"Sheldon Brown" <
[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> An anonymous poster wrote:
>
> >>>When reading that Beloki had rolled his rear tire, it brought to mind two things; first,
> >>>Jobst's assertions that tubulars are bad in the alps due to melting glue, and second, that
> >>>heavy rear braking in that situation has been discussed as a bad thing in this group. He was
> >>>also using an 18mm tire. Interesting, when some using clinchers don't seem slowed at all, and
> >>>he might not have so many broken bones with them.
>
> I commented:
>
> >>Could be, but it could also be that the rolled tub was effect, not
pause.
> >>
> >>I haven't seen the video yet, but it was mentioned that he had fishtailed. This suggests to me
> >>that he may have used his rear brake when he shouldn't have.
>
> Jim Edgar wrote:
>
> > Hard to say, as the footage was all from the helicopter. It was,
however, a
> > brutal crash - went down hard on his leg/hip, slid for way too long on
his
> > elbow and whip-snapped his shoulder and head down onto the pavement.
> >
> > Reports have him with a broken femur and elbow.
> >
> > How it appeared on the OLN feed this AM:
> >
> > Vino was about 15 seconds ahead at the crest of the hill, and was
descending
> > like a madman. Reported ambient temps were low-to-mid-90's (F).
Comments
> > had been made about the "softness" of the French roads in this region.
> >
> > Beloki was leading Armstrong, who had five or six riders behind him.
The
> > verbal time gap was given as 13 seconds.
> >
> > Vinokourov approaches the "double bowknot" set of horseshoe turns on
fairly
> > narrow roads. This will be where Beloki goes down. The screen computer shows a 10 second gap.
>
> I have since had the opportunity to watch this several times in slo-mo.
>
> It appears to me that the skid began _before_ the turn, as Beloki was trying to slow in
> preparation for the turn, but he had not begun to actually lean over into the sharp part of the
> turn. I believe this crash would not have happened if he had not used his rear brake.
>
> Lance went over the same pavement, also braking, and didn't fishtail.
>
> > The moto camera was behind Vinokourov as he went through that section -
you
> > can see very shiny spots on the roadway as Vino speeds through the 90
degree
> > left before the double bowknot. Phil states that you can see the melted spots in the roadway,
> > and as Vino makes it through continues, "..that
was a
> > rather dodgy corner". The moto camera seems to slow and shift a bit,
as
> > the cameraman has trouble keep Vino in the frame.
>
> Do you really believe that Phil Liggett's commentary on the highlights show is done in real time?
> I have always assumed that he puts his script together after the event, matching the footage,
> which he has already seen. This isn't the first time I've seen a bit of foreshadowing in his copy.
> He's good at his job, so he knows how to sound surprised nonetheless.
I was watching the live coverage this morning, and Phil did indeed make that comment about the
"rather dodgy corner" Vino negotiated, moments before Beloki's crash. In fact, he had commented
several times on earlier descents about the treacherous nature of the road surface, due to the
"bitumen melting" (although I doubt that was really a contributing factor).
~_-* ...G/ \G
http://www.shastasoftware.com Developers of CycliStats - Software for Cyclists
>
> I'm very sorry that Beloki was injured, and wouldn't normally want to criticize him in a public
> forum like this, if it weren't for my belief that this crash offers a valuable lesson to all
> cyclists on the dangers of inappropriate use of the rear brake.
>
> Again, for those who tuned in late, here's my article on this important topic. It might save your
> life:
http://sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html
>
> Sheldon "Front Brake" Brown +-----------------------------------------------------------------+
> | The man who never alters his opinions is like standing water, | and breeds reptiles of the
> | mind. --William Blake |
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