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"It's been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks": Arnold Schwarzenegger — bodybuilder, actor, politician... public-spirited pothole repairer?; Alpecin-Deceuninck vs Wout: Instagram edition; Would you hire a bike from Decathlon? + more on the live blog

After an extended bank holiday weekend Dan Alexander is back on live blog duty today, trying desperately to remember how to do one of these
12 April 2023, 07:54
"It's been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks": Arnold Schwarzenegger — bodybuilder, actor, politician... public-spirited pothole repairer?

"I'll be back... with a shovel"

So California gets Arnie, while we're left with Mr Pothole and a cup of pot noodle? Seems fair.

Of course we missed out the most important part of the bio of the bodybuilding actor who later went into politics — the cyclist part, of course.

> Cycling celebrities — famous folk who love to ride their bikes

He loves life on two wheels, saying in 2018 he "wants to bicycle all over the world", acting on his quote when riding in Edinburgh (we'll ignore the part where he was seen on the wrong side of the road, heading into live traffic)...

In 2017, Peter Sagan joined Schwarzenegger in urging people to swap their car for a bike for their everyday journeys. The video coincided with the Terminator star, founder of R20 – Regions of Climate Action, joining Hidalgo in publicising research conducted by C40 Cities highlighting the benefits of an active commute, something we'll need well-maintained roads and cycle paths for... 

Arnold Schwarzenegger pothole repairing (Twitter/Arnold Schwarzenegger)

"You're welcome," he can be heard telling a neighbour. "You have to do it yourself, this is crazy. Three weeks I've been waiting for this hole to be closed..."

Meanwhile, over here...

> Pothole penis painter pisses off council 

12 April 2023, 15:53
Dorian Godon outsprints Ben Healy to Brabantse Pijl victory

So close for Ireland's Ben Healy, not quite enough to round Dorian Godon in the hilltop sprint. Behind, Benoît Cosnefroy made it a one-three for AG2R Citroën. Regardless, the EF Education-EasyPost talent is apparently heading to the Giro d'Italia, so hopefully the big win will come there instead...

12 April 2023, 15:08
Tadej Pogačar in court... to see thieves who stole €300,000 watch jailed for four years
2023 Paris-Nice Tadej Pogacar © ASO-Aurelien Vialatte - 3.jpeg

Tadej Pogačar won the final stage of Paris-Nice, securing the GC, without his Richard Mille watch on his wrist. The watch, worth €165,000 when gifted to the Slovenian by "my boss" after the Olympic Games, and now worth an estimated €300,000, was stolen from his hotel room as he received a post-stage massage elsewhere.

"It was special for me. It was offered to me by my boss after the Olympic Games. It was worth 165,000 euros. It is estimated today at 300,000 euros. It is very curious that they sold it so quickly, without the box, without the documents," Pogačar explained.

Nice Matin reports 32-year-old Jonathan Napolitano and 37-year-old Haikel Jerbi gained access to the room by manipulating a trainee waitress, reportedly telling her it was their room.

"I had a debt of 100,000 euros at Les Moulins. I was in danger. It is not excusable, but I had no other choice," Jerbi said. "Haikel is a childhood friend. He called me for help. I joined him," Napolitano added.

The pair were each jailed for four years.

In February, two men were jailed for the armed robbery at the Essex home of Mark Cavendish in November 2021. During the raid valuables, including Richard Mille watches of a similar value to Pogačar's, were taken.

12 April 2023, 14:12
Gloucestershire Police say delivery cyclist spotted on M5 "dealt with appropriately"
M5 cyclist (Gloucestershire Police)

Officers from Gloucestershire Police spent part of their bank holiday Monday responding to a cyclist riding on the hard shoulder of the M5. "Up there with things not to do on the motorway, especially on a busy bank holiday," the force said.

Detailing their action, the force's Twitter account reported the rider had been "dealt with appropriately".

12 April 2023, 13:39
Silvia Persico wins Brabantse Pijl

It's the official cobbled classics x Ardennes classics handover today. Brabantse Pijl, the one-day race over some of the same roads as the 2021 World Championships, has cobbles but also an Ardennes-y feel, the women's race won by Silvia Persico ahead of Demi Vollering and Liane Lippert...

