Mondays suck–especially when you’re a mechanic on a WorldTour team leading the Vuelta a España.
Visma – Lease a Bike says it has been hit by a significant theft during the Spanish Grand Tour, with multiple Cervélos stolen from the team overnight. The Dutch squad confirmed Monday that thieves broke into its mechanics’ truck between Sunday night and Monday morning, taking a number of bikes.
Police investigating
“Last night our mechanics’ truck was broken into and several bikes were stolen,” the team said in a statement on X. “Our mechanics are working hard to ensure the riders are fully prepared for the third stage.” Local police have opened an investigation. The incident came just a day after Jonas Vingegaard delivered a big win for Visma in the first mountain finish of this year’s Vuelta.
According to Italian outlet Tuttobiciweb, as many as 18 bikes were stolen, with the loss estimated at about 250,000 euros. The report suggested Visma may have to borrow equipment to ensure it has sufficient backup material for Tuesday’s stage in Italy.
At the Tour de France this year, the Cofidis team experienced a similar incident when the mechanics discovered that 11 of the squad’s Look bikes were stolen. Initially five were discovered, with the remaining six also recovered. It took some time, and immediately the team scrambled to get frames and Campagnolo groupsets delivered. The incident at the Vuelta shines a light on poor security at Grand Tours. Usually WorldTour teams have significant security at their service courses — where thousands and thousands of dollars of bikes, kit and gear are stored.
Monday’s stage
Stage 3 of the Vuelta a España is a lumpy ride from San Maurizio Canavese to Ceres for a total of 134.6 km. Also, it seems that not only is the Dutch team scrambling to find bikes — they will also have one less rider. Axel Zingle had a bad crash during Stage 2 and had to have his shoulder put back in on the road. However, he won’t be starting on Monday. At least he won’t need a bike.
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Canadian Cycling Magazine…