“That saddle has stories to tell”: Horrified bike shop would “really rather not find out” if battered “single speed… maybe with multiple cadence options” still works; Pogačar skinsuitgate + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Make it make sense... Tadej Pogačar threatened with disqualification from Giro d'Italia over Castelli's maglia rosa skinsuit
Just another bizarre chapter in the history of professional cycling, the Giro d’Italia’s leader Tadej Pogačar yesterday reverted to black shorts after the UCI threatened him with disqualification from the race over an alleged infringement to the governing body’s rules to do with the colour of his skinsuit… yes, that’s the race leader’s skinsuit, made by Castelli, not even his own team’s kit.
Contrary to some suggestions, the shorts area wasn’t the same colour as the points classification ciclamino, seen here on Filippo Fiorelli before stage three, but in fact granata in tribute to the Torino football team killed in the Superga air disaster on 4 May 1949, of which the 75th anniversary just passed as the race began in Turin on Saturday.
[Zac Williams/SWpix.com]
UCI commissaires are believed to have got involved, arguing the skinsuit is in breach of the governing body’s rules due to the different colour shorts area to the jersey, and UAE Team Emirates and Pogačar reverted to black team-issue shorts (no skinsuit) for stage four.
A slower kit than a skinsuit, both provided by the race’s partner Castelli and not his team’s kit manufacturer Pissei, but apparently now abiding by the UCI’s rules and not at risk of being chucked out of the race the organisers reportedly paid a hefty fee to get him to attend. Cycling’s weird.
Filippo Ganna's 590w for 3:30 + Jonathan Milan's 1,940w sprint... there's no lack of power over at the Giro d'Italia
Filippo Ganna’s individual pursuit simulation on the roads to Andora yesterday was 590w average power for three minutes 35 seconds, with an average speed of 52.9km/h… an attack which began with a kilometre of uphill. The Ineos Grenadiers rider’s max for the attack was 1,620w, which just so happens to be the average power of stage winner Jonathan Milan’s 20-second blitz. Just look at that max power…
Horse power 🐎🐎 @GannaFilippo @MilanJonathan_ pic.twitter.com/msVHsP4U7E
— Elia Viviani (@eliaviviani) May 8, 2024
Stage five today, from Genoa to Lucca is not dissimilar to yesterday’s, almost identical vertical gain (just north of 2,000m over 178km) and front-loaded with climbs to test the sprinters’ legs and see if any team wants to make things difficult. On paper, the climbing looks tougher, so maybe the breakaway opportunists will fancy their chances? The problem? 117km of flat or downhill to finish, punctuated by just one three-kilometre lump at 20km to go.
He did the business for the live blog prediction yesterday, so Milan for me again today…
Debates around tougher legislation for cyclists front and centre of broadcast and print media coverage
Newspaper column inches and airtime of TV and radio talk shows is being put to cycling this week, specifically calls for cyclists to be subject to stricter legislation. We’ll have more on that later, campaigners and politicians have made a renewed argument for changes to the law, but The Times, The Telegraph, Times Radio, Good Morning Britain and Talk TV have all got involved in the past 24 hours.
It all comes after the news story from the bank holiday weekend, a coroner’s inquest told that no charges will be brought against a cyclist who was riding laps of London’s Regent’s Park when he crashed into a pensioner, causing her fatal injuries.
This was the scene in Regent’s Park this morning.
Speed guns and long lens cameras in Regents Park this morning. What are the press up to? 🤦🏾♂️ pic.twitter.com/QpoMsdpTk4
— Merv Charles (@mervcharles) May 8, 2024
Meanwhile, on Good Morning Britain this morning, long-time campaigner for ‘dangerous cycling’ laws Matthew Briggs (husband of Kim Briggs, killed by cyclist Charlie Alliston who was sentenced to 18 months’ detention in a youth offenders facility after being convicted by a jury at the Old Bailey of “causing bodily harm by wanton and furious driving” in connection with her death when she was struck as she crossed London’s Old Street) was joined by the son of the woman who died of her injuries caused in the Regent’s Park collision, as they both appealed for stronger legislation against dangerous cycling.
