THE Vuelta Stage 8: A whole lot of nothing, then everything at once

Today was the longest stage in the race, but had no categorized climbs. It was still a warm day, but in my opinion it was the most pleasant day we’ve had so far. Almost the entire stage was on a big national road, and we went almost the same direction the whole day.

Everyone expected a field sprint, but before that can happen the right break must be created. We had the whole team on the front row of the field when the neutral section ended. 2 guys were allowed by, and then the road mysteriously became clogged by a field that wanted an easy day.

We had a tailwind for most of the day, so the stage went by really quickly. Lawson spent a lot of time on the front riding tempo, with Johannes subbing in periodically. FDJ finally contributed a rider, but he was constantly whining that we were only putting one rider on the front. He wanted at least a 2:1 ratio as condition for his work. But for all his complaining, we couldn’t get him to slow down when the gap started falling too quickly.

After 150km, the field got really excited. Every team knew that at 175km, we would change directions. The threat of crosswinds meant we spent half an hour in a 60kph washing machine as everyone tried to be at the front on the twisting valley road. In such a nervous bunch at those speeds, I don’t do so well at holding position. I was able to join up with the team several times, but would get separately soon after.

With the turn coming soon, I made my way to the upwind side and prepared for one final, big move to find the guys. And I almost made it. The crosswinds grew, the field strung out, and my legs felt pretty good as I made my way towards the front. Then I saw Ramon taking Warren across the gap that had formed to the front group. I was officially caught behind the split. With most of the team in the front group, including our GC rider and sprinter, my job shifted to staying near the front of the chase group. In the event that our group made contact, I would need to be fresh and quickly rejoin my teammates for the leadout.

But my group never caught the leaders again, so I had a fast but fairly easy ride to the finish. John finished 4^th after doing a bit too much work to stay in the front group, and Warren would finish with the front group and preserve his GC place before tomorrow’s climbing stage.

THE Vuelta Stage 7: we've got a bike race!

I slept alright last night, but awoke cold. It seems housekeeping had set the AC in the room to full blast and Ramon and I failed to notice it before bed. I almost didn’t adjust it, just because I wanted to remember what being cold felt like.

We had a real bike race on our hands today. The tough stage profile lent itself well to the success of a breakaway, and after yesterday’s climbing finish, the GC was more spread out. As such, we had permission to go for the breakaway today if we wanted, and I did.

With 30k flat before the first categorized climb, I was active in following moves. But it was a real fight for the break today, and as the climb neared I stopped trying. We’re only a week into the race, and I didn’t want to destroy myself by jumping on every move and then getting spit out the back when we did the climb full gas. Besides, tomorrow we’ll be working for a sprint on the longest stage of the race, followed by a tough climbing stage. Best to be a bit conservative at this point.

Just at the start of the climb, Warren was involved in a crash with Froome. I sat up to help him chase back, but he came by so fast that I ended up just settling back in to the field, unable to contribute. The field exploded on the opening climb as the attacks continued. Finally a small group got away before the top. 

There were some crashes on the descent, one of which took John down—banged up, but he would go on to finish.

The field stopped for a pee break after 60km, then quickly settled into an uncomfortable pace for the rest of the day. We spent a lot of time on smaller roads that twisted and rolled through the countryside, at a pace that stung the legs.

As the kilometers disappeared, the field slowly got a bit smaller, until a real selection was made on a 5-minute climb with 15km remaining. After this climb, it was just me, Tobias, and Johannes to watch over Warren. We got him into a good position at the front with 5km remaining, where the road begins to slowly roll upward. I stayed with the group until 3k to go in case Warren had a problem, then sat up.

In the sprint, Warren’s front wheel was clipped in the chaos and he went down hard. He’ll be sore tomorrow, but his GC position is safe.

Today was definitely the hardest stage from start to finish so far, and I think a lot of that can be credited to the temperature. It was still a warm day, but noticeably cooler than the past days. Hopefully the milder temps will continue tomorrow!

7 down, 14 to go!

THE Vuelta Stage 6: Wawa can climb!

You know my least favorite thing about racing at this level, especially in Spain? It’s that we don’t start until 1pm on many days. Nevermind that that means the race is in the hottest part of the day, that’s not even what bothers me most. It’s because I’m an old man that likes to eat early and go to bed early, and get up with the sun and have breakfast early. No, I don’t particularly enjoy being awoken by my body clock 2 hours before breakfast and having dinner at 10pm because our race didn’t even end until nearly 7. I got into bed at midnight yesterday and slept 15 minutes at a time from 7am until I finally gave up at 8:30. Like I said, I’m an old man.

