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Single-speed bike brand says it could lose 30% of business due to post-Brexit tariffs; Susannah Constantine considers cycling six months after apologising for "joke" about killing cyclists; Sidis on the catwalk; Racing the tide + more on the live blog

It's the start of a new week and Dan Alexander is here with your cycling fix on the live blog...
Mon, Feb 01, 2021 09:05
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Single-speed bike brand says it could lose 30% of business due to post-Brexit tariffs; Susannah Constantine considers cycling six months after apologising for "joke" about killing cyclists; Sidis on the catwalk; Racing the tide + more on the live blogquella evo 5.jpg
01 February 2021, 19:45
A bit of a puddle
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by road.cc (@road.cc)

Would you go for it? We'll be asking the road.cc staffer who was faced with this earlier today how they got on... 

01 February 2021, 17:00
Note left on lamppost thanking scooter driver for helping daughter who fell off bike

This is a nice touch spotted on Cycleway 9 in Chiswick this afternoon by Jeremy Vine. The parent of a girl who fell off her bike while using the newly-opened segregated cycle lane wrote to "Mr Scooter Driver" who helped following the fall. The note also says: "thank God we were on the protected cycle path away from large vehicles."

01 February 2021, 11:57
Quella Bicycles set to lose up to 30% of business due to tariffs on sales to the EU, according to its co-founder

Single-speed bike brand Quella predicts it will lose up to 30 per cent of its business due to tariffs on sales to the EU. The Gloucester-based bike company's co-founder, Mike Mellor, told Punchline the 14% post-Brexit tariff applied to bikes that fall outside the 'sale origin rule' and anti-dumping tariffs up to 45% will seriously impact their business. As Quella's bikes use frames and components that are built in China and Taiwan, the company will have to pay the 'sale of origin' tariff as only bikes that are at least 55% made and produced inside the UK and EU can move between UK and EU tariff-free.

"Our tariff-free Brexit is blatantly not a tariff-free Brexit," Mellor told Punchline. "We sell bicycles into Europe, it's about 30 per cent of our turnover. There is duty on almost every single sale that is going through. Our bicycles are designed in the UK but the majority of the componentry and all the frames are made in the Far East, in Taiwan and China.

"We pay duty when the goods land in the UK. In the past we've popped those bikes to a courier and they arrive in Europe a couple of days later. Now, the bikes are arriving up to seven days later and we are getting charged another set of duty — 14 per cent if they're just applying the goods not manufactured in the country of origin tariff. And up to 45 per cent if they apply anti-dumping as if the goods have been imported from China, when we've already paid the duty.

"It's not what we were promised. About 30 per cent of our sales for 2021 were budgeted for the EU. We just cannot sell to wholesalers at the current rates. It's just not sustainable. We will lose between 0 and 30 per cent of our business."

Ten days ago Ribble announced they would refund the 14 per cent tariff for its EU customers who ordered between 1st-17th January. The announcement came after a would-be Ribble customer in Germany contacted road.cc and warned about "surprises" at checkout for EU residents ordering from the UK. 

01 February 2021, 15:14
"Hopefully she will become a voice to convince other women to take up travel by bicycle": Your thoughts on the Susannah story
Live blog comments 1/2/2021

 

01 February 2021, 15:11
Junior Alaphilippe coming soon
01 February 2021, 14:31
01 February 2021, 14:18
"It was a bit sad": How did Mathieu van der Poel celebrate his fourth cyclo-cross world title? With a pizza and a bottle of wine
Mathieu van der Poel on way to winning 2021 CX Worlds (picture credit Alex Whitehead, SWPix.com).JPG

Mathieu van der Poel wasn't in as jubilant a mood as you might expect for someone who had just won their fourth cyclo-cross rainbow jersey. He told Belgian outlet Sporza that he found yesterday's win a bit sad without the normal party atmosphere. "There was a strange vibe without fans," Van der Poel said. "Everyone just went home. That was a bit sad. The euphoria was different than usual. You can't do anything with your team or with your friends. It was very strange. How did I celebrate? A bottle of wine and a pizza with my girlfriend."

Having won his third consecutive world title in the discipline, Van der Poel admitted that cross is becoming less important to him and that it is the rivalry with Wout van Aert that keeps him motivated more than the sport itself. The 26-year-old also suggested he may leave the Tour de France after the second rest day in order to properly prepare for the Olympics.

Take a closer look at the bike that Van der Poel powered to victory in Oostende...

01 February 2021, 13:59
Tom Pidcock is officially an Ineos Grenadier

With the cyclo-cross season finished Tom Pidcock is officially an Ineos Grenadier. The team shared the first pictures of the 21-year-old in their kit on social media this morning. Pidcock has already trained with the team at their winter camp in Gran Canaria, but can now turn his full attention to racing on the road. The last of his cyclo-cross commitments, the World Championships in Oostende, finished in disappointment for the rider from Leeds who finished just outside the medals in fourth having been badly held up on the opening lap.

Pidcock's calendar for his opening professional road season is varied and includes the opening weekend of the cobbled classics in Belgium, a couple of Ardennes classics and the Vuelta a España.

01 February 2021, 13:12
Positive data from cycling infrastructure in Enfield
01 February 2021, 12:33
01 February 2021, 11:27
Philippe Gilbert sets sights on Milan-San Remo

Phil Gil has made his goal for 2021 pretty clear with this video posted on his Twitter yesterday. The five-time Monument winner is a Milan-San Remo short of completing the set and becoming only the fourth man in cycling history to win all five of the sport's most prestigious one-day races. If Gilbert can add the illusive San Remo win to his palmarès then he'll join an elite club alongside fellow Belgians: Eddy Merckx, Rik Van Looy and Roger De Vlaeminck.

