Live blog: Olympic track champ Kristina Vogel airlifted to hospital after serious crash, big news on the way for Greater Manchester cyclists + more
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Tue, Jun 26, 2018 14:33
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Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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Latest Comments
chrisonabike 3 hours ago
@Smoggysteve "Most would happily ride on the roads and be treated with respect by drivers". But people aren't - and as far as I can see they won't be. Not until there is a lot less driving and it's slower around cyclists, and far more people driving have "skin in the game" eg. they sometimes cycle and their friends and family do also. That's what leads to the model - which is perhaps most advanced in NL - where cycling, walking and driving are all seen as separate normal transport modes. Their needs, vulnerabilities and any dangers to others are considered. And *that* leads to "mix / share when possible, separate when necessary". But "possible" is "where your 10-year old would be safe to cycle unsupervised" - so very few motor vehicles, going slow! And AFAICS everybody - even "existing cyclists" - is happy with the result. (I dunno about a few pro cyclists - but don't they tend to have training camps in different counties anyway?)
chrisonabike 3 hours ago
@quiff as an Edinburgh resident I can confidently say he's speaking without moving his lips in one sense: - while as I noted in a separate comment there *is* now some real separated cycle infra, all the examples i can think of have *at least as much space* for pedestrians. The rest of the "cycle infra" is essentially similar to the situation in the rest of the UK: eg. bus lanes*, cycle lanes and shared use paths (eg. "build" infra by sticking up a sign). Edinburgh is one of the places with a moderately extensive network of former railways which have been converted to "shared use" paths (completely motor traffic few). However though shared they are not narrow by UK standards. And this is all effectively a "free extra" for all non- motorised users, not like the "sign a cycle path" where pedestrians do lose space. I think this all comes from the "popular understanding" of cycling in which ultimately cyclists are the "other". They don't fit "motor vehicle" or "pedestrian" (including wheelchairs on the very rare occasions people think about that). Thus "cyclists are cheating" in multiple ways! They shouldn't get their own space as "there aren't enough" of them. And "they can just use the road / path". But being able to *choose* "on the road" or "on the footway" (shared use path) is clearly unfair - nobody else gets to do that! BUT of course even if they did pick just one of road OR pedestrian space it's still not fair anyway because they're "too slow" for the road (don't pay "road tax" etc...) and "far too fast" for pedestrians... * Though some existing cyclists may appreciate them when there are few buses, buses and bikes are a very poor mix for several reasons.
mikecassie 3 hours ago
Whilst a shame for any employees, their bib shorts had the worst chamois pad I’d ever encountered, utter waste of my money. Even though they were Strava challenge discount purchases, still a waste of money.
ktache 4 hours ago
Thanks, just going to have to suck it up. Got next week off and will take the easy, if expensive option...
Rendel Harris 4 hours ago
@ktache Just go for the TNT Sports only package, £30.99 for a month. Alternatively have you considered experimenting with a VPN for a few pounds, allowing you to sign up for a free stream abroad, e.g. SBS Australia which streams the Tour live? If I didn't have a kind mate's login that's what I'd do!
ktache 5 hours ago
So, it's now the month of July and I'm going to have to pay to watch the TdF, for one month only. On a tablet unfortunately, as I didn't manage to get a laptop to rig up to the TV, grrr. Just wondering, what package will I have to fork out for? Not wanting to pay for the wrong one...
Rendel Harris 6 hours ago
Not that it sounds like a dealbreaker given the other faults you've identified, but that cable isn't really a "proprietary" cable, four pin magnetic cables like that are quite common on bone-conducting headphones and other devices (my inexpensive smartwatch uses one) and they can be had for £4.99 on UK Amazon.
mctrials23 6 hours ago
There was never really anything to say about le col kit. Most of it was alright. Some of it was poorly designed/made. Trying to position yourself as a Rapha competitor whilst always offering 40% or more off doesn't scream premium though.
ROOTminus1 7 hours ago
Up next in the MucOff product line; for when the cassette won't budge, (chain)whip-it!
