Jeremy Vine films close pass but told he’s ‘in middle of the road’; Greipel misses Spring Classics with dislocated shoulder; Make Evans Great Again is BACK; Amazing (and stomach-turning) drone descent; No doping control at French race +more on live blog
SUMMARY
Hand cyclist's train fails to bring the ramp to his carriage... so he pulls the emergency lever
For your consideration;
What to do, if you’re a wheelchair user on a train, it’s your stop, your ramp has not shown up, and you don’t particularly fancy a magical mystery tour tonight.@Tanni_GT @AnnieBtransport @flowergirl_lon @SW_Help @kingqueen3065 pic.twitter.com/bTkkZMqfT9
— Heavy Metal Handcyclist (@CrippledCyclist) February 10, 2020
Was it the right thing to do? Absolutely in our book… The ‘Heavy Metal Handcyclist’ says that the situation arose because the train he was on came into the wrong platform, so the platform staff weren’t expecting him to be where he was actually was and weren’t at fault. He added: “After this, I briefly chatted with station staff, then went on my way. Does this have potential to cause massive delays and disruption? Yeah, that’s rather the bloody point, actually. I’m not wasting time coming back.”
Boris Johnson pledges £5 billion for cycling routes and bus services
The Prime Minister has announced that as part of the £5 billion investment in England over the next five years, 250 miles of new cycle lanes and numerous ‘mini Holland’ projects will be built to make cycling safer, all for regions outside of London.
After it was revealed last week that the government were missing their targets on spending for cycling and walking, many have said the investment is too little, too late. The BBC quotes shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald as saying: “After years of underinvestment and cuts, this unambitious announcement is nowhere near enough to make the difference that transport users, our economy or our environment need.
“Such paltry investment in cycling won’t be enough to stop the UK lagging behind similar European nations for cycling participation.”
"Maybe focus on some real issues, UCI?" EF Pro Cycling's Magnus Cort and manager Jonathan Vaughters hit out at UCI for lack of doping control at French road race
I really don’t know what to say about this… but hey, good thing @UCI_cycling and @DLappartient are focused and ready to spend €1M on making sure @veloncc isn’t ruining everything good about cycling. 🙄… Maybe, instead, focus on some real issues, UCI?? pic.twitter.com/kPXXJJcadE
— Jonathan Vaughters (@Vaughters) February 10, 2020
Vaughters, who himself used EPO during his pro career but is now a passionate anti-doping campaigner, has accused UCI boss David Lappartient of ignoring the real issues, as his rider Magnus Cort claimed there were no doping controls whatsoever at the five-day Étoile de Bessèges road race in France.
In a further post, Vaughters said: “A more positive spin on my last tweet: We should all be pretty happy and proud that it’s an athlete calling out the lack of anti-doping effort. Athletes want fairness. They all believe they are the best, and will win if everything is fair.”
Cort won a stage at Étoile de Bessèges, but says that the result was sullied by the lack of policing on doping: “I don’t understand how it is even allowed to have a race on this level with seven World Tour teams on the start line without doping control? In my opinion that is simply not okay.”
Well, at least they’re focussing on the big stuff like sock height…
John Degencobbles
Secteur d’Hornaing ➡️ Secteur @johndegenkolb
Our little thanks for your commitment ❤️ pic.twitter.com/WjvK6Vh7re
— Les Amis de Paris-Roubaix (@A_ParisRoubaix) February 10, 2020
Previously known as the Secteur d’Hornaing, the aptly-named German has now had this section of pavé named after him.
Russ Downing refuses to retire quietly as he goes out mtb'ing in the blizzards
Laughing in the face of Ciara, Dennis or whoever is controlling the weather at the moment, the former Team Sky man is seen huffing and puffing in atrocious conditions, somewhere we can only assume is up t’north. Put your feet up or get on the trainer Russ, it’s not worth it!
MAAP making new film that will follow Aussie band cycling between UK gigs
The film, called ‘Røøted 2: A Star is Tørn’, will follow Sydney band New Lovers from London to Manchester via Bristol, with the band playing a gig on each city and riding between each one: “As we journey into the unknown pleasures of this raw uncensored film, we will witness first hand the headaches (and legs-aches) of a touring band giving it all they have on the stage, in the saddle and trying to find that special something”, say cycling apparel brand MAAP.
