Welcome to your Tuesday live blog, with Jack Sexty, Simon MacMichael and the rest of the team.
Live blog: Froome loses 14 mins in Catalunya crash, German govt digs in over “sexist” cycle helmet ad, Jeremy Vine cut up by cab vid sees HIM get riding advice, Green MP takes aim at new Team Sky owner Ineos, Thomas de Gentd lays down the power +more
All today’s news from the site and beyond…
Tue, Mar 26, 2019 19:06
SUMMARY
26 March 2019, 19:06
Unbaa-lievable
Here’s a lamb confusing a bike tyre for its mum to start your day…
26 March 2019, 19:06
Milan-San Remo from the EF Education First Team
The longest day on our race schedule took us from the bustling streets of Milan to the sunny coastal town of Sanremo. Along the way, #PinkArgyle animated #MilanoSanremo.
The latest episode of #EFGoneRacing brings you along on the first Monument of the season Watch now. pic.twitter.com/R7Bs0dAB0L
— EF Education First Pro Cycling (@EFprocycling) March 26, 2019
In association with their kit sponsor Rapha, the team have produced this snazzy video to chart their 2019 Milan-San Remo journey…
26 March 2019, 19:06
Thomas de Gendt throws down huge power in impressive Volta a Catalunya opening stage victory
The Belgian Lotto-Soudal rider showed us what it takes to capture such an impressive victory via his Strava account, with a weighted average power of 352 watts over the 164km stage with over 3,000m of elevation. De Gendt weights 72kg.
De Gendt broke away with about 60km to go and more than held on for the victory, now enjoying a three minute lead over his nearest rival. What’s more impressive is that De Gendt’s ride shows that the peloton were tanking it from the start in places, with plenty of his early segments in the 400 to 500 watt range.
The second stage is slightly longer and could play into the hands of sprinters, although there are a couple of tricky climbs on the way. After yesterday’s effort, it will be mighty impressive if De Gendt manages to keep his overall lead.
26 March 2019, 19:06
German government digs in over "sexist" cycle helmet ad
The German government says it “stands by” an advertising campaign aimed at encouraging young people to wear cycle helmets but which has been accused of sexism.
As we reported on Sunday, an image in the campaign, shot by the acclaimed British fashion photographer Rankin, had come under criticism on social media since it showed a model wearing just a cycle helmet and a bra.
Other pictures in the initiative – which are accompanied by the slogan, “Looks like shit. But saves my life.” have also attracted negative comments online.
But according to the Associated Press, transport ministry spokeswoman Transport Ministry spokeswoman Svenja Friedrich said yesterday that the whole point of the campaign was to grab attention, and she also highlighted that male models were involved.
“We can absolutely understand the criticism from various sides, but we still stand by the images,” she added.
26 March 2019, 19:06
Video: Yorkshire Worlds course suits Sagan, says ex-team mate after recce
Michael Kolar, who rode alongside Peter Sagan at Bora-Hansgrohe until he retired last year, has been out on a recce of the course of the men’s road race at September’s UCI Road World Championships – and says it will suit his fellow Slovakian, who won the rainbow jersey three times in a row from 2015-17. Here’s the video from Yorkshire 2019.
"Absolutely loved the course, amazing landscape… I think it'll be for the classics type rider, exactly to suit @petosagan in my eyes"@BoraHansgrohe's @MichaelKolar_ came to Yorkshire to take a closer look at the parcours for @yorkshire2019. Watch how he got on #Yorkshire2019 pic.twitter.com/wtVUlnyPAy
— Yorkshire 2019 (@Yorkshire2019) March 26, 2019
26 March 2019, 19:06
Ekoi launch Stripe clothing collection
The French brand’s new Stripe collection includes jerseys in blue, red, white and black colours, and also bib shorts with the stripe pattern in a choice of the same four colours on the leg grippers so you can go matchy matchy. All are available now on Ekoi’s website, with the jersey and matching shorts bundle on offer for £128.60.
