Richmond 2015 UCI Worlds: Showing Some Power

As I said earlier, the Belgium team was litter with amazingly strong riders.  They went to the front of the peloton as the group swung onto the cobbles of Libby Hill yet again driving the pace to shuck as many sprinters as they could.  Sprinters are notoriously bad climbers, so this course implies that it wasn't going to be a sprinter pulling on a Rainbow Jersey at the end of the day.  Many of the roads in Belgium mirror the steep cobbled climbs of Richmond.  Although I suppose that it was Richmond that was mirroring Belgium.  One would deduce that this was a race for the long legs of Tom Boonen, and he was the one leading the team up the climb on this lap.  I suspect that he hope to intimidate his rivals into submission.

This is a small original watercolor and ink painting that was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.richesonart.com.  The works were done live in the middle of the Fanfest area across from the awards podium as the racing was going on.  Prints and the originals will be available before very long at www.richmond.com (the website of the Richmond Times Dispatch newspaper).

Richmond 2015 UCI Worlds: Looking for Their Sprinter

I quickly lost count of how many laps the peloton had made, but I never lost sight of just how strong these men are.  As the German lead peloton crested the cobbles of  Libby Hill, Tony Martin swung his head around to make sure he still had the two German sprinters, John Degenkolb and Andre Greipel.  It should be interesting to see who the team has designated for the sprint, the duo spent the Tour de France contesting all of the sprint stages against each other.  Degenkolb rides for Giant Alpecin and Greipel for Lotto Soudal.  The Germans had brought an incredible strong group of riders to Richmond, and the fans were thrilled to see them.

Since I was painting all of these works publicly, Bettina Martin was sitting next to me watching as I painted this of her son.  Needless to say, she left Richmond with the original and a number of prints in her suitcase.  Plus, she is an incredible kind and charming woman.

This is a small original watercolor and ink painting that was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.richesonart.com.  The works were done live in the middle of the Fanfest area across from the awards podium as the racing was going on.  Prints and the originals will be available before very long at www.richmond.com (the website of the Richmond Times Dispatch newspaper).

Richmond 2015 UCI Worlds: Back Underway

Tom Boonen (Belgium) had a flat tire as the peloton approached the Libby Hill cobbles for the second of the 15 times up to the high point of Church Hill and of the course.  Boonen, ever the professional, was calm as he slipped back into the convoy of following team vehicles.  He knew that it was extremely early in the race and he would have no trouble getting back into the fold.  Boonen is one of two former World Champions on the Belgium team that are on course for the final race of Richmond 2015 UCI World Road Racing Championships.

This is a small original watercolor and ink painting that was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.richesonart.com.  The works were done live in the middle of the Fanfest area across from the awards podium as the racing was going on.  Prints and the originals will be available before very long at www.richmond.com (the website of the Richmond Times Dispatch newspaper).

Richmond 2015 UCI Worlds: Headed Up Libby

There was a lot of chatter about how flat and easy the Richmond 2015 course was when it was announced, but the peloton changed its tune the first time they road up Libby Hill, 23rd Street and Governor's Street in race conditions.  The only man in the peloton who had grown up with the course was Ben King (USA) and his local fans made sure to scream their support as he climbed the Libby Hill on the lead in the first lap of the day.  Many non-cycling fans asked me if the riders had let King ride out on the front.  First he was out there for over 100 kilometers, so "letting" didn't enter into it.  But the question reminded me of Jens Voigt's response to a question about being allowed a solo lap of the Champs Elysees in his final Tour de France, "In cycling nothing is given, it must be earned."  Ben King worked hard to have the honor of leading the entire Elite Men's field through his hometown of Richmond, Virginia.

King was followed up the climb by Carlos Alzate (Colombia) and then the rest of their break away companions.  They were surrounded by thousands of screaming fans and the crowd would keep growing as the race progressed.

This is a small original watercolor and ink painting that was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.richesonart.com.  The works were done live in the middle of the Fanfest area across from the awards podium as the racing was going on.  Prints and the originals will be available before very long at www.richmond.com (the website of the Richmond Times Dispatch newspaper).