Racing photos!!!!

[Bruce Wayne]

The Eurosport coverage is top notch though. You can't beat the sight of the riders struggling up the mountains. I remember watching Pantani climb the Galibier in 1998 when it was raining, the fog was so thick you could barely see in front of your nose, yet this little Italian blitzed the field and destroyed Jan Ullrich to practically win the tour.

I love the drama of it, seeing people bonk on a mountain with miles still to go, seeing riders attack, and of course the massive crowds that gather on the mountains forming a minute passage for the riders to snake through.

 

[SuitsBlue]

pantani offed himself didnt he? another athlete tainted with drugs that sadly on this occasion couldnt exist without the sport he supposedly loved (he was banned from competition)

on a slightly brighter note, i like the breakaways as well, i always end up rooting for them to hold off the peloton, and finish way ahead.

theres really old black and white footage of the guy that did it on his own in the longest breakaway ever, think he was alone for most of a day. top notch.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

Yes, Pantani was a sad case and drugs have been a constant bedfellow of the sport, although perhaps not surprisingly given the physical suffering they have to endure each day. It's probably fair to say that cycling as a sport is far more rigorous in its testing than most other sports but there is a litany of drug related tragedies such as Pantani and our own Tom Simpson who died of exhaustion whilst climbing Mont Ventoux.

As a test of an athletes limits though there's none better and it's lovely to see the sport flourishing in Britain off the back of our success at track cycling plus the emergence of some real talent on the roads. You can't beat hitting the roads to work off the stresses of daily life

Some of the old racing footage sure is amazing, when they used to have to carry spare equipment around with them and ride on a fixed wheel bike with no gears. I did a 100km race this weekend and really suffered towards the end. To ride almost twice that distance every day for 3 weeks at amazing speeds is quite incredible.

 

[Rob]

I agree, along with boxing cycling is one real test of not only physical fitness but also mental capabilities.

 

[Chris]

I like UFC

Shame its as well organised as WCW... A proper international league with live scheduled bouts on sky tv would rock.