Author Archives: Patrick Santino

2021 Preview: Team DSM (formerly Team Sunweb)

“O! how they impressed us all! For on paper, quite frankly, their Startlists for the biggest races appeared to be a list of cannon fodder riders to be chewed up and spit out the back as the roads started to climb. And yet this was the team that won three stages of the Tour, the team that almost won the Giro d’Italia—putting two riders on the finishing podium in Milan.”

THE INTRODUCTION Stage 3 – EVERY BIKE RACE: A MINI-ODYSSEY

“To do a single day Classic or weeklong race can be a mini-Hero’s Journey of its own for so much can happen in a matter of hours or over the course of a couple days: people have gone from Zero to Hero many times in the course of these races. But for a rider to do their first Grand Tour: that will 100% of the time be a Hero’s Journey on its own”

THE INTRODUCTION Stage 2 – A SPORT THAT WOULD GIVE HOMER GOOSEBUMPS

“The purrs and revs of a sleek Formula One racecar’s engine would certainly catch Homer’s fancy before the simple pedal-powered bicycle used by youngsters who cannot yet drive an automobile. Ah! But this is Homer. He would only be distracted by these objects’ appearances for a few moments, then he would immediately start fathoming the well of compelling struggles these human-powered bicycle machines could provide.”

THE INTRODUCTION: Stage 1 – WHEN CYCLING WAS KING

“I remember combining the pieces I saw and the pieces I heard of the 2010 Tour and how my imagination produced such a thrilling race based on the simple idea that the Grand Tours are the epics of modern day myth. And then I look at writings of people like Dino Buzzati, and I see a blueprint of how to stress and expound the gravitas of this sport. And so here I am, why not set out to follow in the footsteps of the giant journalists from cycling’s Golden Age?”