Comparing Cycling's Great Eras, Part 3
The Team Chef
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For those readers who may be joining this group of articles midstream, each one has been written so that it may be read independently of the others. This entire series (…Eras, Parts 1-4) is part of a larger work in progress, The Team Chef’s Top 25 Cyclists of the Modern Era.
Differences between the Heroic Era Tour de France and Giro d’Italia
Up to this point, I have been reviewing the major differences between the two main cycling eras, the Heroic (Pre 1938) and the Modern (1938-present). I’ve attempted to illustrate that it doesn’t make a lot of sense to compare great champions who competed in these different time periods. That said, given the differences between the Tour and Giro during the earlier time period, does it even make sense to compare Heroic Era Grand Tour champions?
Alfredo Binda (photo left and right) was perhaps the greatest champion of the Heroic Era. He won the Giro d’Italia five times (’25, ’27-’29, and ’33), which is record he shares with two other cycling immortals, Fausto Coppi and Eddy Merckx. En route to these five Giro victories, he captured 41 of its stages - a record which stood for 70 years, finally broken in 2003 when Mario Cipollini won his 43rd Giro stage (his last in the race). Binda was also World Champion three times (a record he shares with Rik van Steenbergen, Merckx, and Oscar Freire), was four times winner of the Tour of Lombardy, and twice winner of Milan-San Remo. Yet, despite these remarkable achievements, he never won the Tour de France. He did enter the race, but only once in 1930. Binda had to pull out of that Tour after falling far out of contention, the victim of crashes on two different stages.
Comparing Cycling's Great Eras, Part 2
Although this is part of an ongoing series of articles, I’ve structured each so that they may be read independently.
At this point, I’m exploring some of the background material which should help clarify why I feel it is so difficult, if not impossible, to make comparisons between riders of cycling’s two main eras – The Heroic (pre 1938) and Modern (1938 – present). This is all part of a larger project, and series of articles, which will culminate with the Team Chef’s Top 25 Riders of the Modern Era.
The Heroic Era and the Tour de France
Comparing Tour de France champions from the Heroic Era to those of the Modern Era is very problematic, as the Tour was once such a very different race. From the mid 1920s to the late ‘30s the event eventually evolved into what most of us would now consider its modern incarnation, but those transition years, and especially the very early editions, were definitely a world apart.
From 1905-1912 the winner wasn’t even determined by lowest accumulated time, but rather by a point system. Germany’s Erik Zabel (points competition winner from 1996-2001, photo left) could very well have been the first six-time consecutive Tour champion had such a system been in place during his prime.
The length of the stages in the early editions of the Tour was brutal. Through the mid 1920’s, the total race length was around 3,300 miles (5,500 km) spread over roughly 15 stages. This meant the average stage was often a marathon day in the saddle featuring 220+ leg breaking miles (366 km) on bikes weighing well over 30 lbs (13.6 kg). Keep in mind, the longest of the Classics, Milan-San Remo, is “only” 180 miles (298 km) long. These extreme distances often pushed the total elapsed time for the Tour winner past 200 hours, more than double that of recent champions. It was during this earlier era that reporter Albert Londres coined the famous term “convicts of the road” after an interview with Henri Pellisier (Tour winner 1923, photo right) who lamented “we are treated like beasts in a circus.”
Comparing Cycling's Great Eras, Part 1
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As mentioned in the previous post (The Top 25 Rider of the Modern Era, Part 1), I’ve been working on a system of assigning point values based on race results, which has then been used to rank the greatest riders of the Modern Era.
Of course, there are a number of problems encountered when trying to put together any kind of ranking system for the best riders of all time. Chief among these are comparing riders from different eras; accounting for gaps in rider’s careers due to illness, injury, or war; and changes to the race calendar through the years.
I’ll have to break this into several posts to cover it all, but addressing each of these issues is critical to understanding some of the logic that was used in developing the scoring system, and the impact on the final rankings. This article will be the first of a four part series focusing on the major differences between cycling’s two main eras.