‘People are surprised to know that cycling is a lawless activity when it comes to the Road Traffic Act’
Families of victims of speeding cyclists demand action for a ‘dangerous cycling’ law. pic.twitter.com/hevRH8jOlK
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) May 8, 2024
CyclingMikey too appeared on Times Radio in the past hour following an opinion piece, titled ‘Cycling used to be cool. Now, too many bike riders are jerks’, being published in the newspaper.
I’m about to go on Times Radio at 10:50 to debate against Robert Crampton who wrote this article:https://t.co/yGDBMaqzlm
What would you like to say about it? pic.twitter.com/WHmA2YjNsm
— CyclingMikey the Unspeakable (@MikeyCycling) May 8, 2024
"I'll see you in the winter": Zwift accused of "taking subscribers for granted" as monthly subscription rises from £12.99 to £17.99 – but company says price hike "necessary" for platform's development
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What's Tadej wearing today?
…ahem
💗 It’s Tadej Focacciar #GirodItalia pic.twitter.com/9LW1yWtU1R
— Giro d’Italia (@giroditalia) May 8, 2024
Race leader’s jersey, team-issue Pissei shorts (the same colour as maglia rosa to please the UCI), no skinsuit, no rogue colours, sock length checked. Everyone happy?
Iain Duncan Smith calls for creation of "causing death by dangerous, careless, or inconsiderate cycling" law
.JPG)
Pedestrian jailed for manslaughter over cyclist's death has conviction overturned
> Pedestrian jailed for manslaughter over cyclist’s death has conviction overturned
British Cycling gym record broken as Matt Rotherham squats 250kg
Track cyclist Matt Rotherham has squated a quarter of a tonne, breaking the British Cycling gym record in the process.
Fair play to the cameraman for maintaining such stable camerawork despite being attacked by a wasp midway through the rep. Here’s the lucky SystemSix that gets to put up with all that power when Matt rides on the road.
Perfect timing considering we took a deep dive into the model for our Bike at Bedtime last night. Can what was billed as “the world’s fastest road bike” still cut it?
Britain’s strictest cycling ban strikes again!
Bravery rewarded as Benjamin Thomas best of four-man escape on Giro's fifth stage
Sprint stage? It should have been, however a four-up attack by Benjamin Thomas, Michael Valgren, Andrea Pietrobon and Enzo Paleni upset the sprinters with a gutsy move late in the day.
Despite some franctic scrambling by the teams with sprint specialists, the quartet had a fairly comfortable gap heading into the closing kilometres, Pietrobon almost pulling off an audacious late attack having sat on for the previous turns.
However, it was Thomas, the rider whose acceleration kicked the whole move off, who got the final say, powering past Valgren in the final 100m for Cofidis’ first win of 2024, but proving it’s all about perspective. A first win in eight months is the glass half-empty slant, a third consecutive Grand Tour with a stage win and four at their last three participations the more positive spin on things.
Here’s the finish in all its thrilling glory…
💨 A breathtaking affair in Lucca, where the breakaway managed to hold off the peloton, and a sprint where everything was left on the table
⏪ The @Continentaltire Ultimo Kilometro ⤵️#GirodItalia | #Continental #ContinentalItalia #SafetySponsorOfTheRoad pic.twitter.com/wcdiHfNn23
— Giro d’Italia (@giroditalia) May 8, 2024
The day had begun with Alpecin-Deceuninck pulling hard on the climbs to drop some of the sprinters less gifted on the uphill gradients. Fabio Jakobsen, Tim Merlier, Fernando Gaviria and Caleb Ewan all found themselves chasing back to the peloton.
Ahead of the final climb a crash brought down numerous riders including Michael Woods and Tobias Foss, by that point alarm bells starting to ring for Lidl-Trek, the only sprint team attempting to pull back the escape. While the others tried to play it cool and let the team of yesterday’s dominant winner Jonathan Milan’s wear themselves out, they all soon piled to the front of the peloton to help, but as riders came and went the gap to the attackers remained consistent.
