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Riding the cobbles with Team RaceClean’s Edward Walsh

"The cobbles seem to take all the feeling out of your legs and you are just trying to hold the wheel in front of you for dear life."

April 9, 2016
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Edward Walsh
Edward Walsh takes the national junior road race title in 2014. Photo credit: Ivan Rupes

Edward Walsh of Team RaceClean has one year of experience racing on cobblestones. With a 12th place finish in Inter-Club Scheldeprijs last week (April 6), two UCI Nations Cup Tour of Flanders under his belt (he raced Flanders on Saturday April 9) along with experience in other cobbled races the Halifax native had some insight on what it’s like when the road gets rough.

>>Walsh is supported by Global Relay Bridge the Gap

Canadian Cycling Magazine: What is your experience racing on cobbles?

I’m not going to pretend to know a whole lot about cobbles but I have done a fair few races with them as a main feature now and I feel that I do well on them. They are difficult, require a lot of concentration and smooth sustained pedaling. I think a big part about riding cobblestones is mental. If you think you’re bad at them you probably will be, so be confident and wear gloves.

When you first raced on cobbles what was the biggest surprise?

My first race on cobbles came exactly one year ago at the U23 Tour of Flanders. I had done some recon with the Canadian team but on race day it was completely different. The cobbles seem to take all the feeling out of your legs and you are just trying to hold the wheel in front of you for dear life. Once you get off the cobbles all the pain in the legs catches up with you real quick.

Tell me a bit about the technique required to be good on them?

You have to develop your own style on how to ride on them. I try to focus on cadence and just letting the bike float beneath you as it shakes down the cobbles.

What do you look for when watching the WorldTour riders take on the same courses you’ve raced on? Do you use Strava to compare your segment times?

Not going to lie, we use Strava to check out some of the climbs and segments. I upload every ride I do onto Strava. When watching the WT guys we are always looking for the little things they do like what side of the road they are on, where the wind is coming from and how they react to situations. Often when watching with the RaceClean guys it’s just a screaming battle as we all cheer for our favorite rider.

Who will you be cheering for at Paris-Roubaix on Sunday?

Cancellara.

>> Learn more about the Trek Domane SLR Cancellara will be riding on Sunday

Having raced Flanders on Saturday (April 9) Walsh and his teammates will be unwinding on Sunday watching the WT pros tackle the 52-km of cobbles that feature in this year’s Paris-Roubaix. They’ll then head off to the ZLM Tour followed by stops in Belgium’s Ardennes and Northern France.

>>Paris-Roubaix previewed