Roubaix, 2009-04-12

Lelangue: My most satisfying Roubaix ever!

Having received a Wild Card invitation to the Paris-Roubaix barely a month
ago, the BMC Racing Team was faced with the challenge of bringing a team
made up almost entirely of Roubaix neophytes to the hardest one day race in
the world.

Though the team was fortunate to have Roubaix veterans like Directeur John
Lelangue and team leader Tony Cruz to guide them, on the whole, the event
was going to be a first time learning experience for nearly the rest of the
team and staff. Nevertheless, BMC was very proud to have three riders able
to finish their laps around the Roubaix velodrome after the entire team
worked cohesively like seasoned “hell of the north” professionals. Though
the overall finishing positions of the riders could have been better if they
hadn’t suffered certain mishaps, there was going to be no stopping Tom
Boonen who successfully defended his title from 2008, and joined the ranks
of three-time Roubaix winners.

Really a crazy race

“Paris-Roubaix is always a difficult race, but I am really, really proud of
how our team did,” Directeur Sportif John Lelangue reported. “It is such a
challenging race not only for the racers but also for the staff that I am
enormously impressed with how well our entire team worked throughout the
day!” Though the first-timers on the team knew well the reputation of the
race and had an idea of what to expect, the reality was still a bit
shocking. “First impression was that it was just such a crazy race,”
first-time finisher Brent Bookwalter said. “We all came in expecting it to
be crazy, but the magnitude of the crowd and the nervous energy of the field
really turn this into another animal.” Inside the race itself, the BMC team
members were working well together, keeping well-positioned and watching out
for each other. “We were very lucky early in the race with few mechanicals,
and the guys were all able to keep themselves out of trouble for the most
part,” Lelangue explained.
“I was car number 24 in the caravan, though, so when one of the guys did
have a problem, their team mates or a member of staff strategically placed
along the route was there to help whoever from the team was in trouble.”

Cutting their teeth on cobbles

Alex Moos was BMC’s best finisher in 68th place. However the end result
could have been much better for Moos. Entering the cobbled section
Carrefour de l’Arbre Moos was well-placed in the main peloton, however he
had the misfortune to have had a spectator accidentally put a flag pole
through his front wheel. “Alex crashed very hard in the Carrefour de
l’Arbre and was beat-up pretty badly,” Lelangue explained. “He must have
lost 8 or 9 minutes there because he needed a new bike and it took a few
minutes for him to gather himself together.” With a cut on the head and a
bloodied knee and elbow, Moos was forced to race the last 17 kilometers on
his own. “I am really proud of how hard Alex fought to finish the race even
with his injuries,” Lelangue said. “Brent Bookwalter and Ian McKissick also
did a fantastic job of fighting to the last cobble.” “We had a bit of rough
luck on the whole as a team which brought home to us just how much good
fortune you need to do really well in
this event,” Bookwalter said. “Even with the perfect weather conditions
there were crashes everywhere.”

Props to the staff

“As well as the riders did, I can’t say enough about just how hard and how
well the staff did their jobs too,” Lelangue said. “Without the
overwhelming efficiency and professionalism of our soigneurs and mechanics,
I am certain we would have never had 3 finishers in the race.” For the
mechanics, Ian Sherburne, Vince Gee and Kevin Grove, Paris-Roubaix
represents the biggest material challenge in the entire season. “The
mechanics were able to give the riders fast and efficient support throughout
the race, and then were also available to provide any additional assistance
like with helping in feed zones,” Lelangue explained. “And our two
soigneurs, Kaycee Evans and Graeme McCallum have been absolutely invaluable
during the entire pre-race preparation and during the race providing moral
and physical support to the team.” With two feed zones to man and
miscellaneous aid to offer the riders throughout the 259 kilometer event,
the staff of five certainly had their hands full. “We laid
out a plan of military precision the night before in the staff meeting,”
Lelangue revealed. “And honestly when I saw the staff at work during the
race, it seemed to me that they had been doing this race for the past 10
years instead of this being their first time.”

Happy to join the annals of Roubaix finishers

“In our first attempt as a team at Paris-Roubaix, to have three finishers
from such a young group is a real accomplishment,” Lelangue said. “Alex,
Brent and Ian are a part of the history of finishing this event which is,
along with the Tour of Flanders, the hardest one day race anywhere in the
world.” In what was a strong first appearance at the Paris-Roubaix, the
team can feel proud of its cohesion and success. “This is one of those
races that everyone wants to finish,” Bookwalter said. “Everyone knows the
history and will push through a lot more pain; Alex’s crash is a prime
example: after a crash like that in any other one day race, he probably
would have not gone on, but since it was Roubaix he just had to keep on
fighting till the end.” Their fighting spirit bodes well for future
accomplishments.