Sprint final à l'arrivée (Tour de France, Tour de France)
July 31, 2018 4:19 PM   Subscribe

Texan Lawson Craddock is the first American to complete the Tour de France... in last place, earning the Lanterne Rouge. He accomplished this despite a fractured shoulder blade due to a crash on the first day of the race.
After he was hurt, Craddock pledged to donate $100 for each stage he finished to help the outdoor velodrome in Houston where he got his start in cycling. The concrete velodrome was almost entirely covered with floodwaters from Hurricane Harvey last year, making new cracks appear. As Craddock kept riding in France, others joined to support the track in Texas — and the campaign raised more than $225,000.
posted by SansPoint (16 comments total) 11 users marked this as a favorite
 
In 2014, Thomas crashed badly on the Tour's first day, fracturing his pelvis. He stayed in the race, and finished 140th.
Uh...

uh...

how do that?
posted by clawsoon at 4:38 PM on July 31, 2018 [4 favorites]


hero
posted by So You're Saying These Are Pants? at 5:15 PM on July 31, 2018


As a fellow Houstonian and cyclist, I really enjoyed his shoes.
posted by thack3r at 5:35 PM on July 31, 2018 [4 favorites]


For added context: this was an especially brutal Tour, partially due to the race organizers mixing things up in a vain attempt to discomfit Team Sky. Quite a few perfectly healthy riders were forced to abandon, including a number of sprinters whose teams were really hoping would make it to Paris for the very prestigious final sprint.

So... Gaviria: gone. Groenewegen: gone. Cavendish: gone. Greipel: gone. (does this guy look like a wimp to you?) Kittel: gone. Renshaw: gone.

All these strong dudes stepped off the bike or were too slow. Dude with a fractured shoulder blade? No problem.

(lets not get into all the people who crashed and quit. That's a whole nother list).
posted by selfnoise at 5:37 PM on July 31, 2018 [5 favorites]


Bon courage, Craddock. Nous sommes avec toi.
posted by homerica at 5:57 PM on July 31, 2018


As someone who has suffered a similar injury, and couldn't finish buttoning his own jeans for 2 months, I am in awe.
posted by Chitownfats at 6:57 PM on July 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


why tho
posted by pmv at 8:21 PM on July 31, 2018


Uh...uh...how do that?

Performance enhancing drugs. There, I said it.
posted by other barry at 8:33 PM on July 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


Someone should make a GIF of Neymar flopping juxtaposed to Lawson Craddock just putting in the work like a certified badass.

He gave an interview before the beginning of stage 2 and he broke down in tears when asked if he thinks he'd be able to finish the Tour. It was heartbreaking to watch. Train all year, get picked for the team, then break your scapula on stage 1. Brutal.

I gashed my hand open mountain biking tonight and while I was dressing the wound, using headlamps, in the middle of the woods, I told my riding buddies about Lawson. A local bike shop here is selling a t-shirt as a fundraiser for him (seems to be offline at the moment).

I'm so glad he finished. He talked about how his plan was to hang in the back and just watch the peloton and avoid any more crashes. Looks like it worked for him.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 9:51 PM on July 31, 2018 [2 favorites]


In 2014, Thomas crashed badly on the Tour's first day, fracturing his pelvis. He stayed in the race, and finished 140th.

Oh man, wasn't that the year that Contador rode like half a stage with a fractured leg? Or am I thinking of someone/when else?

(I'm sorry now that I skipped most of the Tour this year, because I've loved watching Geraint Thomas for years. Well, hopefully I have many more years to watch him!)

The lanterne rouge is one of my favorite things in the world, and this story makes it even better, thank you for posting!
posted by kalimac at 9:51 PM on July 31, 2018


Not to diminish Craddock's achievement, but look also to people like Vincenzo Nibali and Philip Gilbert as well. Nibali was brought down by a spectator and fell, fracturing a vertebra. He remounted, and managed to finish the stage, even pulling back some time on the leaders. X-rayed after the stage and forced to abandon.

Then Philip Gilbert - crashed on a descent, going over the stone kerbing into a ravine. Climbed out, checked his bike was OK, gave a thumbs up to the camera and remounted and finished the stage. Again, x-rayed afterwards and out with a broken kneecap.

Bottom line: if they body part is structurally sound and won't be damaged further by riding, then they'll push through the pain.
posted by tim_in_oz at 10:59 PM on July 31, 2018 [4 favorites]


Oh man, wasn't that the year that Contador rode like half a stage with a fractured leg? Or am I thinking of someone/when else?

Yep, 2014 is when Contador tried to push on for 20km with a fractured tibia. That was not the same year Thomas fractured his pelvis, which was 2013. Thomas also had fun in 2015 when he got sideswiped into a telegraph pole and fell down a ravine, but a fan helped him climb out and he finished the stage.
posted by penguinliz at 2:22 AM on August 1, 2018 [1 favorite]


"why tho?"
I believe it's because pro cyclists are mental.
It also has the benefit of generating a ton of exposure for their sponsor thereby helping everyone in the team keep their job.
posted by fullerine at 3:55 AM on August 1, 2018 [3 favorites]


"why tho"

Performing under pain is part of the culture of professional cycling. When they're racing in the mountains, when they're properly on it, the one who wins is the one who can handle the most pain. Racing hurts. Racing uphill really, really hurts. That lactic burn you got from spinning up that hill near your house? Try 13 km at around 8% incline at race speed. Not bimbling up at a comfortable pace, but absolutely hammering up fast enough to win against all these other awesome machines. The one who wins is the one who can handle the most pain for the longest period of time

And that's just a regular day out. Cycling with broken collar bone / pelvis / knee cap? Pfft. Easy.

The much, much lamented Bir RIng Riding gives some great examples of the mindset of the pro cyclist.
posted by fatfrank at 4:43 AM on August 1, 2018 [2 favorites]


penguinliz: That was not the same year Thomas fractured his pelvis, which was 2013. Thomas also had fun in 2015 when he got sideswiped into a telegraph pole and fell down a ravine, but a fan helped him climb out and he finished the stage.

Thomas?

Thrills and spills on the Tour de France... Accidents happen now and again
posted by clawsoon at 7:52 AM on August 1, 2018


why tho?
There's no point in answering this, because in asking the speaker has made clear his or her respect (or lack thereof) for the determination and grit involved.

The fact that the very real reason Craddock buckled down and finished -- all 225,000 of them -- was included in the post drives this point home.
posted by uberchet at 2:59 PM on August 1, 2018 [1 favorite]


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