Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

On May 1, while China was on holiday for Labor Day and the entire nation could enjoy a rare moment of leisure, Huang Chong was in Germany, preparing to join his team for the Eschborn-Frankfurt one-day race, held on their home turf.

This race might not have been particularly important to other World Tour Teams.

But as the only German Team, Bora was determined to secure a victory on home soil.

So Aldag fielded Huang Chong, who had been resting since the Liège Race, to lead the team once again.

And the ultimate workhorse, Adrià, was his Core Deputy Commander.

The team’s German riders also had to make an appearance, so they fielded German national champion Buchman and Maximilian Schachmann.

The remaining three domestiques were all foreign climbers: Frederik Wandahl, Marco Haller, and Sergio Higuita.

Without a doubt, even though Bora Team hadn’t sent its main climbing domestiques for a mountainous race like today’s, these third-string riders were still more than powerful enough.

They had only one goal: use the domestiques to wear down their rivals on the first two major climbs, then have Huang Chong launch a solo attack on the final steep incline with 35 km to go.

The betting companies had placed Huang Chong as the third favorite to win the race.

Although none of the teams had brought their most famous domestiques, it was clear the old European guard still had some reservations about Huang Chong’s abilities.

Huang Chong, however, wasn’t bothered by this.

’Not being the top favorite is perfect. It saves me from being watched so closely by the other teams.’

He had already reviewed all the team rosters before the race. Aside from Van Gils of the Lotto Team and Neilson Powless of the EF Education Team, who posed a significant threat to his chances of winning, the only others who gave him pause were the familiar faces from the UAE Team.

The lineup UAE Team sent for this race also lacked any of their A-list riders; it was the same squad from the Milan-Turin Race.

The trio of Jan Christen, Marc Hirschi, and Diego Ulissi formed the core of the lineup, supported by riders like Nils Politt, Shuerte Bax, Filippo Baroncini, and Alessandro Covi.

Politt was of course very strong on the flats, but for a big, tall rider like him, the high mountain climbs were a struggle. Therefore, Huang Chong wasn’t concerned about him.

However, when he appeared with his team for the sign-on ceremony at the main stage today, the German fans in the stands immediately erupted in thunderous cheers.

Apparently, his performance in the Liège Race had been noticed by Bora fans worldwide, and everyone was filled with high expectations for him.

The race was 201.5 km long and featured five officially classified climbs.

But in reality, there were only two true climbs: the Feldberg and the Mammolshain.

The Feldberg would be climbed twice, with its summit at the 46 km and 117.5 km marks of the race.

The riders would tackle the Mammolshain three times, at the 91 km, 107 km, and 167 km marks.

Of course, the total number wasn’t high, but these two climbs, both located in the Black Forest Region near Frankfurt, each presented its own unique challenge.

The former was a true high-mountain climb, with a total elevation gain of 844m over 11.1 km, for an average gradient of 4.8%.

Its steepest section was in the final kilometer before the summit, reaching a gradient of 7.3%.

After his experience at the UAE Tour, Huang Chong was already well-accustomed to long, high-mountain climbs like this.

In fact, with his current FTP Power of 448 watts, a gradient like this was no longer considered much of a challenge.

The Mammolshain climb, on the other hand, was significantly more difficult.

Though only 2.3 km long, it boasted a steep average gradient of 8.3%.

The sections between 1 and 1.5 km and between 2 and 2.3 km had average gradients of 11.7% and 11.9%, respectively.

When the peloton reached the final 35 km and began the third ascent of this steep climb, it would undoubtedly become the flashpoint where the team leaders battled for the win.

If no one managed a solo breakaway here, the route to the finish was a long descent followed by flat roads. The race would likely come down to a final sprint, dramatically increasing the suspense.

Fortunately, apart from Huang Chong, there were no other top-tier climbers in the race. This was excellent news for Bora.

A total of 127 riders were participating, but several World Tour Teams were absent, such as Vismar and the Ineos Grenadiers Team.

Four Pro Teams were present: the Lotto Team, Israel-Premier Tech, Tudor, and the Uno-X Team.

This was understandable, as both Vismar and the Ineos Grenadiers Team were general classification (GC) focused teams.

With the Giro d’Italia about to begin, their competitive focus had already shifted. They weren’t interested in a minor race like Frankfurt, which only offered 300 points for the winner.

At 12:11 PM, the race officially began.

The climate in Germany in May was completely different from that of the Ardennes Triple Crown.

The temperature reached 25°C at noon, and the weather was calm and sunny—the most comfortable conditions for racing.

After the 3.5 km neutralized start, as expected, a few riders were the first to launch an attack.

But compared to the massive breakaway group at the Liège Race, this time it was just a trio of riders: John Degenkolb from Team DSM, Warre Vangheluwe from the Quick Step Team, and Jacob Mosca from the Trek Team.

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