Homemade sign warns cyclists to “slow down for NHS sake” through village – “not racetrack”; “Concentrate on your cycling!” Police officer scolds ‘rubbernecking’ cyclist, while attending beached car; Jumbo-Visma Vuelta civil war? + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Jumbo-Visma confirm that Nathan Van Hooydonck’s “health situation not critical” following car crash
Some good news emerged from Belgium last night, as Jumbo-Visma confirmed that Nathan Van Hooydonck, who was taken to hospital yesterday morning after falling ill and crashing his car, is not in a critical condition and did not suffer any serious injuries in the incident.
Van Hooydonck was reportedly driving his pregnant wife to the hospital when he fell ill while stopped at a set of traffic lights, causing him to accelerate across the junction, colliding with five cars. A spokesperson for the Belgian police said that he had been resuscitated at the scene and taken to hospital. His wife, who was not injured in the collision, was also taken to hospital for a check-up, while three other people involved in the crash, including a child, suffered minor injuries.
While the Belgian pro’s condition was initially believed to have been life-threatening, with Jumbo-Visma DS Grischa Niermann telling reporters that he had been placed in an induced coma, it emerged following yesterday’s stage of the Vuelta – won in emotionally charged circumstances by Van Hooydonck’s teammate and friend Jonas Vingegaard – that the 27-year-old was awake and recovering better than expected from the crash.
Nathan Van Hooydonck is awake and doesn’t suffer injuries because of the traffic accident earlier today. His health situation is not critical. Further medical examinations have to determine why Nathan became unwell, while driving his car. We want to thank everyone for the…
— Team Jumbo-Visma cycling (@JumboVismaRoad) September 12, 2023
That promising news was then confirmed last night in a short statement by Jumbo-Visma, which said that Van Hooydonck will be monitored in order to establish the reasons behind the worrying incident.
“Nathan Van Hooydonck is awake and doesn’t suffer injuries because of the traffic accident earlier today,” the team said.
“His health situation is not critical. Further medical examinations have to determine why Nathan became unwell, while driving his car. We want to thank everyone for the messages and the medical staff in the hospital for taking such good care of Nathan and his family.”
When you really, really, really despise cycle hire schemes
Pretty spectacular crash on London Road, Brighton. pic.twitter.com/j635QlmTDL
— Michael Taggart (@michael_taggart) September 13, 2023
It’s like the comments section under a Brighton Argus bike hire story come to life…
Are Jumbo-Visma on the verge of civil war? Ex-pro Tom Danielson says Vuelta win would be “life changing” for Sepp Kuss and slams Vingegaard “attacking early on climbs”… as Primož Roglič’s wife ‘likes’ post criticising team tactics
Jumbo-Visma may be crushing the opposition at the Vuelta with all the benevolence of a medieval warlord, but is everything as rosy as it seems around the Dutch team’s dinner table?
As we head neck-achingly skywards to the summit of the fearsome and stupidly steep Alto de l’Angliru this afternoon, what threatened to be one of the most processional and suspenseless grand tours in recent memory (and could still well turn out that way, to be honest) could explode into life, thanks to the apparently emerging internecine conflict within the otherwise imperious Jumbo-Visma ranks.
As I noted on yesterday’s blog, the internal dichotomy of Jumbo-Visma’s current position at the Vuelta – a devastatingly dominant 1-2-3 on the GC that has seemingly reduced all of their rivals to meek surrender, but one that is beset by tactical confusion – was laid bare on the steep climb of Bejes yesterday afternoon.
Sepp Kuss, the current race leader, the people’s favourite, the loyal domestique behind Jumbo’s greatest triumphs in recent years, was forced to soft pedal his way up most of the finishing climb, as his own teammate Jonas Vingegaard took another minute out of his advantage in the red jersey.
Surely, with Kuss – regardless of the fact this is his third grand tour of the season, and that he’s unproven battling for the overall win – over two and a half minutes clear of the first non-Jumbo rider on the standings, UAE’s Juan Ayuso, the Dutch team should try to shepherd the American to a career-defining triumph, safe in the knowledge that, if or when he eventually cracks, Roglič and Vingegaard (both at least a minute clear of Aysuo) can easily step up and take control of the race?
A Vuelta win would be a life changing experience for Sepp while the win is just another “grand tour victory” for Jonas or Primoz.
I don’t understand the motive of his teammates who are second and third on GC attacking early on the climbs. Sepp’s hands are tied as he cannot go…
— tom danielson (@tomdanielson) September 12, 2023
That’s the question that was asked last night by Kuss’s fellow American, ex-US Postal and Garmin rider Tom Danielson, on Twitter.
“A Vuelta win would be a life changing experience for Sepp while the win is just another ‘grand tour victory’ for Jonas or Primoz,” Danielson wrote.
“I don’t understand the motive of his teammates who are second and third on GC attacking early on the climbs. Sepp’s hands are tied as he cannot go after them. Their rivals are not able to chase Jonas or Primoz (or drop Sepp for that matter). They can just as easily ride for the stage win by attacking in the last km on these stages and keep Sepp in the jersey.
“While I understand Jonas and Primoz have the biggest salaries and have the best palmares on the team, it seems like it’s worth the risk from a PR standpoint, a fan viewpoint, and from a team unity perspective after the race to try to win with Sepp.
“If you have worn the leader’s jersey for eight days into the final stages with a two plus minute gap to your first rival then having your teammates protect that is not asking for a gift. Instead, it is asking for respect and trust. Just as they have always trusted Sepp to be there when it counts, now they should trust him to finish the job when it counts.
