The end of each Spring Classics season is always a bit of a downer. The season of epic conditions and hardmen passes to the natural next step of the season, the Grand Tours. Looking back at the spring. One rider stands out in particular for his wins and the incredible length of his peak form: Fabian Cancellara.
In 2007 Cancellara had a season anyone would kill for: six wins including the Time Trial World Championship plus one stage and the prologue of the Tour de France. Already this year he has had five wins led by Milan-San Remo and Monte Paschi Eroica. What’s most impressive about Cancellara’s season is that he held peak form for two full months. Boonen might have taken Cancellara in the sprint at Roubaix, but Cancellara was winning for the eight weeks before that.
Even when Cancellara didn’t get the win, such as at Flanders, he usually figured as one of the day’s protagonists. We don’t often see that anymore. More often, the pattern is one of a patron we’ve been waiting to give us a show, and waiting. Finally, we get the fireworks as we did with Boonen at Roubaix, but we’re a hungry bunch and we like to see a great rider give their best a little more often. To be fair, Stijn Devolder’s performance at Flanders threw water on Boonen’s ride over the mur; he certainly seemed strong enough to win.
Like I said, we’re a hungry bunch. We want wins from our heros. Winning in February and April is PRO. One big day in three months isn’t how we live our riding lives. Whether you consider it selfish or delusional, when Saturday dawns, we want to ride at full strength and full fitness—that’s the best kind of Saturday there is. Cancellara’s two months of crushing fitness is just the sort of inspiration we need, just the message we want to hear.
Photo courtesy John Pierce, Photosport International
Friday, May 16, 2008
2008 Man of the Spring
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
The Perfect Race
In a world where possibility can be celebrated, there are times when even the expected can seem unexpected and the unanticipated can seem orchestrated. So it was that when Tom Boonen stood up and sprinted away from Alessandro Ballan and Fabian Cancellara in the final 200 meters of Paris-Roubaix it was hard not to cheer in triumph. It was the quintessential ending to the ultimate race.
It was the second Classic to end thus this season. In seeing Stijn Devolder in the Belgian National Champion’s jersey crossing the line alone in triumph, the world achieved a certain satisfactory order. The alliterative quality of a Flandrian wearing the flag in Flanders fits. Could there have been a more appropriate outcome?
The fact is we love great champions. The masterful stroke of the great hardman never disappoints and we love to see the move of exceptional strength and style. But the danger here is dominance. We want the possibility of a range of winners, an as-yet-to-be-determined outcome, rather than the foregone conclusion. For most folks Indurain’s Tour wins in ’94 and ’95 were, well, boring. And not too many of the cycling cognoscenti were psyched about Lance’s exploits in the ’05 Tour. And lest anyone think that winning is routine for Boonen, just check the delight on his face; we should all be so lucky as to find such joy.
In a Classic the possible winners number nearly 200 and to those of us weaned on the either/or of football, basketball and baseball, possibilities on that order might as well be infinite. Compared to bike racing, betting on football is easy; even roulette offers better odds.
It's true that seeing a domestique such as Wampers or Demol win can be exciting, but often such a victory is a let-down for its lack of the mark of a known champion. Which is why young Martijn Maaskant’s fourth place might have been the ideal compromise. While the win went to a definitive star of Roubaix, Maaskant’s fourth was a memorable rookie performance and yet another great statement from what is arguably cycling’s most conspicuously clean program.
Had Boonen rolled out of Compiégne with a dozen wins in hand from this spring, the threat of his utter dominance would have cast him in the roll of villain, the obstacle to be overcome. And at Roubaix, the star of the day should always be the course; nothing should ever upstage the stones. Without the wins in hand, we wondered when Tornado Tom would delight us with yet another display of his power. Similarly, Cancellara was an unknown, but for different reasons. Having already performed brilliantly at Milan-San Remo and Monte Pasche Eroica—heck, he’d been going well ever since the Tour of California—we knew he was strong, but he missed the move at Flanders, and frankly, you had to wonder if he could maintain winning form for yet another week. And let’s not forget Ballan. He’d put it together once before and was showing great form at Flanders.
When that trio went up the road part of the satisfaction we felt was in our understanding the dynamic. To the uninitiated, they were just three very fast cyclists. To us, they were the masters, eliminating the weak and working the odds; it was as much chess as it was brute force.