26 March 2019, 19:06
Relive THAT stage from last year's Giro
BLOWING UP THE GIRO from Science in Sport on Vimeo.
Science in Sport have released a video charting Chris Froome’s legendary solo stage victory on the Colle delle Finestre on his way to Giro victory last year. Definitely worth 6 and a bit minutes of your lunchbreak…
26 March 2019, 19:06
Jeremy Vine posts video to Twitter of getting cut up by cabbie - but replies say he should have held back
Broadcaster and cyclist Jeremy Vine has posted another video to Twitter, asking this time whether he “should mind” getting cut up by a taxi in the City of London.
But the general view of people replying on the social network is that with the lights changing and the taxi starting to pull away at a junction where all traffic has to turn left from Newgate Street into King Edward Street, he should have anticipated what was going to happen and held back, rather than put himself in harm’s way.
What do you think?
Should I mind about this?
The other cyclist minded on my behalf. pic.twitter.com/U5zoKvfmaW— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) March 26, 2019
26 March 2019, 19:06
Froome crashes and loses 14 minutes in Catalunya
With so many pinch points on today’s stage, it was inevitable that there would be a few crashes but the hardest hit was Chris Froome who lost out on any potential GC hopes after a nasty crash inside the final 40km. He eventually rolled in with a small group 14 minutes down, though that should give him some freedom to go for a stage win should he recover sufficiently.
26 March 2019, 19:06
Balance bike toddlers - on a velodrome track!
Here’s a terrific video from Japan – toddlers riding the track at the Izu Velodrome on their balance bikes.
According to Google Translate, the text says (roughly) “The senior team is great!”
年長部門すごいですね！！ pic.twitter.com/pE7hFsBn7w
— izu velodrome (@Izu_Velodrome) March 24, 2019
26 March 2019, 19:06
Green Party MP takes aim at new Team Sky owner over pollution
Last week, Friends of the Earth accused Ineos and its owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe of “greenwashing” after it was confirmed the petrochemicals firm was buying Team Sky’s management company from Sky and 21st Century Fox with effect from 1 May.
Today, its Caroline Lucas, the Green Party MP for Brighton Pavilion who is taking aim at the Brexit-backing billionaire, referencing Team Sky in a tweet that links to a Greenpeace article claiming that Ineos will close a plant in Middlesbrough if forced to comply with EU anti-pollution laws.
Billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe can buy Team Sky, sponsor the Americas cup, and fund fracking.
But he ‘cannot justify’ upgrading his chemical plants so they don’t pollute our air and water.
What a guy.https://t.co/rp9nWp2ZXt
— Caroline Lucas (@CarolineLucas) March 25, 2019
Once secretive, Ratcliffe’s backing of teams in yachting and cycling and an attempt to buy Chelsea FC last year, as well as his status as Britain’s richest man, have seen the raising of both his and the company’s profiles.
Anti-fracking campaigners are reportedly planning to protest against Ineos when the team debuts under its name at May’s Tour de Yorkshire – a shape of things to come once Geraint Thomas, Chris Froome and their team mates sport the company’s logo on their jerseys?
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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
chrisonabike 30 minutes ago
"All that's required is an to roads policing" - that's a big all... Although no doubt the "idiots just keep coming" aspect does apply: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz9lel2wz93o "Man charged after car crashes through bowling alley" - luckily they only skittled over skittles.
chrisonabike 41 minutes ago
Almost any change to roads and streets is accompanied by a period of heightened danger, and in the UK "look out for cyclists" will need to be learned... practically. And over the time it takes for cyclists to become a regular feature. OTOH once (if...) good designs are in and frequent enough such that drivers encounter them AND the cyclists on them regularly (another big if) I don't think they should be much more difficult than a footway to deal with. These things are all over NL - don't have the collision stats but they should. (NL isn't perfect but collecting info on the safety of designs to feed back into better designs as required is part of the "sustainable safety" philosophy - if they're really a killer I think they'd be altering these.)
