It is funny how an individuals perceives pressure on himself that affects his performance. It can motivate/focus or hinder you just depending on your mindset. I for one, thrive on pressure when I’m feeling like I can perform. But, I hate it when I’m not sure of my ability.

I remember one time riding the Vail Time Trial in the Coors Classic that this came into play. I was riding for La Vie Claire and was going pretty well. But I was apprehensive about my tt’ing ability uphill. Paul Koechli, the team director, came up to me an hour before the tt and told me that I was supposed to just ride the race and not race it. I was supposed to be fresh for the criterium that afternoon. It was such a relief. It was so nice not warming up and kind of surprising to me to observe has crazy nervous all the other riders were getting prepared. It was sort of like coming late to a party when everyone else is already wasted and you’re completely sober. Everyone seemed so silly.

Anyway, the Vail TT goes along the frontage road back towards Vail Pass and is gently rolling uphill for 5 miles and then climbs for about the same amount. It is the same TT that US Pro Cycling Challenge is using next month. I just cruised on the frontage road, going probably around 23mph. When it crossed under I-70 and started up, everytime I got a little winded, I’d just shift in the back and spin. Krestel bicycles was just starting that year and had made me a custom 58 cm frame to show at the race. I was so within myself, I could nearly have a conversation with all the spectators pointing out the frame and commenting.

Anyway, before I knew it, there was the 2km sign. I thought, “shit, that is just over a mile.” So I shifted into my big ring and rode off my seat to the finish. I wasn’t close to tired. Anyway, I was surprised that no one caught me from behind. I waited at the top for the guys behind and it seemed like forever before anyone came. I saw my friend, Nathan Sheafor, and he said that I was going the fastest by far of any rider he had seen at the finish. Anyway, I ended up finishing crazy good. I don’t remember the place, but I’d guess it was somewhere between 8-15th. Way better than I could have ever expected. I couldn’t understand it. I rode so easy, but had a super result. The only downside to this whole thing was that I caught a ton of shit for Koechli about not saving myself for the team. I guess he was right.

Anyway, this was an example of how lack of pressure made me perform better. I think that is one of the main reasons that Cadel is having a super Tour de France this year. Actually, having a super year this season. Lack of external pressure. I think that he is performing better because he has realized that he can only do what he can do. I’ve known Cadel for a really long time and have watched him handle pressure fairly poorly sometimes. When he got into the pink jersey in the Giro, way back, I told the guys on the ride that there was no way that he would hold the jersey because he was going to crack. I’m sorry to say I was right. But after talking to him after the Tour last year, I realized that he is much more mature and in a much better situation for a good mindset. I don’t think that BMC is putting anywhere near the pressure on him to perform as other teams he’s ridden for. And it is working. He seems to be relaxed and focused.

The Tour de France has come down to 4 races now. 3 road races and a TT. The pressure is mounting for all the riders, but Cadel seems to be in the drivers seat at this moment. Those descending skills, from MTB racing or where ever, seemed to serve him well today.

Not the same road graffiti as when I rode. I doubt Nike put this here.

Since descending has come to the forefront the last couple days at the Tour, I figure I might as well add my worst descending day to the mix. James Urbanas was kind enough to remind me of descending Trinity Grade at the Coors Classic one year. It was the same year I wrote about yesterday doing the Vail Time Trial.

The day before the race, I received a custom carbon Krestrel bike and new shoes. I wasn’t planning on wearing the shoes, I was just setting the cleats. Anyway, my mechanic was helping me with the cleats. He was tightening the bolts as I set the cleats while on the bike. He loosened the pedal tension to the easiest so my cleats wouldn’t twist when I clipped out.

So the next day, the stage was from Nevada City to Sacramento. Trinity Grade is around a 3 mile climb about 10 miles into the stage. It was a good climb for me. Pretty short and fairly steep. I never got over the top with the likes of Lemond or Andy (Hampsten), but usually got over it at the front of the 2nd group. The descent off the top is pretty tricky. The first right hand sweeper/switch back is decreasing radius.

Anyway, I went to the front of my group to lead the descent. I was in a group with Davis Phinney, who climbed incredibly that day. Coming to the right hand corner, I set up the corner on the outside, going hard into the corner, with all my weight on my outside, left pedal. But, that wasn’t good, since there was virtually no pedal tension. My foot instantly came out of the pedal, which through all my weight to the left and I straightened out and rode straight off the edge of “the cliff” without braking at all. It was pretty insane. I have a vivid memory of it still. I was flying through the air heading straight for a tree. I think I twisted a bit, but the outcome was that I hit a tree, maybe 15 ft. up. Actually, my bike hit the tree and stopped and I just kept going. I tumbled down the hill all the way to the ditch of the road below. I was pretty shocked. I didn’t move for a bit and then I look up and here is Davis and my group riding by. They’d ridden to the next switchback and when they came by I was just laying in the ditch, probably moaning.

So, I get back up and start back up the hill to get my bike. I was surprised to find out that I only had one shoe. My right shoe was still clipped in to the pedal. So, I get my bike, but the final bit was too steep to walk. By then a support car, I’m not sure if it was my team car, had stopped and some guy helped me with my bike. I got back to the road and they were guys everywhere. Lots of riders had fallen on the corner. A guy slid out while I was sitting there putting my shoe on. I’m not sure if it was the cars screwing up the rider’s line or what, but it was carnage.

After I’m all good, I clip back in and get going. I still am at virtually the very top of the descent. I wasn’t in a rush, but still was going down the hill pretty quickly. Nearly at the bottom of the descent there is a blind, tight left hand corner. I don’t quite remember what was the setup, but the outcome was not good. In the apex of the corner was that there was a European team car parked. I got hard on the brakes, but slid into the car sideways and launched over the hood and landed in the ditch.

I wasn’t good. But, I had landed right next to my friend, Don Sutton, who I’m staying with in La Jolla with now. He was laying there from the exact same scenario. I thought I was hurt, but he seemed worse. We weren’t in much of a rush to get moving. My bike was miraculously okay, so eventually we got moving. Eventually we got into the last grupetto. A bunch of Dutch TTT guys pulled the whole way to Sacramento as we sat on. Don was complaining about his arm hurting.

When we got to Sacramento, Trudi was crazy worried. Davis had told her that I had fallen badly early and was unconscious in a ditch. I was okay, just battered up some. We still had to race the Old Sacramento Criterium that evening. When I got to the start of the criterium, Don came walking up with a cast on his arm. He had broken his wrist.

Anyway, that was my worst descent ever. Not that either of the crashes were really my fault. Well, the first one might have been. I should of noticed the lack of tension on the pedal when I clipped in at the start, but obviously didn’t. It’s the only time I can remember falling descending. And I’ve never come close to falling twice in 2 miles on same descent. It’s kind of like Jonathan Hivert (Fra), who was in the break today, in today’s final descent in the Tour, if you watched it today. That was a descent he’d like to forget, but it’s going to be ingrained in his memory forever.

Scott Nydam climbing the Trinity Grade a few years ago at the Tour of California.