Pietrobon the only rider to begin to play games, a committed run in to Lucca seeing all four escape the peloton, Thomas leading Valgren, the Team Polti Kometa Italian and Enzo Paleni home. Behind, Milan asserted himself as the strongest sprinter once again, beating Ewan, Phil Bauhaus, Olav Kooij and Merlier. No changes on GC. Tomorrow it’s time to hit the gravel…
Why don’t cyclists use the cycle lane? Errr, because there’s a great big zebra crossing pole right in the middle of it
"That saddle has stories to tell": Horrified bike shop would "really rather not find out" if battered "single speed... maybe with multiple cadence options" still works
We’ll have to get this in for Stu or one of the team to review… introducing Trench Tales Instagram account’s latest mind-boggling example of bicycle abuse… it’s a single speed (but maybe with multiple cadence options)…
Have a flick through the photos and that grimace on your face will become more pronounced with every click, the lack of derailleur, the dropouts just about clinging on, the saddle, the tyres… as the long-suffering mechanics behind Trench Tales told their followers (who you should join the ranks of for more ‘your bike hates you’ content direct to your Insta feed): “Single speed… maybe with multiple cadence options? With those flimsy, flaring dropouts, I’d really rather not find out. Also… sweet saddle.”
Naturally, the comments brought us some comic relief in this sad tale of neglect.
great_hoof: “I’d say the removal of derailleurs is the best thing going for that bike.”
boldwon: “That saddle has stories to tell.”
rbicilife: “Her Highness the Imperial Mess.”
A bit of WD40 and some new brake pads and it’ll be as good as new… maybe… probably not…
Trench Tales does the noble job of documenting bicycle abuse so the rest of us remember to take better care of our bikes. You wouldn’t want to end up the butt of internet jokes, would you?
The rust might not be as prominent as the famous Tetanus Express that made us wince last year…
Nor the rubber quite as worn as the impossibly worn tyre that earned bike shop visitor a standing ovation from mechanics… after he only came in “for a tube”…
But having to change gear by manoeuvring the chain using your fingers, while moving, if the rear wheel doesn’t just fall out the dropouts first, earns this poor bicycle a place in our live blog pantheon of mechanical misery. Alternatively, maybe it works really well and we’ll soon all be doing it in the search of weight savings and less maintenance… hmmmm, maybe…
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Latest Comments
@Homebaker - personally, I don't mind the illegal e-bikes as I see it as harm reduction compared to them driving cars and of course they reduce congestion and pollution. However, lots of people do rage against them and the solution is enforcement. Random traffic stops would work as would patrolling food delivery places. I'm not convinced that extending legislation to the retailers is workable when the police don't seem to enforce the current road rules. (There's also lots of loopholes that retailers/purchasers could exploit)
is that the UK Government? Id prefer it if they focussed on making things better, rather than not making things worse. But, back to the New York story - robust enforcement earlier would have been easier than it is now.
@chrisonabike - it's a common mistake if you're typing in Norse code
@mdavidford - He's a cousin of Thanos, but he just has kidney stones.
That reminds me, it's the Bristol Balloon Fiesta this weekend
I mean, there's nothing stopping you from putting drop levers on a flat bar, it'll just be quite weird. Here I've got two sets of brakes, the SRAM DB8 that came with the Sorceress that stay on the bar that also came with the bike. I've then got Rival AXS levers hooked up to Level Ultimate calipers that stay on the drop bar. There are quick hose links around; I've just found them harder to come by.
Wait, you put the AXS drop bar brakes on flat bars? And here I am with my Canyon Exceed actually swapping AXS to flat bar brakes and rebleeding each time. Though there are solutions for that too these days
Well, that didn't last long. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/environmental-improvement-plan-2025/environmental-improvement-plan-eip-2025
Any risk assessment is a balance of risk. If closing path means cyclist takes the road, the reduction in one causes a massive increase in the other, harm on the road is much more severe so therefore needs eliminating first. We are however such a motor normative society it's difficult for them to see that. (Also : √-1 : I'm not sure why I'm replying to you because you're imaginary. I might finally have popped!)
Traffic control of the polluting vehicles is the only sensible solution.
