Hill-climbing king Andrew Feather amazes the world again… by riding a bike with bar tape; “It’s totally possible to enable driving, active and public transport together”: Tales from the Netherlands + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
"I fell asleep on my bike and crashed into a fence": The final finisher from the 2023 Transcontinental Race recounts her epic ride across Europe
"It's totally possible to enable driving, active and public transport together": Tales from the Netherlands
As you can see from my video, the Netherlands is certainly not a car-free utopia. It also shows it’s totally possible to enable driving, active and public transport together.
By providing genuine transport choices, it frees up space for when the car is the best tool for the job. pic.twitter.com/qDfZ1wPl8B
— Adam Tranter (@adamtranter) November 2, 2023
You don’t want to see how depressing a similar time lapse would be from my front door… rutted pavement ‘bike lane’ with lampposts, trees and roadworks, congestion etc. etc.
Adam Tranter’s a regular on road.cc in his role as the Mayor’s Cycling & Walking Commissioner in the West Midlands. He points out: “The Netherlands’ transport system, in one of the most densely populated countries in the world, functions well because people [don’t] generally often use cars for short trips that can be safely walked or cycled. The would not be possible without infrastructure to make people feel safe.
“Dutch cycling infrastructure is designed to be safe for ages eight to 80, improving independence and also avoiding traffic and congestion associated with short leisure trips or the school run.”
Best bike lights 2024 — see and be seen with our selection of beams for your bike
As Rihanna famously sings, “Shine bright like a Magicshine Ray 2600 Smart Remote Bike Light”… or something like that…
> Best bike lights 2024 — see and be seen with our selection of beams for your bike
"School hall floor + 1.5 bars tyre pressure isn't a good combination for a quick ride": Marcel Kittel tries his best to avoid becoming a Marcel skittle
マルセル・キッテルさん。このあと記事出します。 pic.twitter.com/2Ap20dVlEA
— 山口和幸 (@PRESSPORTS) November 2, 2023
Things we didn’t expect to see today.
Kittel later wrote… “School hall floor + 1.5 bars tyre pressure isn’t a good combination for a quick ride. The kids were great though! We talked about the Tour and that Japanese Schnitzel (Tonkatsu) is the best!”
Study: London's ULEZ significantly improved air quality
New research by the University of Bath, reported by the BBC, into London’s 2008 low emission zone for lorries and 2019 ultra low emission zone has found that the schemes significantly improved air quality.
The analysis showed that the LEZ’s introduction helped reduce particulate matter in Greater London by 13 per cent between 2008 and 2013, compared with between 2003 and 2007.
Nitrogen dioxide levels have fallen by 18.4 per cent in 2019 following the introduction of ULEZ in central London, compared with between 2016 and 2018.
The researchers said the clean air zones had helped save £963 million in Greater London, with 12 respiratory hospital admissions and 2.88 acute respiratory hospital admissions per 10,000 people avoided.
“With this analysis, our goal was to offer an objective overview of the impact of low emission zones in the capital and beyond,” Dr Habtamu Beshir said. “Our study compares London to cities like Manchester, demonstrating the effectiveness of LEZ and ULEZ in improving air quality, enhancing health and alleviating the economic burden of ill health.”
Professor Eleonora Fichera added: “Our analysis confirms the effectiveness of low emission zones in improving air quality and health — crucial for residents in large cities. It shouldn’t be a choice between health and affording schemes like ULEZ. We must explore innovative policy solutions to make these schemes viable and effective.”
Shimano allegedly hit by massive ransomware attack threatening to release confidential data
> Shimano allegedly hit by massive ransomware attack threatening to release confidential data
ScotRail adds bicycle bookings to its app
We love to have a moan about what it’s like to take your bike on a train here in the UK, then again it’s worth moaning about when it’s for the most part as bad as it is…
Well, perhaps a glint of hope here. ScotRail, whose specially adapted carriages with extra bike space is one of the better offerings on our island otherwise full of upright bike storage and restrictions.
