Riding with Legendary Pros – Or Sort Of
Guest post by Kevin Shutt, freelance contributor to Florida Cycling Newsletter
Recently I joined about 90 riders to toe the line with former cycling pros, Bob Roll and Christian Vande Velde, (yes that duo of Tour de France legend and now international cycling broadcast commentators).
I’m strong enough to hold my own with a peloton rolling at 23+ mph when I can hide in the draft.
The “Ride with the Legends” event, hosted by St. Petersburg Bicycle Club (SPBC) on Feb. 21, brought out several hundred star-cyclists for three events throughout the day, culminating with a members-only evening and “Stories from Two Legends.”
I tried my darndest to stay with the group of the pros and did so for about 23 of the 28-mile ride, despite brief surges approaching 30 mph.
Then, our group was sustaining 30+mph. That’s when a small group of us were dropped, including Roll.
Looking over at Bobke, a nickname he’s had since he was a young pro, I yelled, “Let’s Go! Let’s Go!” as I passed him at 27 mph trying in vain to catch the Vande Veld group. However, I wouldn’t see Vande Veld again until the end of the ride.
Instead of riding in close proximity to Roll while he was relatively isolated and having a chance to enjoy some quality facetime with a real-life former pro and world-famous commentator, I found myself riding alone.
Roll was somewhere behind me riding with other club members. Despite soft pedaling for what felt like forever, I didn’t see Roll until the finish area. (I presume he was escorted there via a shortcut by some club members.)
Even so, I captured some video of Roll and Vande Velde at various parts of the ride. And after the ride, I got my obligatory selfies with them. And for the brief minute I was in their sphere, they seemed to be super nice dudes.
Julia Vasquez, President of SPBC said, “We are always trying to think creatively of ways to add value for our members. This was an incredible opportunity for us to come together as a larger cycling community - stretching beyond our club walls - and enjoy the once-in-a-lifetime experience of riding with two legends. Moreover, we got to hang with them and revel in all of the things that we all love about cycling and the Tour.”
Event mastermind, John Sinibaldi said, “Bob and Christian regaled us with stories from their time as pros, and insights into the upcoming season. Will Tadej Pogacar be unstoppable this year? Is Jonas Vingegaard fully recovered from his injuries? Who are the upcoming stars?”
However, most of their stories were more personal, enlightening and hilarious.
Sinibaldi recalled one such memorable anecdote, “Bob finished the night with a recap of an incident at the Giro d’Italia when he was racing in the 1980s.” Sinibaldi summed up the story, “I could not do that story justice, but suffice it to say, it involved several pro cyclists, roller blades in the Rome airport, and Italian police with weapons drawn. It ended well.”
Sinibaldi said, “Bob had us rolling in the aisles! Also, both of them could not have been more accommodating and gracious with their time.”
As for the 2026 Tour de France predictions: I don’t know whether they are betting men, but I am certain they would NOT bet against Tadej Pogačar.
And if I ever have the opportunity to ride with pro cycling legends again, I will ride much smarter.
Kevin Shutt
See Kevin’s cycling adventures on his YouTube Channel “Englewood Cycling”.