What the hell is going on with all these crashes???

leftism

Is it just me or has this cycling season been one of the most dangerous in living memory? The number of very serious incidents in the first week of this Tour de France has been ridiculous. Of course, everyone expects the odd tumble in week 1, but a TV motorbike with a bike frame (minus the rider) attached to the panniers? Cars knocking down riders? Barbed wire fences? Broken femurs? Broken collar bones? The list goes on and on!!!

And it doesn't seem to be just the Tour! Lets not forget the aweful tragedy in the Giro... Even without the horrific incident which led to the death of Wouter Weylandt (God rest his soul), there seemed to be an unusually high number of crashes in the Giro too.

So are race organisers taking high risks with the stages? Certainly the stage on the "straddi bianchi" in the Giro seemed stupid beyond belief... I mean they would have been better off riding downhill mountain bikes FFS!

Is it just an unlucky year or are other elements playing a part? Whatever the reason, lets all hope we've seen the last of the major crashes for this year!

seven stars

I was wondering the same thing. That first week was more like the Grand National than the Grande Boucle.

Carpenter

Hope to god there are no more but the Pyrenees is a coming and that place can be mad even in the dry :eek::eek::eek:.

Columbia

Don't forget the horrendous accident that Mauricio Soler suffered in the Tour de Suisse too (placed in an induced coma 4 weeks ago, now showing signs of "serious cognitive deficits").

I'd put it half down to bad luck, half down to increased revenues and tv exposure meaning riders themselves show a little less common sense on descents/dangerous stretches of road.

mgmt

I'd put it down to the lack of a prologe this year. Too many riders are in with a shout this year and as a consequence every team wants to be in the front with its leader.

leftism

mgmt wrote: »

I'd put it down to the lack of a prologe this year. Too many riders are in with a shout this year and as a consequence every team wants to be in the front with its leader.

+1

Reckon several of the crashes this week were as a direct result of this. Theres a lot to be said for Cancellara dictating proceedings until the first big mountain stage. Certainly would have cut down on some of the crazy behaviour we've seen this week. Bernard Eisel said as much in a Eurosport interview a few days ago when he suggested there are too many GC contenders competing up the front on stages usually given over to the sprinters. Then again, it makes for more interesting racing....

ednwireland

david millar says the bunch is at a more even level,

not having lots of boring sprint stages means all the teams are putting their gc contendors up the front with people protecting them, they are all worried about losing time in a split