Tadej Pogačar crushes Côte de la Redoute Strava KOM during Liège–Bastogne–Liège domination; “A real shame” as Kona troubles come out; Low entries threaten race’s future; Don’t try this at home! Pro remounts chain on the fly + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
"If events like this die you can be sure they won't come back": Cycling club warns road race may be cancelled... with just 15 riders entered so far
Bec Cycling Club, based in south London and who run the infamous Bec Hill Climb and other events throughout the year, have warned that the National B Bec Road Race may be scrapped this year due to a lack of entries. With just a week to go until entries for the Ashdown Forest race close, the organisers said there had been just 15 riders sign up, well down on the 50 they’d had at this time last year.
Lidl-Trek professional rider Tao Geoghegan Hart even weighed in on the situation, warning that “if events like this die you can be sure they won’t come back” and urging people to “support cycling in the UK”.
“Yes it’s expensive but you can be sure nobody in this club is making money from the event,” he added.
While the race’s organiser, James Hughes (who we’ve contacted for an update on entry numbers post-Tao’s pep talk and the public statement) admitted there is a trend for riders to enter events later, but it is still “the worst year we’ve had”.
“Rider numbers have been down year on year since the pandemic, and riders are certainly entering later and later but this is the worst year we’ve had. This time last year we had almost 50 riders registered,” he explained.
“Pre-pandemic we had a long period of full fields, but over the last few years like most promoting clubs we’ve struggled to get the numbers back up. Last year’s race started with 70, including a lot of the best Elite and 1st Cat riders in the country. It was an exciting race.
“With three weeks to go before the race, there’s lots of organising to be done. As well as most of the club who drive in the race convoy, marshal or run the HQ, there are 10 AMS, 4 NEG and various BC officials who work on the event. Pre-race notices go out on the course next week, and race signs/equipment need to be collected. On top of that, there’s always the worry around road works and last-minute changes. But without a lot more riders we just don’t have a viable race.”
Bec C.C. Road Race 2024 in danger of being cancelled due to low rider numbershttps://t.co/xB1MvOVBTP
— Bec Cycling Club (@BecCyclingClub) April 20, 2024
The cycling club’s captain, Shaun, added: “Costs are certainly an issue with races these days. This year’s race will set riders back £35, and probably much more when petrol and equipment are factored in. This is a massive increase over the years our club has been promoting this race. Other event costs go up year on year and these days the race needs 70+ riders to break even, once overheads are taken into consideration. But the Bec Cycling Club are committed to local events, and we can take a small hit to get through the difficult years if need be.”
The warning the race may be cancelled is the latest blow in the seemingly never-ending negative news cycle for the British domestic scene. While British Cycling has been widely praised for stepping in, and now setting dates and towns, to save the Tour of Britain, putting on a men’s and women’s race this year following SweetSpot entering liquidation, on the whole the domestic racing scene is struggling.
At the start of the year, the governing body published the recommendations of its elite road racing task force who suggested ideas for “reinvigorating” racing in the UK.
Kona struggles; Ferry fiasco; London Marathon bike lane-blocking complaints; A novel close pass approach; Liège–Bastogne–Liège + more on the weekend round-up
Some weekend of news, reviews and features on the site, here’s what you might have missed…
The big bike industry news of the weekend was the Kona story going the way many feared following the brand’s staff hastily removing its presence from the major US industry expo, Sea Otter. Yesterday, we reported the famous mountain bike and cyclocross brand is winding down and up for sale as its parent company abandons the struggling bike market. More on that one shortly…
Yesterday was London Marathon day, some cyclists in the English capital left disappointed by the build-up to the event proving a little less accommodating for those on two wheels than those who ran the 26 miles of closed roads.
On the reviews side of things, off-road.cc editor Aaron has been putting Fulcrum’s Speed 42 wheelset through its paces.
Also this weekend:
- Tadej Pogačar won a major bike race, no surprises there. Also no surprises the women’s edition was a much more entertaining watch, Grace Brown finally getting that big win after two previous Liège–Bastogne–Liège seconds.
