How to NOT Get Dropped in a bike race

Two riders from Colavita-Sutter Home get a free ride back to the group as the Tour of California drives Route 1.
It's called drafting, and yes, they were fined by the UCI.
But it's worth it, yeah? Rather than lose two riders to a DNF.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• Bike
• Race
• California
• funny

[whyurfacesofunny]

drafting is so fun untill the car stops lol

[chrisbear08]

All there doing is cutting back fuel emmisions on there bike.. oh wait....

[donnisl]

the guy in the car back seat was picking his nose

[jnavonoD]

@zwiebel2004 I'm more of a funrider/vet cyclist. Nearly all the people I have raced with will think nothing of drafting cars, tandems, riders from other groups, etc. (or littering, my other pet hate). The fact that blind eyes are turned by officials and riders alike merely serves to confirm my point of view. With an ethos like that running through the sport, it is a slippery slope as to what is and what is not acceptable.

[jnavonoD]

@zwiebel2004 Fair enough, but if you understand principle, you will have to concede that you are admitting that cheating is acceptable. 'Principle' means an inevitable conclusion that once the principle is violated, it means all other forms of it become acceptable, even if only in theory. Whether accepted or not, it is still cheating. Just like the 'bottle push', the 'medical attention' push, etc, that we see plainly on TV with wry commentary from Ligget and Sherwen.

[zwiebel2004]

@jnavonoD In addition, some road cyclists do consider cheating to be acceptable, but it is hardly the vast majority. I am a pro rider who races in the US and Europe and the vast majority of the guys I know are fed up with both doping and riders cheating in other ways.

[zwiebel2004]

@jnavonoD Didn't see the comment, but keep in mind that many UCI officials will see riders drafting on their own team car coming back from a flat and will either turn a blind eye or give a token fine rather than a time penalty or DQ. It is against the "letter" of the rules to be drafted by your own team car after a flat, but it is widely known and accepted that it is fair play after a mechanical. The officials do not DQ riders because it is almost universally accepted by them as well.

[jnavonoD]

@zwiebel2004 You do realise that the poster included this comment in the description: 'It's called drafting, and yes, they were fined by the UCI.'

Anyone who has ever done road racing even reasonably competitively will know and agree that cheating is considered acceptable by the vast majority of road cyclists.

[zwiebel2004]

@jnavonoD You realize they are 99% likely coming back from having a flat tire, during which drafting is allowed.

[MrFuznubz]

@copyright5617 dude of course there isnt an actual vacuum.. the air does suck you in, thats what they mean. now go draft a car.

[MultiAirGunner]

i was doing 40 behind a lorry the other day, i nearly died when he stopped though, i locked up and so nearly hit it LOL, you have to concentrate so much doing this! tractors are the best for doing this

[AhilMohan]

buses are the best to draft, you barely need to pedal.