wtjs 2 hours ago
I'm in the happy position of agreeing with everybody here! I've never considered a bike with a stand, yet I'm impressed by the ingenuity and adaptability of this axle. I tow a Yak Bob with a Robert Axle, employing my El Cheapo Vitus gravel bike and I just have to be very careful where I stop. Hedges are generally a dead loss, and I seek walls, telegraph poles and signposts and generally lean the widest part of the Bob against it. One very awkward task is removing the two steel pins which lock the trailer arms onto the special mounting slots on the Robert axle, and when you have one out, the sodding weight in the trailer can twist the whole caboodle and bend the Bob fitting before you can get the other out and unhitch. I doubt if a stand would help with that. You can imagine that this combo is a real pain when you have to get it over the bridge at railway stations, and it nearly resulted in Merseyrail nearly parting me and the trailer on the platform from the bike on the train. It's a long story for another time. Another axle example recently featured on here, with a 12mm front axle bearing the Herculean weight limit of a monster American front rack.
HoarseMann 4 hours ago
This has nothing to do with the type of bike - it's the type of behaviour that's the problem. Banning the sale of such bikes will not curtail the behaviour. They'll just find another type of vehicle and continue to drive dangerously as there's such a lack of enforcement. I'd sooner see them ban the bally. But really, all that's required is an improvement to roads policing.
AidanR 4 hours ago
The EAPC Bill is welcome, but full of holes. What's to stop an overpowered but temporarily limited e-bike being sold and subsequently delimited? This is often a trivial process.
Sredlums 5 hours ago
@KiwiMike Yeah, in my over four decades of riding all over Europe I've never 'been for a ride in the countryside'. That must be it. Or, and I know this is a wild concept, you just accept that I just voiced my personal experiences and never missed a kickstand, like I wrote. Anyway, what's the big horror of laying your bike on its side for the very few occasions where there is nothing to lean your bike against?
mdavidford 5 hours ago
They may have looked, but did they see?
jackcycles 5 hours ago
Ds2025: where they are going wrong is that they are crushing the motorbike rather than the person sat on top of it. If they did the latter this issue would be solved in less than 24 hours.
Rod Marton 5 hours ago
I came this way today with the car boot sale in operation. There was a marshal at the entrance, who stopped a car turning right across the cycleway as I was approaching. So that certainly works. I think it necessary for the marshal to be there, I couldn't say if the driver would have turned if he hadn't been there but you always have to suspect the worst. Unfortunately there is no marshal at the exit, and there was certainly a car stopped across the cycleway as I was approaching it. But he pulled onto the road before I reached it, and the following car stayed off the cycleway as I went through. Ideally there should have been a marshal there too. On the whole, though, it's a really high standard piece of infrastructure. Just a pity it doesn't extend a bit further.
eburtthebike 6 hours ago
“absolute carnage” So right! Just look at the bodies piled up, blood running in the gutters and injured people limping away. It's a bit of a problem with a road, delaying some people for minutes at a time: it isn't carnage, let alone 'absolute carnage'. Anyone who exaggerates so ridiculously really shouldn't be allowed to comment in public, unless they want to demonstrate their idiocy to all and sundry.
18 thoughts on “Live blog: Froome loses 14 mins in Catalunya crash, German govt digs in over “sexist” cycle helmet ad, Jeremy Vine cut up by cab vid sees HIM get riding advice, Green MP takes aim at new Team Sky owner Ineos, Thomas de Gentd lays down the power +more”
Aw sheep iz qtist !
Aw sheep iz qtist !
Sorry Jezza, defensive riding
Sorry Jezza, defensive riding sonshine so you’re in the wrong on this one.
You can see the lights are changing, you can see it’s a left only turn and you cannot get to the ASL before they are going to move off so why bother trying to go on the inside when this is not going to save you any time whatsoever but does put you into conflict in an entirely predictable situation.
