Ukad could charge Freeman; Pedal Me offers free rides to vote on Dec 12; New Trek-Segafredo; Blythe hangs his wheels up; Killer New Orleans driver “must have been blind drunk”; + more on the live blog

London-based bike taxi and delivery firm Pedal Me has pledged to give people in the capital free trips to polling stations at the general election on 12 December.

The company, which now has 45 employees in the capital and has plans to expand to other UK cities, is also urging people to register to vote.

Great to see lots of people registering to vote ahead of what is likely to be a very important general election.

If you aren’t already on the register, get on there here: https://t.co/hJXq4zyLIC

Free rides to vote on Election Day, in case you needed any more motivation https://t.co/rrWMHrRsXS

— Pedal Me (@pedalmeapp) October 31, 2019

A timely airing for this ride/interview with Adam Blythe, who announced his retirement from pro cycling today (see below).

"I know that I'm interested in economics, and would like to know more about it, and I want to find out if it's something for me,” he said. “That's the philosophy I have when I decide something.

"Obviously, I've thought about what I could do, and I decided to do it because I think it will be helpful for me, but the most important thing is whether I'm interested in it and curious about it, so we'll see what I can do with it in the future. I think nobody knows exactly what will happen before they decide something – at least that's how it's always been for me."

Kittel and his wife are also expecting their first child. The German sprinter retired in August and it doesn’t sound like he’s missing the world of pro cycling yet.

“If you ride your bike, you experience nature. If you ride alone, you can really focus on yourself and get rid of your everyday problems. But when you live it as a professional, it's a totally different story."

Speaking to Cycling News about leaving racing behind, he said: "I really like the fact that all the expectation is gone," Kittel says. "You're not the centre of attention anymore, whereas, as a sprinter, you always are. That's a definite change. I'm really proud of what I achieved in my career, and I still love the sport, but it's very nice not to have that pressure and expectation.

"A huge differences is that I was in a very strict organisation and plan as a professional, and now I'm free. For me, personally – and it's a very individual thing – I love to make my own decisions and choose things I like instead of being in this very strict environment."

 “If you ride your bike, you experience nature. If you ride alone, you can really focus on yourself and get rid of your everyday problems. But when you live it as a professional, it's a totally different story."

There were suggestions yesterday that the Tour of California may have been cancelled because of a new equal pay law that requires organisers to provide equal pay for men and women to secure permits to run events on California state lands.

The Tour of California has been offering equal prize money to men and women on the days that both race. However, the women’s race is only three days, while the men’s is seven days.

"Equal pay for equal play is a two-part equation. So, if the women are only being paid 'equally' for three days, but they aren't allowed to work for seven days, then that isn't equal," said former racer Kathryn Bertine, who has championed the new law, speaking to Cycling News.

“Tour of California will find substantial gains, wider support and lucrative investment when they finally include women equally,” she added.

"I do hold out hope that the race is only on a hiatus, and that the door remains open for an equitable event."

Commenting on cancelling the 2020 edition, Kristin Klein, the race’s president and executive vice president for AEG Sports, said only: “This has been a very difficult decision to make, but the business fundamentals of the Amgen Tour of California have changed since we launched the race 14 years ago.

“This new reality has forced us to reevaluate our options and we are actively assessing every aspect of our event to determine if there is a business model that will allow us to successfully relaunch the race in 2021.”

Gore Wear have teamed up with Romance, an independent cycling apparel brand based in London, to produce this… hmm, let’s go with ‘distinctive’ jacket.

With predictably erratic use of the shift key, it's catchily-named the GORE x Romance GORE-TEX SHAKEDRY Jacket.

They’re making 200 of them and each will feature a unique design.

It costs £270. More info here.

Ben Washington, Sales and Marketing Associate at GORE Wear said: “Using a modified membrane and new printing technologies we have unlocked a new palette of colours for SHAKEDRY products and look forward to the possibilities this opens up for the future.”

Nathan Dytor at Romance added: “The design inspiration was born from nature: The forever developing patterns, shadows, light and atmosphere we all encounter on every ride, every time.

“Our design is an ode to the sky and its clouds, the ocean and its shadows, the tarmac and its scars, the fields and their contours – ever-changing, never the same.

“We wanted our jacket to speak of individuality and the truth that nothing ever stays the same. That’s why each jacket is completely unique, each one different to the next, each one individually numbered.

“The GORE x Romance jacket is delivering you a product as individual as every ride you have ever been on.”

When did dinosaurs become a Halloween thing?

Ummm...@GoZwift?? pic.twitter.com/zgt7LEy9Sv

— Jarrad Van Zuydam (@JarradVZ) October 31, 2019

No idea what this is about. Talk of pumpkins and headless dinosaurs in the replies. Anyone been on today?

#HappyHalloween Zwifters! In for a scare? Head to Watopia if you dare...  pic.twitter.com/nP3bAh4JKt

— Zwift (@GoZwift) October 31, 2019

I need to catch up with what happened yesterday, so I may as well drag you all along with me.

Don’t worry, I’ll do all the work. You just sit on my wheel. As usual.

1. ASO are going to launch The Saudi Tour in February. The news has been greeted with widespread cynicism.
2. Near Miss of the Day 324 was a driver changing lanes without looking who almost took out a cyclist.
3. Muc-Off are doing bike wash refill stations in a bunch of stores to save on plastic. Well done, Muc-Off.
4. Danish ultracyclist Michael Knudsen has begun his challenge to ride the 5,000-kilometre distance of the Race Across America on a turbo trainer, using Zwift, in a shopping centre in Copenhagen. Michael Knudsen clearly has a much better saddle than I do.
5. The Lotus track bike is back! 25 years after the Lotus 108 helped Chris Boardman to a gold medal, there’ll be a brand new Lotus being raced by Team GB at next year’s Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

2016 national champion Adam Blythe says that it’s time for him to hang up his wheels as an, um, "bile racer"…

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Its time for me to hang up my wheels as a professional Bile racer.... The bike has been everything to me from a young age. From racing around the country with the my mates who I could still race with now, to riding grand tours and winning my home Classic race, Ride London. I have grown up in the sport and it has been some journey to get me to where I am today. I have a lot of stories, and an awful lot of good memories. I have seen the sport change a lot over the past decade, with the sacrifices getting greater and greater for a pro to keep competing at the top level. With this in mind, the time is now right for me to step away from racing, spend more time with my beautiful Mrs and three beautiful children, while focusing on what else I can do in the sport. I love cycling, and can’t imagine not being a part of the sport in some way, so I look forward to exploring whatever new opportunities come my way to keep me working in the sport, and with the people, I love . See you all Soon x

A post shared by Adam Blythe (@adamblythe89) on Oct 31, 2019 at 1:30am PDT

My colleague Simon MacMichael suggests that given some of the corking shirts he wore while doing punditry this year, maybe he just couldn't find a team with a jersey loud enough for him.