A taste of heaven in Hell: Peter Post, 1964 (II/VI)
March 22 nd 2018 - 10:24
Luck and fortune are sometimes a decisive factor in Paris–Roubaix. Twists of fate, false moves and strategic blunders can all make the favourites' best-laid plans go awry. Opportunists who fish in troubled waters can become heroes for a day and get a taste of glory in the Hell of the North. In 1964, track cyclist Peter Post opened up the throttle to settle an old score with Rik Van Looy and claim the biggest win of his career with a new speed record.
Back in the early 1960s, cobbled sectors were disappearing from the course of Paris–Roubaix at an alarming rate as roads in the north of France were resurfaced left, right and centre. However, the 265 km race was still a fiercely contested affair, with favourites such as Stablinski, Janssen, Poulidor and Altig all struggling with punctures and falls. Big favourite Rik Van Looy, who had already won the 1961 and 1962 editions, was caught napping at the back of the bunch when the opening salvoes were fired on the Côte de Doullens. Fate had given Peter Post a long-awaited opportunity to wreak vengeance upon his former leader and he chased it with a raging fire in his belly.
The gutsy Flandria rider spared no effort to drop his rivals, with just four men left in the leading group by the time they reached the Velodrome. Post, a monster of six-day racing, was in his element as soon as the race hit the track. Benoni Beheyt spent his last drops of energy to attack, but Peter Post used his raw power to overtake the reigning world champion and become the first Dutch winner of Paris–Roubaix. It was also a record average speed of 45.129 km/h, which stood until Greg Van Avermaet won the 2017 race with an average of 45.204 km/h. After retiring in 1972, Peter Post kept chasing victories as the team manager of TI–Raleigh's golden years, with riders such as Raas, Kuiper, Knetemann and Lubberding claiming no fewer than 56 Tour stage wins. The icing on the cake came when Zoetemelk won the race outright in 1980.