12 April 2023, 11:55
"We're hungry": Tadej Pogačar to make spring reappearance at Amstel Gold Race
Tour of Flanders 2023 podium Tadej Pogacar Mathieu van der Poel Mads Pedersen (Zac Williams/SWpix.com)

[Zac Williams/SWpix.com]

10 days on from the incredible drama above we now know where Tadej Pogačar will next be gracing us with his racing talent... Sunday's Amstel Gold Race.

"The spring has already been a big success for us but we're hungry to come to the Ardennes classics and take home a big result, starting with Amstel," he said. "It's a race I've only done once but I know it's a long, hard parcours with lots of climbing so we need to be ready for a tough race."

Beyond this weekend the Slovenian will be at the startline for all three of the major Ardennes races next week, looking for a fifth Monument and second title at Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Good luck to anyone planning on stopping him.

12 April 2023, 11:48
When people get fed up with the state of the roads...

It's not just Arnie... 

> Mr Pot Noodle Hole 

Southampton cycle path The Avenue (Google Maps)

> "Accident waiting to happen" gravel cycle path maintained by good-willed resident with a shovel

Pothole penis graffiti (source Wanksy Facebook page)

> Penis paintings prompt pothole patch-up

Pothole penis graffiti (Wendy McMahon)

> Penis paintings around potholes 'less offensive than council failing to do repairs'

12 April 2023, 11:26
2023 Tour of Cambridgeshire to be final edition
Tour of Cambridgeshire (Copyright © 2023 Golazo Cycling Ltd)

This year's Tour of Cambridgeshire will be the event's final edition, the organiser Golazo Cycling has decided. Running since 2015, the final event will be the seventh edition after two years were lost to the pandemic and is the only British qualifier for the UCI Gran Fondo World Championships.

Malcolm Smith of Golazo Cycling said "much has changed" since 2015 and each edition has "thrown up considerable challenges for us to overcome".

"Our aim, when we established the Tour of Cambridgeshire was to bring the UCI Gran Fondo World Championships to Britain and this year we have the honour of hosting that event as part of 2023 Cycling World Championships in Glasgow & Scotland," he said.

Tour of Cambridgeshire (Copyright © 2023 Golazo Cycling Ltd)

"With our primary goal accomplished we feel now is the right time to close the door on the Tour of Cambridgeshire. In the years since we began the event thousands of riders have enjoyed taking to the closed roads of the county, with many of them qualifying for and subsequently competing at the Gran Fondo Worlds where the Tour of Cambridgeshire has consistently provided the largest travelling participation.

"It has given us a huge sense of satisfaction to know that we had a hand in opening up this opportunity for amateur and age group racing cyclists from Britain.

"Since we are at the end of this journey and having been part of bringing the Worlds to Britain, we would like to send heartfelt thanks everyone who has come and ridden the Tour of Cambridgeshire and embraced what we have delivered. We look forward to welcoming everyone to Peterborough for one last time in June and then seeing those who qualify at the 'big one' in Scotland this August."

Event information and entries can be found here...

12 April 2023, 11:16
"A terrible and painful loss for the hero's relatives and for the entire Ukrainian sports community": Professional cyclist killed by bombing while fighting Russian invasion

 Ukrainian cyclist Kostya Deneka has been killed while fighting the war against Russia. Inside the Games reports the 28-year-old was killed following a bombing in the eastern city of Bakhmut on April 1. Deneka had given up cycling to fight the Russian invasion, with his funeral held on Sunday.

Czech member of the European Parliament, Tomáš Zdechovský, took to Twitter to pay tribute to Deneka... "Kostya was killed in the fighting at Bakhmut, and he will no longer watch the Olympics in Paris. But the Olympics will be watched by [Russian] athletes who will make propaganda for the terrorist regime. Hopefully some Czech athletes will realise this."

12 April 2023, 10:49
Sing when you're spinning: Strava announces "first of its kind" in-app integration with Spotify
12 April 2023, 10:27
MAVIC are making an e-bike motor! | First ride: Mavic X-Tend
12 April 2023, 08:59
"£40 a DAY?! Yeah, best of luck with that": Would you hire a bike from Decathlon?

