I've only been watching pro cycling for 18 months and went from basically not knowing anything to superfan.
So I thought I'd put together some random observations of what watching cycling is like for a newbie who gets hooked. Maybe that's interesting to some who have been in this for very long 😊🧵
So I thought I'd put together some random observations of what watching cycling is like for a newbie who gets hooked. Maybe that's interesting to some who have been in this for very long 😊🧵
Comments
I'm very tempted to try my hand at writing something, but also quite interested in what @kris.to has in mind from his earlier hint 🤔
In mountain stages things happen in slow motion. There are few people involved and commentators have time to explain everything. Sprints on the other hand are a blur and almost impossible to really appreciate.
I feel 2025 will get fewer new viewers in because of it, but sometimes the sprinters need their shot at yellow 😊
This is a bit of a weird observation, but it means it's kind of hard for new fans to understand who commentators are talking about. It took me several stages to tell apart the most important teams, and literal months to recognize all of them.
It’s also why some kits are iconic and instantly recognizable - Postal, the LeMond Mondrian kit, Telecom Pink, Ineos with the red stripe…
Most newbies' entry will be via a GT, where the GC is the big talking point. It took me a while to understand that that's just one aspect of cycling, as it's the only one really widely known to non-fans in my country.
The 1st TdF stage is the most likely out of any race on the calendar to be the first cycling race someone ever watches. If it's boring, they may never watch again. If it's a banger, they may get hooked forever.
The “arenas” of the sport are accessible to everyone - I’ll never get to take the mound at Fenway, but if I want to go ride the hills in Belgium or France, all I need is a plane ticket.
Almost all importance is historic, teams take part in races across several different divisions, making it hard for newbies to understand what divisions there even are and there is no good, easy to find resource to break that down.
While there are few "beginner" resources, the ones for cycling fans are great and so is the community ❤️
Their face is shaped slightly differently (Mick‘s cheeks are wider), Mick leaves his hair slightly longer at the sides and in the back, leading to more curls there. And Mick‘s shoulders are completely straight on the bike while Tim‘s a a little sloped down.
I hope that helps 😂
Now you can practice with this quiz 😅
So UAD 01 could be Pogi etc
Also, it would really help if commentators ever explained the numbering system - i.e. each team getting consecutive numbers with the same starting digit. That helps so much, but I didn't know about it for several months, because no one ever mentions that that's a thing.
Leader wearing n1, team mates thereafter in alphabetical order n2-n6/7 depending on size of team. Unless the team has multiple leaders!
You end up looking for minor details too. Shoe or sock colour. Closed helmet or open.
Riding style & cadence. Froome's elbows!
Yate's pedal dancing
I think if someone really pays attention to/watches a lot of sprints, it’s not that complicated
The overall sprint however is another story. Soooo much going on...
During races I find it helps immensely to have a start list with bib numbers open.