We didn’t think it could get any more dramatic than that brutal stage of Tirreno-Adriatico last week, did we? How wrong we were! Sunday’s Milan-San Remo pretty much overshadowed anything else happening on Twitter so I’m dedicating the whole column to the snow, the buses, the race, the finish but most of all to the riders.
The snow
Let’s start with the white stuff. Early Sunday, the race organisers took Turchino out and the riders would have to get back on their buses, go over Turchino and then start racing again on the other side. But the riders had to ride to the stopping point – which meant they rode in heavy snow. As televised pictures hadn’t started yet, this aspect of the race started to unfold via Twitter. And this is what we saw.
The Grubers were there to witness all this as well – make sure you have a look at Jered’s flickr site for more great pictures of the day.
It was gruelling and there were some jokes, but Adam Hansen definitely did not appreciate it. However, no one on Twitter was laughing at these guys. Everyone just marvelled at witnessing, in whatever way they could, what was turning out to be one of the most epic races in cycling.
The buses
The riders started to come in – and even though UCI rules prohibit tweeting during a race, they tweeted with abandon (once their fingers unfroze). And instagrammed. Fines be damned. And this is what was going on as they got on the buses to warm up and go to the next part of the race.
Disbelief on their faces – once they unfroze. Some looked 100 years old, others looked like they just got up from the mines.
Once in the buses, they started to get themselves into some dry clothes, while the support staff got to work to get them ready for the next part of the race.
My favourite picture of the whole lot is the one below.
Back to the race
If they thought it was going to be any better conditions once they got to the race restart, they were sadly mistaken as it was pouring down with rain. But one young man seemed completely unperturbed by the events of the day … the Velvet Samurai.
While the Velvet Samurai’s arch rival came out of the bus looking like a ninja. Later in the race, Cavendish would take off his leg warmers, to the astonishment of the Twitterati. They were just draining him of his power – they *had* to go.
The finish
A worthy trio for the podium.
The riders have their say
For anyone who has lost faith in Twitter, Sunday should have restored that – at least a little. The way the race played out through the Twitterstream was almost as amazing as the footage we saw of the race itself. And the riders certainly had something to say about the day.
The last word goes to …
Qhubeka. We all know that bikes give you freedom – the great people at Qhubeka are taking that knowledge and making it real for kids who need it most.
Until next week, tweeties.