Welcome to Wednesday’s live blog, with Jack Sexty, Simon MacMichael and the rest of the team.
Amazing vid: cyclist varies commute to ride every London street; Cav wins Derny as 6 Day London opens; London Bridge Bikes ‘clamped’; Cyclist who gave Trump the bird runs for office; Bike locked to railings stolen (the railings too) + more on live blog
All today’s news from the site and beyond…
Wed, Oct 23, 2019 19:10
SUMMARY
23 October 2019, 19:10
Wout van Aert appears at tribunal in Belgium, with former team manager demanding over 1 million euros for breach of contract
Van Aert – who is still recovering from a horror crash at this summer’s Tour de France – appeared in a Belgian court accused of breach of contract by the manager of his former team Verandas Willems-Crelan.
Nick Nuyens claims van Aert broken a contract that was supposed to tie him to Vérandas Willems-Crelan until the end of 2019; however van Aert’s contract was said to have been broken off while the team were negotiating a merger with Dutch team Rompoot, and he signed to Team Jumbo-Visma.
Van Aert told Nieuwsblad that the million euro damages claim was “a completely skewed amount”: “I would find it very strange if I were sentenced for that, but we have to wait for the verdict.”
The court’s ruling is scheduled for November 26, and if they rule in Nuyens’ favour van Aert could also be sanctioned and fined by the UCI.
23 October 2019, 19:10
This is a new one on us...
A rather unusual way to steal a bicycle. Taking the railing it’s attached to with it!
Unfortunately they were seen by officers and is now in custody.
If you are the owner of this bike please do get in touch with @CityPoliceCops pic.twitter.com/H5k7VpVsjg— City Cycle Officers (@Citycyclecop) October 23, 2019
How do you steal a bike that’s locked to some railings? Simply steal the railings, according to this ‘cunning’ London thief. Unfortunately for them they weren’t cunning enough to evade capture and are now in custody, and police are looking to trace the bike’s owner.
No of-fence (here all week) to that owner, but it doesn’t exactly look like a super bike – what lengths would this wannabe robber go to for a bike worth a few grand? Must have been rail-y desperate…
23 October 2019, 19:10
Two Volcano Sprint - a 1000Km ultra endurance race
The Two Volcano Sprint (2VS) is a not-for-profit ultra-endurance race held in Southern Italy. It’s held to promote eco-sustainability in the region and thanks to the event’s sponsors, almost 100% of the rider fees go towards an annual sponsorship grant. Read all about it on off-road.cc now.
23 October 2019, 19:10
Geraint Thomas describes chat with Prince William as 'surreal' as he collects OBE
Geraint Thomas’ ‘surreal’ chat with Prince William while he picks up OBE https://t.co/WzRjWzhJes pic.twitter.com/ga6OqebFhB
— WalesOnline (@WalesOnline) October 22, 2019
Thomas told the Press Association that it was an honour to collect his OBE, and it was a surreal moment chatting about fatherhood and sleepless nights with Prince William: “You don’t really know what to expect, but to chat to him about the rugby and my baby was surreal.”
23 October 2019, 19:10
The French Olympic logo is too sophisticated for you
The French Olympic logo tumbles out of bed on a Parisian morning. She tousles her messy bob, dons breton stripes and ballet flats and whisks down the stairs from her fifth-floor apartment to grab a baguette before enigmatically texting two men who are pursuing her romantically. pic.twitter.com/5R2PVaXaa6
— Megan Clement (@MegClement) October 21, 2019
Thanks to Pete for finding this strange yet hilarious thread about the life and times of the Parisian Olympic logo for 2024. Tweet two in the thread reads: “The French Olympic logo has an espresso and a cigarette for lunch. She hops on a vintage bicycle and pedals past the Eiffel Tower on her way to a café where she will sit and read Baudelaire with her fluffy white dog at her feet.”
23 October 2019, 19:10
Norfolk teenager known as 'Trash Girl' appeals for return of stolen bike
Nadia Sparkes, who runs the popular Team Trash Girl Facebook page encouraging litter picks and helping the environment, has had her trash collecting bike stolen overnight – her mother is appealing for information on the bike’s whereabouts.