When he's not training to win San Remo, Gilbert offers personalised video messages to fans on celebrity messaging website Cameo for £37.50. You can check out the other famous cycling Cameoers here...

01 February 2021, 10:24
Watford Junction Station's bicycle rack removed due to thefts
Watford Junction Station (wikimedia commons)

Watford Borough Council has removed a bicycle rack at Watford Junction Station following a series of thefts. The council says the decision was made to reduce the number of bikes being stolen. The Watford Observer reports that cyclists have instead been asked to use a secure custom-built facility near one of the platforms that is monitored by CCTV.

On their Facebook page, the council explained the decision: "Due to a number of bike thefts, the bike rack to the left of Watford Junction station entrance is being taken out of action. Cyclists are being asked to use the secure custom-built bike facility at the side of platform 6. This undercover facility has 300 spaces and is monitored by CCTV which feeds into the station's control room."

01 February 2021, 10:16
Sidis on the catwalk

Well, this is...interesting. It appears to be a triathlon-ready outfit including, I've been reliably informed, a pair of goggles from the Aqua Sphere x Michael Phelps Xceed range. The running shorts over the suit jacket and what looks like a clown shirt underneath are nice touches. However, the star of the show is undoubtedly the Sidis...Unfortunately it doesn't look like they went all the way and added cleats too. Then again negotiating the catwalk in cleats is probably too much to ask. One member of the road.cc news team speculated it could be part of the Robin Lynch x Rapha collection...

01 February 2021, 09:58
Best of the action from a day at the Belgian seaside

It lived up to the hype, if slightly dampened by an inopportune puncture for Wout van Aert. The course in Oostede certainly gave the TV cameras some great shots...It was Mathieu van der Poel's day with the 26-year-old winning his fourth cyclo-cross rainbow jersey and third in a row.

01 February 2021, 08:51
Susannah Constantine considers cycling six months after apologising for "joke" about killing cyclists...but only because she's about to lose her licence for repeat speeding offences

Susannah Constantine is close to coming full circle six months on from apologising for a "joke" about killing cyclists. The former TV stylist told Jeremy Vine that she's about to lose her driving licence after getting two speeding fines in one journey..."'I’m about to lose my licence I think so I might have to take up a bicycle," she explained on Jeremy Vine on 5. "I have too many speeding fines and what's known as a totter – I keep getting points on my licence. I got two in one journey when I was going down to Cornwall on the A3O3 and I was only 2mph over on one stretch and 4mph over on another."

In July, Susannah found herself in hot water over comments she made about cyclists during an episode of her My Wardrobe Malfunction podcast. She said: "Oh I hate cycling.  I won’t cycle. No, I fucking hate cyclists. My husband is a cyclist and if I see him on the road on his bicycle, I’m going to run him over. And the day when I know I’m about to die, I’m going to get in my car, aged 90, and I’m going to drive into cyclists wearing Lycra, kill the lot of them and go and die in jail."

There was little sympathy on social media for Susannah likely losing her licence...

Dan Alexander

Dan is the road.cc news editor and has spent the past four years writing stories and features, as well as (hopefully) keeping you entertained on the live blog. Having previously written about nearly every other sport under the sun for the Express, and the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for the Non-League Paper, Dan joined road.cc in 2020. Come the weekend you'll find him labouring up a hill, probably with a mouth full of jelly babies, or making a bonk-induced trip to a south of England petrol station... in search of more jelly babies.

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65 comments

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TheBillder replied to Bentrider | 3 years ago
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I think car speedos are usually 10% over - mine is, compared to phone GPS. So in a 60 section she'd have been doing a true 68+, and the speedo would have read about 75+.

Like other posters, I have little sympathy - if you don't want the points, drive within the limit. Phone apps can beep at you when you speed; use them if you already have points.

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Titanus replied to TheBillder | 3 years ago
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TheBillder wrote:

I think car speedos are usually 10% over - mine is, compared to phone GPS. So in a 60 section she'd have been doing a true 68+, and the speedo would have read about 75+. Like other posters, I have little sympathy - if you don't want the points, drive within the limit. Phone apps can beep at you when you speed; use them if you already have points.

Fuck me! Why would such inaccuracy by considered acceptable? Do they do that with calories and ingredients on food packaging? Or medicines? Speedos should be as accurate as possible, and thats not 10% off.

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ktache replied to Titanus | 3 years ago
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You can get them calibrated, but why would you, by your own admission, you ignore posted speed limits.  Or is it that the lawbreaking rebel that you believe yourself to be be might not have been so rebellious...

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mikewood replied to TheBillder | 3 years ago
0 likes

TheBillder wrote:

I think car speedos are usually 10% over - mine is, compared to phone GPS. So in a 60 section she'd have been doing a true 68+, and the speedo would have read about 75+. Like other posters, I have little sympathy - if you don't want the points, drive within the limit. Phone apps can beep at you when you speed; use them if you already have points.

The tolerance limit is -0% to +10%. So it can overread by up to 10% but not underread. Google maps on Android is your friend with this as it shows a very accurate GPS speed as well as the limit

Avatar
Smoggysteve | 3 years ago
10 likes

As the old saying goes: 

Karmas a bitch!!

 

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