The Grattan season opened with a bang last night. Windy conditions and smooth as butter new pavement, along with a bunch of young riders with delusions of being the next Cav' (Bs only) turned the final lap into a crash and road-rash-o-rama of epic proportions. Not only was there a crash on the hill before the final straight-a-way (B's only) there was also a finishing sprint crash to put a bloody cherry on top of what amounted to a sketchy night of racing. It was like saying, "yeah, you thought that first crash was stupid, wait till you see this!" Luckily nobody was seriously injured, but arms were broken, skin was burned off, and pricey carbon bikes were turned into worthless junk. Lots of screaming too. One good friend, a great, safe rider, is certainly lost for the season. I can only imagine what kind of pain he is in tonight.The guy pictured above actually won the B race, rolling first across the finish line like a bloody meatball. Unfortunately his a number was pinned on incorrectly and his hands were off his handlebars as he crossed the finish line so he was immediatly disqualified.
We haven't had crashes like this for years, but it looks like the bad-old-days are back again.
Being lazy has its advantages -- glad I didn't show up last night.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that was one to miss. An update on our friend Conrad that got the worst of it last night (from what I know). Seems he spent the night in the hospital and went into surgery this morning to pin his arm back together. What's so awful is that Conrad is one of the safest riders out there and is always looking out for everyone's safety. He didn't deserve this ...
ReplyDeleteSurly Bastard