The Night

Zurich is just a day's ride from Munich so dropping by to see some of the UCI Road Cycling World Championnships was almost obligatory. Given the atrocious forecast for the women's race I decided I would go see the men's edition instead. Mere minutes after Kopecky won the stripes on Saturday I was on the bike, rolling west.

I chose the most straightforward route that didn't involve a ferry across Lake Constance, the major milestones were Landsberg, Memmingen, Bregenz and Winterthur. The alterative candidates I rejected because they would have entailed higher maximum elevation, meaning significantly colder than it already was going to be. One highlight that I didn't have on the radar so far was the town of Mindelheim with its stunning historic center. Memmingen to the Austrian border disappointed though. I expected more from that hilly Allgaeu section.

Once more I visited Bregenz and took my customary photo at the quai. The Swiss leg had by far the most stunning parts, emphasized by the spectacular lighting during sunrise. With this the ride ended on a high note; I couldn't have asked for a better prelude to the World Championships!

The Cold

While not cataclysmic, the forecast for Sunday was still grim so I packed more warm clothes than usual. That proved a wise decision as temperatures soon dropped below ten degrees and the air remained chilly until mid morning. Cold and humidity conspired to suck life's essence out of my bones: the Lake Constance area was veiled in thick fog gradually turning me into an onio of four layers of clothing.

Despite the crushing humidity I got lucky with the rain which I had to endure no longer than an hour while I was closig in on Memmingen. Much of the later roads looked as though they'd seen plenty of precipitation in the hours before: there were puddles everywhere and debris littered the road surface, but not a single drop from the sky.

The Race

After a few outrageously expensive cups of coffee in Winterthur I went to see the (neutralized) start and then rolled on to Zurich. I reached the circuit before the first lap. To add some variety I moved along the circuit clockwise with every pass of the race.

The crowds on the Witikon berg were incredible, their euphoria increased with every meter of elevation. From the POV of a spectator on the ground the group composition remained fairly stable for most of the race once the break had gone. Then all of a sudden Pogacar is on the move, initially leading a group of a handful of strong riders to catch the echappe, then at the front in an uneven pair, and finally all solo during the penultimate lap. A monumental ride to rival his triumph at De Ronde.

Come to think of it, the three times that I've seen Pogacar ride so far he won: 2022 Strade, 2023 Flanders, and 2024 WC. Apparently it's hard to see him not win, winning is just his thing.

Zurich left a big impression as well. I'd seen it many times by now but it never excelled through hospitality and entertainment. Today it just had it all; and the thousands of curious cycling fans that it attracted made for a pleasant experience as well. Easily one of the best bike races I've seen in person, not quite scraping the Ronde sphere but very close at least.

gallery