As they entered the velodrome in Roubaix, we knew the winner would come from that trio and while we can each be forgiven our partisan preferences, we knew any one of them would make for a fitting winner, a champion in the classic sense. Ballan would be a surprise for extending his range, Boonen would be a pleasure in seeing him confirm his mastery of the cobbles and Cancellara would be a shock for the sheer unlikeliness of the repeat and of carrying his form for weeks on end.
With reality increasingly scripted by Hollywood, the sight of Ballan, Boonen and Cancellara together was both more natural and more surprising than we've come to expect. In the end, Boonen’s sprint was a definitive statement that eliminated the almost, the what if, giving him what every champion deserves, a place in history.
Photo courtesy John Pierce, Photosport International
Friday, April 11, 2008
Tradition vs. Technology
Paris Roubaix is a race steeped in tradition. Every chapter in the race's history sees common threads woven throughout, and this lays the foundation for Paris Roubaix's timeless appeal. Almost every other race in the PRO calendar has been touched by the hand of modern bicycle technologies. A look at the Tour de France reveals high-tech machines taking advantage of the most advanced technologies available to the manufacturing world—an engineer's showcase of the thinnest, lightest, and fastest—an envelope pushed so far that the UCI has a specific rule in place in an attempt to keep things safe.
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The race's tradition extends far beyond the route, the stones, or the concrete showers, rather the tradition extends into the mindset of the riders themselves. Many understand that the race is comprised of unpredictable events and the fastest way to a win is to limit as many unknowns as possible.
A walk though the start village in Compiègne illustrates the different strategies of the teams. Some teams and riders opt for cantilever brakes, others the standard road calipers. Some go for double tape, the 23, 25, 27, 28mm tires, and suspension forks. The list of Roubaix-specific accoutrement is as long as the line at the espresso tents. However, there is one gear selection that remains almost unanimous among teams: the decision to ride "traditional wheels". 
The term "traditional" is used by many of the teams to describe the traditional, 32-hole hub, three cross spoke pattern and "low profile" rim with a tubular tire glued to it. Over the years and with all the developments in wheel technology, it is fascinating that the wheel choice for Roubaix remains a "low-tech" option.
Undoubtedly, the high-tech players are in hot pursuit of a seat at the Roubaix table. Zipp, for example, has been hard at work developing a deep section carbon wheel capable of delivering all the performance characteristics against the wind, while continuing to be able to handle the stones. Most recently, the CSC team has been spotted at Flanders with a deep section, rear wheel, and a traditional front.
(BKW has spent some time speaking with the folks at Zipp; stay tuned for a future post featuring Zipp's experiences at the Classics and the future of a deep-section carbon Roubaix wheel.)
For more information on the traditional wheel approach, we placed a call to BKW friend and PRO mechanic George Noyes. As a recap, George turned wrenches for cycling's best and did his time in the trenches for 7-Eleven, Motorola, Cofidis, and Mapei. George has built enough wheels in his career to fill a stadium and included in his builds are wheels that carried the Lion himself to victory at Roubaix.
When speaking about the traditional wheel style with George, it becomes immediately evident that he remains passionate about wheel building and he respects the love and attention to detail so common among traditionally constructed wheels. Although the options for wheel building seem endless, the builds at Roubaix all seem to be alike.
A wheel for Roubaix needs to deliver overall durability, lateral stiffness, and the ability to absorb impact. George confirmed that in the years before deep section, carbon wheels, mechanics often built the wheels with lower spoke tension to give the wheel a softer ride. Today, however, George notes that riders prefer their wheels built with a higher spoke tension because most are accustomed to the ride quality of today's high tension wheels.
An interesting side note regarding the wheels for Roubaix: George recalls, the mechanics always pulled the oldest wheels first. Back in those days, the traditional wheelset was the only wheelset. The Mapei team used the oldest wheels on the truck for Roubaix and, quite simply, Roubaix would be the final ride for these wheels, prompting immediate retirement upon removal from the bike. The team's star riders would always begin Roubaix on a new set of wheels.
Here is a quick glance at the wheel builds for Johan and team:
Front Wheel
Rim: Ambrosio Nemesis 32 hole
Hub: Shimano Dura Ace 32 hole
Spokes: Sapim or DT (Aero when available*)
Tire: Vittoria
Build: 3X with lower tension in spokes
Rear Wheel
Rim: Ambrosio Nemesis 32 hole
Hub: Shimano Dura Ace 32 hole
Spokes: Sapim or DT (Aero then tied and soldered)
Tire: Vittoria
Build: 3X with lower tension in spokes
* Aero spokes were an expensive option and despite the Mapei budget, they were not always available to the mechanics.
