Redemption in Roubaix S2E23

Pro cycling’s Holy Week has come to a close and we’re discussing Paris-Roubaix, the third Monument race of the year, on the podcast today. The weekend offered up a ton of action on both sides of the pro peloton and gave us a win we’ve been dreaming of for years and years. Elsewhere, a superstar in the making gave us perhaps a glimpse of domination yet to come in a World Tour Pro level career that’s only just begun.  We’ll get into all of that, plus recap a punishing week (for one of us at least) in our 2026 Fantasy contest. And as always, we’ll finish it out with a mean hard run over the cobbles of the Arenberg in the Broom Wagon.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

It's your weekly breakaway for fun conversations on pro cycling. Come join us for another ride Beyond the Slipstream. I'm Matt Harper, and together with my brother Justin, we'll do deep-ish dives on professional bike races, teams riders, and all sorts of cycling-related stories. Jump in the saddle and tighten up those shoes, the road awaits.

SPEAKER_03 0:21

Hello and welcome to Beyond the Slipstream. I'm Justin, and this is my brother Matt. And today on the show, we're going to hell. The hell of the north, that is. Yes, the season's third monument race took place over the weekend. A race that is arguably the single best day of bike racing all year. Perry Roubaix, and it did not disappoint, at least not totally. It was honestly an embarrassment of riches for us as fans, because by the end of each of the two races, first the men's, then the women's, it was apparent that regardless of the outcomes, the winner would sit very well with us. The racing gave us two huge wins, two missed opportunities at history, and one very big bit of redemption. And of course, all of those big, beautiful, bumpy cobblestones in northern France. We'll dig deep into the winners, the losers, and all the action, as well as some other races from around the Pro Peloton. And as always, we'll finish out with a fantasy update and more adventures through the forest of Ehrenberg in the broomwagon. Alex. What a week of racing that we had. Maybe the best seven days of racing that we will see all year long. And it literally just every the whole week leading up to Sunday was completely ridiculous. Like it was a great week of racing, and then Sunday just beat the hell out of all of it. All right. Like literally, almost made me forget all of the great things that had happened throughout the whole week. Did you love it?

SPEAKER_01 2:22

Yeah, it was a fantastic week. I mean, Skelder Price. Like, I mean, it's uh it never gets better than that.

SPEAKER_03 2:30

That hey, it is the sprinting world championship. I think I'll get a sprinting world championship.

SPEAKER_01 2:36

World championships.

SPEAKER_03 2:39

But uh yeah, no, it was it was I I I I am hard pressed to say that that this that I have had a better seven days of just amazing racing. You know, many stages in Itzulia were amazing, and then you know, Perry Roubaix. Did not disappoint, as the intro said. It was absolutely transcendent. I I don't even I like the word like the superlatives that I need for this race. I just I might as well just go grab the dictionary.

SPEAKER_01 3:14

Uh fantastic. Um the Perry Roubaix, I have to say, you know, I I feel like in my mind, like Milan San Ramo is my my favorite monument of the year. And I think a lot of that has to do with like number one, the fact that it's the first monument. Like it's really like the first, like really big moment of the year. There's some other big stuff before that, of course, Strata Bianchi and everything, always huge and super fun to watch, etc. etc. The you know, the the via Santa Catarina, the whole deal, like it's it's great. Um, but it's it's not it's not one of the five, you know what I mean? It's monument six, which is fine. So then MSR is the first one, and because of the the the Chipresa and the Poggio, the way it finishes, it's always guaranteed to be like 10 minutes of excitement, you know, 15 minutes of pure excitement, and it's the first time of the year, and it's just like this sort of like the the initial crescendo of the year. But I gotta say, like I love Perry Roubaix Day, like on a level that I I don't I don't think I even fully appreciated until this year because it was it was kind of shades of last year for me, uh the way it the way it played out again. Um, I'm so happy to jump out of bed at 4:30 in the morning and start watching the coverage from Word Go. I love the fact that the wife and kids are gonna be asleep for the next five hours. I got this race all to myself. And you know, truth be told, I watch it on my phone for the first several hours up in the kitchen, kind of getting the day, you know, getting the kitchen cleaned up and doing some work up there and stuff. And that's fine. That's perfect to me, that's perfect for three hours of bike race or you know, of pre-game and bike racing before we get to Arenberg, you know. Um and so yeah, it's just like the way it plays out. It's like you get this. I know I'm being long-winded, you get this like like languorous opening section, but it's it's exciting, man. It's perir rubbe. There's just so much excitement. It's like, it's like these cobblestones are just le lurking, like like looming in the future, and it just builds and builds and builds.

SPEAKER_03 5:38

Yeah, every kilometer that ticks off, the tension just ratchets up and up and up. And at least for me, I I it was like I I couldn't believe the utter chaos that started happening basically from you know a hundred and probably twenty kilometers left till the end of the race. I mean, it was I drama-filled. I mean, it like you you were on the edge of your seat the whole time, like and that's what it is.

SPEAKER_01 6:09

That's why it's the best one. That is why it's the best one, even though there's no crazy climbs or anything. It's like like shit just starts happening with a hundred, like you said, 160 kilometers to go, and like it's happening. How many races can you say that? But there's almost none where it's like that, you know.

SPEAKER_03 6:27

And you can, and it's what's kind of neat about it is you can take the rules of normal racing and throw them out the door because they don't apply to this race. Like this race is something in and of itself that is completely different to anything else because it does not like Perry Bay does not give a shit, all right, how many watts you can do, all right, how good your climbing is, how good your sprint is, maybe slightly at the end, but it's such a you know, war of attrition. All right. It is it is who can last through this absolute, you know, completely bone crushing, soul crushing, you know, route. And if you are one of the few that somehow can make it, you know, into the into the the lead group at the end, like you are given this this you know almost reverent position of being able to go for this elusive win that means so much to so many people.

SPEAKER_01 7:30

And it has the meaning is just incredible. It's so deep. Like it's just it's so it's such a there there is just nothing like it. It there is a reverence to it. It is a religious experience. It is a religious experience for the fans and for it's it's it's Easter Sunday and Christmas Day, and you know, the winter, the summer salts, the spring souls, this, you know, all wrapped up in one. I mean, it's just the stakes are so high, it's so iconic, it's so unique. I mean, everything about it is just absolutely incredible. Yeah, it's very there's nothing to not like about this race. Well, there is something to not like about it. We're gonna get to that in segment two.

SPEAKER_03 8:08

But the I was I was listening to the cycling podcast from yesterday, and they had made mention that you know, typically you want to watch, you know, the best rider do the best ride, and it's like this this this race does not give a shit about what you want. All right. It doesn't care, it doesn't care about Tade Pagar being the world champion and the best that ever did it. It doesn't care about Matthew Vanderpool being the best, you know, single-day racer of a generation. All right. It doesn't care about Felipe Ogana being the best, you know, time trialist, you know, in the world.

SPEAKER_01 8:46

Yeah, best, best, best one-day form of his life.

