The guy seems to violate all the principles of a good position. He seems cramped, his leg extension was not really “by the book”, he catches lots of wind etc etc. Contrast that with Lemond who was always very aero. I’d love to see the wattage data on Sean Kelly. The guy was clearly a beast, coming to “race” every day from Feb to October. Sometimes aero is overrated :-).
Most of the “check out my position” threads on this forum show guys who seems to look way more aero and comfortable than Mr. Kelly ! Clearly, Kelly is putting out 3x the power of most of the dudes on this forum
And he was also a retro-grouch. Probably about the last guy in the peloton to give up toe clips for clipless pedals. Kelly was the best. The number one ranked rider from the inception of the ranking in 1983 until 1989-uninterrupted.
If I recall correctly, around 1985, we won the TdF sprinter’s green jersey while finishing 5th overall ! Can you imagine any of today’s sprinters finishing in the top 5?
Kelly’ s one of my all time favorites…a true hard man…old school.
One of my favorite quotes I think about while training in cold weather …He said " you cant tell how cold it is by standing in the kitchen and looking outside." Meaning you gotta get your ass out the door and ride…
My friends saw him at Worlds in Colorado Springs in '86 and virtually sat right in/next to the Irish Team tent before and after listening and watching Kelly and Roche get ready… he remembers Kelly’s musculature…namely his calves and how incredibly big and ripped they were!!
I almost cried wehn Kelly broke his collarbone and got into his team car with his team director consoling him during one ofht elate 80’s TdFs’
There is only one picture in the bunch showing Kelly’s “best” position. He was famous for what he did to the field out of the saddle. It is great to watch some of the old races in which he bounced off a couple guys and had a two bike jump on almost anyone, any time. He was a great personality to watch. G
Kelly’ s one of my all time favorites…a true hard man…old school.
One of my favorite quotes I think about while training in cold weather …He said " you cant tell how cold it is by standing in the kitchen and looking outside." Meaning you gotta get your ass out the door and ride…
My friends saw him at Worlds in Colorado Springs in '86 and virtually sat right in/next to the Irish Team tent before and after listening and watching Kelly and Roche get ready… he remembers Kelly’s musculature…namely his calves and how incredibly big and ripped they were!!
I almost cried wehn Kelly broke his collarbone and got into his team car with his team director consoling him during one ofht elate 80’s TdFs’
I saw Sean, my man Steve Bauer and Phil Anderson race in Toronto in …early '90’s at a Canadian Tire Crit. I can remember looking at his bike (Concord??) and thinking most Cat 3 or 4’s in North American wouldn’t have been caught dead on it. He was old school.
“you cant tell how cold it is by standing in the kitchen and looking outside.”
That is a “very Kelly” quote. It always amazes me how well the athletes from the colder parts of North America do at early season races down south. Clearly, the ones who suck it up and train in the cold weather have a huge mental edge.
I met Kelly and Roche in a youth hostel in Dublin the year after Roche won the tour. They were there to start the Milk Race. Kelly was much more approachable and spent hours signing autographs and having his photo taken with all the amateur riders who were staying there.
I was in a dorm room with a Hungarian team and all they could talk about that evening was meeting Sean Kelly…not a word about the guy who had just won the frickin Tour!
“Kelly’ s one of my all time favorites…a true hard man…old school.”
Indeed, they don’t make them like this any more. Today, everyone is a specialist - a sprinter, a climber, a TT’er, a spring Classic specialist, A Grande Tour Specialist. Heck, you even get guys who’s sole focus is just one race a year. Not Kelly, he was in their in just about every one day race, and tour he contested, ALL season long. Sprinting, climbing, time-trialing - he did it all. Amazing.
I have the Campy poster of Roche winning the Worlds in my store. You can see Kelly 4 or 5 guys back peeking over the top to see if his man got it. Classic.
Ok, so who’s the current guy? I put my vote in for Robbie McEwen. Not afraid to hook a guy in a sprint, and wheelies over the line at ADH. Anyone?
Chris, there is no “next Sean Kelly”. They threw the mold out after they made those calves. Seriously, the closest thing we got is Hincapie. He is there for every race all year, duking it out in the classics, grand tours and even pulling the train up in the mountains :-).
Having said all that, is Roche the last guy to win the Giro, Tour and WC’s all in one year (87) ? Lemond won the Tour and WCs the same year, Indurain did the TdF Giro double. I think Pantani also did the Giro Tdf double, but no one went from May to October in top form since Roche.