- A few months after a councillor in Orkney urged the police to clamp down on tourists cycling “anti-socially” on the islands, 50 miles to the north-east, in Shetland, locals are up in arms over “long lines” of cyclists arriving on cruise ships, allegedly causing havoc and frustration on the archipelago’s roads.
- And finally, a cyclist in West Yorkshire came up with a novel way to keep the close passes at bay — riding for a month with a giant “Don’t drive so close to me” poster attached to his bike. However, once the poster was removed, the cyclist says “everything went back to normal” and he received “lots of close passes”.
The glamorous life of a pro cyclist
A glamorous end to Toms Skujiņš’ classics season, eating chips while sat on the floor in an airport hotel hallway “somewhere in Belgium”.
Don't try this at home! The glamorous life of a pro cyclist (continued) — trying to get your chain back on mid-race
No intenten hacerlo en casa ⚠️⚠️⚠️
#TUR2024 | #LaCasadelCiclismo pic.twitter.com/YXvJOAAlZm— Eurosport.es (@Eurosport_ES) April 21, 2024
"Things are looking a little better": Bec Road Race organiser says social media action has doubled entries and "with a bit of luck" event should go ahead
We’ve been in contact with Bec Road Race organiser James Hughes this morning who has told us entry numbers have almost doubled to 29 over the weekend.
“Things are looking a little better as we’re now up to 29 riders registered, which is a big increase,” he explained. “Goes to show that social media does have some impact. With a bit of luck we will get up to decent numbers this week to make it a goer.”
That’s all a bit more positive…
"A real shame": Cycling community reacts to Kona Bicycles troubles as brand winds down
The bike industry woes continued this weekend, Kona Bicycles put up for sale as its parent company abandons the struggling cycling market. The famous mountain and cyclocross bike manufacturer is winding down operations, staff last week seen removing the brand’s stall at the major US expo, Sea Otter Classic in California.
There have been reports of extensive job cuts, Kent Outdoors (the parent company which says it wants to “direct its resources toward investment in its key water sports businesses”) has been trying to sell the off-road bike manufacturer for some time, the North American-based outdoor goods conglomerate announcing the appointment of a new chief financial officer on Friday following a “strategic review” of the business.
There has been plenty of sympathy from across the cycling world, many expressing hope the brand can be saved and sharing memories of past rides on Kona’s bikes.
Really sorry to hear this. My first bike on returning to cycling as an adult was a Kona Dew. A cracking commuter hybrid. Still got the frame to do a custom gravel build. Hope they can be saved. Quality bikes.
— SteeVeeCee (@StevieC967) April 21, 2024
Justin Bailey: “That’s a real shame. We used to sell Kona. Great bikes.”
Reibl Hughes: “As the owner of two Kona bikes (which I love) I am saddened by this news.”
The vultures have begun to circle, road.cc reader Ryan Soulier offering to take one of the new Ouroboros gravel bikes “for cost, to get the inventory off their hands”. That’s the other quirk to the story, Kona on Wednesday unveiled the new gravel bike line, to be shown off at Sea Otter Classic to the industry. Just 24 hours later and the stall was deconstructed, the brand pulling out amid talk of company meetings…
Shaun Coleman said there are “too many players in an overcrowded market”, while Thomas Crawford reckons “sadly from having such great bikes they just didn’t evolve as time passed”.
James Williams: “Shame, but the brand hasn’t got the allure it once had, same for Marin, you wouldn’t buy one over a Scott/Specialized anymore, whereas years ago they were a credible alternative.”
Others saved their thoughts for parent company Kent Outdoors, who only bought Kona in 2022 but has reportedly been trying to ship it off for some time and wants to ditch the bike market in favour of its existing watersports brands.
“In connection with the investment of capital and the management team coming onboard, the company performed a strategic review of its operating units and determined that it would continue to seek a buyer for its bike business, Kona,” a Kent Outdoors press release said.