The Heroic Era and the Modern Era
As I started researching and compiling data on races and riders, it became clear that it would be too difficult to compare to compare cyclists from what I will call The Heroic Era (turn of the century – 1937) to those of the Modern Era (1938 – present). These cutoff dates will make more sense in light of the comparisons, and contrasts, to follow.
In the end, I think you’ll agree that it is a fruitless exercise to compare a rider from the early age of road racing, such as Philippe Thys (photo, left), to one his modern counterparts, like Miguel Indurain (photo, above right). Ultimately, these types of comparisons become pointless given the profound differences in the two time periods.
First off, it just wasn’t that easy to get around Europe during the first half of the 20th century. As a consequence, most riders tended to race in their home countries. When Italy’s Fiorenzo Magni won the Tour of Flanders in 1949, he was only the second rider from outside Belgium to have won the race since its inception in 1913 (Switzerland’s Henri Suter was the first in 1923). Similar patterns could be found at the other Northern Classics, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and Paris-Roubaix. Likewise, the Italian Classics, Milan-San Remo and the Tour of Lombardy, rarely featured winners from outside Italy, especially from the end of WWI -1950.
Flanders Legends - Museuuw and Magni
With the Tour of Flanders fast approaching, one cannot help but recall the accomplishments of "The Lion of Flanders," Johann Museuuw. He won the race in '93, '95, and '98, and further demonstrating his prowess on the cobbles, added a trio of Paris-Roubaix victories in '96, '00, and '02. He is the only rider who has won both of these races three times, certainly securing his place as one of cyling's legends.
Another rider, this one an Italian from the Golden Age of cycling, also deserves special recognition at this time of year - Fiorenzo Magni. During an era when it was quite rare that Italians competed in any of the the Classics outside of their home country, Magni stormed the nasty cobbled bergs of Belgium to win the race an astounding three times in a row - '49, '50, and '51. No one has matched this feat, either before or since. Not only was Fiorenzo the first Italian to win in Flanders, but it would be another 40 years before another would again claim the top step of the podium (Moreno Argentin in '90).
Hats off to the original "Lion of Flanders", Fiorenzo Magni.
Photo credit: Fierenzo Magni, Ride My Bicycle
The Top 25 Riders of the Modern Era, Part 1
The April issue of Cycle Sport America features articles on two of cycling’s legends, Lance Armstrong and Roger De Vlaeminck. There is no doubt that both of these riders are giants of the sport, but when comparing them, one cannot help but notice their differences; it would be difficult to find any two riders with such dissimilar palmares (career winnings).
Even the most casual of cycling fans are aware that Armstrong’s legacy in the sport was secured by his record-setting seven consecutive wins in the most prominent race on the calendar, the Tour de France. Lance’s name will forever be linked to the Le Grande Boucle (The Big Loop), and his amazing string of victories will serve as a benchmark of excellence for generations of cyclists.
Although Lance was World Road Race Champion early on in his career, it must also be noted that his lifetime victory count does not include even one of cycling’s premier single day events, the Monuments. These are the most prestigious Classics on the calendar, and include Milan-San Remo, the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, Liege-Bastogne-Liege, and the Tour of Lombardy. Further, Armstrong never once entered cycling’s other preeminent stage race, the Giro d'Italia.
Far less well known, especially among many American fans, are the accomplishments of Roger De Vlaeminck. His track record in one day races is simply one of the best in the history of the sport. Along with only Eddie Merckx and Rik Van Looy, he won all five of cycling’s Monuments. Consider this: there are only three cyclists who have achieved this amazing Monument sweep, as compared to five cyclists who were able to win the Tour five times (Anquetil, Merckx, Hinault, Indurain, and Armstrong). Which is the greater accomplishment?
As further evidence of De Vlaeminck’s talent, one need look no farther than his nickname, Mr. Paris Roubaix; he is the only rider to have won the Queen of the Classics an amazing four times, one of the few records not owned by the great Eddie Merckx.