> ScotRail unveils forthcoming West Highland Line carriages with space for 20 bikes
Now, ScotRail has added the ability to book bike spaces to its app, the Helenburgh Advertiser reports, “making it easier for customers to navigate and secure their cycle reservations with just a few taps”.
“ScotRail is committed to promoting active and sustainable travel options, whilst delivering the best possible service we can for customers,” ScotRail’s safety, engineering, and sustainability director, David Lister, said. “The introduction of cycle reservations through our app will benefit the whole cycling community.”
Good news… and without the use of a shoehorned cycling-related slogan or metaphor. ScotRail continued: “With this new feature, we’re pedalling in the right direction toward a greener, more cyclist-friendly Scotland…”
Ah, almost…
"Hope is not a strategy": Cycling UK slams government's funding reductions holding back cycling and walking progress
Jumbo-Visma pro Michel Hessmann's B-sample also positive for banned substance
[Alex Broadway/SWpix.com]
Jumbo-Visma’s Michel Hessmann, the German who finished third at Tour de l’Avenir last year and helped Primož Roglič win this year’s Giro d’Italia, is now facing a four-year ban after his B-sample also tested positive for a diuretic.
The exact substance has not yet been disclosed by the team or authorities, Badische Zeitung reports, however he was provisionally suspended by the team which won three Grand Tours with three different riders in 2023 after an out-of-competition test came back positive.
As is the procedure in such circumstances, a B-sample is then tested, Hessmann’s coming back positive also.
[Zac Williams/SWpix.com]
Now, the rider faces a four-year ban by WADA, potentially reduced to two if proved the positive was due to contaminated food or supplementation.
Having won the final Grand Tour of the year with Sepp Kuss, Jumbo-Visma’s team boss Richard Plugge admitting the positive was a “black day” for the team which has continued to dominate the three-week racing discipline of men’s professional cycling in 2023.
“Wednesday, August 16, 2023 was a black day for our team. For the first time in ten years, we received the message that a rider from our team, Michel Hessmann, had a positive doping test. We had to look in the mirror ourselves, are we doing everything right?” Plugge said at the time.
“Everyone involved in and with our organisation must be aware of everything. Germany has a doping law, so the public prosecutor’s office is automatically involved. Criminal law has the presumption of innocence, while disciplinary law reasons the other way around. It is up to the athlete to prove that he has done nothing wrong.
“It is mandatory within our team to only use supplements and medicines that have been batch checked for doping substances, to minimise the risk of contamination. Many products contain remnants of other products.”
It's not about the bike... just the tailwind — brave rider tackles Dutch Headwind Championships course after cancellation due to dangerous winds
You might have heard the quite hilarious news from the Netherlands yesterday that the Dutch Headwind Cycling Championships was cancelled… because it was too windy. No, really…
> Dutch Headwind Cycling Championships cancelled… because it’s too windy
Well, while exploring Strava segments across the storm barrier where the event is held (as you do) I stumbled across this ride from one hardy rider yesterday…
So what does a ride speed graph look like when you ride an out and back with and then into an orange wind warning? Something like this…
On the way out, Didier averaged 42km/h (26mph), taking a fourth-place on one 2km segment at 59.2km/h (37mph). On the way back he averaged… 17km/h (11mph)…
Rapha announces loss of £12 million, citing cost of living and supply chain concerns
> Rapha announces loss of £12 million, citing cost of living and supply chain concerns
"Deepfake? Has Andrew's Strava account been hacked?": Hill-climbing king Andrew Feather amazes the world again... by riding a bike with bar tape
You know the hill climb season is over when bar tape returns…
The — Feather by name, feather by nature — four-time hill-climbing champ has re-emerged to Strava for the first time since his Sunday Struggle success, going for what looks like quite a blustery spin into the countryside surrounding Paris. And while it was the venturing out during 70km/h+ winds that surprised one follower, the rest were seemingly (and with their tongue firmly in their cheek) stunned by the sight of bar tape on his Cannondale… A hill climber using bar tape?! First disc brakes, now this…
One follower suggested the featherweight machine must have been deepfaked or hacked… Those pesky bar tape companies, shoving their product in our face at every opportunity…
Other concerns included the expected lifespan of those white shoes given the weather, and whether Feather sat in the saddle just to take the picture and then got straight back out as we’re all so used to see him doing while munching double-digit gradients. I guess it’s nice to know your followers are looking out for you…
It’s been quite the week for the hill-climbing king, winning the National Hill Climb Championships on disc brakes for the first time in the event’s history. Cue Monday’s live blog… (please don’t take anything Ryan or I ever say too seriously, we’re far too facetious and unserious for that)…
Jamie took a look at the tapeless Cannondale SuperSix Evo LAB71 Feather rode on Sunday for a video on our YouTube channel, the full feature can be read here.