“He earned the chance, now let him finish it.”
Kuss looks on as Vingegaard attacks on the Tourmalet (Luis Angel Gomez/SprintCyclingAgency)
And, as if things couldn’t get any spicier, Roglič’s wife also reportedly liked a post from an Instagram fan account which slammed Jumbo-Visma’s tactics as “unacceptable” and Vingegaard’s stage-winning move as a “clear attack on the leadership”.
Ohhh… Better get the popcorn ready for the Angliru, where all those pesky team tactics need not apply anyway. Maybe we’ll see Jonas and Sepp doing an Alpe d’Huez 1986 and cross the line arm in arm?
Now, where’s Kathy LeMond when you need her?
“I don’t really know what went on with the tactics”: Juan Ayuso also turns spotlight on UAE Team Emirates decisions in battle for podium
While all eyes are on the internal battle for red raging (or not) within the Jumbo-Visma bus, the Dutch team’s nearest challenger, fourth-placed Juan Ayuso, also hinted that all was not well within UAE Team Emirates, after some questionable tactical choices on yesterday’s final climb saw Jonas Vingegaard further reduce the 20-year-old’s chances of making the Vuelta podium for the second year running.
Instead of using their relatively healthy resources to limit their losses to Vingegaard on Bejes, UAE Team Emirates instead sent young Kiwi Finn Fisher-Black up the road in pursuit, for an encouraging if somewhat meaningless second place on the day. Meanwhile, Ayuso’s teammates Marc Soler and João Almeida – both currently in the lower echelons of the top ten – failed to do any work in the constantly stalling GC group.
And it appears Ayuso wasn’t too impressed with his team’s tactics.
“I have to discuss with the team because I don’t really know what went on with the tactics but I don’t want to say much,” the Spaniard told reporters after the stage.
“I felt quite well. It’s always a bit weird when you come from a rest day but I think generally it’s ok and I’m looking forward to tomorrow. I think it’s gonna be a special day. I think the GC guys are gonna go for the victory so I hope tomorrow can be my day and I can lift my hands.”
Oh, more drama… and that’s before we even get to the Angliru this afternoon!
“What do you want? Blood?” Time to get angry on the Angliru
And speaking of today’s stage…
Set your alarm, because at around 4pm this afternoon, the Vuelta peloton (or what’s left of it) will hit the foot of the notorious Alto de l’Angliru, that narrow slab of mythical Asturian brutality, a former goat track that has carved itself into cycling legend since it was first introduced at the Spanish grand tour back in 1999, striking fear into all but the spindliest, masochistic climbers.
It’s the climb that inspired Kelme boss Vicente Belda, in the midst of what was arguably the sport’s darkest doping period, to ask: “What do they want? Blood?”
It’s where, on a grim day in 2002, an EPO-fuelled David Millar channelled his inner Octave Lapize (expect this one actually happened), stopping just short of the finishing line in protest at the conditions and the severity of the climb, despite sitting in ninth place overall at the time.
Carthy tames the beast at the 2020 Vuelta (ASO/PhotoGomezSport)
It’s where Chris Froome first demonstrated his knack for turning around and shouting ‘Come on Brad, stick to my wheel’ (an art form he would perfect at the following year’s Tour); Where Alberto Contador bowed out with a typical flourish, on his penultimate day as a pro; Where Hugh Carthy scored a career-defining win, as the seemingly imperious Primož Roglič toiled on the savagely steep slopes.
The Angliru is, officially, 12.4km long and averages 9.8 percent, but those numbers only tell half the story (and this year, the climbs preceding it are pretty brutal too).
The last seven kilometres are impossibly steep, always in double digits and hitting slopes of 19, 20, 22, 24 percent in places.
Angliru day ⚠️#LaVuelta23 pic.twitter.com/ZJnlmWiK2j
— Pro Cycling Trumps (@procycletrumps) September 13, 2023
Put all that tactical talk in the bin, the Angliru is all about who can ride to the top the fastest. And it could change the face of the Vuelta. We’re in for a treat.
Oh, and we’re also set to hear Carlton Kirby utter the terms ‘coping pace’ and ‘slow motion bicycle race’ more times than is humanly bearable. Well, the riders can’t be the only ones suffering, can they?
What’s this? Mark Cavendish’s new lead out train?
Get that rumour mill churning…
This went sideways fast @MarkCavendish 😅 @cameronwurf 😎 pic.twitter.com/7WRz8ofd9z
— Chris Froome (@chrisfroome) September 12, 2023
Well, I suppose it would be fitting for Chris Froome to bookend his career with spells as a sprinter’s domestique… What, too harsh?
Are too many reports of road incidents falling through the cracks because officers are “drowning under cases”?
A cyclist in London has raised concerns about the way footage of incidents on the road can be reported, using his own case as an example of how reports can fall through the cracks as police forces “follow procedure” and are “drowning under cases”.
“A victim of a crime shouldn’t have to know the system,” the cyclist said. “If you think this is about cyclists vs motorists, it isn’t. It’s about the basic ability for laws and norms to be upheld.”
“I am so happy to be alive!” Cofidis rider Wesley Kreder recovering and hoping to get back on bike soon after heart attack
32-year-old Dutch pro Wesley Kreder is recovering at home, and hopes to be back on his bike in the next week or two, after suffering a heart attack at the end of August, his Cofidis team announced in a statement today.
