It seems Tom Pidcock very briefly broke his Strava hiatus yesterday, screenshots doing the rounds on social media suggesting the incredibly talented 24-year-old uploaded a ride, got the KOM on Coll de Rates (a famous and incredibly popular training and testing climb for riders visiting the winter training hotspot Calpe), and then promptly deleted his ride again. Job done...
New KOM on Coll de Rates set by Tom Pidcock (he deleted the file shortly afterwards) 👇🏽
Who believes in his GC-chances at the Tour de France? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/kjO7cHUqVo
— Inside Out (@InsideOut2912) February 6, 2024
The six-kilometre climb is hardly a Tour de France Alpine pass, but is popular for its steady, consistent gradients, and great views, the Strava leaderboard a who's who of professional cycling. With 264,393 attempts by 61,494 people, according to Strava, and a high proportion of elite-level riders visiting, we can safely say it is one of the most competitive segments out there.
Former pro Tejay van Garderen is fifth, Jonas Vingegaard set the third fastest time (back in 2018), and UAE Team Emirates' Juan Ayuso took the KOM just a few days ago. Until Tom P popped in, had a go, got an email notification sent out, and promptly deleted his ride...
> How fast!? We take a look at Tom Pidcock's Alpe d'Huez-conquering Strava file
Maybe he's got a bucket list of KOMs to tick off? In December 2022 it was Sa Calobra that fell, Pidcock taking two minutes off British hill-climbing extraordinaire Ed Laverack's time, the top-10 complete with names such as Gianni Moscon, Simon Yates and Sebastián Henao.
Following the eye-catching comments of his former leadout man, Danny van Poppel, who heralded working with Sam Welsford at the Tour Down Under and said he had been "waiting for a fast sprinter", the Irishman has himself done a candid interview about his performances in recent times.
Bennett, who has moved to Decthlon AG2R La Mondiale for 2024 on a two-year deal, and will get to race Van Rysel bikes and kit, gave an honest assessment of his form since winning two stages and the green jersey at the 2020 Tour de France.
"I've been shit," he told the Irish Independent. "I wasn't up to scratch, up to the standard I should be. OK, if I never did what I did before then, they'd be all right seasons, but when I know what I'm capable of... it's not great."
Can totally relate, Sam. Those pro cycling horror film name suggestions I shared earlier really were...
Looking ahead to a fresh start with the French team, the 33-year-old said the Tour is "one of the main objectives".
"Of course I need to be going good at the start of the year but the Tour, I need to get back there and win again. The team asked me about doing the Giro but it’s too hard to do the Giro and Tour," he said.
"The Giro is the hardest one. There was one year I did it and I just didn't recover for months, so it's maybe better to put all my eggs in the one basket. Maybe if I'm good and there's a lot of sprints in the Vuelta, then maybe it's possible to do the Tour and Vuelta. It just works a bit better. But it's too hard to do the Giro and Tour unless you're a climber and you're super strong or you mind yourself on certain days, and just target stages. Then it's doable, but otherwise it's too much.
"The Olympics is in my head the whole time too. I should have done one before but the parcours never suited me. Now, this year, it's creeping up and we (Ireland) only have two places. It's a tough one but I need to do it once in my career and I don’t know if I'll be still around when the next one comes. I've had a great career but I'd be sad to never have ridden it. It’s something that if I come out of the Tour good, I'd like to have a go at it. If there's not a breakaway there, it could be a select bunch sprint and I could be there."
@Warwickshire_CC why? #cycling what are we supposed to do now? It’s between Gaydon & Bishops over the motorway bridge. No sign afterward to suggest cyclist can continue their journey 🤷♀️🤦♀️ #walking home pic.twitter.com/GBAs7w5qRm
— Noon (@Noonkemp) February 4, 2024
Nothing to see here, totally normal fan/rider interaction in Colombia...
El muñeco de Mark Cavendish 🤣💙
La afición loca en el Tour Colombia por uno de los mejores sprinter del mundo 💥 pic.twitter.com/CcWUqAVbCJ
— Rodri (@RodriSabato) February 6, 2024
Coming to cinemas near you: a legendary sprinter is haunted by a creepy doll... of himself... gifted to him by a fan at a race, as he wrestles with the pressure of one last shot at Tour de France glory.
It's a work in progress... (Aero k)It? The silence of the opening week flat stage? Get out (my leadout train)? Yeah, gonna need a better name...