If you have half an hour, at lunchtime, Røøted part 1 (above) is well worth a watch, that follows best friends Luke and Rama as they meet up in Berlin to ride to Copenhagen.
Strava hits the 50 million mark, with 3 billion activities logged
There are now 50 million athletes on cycling’s favourite social fitness platform Strava, and it’s still growing at a rate of 1 million new users every 30 days. Reaching their first billion uploads in 2017 after launching in 2009, they’ve amassed another 2 billion in just over two years which gives you an idea of the platform’s rapid growth.
If you haven’t been converted yet you most likely never will be, but here are our top six reasons to use Strava just in case…
UCI update and clarify rules on transgender athlete participation
A full story will follow, but in short:
– Athletes have to make a request to the medical manager appointed by the UCI to compete in their new gender category at least six weeks before the date of their first competition.
– Their file is passed on to a commission of three external experts. The commission’s members then assess the athlete’s eligibility to compete in the new gender category and will inform the UCI’s medical officer of their conclusions.
– The athlete will have to prove their serum testosterone level has been below 5 nmol/L for at least 12 months prior to the eligibility date.
– The athlete has to undergo serum testosterone tests conducted using a benchmark method.
UCI President David Lappartient said: “The adoption of new directives in the UCI Regulations will provide the cycling community as a whole with a clearly defined regulatory framework that applies to everyone.
“Thanks to this consensus, achieved by a working group representing our sport’s various stakeholders, our Federation has given itself the wherewithal to take into consideration – and in reflection of developments in our society – the desire of transgender athletes to compete, while guaranteeing a level playing field for all competitors. This is an important step in the inclusion of transgender athletes in elite sport.”
Watch as drone cameraman tries to film cyclist's descent from a car seat
The mind-bending task is made all the more difficult as the cameraman is trying to deal with the G force of the car, which is markedly different to what he’s seeing through the drone camera as he films the cyclist descending at speeds of 70km/h. Disorientating or what?
Got your eyes on an e-bike? Here's a 20% off code for The London e-Bike festival
Want to check out some of the latest and greatest e-bikes all in one place? The London e-Bike Festival on the 2-3 May is the show for you, and with our discount code adult tickets are just £8. The link to book tickets is here, and before adding yours just pop RDCC into the promo code box to get yours at 20% – kids under 10 also go free.
This post features paid promotion on behalf of The London e-Bike Festival
Netherlands 'second-worst in Europe' for cyclist's deaths
A study by the European Transport Safety Council charting cycling fatalities over the last decade has found that the Netherlands is second only to Ireland in terms of the number of cyclist’s deaths and the rate of increase; although considering the rates of cycling is so much higher than anywhere else in Europe, the figure of 228 deaths in 2018 is relatively lower than the 170 who died in Ireland, considering the latter’s total number of cyclists is far lower.
That said, the Netherlands’ number of fatal cycling incidents has grown by 2% in the last decade (Ireland’s grew by a quite shocking 8%), and 83% of the collisions that occurred involved drivers of a motor vehicle. The Council’s report suggest that even more action should be taken to design extra infrastructure that gives priority to pedestrians, cyclists and public transport and to implement a 30 km/h speed limit in cyclist and pedestrian hotspots, reports IAmExpat.
The report also recommends improvements to motor vehicle design, including crash-friendly bumpers on cars, blind spot mirrors on lorries and cyclist detection systems. The report also defends the Netherlands, saying it is in fact one of the safest places to ride a bike with a vast cycling infrastructure network.
Make Evans Great Again returns after a month-long hiatus
With no posts since January 11th, we were wondering what had happened to the Instagram account Make Evans Great Again, and indeed the person running it who claimed they were one of numerous disgruntled employees at the Sports Direct-owned bike retailer. The account was renamed and posts and stories after December 30th changed their tune dramatically, with the account admin(s) bemoaning Evans’ buying department, who they claimed had stocked stores with less desirable brands. They also posted to promote ‘Make Evans Great Again’ merchandise, a baseball cap with an ironic nod to Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign slogan.
