Welcome to Monday’s live blog, with Jack Sexty, Simon MacMichael and the rest of the team.
Live blog: Angry letter and petition as amateur trade teams rail against UCI decision excluding them from Track World Cup; Two cyclists Chase the Sun from Thames Estuary to Bristol Channel – then ride all the way back + more
All today’s news from the site and beyond…
Mon, Jun 24, 2019 17:59
SUMMARY
24 June 2019, 17:59
ICYMI - some top stories from the weekend
If you haven’t been following cycling-related matters over the weekend, here’s some things you may have missed…
Egan Bernal wins Tour de Suisse to give Ineos potential Tour de France leadership headache
81-year-old becomes oldest woman to cycle from Land’s End to John O’Groats
Robert Hazeldean crowdfunding hits goal – but will it be enough?
24 June 2019, 17:59
Think LEJOG sounds tough? How about GBDURO 2019, a 2000km off-road version that's just four stages long...
The inaugural GBDURO is ran by The Racing Collective, and involves four totally unsupported stages in which riders have to go on and off-road over some punishing terrain, with over 10,000m of climbing on stage 1. Lachlan Morton of the EF Education pro team was the first to finished the 630km opening stage, forgoing a rest stop in Bristol after the first day and doing the whole 630km in one go. Here are the four stages:
Stage 1 – Land’s End to Ysbyty Cynfyn 630km // 10,900m
Stage 2 – Ysbyty Cynfyn to Garrigill 470km // 8,500m
Stage 3 – Garrigill to Fort Augustus 480km // 7,100m
Stage 4 – Fort Augustus to John O’Groats 380km // 4,200m
The route is newly developed and is known as the GBDIVIDE, created by a number of well-known stalwarts in the bikepacking community. There are no prizes as such, with the rider finishing the four stages in the lowest aggregate time receiving nothing more than some major kudos. Riders have to finish by 2nd July, meaning all competitors will need to ride over 200km a day to make it to the finisher’s party. You can follow the progress of all riders on the Dotwatcher website here, and find out more about GBDURO 2019 on the Racing Collective website.
24 June 2019, 17:59
Madison Genesis no more - team to fold after 2019 season ends
An iconic team of the domestic circuit with some of the kindest people I’ve met. British Cycling will miss @MadisonGenesis. Thank you for all you’ve done https://t.co/UmubnHJPVn
— Mark Cavendish (@MarkCavendish) June 24, 2019
An open letter reads: “It is with a great regret that we are announcing Madison Genesis will cease racing at the end of this season. In this open letter to everyone that has supported us over the last seven years, we want to offer an explanation and use it as an opportunity to show our gratitude to our fans and sponsors that made the dream a reality.
Who would have thought back in 2012, that an unknown team could go on to create so many incredible, lasting memories? We started out with a recently retired Roger Hammond at the helm in 2012 and achieved everything we wanted and more. With too many highlights to mention, a nod must be given to winning the Tour Series in 2015 and of course helping Connor Swift to his National Road Race title in July last year.
The team will continue to race until the end of the season, with a main goal very much being to ride at and be a force at the Tour of Britain in September. There will be plenty more opportunities to see Madison Genesis this year, not least of all the team ride out in Wales next month.
As a team, we would just like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for helping to make the last seven years truly unforgettable. Fans, riders, sponsors, mechanics, soigneurs, helpers, journalists, photographers, videographers and anyone in between, thank you for joining us on our journey.
See you on the road.
The Madison Genesis Team
24 June 2019, 17:59
Risky...
Peter Sagan has a wobble while attempting to get his shades clean, with a Dimension Data rider to his left looking a tad concerned. Priorities and all…
24 June 2019, 17:59
That feeling when a truck flies past you at breakneck speed? This is a pretty good way of demonstrating it...
What cyclists experience when a large vehicle passes them without proper distance/speed reduction…pic.twitter.com/ol0paLynK2
— Cycling Professor (@fietsprofessor) June 23, 2019
An unlikely source, but this vape cloud appears to give a pretty good idea of the turbulence felt when a big vehicle passes too close at speed.