SPEAKER_03 8:49

Yeah, does not matter. It it literally doesn't matter because every almost every single person that was in the lead group of this race had some sort of problem. Like be it on the you know, it was I I had it in my notes. Rex and Mex is what you know defined this day. And they're you know, Florian Vermeers, you know, ate shit on the Ehrenberg, and you know, it's unreal. And just that was one of a hundred things that happened in this race. Well, and you have to have your head on a swivel to catch it all.

SPEAKER_01 9:26

Yeah, yeah. And with the Rex and the Mechs, it's like it was really interesting because Pog was like one of the very first ones to to, you know, he had some, I think it was a mech in his case, his first thing there, and he ended up like way behind the Pelican and had to catch back on. And because it's Perry Rubet, because everything is so heightened, even though this thing was this was this was with a hundred and god knows how long case to get like it's so far away from the finish line in any other race. You're not even waking up for this, and yet in this race, you're watching like, oh god, what could happen? No, he'll get back in. Will he get back in? Like, you know, and it's it's crazy. And then what happens is as all these other guys start to have their wrecks and mechs, you're you're now weighing, you're balancing, okay. Well, Pog had his, and it seemed like the end of the world, but then Vanderpoel had his, and that thing is way worse. And then what about this one? And the and this guy got back on quickly, and uh, that one looked like it was gonna be bet, you know. It's like you're doing this, this like keeping trying to keep score of of how much their their wreck or their mech has has has cost them and will cost them.

SPEAKER_03 10:37

Well, and then you have you have these situations where like you know, Ghana is doing this crazy hard chase, catches the group that he's chasing, and then gets a flat tire. Yeah, it's crazy, you know, and you're like, oh my god, all that work he just did, now all now all of a sudden he's he's right back in the same position. Or, you know, when it you know when it came to Pog, Pog was Pog used four bikes.

SPEAKER_01 11:01

Crazy. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 11:02

Four. Four bikes to get 230 kilometers.

SPEAKER_01 11:06

It's wild.

SPEAKER_03 11:07

All right. And when when his happened, you're like with his big one, the one where he you know had to go on the chase really hard towards the for the front group, you're I don't maybe what was it, not even 20k, like maybe 15k out from the Ehrenberg, and it's like if he doesn't get back on by that moment, like probably the race is lost.

SPEAKER_01 11:33

If he's if he's now obviously that way, but I wouldn't put it that way.

SPEAKER_03 11:40

Now, I will say that you know, when it comes, you know, one of the things that I had in my notes, you know, over and over again about both Vanderpoel and Pragachar was that you know, if either of those two ended up winning that race, it would be the greatest comeback of all time. I mean, it just especially in Vanderpool's case. Vanderpol's you know, mechanical on the Ehrenberg was the biggest debacle that I can remember in recent history when it comes to trying to get bike, get on a bike, get off a bike, you know.

SPEAKER_01 12:13

Do you know what happened with that? You know, like Phillipson's on this like new like cutting edge bike. They're both made by the same, they're both made by the same uh producer. I guess they're right canyon bikes on the team, right? And but he's got a new like pedal system, and like I don't know if they just weren't thinking about it or what, but that is poor planning on the part of the of the uh something with with Vanderpool where he said, I you know, I'm I'm not supposed to be on his bike.

SPEAKER_03 12:40

Like in a perfect world, I'm not supposed to ever touch his bike.

SPEAKER_01 12:43

Well, and Phillipson threw away his his very realistic opportunity in that race as well. Let's not forget the man's been in third place on that on in this race. Like he's he's he's he's printed it out at the Velodrome, okay? Uh and for him to just like flush his whole race down the toilet for to do nothing, to do nothing, and then here comes T Bor Tel Gros Timor Del Grosso, that's like a the bike mechanic for God's sake. Yeah, that whole thing was wild.

SPEAKER_03 13:15

Let me also talk about uh real quick. I want to shout out Tibor Del Grosso. So that's like his his boy on the cycle of cross track. Like they are they are connected at the hip throughout the offseason.

SPEAKER_01 13:29

And that was his boy from the from last year in the uh Tour de France. They had that crazy long-range breakaway, one of those two long-range breakaways that that pet that uh that MD MVDP had.

SPEAKER_03 13:39

Anyways, what I guess the thing that I'm surprised about, and I mean I guess it's it's it's the heat of the moment type of situation with with this, is that you know Vanderpol is just like, I need to get I have to get moving, I have to get moving. So I I assume that that's what it is. I'm I'm do you think that had he just like waited for a wheel or got the grow, you know, uh Del Grosso's wheel, that it would have been okay.

SPEAKER_01 14:10

Maybe.

SPEAKER_03 14:10

I mean he would have lost less time wasting his time jumping on a bike that he couldn't ride, and then being separated from his bike and having to walk back to his bike.

SPEAKER_01 14:20

There's two hundred different scenarios that would have got him back on his bike quicker than what happened there. He lost over two minutes in that thing. Over two minutes. That is that with with two teammates near him, for him to lose two minutes is inexcusable. That is a major F up on the part of that team. But honestly, uh, you're hosting the show this week. Um, we haven't even started with our first subject. You got to get us back on track. I know it's fun to talk about all this stuff, but um, we're uh we're burying the lead here.

SPEAKER_03 14:54

So I it is no it is no secret that you know I am a diehard jumbo Vistma fan, this Melisa bike fan.

SPEAKER_01 15:04

Uh in your honor, award in your honor as well as as well as Mr. Van Arts.

SPEAKER_03 15:11

And you know, Wild Van Art gets essentially in a two-man breakaway with the world champion, and in almost all cases, this would spell disaster for Wild Van second, but not today.

SPEAKER_01 15:26

Not for if recent history is to be, you know, is is if recent history is what you're going off of, yeah. I mean, how many times has he been out there in these situations and just like it just never seems to go his way. The the last time it did was the final stage.

SPEAKER_03 15:45

Uh I mean you know where I'm going. It only it only works when it's against Pog, apparently.

SPEAKER_01 15:53

Yeah, well, it wasn't against Pog in um in uh the Jiro when he won in Siena. Um that was against Isaac Del Toro, Pog's teammate, the the heir apparent to Pog.

SPEAKER_03 16:05

Pog Light.

SPEAKER_01 16:06

Yeah, Pog Light, exactly. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Um and uh It's crazy. It's like he has all this bad luck, and yet I mean it was two seasons ago that it was really bad. That was a grim season. That's when he went down like in Dwar's door or something like that, and was out for a long period of time and then just never put anything together in the rest of the year. Then la what was was last year the Olympic year?

SPEAKER_03 16:38

24 is the Olympic year.

SPEAKER_01 16:40

Or no, no, no, last year Tour de France is when he won the last stage on the Olympic course. That's that's where so basically he comes back the next year after the after the the horrible year, he comes back and he doesn't really win all that much, and he has a little bit of injuries, but he does deliver two absolutely iconic victories, right? Two iconic victories.

SPEAKER_03 17:06

I forget he was he was leading the points in the Vuelta at the end of the at the end of the season in 24 and ended up crashing out, and you know, I think it ended up going to like something.