Nadia’s litter-picking originally attracted ridicule from her peers, who would call her ‘Trash Girl’ and throw litter at her bike as she did her rounds; however she decided to own the moniker, and the bullying has since stopped. Chapeau Nadia, and we hope you get your bike back!
23 October 2019, 19:10
Sagan to ride the Giro?
Hey you! Something important will be announced tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/GR7fkoxI1p
— Peter Sagan (@petosagan) October 23, 2019
We’re hearing on the grapevine that Sagan is set to make his Giro D’Italia debut next year, as Giro race organisers RCS confirmed he would be attending the route presentation in Milan tomorrow. That news plus this tweet, means you can pretty much put two and two together.
23 October 2019, 19:10
ScotRail showing most of the other UK rail franchises how it's done when it comes to bike storage
We’re introducing carriages for bikes and sporting equipment on the #WestHighlandLine – a first on the UK rail network.
They’ll provide space for up to 20 bikes and large items like ski bags, as well as additional seating on this extremely popular route. pic.twitter.com/bBiMTYbdUe
— ScotRail (@ScotRail) October 23, 2019
Is that a useable and well-designed bike storage facility on a train we spy?? We found it hard to fathom too, but believe it or not these carriages will be rolled out on the West Highland Line soon – full story to follow…
23 October 2019, 19:10
The cyclist who stuck her middle finger up at Trump's motorcade two years ago is now running for office
Lone cyclist responds to @POTUS motorcade shortly after departing Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. (Photo: @b_smialowski/@AFP) pic.twitter.com/MKM1kVIyTY
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) October 29, 2017
You might recall this story from 2017, which started when Juli Briskman was captured on camera giving the middle finger to a procession of presidential vehicles, one of which would have contained Mr Trump. It cost Briskman her job as a US government contractor for violating their social media policies, because she used the photo as her Facebook and Twitter profile pictures – she then sued her employer in April last year, calling the sacking “unlawful and un-American”.
Briskman now appears to be capitalising on her notoriety by running for county supervisor in Virginia as a Democratic candidate, wearing a bicycle-shaped pin which might jog the memories of those she meets on the campaign trail while handing out leaflets. Also a keen marathon runner, Briskman told the Deccan Chronicle that she wanted to show there was “substance” behind her candidacy, and the she wasn’t “just the person that rode my bike one day and flipped off the president.” She added: “I can’t run against Trump, but I can run for this seat and make a difference right here.”
The election date is 5th November.
23 October 2019, 19:10
CX racer Finn Mansfield ends up going for a swim
I guess my sister filmed you there haha! pic.twitter.com/6gSlUoNCag
— Joris Nieuwenhuis (@jorisnieuwenhui) October 23, 2019
Team RST/Cycle Division rider Mansfield was taking part in the Kiremko Nacht van Woerden cyclocross race in the Netherlands yesterday evening… and somehow managed to end up in the lake that the course surrounds. Helpfully the footage was captured by a spectator, who also filmed another unfortunate rider going for an impromptu swim…
And he was not the only one.. pic.twitter.com/03rQt8kmsk
— Joris Nieuwenhuis (@jorisnieuwenhui) October 23, 2019
Replying to CX legend Helen Wyman on Twitter, Mansfield said: “I managed to lose my balance in the rut on the bank. So I toppled into the water! It was a bit of a shock.”
Perhaps a career in triathlon is beckoning?
23 October 2019, 19:10
Cyclist in Texas killed by driver after pushing his fiancée out of the way
27-year-old Devin Custer was cycling with his fiancée in Harris County on Monday evening, when he was struck from behind by a vehicle travelling in the same direction. According to a GoFundMe page set up to pay Custer’s medical expenses, he “heroically saved his fiance’s life by pushing her away from the vehicle, sacrificing his own life.”
Authorities are investigating, but no charges have been filed yet.
23 October 2019, 19:10
Are you seeing this, Great Western?
