you ever take it off any sweet jumps?

July 17, 2019 12:37 PM

Jumping a bicycle over the Tour de France peloton, like you do.
posted by cortex (34 comments total)

Maybe I'm just Too Damn Old™, but if anything had gone wrong, he could have seriously injured a lot of people. :/
posted by xedrik at 12:41 PM on July 17, 2019 [22 favorites]

It's "becoming something of a tradition."
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 12:45 PM on July 17, 2019 [2 favorites]

like you do

At this point, it is pretty much "like you do". This happens very year now.

Edit: jinx!
posted by sideshow at 12:46 PM on July 17, 2019

So that's what this sign means
posted by Reyturner at 12:48 PM on July 17, 2019 [13 favorites]

Living the dream with a rad wheelie in stage 7.
posted by peeedro at 1:12 PM on July 17, 2019 [1 favorite]

Hold my beer...
posted by Keith Talent at 1:18 PM on July 17, 2019

1. Plan an insane stunt.
2. Successfully pull off the stunt.
3. Friends drop you on your head (@1:21).
3. ...
posted by Greg_Ace at 1:20 PM on July 17, 2019 [1 favorite]

The fact that the celebration here almost ends with the rider almost being dropped head first onto the pavement has a certain je n'ais se quoi for me.
posted by nubs at 1:25 PM on July 17, 2019 [1 favorite]

if anything had gone wrong, he could have seriously injured a lot of people.

Maybe they shouldn't have a bicycle race that goes under a well-established mountain biking jump?
posted by explosion at 1:37 PM on July 17, 2019 [3 favorites]

Maybe they shouldn't have a bicycle race that goes under a well-established mountain biking jump?

From reading the article linked here notes that the people doing this find the landing site first, then build the jump. If anything is well-established here, it would seem to be the bicycle race.
posted by nubs at 1:40 PM on July 17, 2019

I thought maybe the lack of reaction from the riders was a case of don't-see-gorilla-playing-basketball-when-you're-concentrating, but I guess if it's something they see every year that explains it.
posted by clawsoon at 1:46 PM on July 17, 2019

1. Plan an insane stunt.
2. Successfully pull off the stunt.
3. Friends drop you on your head yt (@1:21).
3. ...

E. Learn to count. (-_-)
posted by Greg_Ace at 1:53 PM on July 17, 2019

Yeah, this seems like a douche move to me. Any number of things could have gone wrong and injured who knows how many riders who did not consent to having some rando jump a bike over the peloton, and who depend on being able to ride for their livelihoods.
posted by slkinsey at 2:07 PM on July 17, 2019 [5 favorites]

Yeah, having an object appear above you when you don't expect it could have easily freaked out the riders in the peloton which could have caused a chain reaction pile up.

I know I have encountered similar things while skiing and it is very disconcerting when someone appears above you when it is unexpected.
posted by mmascolino at 2:16 PM on July 17, 2019 [2 favorites]

> Any number of things could have gone wrong and injured who knows how many riders who did not consent to having some rando jump a bike over the peloton, and who depend on being able to ride for their livelihoods.

A planned stunt by an experienced rider which does not interfere with the course is guaranteed to be less dangerous to the competitors than the things drunk and/or enraged and/or vain spectators do nearly every year.
posted by ardgedee at 2:21 PM on July 17, 2019 [7 favorites]

"Peloton" means "fearless" in finnish and I was very confused as to why the post calls the Tour de France fearless and not the jumper...
posted by Pyrogenesis at 2:29 PM on July 17, 2019 [1 favorite]

From reading the article linked here notes that the people doing this find the landing site first, then build the jump. If anything is well-established here, it would seem to be the bicycle race.

Yes, the bicycle race is a mere 114 years older than the jump, although I believe explosion was making a joke.
posted by sideshow at 2:50 PM on July 17, 2019

Ah. That's my mistake then.
posted by nubs at 3:01 PM on July 17, 2019

A planned stunt by an experienced rider which does not interfere with the course is guaranteed to be less dangerous to the competitors than the things drunk and/or enraged and/or vain spectators do nearly every year.

Not to mention the dogs, TV cars, inflatable infrastructure, policemen...
posted by inire at 3:45 PM on July 17, 2019 [3 favorites]

Yeah, there's definitely some risk here but for everyone concern trolling about the peleton's safety, the godaamn spectators REACH OUT AND TOUCH THE RACERS in many tight sections, especially along slow climbs. Chris Froome punched a spectator in 2016! It's hardly the only time that's happened!

These jumpers are carefully planned and rehearsed and are pretty respectful in comparison.
posted by GuyZero at 3:48 PM on July 17, 2019 [4 favorites]

Also, quality jump, solid landing. The guy who did the forward flip on a road bike previously still holds the crown I think.
posted by GuyZero at 3:49 PM on July 17, 2019

Also on the list of things actually dangerous to the peloton: thumbtacks on the road!
posted by GuyZero at 4:10 PM on July 17, 2019

Large organized road races aren't a thing in the UK any more because none of them have the budget to sweep for tacks effectively
posted by scruss at 4:24 PM on July 17, 2019

Not to mention the dogs, TV cars, inflatable infrastructure, policemen...

...musette bags, cardboard signs...

I was just remembering the Flecha/Hoogerland barbed wire crash the other day.
posted by Chuffy at 4:42 PM on July 17, 2019 [2 favorites]

Oh, that's the guy who pole-vaulted over the New York Marathon last year. I hear he's training a horse for next year's Kentucky Derby stunt.
posted by moonmilk at 4:57 PM on July 17, 2019

This stunt is pure joy.
posted by Nelson at 5:34 PM on July 17, 2019

XTREMEEE
posted by interrupt at 6:35 PM on July 17, 2019

Yes, there are other things that are just as--if not more--dangerous to the riders. That doesn't mean this jump wasn't a bad idea. You can put these bad things on a scale, but the presence of one bad thing doesn't make the other bad things somehow disappear.
posted by zardoz at 8:30 PM on July 17, 2019 [2 favorites]

... and suddenly a bunch of roadies realized that they had squandered their youth
posted by thedamnbees at 11:48 PM on July 17, 2019

Needs more E.T. in a basket.
posted by pracowity at 2:17 AM on July 18, 2019 [1 favorite]

for everyone concern trolling about the peleton's safety

No one is "concern trolling". That has really degenerated to the level of saying that people saying something you don't like are "whining".
posted by thelonius at 3:44 AM on July 18, 2019

Not whining or concern trolling, no. Somewhat lacking a sense of proportion, perhaps.

(And speaking of developing traditions, I see Richie Porte has crashed again, good lord. Was he rude to a witch on Twitter?)
posted by inire at 4:13 AM on July 18, 2019

At least he made it past the 9th stage? (I'm okay with this - he's reportedly been a bit of a jerk at times this race.)

This is interesting to watch, and I agree it held a certain level of danger for the peleton. At the same time, those riders only had maybe a second to register it while they're focused on what they're doing. If the jump had been lower maybe more dangerous, but at that height, their speed, I think they blinked, moved on, and didn't care.
posted by Atreides at 10:03 AM on July 18, 2019

If they were looking anywhere it was at the road, not the sky.
posted by ardgedee at 12:54 PM on July 18, 2019 [1 favorite]