> Decathlon launches bike rentals in all stores across the UK from £40 a day 

Some reaction:

fenix: "I've definitely hired brand new cars for less than that per day. Maybe not in the last few years mind. Seems a tad expensive but maybe I'm missing something."

mattw: "Those prices are at least two times higher than they need to be, especially for a place getting the service from existing staff. eg Prices from Derwent Cycle Hire on Ladybower in the Peak District are 19 for a full day for an adult bike, or 12 for educational groups."

Another reader pointed out they managed to hire a Brompton for £5 per day, someone else a bike from a bike shop at a Dutch train station for €7.50 per day.

12 April 2023, 08:33
Some very niche, very modern cycling social media controversy... Alpecin-Deceuninck branded "sore winners" for covering Wout van Aert in sponsor's tags in Instagram post

You know what? If your first reaction to that headline is 'so what?' feel free to skip to the next post, we can't say we'd blame you. However, if you're here for the Instagram-based pro cycling social media storms then come on in...

I must have missed 'Alpecin Cycling Deceuninck Group Canyon Go Zwift' finishing third at Roubaix on Sunday, what a ride by the lad...

Some might say the team's social media team had nowhere else to tag its sponsors... (don't remember that lyric from the Oasis song)... others have chucked "sore winner" accusations around. 

Does it matter? Is this a case of the internet getting offended on someone else's behalf? (Notably someone, in Wout's case, who probably couldn't care less)...

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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33 comments

Avatar
BIRMINGHAMisaDUMP | 1 year ago
0 likes

Arnie's pot hole : City officials told NBC News that the damage Schwarzenegger fixed wasn't a pothole but “a service trench that relates to active, permitted work being performed at the location” by the utility company that supplies natural gas to much of Southern California.

Avatar
Oldfatgit replied to BIRMINGHAMisaDUMP | 1 year ago
0 likes

Over here, that would cause quite an issue regarding legal liability for the reinstatement.
Over here, both the Local Authority and the Utility Company could walk away in the event of a claim, as neither lawfully empowered bodies completed the works.

Avatar
Cocovelo | 1 year ago
8 likes

Adrian Chiles has finally worked out the meaning of "limit" in the term "speed limit" and has decided to share this with the world:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/apr/12/nicked-three-times...

If only 95% of other drivists understood this too.

Avatar
Rendel Harris replied to Cocovelo | 1 year ago
6 likes

Cocovelo wrote:

Adrian Chiles has finally worked out the meaning of "limit" in the term "speed limit" and has decided to share this with the world

I wonder what The Guardian does with all the old rope they keep giving him money for?

Avatar
brooksby replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
5 likes

Rendel Harris wrote:

Cocovelo wrote:

Adrian Chiles has finally worked out the meaning of "limit" in the term "speed limit" and has decided to share this with the world

I wonder what The Guardian does with all the old rope they keep giving him money for?

Dont forget that he's married to the editor...

Avatar
SimoninSpalding | 1 year ago
5 likes

Having done the Tour of Cambridgeshire I have to say it will not be missed. It was expensive to enter with some of the poorest organisation I have ever experienced, in particular feed stations with no food or water before half of the participants had even been through. I ended up stopping at a village shop to buy an energy drink. I do this when I do an audax but they only cost a few quid to enter.

The route was also appalling, with a good 10 mile plus made up of meandering around the disused Alconbury airbase.

The response from Golazo to my complaint was arrogant and complacent in the extreme.

I did another sportive a week later organised by ITP Events and despite being a third of the price, the organisation was excellent.

 

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Surreyrider replied to SimoninSpalding | 1 year ago
0 likes

Got to say my experience is very different indeed. And I've participated in every single one.

What I do object to is their 'revise history BS' about why they are stopping. They most certainly did not declare their aim was bringing the gran fondo world champs to Britain at the start.

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to Surreyrider | 1 year ago
0 likes

I wonder if Simon had done the 2019 one as that is the one I did and the main food station at the Airbase was exactly as he explained. No food, barely any water and when they found some, they got swarmed. Luckily I was reasonably well stocked to get to the next feed station, which although smaller, had plenty of items still although pretty much spent 20 mins getting a water top-up. However unless they have added extra length to the airbase section since, it was 7 miles, not 10 plus, although with the headwind on the open field, you probably expended that amount of energy. 