Tire pressure remains as much art as science. According to George, the ideal tire pressure for the Roubaix course walks a very fine line, balancing enough pressure to keep the rider above the stones and low enough that the bike feels stable and provides shock absorption. Like cyclocross, tire pressure is considered too high if the rider doesn't frequently bounce off the rim.
The best riders have mastered the art of riding "lightly" enough that they can run a ridiculously low pressure without puncturing. Typical pressure for the Mapei riders hovered around 5 3/4 bars (83 PSI) for the rear and a shockingly low 5 bars (72 PSI) in the front. "The lower the pressure, the more stable the bike is over the stones," notes George.
During our talks, George laughed as he recalled Museeuw's tendency to bleed out air prior to the start of Roubaix. This served as an outlet for nervous energy and the best were always pushing the envelope, seeking the lowest possible pressure. "I used to threaten to glue the valves closed so Johan could not change the pressure," says George.
The traditional wheel set-up has been a part of Roubaix's history since the first race back in 1896. Although developments in wheel design have grown exponentially in the last few years (and some are Roubaix specific), Roubaix appears to be a race where the PROs themselves fear leaving anything to chance and the fear of embracing technology comes from a traditional mindset trusting a traditional wheelset.
The wheels featured in the photos above were built by the skilled hands of George and bound for Max Van Heeswijk's Willems Veranda's Continental Team.
Photo courtesy George Noyes
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Roubaix Recon
According to one of BKW's sources, Fabian Cancellara dropped the entire CSC team while reconning Paris-Roubaix yesterday. Rode away from them. He overshot the rendezvous point with the bus, and as our source said, "Missed the bus." Apparently he had his cell phone with him and they had to ring the powerhouse up to get him to stop.
Photos by Mike McGarry, Photosport International
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Place Your Bets
The bookmakers were hard at work at Ghent Wevelgem. Nice to know you can bet on Tornado Tom and still make money.
Photo by Mike McGarry, Photosport International
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Paris-Roubaix 81 : Bernard Hinault
A special thanks to Guy WR from Le-Grimpeur for the heads up on this classic.
Monday, April 7, 2008
The Monuments
The Monuments of cycling are indeed just that—monuments—to the fallen soldiers of the World Wars. The Monument events are composed of five races. They are: Milan-San Remo, the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Tour of Lombardy. What unites these events is their history. Each harkens back to a time before the World Wars. The youngest of the five monuments, the Tour of Flanders, took place for the first time in 1913, a year before World War I began.
In my experience as a photographer, both Paris-Roubaix and Liege-Bastogne-Liege are indeed war memorials. The roads that are used are protected under local council laws; these are the same roads used by the young soldiers of the First World War. 
Roubaix is known as "l'Enfer du Nord" which translates to "The Hell of the North." That expression came from the soldiers who were posted there. The rough farm tracks and cobbled lanes that are used are what was left after the bombing in the First World War.
After the war it was decided to dedicate the race to the fallen soldiers of the Great War. The race starts in Compiègne, 60km north of Paris where the French made the Germans sign the WWI Armistice.
The first Armistice of Compiègne was signed 11 November, 1918 at 11:00 am. It was held in the forest outside Compiègne because there were two sets of railway tracks and the trees would hide the events from the air. The two tracks were approximately 50 meters apart. 
The Second Armistice at Compiègne was signed on 22 June, 1940 at 6:50 pm near Compiègne, in the department of Oise, between Nazi Germany and France. Following the decisive German victory in the Battle of France (10 May-21 June, 1940), it established a German occupation zone in Northern France that encompassed all English Channel and Atlantic Ocean ports and left the remainder "free" to be governed by the French. This second armistice signaled only the cessation of war between the French and the Germans—Hitler continued declaring war on the rest of Europe from the same railway carriage.
Adolf Hitler deliberately chose Compiègne Forest and the same rail car as the site to sign the armistice with France due to its symbolic role as the site of the 1918 Armistice with Germany that signaled the end of World War I with a German defeat. Satisfied with his revenge, Hitler then declared war on the rest of Europe, and had the prestigious rail carriage taken by road to Berlin and ceremoniously destroyed. 
There is now a replica rail carriage and museum on the site, which is well worth the visit. It is just a few kilometers from the Royal Palace (the site of the sign-in and start for Paris-Roubaix) on the south side of Compiègne; it is well signposted.