“This move allows the company to direct its resources toward investment in its key water sports businesses. The bike industry has faced very significant challenges in the post-Covid world and Kona has not been immune to these headwinds.”
Rob Walker: “Another sad example of investment firms buying a long-standing firm from its owners and driving it into the dust (or gravel if you prefer) when it doesn’t make them the quick bucks they were hoping for.”
don simon fbpe: “Got to love capitalism.”
brooksby: “If Kent Outdoors wants to focus on its key watersports business, then why did they buy a bicycle company less than two years ago?”
To which jaymack replied: “Because they’re capitalists and they want to make a profit rather than them being cycling enthusiasts wanting to make a living.”
"Are there so many cyclists to warrant such disruption?" Locals blame new cycle lane for "horrendous" congestion and motorists driving on wrong side of the road – despite "being all in for vulnerable road users and a green planet"
Quick, tag Jeremy Vine, there are two Lime bikes left on the pavement
We’ll leave the reply to Rory…
I think everyone would agree that a better system of docking is needed and blocking pavements like this is not acceptable. I struggle to understand how tagging someone who rides their own bike is responsible for this when the company themselves should be called into question.
— Rory McCarron (@CyclingLawLDN) April 22, 2024
Ominous
Reminder that the World Championship course in Zurich has even more elevation gain than LBL 👇🏽
Remco should be the only one who could threaten Pogačar. It’s way too hard for WVA and MVDP 🤷🏻♂️ pic.twitter.com/bKwS5DxJqt
— Inside Out (@InsideOut2912) April 22, 2024
How does Strade Bianche, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Giro d’Italia, Tour de France, World Championships sound?
Cyclists slam report by "notorious anti-cycling group" claiming proposed bike lane on "one of the most dangerous junctions" will lead to more collisions and 800% increase in congestion
Tadej Pogačar crushes Côte de la Redoute Strava KOM during Liège–Bastogne–Liège domination
Having done the boring bit — obliterating a cycling monument (again), doing the victory salute, heading to the podium, and raising his trophy — Tadej Pogačar moved on to the most important part of his Liège–Bastogne–Liège Sunday… uploading to Strava, of course.
And while the prodigious Slovenian didn’t need to smash some of the final lumps out of the way, the damage having already been done and the race-winning move just requiring a consistent keeping of things ticking over, Pogačar did chop a good seven seconds off the KOM up the famous Côte de la Redoute.
Wouldn’t it be nice to fly up a 1.5km climb averaging 10 per cent at 22.9km/h (14mph)? Pogačar went 10 seconds quicker than Remco Evenpoel’s best time (in fact a joint PB between the Belgian’s race-winning attack and an effort made during his recon ride two days earlier).
Women’s edition victor Grace Brown also uploaded her ride, her Wahoo ELEMNT BOLT giving some amusing dodgy data, such as the temperature in the Ardennes plummeting to -32°C. I’m sure a few riders reckon that reading was spot on, another grim day for the most part.
Such was the state of play in the women’s race, the times on the Redoute weren’t quite as sharp as in previous years, Annemiek van Vleuten’s 5:01 safe for another year.
Likewise, Brown went 24 seconds slower than her best time up the final climb, Roche-aux-Faucons, but crucially was still there to lay down a third fastest Strava time on the 800m segment to the line, besting Demi Vollering, Elisa Longo Borghini and Co. having chased back on following near disaster on the run into town when she locked up and went off-road at a roundabout.
No power data for either, as is standard these days. Still no sign of Mathieu van der Poel or Tom Pidcock returning to Strava any time soon. Come back, guys, we miss you…
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PS re the cyclist ringing a bell (or as a sports cyclist more likely shouting a warning), they would have no reason to: the lady wasn't "approaching the road", she had got to the island in the middle of the road and was standing still, then she stepped out. As far as I can see there was no reason to think anything but that she had seen him and was waiting for him to pass before crossing the lane.
