“Yeah, longest race, longest ride” – American debutant Colby Simmons reveals Tour of Flanders was his longest ever ride
Cycling
Colby Simmons made his professional debut for EF Education–EasyPost on one of the sport’s grandest stages, Sunday’s Tour of Flanders. While Tadej Pogacar stole the headlines with another dominant win, for 21-year-old Simmons, the 269km race wasn’t just his longest race to date, it was the longest ride of his life!
“It was about yeah, two weeks ago or so. I knew I got the contract, and once you get the offer, it's something you can't say no to. And with an American team especially, it's even cooler.”
Simmons was a late addition to the Flanders squad, receiving the call-up only days before the race.
“About a week or a week and a half or so ago. They said there might be a possibility with some guys getting injured and such. And then, yeah, it's something that you can't say no to; it's just super special!”
Despite the obvious fatigue, Simmons reflected on the experience with pride and humour.
“Yeah, longest race, longest ride… it's crazy,” he said to Cycling News. “I thought I was feeling pretty good, but then it turns out they hadn't started going hard yet. Once they decided to rip it up the Kwaremont the second time… that was all she wrote. Suffering, suffering the whole time. But yeah, happy. Happy to get to the end.”
He added, “I'm happy, just happy. Happy to finish and then do what I could for the team. And I think it went well.”
The American won’t have long to rest. His next assignment is another legendary test: Paris–Roubaix.
“Roubaix, so another Monument, which is super cool. I love it. It's an opportunity that not everyone gets, so I'll take it for sure.”
Racing alongside the world’s best might be intimidating, but Simmons is embracing the challenge with perspective and determination.
“It's definitely, definitely super special, but at the end of the day they're here racing and we're here racing, and then of course they're better than everyone. But you can try, try, and try and beat them, but it is what it is.”
Just in
Play for FREE! Fantasy Paris-Roubaix
Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter today!
Popular news
Latest comments
- Shoulda , woulda, coulda.... pundits can say what they like cycling isn't quite like that and that's what keeps us watching, what keeps sponsors interested etc etcslappers6611-04-2025
- One bike throw at Flanders and a series of mechanicals at Roubaix, and yes, he could have won both, and Van der Poel would have two less on his list. Wout van Aert will likely never reach the magical space of the year he won on Ventoux, the TT, and the Champs Elysées during the Tour, and he's just that tiny notch below the best right now, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a chance. It's Paris-Roubaix, you never know who is going to really make the difference.RidesHills11-04-2025
- The race is NOT on MAX. It's on NBC Sports (Peacock).Ben11-04-2025
- Hard men heal quickly.bobo11-04-2025
- Always reassuring to see articles that explain timelines so well, almost 3 months since when, mid-October then? But if Wout can come back like he did in 5 months so can he. By May he should be in top form again, just in time to let it settle in a while for July. Happy you’re back Remco, go catch em.Mistermaumau11-04-2025
- Yeah, sorry, you said it yourself, it’s the Olympics, not a WC, not a Tour, not a monument, not a team event, not a cycling gala. A once every 4 year event to bring nations together to celebrate the diversity of sport, so what if breakdancing has been included instead of 30 more cyclists who are paid pros? Know your Olympic history, remember drawing? The whole reason of the Olympics is for mainstream public to discover sport they rarely notice, for sports to showcase themselves to public that doesn’t usually watch and in order for athletes from lower ranked nations to participate with the elite for once. The US (now Jamaïca) have known this problem since dominating sprinting but there is no solution, you cannot resolve the Celebrate every nation vs Have only the best equation, it has to be a mix. Already nations with more than 1 cyclist have an advantage, being able to work as a team. As for those countries that can’t keep up, all the better for the elite’s chances, don’t knock it, and sorry but if you allow a Kiesenhofer to win gold, you don’t deserve any medal as an elite. The races have been fine with those that took part, just improve so you make your national selection, if you don’t make that, you don’t really deserve a medal anyway do you?Mistermaumau11-04-2025
- so excited to see remco back!! Cycling only gets better from herebruins3011-04-2025
- That tire clearance means little with the new UCI rules on tire width.Veganpotter11-04-2025
- If you do the rounds on non-Anglo commentators you’ll find plenty more, every cycling nation has good and bad ones.Mistermaumau10-04-2025
- Nathan is one of the best former pros commenting during races - up there with Sean Kelly and Nico Roche imo - McEwen, Blythe, you can keep themCrashjames10-04-2025