SPEAKER_02 17:18

Yeah, like yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 17:20

And so like he like he was like on his own little like arc up and then again got sidetracked, and that was two times that he's had like you know fairly like big setbacks as far as his schedule is concerned. But you're absolutely right. 25 rolls around, and he gives us two of the most iconic wins of the entire season, once in the Giro, once in the tour.

SPEAKER_01 17:43

But and but there's a you you have to consider a couple of things about those wins, though. Okay, these are both grand tour stage wins, something that Wow Van Art has already done many, many, many times. You know what I mean? Now it is interesting that they are both in their way in their own way absolutely iconic. In the Giro, it was because they were doing the Strata Bianchi finish. That doesn't happen all the time in the Giro. That's that's special. That's a that's a different that's a that's a different time of the year visiting the Piazza del Campo. And it's also a place where Wout famously had his basically his biggest win outside of any of his Tour de France and you know his grand tour stuff, his biggest win was Strata Bianchi in 2019. You gotta go way back to to when he won his one and only monument. But he goes back there and he takes this iconic win. Beautiful, it's epic, the way he does it is glorious. And then a month and a half later, we come to the Tour de France, and it's they're doing the Olympic thing. I mean, everything about it is so special. And yes, he drops Pogachar to win that stage. But here's the thing once again, it's it's still a Tour de France stage. You know what I mean? Like he's he's already got a whole chest of drawers full of those things. And he, yes, he dropped Tade Pagacar, but it wasn't to win the uh yellow jersey. Tade Pagachar still, you know what? Okay, so this is the point I'm making.

SPEAKER_03 19:13

He's a Belgian writer and has never won one of the really big, you know, Flanderin type prizes, right?

SPEAKER_01 19:22

Even though Perry Roubaix is technically a French one, but but it's it's the it's that same part of the world.

SPEAKER_03 19:27

And at the end of it, might as well be surrogate belgium because it is yeah, it's either of those two races.

SPEAKER_01 19:33

Either for for for a guy like Wow Van Art, it's it's those are the two races, Dora Flanders and Perry Roubaix. You gotta get one of those. You know what I mean? And even with that, those amazing wins last season, it's just like, nah, like yeah, you never won Flanders and you never won Roubaix. Like, you're you're not done, buddy. Like, you're not done. Like, thank you for that. They those were amazing, but there's something missing. And a big part of what was missing, it was not beating Tade Pagacar, it was beating Matthew Vanderpool for a big, big, big prize. That that is the thing that that Van Art has not done that has plagued him, and he's been such a trooper through it and kept his spirits high and kept gone and kept winning grand tour stages and doing stuff and being Wow Van Art. But it had to eat him alive. That you know, we and we've talked about this, we've done entire shows on this. You know, Vanderpool is just better, like he's had a more legendary career, and he's just got more W's up there, and he's you know, he's done more. End of story. They were early rivals, and when it comes to that rivalry, Vanderpool went further. But Wow.

SPEAKER_03 20:49

But but I'll tell you what, there's something that that Wound has that that that Vanderpool doesn't. Vanderpool is Dutch, he is not Belgian. Okay, and you can say he's a surrogate Belgian all you want, and you know, his dad and his grandfather, and da da da.

SPEAKER_01 21:05

No, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_03 21:06

He's Dutch, all right? Yeah. Wild Van Art is Belgian. And seeing the response on social media to his win just goes to show you how absolutely die hard these people are. And oh he's beloved. This is this is the as far as I'm gonna just biggest win of his career, period of time. 100%. All right, there is nothing that he has won that is bigger. He did it in you know, emphatic fashion at the end of a very long, very hard and probably will go down as one of the best Perry Rubies in history. It was amazing from start to finish. It was it was absolutely transcendent. But he's been circling the rim at this race for years. He is a second, a third, and a fourth. In this race. But he's never got the big prize. And now he has. All right. And what a weight off of Wout Van Art's shoulder that has to be. That he finally has got the big one. That he's raised that giant rock in the sky. All right. And now, no matter what, if he doesn't do anything else for the rest of his career, he's got that. He's he'll never buy a beer again in Belgium. He will always be beloved. But does this open the door for him to take some pressure off of himself, put it firmly on Remco, and go out and win some more races?

SPEAKER_01 22:41

You want me to answer that question? For the answer to that question, you need you you need to look no further than Augusta, Georgia, yesterday afternoon, because Rory McElroy was a relaxed dude that has already won the masters. And my man just just just kept it dialed the entire time and did not get flustered, banged balls off into the woods, and banged them right on back out of the woods and got up and down and like just took care of business. He won last year. He doesn't care. It was an entirely different guy. The weight of the world's off his shoulders. Could that be WoW next year? Could that be WoW the rest of this year? Who knows, man? Sky's the limit. I love him so much. Um, however, his uh accomplishment came at the expense of something that, to be honest, I think we were both kind of actually more rooting for. That's why I said in the intro, this is an embarrassment of riches because WoW Van Art and everything that we just talked about, that's our consolation prize.

SPEAKER_03 23:42

Yes. Pagatra does not is not able to complete the cycle for to win all the monuments in one year.

SPEAKER_01 23:50

I mean, a giant storyline just died. Like that would have been all we talked about for the next until until Lombardia, basically.

SPEAKER_03 23:58

Like, well, yeah, because he's gonna he he he will win LBL with no with with ease, and he'll probably will win Lombardia. But now the one now this now this is the new MSR for him. Now he's gonna crack this particular nut. And I have to say, after watching MSR, you know, for the last couple years and then watching this yesterday, this this one is a wild card, dude. Like you can't, like you know, MSR, he can push, he can push, he can push harder. You know, it's racing, it's it's tactical racing, normal, everyday racing. This there's just you can't predict what's gonna happen in this race. It is not the same as everything else, and this is gonna, I could see this one being the hardest one for him to catch.

SPEAKER_01 24:45

Well, it you you your point is valid, and yet at the same time, you can look back in history, you can look back in very recent history and see Matthew Vanderpool won it three times, Tom Bonin won it four times. Um, you know, other guys, Merrick's, you know, won it a couple of times. Like it's yes, there it's got a massive unpredictability factor to it, but I think Pogachar has already proven with two second places in a row, one on debut, his first two. He took second in his first two Perry Roubés that he is a guy that is capable of winning the race. It just didn't happen in the in these two years. You know, you can say last year it didn't happen because of an unfortunate crash. Maybe he would have won had he not had that that that very small wheel slip.

SPEAKER_03 25:34

Um which created separation and gave Vanderpool just enough of enough time to be able to stay out solo and him not catch back up. I mean, that was the fear of Pragachar's wreck early on in the day was is he gonna catch back to Vanderpool is Vanderbilt gonna be able to you know create the separation? And you know, it ends up being you know Vanderpol's mechanical that that really sets the pace for the rest of the day because once those two got away, yeah, they they were able to keep you know keep that chasing group on a string and they never got closer than 20 seconds.