Guess what?! Today’s stage was hot! The break got away fairly quickly, but it took a while for the field to finally stop attacking behind. Then it became a massive coast-off, as none of the teams with GC riders wanted to take the front. For the second day, Orica refused to put even one rider up front even though they led the race. And so the gap continued to grow…and grow…and grow. It ballooned to nearly 15 minutes before Garmin took over and set what would be a most uncomfortable pace for the rest of the day.

We had a handful of climbs to contend with before the final cat 1 finish climb. We were never going extremely fast, but everyone was really suffering. All the guys were staying busy shuttling bottles to Warren, Lawson, and me the whole day. The plan was for us to support Warren as long as we could on the final climb.

The 20 minutes before reaching the base of the climb were actually really hard, as everyone wanted to get their climber into the base in the perfect position. I got pinched off from the guys early on, just before we went single file. We stayed single file for a long time, and I didn’t have the legs to get back up to them. I wasn’t so far back, but every time somebody sat up and left a gap, I had to use more energy to close it. The legs I’d been saving were wasted because of bad positioning.

I did nothing the whole day so that I could help Warren at the end, but by the time we got there I couldn’t do anything. So I’m a bit frustrated about that. Thankfully the others got Warren to the base in second wheel, and he had a great climb to jump into the top-10 on GC.

We’re well into the stage-race vortex now, as we frequently forget what stage we’re on (another good reason to rip the completed stages out of the race book). My legs can tell that we’re a week into the race, but our soigneur just told me that my legs are feeling better each day. I’ll take his word for it. The upcoming stages will provide some more opportunities for John to win, so I’m excited to see what we can do.

6 down, 15 to go!

THE Vuelta Stage 5: First blood, second win

The start of today’s stage was a bit more interesting than planned. First, half the team missed the start…they were staying cool on the bus for as long as possible. But like always, we had a 9km neutral section, so there was no real danger.

We knew that today was another perfect opportunity for John, especially considering his propensity to go on hot streaks. After yesterday’s win, he would be that much more confident. So again we were looking to deliver John to a sprint while keeping Warren’s position on GC.

The first step in the plan is letting the right break go. Immediately Tony Martin attacked, which was fine on a day like today. Even with the sweltering heat, you never want him to have too much help, though, so after a Lotto rider jumped the road mysteriously became clogged with Giant and FDJ riders. As the gap grew, a MTN rider managed to sneak through the road block and go for it. The probability of closing the gap was slim, but he was going to try. As he began to fade on the rolling and twisty road, an uphill switchback appeared. FDJ took the inside, and it was clear they were going to sweep across at the exit of the turn to block him. In desperation, the MTN rider tried to cut inside harder. I knew what was about to happen before it happened and was able to avoid the pile when he washed out, but Koen and Johannes couldn’t. 

Thankfully both suffered only minor road rash in the team’s first crashes of the Vuelta.

We put Tobias on the front immediately, as you can’t let a rider of Martin’s caliber get too far up the road. FDJ was also helping with the chase.

The gap started to immediately fall, and over the next two hours, we would ride slower and slower in an effort to keep from catching them too soon. It seemed the heat was a bit too much for the breakaway and they were begging to be put out of their misery. Finally Martin stopped altogether to rejoin the field. With just one rider out front in the heat and headwind, we were going really easy. Unfortunately, Lawson became the next casualty of the slick roads in a roundabout before the feedzone and became the third rider to hit the deck today. A fair bit of road rash, but he’ll be okay.

Expecting the same relaxed race until the only major climb of the day, we were a bit careless with our positioning as we started a small climb to yet another small town. Alarm bells started going off when Tinkoff-Saxo took over and cranked up the pace. The climb was actually fairly hard, and part of it was on cobbles. 

Then, further up, there was a really hard bottleneck that brought us to a near trackstand. We were single file over the top and suddenly what had been a headwind all day was a cross-tail. On the fast descent with those winds, it didn’t take long for gaps to form.

Tobias, John, and Koen were in the first group, while I was in the second with Warren and Ramon. Ramon and I were working to get Warren back to the first group, getting considerable help from other teams—notably Garmin, who had also missed the split with their GC riders.

Warren would make it back, but Ramon and I couldn’t quite do it, while Tobias would come back to join us after helping John and Koen stay out of the wind until the proper climb began. Our grupetto would just cruise to the finish and save our legs. In a bizarre show of sympathy toward our teammates’ injuries, Ramon and I both got nosebleeds atop the final climb.

