pack sprints in a crit are scary...

As Curt says, the pack at the Rose Bowl is usually around 100 rider plus or minus a few. There are some very fast guys (Cat I/II), some decent, and some wannabes. Average speeds are around 20mpg on the uphill section and mid 30's on the downhill. Invariably people attack regularly, and the pace surges and lags. There is a start/finish line, and people tend to be pretty competitive. When I used to train there I would never get involved in the last lap sprint...I'd usually peel off before the last corner.

I went down mid pack when the guy in front of me hit his brakes too hard. His rear dropout went right into my front spokes and I was flying through the air, landing on my hip (and losing skin on my arm, should, and leg). Luckily a buddy of mine was down there with his car (I used to ride there from my house), so he gave me a ride home, then my wife (now ex-wife) drove me to the Caltech health center. The nurse on duty spent the next half hour or so scrubbing dirt and rocks out of various areas of raw skin. That was a fun few next nights in bed...and morning instructions were to scrub any scab that formed off with a scrub brush and disinfectant (green stuff...can't remember the name). That would supossedly keep scarring down.

The hip developed tendonitits and now 11 years later I occasionally get a twinge when the weather changes...

Riding in the pack is amazing though...cranking away with your front wheel 2 inches from the guy in front of you's rear wheel, deciding when to attack, working a paceline in a breakaway...ah, those were the days.

Now just old and slow...

To me pack riding is the closest thing to being inside a tornado's eye. All around you is noise and wind - bicycles, when multiplied by twenty or thirty, are very loud. You indeed have to shout to be heard. And the speed is amazing. It's like everyone is a teammate as they try to keep the peloton going.

let me start off with....I AM A CYCLING FANATIC!!!!

The tour is right next door and I will be in Paris for the final stage. I have some heated talks with the local Germans daily about how Lance will win #5, and they tell me he is weak! Ha Ha....bull ****! I raced at a high semi-pro level for years and I understand the "game" that must be played to win this type of event.

1. Team - you can't win the tour unless you have a powerfull and smart team!
2. Only when it matters! Lance is not going to jump at every break, he must pick and choose his battles...this is where his teams ability helps since they help contain and control the breaks from the peleton.
3. LANCE IS THE BEST! Mountains, time trials, and knowledge...this places Lance at the top since this was how Miguel Indurain accomplished this very task!

And not to rub it in...but I can watch every stage here in Spanish, German, and English...I guess that's one of the perks!