Why Not Just Eat?

In that you don’t always appreciate that a bonk is coming on, and once it’s there, well, too f’ing late for you. No amount of eating is going to fix it. And who hasn’t had that happen in a race, where you keep thinking “okay, as soon as I get past X, I’ll eat.” and then X is there and all of a sudden another seemingly urgent goal presents itself. I’ve absolutely ruined myself in a race doing exactly that.

My take from the post-stage interviews sounded earily like Andy Schlecks from Hautacam last year. In stages where the racing is simply so hectic, stressful it seems they both were just so completely focused on following wheels, marking attacks and just fighting to keep up. It’s a delicate balance, they’re using so much energy it only takes a few missed calories that forgetting to eat only for a while can cost you dearly.

It’s probably a limit you don’t appreciate until you have tested it.

I think one of the biggest factors was how the race played out. Even though we didn’t see it, evidently the first 60k of the race were insanely fast and frenetic. Combine this with nine categorized climbs, nary a flat in sight and isolation from your team, and I think he was focused on who was around him and what was up the road, and never had a chance to relax all stage, and thus never ate.

I also don’t think we can blame this all on “the bonk.” You cannot discount all of the numbers of attacks he had to cover. Even Colom’s weak 10 second jaunts up the road required bert to go full gas. Do that as many times as he did and your toast, whether you’re eating or not.

Also, I’m sure Jens! presence had something to do with it. If I was riding with that beast i’d be afraid to eat as well.

   Remember Lance? In the Alps, in the Tour, a rainy day? I can’t remember what year it was (his second tour win, perhaps), but it was post-cancer, and it looked exactly like Contador yesterday. Also, I seem to remember it happening to Jan Ullrich in the tour at least once as well.
   Both of them had their top DS in the car, and had a lot more in the way of domestiques available than did Contador. After Contador’s win at the Montagne de Lure, I pointed out in the post-race thread that he was down to four teammates, none of whom looked strong, compared to Lule, who had seven, and to me the subsequent stage looked very hard to control (yeah, you guys thought I was full of it – I get to say “I told you so!”).
   If Contador had even one teammate with him with 30k to go, I think he would have been fed properly. As it was, he had to chase everything down himself and watch all the other GC threats; he’s probably used to having a domestique bring him supplies to eat, it wasn’t happening, and things went awry. The other riders couid go back to their team cars, knowing that if something happened, Contador had to chase.
   I think that treating Contador’s bonk as something stupid that he could easily have avoided may have some element of truth in it, but it was an error many others have made while isolated and trying to and defend a jersey (and, in fact, others had fewer excuses than he does). In some ways, he’s lucky to have learned this hard lesson in Paris-Nice and not have his Tour chances compromised as Lance and Jan did (yes, I know, Lance overcame the hunger bonk on subsequent stages; I think Contador would have, too, if he had another few days of racing in hand).
   To my mind, Contador’s saddling of all of the blame (given that the DS and his teammates contributed) was classy.

I re-watched the highlight piece last night and, after knowing the outcome, it was interesting to watch. I noticed some of the others drinking and drinking and even a car or two come up to a couple of the riders to replace bottles a time or two. In the 30-40 minute highlight, I didn’t see him take a drink once. Then I started to wonder if the one bottle on his bike could’ve been empty? But I noticed it gone on that final climb, so I though me must’ve had something for a little bit.

My one guestion on it, where was the team car? At some point during that time, wouldn’t the team car have come up to him to give him fresh bottles since there were no teammates? I’m not pointing any fingers, just asking. In thinking about it, I wonder if that just wasn’t an option since the attacks kept coming and if a car would’ve pulled up, they would’ve attacked him even harder?

I’ve forgotten or been to busy to eat. The race is so fast that I didn’t have time to chew an energy bar and the 2-3 gels I ingested just didn’t last long enough. In one race I was eating a bar right before the feed zone and someone picked up the pace and it sucked having to chew, trying to suck air down too, climbing a hill.

It sounds like the race was all out and Contador may have had similar problems, especially if isolated. I recall reading after Valverde’s first win at L-B-L, he said he ate every 10 k because he knew how long the race was and didn’t want to make a mistake.

After much lurking – here is a post. Having thoroughly enjoyed the PN race am left with several thoughts. In summary would say the following – after the final stage:-
- AC v Caisse = victory for AC. Without saxo he would have blown them out of the water. Very few cde left by col d’eze.
- AC v Sexy back = score draw. Felt they could have reeled him in but had other priorities.
- AC lit up the race. In your heart of hearts you knew he would be off the front when you tuned in to today’s coverage and he didn’t disappoint. Unlike many others he stil tired to win.
- There is a paradigm shift in astana. I may be blowing smoke out of my arse – but I predict an increase in statements from astana along the lines of “AC = great cyclist but is young and has to learn”. It started after the time lost in the cross winds and the rabobank effort.. see http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/12032009/58/paris-nice-gallopin-contador-rough-diamond.html. That was two days before the day sans jour. Was reiterated by lance via twitter, and all other pronouncements by gallopin etc since then. Watch this space

A conspiracy theorist? Moi. You’ll be telling me men actually landed on the moon next and it wasn’t all filmed in Hollywood.

A mistake of a young rider. Harsh but true. He’s a wiser man now.

Thinking more… last year’s Giro. I’m wondering if in fact he did come close to bonking on a couple of those mountain stages- but didn’t. Especially that um Stage 19, the oone Di Luca won. Ricco nearly had him there and so did Killer. Seems like there was another stage in that race as well. But he survived those close calls and maybe he developed some overconfidence?