It wasn’t a perfect situation, but we at least had John and Warren up front with Koen to provide the leadout. And in the end, that proved enough, as John took his second stage win in as many days! There were definitely some lessons to take from today, but everything came out alright and we can do it better next time.

For now, we’ll just enjoy our champagne at dinner and celebrate John’s second win. Tomorrow Warren gets to come out and play on the first real uphill finish of the race.

5 down, 16 to go!

THE Vuelta Stage 4: Do you like apples?

Well, how d’you like THEM APPLES?!

The day started like all the others, only now I’m a year older. Now I’m above the average age of our Vuelta squad, and that’s not even taking into account how old I act! Early to bed and early to rise, let’s face it, I’m already old.

Anyways, the bike race:

The heat has done a good job of suppressing everyone’s will to race until it’s really necessary. The break, again, got away immediately from kilometer 0 and the field took it easy. The first real climb didn’t come until 100k into the stage, which was a short 164km compared to yesterday’s 198. For the first two hours, I averaged 143w.

In that time, we were constantly going back for bottles. 3 pee breaks in those 2 hours—we were all making sure to stay hydrated! I have to say, though, that it still wasn’t as hot as Tour of California this year, much less TOC 2 years ago. I’m well familiarized with how I handle the heat by now, it’s just a matter of doing what I need to do.

The fight leading into the first climb was a big one, as we weren’t sure how fast the climb would be. The fight paid off, though, when Tinkoff-Saxo took the front and set a hard pace that caused a lot of damage to the field. Once we reached the bottom, the field slowly regrouped just in time to pass through the finish the first time. The last 15km was done twice, so it was nice to have a preview of how the finish would play out.

Just as everything came back together, the fight was on for the last climb. It didn’t take long for the field to explode, and 15 minutes later the front group of 40-50 riders crested the climb. There were about 10 undulating kilometers before we really descended, in which time Lawson took the front to keep the pace up. We had our GC rider and our sprinter in the group, so it was a really good situation for us.

I was hurting, as I’d run out of water on the climb. Just in time, we reached our soigneur, who had musettes ready with 2 bottles. I’d finish both in 20 minutes….

The descent was technical and really fast, and once we reached the bottom there were only 8k to go. With Lawson at the front keeping things under control, I rolled up to Warren and John and asked what they wanted me to do.

“Keep us at the front,” they said. So I pulled them up next to the Tinkoff team and held them there. At 2k to go, both were slotted in around 7^th wheel.  I slid in behind Orica and Tinkoff, making especially sure that we didn’t get swarmed before the last roundabout. At the exit, Orica started to accelerate, but a couple of riders attacked up the side and Orica was running out of gas from riding the front all day.

I jumped onto BMC as they were coming by, and just when they started to fade at 1.5k to go, I heard John yell, “CHAD, GO!”

I had thought that Warren was behind me, but it was obvious from his volume that he was on my wheel. The number one rule of leadouts is: never slow down. Even if you have to go early, it’s better to go too soon than to get swarmed. So when John yelled, “go,” I went.

At the same time, I was doing the mental math. 1.5k to go, and John is on my wheel. Leadout starting now, ideally ends at 200m to go. Wow, that’s a long way. Can’t slow down, though, I have to go until John comes around. I’m gonna need a bit of draft along way, good thing those guys attacked separately. Let’s play a game of leapfrog! Okay, that’s a good speed, we’re making progress. Come to papa…alright, one down, on to the next. Boom, another one bites the dust. Wow, this hurts, and there’s still a long way to go….

From 600m to go, I knew that I was fading and was just begging somebody to start the sprint too soon so that John could jump on. I saw a move coming up the right at 400m and John again yelled to go, to which I replied—seriously—“I CAN’T!” and swung left as John jumped right. There was a gap perfect for him in 4^th (I think) wheel, and from there it was up to him.

I was completely gassed and just waiting to hear in the radio the results. Lawson and I saw at the same time John’s name as the winner on the finish board, so I took my time over the last 200m to celebrate, giving high-fives to the crowd. Then it was hugs all around after the finish.

In summary: John gives the best birthday presents! No matter what else happens during the Vuelta, we’ve won a stage!

4 down, 17 to go!

THE Vuelta Stage 3: I'm on a boat!

Today’s stage started, of all places, on a boat. Not just any boat, though…it was an aircraft carrier. For sign-in, we climbed a few flights of stairs to get onto the lift that gets the planes on the deck and were greeted by a variety of fighter planes and helicopters. Both the racers and the spectators were taking lots of pictures.

