her own team’s car, turned the day into a reminder that even champions can be knocked off balance. The sight was dramatic: the UEA car came from the front, lightly tapping the rear wheel of her bike, delivering a sharp elbow jolt and, more than anything, revealing how the peloton slipped away as she tried to sort out the problem. The scene ended in a tense, almost cinematic moment.
Blue García ended up marked by the early exit and the victory of Olympic time trial runner-up, Swiss Marlen Reusser. In stage four he snapped the chain and slid from sixth to eleventh place overall. The narrative grew heavier that Thursday, though the account on paper appeared somewhat less tangled.