Wow – can @ScotRail please give @GWRHelp some advice !! https://t.co/8xsAL4aP5p
— Dr Bartington (@cllrbartington) October 23, 2019
Our story regarding the new ScotRail bike carriages is proving popular, and hopefully might provide some handy tips for other rail operators who are thought to be lacking in the bike storage department…
23 October 2019, 19:10
A London Bridge shopping estate appears to be 'clamping' bikes - but is it even legal?
Hi @LDNBridgeCity why do you persist on clamping your customers bikes? This guy was just visiting a shop on your estate & it looks like a normal pavement. No signs indicating otherwise and no bike parking in eyeshot. @TeamLondonBdg @jackskillen pic.twitter.com/R28mCMskoa
— Will Bradley (@W_Bradley) October 22, 2019
The photo captured by Will Bradley shows a bike that has effectively been ‘clamped’ by the private shopping estate London Bridge City, with a cable secured around the frame with a padlock. The customer was reportedly shopping on the estate, and there was no signage to indicate that bikes couldn’t be locked on the private property – or even that it’s private property full stop.
This is completely unacceptable and possibly illegal. No signage and seemingly close enough to the road to make it under public jurisdiction. Enough of this privatisation of public space creating a hostile environment for cyclists. @SadiqKhan @se1 @Southwark_News @bridgewithout https://t.co/SIjJS3Nozl
— Dr Matt Cole (@MattColeWorks) October 23, 2019
Being as car clamping on private land has been illegal in England and Wales since 2012, does that same law apply to bikes? If so, London Bridge City might be locking themselves into an unwinnable legal battle by continuing to chain up bikes on their estate. In the last couple of hours, London Bridge City have responded to Mr Bradley on Twitter to say they “understand your (his) frustrations.”
We’re getting in touch with legal eagles who are friends of the site to get some expert opinions…
23 October 2019, 19:10
Cav wins derny race as 6 Day London gets under way
Mark Cavendish was back to top form as he won the derny race on the opening evening of Phynova 6 Day London at the Lee Valley VeloPark yesterday evening – a venue where, in 2016, he teamed up with Sir Bradley Wiggins to win World Championship gold in the Madison.
This week, Cavendish is partnered by Owain Doull, who alongside Wiggins helped Team GB win a third consecutive Olympic team pursuit title in Rio three years ago.
Cavendish’s success came in the final event of the evening, but it’s the French pairing of Bryan Coquard and Donavan Grondin, who led the standings with 100 points.
“That was hard. I stayed at the back of the field, to just suss out how everyone was going,” said Cavendish.
“Caleb [Ewan] jumped earlier than I thought and that was tough, it was right until the line. I was lucky I had Michel (Vaarten, derny rider), we’ve raced together for many years now and I’m feeling good. It’s always great in London. I got a great reception from the crowd when I came out and that was amazing.”
Tickets for the rest of this week’s racing start at £19 and can be bought here.
23 October 2019, 19:10
Bored bike commuter varies route ... and four years later has ridden every Central London street
A London cyclist who became a bit jaded with his commute started riding alternative routes – and, four years later, has taken in every single road on the A-Z map of Central London on his way to work.
In a blog post about his travels, Davis Villums said: “I am a passionate cyclist, and I love the streets of London. Most of my travels are daily 25-minute rides to work.
“Over time my route became boring. I decided to make it a little bit more interesting by taking the parallel streets on my way there.
“I bought a map of central London and started to colour in the streets to mark the routes that I have taken. And then I got obsessed with it.”
He tracked all his rides on Endomondo, then used the data to produce this rather mesmerising video which shows how he covered every street that features on the London Super Scale A-Z Map, which he also coloured in as he went along, with the end result shown in the picture at the end of this post.
He added: “That was an enjoyable waste of time, and I liked every bit of it, planning, executing and then colouring in the streets and paths where my route took place.
“I found it a great way how to discover new areas in London and familiarise all the boroughs of central London. This journey for me made every corner of central London feel like home.”
Davis has also spoken to Londonist about his exploits, and you can read that interview here.
