# worst victory salute ever?



## stevesbike (Jun 3, 2002)

After the best victory salute ever, seems fitting to nominate this as the worst victory salute ever - doing the superman across the finish line...(http://www.velonews.com/article/77753)


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## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

"I guess I should have been wearing gloves.”

Ya think?


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## normalnorm (Jan 16, 2006)

Thats gotta hurt...ouch.


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## CleavesF (Dec 31, 2007)

You guys can't make fun of him if it was on purpose.


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## TurboTurtle (Feb 4, 2004)

stevesbike said:


> After the best victory salute ever, seems fitting to nominate this as the worst victory salute ever - doing the superman across the finish line...(http://www.velonews.com/article/77753)


I think the RR guys pushed him. Just look at how hard they are trying to run over him.  TF


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## Guest (Jun 16, 2008)

I know that guy and he is not a bad bike handler, in fact I think this is one of the first times he's ever gone down in a race.


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Yeah looks like he just threw the bike too hard for the win and lost control ... I'm sure it was drag to have crashed but at least he won.


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## Einstruzende (Jun 1, 2004)

That totally sucks.

If I wasn't at work, I'd link to the video of the guy doing a premature celebration and wrecking shy of the line. (and having the 2nd place rider come by for the win).


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## gray8110 (Dec 11, 2001)

It would appear that there was another crash before the line (a bit farther back on the right side of the photo.)

Ouch is definitely right.

And poor Freddie - nothing he can do but slam on his brakes and hope the guy slides out of his way.


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## maxfli1 (Mar 20, 2008)

look how close the first black guys tire is to his hand


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## pretender (Sep 18, 2007)

maxfli1 said:


> look how close the first black guys tire is to his hand


Thanks for the head's up. I was looking for a white guy's tire, no wonder I missed it.


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## Pablo (Jul 7, 2004)

"Safe!" - Race umpire.


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## Dart (Jan 6, 2008)

Here are a couple more shots from the same crash at Cycle To

There's video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFJzbW2cLbU
I can't embed it here for some reason.


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## TheBugMan (Nov 27, 2007)

I like the dude wearing sun glasses in the crowd.


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## zosocane (Aug 29, 2004)

jains89 said:


> I know that guy and he is not a bad bike handler, in fact I think this is one of the first times he's ever gone down in a race.


I totally believe it. Because from now on the dude is wearing GLOVES!


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## Bianco (Sep 22, 2004)

jains89 said:


> I know that guy and he is not a bad bike handler, in fact I think this is one of the first times he's ever gone down in a race.


whats his side of the story? from the vid looks like maybe his front wheel locked up.


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## Guest (Jun 17, 2008)

I've tried calling him a few times, but he's not answering, not surprisingly. Probably getting a few call/emails right now considering his face, or what's going to be left of it is plastered all over the internet, and not in the most flattering manner either.


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## Dr_John (Oct 11, 2005)

Amazing bike handling by those guys... from the photos I figured there'd be a big pile up, but not one hit him or lost control. Wow.


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## pretender (Sep 18, 2007)

Bianco said:


> whats his side of the story? from the vid looks like maybe his front wheel locked up.


Is our kids learning, indeed.

From the VN article: _“I felt Bahati coming up on my left and threw my bike as hard as I could,” Barlevav said. “Being such a humid day, my hands just slipped off the bars. I guess I should have been wearing gloves.”_


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## CleavesF (Dec 31, 2007)

Shoulda used cork.


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## brujenn (Nov 26, 2007)

*Whaaaaa?????*



maxfli1 said:


> look how close the first black guys tire is to his hand


Black guys ride bikes?


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

brujenn said:


> Black guys ride bikes?


Thanks Borat.


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## multirider (Nov 5, 2007)

I'm new to watching road racing. Very new. I was watching some old Lance videos on YouTube including where his bars hooked the lady's purse and he went down. It's kind of funny to listen to the announcers debating why he went down at the time. One thought he clipped a spectator but the other kept saying over and over "NO! He didn't hit anyone. No contact with a spectator whatsoever. I think it was a pedal problem. Looks like he has a problem with his pedals. Oh, that could affect his whole day, his not going to be able to put the power down" and on and on about his pedals. Ah, the beauty of 20/20 hindsight!


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## pretender (Sep 18, 2007)

IIRC it wasn't a purse but a feed bag?


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## stevesbike (Jun 3, 2002)

if you're new to watching, you should check out this crash: Abdujaperov in the 91 Tour (I watched this in person-this was before helmets in the peloton, just hairnets. The road surface was partially cobbled and he slid forever). 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBtCaLYFKjo


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## maxfli1 (Mar 20, 2008)

its just easier to identify the riders that way. not a racial thing. true though, i havent seen alot of blacks riding road bikes (or swimming)


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## pretender (Sep 18, 2007)

Wait, am I looking for a white guy's hand or a black guy's hand?


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## 4400 (Mar 8, 2008)

*According to*

The TIME Factory Team Blog that fellow won the first stage of The Working Man's Stage Race. Nice to see he rebounded quickly.


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## Pablo (Jul 7, 2004)

If you look at the picture, he's lucky his finger didn't get run over, that might have hurt.


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## StevenG (Nov 19, 2005)

What a bonehead, he deserves all the road rash he is receiving. What is up with the pro roadies, learn to ride. Between this Guy falling off his bike after winning a sprint, and Frank Schleck forgetting to turn and riding off a cliff, not a stellar week I'd say!