If you didn't experience the food mayhem, maybe you just got there earlier. I do agree with you on their false reasons. I suspect that since the combined effects of Covid, Brexit and Cost of Living, alot of people have stopped doing these events so they are no longer making any money on them. For example, they still have tickets open for all events with less then 90 days to go where previously you would have been lucky to see anything but charity spaces. The same with Ride London. 

 

Avatar
brooksby | 1 year ago
2 likes

https://www.bristol247.com/news-and-features/news/nelson-street-cycle-la...

Quote:

The Nelson Street cycle lane will soon be closed for the second time after the fencing surrounding it was removed by mistake.

Bristol24/7 understands that the fencing was taken down without the approval of the city council’s transport development management team or the developer who built the contraflow as part of the Everards Printworks scheme.

Avatar
hawkinspeter replied to brooksby | 1 year ago
3 likes

brooksby wrote:

https://www.bristol247.com/news-and-features/news/nelson-street-cycle-la...

Quote:

The Nelson Street cycle lane will soon be closed for the second time after the fencing surrounding it was removed by mistake.

Bristol24/7 understands that the fencing was taken down without the approval of the city council’s transport development management team or the developer who built the contraflow as part of the Everards Printworks scheme.

Also

Quote:

“Just what was the point of keeping this area closed for so long if there are no significant improvements?”

Co-shadow cabinet member for transport, Green Party councillor David Wilcox, added: “I’m at a loss as to why Bristol’s Labour administration have taken over a year assess and implement a safety audit on Nelson Street.

“This is an essential east-west cycle and walking route that has been either unsafe to use or blocked for over three years now. The ongoing failure to sort this out suggests an administration that simply doesn’t take transport seriously.

Avatar
brooksby replied to hawkinspeter | 1 year ago
1 like

hawkinspeter wrote:

Also

Quote:

“Just what was the point of keeping this area closed for so long if there are no significant improvements?”

Co-shadow cabinet member for transport, Green Party councillor David Wilcox, added: “I’m at a loss as to why Bristol’s Labour administration have taken over a year assess and implement a safety audit on Nelson Street.

This is an essential east-west cycle and walking route that has been either unsafe to use or blocked for over three years now. The ongoing failure to sort this out suggests an administration that simply doesn’t take transport seriously.

Cough-cough-Chocolate Path-cough-cough...

Avatar
hawkinspeter replied to brooksby | 1 year ago
2 likes

brooksby wrote:

Cough-cough-Chocolate Path-cough-cough...

I'm prepared to cut them slack with the Chocolate Path as that entails a lot of rebuilding, whereas Nelson St is just a bit of resurfacing to change the layout and colours of pavement/lane/road.

Avatar
brooksby replied to hawkinspeter | 1 year ago
0 likes

hawkinspeter wrote:

brooksby wrote:

Cough-cough-Chocolate Path-cough-cough...

I'm prepared to cut them slack with the Chocolate Path as that entails a lot of rebuilding, whereas Nelson St is just a bit of resurfacing to change the layout and colours of pavement/lane/road.

Problem with Nelson Street is that the developer is supposed to be doing the work and they clearly can't see any money in it (and couldn't give a s**t) so they're just kicking it down the road (so to speak...).

Avatar
brooksby replied to hawkinspeter | 1 year ago
1 like

hawkinspeter wrote:

brooksby wrote:

Cough-cough-Chocolate Path-cough-cough...

I'm prepared to cut them slack with the Chocolate Path as that entails a lot of rebuilding, whereas Nelson St is just a bit of resurfacing to change the layout and colours of pavement/lane/road.

And as if by magic...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-65260326

Quote:

Work to bolster harbour flood defences will take until June 2024 - and could delay the reopening of a key walking and cycling path, a meeting hears.

Bristol City Council's cabinet has approved spending £1.75m from the Environment Agency to fix the Underfall Yard sluices.

...

The path was due to reopen at the end of May but Mr Rees said work on the Underfall Yard sluices, which control water levels in Bristol's Floating Harbour, had been neglected for so long there was a risk of further delay.

 

Avatar
ChuckSneed | 1 year ago
0 likes

No offence to the poor guy, but Matthew van der Pole has a face that is just so punchable

Avatar
Cocovelo replied to ChuckSneed | 1 year ago
1 like

Matthew van der Poel. Strange thing to post.

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KDee replied to Cocovelo | 1 year ago
1 like

Um..Mathieu.