50 thoughts on ““That saddle has stories to tell”: Horrified bike shop would “really rather not find out” if battered “single speed… maybe with multiple cadence options” still works; Pogačar skinsuitgate + more on the live blog”
Shit state bikes … nothing
Shit state bikes … nothing to be proud of, a liability to the rider and a danger to the rest of us.
Hit someone with a bike in an unroadworthy state and any Public Liability insurance provider is likely to walk away.
Ffs, a large number of people
Ffs, a large number of people use bikes (as with cars) as a tool to get from A to B. They’re not precious shiny toys. Many people can’t afford to spend hundreds (thousands !!! ?) on their bike; it’s makedo and mend. If the derailleur can’t be fixed, it gets removed. Yes the tyres could probably do with replacing & the inside of the rims checked to see how far the tin worm has got. But if the brakes brake & the steering steers it is probably ok pootling along the road.
Many people don’t have, or can afford, insurance of any kind (assuming that, if they ride this bike they can’t afford a car; for which they do need insurance).
I really don’t think we need to run down the road screaming “we’re all going to die” at this point.
I’m more impressed by the
I’m more impressed by the people who take these bikes give them a polish (ie. replace those parts that need replacing) and supply them to people who need them; than the omg brigade.
It’s been a while since I
It’s been a while since I bought insurance in the UK, but here in NL, 92% of adults have liability insurance. Mine is included with my home contents insurance. Is it not included with home insurance in the UK?
It can be, but as I said,
It can be, but as I said, there are many people who can’t afford (or who choose not to have) any kind of insurance.
ChrisA wrote:
Cyclists’ PLI is available for a couple of £ per month – while there will be people who can’t afford that, I suspect the vast majority without it just haven’t bothered (more likely because they haven’t thought about it than actively opted not to).
That is a good point. I
That is a good point. I rented here for about 18 months before buying a place, and didn’t bother with home insurance…apartment was rented fully furnished anyway.
Yes, most (all?) home
Yes, most (all?) home insurance policies would include public liability insurance. But whilst most home owners have such an insurance policy, many renters will not, so that’s a substantial portion of the population without insurance.
ChrisA wrote:
I have a friend who has her rear canti brake cable disconnected. Apparently it rubs the wheel if reconnected. She’s a single mom and doesn’t have a lot of money. I’ve offered multiple times to fix it, but she seems happy with just a front brake. She knows I’m competent as I’ve done lots of other work for her before on her house, car, lawnmower, etc. for free or for a six pack.
One night we had biked to the same event, and I took advantage of the opportunity when leaving before her to hook the cable up and adjust the tension screws to recentre them. They seemed to operate properly, and I went home. The next day she asked me if I’d done it, because she noticed on the way home that the bike felt really slow and she found the brake hooked up and dragging.
Now I just passive agressively mention when we’re on a ride that I hope today isn’t the day her front brake fails. Fortunately she’s a slow and careful rider, but she’s over sixty and won’t do well even in a minor crash.
ChrisA wrote:
My commuter is in for a service. The LBS asked whether I wanted the front brake noodle replacing as it was very rusty – I said check if the rust in on the inside and affecting the cable movement: if not, don’t bother. I’m more concerned on whether it works properly than how well it looks.
The way the story on Pogacar
The way the story on Pogacar’s skin suit is written makes no sense at all.
JohnnyEnglish wrote:
To be fair, I think (as the writer says) it’s the underlying story that makes no sense – UCI threatens to sanction race leader for colour of skinsuit which was provided by race organisers.
Still confused. Why would the
Still confused. Why would the pink jersey revert to black?
The jersey stayed pink. But
The jersey stayed pink. But the bottom half reverted to black, instead of the purple shade that had been made to honour the victims of the plane crash.
The maglia nera on the other hand is (or was?) to the Giro as the Lanterne Rouge is to the Tour.
Thanks for trying to clarify.
Thanks for trying to clarify.
Sorry should have clarified
Sorry should have clarified the *shorts part* of the skinsuit, not the top half is the UCI’s issue, I see what you mean…
The UCI thinks it all should be the same colour as the leader’s jersey as per its rules (“The wearer of the leader’s jersey shall be entitled to match the colour of his shorts to that of the jersey”) so he could wear team shorts or pink shorts matching the maglia rosa colour.