Kreder, who joined the French team from Intermarché-Wanty this year, experienced myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, on the night of 28 August. His wife and in-law provided first aid before taking him to a hospital in Eindhoven, where he remained under observation for several days.
Since returning home, the 32-year-old has continued to be monitored by a cardiologist and Cofidis doctors, with a decision on his future within the sport delayed until he is fully recovered.
Notre coureur, @wesleykreder a été victime d’un accident cardiaque dans la nuit du 28 au 29 août. On vous donne des nouvelles ⤵️https://t.co/dprcbcdx1E
Remets-toi vite Wesley !
📸 @MathildeLAzou pic.twitter.com/TJDu5gkMNL— Team Cofidis (@TeamCOFIDIS) September 13, 2023
“I went to bed normally on August 28 and the next day I woke up in the hospital,” the ZLM Tour stage winner said in a statement. “It was really strange to find myself there, wondering what had happened and why I had come to this. I stayed in the hospital for several days to undergo a battery of tests and recover well before returning home.
“Now I feel good, it’s hard to think that I had a heart attack two weeks ago. I started walking outside, I continue to rest, to take care of my two children.
“I still need time for my convalescence to go well. But the doctors haven’t said I can’t get back on a bike again and I hope to be able to ride one within a week or two.
“On the other hand, it is too early to already talk about the future. I would like to deeply thank my loved ones, especially my partner and my in-laws, who supported me through this ordeal and to the medical teams who treated me. Thank you also to the staff of the Cofidis team and to Cédric Vasseur who have always been by my side and supported me in these difficult times.
“Now is not the time to plan ahead but to recover well and enjoy, too. I am so happy to be alive!”
It’s Vine time…
Jeremy – and his poor Brompton – are back in the headlines this lunchtime. And, for someone who churns out clips of his obstacle-laden commute almost every day, this one’s pretty shocking, even by his standards…
> Jeremy Vine’s lucky escape as bike run over by reversing driver who turned onto cycle lane
Only one in ten Londoners feel totally confident that the city’s cycle lanes are safe, new study claims
Back to the streets and cycleways of London, where a new survey has claimed that only 14 percent of residents feel “totally confident” riding on the city’s bike lanes and paths.
The study, conducted by Dutch software company CycloMedia, surveyed 7,500 respondents across 25 European cities, with London faring pretty poorly when it comes to cycle safety compared to its continental counterparts, apparently.
The results also claim that 83 percent of Londoners feel safer driving than cycling, a figure that drops – rather inevitably – to 16 percent when people from Amsterdam were asked the same question.
Meanwhile, almost half of respondents said they would not recommend living in the city if you’re concerned about dangerous traffic. In Warsaw, Vienna, and Oslo, around 70 percent of respondents said they would recommend their city based on its transport.
41 percent of Londoners surveyed also believe that better separation between road users would improve safety, with 31 percent saying that reduced speed limits would also help. 41 percent also said a lack of street light cover impacts their confidence to cycle, while 28 percent said improved traffic signs and cycle lanes would improve safety. Only 14 percent, however, reckon that cars should be banned from the city centre.
Anyone order a Soler Special at the Vuelta?
I take it back, UAE Team Emirates. After criticising the team for appearing to be devoid of ambition – at least when it comes to the battle for red – during yesterday’s stage, they’ve thrown the proverbial cat amongst the pigeons on today’s first climb, the Alto de la Colladiella.
And by that, I mean they’ve thrown everyone’s favourite purveyor of chaos, Marc Soler, up the road.
🚴🇪🇸 | De nummer 6 van het klassement, Marc Soler, begint er al aan op de eerste klim van de dag, de Alto de la Colladiella! 🙌 #LaVuelta23
📺 Koers kijk je op discovery+ pic.twitter.com/sprpnacoYg
— Eurosport Nederland (@Eurosport_NL) September 13, 2023
The mercurial Spaniard, sitting in sixth place overall, 3.28 down on Sepp Kuss, and just under two minutes off Primož Roglič’s final podium spot, absolutely flew up the Colladiella – but it doesn’t seem like the Robert Gesink-led Jumbo-Visma train are panicking just yet.
Oh, and who’s that at the front of the race? None other than Remco Evenepoel, of course, who bridged up to Soudal-Quick Step teammate Mattia Cattaneo after the typically frenetic start to the stage.
I’m not sure Remco will be too pleased with UAE’s tactics – and the effect they’ll have on his buffer to the bunch – by the time Soler bridges across, however…
Expanding the UK bike industry could deliver up to 130,000 new jobs by 2030, new Bicycle Association report claims
A new report published by the Bicycle Association has detailed the potential for cycling and the bike industry to deliver up to 130,000 new jobs before the end of the decade.
That figure would represent 6.5 percent of the British government’s goal of creating two million new green jobs by 2030, set out in the Green Jobs Taskforce.
The BA’s new report, titled ‘The UK cycle industry: current economic and employment benefits and decarbonisation-driven growth potential’, also argues that cycling can play a key role in the government’s aim to reduce carbon emissions by 68 percent during the same period, by replacing shorter car journeys.
According to the BA, by backing cycling and the cycle industry – which currently contributes an estimated £7.5 billion in economic value a year – 130,000 new jobs can be created (almost double the number currently employed by the sector), while other business benefits would include improved high street performance, an increase in retail spend and employment, an increase in local property values, and agglomeration benefits.
“Our industry is currently lacking the consistent policy framework and structural support needed to innovate and grow at the pace and direction that decarbonisation demands,” Steve Garidis, executive director of the BA, said.
