by Chris Brewer

Team RadioShack fans watched in serious concern when team leader Lance Armstrong went down just a couple of kilometers before the start of the second-to-last climb.  The Shack boys were soon marshaled to get him back to the main group, having to burn precious matches of energy, each one wondering what damage he had incurred after he hit the ground.

Crashing your bike has multiple impacts to a rider and his team, aside from the obvious.  When you go down - and I have personal experience in both of these manners - it's usually in one of two manners.

Surprisingly the one that looks the worst, at high speed, often is not.  If you've ever watched a criterium (think NASCAR for bikes) where the average speed can be up around 50 kmh / 31 mph you've almost certainly seen riders skidding down through a corner into the hay bales.  You would sooner expect the rider to be seriously injured or worse, only to witness them pop up, check their bike, and get right back into the race if at all possible.  Road rash is the most common injury, followed by the ever present risk of a broken collarbone.

- Why does the collarbone break so often?  Direct impact not withstanding, it has to do with the strength of the bones.  When you go down you put your arm out to protect you, and the shock energy travels up through the stronger arm bones to the weaker clavicle area, and that simply can't stand the strain.

One of the most famous crashes was in the 2003 Tour de France for poor Joseba Beloki, going down right in front of Lance forcing him to go cross country in order to regain the front of the pack.  While the crash was on a descent, his rear wheel slid out from under him, locked up, and then essentially body slammed him onto his hip as he high-sided over his bike (been there, done that, it hurts - a lot).  This blunt force trauma sends deep reverbarations throughout the body, not only breaking bones but bruising muscles throughout the body for days to come.

And while the physical injuries are significant, it could be argued that the mental aspect is even more important.  Riders are also inherently superstitious, and one crash can make them feel like Lady Luck is not on their side and the day is just not going to go well.  Enter the self fulfilling prophesy if they don't get their heads on straight - good feeds good, and bad feeds bad.  You must be able to physically continue, but your rhythm has been greatly disturbed and your self doubt can increase dramatically.  This is where your teammates and race director can come into major play as their encouragement and advice can hopefully help you refocus and get your head back in the game. 

And while immediate impact of a crash on a given day is significant, in a stage race it's simply brutal for the days ahead.  Recovery is so important, and to be bandaged up and in pain guarantees you less sleep and wasting lots of nervous energy from the pain.  The next day you will be stiff beyond belief with limited range of motion, to say nothing of the stinging sensation as you repetitiously scrape your wounds with each turn of the pedals.  It's a hard, hard sport.

So the next time you see a rider go down hard and bounce right back, appreciate what he or she has to work through.  While your helmet is a great protector that lycra kit is pretty unforgiving, the road even more so.  Ciao for now, we'll talk soon - Cb...