Race Report: Hugo at Fixed42

Fixed gear racing is always a wild one, but throw some rain into a brakeless bunch of heavy hitters and you’re in for an extra action-packed time. Hugo returned to race the streets of Berlin, where he was crowned the winner just two years ago at Fixed42 the fixed gear world championships.

Words below from Hugo Foulon.

"I arrived in Berlin two days before the race and had the chance to set up and check that my Cinelli Vigorelli Rainbow was perfectly tuned during the course reconnaissance. This year, I decided to use a relatively large gear ratio 53x13 because I anticipated a fast and intense race due to the rain.

On the morning of the race, the road was completely soaked, but thankfully, it had stopped raining, which was good news. I started on the front line, and as usual, I made a lightning-fast start, immediately setting a very high pace to stretch out the pack.

We quickly realised that the wet road was extremely slippery, and at every turn, several riders would go down. I decided to stay at the front to stay safe. I ended up expending more energy than the others, but at least I avoided all the crashes in the corners. Before entering the autobahn, we were already averaging 47 km/h, and once we got there, that’s when we really started pushing. It was also at this point that it began raining again. With the speed, water spraying everywhere, visibility was zero, and the race continued to be particularly tense and dangerous.

I tried to initiate two successive breakaways after other favourites were delayed by crashes, but unfortunately, neither of them worked out. Once we were off the autobahn and back in the city, I wanted to control the pack, so I attempted one last attack to try and break away, but once again, I was quickly neutralised. 

It was at the moment I decided to settle into the second line to rest a bit that three riders broke away. By the time I realised it, they had already gained some distance, and I couldn't tell who they were. Since we were in the city, these three riders took the corners faster than the pack, and they pulled away without us being able to catch them.

From that moment, I knew we were racing for fourth place, which didn’t interest me. In the mass sprint, I decided not to sprint and to stay safe, finishing in 20th place. We ended up racing these 40 km at an average speed of 49 km/h, without brakes, without gears, without freewheeling, on a drenched road. To me, this race is like a parachute jump that lasts 50 minutes, haha.

In the end, I'm a bit disappointed to have missed the right breakaway, but that's part of racing. I'm mainly happy not to have crashed, to have raced a full race, and to have been able to play it the way I planned.

There’s your plan, and then there’s the plan of the other guys, haha... 

Next year is a new chance!"

Photography: @bjoern.reschabek