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@belugabob I've been in a few different hotels in recent years and never had any difficulties with keeping my bike in my room. I always take a couple of newspapers with me to spread out under the bike to stop any drips of oil/water etc getting on the carpet. One hotel even had a nice timber post in the room, for me to lock my bike to. One of the hotels had a secure lock up room for bikes, but were happy for me to keep the bike in my room because it meant I didn't have to drag away a member of staff to get my bike at busy breakfast / check out time. When I went to stay in N Yorks for the 2019 World Champs, the only inconvenience was breakfast being crowded because the Italian Junior women's squad's bikes were being stored in the main dining room! The only slight downer is looking like a bit of an eccentric as I carry my bike down the stairs and through reception in cycling kit.
Another one for the "just because we can doesn't mean we should" pile for me I think, my cheap (£35) photochromic glasses that I use for commuting at dawn and dusk may take 30 seconds to adapt fully to changing light but they start pretty much immediately and I hardly ever feel that they are too dark or not dark enough; if I hit a patch where they really are too dark, sudden tunnels et cetera, one quick hand swipe (same as with these) moves them down to the end of my nose so I can look over the top of them. No precious battery resources wasted, nor the price of a decent secondhand bike.
Great report, sorry, yet another great report, about LTNs which the MSM will instantly leap into action, pens poised, recorder buttons pressed, camera shutters primed, to ignore completely. It's simply not controversial enough. The lurid claims of the anti-LTN mob, of congestion, pollution, danger, plague and pestilence, will however, be front page news. The media in this country actively works against the best interests of the population, with a few notable exceptions: the ITV expose of Reform was good, very good.
This is the arsehole who insisted the Brexit would make the country (and world) a better place. The sooner we stop reporting on any bullshit that leaves his mouth the better.
Undoubtedly this is clever technology, but I wonder about the safety aspect of having to take your hands off the handlebar to switch modes. I get that the rapid response rate improves things to a degree but if I go from sunlight to shade on a poor quality road (of which there are many, as we know) do I want to take one hand off the bar in order to lighten my glasses….? Photochromatic may be slower but will get there without intervention (and at far less than half the cost).
@Rendel Harris - perhaps there is a gap in the market for hyadrationpak.com?
@kingleo I'm sure they may be but Lime's UK profits last year were around £4M; a standard 27-bike docking station costs around £100,000 installed and they have around 50,000 bikes in the capital. £185M would be a big ask for a £4M p.a. operation, even if you could find 1800+ suitable sites, which would be next to impossible.
@belugabob At a certain Scottish branch that shall remain nameless just in case any of Premier's brass are reading we turned up shattered with filthy bikes, when we asked the manager if there was somewhere we could clean them he said, "Ach it's just mud, it'll hoover off in the morning, up ye go!"
@Rendel Harris, I would have thought that the e-bike companies' owners are mega rich; they can afford to put lots of e-bike docks in place. The problem is that they are an outstanding business success; they are too successful, from nothing a few years ago to what we see now.
