Anther death on a dangerous decent

[Woz]

...very respectful video in the first post - unlike some of the amateur and sensationalist coverage elsewhere.

This additional link provides a bit more of the location of the crash:

https://news.italy24.press/trends/636276.html

Wide, open, sweeping curves. Very high speed. Risks from sidewinds coming up or down the gullies - and any detritus on the surface.

.... looks almost like a tragic set of freak circumstances went on. Normally roads are swept prior. The corner and road looks fast and visibility is good. The off road part surprisingly doesn't look that steep (not a vertical drop anyhow) or full of boulders and rocks except for the man-made water tunnel. I guess the police will be interviewing the other rider to help understand more.

 

[Woz]

No gore involved, but a better more complete picture of the environment.

https://www.la-croix.com/Cyclisme-D...ois-equipes-coeur-lourd-2023-06-17-1301271943

Translation says the fall happened on the exit of the left corner top left, till the gulley bottom middle; looks terrible.

 

[tintin40]

'Evenepoel, himself the victim of a serious fall in August 2020 at the Tour of Lombardy, had described Thursday the organization as "irresponsible" for having set up "an arrival at the end of such a dangerous descent". The leader of the Soudal-Quick Step formation had thus expressed his dissatisfaction at the microphone of a television before paying a tribute, on the bike.'

I tend agree. Looking at the pictures of the area.

 

[CassidyAce]

The problem with pushing things to the limit is that you never truly know what the limit really is until you've gone past it. And then it's too late.

 

[Frankenorange]

Very sad outcome to this accident. A little to the left/right and he might not have ended up in that drainage/culvert thing which is where i believe he received his injuries. An italian news source said it was head injuries but that might be speculation.
Death/disability is very rare in competition and the odds are very good even if a rider gets it really wrong. Deaths from training accidents are another matter entirely as we have seen in the last couple of years.
Even with the latter the odds all round are still very good when you think about all of the thousands of pro cyclists that ride millions of miles, each year. The frquency of deaths training does seem to be increasing though.

 

[Woz]

'Evenepoel, himself the victim of a serious fall in August 2020 at the Tour of Lombardy, had described Thursday the organization as "irresponsible" for having set up "an arrival at the end of such a dangerous descent". The leader of the Soudal-Quick Step formation had thus expressed his dissatisfaction at the microphone of a television before paying a tribute, on the bike.'

I tend agree. Looking at the pictures of the area.

Personally think there is a bit of a knee jerk reaction and a bit wise after the event going on. For sure, it's an incredibly traumatic incident. There are so many races with frankly much much worse technical downhills, and to say the least a mad dash long decent just prior to a finish is not a novelty either on the pro road scene. The race organisers could neutralise sections but time and time again shows it's a mess. Even when the marshals attempted to stop racing at the TdF up the Ventoux due to horrific wind conditions a few years back the button had to be pressed for the Gendarmes to stop the race and make it crystal clear to riders the race was stopped for good and proper.

There is no escaping when we see someone on a bike with descending talant that can pull off something extraordinary is nothing short of impressive; I would hate to be in a world where gifted people like that couldn't display such talent.

I'll leave this here. A real climber, fighter and talented rider but lacks the team strength. A savvy racer too who exploited a weakness and got a stage win. For me, right here is the counter argument.

 

[vtwinvince]

People, if it's 'safety' that you crave, don't get out of bed in the morning. But hey, you might die in your sleep. Personally, I'm sick and tired of the matriarchal\stay 'safe' at any cost agenda.

 

[tintin40]

Some times i think people have to be protected from them selves. As many people think they are skilled enough when they aren't. Plus some times the tech/manufactures push the limits to far. Such as in F1 deaths were a nightmare in the 50s,60s,70s. The governing bodies had to do some thing. Rallying had the same issue with group B cars. We mustn't forget we are all human even elite sports men/women. People say that they are adults and know what they are getting in to. True but then don't force them to wear helmets? I agree hence i don't wear a helmet. My choice. Roadies didn't wear them and were fined if they didn't. Then forced through rule changes. The course must be safe/ fun and a test of fitness. Hence i don't race now. They are trying to course pain/injury now. Unlike BITD

 

[pigman]

We've always had valley finishes where the bunch drops from the mountains so the designer/organiser of this race hasn't done anything different.

Remco has a vested interest in staying safe on descents. These are a risky transition from one mountain to the next for him, where he then struts his stuff when the road rises

As has been said, we could end up denying the descending specialists their chance. Ultimately, taken to its final conclusion, tours will become a climbers-only paradise with neutralised sections in between the climbs.

Sprints are also dangerous. Riders have died or been maimed here too. Should we ban those?

And when we finally get to that "safe" climbers paradise situation, do we sanitise the climbs or impose maximum speeds to avoid the possibility of over exhaustion and heart failures?

 

[minor_LEGEND]

Regarding the 'dangerous' label given to events in bike racing like this, the only thing dangerous is the speeds achieved on such descents. Nobody made the riders go at the speeds they do, just themselves. Personally I don't see this as the UCI's or the event organisers responsibility. It's cycle racing. Let's just get on with it & have respect for our fellow riders & roadusers be it pro peloton or us Sunday warriors.