After Evans’ PR firm told us Evans Cycles were considering taking legal action against the people/person who hijacked the account, we assumed things had not gone so well for our anonymous friend(s), and the account had either been suspended or restored to be used for its original purposes; however, a new Instagram Story appeared last night (screenshotted above) to remind us Make Evans Great Again are still very much here.
*Update: Make Evans Great Again have told road.cc that Evans’ head office have tried to take the account down, but can’t because the email and password has been changed. We understand there have been sackings, and account admins are worried there will be more.
Pensioner fined £800 and given community order for pushing cyclist over on busy road
Bracknell News reports that 69-year-old Hugh McDaid pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm after confronting a cyclist who he said undertook his HGV in August 2018.
McDaid jumped out and ‘spread his arms’, which knocked the cyclist over and left him with a black eye and fractured sternum. The defence said McDaid was of previously good character and although his actions were reckless, he didn’t mean to harm the cyclist.
The judge said McDaid was genuinely remorseful and the incident had taken its personal toll on him, but he committed “a completely reckless act.” McDaid was sentenced to a 12-month community order and will have to attend 15 rehabilitation activity days, plus he will also have to pay £800 compensation to the cyclist and £420 in costs.
Andrey Amador finally released from Movistar contract after long-running dispute
OFFICIAL STATEMENT
Movistar Team announces Tuesday it has reached an agreement with @Andrey_Amador for the termination of the contract between both parties.
We wish Andrey all the best in his future endeavours, after 11 successful years together. Thank you.
— Movistar Team (@Movistar_Team) February 11, 2020
The 33-year-old Costa Rican expressed his desire to leave Movistar months ago, having joined way back in 2009. It’s understood he wished to sign for Team Ineos but was unable to due to the contract dispute, and he was even spotted in Team Ineos kit in December.
As we understand it riders are only permitted to switch teams mid-season between 1-15 August by the UCI, so it could be a long wait before we see Amador in Ineos colours; so if it’s no pro cycling until August, what should Andrey get up to in the meantime? Some gravel riding, commentary, get a paper round? Suggestions on a postcard, or in the comments…
Retro pothole resentment
Retro pothole resentment. pic.twitter.com/MwOzABB7yi
— Lisa! Lisa! (@Lisa_aheM) February 10, 2020
It’s that time of year where Britain’s potholes start to show themselves even more thanks to a few months of battering from crap weather and storms (and cars of course)… so it’s time to wheel out this vintage local news pic of an injured young lass pointing angrily at her nemesis.
Is the new Ribble Weldtite team bike the best outside the World Tour?
It’s certainly an eye-catching paint job, and you can also buy this exact Pro Team Edition of the Endurance SL R Series Disc for £5,499 via Ribble’s website.
Polisport launch a 53g drinks bottle
Need to hydrate, but also save weight? Polisport’s new R550 bottle holds over 500m of liquid but weighs in at a paltry 53g, so could be the vessel for you.
It has a one-handed ergonomic design which makes it easier to grab and is made using BPA free polypropylene, which also provides a super-soft squeeze experience acccording to Polisport. There are six different colour combos, and you can find out more on the Polisport website.
Jeremy Vine accused of being 'in the middle of the road' in latest action cam clip
Overtake of the day. Seriously aggressive driver. Who are @CBRE, anyway? pic.twitter.com/41BUyLz6ow
— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) February 11, 2020
The broadcaster regularly posts incidents of poor, reckless and downright idiotic driving he captures on camera during his commutes around London; and the latest is a pointlessly aggressive overtake from the driver of a CBRE van, who honks his horn as he overtakes. Our news editor and London resident Simon MacMichael has identfied the road as George Street in Marylebone.
Try getting out the middle of the road and creating that situation, 90% of the things you post on here about cycling you create with your poor decisions and reckless “filtering”
— Matt (@MattTomlinson74) February 11, 2020
Why you riding ya bike in the middle of the road though 🤷🏽♂️
— Andy Neale (@Sparra06_) February 11, 2020
Tbf you are cycling in the centre of the road
— Nick#5️⃣ (@motox375) February 11, 2020
A number of the replies accuse Mr Vine of being in the middle of the road; however the parked cars on the left would suggest he is taking up a (perfectly legal) more central road position to avoid a potential dooring from an occupant of one of the parked cars.