SPEAKER_01 26:10

Yeah, no, it was it was it's it's really fun now to now that he has solved the the MSR puzzle, suddenly this this one be and the fact that he did not win this year, Perry Roubaix has suddenly become almost a more intriguing puzzle to ponder than MSR ever was, even though we felt like oh, MSR is gonna be the toughest one for him to get. He goes out there and gets it, and now you're like, wait a second, were we not seeing the forest for the trees? Like, how in the hell is this dude gonna win Roubaix? And yet at the same time, with a couple of strange twists of I mean, what if Wow Van Art gets a mechanical when they're going across, you know, cobble sector sector number four? I mean, they were they were they were alone for the last however many cobble sectors, like a whole lot of them for 12, 13 cobble sectors, it was just the two of them out there. What if WoW van Art, you know, flats on on one of those race over? You know what I'm saying? This is true. This is true. So you you can say that it's it is intriguing to sit to contemplate like how he could win this race, and at the same time, he could just go out and win it just because he's a great rider, he's gonna be he's gonna be up in the front no matter what, and you know, one thing could lead to another, and he's by himself without ever having to climb a hill or anything else, you know, just because of a race situation. I mean, for that that's one thing. The man is incredibly astute. He is he is oh yeah, he is a master tactician. Um, you know, usually he's playing from a position of strength, but you know. So he could certainly he could certainly get it. I cannot imagine that guy finishing his career without all five monuments in the bag.

SPEAKER_03 28:02

No, he'll get them all. He'll get them all. It's just a matter of how. Um, the other big thing with Wout was his point to the sky at the finish line. Um I I had to so were you aware of this story prior to finding out about it. Not not at all. So Wout lost a teammate in 2018 at Perry Roubaix. Um, Michael Goulaire, I hope I'm saying that right, uh was a 23-year-old Belgian cyclist. He was on the same team as out as Wow, the Verandas Willems Krellen team, and he had a cardiac arrest incident on the race course and had to be life lighted away later on succumbed to uh to um what you know what had happened to him. And he, you know, he was he was they they you know crashed uh on the second of the 29 cobbled sections that year. And he has wanted to win this race for him just so he crossed the finish line and point to the sky for that teammate for you know the last you know eight years he has wanted to to do this for him. And the emotion at the end of this race from him, from his family, from everything. I mean, I had tears streaming down my eyes. And you know, it was absolutely amazing. And it was everything. And in the moment, I'm like, oh my god, I I you know, I don't care what it is, I don't care about any of the other storylines. This is worth every minute that I spent watching this this morning.

SPEAKER_01 29:42

Yeah, don't all right. So so don't say anything further about that because I do want to um get into that a little bit further later in the show. Um so so cap it right there. Just suffice to say, um that really elevated what was already, you know, for for all of the reasons that we've outlined thus far, um, an incredible win. It just elevated it to a different level. And for me, because as I said, I had not ever heard of this guy. And I mean, we've talked about a lot of people who have died in recent years on on bikes in pro pelotons, genome, and um um um Muriel Ferrer uh most recently. Uh I didn't know about this. So um yeah, yeah, I gave it a lot a lot more depth for sure.

SPEAKER_03 30:32

Um now I will say that you know, leaning going from that and then, you know, the abrupt the abrupt ending of the men's race and then kind of having to jump over on Peacock onto the women's race. Such a weird juxtaposition to go from all of that like very high emotion into the other race, and immediately there's like immediately there's a wreck, no sound whatsoever. All you're gonna do is all you hear is the wailing of the poor riders as they are writhing on the ground, no commentary, not nothing, you know, no other no other audible noise except for the the mic on the camera, and it's a I mean it's like a solid like two minutes before the sound finally comes on. And Anthony McCrossen and um uh Hannah Walker Hannah Walker finally, you know, come on the broadcast. And before we get into kind of the racing aspect of it, you know, I I was excited at the thought that both of these races would be on the same day. And once it had happened, I now completely feel different. Um yeah, I feel like the ASO dropped the ball as hard as they possibly could when it came to the women's race.

SPEAKER_01 32:06

I feel like they did not drop the ball. Here is the the better metaphor is they threw the women under the bus. That is that's the metaphor.

SPEAKER_03 32:15

I agree.

SPEAKER_01 32:18

This was very purposefully done, and there's some nuance to it um in terms of you know the the financial parts of it, well the financial and the yeah, the logistics stuff in in particular, closing down the roads for uh a whole weekend, you know, like both days versus one day. Um, there is the whole idea of like because the men's race draws a bigger crowd, more eyeballs, et cetera, et cetera, running the women's race right after it catches all of that residual traffic. But to me, it just feels like a step backwards. And women's cycling has been making so many positive steps forward, and we're getting Lombardia this year, and you know, we recently got MSR and Tour de France was a few years back, and things have just been moving and moving in the right direction, the right direction. We see, you know, in other sports, we see an incredible CBA for the um WMBA and and just just all this positivity, and this just feels like a giant step backwards, you know. And it's it's sad that it's one of these ASO races that's on Peacock, it's part of NBC for us here in the States. And you know, it would be so easy for them to just have one on Saturday and have one on Sunday. It's Peacock, it's a streaming service, like you can have whatever the frick you want on there at any time, like you know what I mean. So why not have give the women the full race, the full treatment? I mean, the racing is just as good, just as exciting, just as intriguing. There's not a damn bit of difference between the men's and the women's when it comes to the excitement factor, you know.

SPEAKER_03 33:54

So when it comes to the coverage side of it, like maybe you're not interested in the men at all, and you are interested in ladies. The camera bikes are already out there. Like, start a different stream. Like, even if you're gonna do it on both days, yeah, just show more of the damn race. 50k? Come on, man.

SPEAKER_01 34:14

Like, yeah, that definitely should be should be two streams for sure.

SPEAKER_03 34:17

They already they already by not doing the iron burg. I I've I've researched it and I understand why they don't do the ironberg, they don't have enough time ahead of where that would be in the race for them to you know essentially wear the riders out enough to make it safe enough for them to ride. So it is a safety issue because of where it would fall in the race because it isn't as long as the men's. So I get that. But like God, at least, you know, at least give us 120. Give us the whole race, it's 130 kilometers. You give us less than 50 percent? Like, get on.

SPEAKER_01 34:59

Well, and and whatever. You know, I I I was listening to one of the podcasts, I think it was uh, I think it was um Lantern Rouge, and they were saying that after it cut to from the men's to go to the women's, it it sat there for like 25 minutes before the women's came on. Like the men's the men's ended, and then it there was like 25 minutes of lag time. Like when that whole time they could have been showing those, you know, like it's unbelievable. So it just it feels like a slap in the face, it feels like they toss the women under the bus and they're just like, you know what, we really don't care about you guys, and you know, we're just gonna do what we were gonna do or whatever. I it it it it's exceedingly disappointing.

SPEAKER_03 35:47

Yeah, totally. I I 100% agree with you. It it doesn't make any sense, and the the other part of it was at least for me, going in and watching it right after, like I was emotionally drained by the men's race. Like, I was zapped, and like now I'm trying to like digest this race and like re-engage all of that excitement.