24 June 2019, 17:59
Christoph Strasser wins record 6th Race Across America title; Team Backstedt take 8-person win
Read the full story here.
24 June 2019, 17:59
Crash forces James MacDonald to abandon 24-hour distance record attempt
James MacDonald’s bid to set a new 24-hour distance record for riding in a velodrome came to grief on Sunday after he crashed on some water he had dropped on the boards of the Geraint Thomas Velodrome in Newport.
The British rider was on course to break the record of 941.873km currently held by Austria’s Christoph Strasser – who coincidentally has just won a record sixth Race Across America title.
MacDonald, 48 carried on riding for a further five hours but was behind the pace and was forced to abandon, reports Reuters.
He said: “Well 20 months of preparation pretty much ended on the back straight after slipping on the water I’d spilled earlier.
“Did try for the 1,000km record but after the savage pace of the 24 and the injuries it was all too much.”
“I’d like to thank everyone who made this happen. Too many to list now. Need some rest. Thanks for all the amazing support both in Newport and online, it’s been a mad mad day!”
24 June 2019, 17:59
"Brutally destructive": Huub Wattbike publish open letter to UCI over their decision to exclude amateur teams from Track World Cup
An open letter to the @UCI_cycling President, @DLappartient #LongLiveDerbados pic.twitter.com/crBHrIcEeq
— Huub | Wattbike Test Team (@HuubWattbike) June 24, 2019
Huub-Wattbike will no longer be able to compete in the Track Cycling World Cup, an event they won in December, thanks to the UCI’s changes that excludes amateur teams from taking part.
In an lengthy open letter to UCI president David Lappartient they’ve now uploaded on social media, Huub Wattbike say: “As a multiple World Cup winning trade team which has broken records and developed world champions, the announced changes have sever implications for us and will ultimately kill off the existence of trade teams completely.
…”Furthermore and putting our personal situation aside, we feel the changes are brutally destructive to the sport we know and love and in this letter we want to argue why.”
The team then ask for an explanation, how athletes are supposed to develop outside of the national system and how riders, employees and sponsors of trade teams will be compensated. We’ll updated if we catch wind of a statement from the UCI on the matter.
24 June 2019, 17:59
Scotland's largest e-bike share scheme launches in the Forth Valley
With 120 bikes in its fleet available across the town of Falkirk and beyond, Forth Bike is now the biggest electric bike share scheme in Scotland. Full story on eBikeTips.
24 June 2019, 17:59
UCI amateur track team ban - now BEAT Cycling Club have started a petition to get the decision reversed
Our open letter to the @UCI_cycling, regarding the recently announced changes to track cycling. Join our fight: sign the petition and keep us on track! https://t.co/xntngWkUky pic.twitter.com/bU5nta2UG2
— BEAT Cycling Club (@beatcyclingclub) June 24, 2019
Joining Huub Wattbike in penning an open letter to voice their displeasure to the UCI, the team have also started a petition that’s got over 300 signatures in less than an hour. You can read their letter and sign the petition here.
24 June 2019, 17:59
Two cyclists did Saturday's 200-mile+ Chase the Sun ride from the Thames Estuary to the Bristol Channel - then rode back!
This is a decent weekend’s riding by anyone’s standards – two members of Kent-based Sheppey Velo, based in the town in Kent from where the annual Chase the Sun ride starts at sunrise on the longest Saturday of the year with the aim of reaching Burnham-on-Sea in Somerset by sunset, did the ride to the Bristol Channel … then got back on their bikes the following morning to head all the way back to the start point on the Thames Estuary.
Chapeau to Steve Evans and Sean Reid and a shout-out to anyone who completed the coast-to-coast ride, which perhaps doesn’t get the same attention as some other events of a similar nature when the daylight is at its longest.
Check that elevation gain, too!