Can Mr Vine possibly be in the wrong? Let us know in the comments as always…
Andre Greipel out for 3 months with disclocated shoulder
Andre Greipel will miss the upcoming Spring Classics campaign with his Israel Start-Up Nation team confirming he will be out for three months after dislocating a shoulder in a training crash.
The 37-year-old German, 22 times a Grand Tour stage winner, with half of those at the Tour de France, had been hoping to get back to winning ways with his new team after a disappointing 2019 at Arkea-Samsic where his sole victory came in January last year in Gabon at a stage of La Tropicale Amissa Bongo.
ISN TEAM STATEMENT :@AndreGreipel injured his left shoulder in a training crash .
Will be sidelined for 3 months.
Will miss the Classic season.
Team Boss: “Big setback”.
Full statement : https://t.co/Nq0SQh236U pic.twitter.com/gka99MJmvg— Israel Start-Up Nation / Israel Cycling Academy (@YallaIsraelSUN) February 11, 2020
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Latest Comments
"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.
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.)
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.
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.
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.
@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?
They may have looked, but did they see?
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.
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.
“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.
21 thoughts on “Jeremy Vine films close pass but told he’s ‘in middle of the road’; Greipel misses Spring Classics with dislocated shoulder; Make Evans Great Again is BACK; Amazing (and stomach-turning) drone descent; No doping control at French race +more on live blog”
250 miles of new cycle lanes
250 miles of new cycle lanes accross all of England. So I can expect a new 1 mile cycle lane near me then
Over 5 years, so 50 mile a
Over 5 years, so 50 mile a year. So maybe you’ll get a fifth of a mile if you’re lucky. Pitiful when you consider in the Netherlands they build around 600 miles of cycle paths a year.
‘athlete will have to prove
‘athlete will have to prove their serum testosterone level has been below 5 nmol/L’
Based on this I assume that all transgender athletes are former males wanting to compete in womens events. I wonder why it doesn’t happen the other way around….
Exactly my thoughts. Be
Exactly my thoughts. Be interesting to see what requirements they have for FTM athletes.
(No subject)
I’m surprised you haven’t
I’m surprised you haven’t picked up the current issues with Ride London cocking up the Success Mail out and sending out the wrong peoples forms in the correct envelopes. As the internal sheet contains perosnal data including names, addresses AND DOB, it could be quite serious.
So far they have just acknowledged a “small” problem with the mail out on their twitter account.
I had some nice ladies one who lived within 10 minutes of me so deleivered it hoping she would have mine but she had someone elses as well. My collegaue at work is also in the same boat with someone elses details.
I wonder how many of those
I wonder how many of those Dutch deaths are due to “visiting” drivers and how many with home grown.
Dutch drivers do still kill
Dutch drivers do still kill you know. Like the one that killed my sister by knocking her off. He didn’t brake, but did knock a lamppost over and roll his car 3 times. It was a 50kph road, he said he wasn’t speeding. Without skid marks the police couldn’t ascertain his speed so took his word for it over the only witness: 8 year old me. I still see it regularly 34 years on. I hear it, I feel it, and I am damaged by it. I still think we need less infra as it causes many issues with drivers not being so aware and ready to share. Holland does many things right, but they aren’t perfect as the stats show
I’m sorry about your sister
I’m sorry about your sister and that you had to see an horrible incident at such a young age.
But hasn’t it been only in the last 40 years where the mentality of the Dutch planning changed to seperation, protection and being more dedicated to cycling? My question was more that since then, most local drivers would have grown up with this mentality rather then “the Car is the Star”. However drivers visiting from other countries do still have different priorities at junctions etc. Obviously in any society you will still have the careless, speeders and sociopaths as well so I am not absolving the local idiots either.
Those figures for Ireland
Those figures for Ireland aren’t correct. Driving standards, enforcement, and penalties here are of course every bit as piss-poor as the UK (probably a smidgen worse actually), but the annual fatality numbers have ranged 5-15 for the last decade (source http://www.stickybottle.com/latest-news/cycling-deaths-ireland-2019/ ) – 170 is way out of range. And yes, 5-15 is still 5-15 too many
Quote:
Or, as we also like to call it, “using the marked-out cycle lane”.