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## roadie92 (Jan 21, 2008)

StevenG said:


> What a bonehead, he deserves all the road rash he is receiving. What is up with the pro roadies, learn to ride. Between this Guy falling off his bike after winning a sprint, and Frank Schleck forgetting to turn and riding off a cliff, not a stellar week I'd say!


Dude sometimes it's out of the riders control.


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## StevenG (Nov 19, 2005)

Dude!?!? 
Unless there was a mechanical, I will stand by my statement that these guys are boneheads and these pro-roadracers need to work on their handling or start paying attention to what they are doing. I think they spend too much time working on their victory salutes and oiling their legs. Almost every race I read about has some sort of crash or something.


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## Kaboom (Jul 18, 2003)

you guys are confusing me.
on just about every other post in this forum i read that if you race you should set a budget apart to take care of all the stuff that will get broken in one of the inevitable falls, that crashing is a part of racing, that there are two kinds of cyclists, those who have fallen and those who will fall etc etc etc...
and now these people who are pro's riding right at the edge of human ability crash and we criticise them for that????
come on, cut them some slack.
personaly i'm happy neither this guy nor schleck got badly injured.
cheers!


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## StevenG (Nov 19, 2005)

The only good thing about these crashes, is the fact these two rider errors didn't cause anyone else to go down with them.


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

I guess it's illegal to crash now. I suppose we should take away the stage win from this guy, right?


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## pretender (Sep 18, 2007)

StevenG said:


> What is up with the pro roadies, learn to ride.


I think we all long for the good old days when bike racers didn't dope, and didn't crash.


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## iliveonnitro (Feb 19, 2006)

At least he didn't come in 2nd place...


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## Kestreljr (Jan 10, 2007)

StevenG said:


> Dude!?!?
> Unless there was a mechanical, I will stand by my statement that these guys are boneheads and these pro-roadracers need to work on their handling or start paying attention to what they are doing. I think they spend too much time working on their victory salutes and oiling their legs. Almost every race I read about has some sort of crash or something.


Yeah, maybe you can teach them proper handling skills in a pack sprint at 35mph. You know what, there are some formula 1 racers, and moto racers that could use your help too. Evidently, they have a hard time holding a line when pushing their machines to the maximum as well.


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## StevenG (Nov 19, 2005)

Kestreljr said:


> Yeah, maybe you can teach them proper handling skills in a pack sprint at 35mph. You know what, there are some formula 1 racers, and moto racers that could use your help too. Evidently, they have a hard time holding a line when pushing their machines to the maximum as well.


It's not like he is doing the downhill run at Mammoth Mountain or something, he's going straight on the road. It wasn't handling skills, he fell off, or hand slipped, or let go too soon trying to do his correographed victory celebration. Not that my opinion matters for anything, I'm sure his road rash speaks for us all. Must have been fun kissing those podium girls looking like you went through a meat grinder.


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## Kestreljr (Jan 10, 2007)

StevenG said:


> It's not like he is doing the downhill run at Mammoth Mountain or something, he's going straight on the road. It wasn't handling skills, he fell off, or hand slipped, or let go too soon trying to do his correographed victory celebration. Not that my opinion matters for anything, I'm sure his road rash speaks for us all. Must have been fun kissing those podium girls looking like you went through a meat grinder.


I guess it was your Frank S. comment that ticked me off. Sure its tough, but these guys are at whits end with their exertion level- so it is sort of hard to judge as we watch on TV with our H.R. at 65bpm on what we would do.


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## multirider (Nov 5, 2007)

StevenG said:


> What a bonehead, he deserves all the road rash he is receiving. What is up with the pro roadies, learn to ride. Between this Guy falling off his bike after winning a sprint, and Frank Schleck forgetting to turn and riding off a cliff, not a stellar week I'd say!


Good grief, have you ever raced? Ever given it absolutely 100%? When giving it 100%, it is possible to make a minor error that results in a crash. He was so focused on rocketing his bike over the line to win that he went a little too far and threw it out of his hands. That guy ROCKS in my opinion! 

He wasn't doing a victory salute. Look at the pics. He as giving it everything in a successful bid to be FIRST. He WON. The other guys in the pic tried real hard. And lost. 

I have certainly been completely consumed in the effort to win on more than one occasion and that has, a few times, resulted in a crash. I'd rather crash giving it my all than finish mid-pack while riding real hard.

Personally, I think it's cool that racers get so intense and throw every fiber of their being into being the best they can be and trying to win. I like the passion, the focus, the committment, giving it everything. Lots of people padoodle along giving it lots of effort. Personally, I'm way more impressed by someone who brings that guy's level of committment to the race than the padoodlers. 

Yes, that's right, I said "padoodlers". LOL. And then to read comments by people who are most likely padoodlers criticizing the 100% guy. Humpf!


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## Kestreljr (Jan 10, 2007)

multirider said:


> Good grief, have you ever raced? Ever given it absolutely 100%?


I thought the same question... when I raced track in college, I remember being so exhausted and "zoned out" that I couldn't even stand when I cross the finish line in a 1500meter.


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## JSR (Feb 27, 2006)

multirider said:


> Yes, that's right, I said "padoodlers". LOL. And then to read comments by people who are most likely padoodlers criticizing the 100% guy. Humpf!


On behalf of padoodlers everywhere, I'd like to have a snappy rejoinder that would grind you into metaphorical dust. Unfortunately, I just can't quite get up for the effort right now...


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