“It is time for the Government to recognise the value, opportunities, and needs of the cycle industry, as well as the role we can play in ensuring the UK meets its net zero and economic growth ambitions.
“We are a strategic British industry, with infinite potential to deliver economic, social, and environmental benefits as demonstrated through this report, and we hope that these promising findings encourage Government to work with us to boost cycling business and broaden cycling uptake.
“Without an increase in cycling it will be much more difficult to hit our net-zero targets and it is high time that the Government put in place long term consistent funding and policies to stimulate demand, in particular for electric cycles, which have the potential to be game changing for the environment, health, and the UK economy.”
Pavel Sivakov powers away from Richard Carapaz to take impressive solo win at the Giro della Toscana
Sisisisisisiiiii La Locomotora 🚂 del Carchi está de regreso.
El ecuatoriano Richard Carapaz llegó en el segundo lugar 🥈 del #GiroDellaToscana mostrando un buen nivel, Carapaz tenía posibilidades de ganar, pero a falta de 1km Sivakov lo sorprendió. pic.twitter.com/FkLZQw5n58
— TERADEPORTES (@Teradeportes) September 13, 2023
Well, at least someone in an Ineos jersey is doing something in a bike race, right?
Pavel Sivakov – who is leaving the British squad for UAE Team Emirates in 2024 – took his first win in over a year this afternoon at the Giro della Toscana, powering clear of fellow escapee Richard Carapaz to go one better than the second place he secured behind Adam Yates at the GP Montréal last week.
Sivakov’s performance will no doubt impress his future team leader Tadej Pogačar, who finished fourth behind his teammate Felix Großschartner, as the Slovenian made his return to racing for the first since the world championships, in preparation for next month’s Il Lombardia, where he will be aiming to secure his third straight win at the Race of the Falling Leaves.
Jumbo-Visma rip apart the Vuelta (again) and create controversy with their tactics (again), as Sepp Kuss just holds onto red jersey by eight seconds at the top of the foggy Angliru
¡¡¡Victoria de Primoz Roglic!!! El corredor esloveno del (Jumbo -Visma) gana la etapa 17 de la vuelta a España. Sepp Kuss continúa de líder.😍💪👍#LaVuelta23 📹 Eurosport pic.twitter.com/4H1bKB1gB9
— ⚡MazaCiclismo⚡ (@RuedaPedal) September 13, 2023
For a few minutes, through the dense fog near the top of the iconic Alto de l’Angliru, it looked like that was all she wrote for Sepp Kuss’s red jersey challenge at the Vuelta a España.
By that point, with just under two savage kilometres to go to the finish, Jumbo-Visma’s three robotic race destroyers, Jonas Vingegaard, Primož Roglič, and Kuss, the top three on GC and top three on the road, were once again in the process of systematically, and nonchalantly, dismantling the Vuelta.
Behind those three at the front, thanks to the impetus of a rampant Bahrain-Victorious, teeing up Mikel Landa for much of the climb, their rivals were strewn across the mountain.
Enric Mas? Dropped. Cian Uijtdebroeks? Gone. Juan Ayuso? Completely popped and suffering, a victim of his own UAE Team Emirates squad’s questionable tactics earlier in the day. Landa himself? Dropped.
But with an anti-climactic procession on the cards, the one rider of the robotic leading trio who most resembles a real boy, Kuss, lost the wheel.
The American communicated the gap through the radio to his teammates, but Roglič, it seemed, only responded by accelerating (after the stage, the Slovenian said he just continued to “ride at my own pace”).
Is this the ‘I’m dead, I’m gone’ moment? 😭
#LaVuelta23 pic.twitter.com/IP1rGqvrA8— Katy M, Vuelta Edition (@writebikerepeat) September 13, 2023
At that moment, the red jersey appeared to be slipping off Kuss’s shoulders, thanks to the efforts of two teammates who continued to ride hard, despite only Mikel Landa – a distant, distant threat on GC – being anywhere near the stratosphere of the turbo charged Jumbo trio.
Up ahead, Roglič won a thrilling (note the sarcasm) uncontested sprint against Vingegaard, while a flailing, floundering Kuss battled hard to sprint past Landa, a move which ensured that the American kept hold of the GC lead, just, by eight seconds.
For a team that secured their second 1-2-3 on a crucial mountain stage in a week, and who cemented their grip on the entire podium, today’s stage only underlined the chaos swirling around Jumbo-Visma at this Vuelta.
In the GCN studio, a clearly baffled, and somewhat irate, Sean Kelly railed against the team’s decision – for no apparent reason – to not wait for Kuss when he began to suffer, contrasting it with the years of dedication and loyalty the American has offered Roglič and Vingegaard during his career.
Dan Lloyd, meanwhile, argued – like Tom Danielson earlier today – that a Vuelta win for Kuss would mean so much more to the American than his two more illustrious teammates, while buying a few more years of devoted service in the process.
Kelly and Lloyd’s perplexed reactions were echoed throughout social media, which appears to firmly be in Camp Kuss, when it comes to the great, unnecessary Jumbo-Visma civil war.
Dropping the red jersey, who still came in third, with no threat to any of the top three in sight…#LaVuelta23 https://t.co/n6KxeqhQsv pic.twitter.com/s8knMrsKvG
— Anna Mac 👑🪱 🌈🖤 (@AnnamacB) September 13, 2023
Wow. That was stone cold brutal.