In fact the cab driver had priority and you should have yielded to that, placed yourself central behind the cab 9just like the other rider did) and taken the lane through the lights and around the bend, safe as houses and you’ve ‘lost’ what, 1.5seconds if that and no dramas. In fact it probably would have been quicker for you taking the correct option given the person behind you actually comes past with ease!
Nope, you thought a MGIF was the right thing to do.
Should mr pollution have taken the correct line around the bend, yes, but it still might have been tight, should he have bothered to check his nearside mirror before moving off, yes, however you know and we know that that’s simply not going to happen in this scenario a moton at the wheel.
Lesson learnt, just because there’s a gap doesn’t mean a you have a right to take it and b, defensive riding/driving is a thing, you need to be aware of ‘what ifs’ and in this case it was 100% predictable what was going to happen, so much so that another vulnerable road user actually took the correct line through the lights/bend.
BTBS: why are you referring
BTBS: why are you referring to JV as a magazine?
https://sonshinemagazine.com/
Or do you actually mean “sunshine”?
Rapha Nadal wrote:
As in sonny, sonshine,
deal with it, maybe just actually make comments on the subject matter at hand instead of just going off on a tangent just to cause an argument.
BehindTheBikesheds wrote:
Who’s arguing here? I’m curious as to your made up words, sonshine.
I’ll agree with BTBS there,
I’ll agree with BTBS there, ease off a bit and let the cabbie (high likelihood of being a… less forgiving driver) go off in front and go past in a more suitable situation/road section.
I’ll say well done JV for putting this as a question, getting people to assess a situation and draw conclusions about the best line to take/riding techniques to use.
BIGWATTS wrote:
tbf JV didnt say he was as put out as the rider next to him was about it, hence the question posed, but yeah thats one of those can see it coming,back off, nothing to be gained by rushing into the gap where angels fear to tread there.
I’ll agree with BTBS there,
I’ll agree with BTBS there, ease off a bit and let the cabbie (high likelihood of being a… less forgiving driver) go off in front and go past in a more suitable situation/road section.
I’ll say well done JV for putting this as a question, getting people to assess a situation and draw conclusions about the best line to take/riding techniques to use.
I’ll agree with BTBS there,
I’ll agree with BTBS there, ease off a bit and let the cabbie (high likelihood of being a… less forgiving driver) go off in front and go past in a more suitable situation/road section.
I’ll say well done JV for putting this as a question, getting people to assess a situation and draw conclusions about the best line to take/riding techniques to use.
I’ll agree with BTBS there,
Oops!
The German government may
The German government may stand by its images, but does it stand by its words “But saves my life” Surely they have an equivalent to our ASA?
burtthebike wrote:
they might who’d then ask why isnt it in Deutsch in the first place ?
If Jeremy uses that junction
If Jeremy uses that junction regularly then yes, he should’ve realised its a pinch point on that corner. However, the road markings are badly designed: the cycle lane could lead someone to believe they can filter up to the front. If they carried on the cycle lane around the bend it would help drivers not cut the corner
Think JV is actually doing a
Think JV is actually doing a good service here as he’s showing we don’t always get it right but it’s always us that is vulnerable. Incidentally, taxi overhanging the ASL, the one to the right even worse…
It also highlights the shit infrastructure, why do we keep being funnuled down the inside of cars to potential death?
I’m with you alansmurphy – I
I’m with you alansmurphy – I know that junction very well – JV’s moral indignation might be justified but from a self preservation point of view he got it wrong I’m afraid. There is no cycle lane beyond that point so someone in a motor will go for the space.
I agree – JV should have
I agree – JV should have anticipated the cabbie cutting the corner. I wouldn’t have undertaken (filtered, etc) at that point on a bike or in a car.
Had the light changed just a
Had the light changed just a little later I expect everyone would be blaming the taxi driver for dangerously cutting the corner.
Taxi driver isn’t blameless even though JV shouldn’t have put himself there as the light changed early enough to make the call.
on approaching i can see the
on approaching i can see the lights are changing, definitely tuck in behind the cab, might even get to draft it accelerating away after the bend.