It's likely that the broken wrist that George Hincapie suffered at the Amgen Tour of California will keep him sidelined during the Paris-Roubaix — a bike race he's always wanted to win.
At his website, the Discovery Channel pro cycling team rider said he had surgery to repair the radius (a bone in his arm), but was unable to make predictions about how quickly it will heal. Team manager Johan Brunyeel told Eurosport that he'll probably miss the April 15 Paris-Roubaix, because of the miles of jarring cobblestones the cyclists cross.
Meanwhile, Hincapie says that, like many of his fans, “I'll be logging some hours on a Computrainer while I heal.”
Pla d'Adet
He'll also probably be checking on the progress of his Pla d'Adet residential development and performance training center near his hometown of Greenville, South Carolina.
I first heard about this over at the Bicycle Design website, where the blogger rides some of the same training routes as Hincapie and is familiar with the development site from the so-called Bakery Ride. The development is named for Hincapie's first Tour de France stage win in 2005.
The plans were announced last month by Hincapie and others involved in the development: Rich Hincapie, George's brother, President of Hincapie Sportswear, Inc., Ron Vergnolle and Alex Crawford, owners of PHC Communities LLC, a South Carolina-based real estate development firm, and John Helmers, the principal of Swiftwater Capital Management, LP, an investment firm.
Cycling
Located 22 miles north of Greenville, the development will comprise 85 1.5- to 2-acre homesites, a hotel, conference center, restaurant, media center and a fitness and training facility called the Hincapie Performance Training Village. The 35,000 facility will offer weight training, strength and conditioning equipment, a 25-meter indoor pool, group cycling studio among other amenities.
Outside there are two four-mile tracks, one for running and one for riding.
The concept has been described as similar to a golf-course/housing development, except the central theme is cycling. In fact, a golf course development branded to golfer Gary Player is going in nearby at The Cliffs of Mountain Park. Both developments are near US 25 in northern Greenville County.
Fast track
This $30 million project must be on the fast track, as it's scheduled for groundbreaking over Labor Day weekend at the end of summer and completion in spring 2008. Start saving your pennies if you want to move there: homesites will go for $500,000 to $1.2 million apiece, depending on locations and views.
The Queens, NY-born cyclist moved to Greenville several years ago and touts the area for its positive influence on this bike training. His clothing company, Hincapie Sportswear, is also based in Greenville and he might have had influenced the US Pro Road and Time Trial National Championships being held there last fall (coming up Aug. 31 – Sept. 2, 2007). He won the road championship in 2006.
Let's hope the 33-year-old Hincapie hangs around in cycling for a few more years, as he's had Paris-Roubaix in his sights a long time. He was forced out with a shoulder separation when his bike malfunctioned and he crashed in 2006; the year before he was aced out at the finish line by Tom Boonen to finish second.
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