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Jack is group editor across road.cc, off.road.cc and ebiketips, overseeing all three sites in the F-At Digital group to make sure everything’s up to scratch. He’s been writing about cycling and multisport for over a decade, arriving at road.cc via 220 Triathlon Magazine in 2017. He worked across all areas of road.cc including tech, news and video, and also contributed to eBikeTips before being named editor of road.cc in 2021 (much to his surprise). Jack has been hooked on cycling since his student days, and currently has a Trek 1.2 for winter riding, a beloved Bickerton folding bike for getting around town, and an extra beloved custom Ridley Helium SLX for fantasising about going fast in his stable. Jack has never won a bike race, but does have a master’s degree in print journalism, and two Guinness World Records for pogo sticking (it’s a long story).
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Latest Comments
mdavidford 9 minutes ago
Happens on a regular basis - seems to be one of the many exciting new 'features' of the new platform.
kinderje 10 minutes ago
@Rendel Harris Thanks for that - every day's a school day. I had actually put 'Pedant mode off' under my comment but it didn't post and then as we all know, and are frustrated with, we can't edit posts any more. I will not correct anyone again - however, -ize still looks too American English for me. Cheers
HarrogateSpa 12 minutes ago
We also have a greater volume of traffic, including on residential roads which were once quiet. Spending billions on infrastructure such as protected cycle tracks and modal filters is the only thing that will lead to mass cycling. Look at London. Why is there mass cycling there? Infrastructure. The Netherlands? The same reason. And often the only way to achieve meaningful change is reallocating some space and priority from motor vehicles, which is why the government's 'don't scare the horses' attitude is concerning.
Rendel Harris 19 minutes ago
You think there might be a clue to that in the name "City Light Set"? Marking it down because it's no good for fast riding on unlit roads seems somewhat akin to buying a micro-hatchback and then complaining that it's rubbish at pulling a plough.
quiff 27 minutes ago
This is like something from a kids' activity book. "The editor has a bit of a hangover this morning. Can you help him match the headline to the correct story?"
Rendel Harris 44 minutes ago
@kinderje Are you aware that -ise endings are actually the newer form, having supplanted -ize (as used by Shakespeare, the King James Bible and Jane Austen, amongst many others) in the mid 19th century? Etymologically there is a far better argument for -ize endings for words with Greek and Latin roots than the -ise ending which arose from Victorian publishers imitating French verb endings. Both endings are now regarded as acceptable in British English, although the Oxford style guide recommends -ize. It is most certainly not incorrect.
mdavidford 52 minutes ago
@Backladder Given that the makers are selling it as being useable on any ride on open roads, it doesn't seem unreasonable to try to test it in those conditions.
mdavidford 55 minutes ago
'Leasting'? That's a whole 4 letters less.
mdavidford 59 minutes ago
Although usually the easiest thing of all would be for them just to stop for a few moments while you cycle past them (which requires a lot less space to do safely than them passing you), but most people seem allergic to stopping, even for the briefest time.
mark1a 2 hours ago
@Backladder Oh I think I can guess - the nearest indoor velodrome to road.cc HQ looks to be some distance away in Wales, whereas Odd Down Cycle Track (where this test was conducted) is just 2 miles away.
24 thoughts on “Amazing vid: cyclist varies commute to ride every London street; Cav wins Derny as 6 Day London opens; London Bridge Bikes ‘clamped’; Cyclist who gave Trump the bird runs for office; Bike locked to railings stolen (the railings too) + more on live blog”
I’ve wondered about that
I’ve wondered about that before – if the railings you’ve locked to are thinner than the KryptonAbus Seriously-Just-Don’t-Bother three tonne lock you’re using, wouldn’t a thief consider just cutting through the railings?
brooksby wrote:
In this case it seems all they needed was a basic spanner to unbolt the section of fencing,
brooksby wrote:
…and the railing is just iron, not hardened steel. Unfortunately it’s often the only option for locking a bike, so you don’t really have a choice. I try to lock around the thickest bar and around several bars if possible, so that they would have to make several cuts, ideally in places that are hard to reach. The pic looks like the lock goes around two bars (a thick and a thin one).
Apparently the Olympics is in
Apparently the Olympics is in Paris in 2024.. This tweet about the logo deserves a mention – https://twitter.com/MegClement/status/1186368272037494785
peted76 wrote:
Link doesn’t work for me and what does it have to do with todays blog?????
