It's a little odd and sad to read Bicycling magazine's Q&A with US cyclist Saul Raisin.
The 23-year-old pro racer from Dalton, Georgia, was severely injured in a crash during the Circuit de la Sarthe about three weeks ago. The cyclist for the Credit Agricole team has been hospitalized ever since, part of the time in a medically induced coma.
The accident must have happened after Bicycling's press deadline for its June 2006 issue, as there's no mention of the accident (although it has been reported on the Bicycling website).
Raisin comments on riding in Europe, the fans, his specialty of climbing. The Stage 3 winner of the tour de Langkawi in Malaysia this year, Raisin also talked about his ambitions:
“Each year I try to push my level and see how far I can go with what I have. This year I will be riding my first Grand Tour, the Giro d'Italia, so I would like to do well, place in the overall. I would like to see myself in the Top 10 in the Tour de France in a couple of years.”
Those ambitions are on hold indefinitely as Raisin recovers from a ruptured blood vessel in his brain. Saul's parents, Jim and Yvonne, report on the Saul Raisin Racing blog that their son is off the respirator again (he pulled it out the first time), can sit up in a chair, and is talking. The infection in his lung is clearing up, and he may return to Georgia soon.
Raisin was scheduled to race in the Tour de Georgia last week with the Credit Agricole team. The peloton wrapped their handlebars in green tape in support of Raisin on the day they raced from Dalton.
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