SPEAKER_01 36:13

That's exactly what Patrick said. That's exactly what Patrick said on Lantern Rouge. He was like, I was completely just destroyed by the men's race. I mean, both of those guys said that that when they listened to Wout's interview, they were sobbing. Absolutely sobbing. Um, so yeah, you're totally right. And and that's that's another reason for the women to get it on their own day. Like, just it's a monument for Christ's sake.

SPEAKER_03 36:37

Like, yeah, it's it's not it's not Le Saman, okay? It's not it's not, you know, Dwarz Dwarf London.

SPEAKER_01 36:44

It's like yeah, it's Perry Frickin Roubaix, it's the best race of the goddamn year. Yeah, it's incredible, you know. It's like a this it's this one of one, just utterly unique sporting event. And the world is lucky that there's a men's and a women's, and it they they they're both amazing. Like give them both their full due.

SPEAKER_03 37:05

Well, and I and I heard heard them say too about about Perry Roubaix specifically, that that's a race that if someone tried to you know make that a race like today, and this was the first edition of it, there's no chance that ever becomes a race. It only has this because it's uh a storied ancient race, essentially, yeah, in cycling. All right, and it's also disrespecting the race itself by not allowing them to have their due televised. All right. They go through hell to win this race, and they should be able to we should be able to watch it. So ASO do better.

SPEAKER_01 37:49

Oh, yeah, uh do better, and also say this. Okay. Coverage for the men started as I said at 4 30 in the morning. The the switch over to the women's race happened at like what 10 10 30?

SPEAKER_03 38:07

11.

SPEAKER_01 38:07

11 a.m. 11 a.m.

SPEAKER_03 38:09

They cut off about 10 35, 10 40, something like that, and it didn't pick up until 11 a.m.

SPEAKER_01 38:15

It was probably all over it was all over before 1 a.m., right?

SPEAKER_03 38:21

1 p.m., yeah.

SPEAKER_01 38:22

Or probably around 1 p.m.

SPEAKER_03 38:25

1 p.m.

SPEAKER_01 38:25

So 4 30, so five well what would that be? How many hours total is that?

SPEAKER_03 38:31

I don't think that they started that race till like two thirty in the afternoon their time.

SPEAKER_01 38:35

I know, but how many hours total is it from 4 30 in the morning until one? Well, from So that'll be seven and a half, eight and a half hours of coverage. You know, if they can give us eight and a half hours of coverage, well then I I would be in favor of saying, like, okay, then just give us the last 150 kilometers of the men's and give us 150 kilometers of the women's. Like make it more balanced then. You know, I I mean I said I love having the entirety of the men's race, but like if that's the if that's the the trade-off is I only get this much of the women's race, nah, then just give us the the good stuff in both of them in equal measures. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_03 39:15

Yeah. Or how about they just do the whole thing for both races, like they did for the men's. Either way, it doesn't matter. Let's take a break. When we come back, we're gonna talk the women's race, we're gonna break it down. Stay with us, we'll be right back.

SPEAKER_01 39:29

Please check out our other show, Inglorious Brothers, a pop culture show with Cult Classic Swagger. Search and subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube, or click the link in the show notes.

SPEAKER_03 39:53

Welcome back, and we are gonna jump right into the actual racing at the women's, what little of it there was to be able to be seen. Um honestly, really great race, way less chaos seemingly as there was in the men's. However, it was a very, very like stark beginning because like basically the first thing you saw when the broadcast started was just a carnage of a wreck on some cobblestones and just people, just bodies everywhere, just people screaming and nothing being said about it, which was very, very frustrating.

SPEAKER_01 40:33

Yep. Um but I don't know, once things were rolling, I think the biggest thing to happen in the early part of the coverage that we got to see was uh Elisa Balsamo being chased by a chicken. Do you remember the chickens?

SPEAKER_03 40:52

That was crazy. She ended up she did she she wrecked, right? Did she wreck?

SPEAKER_01 40:57

Uh she had like she had two punctures in a row.

SPEAKER_03 41:01

Yeah, and then and at one point, um Weebus went down. She went down in like a little bit of a wreck, and so she kind of like was taken out of the situation, and eventually we we basically got the the three up uh Marianne Voss, last year's winner, uh Pauline Ferran Provot and Francie Cock from uh FDJ. Another FGJ rider, always in the mix.

SPEAKER_01 41:30

With with uh with like a group including Lottica Peky, uh Lucinda Brand, who went down in a nasty little crash, totally caused by a spectator, by the way.

SPEAKER_03 41:44

Um that almost you know that almost happened to Vanderbilt. I I put a I put in our weekly recap of Instagram stuff there uh a video of a fan of like pushing the barrier over and almost falling into Vanderpool in Flanders last week.

SPEAKER_01 41:59

Jeez, yeah well um yeah, so it was the three of them out in front, and they pretty much did everything they needed to do to stay ahead. Um and what can you say?

SPEAKER_03 42:18

I mean it was it became obvious pretty early on that Pravot was uh Foron Bravo was racing in, you know, uh working for Marianne Voss. And you know, Voss looked good, dude. Like they both honestly, they both look good. There was like a couple points where I I couldn't decide if if Foron Bravo was like actually gassed or if she was just playing gassed. Um the kind of the in the in the vein of the way the Pagatra was working wow, like through most of the the men's race, like the the latter part of that men's race. But you know, she had that one moment where like she kind of like got strung off the back of the two of them, and then she came back, and I thought she was about to just bounce right past them both.

SPEAKER_01 43:05

And you know, it happened it happened more than once, yeah. And I mean, it was so blatantly obvious that she was working for a boss because yeah, there was more than one occasion where one would have thought, like, I mean, let's not forget, last year when she won, like, she was away by herself for you know 20k, something good good number of kilometers at the end of that race. I mean, she would that that would have been the move. I mean, just in a in a normal two-on-one situation, um they they may have played this race very difficultly, but it was abundantly clear that the plan, regardless of what the optimal plan was for the team to win the race, the team's plan that day was for Mariana Voss to win the race. That was the only plan there was. Um, and it uh You know, at first it seemed to me like, oh, here we go again. The two like grand dames of the Peloton. I mean, these women, let's not forget like the opening stage of the Women's Sort of France was last year when like the two of them just put on this utter, like set piece of a performance, and then go back to last year where Voss was working for for Emperor. I mean, the these two women are just racers to the bones with the deepest of Palmares. Both have the rainbow, rainbow bands on their collars and sleeves. You know, they I mean these are these are as big a hitters as there are out there. It's you know, the goat and the woman that won that won this race last year and won Tour de France last year. And there it's it seems almost impossible that that they could that there's any way that they wouldn't pull this off. I mean, they're the they're the most experienced woman the entire Peloton with the deepest Palmares. Um and you just have to give credit to Franzi Kock.

SPEAKER_03 45:09

And if you it's like she has a I don't know, man. I think people made you know had questions with her moving over to FDJ, obviously, you know, with you know demi following. And I think there was a lot of question marks, and and she answered a lot of questions yesterday, man. Let me tell you, because you know, she beat probably the best, you know, women's bike racer, you know, in history, right? At least as of right now. And two of the best, you know, straight up. Yeah, but I I really do think that by the end that that foron pervault was really not in it.