Natrix wrote:
Absolutely nothing.
Try this https://twitter.com/MegClement/status/1186368272037494785?s=20
peted76 wrote:
The second tweet in the thread references a vintage bicycle so I consider it fair game to share on this here blog… cheers Pete!
Jack Sexty wrote:
Absolutely nothing.
Try this https://twitter.com/MegClement/status/1186368272037494785?s=20
— Natrix The second tweet in the thread references a vintage bicycle so I consider it fair game to share on this here blog… cheers Pete!— peted76
Best. Twitter. Thread. Ever.
Perhaps a radical pedestrian
Perhaps a radical pedestrian just hated guardrails and wanted to remove them, and the bike just happened to be in the way?
(I’m surprised you think the bike is “worth a few grands” – new value might be a few hundreds but second-hand on a dodgy website perhaps a two-digit number?)
Stephan Matthiesen wrote:
The key word is *would*
I could be wrong, but there
I could be wrong, but there may be another side to the railing story. On Monday they were removing railings around Bank junction in the square mile and at the time I saw one bike attached to a railing being left rested against a wall. I’m wondering whether this is a case of another bike being left when they were doing a similar removal job and an opportunist thought they’d grab it.
squired wrote:
Wouldn’t the contractor bear corporate responsibility for the theft, in that case? If they’re not properly safeguarding someone else’s property that they have removed?
brooksby wrote:
Quite possibly. The one I saw on Monday had been removed and was left resting against a wall where it wouldn’t get in the way of the large number of pedestrians, while the workers were continuing to remove the remaining railings. As a result I doubt they were paying attention to the bike because it seemed like quite hard work removing those railings.
Looking at that bike I´m
Looking at that bike I´m guessing they where actually trying to steal the railing. Also keeping the bike attached probably made moving the railing easier…
The trying-for-office
The trying-for-office American cyclist ought to have just pretended she was adjusting her hair, then she would have gotten away with it!
https://gizmodo.com/did-president-trump-give-the-middle-finger-to-women-ast-1839217817
I think the cyclist who did
I think the cyclist who did the same to BoJo, the apprentice, should stand against him too; my money would be him.
Can’t even wear a helmet
Can’t even wear a helmet properly, the helmet!
If Sagan is riding the Giro,
If Sagan is riding the Giro, does this mean none of his individuality in the Tour?
Secure parking at London
Secure parking at London Bridge City plus a free lock cable, and all for the price of a heavy duty set of bolt cutters. What’s not to like?
a private video of Cav taking
a private video of Cav taking the win https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYSDsmsKMsQ
Chapeau to the London
Chapeau to the London commuter, i hope hes got decent bike security rhough as he’s just published his home and work addresses.
On the Will Bradley story –
On the Will Bradley story – can road.cc follow this up with him? London Bridge City say in his tweeter thread to email them to discuss, so I wonder what they have said (as regards: lack of signage/warnings, lack of ‘legitimate’ bike parking (apparently), etc etc).
brooksby wrote:
I’d also be interested to know how they justify / rationalise the clamping. There are numerous security guards patrolling the site, so I can’t imagine he waited long to have the bike released, and to be fair there are 10 Sheffield stand bike racks about 200 yards from where the bike was clamped (and at least a further 3 public bike parks of similar or higher capacity on the estate). But why they clamp is beyond me. Perhaps a misguided and illogical answer to security concerns since Southwark Crown Court and City Hall are both on the estate?
EDIT: because I work near here and I’m tragic, I counted up the bike parking nearby – I counted 167 Sheffield stands within a couple of minutes’ walk of where the bike was clamped. Clamping bikes might be out of order, but you can’t reasonably complain (as some are on Twitter) that they haven’t provided an alternative.
Watched day 1 of the Six day
Watched day 1 of the Six day thng last night, great entertainment! However a zwift race was included.. that seems plain odd to me, I can’t imagine the crowd were particuarly interested in watching it. Surely they turned up to see bikes whizz round a track not 30mins of people getting sweaty on a turbo, it was dull as dishwater to watch despite the best attepts of the presenters and cameramnen