Richard England

The man can draw a crowd…

// June 22nd, 2009 // Uncategorized

First a FLASHBACK…to a week ago…Nature Valley GP

It was a fun week for many reasons. New sponsors, lunches and tours of their facilities, fun racing and finally a win. So kudos to my boy Phil Mamos who was able to cap our week off with a nice ride at Stillwater. Something sweet about the fact that one of my best cycling friends and my room mate for the year was able to seal his first victory for the year on the same course that i took my first victory as a “professional” back in 2005. Professional, ha. its still a word that i struggle to attach to myself as a cyclist…i guess technically most people would consider me a professional, but i still consider this whole cycling caper a hobbie that i am fortunate enough to get paid to do…funny…

So thanks very much to Lifetime Fitness for their support of our team and giving us the opportunity to come and race in the US under a new banner. It was a great experience to come back with my new team and see some of the familar faces that i have been competing against for the past 6 years…

JUSTIFY MY THUG…

On the topic of Nature Valley…Hate is a strong word, so im not going to use it here, but let me say i have grown to dislike with a passion the way that both Steve Tilford and Ben Raby have taken to racing their bikes. Now dont get me wrong, i have the utmost respect for the level of fitness that Tilford has managed to maintain into his 70’s (thats how old he is, isnt it?) but there are limits to how many times i want to have my life risked by these 2 guys. Now i have raced a lot of criteriums over the last 6 years and these 2 are riders i have come across on a very consistent basis. I am willing to admit that there comes a time in a criterium where risk and heat are the order of the day, ironically enough, i never really see these 2 when that time comes…its the fact that throughout an entire criterium they race like it is the final lap…diving underneath people in corners, bouncing and bumping their way through the bunch like their lives depended on them maintaining a top 10 spot for the entire race…seriously…

I only mention it cause i was happy to see that Mike Creed and Tim Johnson, 2 seasoned and experienced riders who i have the utmost respect for, also took  exception to the unnecessary risk that these guys put everyone in when they race their bikes. Its just about some respect for your fellow riders and also having realistic expectations on what youre trying to achieve…it is one thing that i definitely dont miss about racing in the US…

Ok, now to the point of this post…Lance…Whatever you think of the man, be it good, bad or indifferent, you have to give him credit where credit is due. The man can draw a crowd. I refer to my visit to watch the Nevada City Classic yesterday. Where a small town and a race, that i am informed has been slowly dying the past few years, was re-injected with an unbelievable amount of passion and excitement. estimates say that nearly 20,000 people lined the short but demanding course to cheer on the riders…but mainly Lance…and to his credit he didnt let them down, taking the solo victory ahead of my ex-teammate Ben Jaques-Maynes…

Now i have never been swept up in the whole hysteria that surrounds him, but there is no denying that his story is an amazing one that has again continued into this year. He has single handedly reignited certain races in the USA this year that would have probably disappeared from the calendar were it not for his participation. There is little doubt that there is a big market and place for cycling in the US and it is impressive to see that Lance has made a concerted effort on behalf of cancer to make sure that the sport continues to build momentum as the world goes through this economic downturn. It is a sport that has created his celebrity and I think we are all fortunate to have him doing his part to pay back the sport with his presence at such events…It was a privilege to watch him race and an experience to see the kind of hysteria that 1 man can create…lets hope that when his light fades, that the US has another to take his place so that this beautiful sport always has a place on this continent…

The other come back king...what a sweet sport this is...