With reference to a hotel where " You can take your bike right into your room" ... Premier Inn have been doing this for years and therefore have had lots of our custom, on multi-day trips. Not once has any member of staff batted an eyelid - in fact, on one occasion we asked if they had paper towels to clean our bikes before we took them inside, and they shrugged then gave us 2 enormous fluffy white bath towels (needless to say, they weren't white for long.
13 thoughts on “Hill-climbing king Andrew Feather amazes the world again… by riding a bike with bar tape; “It’s totally possible to enable driving, active and public transport together”: Tales from the Netherlands + more on the live blog”
Watch this for coverage of
Speaking of the National HC, watch this for coverage of the men’s event, just the action.
https://youtu.be/IRhJwcZ6rOk
Also the women https://youtu.be/r3A23Y69m2k
Now that the health and
Now that the health and economic effect of ULEZ is documented, it really makes it harder for the choking-on-car-fumes anti-ULEZ campaign to make any decent points.
Instead of campaigning to scrap it, use the new information to say “Look, we have seen a reduction in taxpayer’s cost to the medical side of the pollution, reinvest those savings to help those struggling financially from the zone’s implementation (of which there are not a huge volume)”.
Give bigger grants for residents struggling to replace their old diesel bangers, and encourage active travel for short journeys. The rate of 12 in 10,000 will increase even more!
Matthew Acton-Varian wrote:
One answer is to pipe some of the exhaust fumes back into the vehicle and see whether they like it.
18.4% less NOx is good but the number that hits me is that “clean air zones had helped save £963 million in Greater London”. Goodness me!
Exactly. If £963M can’t help
Exactly. If £963M can’t help most struggling families in London ditch high polluting vehicles, and put food on some of their tables, then society is beyond broken.
I wonder if Boris/Rishi etc
I wonder if Boris/Rishi etc would be happy to stick that figure on the side of a bus…
“We saved £963 million for our NHS by cutting emissions a little.
Lets see how much MORE we can save by reducing it a LOT.”
mitsky wrote:
I fear their automatic reaction to that news would be “Excellent, we can cut your budget by £963 million then.”
That Marcel Kittel clip is
That Marcel Kittel clip is lovely – great entrance.
The Japanese are crazy
The Japanese are crazy enthusiastic and hospitable. I used to visit Japan regularly when I worked for Formula One Managment to help set up the TV broadcasters before (and after) the race. Whenever I went near Suzuka we would get surrounded by young Japanese wanting to ask us questions and just see us. And I was just a grunt! One year we decided to hire a car with blacked out windows thinking this would make driving into and out from the circuit more anonymous. That was a mistake – becuase the fans then thought we were really important and the car was mobbed every time we went in or out!
Personally I’d be looking
Personally I’d actually be looking towards the Netherlands to finally take things further and into the 21st century by actively pushing back against cars. Who if not they?
I’d say they’re doing a good
I’d say they’re doing a good job in that respect:
https://dutchreview.com/traveling/cities/utrecht/utrechts-exemplar-city-design-that-prioritises-people-over-cars/
https://www.timeout.com/news/have-you-heard-the-one-about-the-dutch-town-with-precisely-zero-roads-122921
(And lots more) However don’t be fooled – they are still very much drivers, if you want to criticise (from a very weak position…)
https://www.aviewfromthecyclepath.com/2019/08/the-car-free-myth-netherlands-is-great.html
marmotte27 wrote:
With great timing bicycleDutch has a video out with a before and after of what has changed in the city he grew up in over his lifetime, and the direction it’s going. Quite a lot of change and motor vehicle reduction continues.
Fantastic video essay.
Fantastic video essay.
What did we want ?
What did we want ?
PAINT
When do we want it ?
NOW
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/fulham-road-cycle-lanes-london-cycling-campaign-council-b1117982.html