Vale Isaac Galvez

Man, what a bummer. Yet another cycling tragedy in the space of a few days. This year sure has had it's fair share of tragedy, on the open roads, and now on the track also.

I don't want to fall into any of the 'he died doing what he loved' cliches, but Isaac Galvez died riding one of the most beautiful events in cycling- the Madison. There is perhaps no other race in cycling that better emphasises the team nature of cycling, and the bond felt between racing cyclists. For me the handsling is the most profoundly beatuiful demonstration of solidarity in sport. Reaching back to grab your team mate, and slinging them back into the fray.

Galvez lived a brave and beatiful life, that made thousands of cycling fans happy throughout the world. I hope his family and friends can draw on the same courage Isaac exemplified to pull through what must be an incredibly diffciult time.

I'm sure many riders today will be having that terrible 'there but for the grace of God go I' feeling. Hopefully this incident will lead to improvements in track safety- namely some sort of protective padding around the top of the track. Cycling is a tough and dangerous sport, but there's always more that can be done to improve safety.