After signing in, we saw that they were letting the racers climb into the cockpit of a fighter jet. Unfortunately, standing in line for the jet is all I did, because after 5 minutes of getting punked by more important people (who’s this Quintana guy anyway?), it was time to actually get ready for the bike race and stop being tourists.

The stage started in the cargo bay of the carrier, where we rolled across the ramp back to firmer ground for some actual racing. A trio of choppers and a duo of jets were flitting around the sky during the neutral section, keeping us all entertained as we were paraded through the town.

The race itself was largely uninteresting, and can be summed up with 3 words: it was hot. Not quite like Tour of California, but pretty dang close. I know this because ice socks were helpful, not crucial. And so, the kilometers ticked by just a bit faster than our bottle count.

Orica controlled the front almost the whole day over the undulating climbs, but we would not contribute. We would give it a try with John at the finish, but the 2k finishing climb of 4% is not his forte.

I was really suffering in the middle part of the stage, but on the last climb I was actually feeling comfortable again. Lawson and I would try to escort John up the finishing climb in the hopes that we could accelerate when the road leveled out before the line. With 5k to go, the whole team moved up, but Warren, Lawson, and I were swarmed during Warren’s tussle with the Orica train. We spent the next 3k trying to get back to the others. My legs actually felt good, but I used them trying to get back to John, never quite making it. I pulled the plug at 1k to go, saving my legs for another day.

Although the race didn’t end the way we wanted, I’m encouraged by my form so far as well as my ability to fight for position when it’s important. We got swarmed there at the end, but after that (and in yesterday’s finish) I was managing well. I still have work to do, but progress is always good.

In other news, my hair is finally long enough again that it looks alright without product! So now I can save a few more minutes a day by not fooling with my hair. And I ripped all the completed stages and unnecessary pages out of the race book, so now it’s 30% lighter. It’s all about saving energy, right? We’ve been at the same hotel for the whole race so far, but that changes tomorrow. Over the remaining stages, we’ll change hotels over a dozen times as we make our way around Spain.

I turn 26 tomorrow. I’m not one for big birthday celebrations, but I have to say that racing the Vuelta will be far and away the coolest thing I’ve ever done on my birthday.

3 down, 18 to go!

THE Vuelta Stage 2: A case of the almosts

There’s nothing special to report today, as we’re entering the time vortex of stage racing. As we settle into the rhythm of the race, we’ll lose track of the days because we’re so focused on the task at hand and the stage that’s in front of us. It’s a good thing there’s nothing too significant going on in the world that we need to stay informed about….

The mostly flat stage, aside from the opening cat 3 climb and another pair of smaller climbs later, was going to be a warm one. The break went away immediately, as the peloton was more interested in repeating the phrase “sweating like a pig” than chasing it down in the oppressive humidity.

Movistar immediately took control, and we agreed that I’d contribute to the chase at the feed zone. It was a windy day, so we spent our time keeping John and Warren out of the wind and trouble. The gap had been holding steady around 4 minutes, but jumped a bit to 5+ minutes after the field’s second pee break. Then I and a FDJ rider joined Movistar at the front and started to chip away at the gap.

Maybe “chip away” isn’t quite the correct term. We were never pulling really hard, but the gap plummeted from 5 to 1 minute by the time we reached 35k to go. At that point, with the threat of crosswinds coming soon, all the teams started pushing toward the front. Then I eased up and tried to recover, my work being done for the time being. Just the action of teams fighting to stay at the front meant that the break was doomed.

I spent the next 20k preparing for the fight to come. Things were really hectic in the closing kilometers, so I used my remaining energy to keep the others out of the wind for the leadout later on. At 5k to go, I swung off, but did my best to stay in the field to help in case something happened with Warren. The leadout didn’t go quite as planned when the wind came from the opposite side we expected in the last 3k, but they adjusted well. Then Ramon was nearly crashed by somebody’s crazy moves in one of the last turns, and his support looks to have been the missing ingredient to get John the win today.

After two 2^nd places at the Tour, today’s finish was far from satisfying for John. As was the case earlier this season, I’m sure he’s about to break through again and I’m ready to do my part!

One final remark: this was my first Grand Tour road stage, and I was really impressed with the sheer number of spectators along the whole route, much less their enthusiasm! But it was definitely frightening at times how far out into the road they were standing, and how late they moved back. Not just on climbs, but when we come blasting through small towns at 50kph.

2 down, 19 to go!