Or, as we also like to call
Or, as we also like to call it, “using the marked-out cycle lane”.
Did he? Not that it matters.
However it is interesting that as soon as the driver became a pedestrian I noticed the seriousness of the crime was upped. Compare and contrast to someone using a car as a weapon being allowed to plead guilty to careless driving.
I’m also struggling to get my head around the sequence of events which have been reported.
I can’t see how the cyclist “trying” to squeeze by could then still be trying by the time he leaves his vehicle to come around the front AND also be going at some speed.
Came across this on
Came across this on StreetsBlogUSA
https://usa.streetsblog.org/2020/02/11/another-city-eliminated-non-driver-deaths-in-2019/
Apparently Helsinki joined Oslo in no pedestrian or cyclist deaths on their roads in 2019. Very well done.
Montreal also had no cyclist
Montreal also had no cyclist fatalities, though they had 24 pedestrian deaths. With any of these cities, how much is down to good luck as opposed to good management we will see in future years. You can’t completely design out or legislate against poor decisions.
I can’t be sympathetic to
I can’t be sympathetic to Jeremy Vine for that pass. His position created the issue. By all means ride in the centre of the lane to avoid dooring, but if you’re riding so close to the centre line of the road that a vehicle that fully crosses the line to pass you is deemed too close, perhaps you’re being a bit selfish.
Philh68 wrote:
But he’s been put in that position by all the cars being stored at the side of the road.
Based on your argument that 4oad clearly needs 5o be made one way, doesn’t it?
No, he has not. He’s put
No, he has not. He’s put himself in that position by drifting to the right when looking over his shoulder, by around half a metre and he’s done this as the van is making the overtake. Minimum lane width is 3 metres (can’t be less because maximum vehicle width is 2.5m), if you ride in the centre of the lane you’ll have over a metre of space either side of you – enough to avoid being doored by drivers of parked cars while being clear of any vehicle that overtakes using the adjacent lane.
Thats not to excuse the driver of the van for being impatient. However, I have no doubt that Jeremy’s road positioning made it worse than it needed to be, and the extra metre of space he’d have had if he kept his line would have made it just another annoying MGIF.
Haven’t seen the video, but
Haven’t seen the video, but as the Highway Code says you need to leave a cyclist as much room as a car. Would you have been able to safely overtake a car going past those same vehicles? If not then it wasn’t a safe overtake.
As for selfish, storing your vehicle on a public highway is a bit selfish. As is taking up as much room as a car in the first place.
It’s a central London street
It’s a central London street with parked cars alongside. Would it have been a huge problem for the CBRE van driver to have waited a few seconds? He would only be a little bit later to the next set of lights or queue of traffic.
reckon Jeremy speeded up that
reckon Jeremy speeded up that video and must have slow pedalled to make speed difference look greater
not sure what speed limit is but in central London I’m guessing 20mph…my guess at that vans speed is around 35mph ?
riding just outside the door zone / narrow street van driver should have simply slowed …there is a brake pedal…this bit in response to the post suggesting the driver was forced into a close pass…really?
Jeremy Vine was not in the
Jeremy Vine was not in the ‘middle of the road’ – that’s where the white line is. He was mostly in the middle of the lane. You could argue about whether he could have been a bit further to the left, but choice of road positioning when passing parked cars is the rider’s prerogative and we’re talking about a foot or so at the most. It is entirely reasonable that one vehicle passing another should have to make a manoeuvre and give the latter some space and, as a cyclist, it is prudent to make sure that drivers are not tempted to squeeze past. However, you will always encounter thsoe who consider that they are entitled to pass without making such a manoeuvre and one of them apparently works for CBRE. As he workds for CBRE, I’m sure the driver has lots of rules and documentation for safe systems of work etc, all of which are suspended when he gets to operate a lethal mechanism with four wheels.
Why does the Health and Safety at Work Act get suspended when an employee gets into a vehicle? if a crane driver had swung a load past a person like that the H&SE would be all over them and their employer. How about wobbling someone using a ladder and blowing a horn at them – they could do that job by standing on a swivel chair and a couple of reams of paper.