CliffordK

I really think it would be a good turn on events.

No doubt one would see a new group of women racers. Track cyclists and sprinters heading out for that first flatter 20 miles or so to "reel in the men". Somewhat like chasing down a break-away with a 10 minute handicap headstart.

Then blowing up or getting killed on the real climbs and falling back to 73rd place.

The next step, of course, might be parity in the race courses though.

CliffordK

I can imagine the message going out.

"You've got someone coming up on your tailpipe really hot. Get moving, or get out of the way!"

rydabent

I pretty much dont like all the name calling but stopping the woman was stupid and sexist!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stadjer

No, the sexist thing was to let them have a seperate race in the same event. I support the decision to do so, because fysically they can't compete with the men and they can't carry their own weight either in the sense that they have enough of an audience to have their own events. But it is sexist and it comes with a priority for the men's race.

chicagogal

This. But there should be some discretion on the part of the officials. I was in a "women's race" once where a "man's race" that had started before the women caught the women in the women's finishing sprint and they neutralized the women so that they could get passed instead of sprinting. The men still had another lap to go because they never give the women as much distance. End result for the women was that the race was completely ruined and we all just left and went home... after paying an entrance fee, driving long distances, paying for hotel rooms... and putting in hours of training. This, too, shouldn't have happened.

chicagogal

This is so offensive, it makes me want to never return to the forum.

CliffordK

Too much mixing of cyclists and cars in a race can be problematic.


Although it was apparently only one cyclist that had caught up with the Men's entourage which wouldn't be much different from a rider getting a tire/bike replacement for one reason or another, then chasing down the Peloton.

Except, coming up on the race vehicles from the rear, but the pace motorcycle should be the first one to pass and clear the road.

caloso

Good point. If one group is winding up for the sprint and the catching group has a lap to go, that's dumb. What did they do about placing? Upgrade points? That's terrible.

Safety first, but also you have to honor the spirit of racing, no matter what the field.

caloso

The Hoogeland crash was a spectacular exception to the rule and was entirely the fault of the driver.

chicagogal

It was just a total mess. One woman went for the sprint, thinking there was no way we were being neutralized on the finish. She was DQ'ed. Placing was just about who rolled over the finish first in a state of confusion and dismay. Upgrade points resulted because the results were certified.

JohnDThompson 

If there is so little difference in male and female cycling performance, does it even make sense to run separate races? Run them together; you could still base awards on gender, if that's important, just like you have separate awards for age categories in some races.

Stadjer

Offensive? Maybe you want a safe space with an alternate reality where women's cycling is just as big and popular as men's cycling?

caloso

I don't think anyone has said this.

chicagogal

Sidelining women's cycling is not how to make it popular. Are you ok with women getting to play tennis at Wimbledon? Are you ok with women competing in any sport at the Olympics? If not, then you don't respect women as athletes. If you think that women should be able to compete in other arenas, just not in a bike race, then you don't think women can be competitive cyclists. Either way, this is offensive to women who work hard at their sport.

chicagogal

Combined fields are really tricky. If a woman gets up the road with a group of men, then the men have no impetus to drop her or make her work, because they aren't actually competing against her. Then the women in the field have to chase down the men off the front because they have a competitor up the road getting a free ride. And this is even if the rest of the women are even aware that one woman got OTF with the men. With a mixed field, it is really difficult to tell what is going on and who is competing against who.

chicagogal

That is the point. That is the message.... and it is a message shared by many, including by stadjer, above.

jpdemers

Fragile male egos couldn't handle being passed by a woman?
I can't think of any other problem...

jefnvk

Poor event planning on the organizers part. A ten minute time gap? It really isn't hard to see a scenario where a strong female rider or group catches the men, especially if the courses are different and different riding strategies are being taken into account.

Just curious how that would work in this situation. The one woman catches the men, so all the men are neutralized, and all the women go by. Then, the men are released, likely catch the women again, and then the women are neutralized?

I actually have a huge problem with them being awarded the same prize money for 3/5 the work. If they want to play and be paid the same as men, they should also play five sets.

I mean other than the numerous reasons listed, including by at least one woman.

chicagogal

The men would not be neutralized until the whole women's field comes through. They would be neutralized for the one woman who caught them. If the rest of the women's field caught them later, the men would be neutralized a second time.

jefnvk

Ah gotcha, but I guess that still leaves me with the same question, what happens when they caught back up to her? Would she then have to pull over and let them go by?

I mean logically, I would just fix this with better event planning, but since we are into what-if land I am curious how something like this would go on.

chicagogal

Yes. If she got caught by the men, she would have to pull over and let them go by. The question is what happens to the rest of the women's field in that scenario. Officials could choose to neutralize them to maintain the gap that the lead rider has on the rest of the field. However, they could choose to only neutralize the lead rider and then the field gets to make up ground.

DynoD500_SR20-d

i beg to differ. Her pace was broken and she probably lost her wind. I think she was sabatoged to not seem as fast as the men in the group. I read a lot of comments on other news outlets on this and the amount of egos that were spilled onto the pages were disgusting. I am a man and took total offense to the comments that were made about her. She simply out rode her counterparts

DynoD500_SR20-d

Really that is how we as the spectator saw it. I would have loved to see her catch up to the slowest men and pass them. This is cycling, all about the legs and the machine not the ego. But eeeh

DynoD500_SR20-d

facts

canklecat

Good point. There's a lot of psychology and psyche jobbing in bike racing that's completely different from any other sport and defies comprehension to outside observers.

Group races often start slow for various reasons. Maybe the roads were wet and the men's pack were waiting for the day to warm up a bit and dry the roads before they turned on the power.

It's not clear from the article whether Hanselmann knew she could catch the men's group, but she may have been motivated to try a solo breakaway to enhance her own status, or that of her team sponsors. Lots of reasons why this was a winning move for her regardless of the outcome.

I don't usually follow the classics but now I'm curious whether these one day races typically offer primes and material incentives for breakaways, sprints, first past the post opportunities, etc.