Yeah, I read that yesterday. I feel horrible for Egan. He was already dealing from back issues a couple of years ago this has to be soooo difficult to recover from. INEOS seems to be cursed lately.

---

------------------
http://dontletitdefeatyou.blogspot.com

Saw a headline that he hit a bus? So scary.. Glad he’s alive.

wow what a bummer. The operation to preserve spinal chord integrity has me worried

Yeah this sounds pretty bad. At first seemed like a standard training accident, which are unfortunate of course but guys recover all the time. But reading more, it seems much more serious. I really hope he's ok, such a great young guy for the sport.

Just saw this new report, looks like good news in terms of his initial recovery but the injuries sound such that I wonder when or even if he'll be back to his old self again. https://www.cyclingnews.com/...fter-double-surgery/

yes, agree. at this point just hoping he can live normal life. obviously, would love him to return to racing and hopefully young enough to get back to where he was but seems like a ton to overcome.

I'd be surpised if it wasn't career ending. Frome was never the same after his crash. These guys add still legendary, but it's a big ask for them to continue to perform at a world class level after such catastrophic accidents.

He may ride again and possibly professionally, but at the pointy end would be hard to do. Anything is possible, but it doesn't look good for the future of his professional cycling career. Very sad news. Wishing him a full recovery.

Given he already had back problems, hard to see him coming back from this.

Not good. But at least the medical procedures sound like they went well.

There's a pretty significant dent on the back of the bus from the accident that can be seen here.

https://www.marca.com/...68e3e1c368b459f.html

Can't find the link, but I remember reading something about the team having a close call with an errant driver about a week before this incident.

.

I know 2 guys who have hit stationary cars when on TT bikes.
One is paralysed from the chest down. The other was badly smashed up with quite a few broken parts of his body, but mostly recovered now about 18 months on, albeit some residual knee problems causing him difficulties running.

Wishing him all the best for a full recovery.

From what I read today he now has a titanium rod between T3 and T8 in his thoracic spine. I guess to stabilize the fractured vertebrae. I have no idea if that rod stays in forever, but that sounds like a bit of a deal breaker if you're in an aggressive bike position for 1-6 hrs per day. I personally hope he makes a full recovery. This feels close to home (for me) after going head first into brick house on the old Ironman Switzerland course.

This is awful. It baffles me why he would be dodging traffic in the first place. Get the team car to drop you off at the base of the climb or some clean road.

And now his teammate quoted here said TT bikes too dangerous.
https://road.cc/...-public-roads-289857

On the surface it seems baffling that pro cyclists are saying riding TT bikes are "too dangerous" on public roads. But they are not riding these at 25-40kph like age groupers or 35-50kph like pro triathletes. They are flying around at 40-65kph so the kinetic energy involved is insane and margin for error razor thin.

A while ago I was thinking it would be better off training on a mountain bike in my aero position with fat tires, flappy clothes at low PSI so that 25kph is literally the same wattage as 45kph on my TT bike all decked out with fast wheels and helmet and kit.

I came to post it.




I share Pidcock's opinion. Pro cyclists' handling skills even in TT position at faster speeds are much better than most of AGers'.

Sometimes I've thought about trying a more aggressive position but given I've had bad scares lately on open roads, I value vision more than speed. On a trainer or in a straight line, hiding the head behind the raised arms and moving forward the saddle it's more comfortable for sure (as Blummenfelt did in his last fit). Cornering is another topic

Yeah, pro cyclists need to practice the fastest position which my not nessessarily be safe at those speeds on an open road. They race on open road with no other TT athlete around them. Age groupers, we go at slower speed and never race on roads alone (always around other athletes), so we kind of have to trade off a safer position vs fastest position anyway. Pro racing is about fastest position and taking all risks in a racing context on closed roads and you can't really do it in racing unless your practice in training....so that is their catch 22.

When I was working with the Astana boys, there was always a car ahead and a car behind. They did this all the time, but especially for TTing and fast downhills.

When they would train TTT they would even have two cars ahead to block round abouts.

The funniest incident ever was in the mountains around Nice. I was in the car behind the riders. We would receive radio from up ahead, and if anything dangerous would start honking to tell the riders danger ahead. We could barely keep up with the guys on a very fast descent with lots of turns. All of the sudden the car in the front starts screaming over the radio (in Russian). Our driver starts honking, the riders sit up and within 20 seconds there we sheep all over the road. Everyone waved to the sheppard who was crossing the road and we continued on. It would have been a massacre.

I saw two team cars deal with a case of road rage once. I think the guy crapped his pants once they stopped him.

Would love to be proved wrong, but the chances of him coming back to World Tour level as a serious contender are basically done and dusted with those injuries. Wishing him all the best for his recovery, it is a long road ahead with these particular injuries. Take any in isolation and they are pretty rough to rehab from and get back to (for him) competitive racing, put them all together and the odds are seriously stacked against him.

Sadly I think you are right, case in point Chris Froome... similar level of injury and the road back has been anything but easy. Maybe that Bernal is a bit younger it may be different and I really hope so but fear that is just wishful thinking.

My main thoughts here

1. Apply power with legs. I believe with T3-T8 it should be possible. It would be the L level vertebrae that would be more problematic. Thus the operation declared a success
2. Can he sit bent over on a road bike or tri bike with a titanium rod running from T3-T8. Does the rod come out at some point?
3. Can he apply power out of the saddle with that rod with his spine not moving fluidly under the rib cage to just above attachment point of psoas to legs. Even if the rod comes out does the entire body work OK above the legs?

is this eganski (we have a ST'er w that handle?)
I hope whomever it is heals quickly and well.

---

maybe she's born with it, maybe it's chlorine
If you're injured and need some sympathy, PM me and I'm very happy to write back.
disclaimer: PhD not MD

I am thinking more so the compound femur fracture. This generally requires a few pretty invasive surgeries with residual metalware that will need to be removed. Then the acute lung injury/fractured ribs. Spine well OK but if the fractures were severe enough that he has required stabilisation then that points to the massive forces involved.
It is a massive insult to the body. Good luck to him but it will be a massive uphill battle, not even through the worst yet despite being extubated in ICU.

Pidcock says that one problem with the current position is you don't always see where you're going. Would that be the head down behind hands combination?

Similar article:
https://www.bbc.com/sport/cycling/60127250

Isn't this a Pidcock problem if he can't see where he is going. He can trade off time for safety, but if he wants to go for fastest time you trade off safety. Downhill skiers know this very well. Fastest position is low, back flat, head tucked in behind hands which are pointing a bit upwards. The faster version of this is burying head behend hands head pointing down and looking between legs....but eventually the skier needs to see what is coming at him as this skier is doing, as they have to trade off fastest speed vs staying upright and finishing the course. If Pidcock can't see where he is going, he is his own problem.

Maybe they can put a Garmin Varia facing forward? Or Garmin can make a radar specific for vehicles in coming towards / static, but NOT moving away from cyclist?