@bensynnock We, and car drivers, must indeed exercise the utmost care for vulnerable road users, but if you take it to the logical extreme the only way you can absolutely guarantee never hitting a vulnerable road user is not to cycle or drive at all under any circumstances. As the Highway Code makes clear, "The hierarchy places those road users most at risk in the event of a collision at the top of the hierarchy. It does not remove the need for everyone to behave responsibly." In a case like this where the pedestrian has made an absolutely suicidal move by stepping onto the roadway into the path of a fast-moving cyclist when they were two metres away you can't say that the cyclist has failed in their duty of care, the cyclist was approaching on a clear straight road in good visibility, the lady was standing still on the island then suddenly stepped out when he was so close that he had no time to make any reaction at all, let alone brake or swerve round her. She, sadly, for unknown reasons, failed in her "need to behave responsibly". Unless duty of care encompasses coming to a complete stop when one sees a pedestrian waiting to cross (when there is no marked crossing) I don't think it was breached here.
@C3a Presumably it's to do with turnover stability while moving. I saw a Tentbox today, just being driven through Garstang. I can certainly see the advantage of these boxes over tents, because I have suffered lifelong from the 'Get orf my land' brigade, and there's a much greater tolerance among them for those 'camping' in vehicles than for those much more worthy real campers in tents. Add to that the convenience of just stopping in any old free spot by the roadside, where there isn't a decent site for a tent, and you can see the attraction.
Most of the cars that I have owned have had a roof-box limit (bars, box and contents) of 70kg. How does a textbox fit with that? Is the limit only applicable when the vehicle is moving?
@Chris RideFar For starters, by being 1,5 m above the ground you are mostly protected from dew. In many countries it also protects you from frost or really low temperatures. You'd be surprised how much of a difference it actually makes. Bugs, ants, spiders etc. are another thing, as is the purely mental feeling of security by being isolated from the ground. You'd be surprised how much that means to some of us and our better halves ;-) Sleeping on the ground also means more mechanical damage to the floor from rocks, hard roots etc., which could make a big difference in some areas and on longer trips, where a ripped tent floor could really break your holiday. I'm not saying a roof tent is the answer to all one's troubles with camping. But these factors definitely to make a difference to many of us.
When was the last time you had a groundsheet with a built in mattress? The point is predictable comfort.
Is it because cars and driving are about convenience (for a price), so there is mileage in selling more (quite expensive) related things that are about convenience?
@FionaJJ that's the crux of the issue i guess. Minority causes can have this where the mainstream has the power to steamroll you (figuratively and literally). There's always "fear of angering the giant" (or alienating the decision makers / majority, where any politician has the temptation to gain attention by criticising this. And business salespeople stand to gain by selling "convenience and status" instead). But ... it's also easy to keep getting "small wins" while losing the main argument. (That would be where rules and public space remain suited to or are further modified to reinforce motor dependency and thus reduce active travel - even if perhaps it's now autonomous vehicles and "they're more efficient / much safer than human drivers").
15 thoughts on “Tadej Pogačar crushes Côte de la Redoute Strava KOM during Liège–Bastogne–Liège domination; “A real shame” as Kona troubles come out; Low entries threaten race’s future; Don’t try this at home! Pro remounts chain on the fly + more on the live blog”
Not sure that putting your
Not sure that putting your chain back on whilst still riding is all that odd. I agree don’t try it at home, makes a mess of the living room carpet.
Quote:
I would absolutely buy pretty much anything over Specialized, a brand I would not consciously give a single penny too.
don simon fbpe wrote:
I would absolutely buy pretty much anything over Specialized, a brand I would not consciously give a single penny too.
I’m sure Specialized are fine with this. I have more than enough of their bikes to make up for it anyway.
My first proper bike, bought
My first proper bike, bought with my own money out of Uni was a 1993 Kona Hahana (steel framed mountain bike) which at the time had every magazine saying it blew the Specialized Rockhopper (its equivalent) into the weeds. It was great, but I stopped mountain biking when I moved to the fens (can’t recall why now?) and I finally sold it in 2020.