Paris-Roubaix traverses the Arenberg Forest—itself a war memorial dedicated on consecrated ground. It is forbidden to drive through this area except when Paris-Roubaix is run, and even then only the race can go through the Arenberg—all spectators must walk in. The forest of Compiègne is funded by public donation; when a child is born, or when a soldier or family member dies, the relatives buy a tree which is planted in memoriam. A friend of mine, Christelle Cocquempot, formerly of La Redoute, (sponsors of Paris-Roubaix) has a tree planted in her name. It was donated by her parents when she was born.
Liege-Bastogne-Liege is the same; the race route passes many battlefields. Tanks—Panzer in German—are among the few survivors from WWII. The race passes through Houfalize, but it’s hardly recognizable compared to the town that stood before the war. It’s so sad what the Germans did to the town, and then what the Allies did to oust the German occupation. It was worse in many ways than Dresden. There is a German Panzer in the town square to this day. 
The total German advance was stopped, hundreds of tanks, simply halted by a handful of British and American small tanks, which were really no match for the superior German armor. There are several small Sherman (USA) and Churchill (GB) tanks set in concrete also as memorials to the struggle that saw the tide of war turn against the Germans. We know this turning point as the Battle of the Bulge; victory was snared from the jaws of seemingly sure defeat.
The Allied soldiers forced the Germans to run out of petrol by attacking the fuel dump. There is a small memorial by the roadside commemorating the event. I'm sure not a single rider has ever noticed.
Special thanks to John Pierce of Photosport International for his essay and photos.
2006 PR - April 9th, 2006 - Inside Sean Yates' Car, Part One
104th Edition of PR
Sunday April 9th, 2006
Paris (Compiègne) > Roubaix
Total Length: 259 km
In 2006, BKW friend and Marathon MTB man JS was lucky enough to witness Paris Roubaix from the backseat of Yates' Disco team car. But don't think it was all fun and games back there. JS was pounding away on the Crackberry, firing minute-by-minute reports detailing the action as it unfolded with the help of race radio and Yates' inside commentary. It was from his transcript and insane behind-the-scenes photos that BKW was born. I've seen this edition of the race countless times and, even two seasons later, my palms get sweaty as I read them. Enjoy.
Graham Watson collects images from the start in Compiengne, France
10:42
In car with Yates... we left start early, guys will be leaving in 8 minutes.
While rolling about start area, Museeuw rocks by me, Joe doesn't recog w/ his jelled curls and sans helmet... Sean says, ‘So you're a mt biker?, yeah, endurance, 100s... ‘ah, yeah, I may do that crocodile race - fuck yeah! I agree, wicked... He stops to take a piss.
10:51
We program the radio to team freq. on the way to pave section #24. We will try to hit 5 sections, then to the velodrome. I love euro pop techno- the radio labels it "FUN"...We rock on the car tele (Joe is rocking a whack 15" monitor with Hincapie's dad.)...We watch on french TV right? says Sean but not live all day yeah?, so we watch a marathon to euro trash muzak... Now futbol. Ronaldo goaallllll!...
Muzak off.
11:07
We roll the A1... 3 T-Mobile cars pass, Sean, nice cars this year (Audis)... I ask about Skoda and the Pro Tour, nah, just hard to get a car company to give you 15 cars a year, but Skoda is generous so a lot of teams have them. I see.
11:11... Race radio: Still a bunch pack at km 11...
11:13
Team nav next to me asleep - he and Sean got in at 2am from Pays Basque. Ouch... Sean: those Liberty guys are probably just using standard tires? We agree... (he laughs) hard man... We all grimace... He continues: Sean Kelly use to use 23s as well...
Ah... Hardcore.
Rhonaldino smiles on screen.
11:27
Race radio: 104th edition of Paris-Roubaix... By the way, the disco boys are all on elastomer rear sus bikes - but George is riding deep section carbons - as his dad told Joe in the car, Roubaix is not all pave... True, 200K of road... Good thought.
Speaking of, Joe mails me that a friend just mailed him saying George is on 23s, maybe with the dry weather and the deep sections he is, I didn't check those wheels this morning to be honest - the other guys' wide box section bonnies were def 25s...
11:39
Race radio: George has crashed in the pack, #11 has now return to the rear of the peloton... No one even flinches... Young guy co-pilot asked Sean how many times he's done the race, 10 times I think, George must be on his 12th (correctoment)...
11:49
Since we have bikes on our car I will stay with it at the pave sections and Sean and the boys will hike in with wheels... Cool by me since I did that during RTP... And I'm on holiday. Race radio: 41K done; Sean asks if they are on schedule, fast medium or slow...yes we figure they are a few minutes ahead of fast actually - and seeing Joe and I had a tailwind yesterday, makes sense.
