jstonebarger wrote:
I saw dozens of riders littering during Flanders, including the leaders. They popped three? Including one who dropped a bottle to a fan?
They DQ'd Michael Schaer for dropping a bottle, the other 2 DQs were for shoving.
Both MVdP and Asgreen pitched their bottles a few km from the finish. No DQ. :-)
Personally I think UCI should crack down on littering, but DQ on first offense, particularly in a stage race, is insane. The penalties should start out small (time or money) and then ramp up quickly for repeated offenses.
And pitching a bottle is not at all the same as an empty gel, IMO. But it's all the same to the UCI.