It’s all a bit messy though because does a skinsuit have shorts or is it one item of clothing? Does anyone care enough to argue? You might also ask why I didn’t just mention all that in the post earlier…
I can’t believe I’ve gone
I can’t believe I’ve gone down this rabbit hole but, in addition, the UCI Jersey Guidelines for a skinsuit (p116) divide it into two zones – basically the team sponsor panels and the organiser zone. For the organiser zone, it says “the organiser is free of use any design and color for this zone”. So perhaps the argument is that it doesn’t say colours, plural and so should be all pink – but that would scupper the polka dot KOM jerseys.
The underlying story
The underlying story certainly has elements that are confusing, but I must agree with JohnnyEnglish that the way it has been reported here is exponentially more confusing.
But yes, as far as I can tell the story is:
Pogacar, as current General Classification leader, was wearing the race leader skinsuit provided by the event organiser’s kit supplier (Castelli). This is traditionally pink.
The bottom half of the skin suit was not pink. The UCI objected to this.
There had been speculation that the objection was due to potential confusion with the “ciclamino” (mauve) kit allocated to the current Points Classification leader, but that was not the case. Instead, the colour was described as “granata” (pomegranate?), and was intended as a tribute to the disaster mentioned.
The objection appears to have been that kits are required to either be a uniform colour (i.e. all pink), or else be pink on the top and with plain black lower half.
So, to comply with the rules, Pogacar was provided with a pink jersey and black shorts (again, provided by the event organiser’s supplier, Castelli).
The UAE Team Emirates’ kit supplier, Pissei, were not involved.
? I’ll send you the log-ins
? I’ll send you the logins and you can take over after lunch (although it looks like the black shorts were standard team-issue Pissei)
How do you pronounce “Pissei”
How do you pronounce “Pissei”?
What is going on with the
What is going on with the tyres on that Trench Tales bike?
So when is breakfast/daytime
So when is breakfast/daytime TV / MSM going to be “debating” the number of KSIs inflicted on us by drivers? Asking for a friend.
I still don’t really
I still don’t really understand what Matthew Briggs wants… Hung, drawn, and quartered, maybe? Alliston got 18 months for something that wouldn’t have even made the news if he’d been driving a car. You can’t say that “cyclists are outside the law”, on that evidence.
Exactly.
Exactly.
Any death on our transport network is a tragedy, it just boils my p!ss that pretty much any incident that involves someone on a bike being involved in the death of a pedestrian makes headline news and generates hours and hours of culture war ammunition… sorry I mean “debate”. Whereas anyone else killed by a
cardriver is just acceptable collateral damage and not newsworthy. Who cares if dangerous driving is socially acceptable, under policed and sentencing scandalously weak? If you are going to report it, just frame it as “who’s to blame? (nudge nudge, the cyclist innit)” – that’s quality journalism!Just “man bites dog” though?
It’s always tempting to see “enemy action” but perhaps just “man bites dog” though?
It’s not just that it’s very rare (so newsworthy) – it’s a threatening upset to the usual order. High salience.
So it’s “who are these cyclists? How many are there? How long have they been killing pedestrians – and what are the police / the government doing about it?” (Clearly the people asking immediately see there are themselves, their friends etc. and then dangerous cyclists, over there).
But the way the meeja goes
But the way the meeja goes about it is totally irresponsible and it has damaging consequences (he says having reported 3 egregious close passes and some verbal abuse from a single ride at the weekend).
And another thing. I got bitten by a dog last summer. It’s never happened to me before. Why was I not booked to appear on Good Morning? Tougher sentencing for four pawed, fur clad vermin I say!
Then again, I am a cyclist so it was probably my fault.
Clem Fandango wrote:
You just need to bite it back (preferably with photos or video) and you’ll be the star guest on Jacob Rees-Moggie’s show (until he finds out you’re a cyclist).