“What else is there to say than he didn’t race intelligently? He only had to look after Sanchez,” Astana’s team manager had told L’Equipe.

via CN

AC is part of a very well run/led team. The best stage race team on the planet apparently. If JB thought that then why didn’t gallopin and AC? Would JV or any other ds not call, text or email, I am not blind to the odd tactics, I only wanted to highlight the lack of support and the amount of " passing the buck" I am now encountering. It all fells like a powerplay to me

 . . . . he ran out of food and had no team support to assist him.
I like it that he kept his cool at the press conference and didn’t say that the DS for this race is a total douche.
Um, how many days has AC been isolated in this tour? I think it’s been almost every day.
As some of you know, fatigue accumulates.

Oh, and he’s not burning 4000 calories a day, it’s probably more like 12,000.

but now it’s time to catch the amazing race!

http://www.astana-cyclingteam.com/behind_the_lens/comingtoanend.html

"For a while it looked as if today’s final stage was going to be a repeat of yesterday, with Luis Leon Sanchez over two minutes down on Alberto Contador and in danger of handing the race-lead back to his friend. In reality, with Saxo Bank in collusion with Quick-Step and Caisse d’Epargne, this was never likely to happen, but at least Contador showed he had a lot of fight still in him after such a topsy-turvy week. You’ve got to feel terribly sorry for Contador – he’ll never have a more humiliating time than when TV cameras followed his progress towards the end of stage seven, tracking his every pedal-stroke as he dropped off the chase group and was then passed by other chasers and eventually the remnants of the peloton. To come back and race as hard as he did after that – not to mention his other sensational comebacks this week – hint at great things to come, as long as he doesn’t suffer from a crisis in confidence.

Behind Contador’s adventures we saw a Team Astana team so full of intent, with old hands like Paulinho and Popovych showing newcomers like Zubeldia and Dyachenko how it all works. Dyachenko has had many days to become accustomed to riding at the head of an Astana train, knowing what it feels like to have someone like Contador a few yards behind him, grateful for the work being done at the sharp end of the race. I wonder how disappointed people like Schar were after Contador’s collapse on stage seven. Schar has probably spent more time than anyone on the front of the train this week, his long legs propelling himself and his teamates along so smoothly. Somewhere between Paris-Nice and the end of May, a team has to be formed for the Tour de France, and in all the years to have to select a team that compliments the different skills of Contador, Armstrong and Leipheimer, Schar looks good for a slot from where I’m standing. Maybe he can also carry extra food for Alberto – just in case…"

LA has done his work it seems

Where was this “Astana Train”? Contador spent much of P-N isolated while his competition had multiple riders w/ them. Bert was on his own after 40k today. 40k! Thats 25 miles !!! His bonk was in part a result of him marking Jens! and Colom, (w/out any Astani) neither of whom he needed to chase. Colom was what, 10th maybe, several minutes down? Let Jen’s and Schleck go up the road and sit on Caisse while they reel them in.

Bummer for him but I have to respect his ride today. Nothing but class.

so LA is back for a year, great, whatever.

but Bert, 3 time GT winner, who is still very young…why the hell those ppl at Astana seem to be doing their best to drive him away? so his contract has 2 years left after this season, but seriously? don’t you want to keep him in the team for like, a decade?!

someone is not very logical…hopefully not me.

but it’s odd to me that Gallopin or whoever was supposed to be keeping track of Contador didn’t tell him to eat something, didn’t tell him not to chase Colom when he didn’t need to. So that makes me wonder, maybe he DID tell him, and Contador (who after stage 6 could be excused for feeling supremely confident) ignored it. That might explain why they’re coming down so hard on Contador. Making mistakes is one thing, making mistakes you’ve been advised against is another.

Or, back to the default hypothesis, maybe they’re just f***in idiots.

TG

can’t read em all but i know i’ve heard lance talk about himself just occasionally being stupid and forgetting to eat. Funny now it’s “contador has a lot to learn.” One thing for sure, on bonk day i never saw the team car at all once those 4 riders seperated. Dude was on his own and his teammates were not even way back in the first peloton.

Anyway, contador’s fault, team’s fault, ds’ fault – i donno, but it was sure fun see him trying to win the race. I’m officially a big fan.

I managed to attend the start and finish of stage 8 – totally blew it on the finish. I’m a total newb to this stuff and couldn’t have handled it any worse.

Anyway i did at least see some of the guys on the podium and a little after on their quick exits. Seeing Jens Voigt in person (besides an appreciation for his racing style), i can see why he has such enthusiastic fans – you see the guy and you see a real mensch there – salt of the earth type guy.

And by the way – he looked really happy today. I’m sure the results helped – 6th for him, 2nd for his teammate Schleck, and first for the team.

It’s sad to see the team hang Contador out to dry like this. He rode solo all week, and now is characterized as inexperienced by the team PR. Yuck.

Only so many attacks one rider can cover in a day. Not too surprising he ran out of legs at the end of that stage, he did well to defend as well as he did.

I’m noticing today that Nibali seemingly bonked too. He finished in 27th, well past the Kloden-Lovkvist-Rebellin group. They finished around 1:18 down while Nibali finished 1:58 in arears.

now LA is telling L’Equipe
“He is too strong to be so nervous. He has a good team manager and a strong team. Why get nervous?”

I can’t believe this….