My first road bike was a Kona Konakona (yes that really was its name), a 2003 frameset that was way ahead of its time (what would now be called Endurance geometry) with a tall head tube, plenty of clearance for bigger tyres, but was made from Columbus Airplane tubing so was incredibly light for alloy (with middle of the road Campag components and a 1600g wheelset it came in a 7.4kg).
As for why choose a Kona over a Specialized, the answer for me is simple, buy from an engineering/ performance led bike manufacturer or a marketing led production outsourcing business? Kona would win every time, they will be missed…
I’m probably too small for
I’m probably too small for them to notice me. Until they think I’m infringing a trademark. You keep on supporting corporate bullies, I’m sure they’re fine with that too. As indeed am I.
Just checked back on the
Just checked back on the radio programme Anti Social highlighted friday.
The guy did say that cyclists reporting driving to the police is very dangerous to the fabric of society. So there we have it: reporting about dangerous driving is worse than the actual dangerous driving.
Meanwhile on ruby dashcam driver on driver
Didn’t CyclingMikey say that
Didn’t CyclingMikey say that the majority of reports of dangerous driving are from other drivers?
If the stats can be verified it would be usefull.
Essex
Essex
So someone on Twitter has
So someone on Twitter has blamed cyclist A for cyclist B’s behaviour?
Can we tag that same Twitter user (presumably a driver) whenever any other driver causes any (usually far more serious) issue on the road…?
Ebike conversion – Colchester
Ebike conversion – Colchester Bike Kitchen
” Today we had a customer bring in an electric bike conversion kit, which we’d usually be absolutely happy to help fit. ebike conversions can be a great affordable way to make cycling accessible to more people. But. And there’s a Big But coming…
This ebike conversion kit was 48v and 1000w. ONE. THOUSAND. WATTS. For the uninitiated that is illegal to a factor of four. The UK and EU limit to power output for electric pedal assist cycles is 250w. Anything outside that spec and we won’t touch it with a barge pole.
On top of that, it had a throttle control, effectively turning into a motorbike both in practical terms and in the eyes of the law (due to power output). On top of THAT; it was a no-name product from a sketchy Amazon seller. These are THE culprits in ebike battery fires
We had to explain all of this to the customer who was totally unaware of the implications (legal and otherwise) of fitting the kit. He fairly assumed that because it was for sale on a reputable seller (Amazon) it was all safe and legal. That’s the fundamental problem.
We’ve helped customers to install SwytchBike kits on several occasions and they’ve always been great. Their after sales support is excellent too. They have a warranty. They’re legal. Other legal kits are available of course. “
I really hope they were able
I really hope they were able to send it back to Amazon.
As far as I can see this is
As far as I can see this is per government policy – they’re totally uninterested, even less bothered to address this than tackling bike theft (item 24922 on their list). Even at the level of kW power scooters (no pedals at all) on sale in reputable high-street stores.
While not hugely sympathetic to people getting these it does seem that you’d have to actually make a positive effort to go and research what you can and can’t do – and clearly people don’t.
The westminster gov position
The westminster gov position on this is that they believe people are smart enough to make their own decisions. Which piece of evidence would you like me to use that demostrates the contrary?
Er… that’s a tricky one!
Er… that’s a tricky one! How about simply going for their own instincts on this one being contradictory, using their own recent policy on smoking? You could then add irony by listing their drugs policies and the current stats though? *
* Even though I’d contradict myself by probably agreeing on balance with the smoking one while pointing out that overall the policies on some drugs don’t seem to have delivered on reducing drug use, reducing criminality or reducing harm. (I’m not even sure what that has done for reducing drug use amongst MPs – although for those we know of it was “all in the past”…)
Precisely, they pick and
Precisely, they pick and choose when it suits them. And yet people still vote for them, which is where they absolutely rely on the levels of stupidity dressing it up as “free thinking”…