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Bears crash Quick-Step Floors training camp, eat the team’s food and spook riders at night

Fernando Gaviria, Iljo Keisse and Maximiliano Richeze were training in Lake Tahoe when their house was broken into by a family of bears

June 3, 2018
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A family of hungry bears interrupted Quick-Step Floors pre-Tour de France training camp in Lake Tahoe, California late last week. Colombian sprinter Fernando Gaviria, and his teammates Iljo Keisse and Maximiliano Richeze were doing an altitude camp following the conclusion of the Tour of California.

When the riders returned to their house after a training ride on Thursday, they discovered a family of black bears had broken into their Lake Tahoe accommodations. The bears ate some of their food but had left by the time the team members returned.

The bears had been spotted the day before outside the house. Keisse recounted what happened in a series of Tweets. “So yesterday this bear family visited the Wolfpack, mom chilled a bit in the shadow and in the meantime her 3 cups where playing in our backyard… So cute!” he wrote.

That is not where things ended though. Keisse and his teammates rode 120-km then hit the gym for an hour on Thursday. When they returned to their house they were in for a big surprise. “But then they got hungry and decided to let themselves in. We were out training luckily… They made a little mess and didn’t leave a thank you note,” Keisse Tweeted.

The bears did some damage to the house as they scoured for something to eat. They found what they were looking for in the fridge and had gotten their fill by the time the riders returned.

The Wolfpack, as the Belgian team have come to call themselves, were amused and no worse for wear after the first encounter. The next night they got a bit of a scare as the bears returned.

“Later last night they all came back…That was not so cute anymore, we love you guys but bear hugs, no thanks!” Keisse Tweeted.

The team were well aware of the danger of bears in the area. Last year, Matteo Trentin crashed into a bear while descending in the same area. His helmet saved him from any serious injury. Before the bears raided the house, Gavaria Tweeted, “Looking for bears but cannot see any. Enjoying these workouts with the team.”

The team have been on a tear in 2018 with a total of 36 wins at the beginning of June.