Clem Fandango wrote:
Bloody immigrant canines, coming over here from (*checks history*) the continent in small boats* , expecting handouts and biting hard-working families…
* In the early Neolithic. Or maybe on foot via Doggerland?
These days mate, if you say
These days mate, if you say you’re a motorist you get arrested and thrown in prison.
Now now! Stiff upper lip.
Now now! Stiff upper lip, man. Don’t you know there’s a war on? [1] – and an [accidental backhanded complement from Welsh Conservatives]
I have no idea. Maybe in
I know … I have no idea. Maybe in part “stuck in a moment he can’t get out of”? Or taking meaning and personal motivation out of a tragedy by devotion to “fixing the problem”?
Examples from “the other side of the fence” exist – I’m thinking of one of the proponents of the Dutch “Stop de Kindermoord” movement [1] [2]. (The minister of transport at the time had also lost a son in a road collision apparently. Perhaps the notion of “let the mighty be afflicted also, that they may understand” applies?)
If I remember correctly, Mrs
If I remember correctly, Mrs Briggs also stepped into the road without looking. If Alliston had been riding a legal bike, would there have been a case to answer?
Possibly – see Robert
Possibly – see Robert Hazeldean
That was a civil case, though
That was a civil case, though and they are very much a lottery.
brooksby wrote:
I suspect that he’s being manipulated by malign forces that seek to discredit cyclists and LTNs etc. Probably some part of the Tory Death Cultists.
brooksby wrote:
If Alliston had been driving a car at 2/3 of the speed limit when a ped stepped out in front of him, there’s zero chance he would have spent a day in prison, faulty brakes or no. If anything, Matthew Briggs has only drawn attention to how disproportionatley harshly cyclists are often treated in court.
BalladOfStruth wrote:
only cyclists can see that. The media are still telling everyone else that Alliston got away due to lack of death by dangerous cycling laws.
When Covid lockdown kicked
When Covid lockdown kicked off, we were getting daily updates in the news about hospitalisations and deaths.
Would be good if the media could report on daily and cumulative injuries and deaths by motorists along with reports on court results about prosecutions…
Anyone mentioned this yet?
Anyone mentioned this yet?
On the topic of devious, murderous cyclists, apparently pushing one under a moving car is totally fine now.
O. M. F. G.
O. M. F. G.
Indeed. I’m so glad Martin
Indeed. I’m so glad Martin got himself banned because he’d be fucking insufferable at this news.
I’m furious at this, because from the videos we saw at the time, Grey’s “aggressive gesticulation” was actually sweeping blow that almost definitely made contact with Ward and is what put her under the car. Even if it wasn’t, Ward’s attempt to evade it did. Either way, this result is disgusting.
Was going to comment that it
Was going to comment that it’s a shame the same level of compassion from the media can’t be shared with the victim of this.
In look forward to Mr
I look forward to Mr Loophole calling for registered tabards for pedestrians & the making of new laws to address “hostile gesticulation”
“Instead a huge cultural
“Instead a huge cultural reset is required, and it should be initiated within the cycling fraternity.’
Cool eh.
I thought there was a war on motorists.
Perversely to what they were
Perversely to what they were intending, this sounds like a call to revolution.
Sod the pitchforks folks, grab those chain locks, brake disks and flat pedals, we storm the barricades at dawn.
Apologies! They weren’t barricades, just queues of vehicles stuck in traffic
ROOTminus1 wrote:
I think queues of traffic might be very vulnerable to a cyclist swinging a U-lock at their windows! Bring on the revolution!
The UCI make Polis Scotland
The UCI make Polis Scotland look almost competent.
Of their many, many
Of their many, many incompetent decisions, I’ll never forgive them for banning my nearly-new pursuit bike after Lugano.
lesterama wrote:
My peeve was when they made me tape over the SIDI logo on my brand new shoes because the classed it as “advertising” and would have declared me a professional if I didnt!
UCI as amateur as ever…….
UCI as amateur as ever………and in 2024, what sport forces riders to wear the organisers kit? Ridiculous…..and from another era that needs binning off.
I imagine the UCI come out in a cold sweat looking at other sports kits……..
Just let teams wear their own kit and end this nonsense.