I know pro cycling is a cruel business, but Jumbo-Visma scored an ugly PR own-goal on the Angliru. Roglic could have won the stage, solo, and Vingegaard rode shotgun with Kuss. What were they thinking? Tough love?!#vuelta2023 #Kuss #Landa— Kenny Pryde (@Kenny_Pryde) September 13, 2023
Meanwhile, the messaging from inside the Jumbo-Visma camp was just as confused.
“I want my shot, but I’m happy to work for them when called on,” Kuss admitted after the stage, without a single hint that he recognised the contradiction evident in that single sentence.
Roglič and Vingegaard, meanwhile, claimed that they “want” Kuss to win the Vuelta, though the Slovenian appeared to limit his support to simply encouraging his American teammate to “keep fighting and believing that he can make it”.
“I’m here to race and to do my best, and in the end the best will win,” Roglič concluded.
The best may well win on Sunday in Madrid. However, it seems as if Jumbo-Visma – arguably one of the most ominously dominant teams cycling has seen in years, capable of bending races, including this one, to their will – are letting an easy PR victory slip through their grasp.
“Concentrate on your cycling!” Police officer scolds ‘rubbernecking’ cyclist… while attending beached car
As a road.cc reader, I think it’s fair to say that you probably spend quite a bit of time concentrating on cycling, thinking about cycling, daydreaming about cycling… So you’d probably agree that ‘concentrate on your cycling’ is pretty decent life advice that, if more people adhered to it, could end up making the world a better place.
It’s not, however, the kind of advice you’d normally want to hear shouted at you by a police officer, especially one attending to a motorist who appears to have made a pig’s ear out of parking their vehicle.
But that’s what happened to cyclist Louise Vardeman, who was sternly told by a police officer to “concentrate on your cycling” as she filmed a precariously parked car – and by that, I mean maybe one or two of the wheels were parked on the ground – in Richmond Park yesterday.
Vardeman, who has represented Great Britain at the Gran Fondo world championships, as well as setting team LEJOG records and riding the route of the 2019 Tour de France to push ASO to finally create a proper women’s Tour, posted the video on social media yesterday with the caption: “Me getting shouted at by a police officer as I cycled slowly and carefully past a motorist that had beached himself in Richmond Park. I don’t think I’m the issue here?”
Me getting shouted at by a police officer as I cycled slowly and carefully past a motorist that had beached himself in Richmond Park. I don’t think I’m the issue here? pic.twitter.com/GW5gLu3QyU
— Louise Vardeman (@lougloug) September 12, 2023
Let’s just say that Cycling Twitter wasn’t too impressed with the officer’s advice.
“Wonder if they told the driver to concentrate on their driving,” Awesome Wells asked, while Sam pondered: “How does a driver capable of doing that manage to actually pass a test to get them a license in the first place?”
Others, meanwhile, reckoned the officer was simply offering up some encouragement.
“I think he was urging you to put in a good Strava segment,” noted Gareth, while Stu said: “Maybe he was reminding you to shout the obligatory ‘Can’t park there mate!’”
> Cyclists blast proposals to introduce 10mph speed limit on Richmond Park hill
Some, however, believed the words of advice were appropriate, and accused Vardeman of ‘rubbernecking’.
“At that moment in time you are because you’re ‘rubber necking’ – either not looking where you’re going or holding a camera in one hand which would impede your ability to brake. You also have no idea what caused the accident, may have been a medical emergency,” wrote Bill.
Brendan added: “Maybe the officer saw you getting closer to the middle of the road just as the cyclist coming the opposite way on the wrong side of the road got nearer. Whatever it was, you filming the scene, though perfectly legal, wasn’t helping the situation” – a response that, Louise replied, “makes perfect sense”.
That actually makes perfect sense and you didn’t throw any insults my way. Thank you.
— Louise Vardeman (@lougloug) September 12, 2023
What do you reckon? Was the officer right to call out the cyclist on their ‘rubbernecking’? Or should they be more concerned about the seemingly endemic poor driving on display in Richmond Park?
Poetry Corner: A reader’s response to Exton village’s ‘For NHS sake’ anti-cycling sign
road.cc reader Car Delenda Est has, rather movingly, penned this car-based tribute to Exton village’s somewhat controversial sign warning cyclists to ‘slow down, it’s not a racetrack you lycra-clad git, think of the NHS!’ (Okay, I might have paraphrased a bit).
Anyway, here’s Car Delenda Est’s effort:
Land Rovers.
Exton Village.
NOT Falklands Conflict.
For NHS sake
stop being a tw@!
Beautiful. Somebody, please turn that into a sign immediately.
Meanwhile, SimoninSplading wrote: “I have ridden a few sportives in that area of Rutland and there does seem to be a general antipathy towards cyclists from the locals.
“My impression having cycled and driven around there for a number of years is that the main road safety issue would be overly large SUVs which their drivers seem incapable of slowing down to less than 40mph regardless of road conditions/speed limits etc.”
Get that sign up right away!
“Yeah. Cyclists. And their thousands of deaths, hundred thousands of injured, plus the many many illnesses from their pollution, their noise… oh wait…” noted marmotte27, while cyclisto pondered: “What if these ‘quiet please’ signs are placed by Shimano fanboys, dreaming of putting an end on Campy freehubs?”
Ah, now that makes sense! Then again, maybe not…
“My head can only read this with Alan Partridge’s voice”: Homemade sign warns cyclists to “slow down for NHS sake” through village – “not racetrack”
Right, get your Alan Partridge and Hot Fuzz memes at the ready, because some anti-cycling villagers have been at it again.
