Professional Cycling For the Fans - Why did Hamilton drop out?

Just wondering what the full story is.

Just wondering what the full story is.

This from Cyclingnews.com:

Another major rival for Armstrong, Tyler Hamilton abandoned today at the feed zone. Phonak team spokesman Urs Freuler told Cyclingnews that, "Tyler crashed badly in Angers and we didn't talk much about it, but he had a large and painful bruise on his lower back and was just in too much pain to continue. Tyler couldn't get out of the saddle when he was climbing...it's really too bad."

he also had trouble breathing properly. i feel really bad for him.

I was totally surprised to see him drop out. Although I really want to see LA make it 6, I was pulling for Hamilton to show well this year.

I heard about the whole brusie thing. I personally think its a bad loss even though Lance is the Man, Tyler is a great rider.

Tyler is a great rider, its a shame he abandoned... I think he just had a lot of other thhings go wrong also,The crash, the back, Tug-boat died, New Team etc. Just alot of emotional as well as physical things...
Next year he will fini and do better....

Drops out with a bruise but last year rides with a broken collarbone?

Sucks to see Tyler out :(

A fractured collarbone doesn't affect breathing and pedaling as much as a deep bruise in the lower back.

A fractured collarbone doesn't affect breathing and pedaling as much as a deep bruise in the lower back.

yeah - if you can't breath 100% on a climb like today's, you're in for. even mayo (who could breath) almost bonked. with his condition, tyler would have been so far out of the race even if he could finish the stage.

One of the wrap up shows had pics of tylers back (maybe the press
conference?) and it looked pretty bad.
As Tyler said, maybe you can ride the flats without
using your lower back, but try climbing without using it.
Pretty bad. .

Marty

Drops out with a bruise but last year rides with a broken collarbone?

could'nt agree more..........strange

could'nt agree more..........strange

A broken collarbone is more about pain and less about inhibiting performance. That bruise hurt his ability physically.
"With a heart rate probably under 120, I was having trouble staying in contact with the peloton."
He explains it well here: http://www.velonews.com/tour2004/diaries/articles/6609.0.html

I think it had more to do with knowing he wasnt going to win anyway so might as well drop out with a bruise as last year he still had somewhat of a chance. He's one of the,win or screw it.

I think it had more to do with knowing he wasnt going to win anyway so might as well drop out with a bruise as last year he still had somewhat of a chance. He's one of the,win or screw it.
???? Based on what? Hamilton's probably the last guy that gives me that impression.

I think it had more to do with knowing he wasnt going to win anyway so might as well drop out with a bruise as last year he still had somewhat of a chance. He's one of the,win or screw it.

Tyler has finished 8 Tours without winning. He's not a quitter by any stretch of the imagination. Read the Velonews link in the post above yours.

You trying to tell me that LA,TH,JU and the other big boys that as soon as they know they are to far back to win the TDF,they dont care where they finish? Second on back isnt in the plans,imo.

http://img24.exs.cx/img24/9950/66098523f.jpg

Those doubters among you, have you ever just pulled a little kink in your back? I have done it numerous times; sometimes just turning wrong while sitting down. Something goes BOING, and suddenly you are nearly paralyzed, you can't even take a full breath, much less a deep breath. Now consider what happened to Tyler:

Tyler crashed on, I believe, stage 6, slamming his lower back right down on the pedal of a downed bike. Think for a second about that. Your back is slammed down on, essentially, a point, with the entire weight of your body behind it, increased by the inertia of the fall. Your back is arched backwards, perhaps hyperextended. Your core, ie, torso, especially back, is the platform for much of the action of pedalling, which is exagerated when you head uphill. Several times during Sunday's programming they showed different shots of Tyler getting into the van, giving some comments, then later more comments. They showed his back with bruises all over it, not big bruises, little bruises where he hit the pedal and apparently bounced across it, hitting, and bruising, several ribs along the way. He basically said he probably could have finished the tour, but he has already finished 8 so has nothing to prove in that regard. Finishing far back would have accomplished nothing, may have aggravated the injuries, and would have been a distraction for the team. This way others may have some chances in breakaways, etc.. This is the first time he has abandoned. It's not always about finishing at all cost. Tyler Hamilton has proved himself to be one of the toughest riders in the peloton on numerous occasions. How dare anyone question him when he decides enough is enough!

Think about this, too. If Lance had an injury that was going to impair his performance to the point that there was no way he could win, even though he could probably finish, do you think he would retire? I am certain he would. He is not stupid enough to waste his resources needlessly. After winning 5 Tours he, also, has nothing to prove.

Discretion can truly be the better part of valor.

rainman,

I too have dinged my back, oddly enough reaching into an oven to remove
a loaf of bread. Next thing I know, I'm laying on the floor taking very shallow
breaths, and praying someone would remove the knife from my lower vertabrae.
I can't imagine trying to get on a bike, let alone ride it for a hundred miles a day
with a bad back.
Tyler a quiter? I don't think so.
BTW in the interview he said that the collarbone break didn't hurt nearly as much
as his back. And that the back limited his performance while the collarbone didn't.