 

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Cocovelo replied to KDee | 1 year ago
0 likes

NOOOOOOOOOO

Avatar
SimoninSpalding replied to Cocovelo | 1 year ago
9 likes

You're new here, it's what he does. It's best not to engage.

 

Avatar
Sredlums replied to ChuckSneed | 1 year ago
4 likes

Says the anonymous internet troll. The only one punchable here is you.

Avatar
OldRidgeback | 1 year ago
2 likes

Good for Arnie, terminating that pothole.

Avatar
hawkinspeter replied to OldRidgeback | 1 year ago
7 likes

OldRidgeback wrote:

Good for Arnie, terminating that pothole.

The pothole: "I'll be back"

Avatar
brooksby replied to hawkinspeter | 1 year ago
0 likes

The Grauniad has an article this evening that it wasn't a pothole but was a lawful service trench being used by a local utility company 

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/12/arnold-schwarzenegger-california-pothole-los-angeles

Quote:

“This location is not a pothole,” a spokesperson said. “It’s a service trench that relates to active, permitted work being performed at the location by SoCal Gas, who expects the work to be completed by the end of May.

“As is the case with similar projects impacting city streets, SoCal Gas will be required to repair the area once their work is completed.”

A representative for Schwarzenegger did not return a request for comment, NBC said.

Avatar
AidanR replied to brooksby | 1 year ago
0 likes

I saw that, but the article doesn't explain why an open trench has been left across the road. Surely it should have something covering it, like metal sheets?

Avatar
Oldfatgit replied to AidanR | 1 year ago
2 likes

Looking at the video, cut lines can clearly be seen at the sides of the hole, and extending to the other side of the road.

Not sure about the rules over there, but in the UK it's not uncommon for trenches to be backfilled (as this one was), and left unplated... but signed and coned while waiting for the reinstatement team.
Plates tend to be used where there is a significant risk of someone / thing falling in to an excavation; there is no risk of that here due to the backfill - that even appears to be compacted, ready for reinstatement.

Certainly, over here, Arnie's actions would cause a significant issue for the Local Authority (LA), the Utility Company (UC) and Arnie himself should there now be issues arising from that reinstatement.
Certainly, in the UK, the LA and the UC could now walk away from any claims regarding poor restatement, vehicle damages, personal injury, and direct any claimant to Arnie.

Avatar
Awavey | 1 year ago
2 likes

I dont think people are getting those Decathlon hire prices are for E-bikes, is a Brompton an Ebike ? Do Dutch train stations hire Ebikes ?

here's a real comparison from a real cycle hire place in Norfolk http://norfolkbroadscycling.co.uk/charges

E-bike daily charge £40.

FWIW a Boris bike would cost roughly £40 (nearly £160 for an ebike) for 24hr hire, does anyone complain they're too expensive, or they can hire a car for less?

Avatar
Rendel Harris replied to Awavey | 1 year ago
10 likes

Awavey wrote:

FWIW a Boris bike would cost roughly £40 (nearly £160 for an ebike) for 24hr hire, does anyone complain they're too expensive, or they can hire a car for less?

Just for interest, for anyone thinking of hiring Santander bikes in London, for a £20 per month membership you can have unlimited rides on the unpowered bikes for no extra charge, the ebikes being £1 per hour on top of that for members. The only limitation is that the free rides only last 60 minutes, so if you want to ride longer you either have to pay extra (£1.65 for another hour) or dock the bike you're using and take out another. 60p a day for unlimited bike hire has got to be one of the few bargains left in London!

Avatar
David9694 replied to Rendel Harris | 1 year ago
1 like

E-MTB from Reading Decathlon - a week's hire = £102.50 
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/Rental_lp-KT9YYO

or around the £250 mark for a week with a modest hire car from Basingstoke Emterprise -  I wonder if those are the prices you actually end up paying, or whether there is some up-selling? 

Avatar
ChrisB200SX | 1 year ago
13 likes

Caption that image...
Arnie looks at the Highways Maintenance guy and says:

"I need your clothes, your boots and your tarmac tamper"

Avatar
Awavey | 1 year ago
2 likes

It's always a case "the internet getting offended on someone else's behalf"

Seems perfectly reasonable to me, it's their stream to use how they want to promote themselves, the two Alpecin riders is the better shot for them.

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