Following stage 9 of this year's Tour de France, where Tom Pidcock suffered mechanical issues and eventually finished third behind his regular rival Mathieu van der Poel, we all waited at the bus on tenterhooks.
Would the say-it-as-it-is Pidcock soon arrive back at the bus? Either grumpily storming up the stairs due to the misfortune that had cost him the chance to properly contest the stage, or air out his grievances with a full heart and clear conscience to the delight of the waiting media and to the dismay of his team.
But he instead rolled back to the Pinarello-Q36.5 bus sat on the saddle of his teammate's bike seeing as his own was broken, Quinten Hermans riding out of the saddle as he pedalled his leader home. He then hopped off before having a quick debrief with team boss Doug Ryder, and then chatting with us as he warmed down. Pidcock said he knew he would have struggled to get round Van der Poel, and that he could simply take his performance as a positive sign.
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