And this time, I’m sure you’ll agree, they’ve surpassed themselves.
Words fail me. pic.twitter.com/TMt4V87O07
— Tom Jones (@93vintagejones) September 12, 2023
The homemade sign, spotted in the village of Exton, Rutland, by Conservative councillor Tom Jones (no, not that one) is a true classic of its admittedly niche genre.
“Cyclists.” it begins (note the abundant use of punctuation already), “Exton Village. NOT Racetrack. For NHS sake Slow down!”
“Words fail me,” councillor Jones, who noted that the sign was placed on a “50 metre stretch of cycle path between two 90 degree bends”, wrote on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
“This sign has it all. The NIMBY demand, the replacement of God by Are NHS: the ultimate reminder that it’s so over.”
It turns that it wasn’t just Jones who was baffled by the sign’s grammatically questionable appeal.
No, the grammar, at least, is right. Their powerfully-made point is that it’s “Exton Village” not “Exton Racetrack”. I presume there’s another sign asking cars to stay out for similar reasons.
— John Deans (@jjbillyd) September 12, 2023
“My head can only read this with Alan Partridge’s voice,” wrote Thomas, while Chris asked: “Do they know how fast anaesthetists, ED docs and orthopaedic surgeons cycle?”
Others, meanwhile, reckon the villagers’ desire to protect the NHS by targeting racetrack-day dreaming cyclists is somewhat misplaced.
“For the NHS’s sake, keep cycling surely!” noted Mark.
“Clap for the NHS while we cut cyclists up in our Land Rovers,” added Adam, rather pointedly.
Some, however, defended the sign makers, with Dan arguing that “asking cyclists to respect the speed limit” is a “perfectly reasonable request”, while Mrs Doodle claimed that “I used to live near this location and the Lyra louts on bikes made it a living hell for residents”. Okay.
> Sign in Cambridgeshire accuses cyclists of “panting viruses” through village
Of course, this isn’t the first time that residents have invoked the NHS in order to prevent cyclists from ‘racing’ through their village.
Back during the first Covid-19 lockdown in April 2020, a sign appeared in the Cambridgeshire village of Coveney, telling cyclists to “stop panting viruses through our village. Stay away”.
That year’s lockdown appeared to start a trend of anti-cyclist messages, as later that day we were sent another picture of a homemade sign asking: “Cyclists. Are you 30 minutes from your home? Protect the NHS.”
And in 2021, road.cc reader Matthew sent us this rather polite reminder to one cyclist, apparently, to “please ride quietly through our village”.
Though Matthew did note that it was strange considering the sign makers did not seem overly concerned about the number of speeding cars cutting through the village… just those pesky cyclists with their small talk, speeding, and heavy panting…
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'... fragile man” subject to bouts of dizziness and vertigo.' Not sure what you have to declare to the authorities in the US regarding medical issues and driving but I do hope he has fully complied before making such a public admission, I would hate for a court to pick up on it!
You didn't mention the headline the Atlanta Journal chose to use..." A driver passed too close to cyclists. Now he could die in prison." Talk about car brain...
@Pub bike - kind of the point isn't it. They create demand and expectation by operating at a loss & burning through VC & hedge fund money, then when that dries up, fees go up & costs get cut (ie their gig workers get exploited even more) corners get cut and society gets to deal with the "e.bike" problem (and the contribution to the dying high street). We all know Amazon, Uber, Deliveroo et al are exploitative enterprises, and we all agree that they should treat their workers fairly and ensure laws are adhered to. But equally, we don't want to pay more than we have become used to, or wait longer for that item...... It takes all of us.
@Clem Fandango If the delivery companies were forced to employ the workers (e.g. by HMRC), pay them properly, and ensure the riders didn't break the law I wonder how long the companies would last?
I think there is an important distinction with the use of the word 'bike'. 'Bike' is typically only used to refer to motorbikes where it's already clear from context that that's what's being talked about. If you said, absent any other context, "they were riding a bike", that would generally be understood as referring to a pedal cycle. On the other hand, if you referred to a 'bike' on, say, a motorbike forum, that would be clearly understood to refer *only* to a motorbike, and *not* to a pedal cycle. By contrast, 'ebike' tends to get used either to refer only to EAPCs, or to a grouping that includes *both* electric bikes that are EAPCs *and* those that aren't (and are therefore electric motorcycles). That tends to muddy the waters and lead to people thinking that they all need to be treated the same. So it would be good practice to avoid using the term 'ebike' to refer to things that aren't EAPCs, and prefer 'emotorbike' instead, for clarity. (It might, similarly to 'bike', be fine to use 'ebike' in contexts where it's clear that you're *only* referring to emotorbikes, but I'd suggest that that is (currently) rare.)
@tomlew Got to say I agree. The original Coros had some very good points squashed by major limitations. Those seem to have been addressed in the new model, along with some genuinely innovative stuff like the way it links to your phone and uses its processor and data connection for certain functions. It also looks pretty cool. So yeah, its double in price, but I wouldn't have picked the old one over an Edge 540 at a similar price; and the new one seems to compete square on with the Edge 1050/Ace/Hammerhead. When you look at it like that, it actually seems reasonably competitively priced.
DCR has reported in a hands-on first look that the voice control worked well in varied conditions, presumably as a consequence of putting the mic at the back, out of the wind. I can also see that it’s possible to disable the “OK Garmin” trigger phrase and initiate a voice command after assigning a di2 shifter button. I have one on the way, so I’ll see what it’s like in use, I already have a buyer lined up for my Edge 1050.