As impressive as these palmares may be, like Lance Armstrong, Roger’s career is missing some important milestones. He entered the Tour de France three times, did win one of its stages, but he never managed to finish the race. Further, he never wore the rainbow jersey, designating a win in the World Road Race Championships.
Milan - San Remo 1948 - Coppi takes a musette
In honor of Saturday's Milan - San Remo, here is the legendary Fausto Coppi taking a musette en route to victory during the 1948 edition.
Coppi won the event two other times - 1946 and 1949.
For more history, nostalgia, photographs, and La Primavera facts visit the excellent Milan -San Remo fan appreciation site, from which this photo originated.
Who do I think will win this year? Well, it would be hard to argue against Oscar Freire, yet again. Of any of the Monuments, this could be Robbie McEwen's best shot. Fabian Cancellara and Alessandro Ballan look to be in great form. One can never rule out Alessandro Patacchi. Really, there are any number of guys who could win this; it's probably the most wide open of all the Classics. My pick - Baden Cooke Cancellara.
TVM Hall of Shame Inductees
Last month I awarded the prestigious TVM Seal of Approval to some of my favorite gear. It’s only fair that I present the other side of the coin, so without further adieu, here are the inaugural inductees into the TVM Hall of Shame:
Cane Creek Headsets
I just figured that headsets were supposed to wear out every three years. Mine always did. That all changed when I switched over to Chris King. Imagine my surprise when I learned that one headset could actually last for 10 plus years. As it turned out, my run of bad luck was due to the crap put out by Cane Creek. I couldn’t tell you which models, but they were certainly on the high end of their product totem pole, as they were almost always part of any high-end bike purchase which included components such as Shimano Ultegra or Dura- Ace.
I recently ordered a frameset with an integrated headset. Chris King doesn’t make internal headsets, and probably never will, so I was expecting the worst. To my relief the one specced for my frame was made by FSA, rather than Cane Creek. Guess what was actually in the head tube when the frame arrived? I must have done something to piss off the cycling gods. I’ll eventually buy that FSA in a couple of years, as I’m certainly going to need a replacement for the provided Cane Creek model; there is no chance in hell it will last until my next bike purchase. I suppose some comfort can be taken in knowing I’m not the only one who isn’t exactly a raving fan of this company.
CicloSport HAC 4
This purchase was a $350 mistake. It looked nice, was field tested and endorsed by Lance and Co., had altimeter functions, a built in heart rate monitor, and best of all, a power meter which didn’t rely on a) a transmitter held in place with a spider web of cables and zip ties, or b) expensive custom built wheels laced to a hub transmitter, or c) expensive proprietary cranks. Yes indeed, the HAC 4 seemed like a technological miracle, and the best buy on the market. Fantastic German engineering pedigree aside, this thing was a piece of crap. Here's the low-down: 1) it was extremely difficult to set-up, 2) if the fork sensor wasn’t a perfect 1mm from the spoke magnet, and aligned just right, the readings on the monitor were erratic, 3) the power readings were nowhere near accurate, and 4) the altimeter just stopped working after a couple of months. My HAC 4 was still under warranty, so it was shipped back to Germany. That was three years ago, and I’m still waiting for a replacement. I understand there is now a HAC 5 on the market…
Hutchinson Carbon Comp Tires
Bar none, the worst tires I’ve ever used. My first pair made it to maybe the 300 mile mark before suffering a nasty sidewall cut on the rear tire, rendering it useless. I figured it was just bad luck, didn’t blame the tires, and decided to give them another try. The Carbon Comps were a screaming deal at my local Performance shop for only $25. Besides, these were the same tires that Postal had used in the Tour de France, and if they were good enough for a pro team, they’d certainly be more than adequate for me.
The first ride after installing the new rear tire I got four flats within 25 miles from home. Four! No, nothing was imbedded in the tire; all the punctures were in different spots. Several rides later the front tire suffered the same fate as the original rear – a nasty sidewall tear, which couldn’t be repaired. This tire is no longer made. Gee, wonder why? I suppose I deserved this bad luck for switching from my beloved Continental Grand Prix 3000s (now 4000).
