Features


Dutch star Marianne Voss talks to Bike Pure

World cyclo-cross champion Marianne Voss, who has also won world and Olympic championships on the track as well as the world road race title,  is one of the latest riders to sign up for Bike Pure, the Ireland-based organisation that in less than two years has become a major voice in the campaign for a clean sport, free of doping.

The launching season – Endura Racing team

Travelling to the Porsche Driving Experience at Silverstone motor-circuit for a cycle team press launch seems a little odd, but ours not to reason why and all that, this is a team launch and a certain measure of oddness goes with the territory. It’s an early start and a long drive along the M40 to get to the really rather posh Porsche building where a 911 is blatting about on the adjacent circuit, maybe we’ll get to have a play later. That would be fun.

Core 2010 Fixed bikes: All City, Cinelli, Identiti, Light Blue + coming soon…Token

Fixed bikes were well to the fore at last week's Core Bike show with a really interesting selection of machines reflecting how diverse the one geared bit of the road cycling world is becoming. We've already showcased the track classicism of the fixed version of Colnago's Master X Light and featured the new line of Traitor bikes here and here, so let's take a look at what was on offer from Cinelli, All City, Light Blue and Identiti.

2010 ProTour bikes and kit - who's riding what this season

Cycle sport's top teams are already battling it out in the first ProTour race of the season so let's take a look at what they will be riding this year. The 2010 season sees two big new teams on the block in the shape of RadioShack and Team Sky and the usual merry go round of riders and changes to sponsors and equipment suppliers.

The Scrapheap Challenge!

During quiet moments I often find myself hatching cycling challenges; they provide me with tangible reasons to get out on my bike and train, especially during the cold winter months. “Something to aim at”, as Tom Simpson would say. Some challenges, however, seem to appear out of left-field and, no matter how ridiculous, plug away at my subconscious until I do something about them.

Confessions of a sportive virgin…

As 2010 gets under way, with Christmas flab still settling, your New Year’s resolution might be to ride sportives for the first time. David Else recalls a rookie season, and offers a few words of inspiration.

It all started when I couldn't fit into a pair of trousers. Christmas and New Year had taken their toll on my waistband. My wife said I had middle-age spread. And that was enough. I dusted off my old steel bike with its 27-inch wheels, and took up road cycling again.

50 years on: Italy remembers Fausto Coppi

Italy has this weekend marked the fiftieth anniversary of the death of one of cycling’s true greats, Fausto Coppi, with a series of events in his birthplace, Castellania, the town where he lived much of his life, Novi Ligure, and Tortona, where he died from malaria on 2 January 1960 at the age of 40.

Milan Show Part 2: Passoni, Rossin, Renova, SAB, Vektor, Whistle… and vintage work bikes

At the end of September Jo Burt and I headed out to Milan to check out Italy's top bike show. In the first installment of our adventures we looked at what the likes of De Rosa Casati and Montante had to offer.  Now it's time for another trawl through the sublime and the ridiculous (which being Italian could easily pass for sublime too) as we look at the bikes being displayed by some less well known brands and from an ultra-bling one and we've included one of our Milan videos too - more of those in our video section. 

Training: The Rocky road to better cycling performance

Keep your hands up, he’s hurtin

Keen and excited for the season ahead? Nervous about your impending form? Worry not; I have the solution, the Balboa solution. Simply follow these three steps and I will guarantee you a better season than last. No magic or potions, just a trio of easy steps and progress for any competitive cyclist will result. Measurable improvements in personal best times, stage race placings or club run sprints. 3 simple progressions.

Milan Cycle Show Part 1: De Rosa, Casati,Corraro, Bottecchia, Basso, er NoBrain…

Most of us will have heard of Bianchi Colnago, De Rosa and Pinarello Italy's successful international bike brands, but there are other great Italian bike companies with a long history too, Casati, Guerciotti, Carraro, Bottecchia and Basso may be not so familiar but they've been around a long time too … and new ones like Guerra, Montante, and NoBrain that you won't really see outside of Italy. To find out what they are up to you need to go to Milan.

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