SPEAKER_01 45:46

And her mind Feron Provot could have come over the top when she bridged back on uh on to the two of them on more than one occasion. She could have gone over the top and but would she have stayed away, is the question. Cock hesitating. I don't know. You you you you never know. You never know what could have happened. I mean, it's Pauline Ferron Pervo we're talking about. Now, do I believe that she would have won? Probably not, but you never know. Um what I see is Franzi Cock was there to help Demi Valering in some big wins this year, who was right there on the via Santa Catamaria with with uh Ali Shabet, Franzi Cock setting up Ali Shabet, and this is a perfect example of someone who functions, you know, maybe in a greater percentage of her in her team role is as a domestique, as a helper for other riders, but they know when to give her her shot, and her form has been stunning this year, absolutely stunning. She's just got like tons of top tens, and her team has been utterly successful, and she's been a huge part of it.

SPEAKER_03 46:58

Like well, and and you can't take it, you can't take the win away from her in any way because you know she played it perfectly on the Velodrome. Yeah, I mean she held the she held the shorter line, she held the inside line. All right, she did not give up the inside line, which would have spelt doom for her. And look, it was as close as you could possibly get it, and she won it on the bike throw, and she knew it. And I think Voss was like had it in her head that she was gonna about to win that race, and she got beat at the last second. And you know what?

SPEAKER_01 47:34

Well, if you see the helicopter shot, the front-on shot with the foreshortening made it look a little bit closer than it was. She actually won by about a half a bike length. She was it was it was totally clear to both of them who the winner was. Um, I just think she she yeah, she you're you're totally right. She played it perfectly in the velodrome. I mean, I thought it was so clever the way immediately upon entering and hitting that first turn, um, she she she went up high. And you notice Feran Prevaux rode basically on the edge on the inside edge for the entire first lap. Um, and while Franzi Koch was up, was up the highest, and and Voss was inside of her, and Koch was able to, when she finally dropped down in, get much better positioning on Marianna Voss. And Voss came around, had to come around the outside, and should be way more work. Yeah. And if you're if you're if it's Perry Roubaix in that velodrome, you got to be on the inside. Why Voss? I mean, that was Voss's mistake. She maybe maybe there's a scenario where she wins if she somehow can get on the inside of Franzi Cock. But that woman's fantastic, man. She's having the season of her life right now, and she gets the biggest win of her career.

SPEAKER_03 48:52

Very disappointing for Voss. I mean, absolutely, especially with everything that's happened in her in her life in recent weeks. You know, obviously she lost just lost her father. You know, it would have been a huge, you know, great bookend to her career.

SPEAKER_01 49:06

And she already said she'll be back next year to go for it. She didn't keep going for it. Like, like, you know, who who knows when the when this woman's career will end. She's got a never-ending contract with Visma.

SPEAKER_03 49:17

Um by the way, she is 20 years in the Pro Peloton.

SPEAKER_01 49:22

Insane. And she's just like and she is still just like right there on the cutting edge, right in the mix. I mean, it's just it's it's absolutely sick. So um, she'll be back next year. Uh but you know, kudos to Franzi Cock. Like, absolutely. I'm so impressed with with that woman. Like, she just to go to to to go two on one against those two, like, that's yeah, you didn't just win Perry Roubaix, you beat Marianna Voss and Pauline Ferrand Prevaux in a two-on-one. That is sick.

SPEAKER_03 50:00

This man needs to really work on the two-on-one. That that's their their off season. They're off season.

SPEAKER_01 50:06

Or the three-on-one on the men's side.

SPEAKER_03 50:10

Well, other than Wout this time, the two-on-one, the one on the one-on-one. But uh now I will say, I don't think that there was anybody more disappointed with Marianne Voss not winning that race as me because I really, really needed some points.

SPEAKER_01 50:31

I thought you had activated Liana Lippert.

SPEAKER_03 50:34

No, I activated Voss, not Lippert.

SPEAKER_01 50:38

Oh no, wait, there is no activation. You were you're either the way we have our new thing set up. She's on or she's off.

SPEAKER_03 50:51

So no, she she was uh she was active. Lippert is not is my is my one single like alternate if there's a wreck.

SPEAKER_01 51:00

So none none of your women are down right now.

SPEAKER_03 51:04

Uh no. I don't have anybody down.

SPEAKER_01 51:09

Gosh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 51:10

I think all I think all my riders are finally back in in in racing. They're all choosing to race point you know, 2.0 races and you know pro races and not not they're not winning world tour races like your racers. Um so so speaking of which, all right, so in the fantasy game, you had an unbelievable week. All right. So when we last when we last talked, all right, you had 92 points total for for April, all right, and I had 39. You scored a hundred and forty-eight points this week.

SPEAKER_01 51:59

Good lord.

SPEAKER_03 52:00

For an April total of 240 points. All right. I scored just 20 points. All right. So that brings my April total.

SPEAKER_01 52:12

Mariana Voss getting second place in Rebay. Is that your 20 points?

SPEAKER_03 52:15

Yep, that's my 20 points. 59 points for the month. That gives you a cumulative total over the first essentially what three and a half months of 576 points. And I'm on to my 368.

SPEAKER_01 52:40

Brutal.

SPEAKER_03 52:41

It is brutal. But I have to say, the the majority of your points didn't come from a guy named Bagatar this week. They came from from one the great French hope, Paul Sexas.

SPEAKER_01 52:55

That's right.

SPEAKER_03 52:56

Who had a week of weeks in the Azulia Bass Country race, taking three stages, I believe. All right. Three stages, and not one jersey, but all four of the many classifications.

SPEAKER_01 53:14

We got a catra. All four jerseys. I love it.

SPEAKER_03 53:18

Um, so the jerseys alone garnered you a hundred points. You had eighteen points in um in stage wins, and then you pulled obviously points in other places as well. You had a third with Ferron Pervault, you had a second with Pog. Um pretty nuts, man. Pretty nuts.

SPEAKER_01 53:37

Yeah, well, drilling down on the Sey Shah, the sex ass win. Um it's funny, like Carlton Kirby and uh who was it? Who was he with? Uh that bald guy, uh Steve uh not Steve. Steve Cummings, yeah, Steve Cummings.

SPEAKER_03 53:52

Steve Cummings, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 53:53

Um was just raving about like what an incredible race it was. And I did think it was a good race, but I really felt like from stage one, the handwriting was already on the wall. Like sex just like completely smashed the time trial, and both Ayuso and Del Toro, they were both down like over a minute after the time trial.