Race radio: 47.1 kph for first hour.
We arrive at pave section #24. I recog...
12:10
Snack time. Apple, baggett with turkey, lettuce, tiny smidge of mustard - perfect and tiny .15 litres...
Click for part II
Photo courtesy JS
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Interview: Wilfried Peeters
Wilfried Peeters was truly one of the hardest of hardmen in PRO cycling. A domestique of the tallest order, Wilfried was Johan Museeuw's roommate and confidante. Whether riding along side Johan during his PRO years or serving as the voice over race radio today, Wilfried's job is to provide the team with encouragement, tactical strategies and insight from his own experiences.
Today Wilfried serves as Director Sportif (DS) for the Quick Step team and BKW was fortunate enough to capture some of Wilfried's time. We used the opportunity to talk about the transition from rider to DS, his love for the Classics, and that muddy Spring day in April 2001 when Wilfried launched the ride of his career through French farmland in an effort to capture the Queen of the Classics. It was on this historical day that race fans saw first-hand the power of a dedicated Classics squad and meticulous team tactics and were introduced to a new phrase in the cycling vernacular: "Getting Domoed".
BKW: How has the transition from PRO to DS been for you?
WP: Life has changed. It's like a new life. Here, [as DS for Quick Step] you're working for 60 people, 30 riders...as a rider you think only about yourself. Here is a big difference, on a team with Boonen and Bettini, two leaders. One day for Boonen, one day for Bettini.
BKW: Are you saying that there is no conflict of goals for Boonen and Bettini?
WP: No, there is no problem.
BKW: Do you miss being a rider?
WP: For the first six months, now it is finished. In the beginning, it's normal, I was 37 years old. Being with a team that is good means that every day there is something to do. That is very important.
BKW: Do you prefer the Classics to the Grand Tours?
WP: Yeh, for the Grand Tours, I did nine (9) times at the Tour De France, one (1) time Tour of Spain, I like it for working for the team. Not for myself, in the hills and the big climbs; I'm not a big climber. I was good in the Classics.
BKW: And your favorite?
WP: Tour of Flanders.
BKW: Can you tell me about 2001 Paris-Roubaix?
WP: 2001 was my last year. Very bad weather. The stones were very sandy inside, in the first cobble stones we [Domo] go with the breakaway, 20-30 riders. At Arenberg, we were in the first and third position, so I go. I had one minute on the other riders so for the next 90-95Ks I go alone. I was alone until the last 13K. I didn't have the legs for winning, but we had the best team. In the end it came together, the team was first, second, and third. I finished 5th. From the results, it was a very bad day for me.
BKW: How did you feel knowing this was your last professional race?
WP: At that moment, okay. I think I can go one year more. I want to win it one time.
At this time, I had the condition, it was a perfect time to come and work for the team; but it was time to stop.
BKW: What makes Paris-Roubaix so special?
WP: The roads and it is man-to-man. It is a different race.
BKW: Truly for the hardmen.
WP: Yes.
BKW: Do you feel a special honor to be a part of Paris-Roubaix history?
WP: Yah, I like this race. After 10Ks, the race changes and after 100Ks, it is totally different. The strongest man is going to win this race.
BKW: As DS for Quick Step, does a younger rider like Boonen stand to gain or learn anything from your experiences?
WP: Now he is 27. Pretty much...he knows the race, he's the leader. I read the situations and he makes the decisions. That makes us the favorite for the race.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
The Classics
With the arrival of April, work is underway to prepare for the Classics. Like a PRO team, we ready ourselves for the stretch of spring racing that captures the hearts and minds of the cycling world. Here at BKW, the Chimay is chilled, the espresso is stocked, and the Lion is hoisted high above HQ. The anticipation creates a nervous energy, equal to that of the start village in Compiègne and, like the PROs with tire pressure, we check our internet connection again and again to ensure zero interruptions and leaving nothing to chance.
We play out the races in our heads; dreams of foul weather, and slippery stones. Our daydreams bring glimpses of a muddied Tchmil, Museeuw, Tafi, De Vlaeminck, LeMond, Vanderaerden, and a dust covered O'Grady. In the coming days, the hardest of hardmen will take center stage, placing the knife between their teeth in an effort to claim the spring's greatest prizes. We will be there to track every minute of it.
April and the crazed racing that takes place comes only once a year and many of us have been ready since May of 2007. The team at BKW have been working on a few special posts to compliment the racing action so please be sure to check back throughout the coming weeks.
- RF
