The five Cervelo bikes leaning against the Dimension Data team bus at the Tour de Romandie are a sorry sight. On board, Rolf Aldag is doing his best to rally the troops, explaining to them that if they do the basics right then the race can be deemed a success. The message to the riders is simple; stick together, look after each other, and the results will follow. Given the circumstances, it's the best Aldag can hope for, although after almost four months of this it must feel like he and the rest of the team are going through the motions.
Team leader Steve Cummings has left due to illness and Nicolas Dougall missed the time cut in the uphill time trial on stage 3. The Tour de Romandie has encapsulated Dimension Data's season, with bad luck, ruled-out leaders, and the shortcomings of a young squad unable to step up leading them to just two wins this year.
However, as Aldag explains, all is not lost. The African team has a long-term vision that will set them up for 2020, with new talent central to their future. Their current leader and talisman, Mark Cavendish, will be back in action soon, and the Giro d'Italia is around the corner, providing a fresh start. Being close to the bottom of the WorldTour rankings in April will quickly be forgotten if the team can get their riders back in action.
As Aldag steps off the bus, having given his pep talk to the riders ahead of stage 4, he admits that the current situation has taken its toll. Injuries, crashes and illness has ripped through the Dimension Data team this year with all of their team leaders either on the sidelines or on the comeback trail. In a career spanning four decades, Aldag hasn't seen anything like it.
"I've not been involved in a run of injuries like this before - not in all my time in cycling. I remember the Giant-Alpecin car incident a few years ago when they were hit by a car in training, but nothing like this in terms of so many riders, with so many injuries," Aldag tells Cyclingnews.
"Cavendish is coming back but Eisel had a fall, was ill and had surgery. Dougall injured his hand, [Julien] Vermote his shoulder, [Scott] Thwaites his back, [Mekseb] Debesay his hip, Cummings is sick, Edvald [Boasson Hagen] has his surgery and Reinardt Janse van Rensburg hasn't raced since the Worlds."
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Mark Cavendish exits the Abu Dhabi Tour after a crash on the opening day
One would be forgiven for throwing in the towel but Dimension Data, and Aldag in particular, would never consider raising the white flag. So, instead of just going through the motions he has instructed the riders to get the maximum out of each race. If they can't win, then the next best option is to learn.
For a team stacked with so many young riders from around the world, there can be no more important a task. Aldag doesn't use the term but what he's referring to could be described as building blocks. Bring in young talent and harness their abilities, but also ensure that they have the basic skill-set needed for racing in Europe. The results may not be visible now but in the future the hard work will pay off.
"The situation with injuries makes our life more difficult, and it leaves us doing some learning exercises for the young kids. We can't expect them to step up and give the same results as team leaders," Aldag says.
"It's clear that we don't have the same depth that a team like Sky has, where riders might think that if a leader is out then they have a chance. That's not what we have - we know that, and it would be unfair to expect otherwise.
Rider recruitment and the 2020 vision
Decision time
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