SPEAKER_03 54:24

Like those two guyso had a terrible time trial. Um, that first off, that time trial was fucking brutal. It was super steep at the end. It was a a wild time trial that that you know, the likes of which I have I have not seen in a in a while. Um it it had a ridiculous end and he crushed it. And it looked like Roguelik for the longest time was gonna win that stage. He was in the hot seat for a hot minute before uh sexos got on the on the uh on the course. But you're right. I mean, it it seemed like the the week was won on day one with him, but that doesn't change how great the racing was. Um stage four in my notes, I like blew it up and it it literally said best stage so far. And that was the stage where Alex Aaron Boo, uh Aaron Baru won won the stage. I mean this this stage was just like attacks. It was there was just shit going on all over this race, and that I think that's what made it the I and it's probably why why Kirby thought it was so great too. It's just like there was so much other shit going on besides the fact that you know Stay Shots was kind of running away with it, but then you know he was kind of keeping people like within striking distance, but more or less, you know speaking of speak go ahead. Sorry.

SPEAKER_01 55:53

Speaking of Carlton Kirby uh on stage four, he mentioned Benji Nossan from uh Yes.

SPEAKER_03 55:59

I might catch that yeah, you know what I know what you know what I did? Oh, I I DM'd Benji and said, Hey, did you did you catch uh McCra uh McCrossen mentioning you on the broadcast the other day? And he DM'd me back. Oh yeah, I saw it.

SPEAKER_01 56:16

Not McCrawson, Carlton Kirby.

SPEAKER_03 56:18

Carlton, yeah, Carlton Kirby. Nice.

SPEAKER_00 56:19

You got a you got a you got a message back from Benji?

SPEAKER_03 56:21

DM back from from old Benji on on Later Rouge.

SPEAKER_00 56:24

I love it. Yeah, that was that was fucking stupid.

SPEAKER_03 56:27

So now so now I've got like the the sports world uh pundits like on my side. You you excuse me, you've got your best friend Nielsen Palace, but I've got Orla and Benji on speed dial.

SPEAKER_00 56:40

So yeah, you need to get our podcast in their into their into their psyche. Um uh uh Benji Notson is a huge Alex Arenborough fan. They both love Alex Aaron Burrow, actually, on on uh Lantern Rouge, yes, they do um, which is why Carlton shouted him out.

SPEAKER_01 57:00

Um and that guy's cool. Like he's an exciting racer, and um, I was glad to see him take that win. You also saw uh just more performance out of the out of the crushing it this season Ineos squad with an Axel Laurence stage win and a final win um from Andrew August um on the closing day. Uh AJ August, as he is also known, um, who who just dropped Raúl Garcia Perna.

SPEAKER_03 57:31

And that's but that was like the definition of this whole race. It was like a lot of those moments where you were getting great production out of riders that you love to watch ride. And I don't know, man. There's something about these like smaller races, especially when you essentially take out the GC and all the other kind of stuff, and it comes down to just the stages and the racing and the stages, and that's what everybody's going for. Makes it so much so interesting. Um I caught um uh Watts Occurring with um Ian Stannard. I don't know if you've heard listen to that episode yet. Yeah, I heard it. But um, you know, like the like that's a team, man. You could you can feel something with them right now, man. Like I don't know if it's it's with Garren Thomas at the at the head, and or they're just you know, they're kind of shifting how their focus is, but boy, whatever they're doing up there in I think Garren has to have something to do with it, just something about the chemistry with him being around between such a natural thing. With um, I feel like the uh with Lawrence, with uh I think I think they have six, I think they have six different writers who have taken wins.

SPEAKER_01 58:43

Well, Ghana, of course.

SPEAKER_03 58:44

Ghana. Um well yeah, they're crushing it.

SPEAKER_01 58:48

Actually, I'm glad you mentioned um Watts Occurring Podcast because that was a point I wanted to make earlier, and I guess no time like the present. Um the one thing that that Garen Thomas was saying about Perry Roubaix, and I and I and I loved this little detail. He said that when he first started doing it, one of the one of the mentors to him on the team, I can't remember who he said it was, but a coach or or one of the older writers or whatever, more experienced Roubaix guys told him the one thing about Roubaix is it's like you that is the race where you never give up. Don't ever, ever, ever give up. Like, no matter what befalls you, you end up you have the crash, puncture, blah, blah, blah, you're two minutes behind, whatever. Just keep going. You just have to keep going because you absolutely never know what can happen in the race. And it's it's just entirely true. I mean, I was like, when I saw the Vanderpool thing go down, I was like, this race is over for him. He is done, like, race over. There's no way he gets back in. And with a couple of things going a little bit differently here or there, he's totally back in that race. You know, that was an epic chase that was on, and he didn't give up, and in the end, he ended up in fourth. Um, Matthew Vander, fourth. Never thought we'd say that. But uh but I I love I love that detail from uh from what's occurring.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:17

Um so also in this week we had the men's and women's stout deprives, the unofficial, official uh sprinters world championship.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:31

And uh on the men's side, you have my alternate, my alternate, yes, not one not scoring any any points for me.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:40

Tim Merlier. Uh it's not even a it's not even it's not even a world tour tour race for you.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:45

So there you go. Well, Philip your your boy Phillipson got fucking washed by my guy in that race.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:52

Like like we all know that we all kind of were wondering what Tim Merlier was gonna look like when he finally started racing. And I think needless to say, we know exactly where Tim Merlier is, and he is.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:04

He looked like the guy in UAE last year. Yeah, just like gone gone from way, way around the outside and just like blowing past the entire field like they're standing still.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:14

Yeah, it was uh yeah, there was nobody even close to him. It was such a strong sprint, man. Good God. He just blows up when he goes, man. It's just unreal. Um on the women's side, however, though, we got a little bit of a better race. I mean, it was essentially a gonna come down to a bunch sprint the entire time, but um Fenix Du Kennick was uh doing all of the work uh in um in um in support of uh one Charlotte Cool who ended up beating uh Ninka Vienhoven from V Lab and Elisa Balsamo, who took third last year's winner.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:01

Balsamo is transitioning to become something other than a just straight up pure flat sprint sprinter. Uh I don't know what's going on with her. She can't win flat sprints anymore at all. Um and Charlotte Cool look at the colour. Charlotte Cool can only win win sprints when Vebus isn't around.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:18

Yeah, but it's it's it's you you know when you look at at you know, Balsamo, it's it's I don't know. I mean, look who look at the look at the level of the competition that she has to go against. I mean, right now, and in every great sprint race, she's going up against Weebus, and she's just not gonna beat her. She's not on the same level as Weebus.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:40

But she wasn't in she wasn't against Weebus in this one, and she got beat by Charlotte Cole. She was like eighth or something in this thing. Like, she just is not she just doesn't have it, but she was also like uh she finished pretty high in um in uh Flanders. So that's what I'm saying. Maybe she is transitioning away from being a pure sprinter. I uh I'm not exactly sure. But um yeah, skelet.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:08

Yep. So um you have any do you have any do you have anything else racing-wise that that you want to cover, or do you want to uh go ahead and and jump in the old broom wagon and take her for a spin?

SPEAKER_01 1:03:22

I'm ready.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:24

All right, man. So what do you got this week?

