The Shimano camp
Photo: © Chris Davidson

Wrenchin' in the USA: The Chris Davidson diary 2005

Chris Davidson is a mechanic for Shimano Multi-Service doing neutral tech support at road and mountain bike races..

Chris' diary entries show us what life is like inside the pits and give an insight into the mind of a mechanic.

Index to all entries

Grand Tour du Grande Montreal and Montreal World Cup - May 27-June 2, 2005

June 2-3 2005: Day Seven in Montreal - Day One in Philly!

The last day of the Grand Tour de Montreal, and finally the circumstances that we had hoped for. We would start as the leader in the points, sprints and overall GC competitions. We would be car #1 in the race caravan.

The final road race course was new to the tour, so due to the lack of familiarity that riders asked for the 12-27 cassettes. The profile on paper showed one big climb per lap, including an uphill finish. In the end the climb was not as hard as was feared and the race was easier to control for the team. Very little got up the road in the first two laps, and Nurnberger went to the front for the bonus sprints to secure the extra seconds available. In the last three laps small breaks got up the road, one containing Kirsten Robbins (Equipe Canada) the caused other teams to chase to protect lower GC spots. This played right into our goals and kept the race together. Late in the race three riders, all over 25 minutes down, got away and took the stage and the finish bonus seconds. This played right into our needs, Oenone crossed the line under the safety of her teammates and we claimed the overall victory. A fitting end to a strong consistent week for the girls.

Immediately after the stage I load a rented minivan with the bikes and extra equipment and started the drive to Philadelphia. We got going at about 8:30pm from Mont St-Hilaire and rolled in to Philly at about 4:30am. The stop at the border was much quicker than we feared. At the race hotel in Philly, it was impossible to find anyone that knew how to get us into the bike/mechanics room due to the early hour. However we got everything unpacked and got to bed at 5:30am. The girls fly in tonight at 7:00pm, so I have a little time to unpack, tune and get the bikes ready, get checked into the rooms and get the luggage sorted. It is raining right now in Philly, so it is questionable whether the girls will go for a spin tonight or not.

My goal today is to make their transition to Philly as seamless as possible. And to get myself back on a normal sleep schedule. The forecast for Sunday is dry, and calls for a blue reign. More tomorrow on the rest day before the race!

Chris Davidson

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