I thought this an interesting product when it was first launched but I still can't get over the worry of 'will it be there when you get back from the loo/cafe/shop'?
Can you justify your claim that, "Under UK law, the term ‘e-bike’ refers to an electrically assisted pedal cycle (EAPC)"? Because that kind of false equivalence seems to me to be the hub (sorry) of the whole problem. As far as I know, the law actually avoids 'e-bike' and instead refers to EAPCs specifically because 'e-bike' is not a clearly-defined term. In fact, like 'bike', it can mean pedal cycles to some people (including most readers of this article), and motorbikes to others. That is not the law making the two terms equivalent. So the problem is that, properly used, including in UK law, 'e-bike' is not the same as EAPC. If people, including Restore Britain, only understood that, we'd have a chance of the two main types of e-bike being properly regulated under the very different pieces of legislation that apply to each of them. And people who continue to claim the term for their specific use are just reducing the chances of that.
Don't fund the private equity backed enshittified model. The same people whining about e-bikes the loudest, are doubtless also regularly ordering fast food for delivery. Vote with your wallet, the only language they understand.
57 thoughts on “Homemade sign warns cyclists to “slow down for NHS sake” through village – “not racetrack”; “Concentrate on your cycling!” Police officer scolds ‘rubbernecking’ cyclist, while attending beached car; Jumbo-Visma Vuelta civil war? + more on the live blog”
I reckon this pothole should
I reckon this pothole should win a prize
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/12/sinkhole-size-of-a-car-appears-on-street-in-south-east-london
It’s a mere divot, compared
It’s a mere divot, compared to the Grand Canyons of Yorkshire that we have to deal with. Round here, the climbs out of the potholes have their own strava segments.
We can’t compete on the
We can’t compete on the international stage yet though.
chrisonatrike wrote:
I thought we’d be world-beating like with our NHS (not NHS) Covid app.
That was certainly worthy of
That was certainly worthy of international note, but maybe not for its primary purpose.
For holes in the ground it’s hard to see anyone beating the Central Americans.
chrisonatrike wrote:
Well, it’s not like we’ve got any use for the £37 billion – it was just sat around, not being spent.
We’ve been swimming in a cenote – it’s bizarre how Yucatán Peninsula doesn’t have any rivers that aren’t underground.
hawkinspeter wrote:
Ah – that explains it then. The water run-off has been scared off the roads by cyclists. That’s why there aren’t so many of these in the UK…
What’s interesting is that this area was an “early civilisation” with massive population and great social developments, yet essentially no surface water (and poor soils, to boot). True – they don’t seem to have started the civilisation game in the region.
This stuff is always interesting, like how we may have had “cathedrals” before permanent houses and pots for thousands of years in some places before agriculture (presumably Dashi was popular even then).
chrisonatrike wrote:
The various central american civilisations managed to build roads, but hadn’t invented the wheel – the terrain makes wheels not very useful, so they didn’t bother. (They did actually invent wheels, but just used them on kids toys)
No wheels? Not useful?
No wheels? Not useful? Nonsense! I’d have thought you could easily set some decent times on a sacbe with a group of
stravajaguar warriors (and invented “gravel”); and while it might not have suited carts the Andean civilisations clearly failed to realise they were sitting on a climbing goldmine.If they’d only had recumbents they could have put the Conquistador cavalry to flight.
Who needs wheels when you
Who needs wheels when you have Llammas!
“Greenwich council are
“Greenwich council are investigating”
Surely “looking into it”.
Saw this warning sign the
Saw this warning sign the other day, which I think has been placed there out of genuine concern. There’s an official red triangle 14% slope traffic sign just after it, so I’m not sure the duplication is really needed?
It’s in case folks like me
It’s in case folks like me visit – I have no idea what a “14% slope” is!
As a cyclist??? A likely
As a cyclist??? A likely story.
As a fen dweller there a some
As a fen dweller there a some things we know nothing about, hills being one of them.When I tried to do some semi-serious training a few years ago, the best I could manage for “hill repeats” was riding back and forth on a bridge over the A16.
We are however experts on wind, subsidence and potholes
I remember driving round that
I remember driving round that way and seeing a sign for Hill Farm. It was essentially raised at about the height of a speed bump.
I think SimoninSpalding lives
I think SimoninSpalding lives in Holland though…
EDIT – apologies, they’ve answered themselves!
Thanks, unfortunately not the
Thanks, unfortunately not the cycling utopia that includes and surrounds Amsterdam!
SimoninSpalding wrote:
With most of my loops being lumpy to say the least. I had never experienced a block headwind everywhere I turned until I did a big cycle in East Anglia.
I wondered if this really was
I wondered if this really was an accident blackspot and to be fair, it looks like it might be. In a five year period, there were three serious injuries to cyclists at this location, with no other vehicle involved. As you say, probably placed due to genuine concern.
https://bikedata.cyclestreets.net/collisions/#14.62/51.00978/-1.26981
I think you’re looking at
I think you’re looking at Hampshire there, where ther’s another Exton village. The story was about Exton in Rutland ?
Lol, just seen the
Lol, just seen the duplication of the HGV warning. Now that is something! But I’m sure they’ve had HGV’s ignoring the official sign, so in desperation put up another one.
