I for a very very brief time in high school tried road racing bicycles. I sucked at it. But it has been a passing interest for me for years. I always watch the Tour de France and Olympic cycling. I also catch other races off and on.
For those who know or care, Congrats to Sir Mark Cavendish on besting Eddie Merx as the all time winner of stages in the Tour. 35. What an accomplishment.
Funny they used to advertise the race coverage, didn’t even know it’s going right now
Well I have watch almost every years race since 1987. I have missed several in the last ten years or so. I am not as avid as a fan as I used to be. But Mark Cavendish has been doing this for 15 years. So I know who he is. The Manx Missle. Best sprinter ever.
The guy that didn’t
I’m here all week. Try the veal.
One of the “things” with Cavendish is that he was tied for several years with Eddie Merckx. Comparisons were made, they had to be. But even Cavendish won’t compare himself to Merckx. Merckx is the greatest cyclist of all time. He won sprints, he won time trials, he won in the mountains, and he won the over all GC (yelllow jersey) to get his 34 wins. He could do it all. Cavendish is a specialist. He wins sprints. He has never one a mountain stage, I do believe he won a TT but it was not a regular occurrence. He never won the overall title. He wins sprints. So he is surely the best sprinter of all time but Merckx is the greatest cyclist of all time.
That’s not diminishing Cavendish at all. It could be argued that what Cavendish did was harder. He had to make all his wins in one place. So less opportunities to win. And Merck’s depth of competition I don’t think was anywhere near what Cavendish faces today. These guys riding today are pure animals and there are some fabulous sprinters and many of them.
So you really can’t compare apples to apples with these two riders. Very different times and approaches.
I personally like this style of professional cycling!
Bike Stunt: Viola Brand (Artistic Cycling European Champion & Vice World Champion)
Location: Unibike Expo 2019 Istanbul - Bicycle and Equipment Fair
