Quinn Simmons was one of the riders who was chasing
Gino Mäder down the Albulapass last June and noticed the crash of the Swiss rider, having then stopped and alerted the race organization. He admits however that the incident almost led him to retire from pro cycling.
“After the
Tour de Suisse, I flew home and I was pretty convinced I was never going to race a bike again. Just with the crash there, and seeing what happened. I got on that plane and I was fairly convinced in my head I was never going back to Europe," Quinn Simmons admits in an interview with Velo. “I was like ‘screw this, I am out’. I spent the week before nationals with my family. I made the deal with myself I would go all-in and win the race, and dedicate it.”
It was a traumatic situation, and one of cycling's most tragic in recent history. The peloton does not forget it's lost companion. As for Simmons he went on to win the USA national championships and dedicate the victory to the former Bahrain - Victorious rider. Now entering a new season, he shares that he still carries some fear of descending.
“I am working on it. I will see how I feel in the race. It was a long time, even in training I was really scared. Now I can do downhill normally again alone, we’ll see how it goes in the race," he continues. "I definitely second-guess everything now a lot more than I used to.” Simmons will start his season in the upcoming Tour Down Under, where he will be part of a team with open goals that will be chasing stage wins.
“Really I want to have a full, clean season for the first time. For one reason or another, I tend to have trouble getting a full run at things," he shares. The American team has boosted it's squad the most out of any pro cycling team over this winter, signing the likes of Tao Geoghegan Hart, Jonathan Milan and Andrea Bagioli whilst keeping all of it's leaders already. Simmons is hoping to play a role in the team's success, and has a few clear goals in mind.
"If I could start good, and be consistently good across as much as I can, and maybe I can earn my spot on the Tour de France again and make the Olympics," he concludes.
