When I mention to my friends that I enjoy watching bike racing on TV, they constantly clown on me and claim it’s not a real sport like football and they state that the racers are wimps. Well, yesterday I mentioned a few crashes that occurred. Here is the fallout from those crashes:
- Kanstantsin Sivstov (out) – Broken Tibia
- Jose Joaquin Rojas (out) – Broken Collarbone
- Maarten Tjallingii (out) – Broken Hip
- Tom Danielson – Separated Shoulder
- Pablo Urtasun – Slight Concussion
- Giampaolo Caruso – Chest Contusions (flew over handlebars into barbed wire fence)
- Koen De Kort – Thumb
- Philippe Gilbert – Shin Gash
No one in the NFL would finish the game they started after an injury like a separated shoulder, a concussion (which the NFL won’t allow them to continue after), or the injury Philippe Gilbert sustained.
I’m sure that I wouldn’t be able to ride my bike the day after this happened but this is what sets the pros apart from the recreational riders.
You may view how the intermediate sprint went down yesterday here. Notice how easily Cavendish dusts the field and how upset he gets at their attempt to block him in.
During Stage 4, Mark Cavendish again proved that he was the fastest man on 2 wheels when he beat Matthew Goss, Mark Renshaw and Peter Sagan at the intermediate sprint line.
With just over 30 miles left in the stage, it began raining. This makes everyone nervous since the roads have become slick. In the end, it was just a brief shower that didn’t have an impact.
There was a big high-speed crash within the last 2 miles as racers were jockeying for position that narrowly missed Cancellara and took out Cavendish. With the field decimated, team Lotto were able to form a lead out train for Andre Greipel which was successful despite the counter attacks from Alessandro Petacchi and Peter Sagan.
Cavendish would finish the stage but he looked really dejected as he casually strolled to the finish line covered in dirt, with his jersey and helmet displaying the damage.
Here is the current standings for the jerseys:
- Fabian Cancellara – Yellow
- Peter Sagan – Green
- Michael Morkov – Polka Dot
- TJ Van Garderen – White
This is a dream stage for the sprinters. Expect Mark Cavendish to get the win should he not be too banged up. If Cavendish can’t contend, look for Sagan, Griepel, Goss, or Petacchi to get the win.
Tomorrow’s recap will be late as I’ll be playing in the first poker tournament I’ve played in since 2005. Wish me luck.
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