I used to holiday at a cottage on a single track road which was ‘no motorised traffic’ access only and also had massive ‘unsuitable for HGVs do not follow sat nav’ signs. Didn’t stop an HGV knocking the garden wall down or an idiot in a 4×4 trying the steep slope in the snow and getting wedged across the road between two stone walls!
What if these “quiet please”
What if these “quiet please” signs are placed by Shimano fanboys, dreaming of putting an end on Campy freehubs?
I wouldn’t say Campag
I wouldn’t say Campag freehubs are noisy. I rode Zondas for many years, and now have a set of Fulcrum Rapid Red 3 on the commuter/ gravel bike. Both are quieter than the freehubs on the Prime wheels on the No.1 bike and the Hunt wheels previously on my winter bike.
I would accept that Shimano hubs are incredibly (almost dangerously) quiet.
Land Rovers.
Land Rovers.
Exton Village.
NOT Falklands Conflict.
For NHS sake
stop being a tw@!
Car Delenda Est wrote:
Who do you think you are? Boatsy?
Ah Boatsy. Those were more
Ah Boatsy. Those were more innocent days.
RE: “Quiet cyclists” – it was
RE: “Quiet cyclists” – it was probably this lot, giving everyone a bad name.
Just come across their
Just come across their descendants – correctly demonstrating casualty drills also.
I have ridden a few sportives
I have ridden a few sportives in that area of Rutland and there does seem to be a general antipathy towards cyclists from the locals.
My impression having cycled and driven around there for a number of years is that the main road safety issue would be overly large SUVs which their drivers seem incapable of slowing down to less than 40mph regardless of road conditions/ speed limits etc.
Maybe if…
Maybe if…
the police concentrated on “policing”…
the courts concentrated on “courting”…
and judges concentrated on “judging”…
(and issuing proper sentences as a real deterent)
then drivers would actually concentrate on their “driving”…
Ah, Chief Wiggum’s pretendy
Ah, Chief Wiggum’s pretendy Royal Parks Police. A bunch of clowns.
The “Slow Down!” sign is
The “Slow Down!” sign is inconsistent with the earlier sign “Cyclists. Are you 30 minutes from your home? Protect the NHS.” which is an encouragement to cyclists to cycle faster
Thought I’d just check the
Thought I’d just check the collision data for Exton, just to see how bad it really is (you guessed it, not a sausage)…
https://bikedata.cyclestreets.net/collisions,collisionsheatmap/#12.81/52.68979/-0.61683
Fallacy! That’s only because
Fallacy! That’s only because all the sausages have been scared off the roads by the rampaging herds of cyclists!
I’m wondering just how many times per month a group of cyclists passes. Unless they’ve got a amazing success of a local club – or several – nearby I’d imagine this would be no more than a minibus’ worth of people passing through the place within e.g. 1-3 minutes, once every …?
Truly it’s simply the rare which is startling – and in this case horrifying!
chrisonatrike wrote:
Fresh road kill sausages are the best!
chrisonatrike wrote:
But cyclists don’t come in herds like cows, they come in bunches like bananas!
Backladder wrote:
Depends if they’ve swapped
Depends if they’ve swapped chamois butter for udder cream?
I was about refute the banana analogy but then I realised I have owned one of these – albeit without the front fairing and body sock.
However, I was never a part of a bunch while riding it.
If it’s so bad there, maybe
If it’s so bad there, maybe they should open a cafe and make the best of it? If you can’t slow ’em down with signs, do so with cake and coffee.
The sign is working then.
The sign is working then.
Surely it’s not beyond the
Surely it’s not beyond the wit of some cyclist to replace the sign with one reading:
“STOP DRIVING
for the NHS”
eburtthebike wrote:
“unless you are an Ambulance driver, First Responder or Community Nurse*”
*Although I have vague recollection of midwives on bicycles, though I can’t think where from!
Yeah cyclists and their
Yeah. Cyclists. And their thousands of deaths, hundred thousands of injured, plus the many many illnesses from their pollution, their noise… oh wait…
[/quote]
Erm – but wouldn’t expanding pretty much any industry deliver new jobs?
brooksby wrote:
Not if it’s a worker-replacing-robots industry
Someone needs to make the
Someone needs to make the robots (at least, to begin with…)
quiff wrote:
Well, how about the people making robots to build robot factories, then?
Or the management consultant
Or the management consultant industry – that often focusses on delivering fewer jobs?
chrisonatrike wrote:
I thought management consultants simply swap the low paid jobs for high paid jobs for them and their mates.
chrisonatrike wrote:
I thought that they generally created more management consultant jobs?
Correct – but AFAIK the idea
Correct – but AFAIK the idea is to swap a small number of management consultant jobs for a much larger number of other jobs. The difference (money saved) being divided between the company that hired the consultants to fire everyone (directors all get a bonus) and the management consulting company.
So how did that 4×4 beach
So how did that 4×4 beach itself?
Was the twat trying to exit the car park not through the entrance, or was he asleep at the wheel and did not notice he had reached the edge of the car park?
Can the Royal Parks Police hand out careless driving tickets?
mattw wrote:
No, for the simple reason that they weren’t on a bicycle.
if the Met police are
if the Met police are “drowning under cases” of video footage then Sadiq Khan can use some of his £1b / year ulez revenues to alleviate the issue.
As the Mayor of London and apparently committed to road safety for cyclists why wouldn’t he do this?*
* Londoners already know the answer to this rhetorical question.
Boldly said.
Boldly said.
Even the local graffiti
Even the local graffiti artist spotted an opportunity to have a go at the local Tories who put up the ludicrous sign.