13 thoughts on “Live blog: Olympic track champ Kristina Vogel airlifted to hospital after serious crash, big news on the way for Greater Manchester cyclists + more”
Interesting development in
Interesting development in Melbourne. Are the Aussies finally waking up to the disaster of their anti-cycling policies of the past thirty years?
burtthebike wrote:
All those drivers who look like they’re either really upset or have hayfever… Seems to me that if Australian drivers didn’t seem so keen to run down cyclists (in every sense of the expression) then their authorities wouldn’t have seen the need to put this experimental (for Oz) roundabout layout in.
burtthebike wrote:
Nope, you only have to listen to the old ‘they don’t pay reggo’ bollocks from the fat knacker first interviewed. They still hate cycling, it gets in the way and the perception is that it’s all about the head down lycra wanker when many people just want to get from A-B without being killed/injured/harassed and also to be able to cycle without plod wasting time unlawfully penalising them for not wearing a plastic hat. That is one of the clearest signs of an anti cycling nation. I’m proud to say that I’m part of a campaign group trying to help and put pressure on australian government to get the unlawful helmet rule abolished.
Until that happens and police focus on stopping and arresting those that kill and maim nothing meaningful will change as per the load of bullshit ‘infra’.
That’ll be a “fixed”, not a
That’ll be a “fixed”, not a “fixie”
dreamlx10 wrote:
Also, given the distance, he’s covered far more than just the Fred Whitton route. Chapeau!
dreamlx10 wrote:
Except where people use the term ‘fixie’, which is to say a lot of the time.
To call it cyclist priority
To call it cyclist priority is slightly misleading; that implies cyclists have somehow been given priority over other traffic on the roundabout. Instead, it’s taken cyclists off the roundabout and given them a circumferential lane which has priority over the main carriageway where the two intersect. Cyclists choosing to remain on the main carriageway (I don’t know the law regarding mandatory cycle lanes in Melbourne?) do not have priority! In fact, it’s a “Dutch style” roundabout. I think we might even have one or two somewhere in the UK.
Quote:
The word “impact” is surely being used negatively in this context but they’re looking the wrong way down the telescope. Surely any business would see it as a chance to sell stuff to the thousands of cycling fans hanging around for a day or a long weekend. Use your imagination folks, isn’t that why you’re considered as entrepreneurs and “business people”? Otherwise you might as well give up and get a job in a supermarket.
With regards to the
With regards to the Harrowgate business impact assessment, I’d hope that they have enough time to start collecting data about footfall and conversion rates.
It will probably drive business to catering outlets (restaurants and cafes for example), but if you run something that is unlikely to attract inwards trade (a launderette or a pet shop for example) then you might well be worried about business impacts.
If the council had a clear picture of spending patterns over the course of the year, then they could look at what impacts an event of this type has and perhaps compensate those businesses that lose out (a reduction in business rates for example?). Without this research it’s all meaningless.
Don’t bother cycling anywhere
Don’t bother cycling anywhere around Harrogate, the roads are shocking. Been out that way today, think I’ve vibration white finger now.
The country roads are shit and the urban roads are beyond shit. You get these roads full of £1m houses and the roads look someone lifted them from Syria. Now wonder everyone drives Rangepigs.
Yorkshire wallet wrote:
There may be a correlation between £1 million+ houses and bad roads, I had a bone shaking ride through Alderley Edge this morning.
Apparently it’s an area where huge 4 x 4s are compulsory.
It’s likely that the Range
It’s likely that the Range Rovers have caused the potholes.
I don’t think it’s anywhere near as big a problem as Yorkshire Wallet claims. Maybe you rode Penny Pot Lane? That one has a less than perfect surface, but it is shown as Rough Road on an OS map.
Harrogate is an events
Harrogate is an events/visitor/tourism town. Don’t be surprised if it puts on events. It can’t always be the Eurovision Song Contest.
The moaning about road closures was bound to start – I’m surprised it’s taken them this long. But, as at the TDF, the World Champs will be overwhelmingly supported by local people.
Businesses in town massively overestimate how many people arrive there by car. Just stop complaining, look for the opportunities, and it will be a big success.