Marty

We can question. Thats what this is about,just like all the questions last year. How dare we question,give me a break.

We can question. Thats what this is about,just like all the questions last year. How dare we question,give me a break.

Nope, nothing wrong with questioning BUT you should be better informed before you make statements that cannot be backed up such as Tyler being a "He's one of the,win or screw it" type of guy.

So, now that you have read Tyler's journal regrading his back and seen the picture, what now have you to say? This obviously is not just "a bruise" and a situation completely different than a cracked collarbone.

He would still be riding if he was within a few minutes of the lead,imo. How many was he out when finished the last stage he was in?

On stage 12 (the last stage Tyler finished) he was 9:46 seconds back
from Voekler. Remember at that point Lance was 5:42 back from Voekler.
So Tyler was just a bit over 4 minutes down on Lance, a few minutes off the
lead if one assumes that Voekler is gonna lose the yellow. And as anyone
who follows racing knows the tour is hardly decided after only one
full mountain stage.

Marty

It was also said "Tyler didnt want to abandon, his team encouraged him to abandon"
Tyler is a great rider, aside from his crashes, and as said before the injury to the back is more serious than a broken collar bone, the back affects the legs, arms, almost every body part, not to mention supporting all the weight.
I have broken a collar bone before and it didnt slow me in the least, but when my back aches its a different story...

On stage 12 (the last stage Tyler finished) he was 9:46 seconds back
from Voekler. Remember at that point Lance was 5:42 back from Voekler.
So Tyler was just a bit over 4 minutes down on Lance, a few minutes off the
lead if one assumes that Voekler is gonna lose the yellow. And as anyone
who follows racing knows the tour is hardly decided after only one
full mountain stage.

Marty
and to ride the Tour, is already a big achivement.....

On stage 12 (the last stage Tyler finished) he was 9:46 seconds back
from Voekler. Remember at that point Lance was 5:42 back from Voekler.
So Tyler was just a bit over 4 minutes down on Lance, a few minutes off the
lead if one assumes that Voekler is gonna lose the yellow. And as anyone
who follows racing knows the tour is hardly decided after only one
full mountain stage.

Marty
I agree, the tour isnt decided in one day or after one stage.
Recall last years tour, Tyler was always in or near the front of the pack in the mountains, thats where the time is made, he pulled himself to 4th and almost got podium 3rd.

[QUOTE=bianchi_rider]It was also said "Tyler didnt want to abandon, his team encouraged him to abandon"
QUOTE]
The same stage Mayo wanted to abandon, but his team didt let him.

I haven't been following the tour for two or three days and man when I couldn't find him on letour.com I came here. AHHHHHHH, thats all I wanted to say. I was pulling so hard for Hamilton this year, he looked great in early season races. AHHHHHHH, well now I guess I just want to see Azevedo go top 5(its fun to pull for a guy thats got a smaller upper body than you) and it'd be fun to see Basso hang on after a couple great showings in the mountains. Anyone know how Basso is on a TT bike?

Basso lost 4 minutes to Lance in the first time trial last year, and 2 minutes in the second.

[QUOTE=bianchi_rider]It was also said "Tyler didnt want to abandon, his team encouraged him to abandon"
QUOTE]
The same stage Mayo wanted to abandon, but his team didt let him.

I saw a clip of mayo slowing down on a mountain stage about to quit and other riders were pushing him on his back to get him to keep going. That was a real emotional moment.

perhaps Tyler should learn to stay on the bike. For a top pro he does appear to have more crashes than most..

perhaps Tyler should learn to stay on the bike. For a top pro he does appear to have more crashes than most..

Now, THAT is a point I have to agree with! I am, obviously, a huge supporter, but, damn, that guy has some bad luck. And you can't really blame it on bike handling. In the Giro last year something came loose in his cassette. In the Tour, he was right behind that huge pileup on stage one, and it got Lance and Levi, too. This year the crash that got him also occurred right in front of him with no place to go. It's not like he just falls off.

Crashes are funny things. You can crash 9 times, get up, shake it out, and go on with perhaps a bruise or scrape. Then the 10th time you land just a little wrong, and you are seriously hurt. I have had about 5 crashes. The first 4 were not big deal. The 5th was no big deal either except that I had landed right on the point of my hip bone, rupturing lots of tiny capillaries and causing a hematoma literally the size of a football that wound up requiring surgery to drain and clean out. The doctor estimated that I had lost nearly 2 pints of blood; I passed out at one point from low blood pressure. And this was a simple low-speed slip and fall on a fresh diesel spill. Imagine how it is when guys go tumbling down the road after a 25-30 mph crash amid flying bikes and bodys.