After the first stage of the Giro d'Italia three weeks ago, I wrote a short article, “Who is this Christian Vande Velde?” when he had won the pink leader's jersey in the opening team time trial.
Just last night I received an e-mail from Jim Freibert, the former race director for Chicago's West Suburban Wheelmen and track announcer for Northbrook Velodrome. He's a long-time friend of the Vande Velde family and was able to fill in the huge gaps in my story about this long-time cycling family. He agreed to let me run the e-mail on the blog:
“Having ridden with the previous generations of Vande Veldes who were founders, mentors, and sponsors of Chicago's West Suburban Wheelemen – I know most of the old Midwestern bike racers from the '60's, '70's, and '80's knew Christian's grandfather, Al, and great uncles Babe Vande Velde, and Henry Van Leuven as regulars at Northbrook velodrome, and other races, especially in Illinois and Wisconsin.
This weekend, Al lost a long, hard fought battle with cancer. Rumor has it that, his brother, and brother-in-law are still riding, maybe racing, and finishing rides as long as Michigan's Apple Cider Century – in their eighties. God only knows how many youngsters, and younger riders Al, Babe, and Henry pulled on 20-40 mile training rides and tours through DuPage County, and Illinois' Fox River Valley for a few decades. They inspired younger men and women to meet by a clock between 5:10 – 5:20AM throughout the year,… until ice, snow, or sub-freezing temperatures kept us inside. Otherwise, the elder Vande Veldes finished off club rides at 6:30, or a little later on weekends with coffee, and to “pull the leg” of younger and lesser riders. Many national champions a few other Olympians, and luminaries like Eddy Merckx, visited the family, and rode on a club training ride that was as regular as the trains on the adjacent commuter tracks going E-W out of the loop, out to the cornfields.
Christian's father was one of the youngest riders on the 1968 Olympic team, and rode with other champions in the first renaissance of American cycling. (Co?) Captain of the 1972 Olympic Track cycling team, John raced against/with legendary Century Road Club of America riders, John Allis, Dave Chauner, John Howard, and others who dominated the sport as American cycling blossomed for the first time in fifty years,… they were the young leaders before Greg LeMond and the great junior riders, and before the 7-ELEVEN era. In the mid-seventies, John raced with Jack Simes III in European pro six-day races, placing in a couple major events. The second generation Vande Velde was among the sports leaders of PRO when the USA first had enough riders to actually have a competitive team in international events. In 1979 when the Oscar winning movie, “Breaking Away,” was made, John was cast among the Italian “bad guys” (only one, another WSW rider, Pietro Lazarra, was actually Italian!) on team CINZANO, along with Eddy Van Guyse, and Carlos Sintes.
Fifteen, twenty years later Christian Vande Velde and his sister were both national/Olympic caliber athletes, and Christian was repeatedly selected as one of America's top amateur cyclists before moving from national championships on the track – to the professional ranks, as a road racer. It was in his genes, and for the last several years he's placed in a number of domestic and international races, including winning the 5-day Tour of Luxembourg. While he's consistently played a supporting role for top champions, Lance Armstrong, et al, on any day for years he's likely to have been the #2 or #3 American in il giro d'Italia, Le Tour, or the Vuelta in Spain (his home away from home)'s standings, just missing a Tour de France stage win, consistently placing well in Time Trials, until the last few years when he's risen to the top rung of the ladder. Aside from Levi Leipheimer, he has the best record, of top placings in the Amgen Tour of California, for Team CSC (9th then 6th), then as you said, third in 2008 for Team Slipstream – after yet another great Time Trial. When Team Slipstream's goal was to “go pro!” it wasn't that Jonathan Vaughters had to remember, aside from Levi Leipheimer, Vande Velde would be a first round draft pick, an anchor, a big engine, and quarterback quality rider – right along side of other “clean” American racers like George Hincapie, Chris Horner, Levi Leipheimer, and Dave Zabriskie.
Successful bicycle racing teams are made up of a variety of talents, to excel in a variety of races. The U.S. Postal/Discovery team built around Lance Armstrong was the exception, and not the rule. Most Pro Tour teams are built more like a basketball team, with centers, forwards, and guards, or all-rounder G.C. champions, climbers, sprinters, and time trialists. For the last few years Christian Vande Velde has been one of the few Americans who has had the talent to do as well as most, at more of these things, and on some days, like the first the first, or last days of this Giro d'Italia, maybe better than anyone. If you'd seen the start of the 2008 Amgen Tour of California, stage 6 in Santa Barbara, the only riders you'd have seen next to Christian (Most Aggressive) and the other leader's jerseys, Levi in (GC-Yellow/Gold), were a half dozen World Champions – that's who Christian Vande Velde is – the rider who's been in the headlines – maybe some of us have not been reading!” …
“Forgot to mention that Christian as a neo-pro won the overall title at the 1999 Redlands Classic, the biggest stage race we had in SoCal before the Amgen tour of California. He did pay his dues as a domestique for the world's greatest Tour de France racer, but he's been more of a super domestique, or rouller, as I believe the French refer to those riders who are big engines, respectable time trialists, capable of winning many smaller races on their own – but indentured to serve champions – no coincidence that “C” served on the team that won 7 consecutive Tour de France, did a short stint in Spain (the European “home” of most Americans racing in Europe), then spent two years on the world's #1 ranked team, CSC. Bjarne Riis, arguably one of racing top tacticians was sorry to see Christian leave when he was recruited to add power and experience to the young, “clean” American Team Slipstream. In summary, think you may have hit the nail on the head when you stated we're likely to hear more about Christian. He may be racing into his best years on a Felt bicycle, powered by Chipotle.”
I can't wait to see all the Slipstream-Chiptotle guys in the Tour de France. What a great opportunity!
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