The Peloton - its takes all kinds

Here are some quotes from some of our favorite racers. Its mind boggling to think of all the training rides and roads that these folks have been on over the years. I think that Hampsten summed it up the best.


"You can't get good by staying home. If you want to get fast you have to go where the fast guys are."
-Steve Larsen


"Racing isn't 'Boy, I feel great, everyone's falling over, I think I'll just ride away'. That's not it at all. If you're just not sick and your tires are full, you can't ask for anything more."
-Andy Hampsten


"On the last lap I used to feel like I was being hunted from behind. I hated that, so I've changed to thinking about the guys in from of me, no matter how bad I feel".
-Paul Willerton


"I didn't have any typical teammates. There was no particular criteria. I refused to have racers who were even rumored to be on drugs or steroids. I placed importance on spiritual and moral values. Those who are with me must posses an inner sense of the race, knowing when to fan out at the proper moment, when to control the escapes without my intervention. I hate to have to give orders."
-Eddy Merckx


"It's a love/hate relationship, and it's not until you come back that you remember how much you hate it."
-Sean Yates on the TdF


"I'm proud of what I've done in the Tour, but you have to keep your perspective. It's just a bicycle race after all."
-Miguel Indurain


"I unloaded my anger on the pavé".
-Andrea Tafi, after winning the 1999 Paris-Roubaix


"We went too far, I think. You don't enjoy cycling any more. Look at the speeds we do. The season is never-ending. You have to train so much, you have to be so skinny, if you eat a piece of cake you're overweight."
-Max Sciandri


"There are so many fads in this sport. One good way to figure out if something is a fad is if it costs a lot."
-George Mount


"Getting up at six and racing up a col from the gun is a bitch."
-Jacky Durand


"Don't buy upgrades, ride up grades."
-Steel Wüleur


"My biggest fear is that they will confuse me with another racer."
-Claudio Chiappucci


"Who am I? Where am I? Oh yes, I'm at the Tour so I should get on my bike and go. Where is my bike?
-Djamolidin Abdujaparov's first words after his historic crash in the TdF 1996