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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
Oldblokey 4 hours ago
With so many people using and looking at mobie phones whilst driving and other distractions, may I suggest you always wear Hi viz and stay at home.
kil0ran 4 hours ago
The design of the "car" has played a role in this. SUVs and what the Americans call "trucks" are exempt from the pedestrian safety regulations which apply to passenger cars. Had the victim been hit by a car designed in the past twenty years he would have been "scooped" onto the bonnet and either over the roof or off to one side. Still a serious injury risk and potentially fatal but they have the benefit of those passive safety systems to improve their chances. With vehicles with such a high bonnet line as this Volvo has what tends to happen is the person bounces off the bonnet and falls on the road in front of the vehicle where they're then run over. This has happened time and time again and is becoming more of an issue as the numbers of vehicles exempt from the safety standards grows.
whosatthewheel 6 hours ago
@Accessibility for all Reducing the speeds wouldn't have helped in this case as the driver was reported doing 65 in a 40 zone on the approach to the junction, his driving described by the witnesses as erratic and evidently had no intention to stop to give way even though he had been warned by the passenger who apparently shouted "bike" three times just before the collision. He would have likely flown through that junction even if it was traffic light controlled with a red light for him at the time. In my own experience the entire area i.e. east of Lymm towards Warburton and along Dunham Road all the way up to Altrincham and past into Hale Barns, all those wealthy, posh settlements around Manchester Airport are best avoided by road cyclists. A disproportionally high number of psycho drivers must for some reason live in that area because every single time I went there on my road bike in the past, I either got harassed myself or witnessed proper dickhead driving - speeding, close passes, overtaking into oncoming traffic or round a blind bend, accelerating towards pedestrians already crossing the road, you name it. I gave up road cycling in that area years ago and only use the local TPT these days.
Hollis Jones 6 hours ago
In respect of the murder charge: based on him hitting Mr Mullins and making no attempt to help him (this killing him), how would the case compare to a hit and run driver who seriously injures or kills a cyclist, knowingly, and flees the scene without helping? Would this make the cut for a murder charge? Or is there something very different going on here that I’m missing? Genuinely curious because I don’t recall there being a murder charge before for this kind of thing unless it was premeditated. In fact, in my experience most cases like this seem to go the opposite way - where the driver can merely say the sun was in their eyes and get away with a slap on the hands.
jaymack 6 hours ago
@Rendel Harris...and there was me dishing out the praise!
whosatthewheel 6 hours ago
@polainm He must also be an already hardened criminal. It wasn't mentioned during the court proceedings to avoid influencing the jurors and ensuring he had a fair trial, but he had been released from prison shortly before this incident and was couch surfing at his cousin's house days before. Just look at his face, he's only 35, but looks older than his victim who was 56. Must have spent half his adult life in prison.
Rendel Harris 7 hours ago
@jaymack They did offer him manslaughter though but he declined to plead guilty. Without wanting to seem curmudgeonly, yes great that they preferred the most serious charges but hard to see how they could have done differently considering that Richardson got out of the car, saw Mr Mullins was stuck underneath and then got back in and carried on. That clearly moved it above anything that falls under death by dangerous driving.
Velophaart_95 7 hours ago
@thrawed Agree - the UK winters are utterly grim; grey, wet & windy. Not the type of weather you really want to go out and ride. Everything get covered in filth, and takes time to clean it after a ride. Oh for colder, drier & crisper days which can be enjoyable to be out in.
polainm 7 hours ago
@ymm In my view, lax sentencing of dangerous drivers, especially where cyclists are involved, makes the judge, jury and CPS complicit in UK driver culture. This driver is a sociopath.
slc 7 hours ago
@Mr Blackbird i reckon the libido is a bit overrated. I'd let that go rather than a limb or a nice bike.
1 thought on “Live blog: Angry letter and petition as amateur trade teams rail against UCI decision excluding them from Track World Cup; Two cyclists Chase the Sun from Thames Estuary to Bristol Channel – then ride all the way back + more”
Just nipping out for a 425
Just nipping out for a 425 mile bike ride.. see you later…