SPEAKER_01 1:03:26

This week for my broom wagon, I am talking about the class on class because we got a master class on class this weekend at Perry Roubet. All right. Uh as we talked about earlier, this race, there's something just that is just so so special about this race. Um, you know, I listened to that SPS podcast out of Australia. Um, one of the presenters on there is Grace Brown, you know, who just retired last year or whatever. Um, you know, LBL champion, Olympic champion, um, you know, one of the all-time greats. Uh and she did her bit on Perry Roubaix. She does, she does these, these, these podcasts, like they're like little one-off things every couple of weeks where it's just like her delivering a little like monologue about something or other, and she did one about Perry Roubaix. And she was just talking about how special it is just to finish that race. And it's for for anybody racing, even if you're coming in 47th, to make that turn, that right turn, and you're in the velodrome at Roubaix. She's like, There's nothing like it. And then not only that, but you finish the race and you just kind of like go into the middle and you lay down on the grass. You know, it's like it's so unlike, it's so unique in every possible way, you know. Like even after the race is over, you're not like going down to your team bus or you know, hanging out behind the, you know, whatever. Like you're you're you're on a grassy field in the middle of a stadium and it's like a freaking love fest. You know, it's just it's so cool. You're just so happy, you're so caught up in like the history and and the emotion. You're you're physically, your body is is more sore than it's been for the entire year. And you know, it's just absolutely iconic in every possible way. And so what I think my point here is that it really brings out, it brings out the this the specialness within its participants as well. Um, and so we saw a master class on class coming in third, third place for master class on class, the almost immediately after Wout Van Art won that race and was collapsed upon the grass, sobbing into his hands. Who comes right on up? But Machi Vanderpool gives him a huge, huge hug like, yes, yes, yes, yes. It is like so. genuinely happy for the dude and it's just like class class bro way to go because you know van der poll was trying to to trying to put himself into the into the four time club which is which is occupied by like two guys isn't it like Roger DeVelomick and Tom Bonan are the only four time winners of Perry Rebe yes um so you know he had big stakes on the line pogar as we already talked about had huge stakes on the line and of course wow van art sort of had like an entire redemption of his career on the line so for Vanderpool to come over and and give him that that big hug and and to be genuinely happy for him was really beautiful and it was a lot of class.

SPEAKER_03 1:06:41

I'd love to know what he said to him too many God it'd be so great if they were Mike B for sure.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:46

All right class act number two we talked a lot about this but I tried to dance around this particular thing um not only was it just completely obvious that Pauline for Ron Pervaau was there to help Demi Vollering win that race um Marianne Voss I mean Marianna Voss excuse me um PFP was not even racing this race she in the past week in let in in a less than a week before the race put the race onto her schedule because she was like Marianna needs me I'm not planning on doing this race I don't know if I have the form for this race or the fitness for this race but I'm getting in this race because I'm going to do absolutely everything in my power to get this woman across the finish line first. That is how badly I want my teammate to win this race even though I'm the defending champion I don't care about any of that. I do not care about any of that. The only thing I care about is my friend and my teammate who is the greatest of all time and I want her to have this race. So fuck it. Put it on my schedule coach put me in coach I'm ready to play and she came out and she absolutely buried herself over and over again. She was dangling off the back with Franzi Cock who's got arguably the best legs in the entire Propeloton right now and time after time she came back and did a little bit more work and a little bit more work. And as we saw those tactics didn't quite play out for them but kudos to Pauline for Amperot total class act trying to help out her teammate Marian Boss um but of course and I heard I heard it multiple times this week about how important it is for riders to finish this race absolutely um number one uh of course has to go to Wout Van Art we saw him point to the sky um to shout out his his lost brother um when he when he finished that race um what class for the very first sentence out of his mouth was the name of his teammate in his post race interview he was like that is that that is that is his number one priority was getting that win so that that guy's friends and family that know him and know what their relationship was like will get what he means when he points at the sky like this is for you guys this is for you my brother and as important as it was for his own career and how like and everything that Wout Van Hart has given us instead he chooses to take the greatest moment of spotlight in almost his entire career maybe and put it on another guy. Calass act that's what Perry Roubaix does it brings out the class and all these guys so uh that's my broomwagon class on the class on class at Perry Roubaix what do you got so I am uh so I don't I don't know if do you know about what happened last week at the Toroflanders with the train thing? Yes.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:52

Okay. So this happened at Perry Roubaix. I don't know if you're aware of this 2015 um there was an incident just like this or just like last week but in Perry Roubet. There will be links to the videos in the show notes where they the riders approach the the thing the the arms are coming down and riders are like trying to squeeze through squeeze through squeeze through and Remco and Tade may end up in some legal trouble over their you know uh Flanders incident but what was crazy with the Perry Rebel one they ended up neutralizing the race in 2015 because of the split because riders were cutting through and dude when you see that how fast this train was coming was going it will blow your friggin' mind watch this video it's absolutely amazing I actually have put I'm gonna have two links in the show notes one to just the incident and then one for the entire American broadcast where you can actually and I time stamped it so you can go find the whole thing and watch it and it's in its completion. What a wild situation guys it's a bike race don't play with trains like what are you doing? Like why would you risk this like I don't know if it's just like I can see it it ain't there whatever that shit is batshit crazy. I can't even like I I don't even know what they're thinking and the fact that they could have legal ramifications for two of the biggest riders on the pro in the propel ton like come on guys smarten it up a little bit but I'm gonna I'm gonna tell you right now there will be no legal ramifications for Tade Pagacar Remco Evan Paul I'll tell you that right now I would think not but that's nothing's gonna happen to them nothing's gonna happen to them but you're it's a good point.

SPEAKER_01 1:11:48

I mean you know you know who who plays around trains all the time like just throws caution in the wind all those boys in Red Dead Redemption too those guys love a love a fast moving train that they can get their horse in front of that out with the uh Dalton boys or whatever like it's it's wild all right yeah they're Driscolls that's all for this week wait wait wait wait wait wait but and and I mentioned it earlier but I got I have to one more time I gotta shout out Roy Rory McElroy like it's it's just there's something about I and I think this is not this is not the the first time that the Masters have finished on this on the same day as Perry Roubaix um and uh I just kind of loved it you know it just I loved Wout winning winning Perry Roubaix and I love seeing Rory up there just like just cool as a cucumber and comfortable and you know taking it for a second time. Come on I mean he did like one day there wasn't even any drama it was great it was crazy that like he just dropped his head and was just like oh thank god that's over it was the most it was the most just like uneventful final hole of the masters ever it was crazy but um yeah it was uh and he joined some uh rarefied air I think he's now for the back to back club yeah I mean he's the back to back four of them right it was it was uh it was uh faldo woods and Nicholas and now back over on some pretty illustrious company if you ask me indeed well that's all for this week join us next week as we turn our attention from Belgium to the Netherlands for full con full coverage of the start of the Ardennes classic seasons the women's and men's Amstel gold race until then for my brother Matt I'm Justin thanks for listening we hope you'll join us again soon for another ride Beyond the Slipstream Aley the Slipstream is a part of the Harporama family of podcasts. Find us on Apple Podcasts Spotify and YouTube please like and subscribe smash that button leave a five star review and most importantly tell all your friends about us thanks for listening talk to you next time