HTRWW Archive

The cobbles weren’t all that decisive this year—thanks to good weather and a steady tailwind, they were really more a steady grindstone against which the field was reduced. The real tactical action came at the very end, and involved some of Etixx-Quickstep’s best racing this spring, though in the finale, the outcome was pretty much…

A long race with a relatively simple plotline and loads of substories. Sky over-working, Greipel doing everything, Shimano not-so-neutral service, FDJ’s miserable luck, Tiesj Benoot…but as always, to get everything (like those last two), you’ll have to watch the actual race.

Another one of those (lol) Sprinters’ Classics. Nice to have the crosswinds kick the living daylights out of it this time around, resulting in a very different, strangely tactical conclusion.

Sure, it ended in a sprint—but a sprinters’ classic? Hardly. Attacks, crashes, teamwork and especially the ever-present battle for position all played a huge role long before riders reached the final K.

Not my favorite race of the year, but a few interesting GC days more than made up for the lack of crosswinds in the early going. A predictable winner, though he took a strange route to get there. (In Germany or otherwise having trouble watching on YouTube? It’s on Vimeo, too)

Not a lot of tactical subtlety this time around—once the teams hit the hardest section of gravel, it was (almost) every rider for themselves. Still, a few little points to note here and there, modest attempts at teamwork, some impressive individual performances, and inspiring scenery to boot. (In Germany or otherwise having trouble watching on…

HTRWW Het Nieuwsblad 2015, or How To Lose Bike Race. Though to be fair, the victor’s (see how I avoided those spoilers?) team certainly did some good groundwork, and in the end, he didn’t precisely have it handed to him. Some reference material at https://cyclocosm.com/how-to and https://cyclocosm.com/the-break.

The women’s event really delivered this year—crummy weather, an unpredictable course, and most importantly, the brilliant heads-up duel that the men’s race just couldn’t quite make happen. Obviously, anytime I feel compelled to generate an on-screen counter, it’s a good sign that things are going right.

Despite the fact that it became road season last week (kinda), the cyclocross world still had yet to throw its final farewell bash. While still an interesting enough event, this year’s edition will almost certainly be better remembered for the clash of rivals it wasn’t.

Ah—it’s road season again. At least in Australia. This year’s TdU made a good effort to include pretty much every aspect of racing—breaks, big sprints, climbs, crashes I didn’t talk about, even echelons. Just don’t cross-reference it to my picks for the race earlier in the week.