I was ostracized when I openly talked about being afraid of crashing. ‘It’s part of cycling’ ‘Man up and deal with it. It’s what your paid to do’ ‘Should retire if you don’t like it’ The roads haven’t become more dangerous, it’s the mentality that needs to change.
"The roads haven’t become more dangerous, it’s the mentality that needs to change" - Dan Martin calls for more reasonable approach to racing from riders
CyclingMonday, 15 April 2024 at 08:30
It's been more than two years now since Dan Martin retired from professional peloton. Yet the winner of stages at all three Grand Tours remains active in the cycling world, sharing his insight and opinions on some of the trending topics. One such is worrying tise to amount of dangerous (and often avoidable) crashes in the bunch, taking some of the biggest stars off the competition for quite some time.
"I was ostracized when I openly talked about being afraid of crashing. 'It’s part of cycling.' ¨'Man up and deal with it. It’s what your paid to do.' 'Should retire if you don’t like it,'" Martin lists on X some of the reactions he recieved. Those who thought these come from sofa warriors, Martin confirms these words came from people within the cycling bubble.
"The roads haven’t become more dangerous, it’s the mentality that needs to change. Of course routes can always be safer. But the pressure on riders to take risks and always be at the front is greater than ever. Speeds are higher and Guys are more willing to take risks and more willing to crash."
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