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"It was cringeworthy how Mark Cavendish sold his own farewell," claims columnist who believes Manx Missile's exit from pro cycling was "toe-curling" and "like Elvis's last tour through shady casinos in Las Vegas" + more on the live blog

It's Thursday on the live blog and the weekend is creeping closer... Dan Alexander is in the hotseat today as we bring you everything worth knowing (and plenty you could probably do without) from the world of cycling today...

SUMMARY

14 November 2024, 11:21
"It was cringeworthy how Mark Cavendish sold his own farewell," claims Dutch columnist who believes Manx Missile's exit from pro cycling was "toe-curling" and "like Elvis's last tour through shady casinos in Las Vegas before his body gave out"
Mark Cavendish wins 2024 Tour de France Singapore Criterium (A.S.O./Danial_Hakim)

Strap yourselves in... 

A columnist for the Dutch daily newspaper AD, has penned a piece bemoaning the fact Mark Cavendish's final race in pro cycling came at the questionably competitive, but extremely lucrative for those involved, Tour de France Singapore Criterium.

Across the world's media, and even in some cycling-specific media, the event was often portrayed as a competitive race that was won by Cavendish. Just as a reminder, this is the flat crit that Jonas Vingegaard 'won' ahead of Chris Froome and Vincenzo Nibali two years ago.

With that said, 99 per cent of cycling fans don't actually have any issue with the riders cashing in and entertaining the fans. After all, it's the off-season and it's not like they'd be doing anything other than sitting at home with their feet up anyway, so the whole spectacle is pretty harmless, right? 

Well, Dutch journalist Thijs Zonneveld has a different view. He called it (according to Google Translate) "cringeworthy how Mark Cavendish sold his own farewell" and opted for the Singapore Criterium his final race. As I said at the start, strap yourself in for this one... 

Mark Cavendish on 2024 Tour de France Singapore Criterium podium (A.S.O./Thomas_Maheux)

Zonneveld began by saying everyone watching Cav's final race was left with tears in their eyes... "from laughing" and said "no matter how hard he (along with a handful of fellow sprinters) tried to make it look epic and iconic and historic: it didn't work".

> "Philipsen has to work so hard not to win, it's a thing of beauty": Cycling fans react to Mark Cavendish's emotional 'win' at 'last race', as Manx Missile 'outsprints' everyone at the Tour de France Singapore Criterium

"Even in the interview after the race, in which he tried to sound emotional, you got the feeling that you were watching hastily thrown together amateur theatre," the columnist wrote.

"Mark Cavendish could have ended his career in so many ways [...] But instead he sold his own farewell. Cashing in one last time in a fake race on the other side of the world, like Elvis who took one last tour through shady casinos in Las Vegas before his body gave out. Ugly, that's what it is. Toe-curling.

"But it also suits Cavendish in a way. He has so many faces. That of a multiple winner and a star, but also that of a kamikaze. One day he's cursing you, the next he's your best friend. He can tear through the peloton like a wrecking ball, but he can also sing a children's song with tears in his eyes or talk about his depression. Twenty years as a pro, 165 victories, endless stories. With one common thread. It chafed. Until the very very end."

I'd actually pay incredibly good money to see one of those 'celebrity reacts to mean things someone on the internet said about them' videos. Now THAT would be worth watching. Anyway, I'm not sure Cavendish will (or should) be losing any sleep over this one...

Mark Cavendish at 2024 Tour de France Singapore Criterium (A.S.O./Thomas_Maheux)

I think we'll end this by leaving this here...

Cav comment

 

14 November 2024, 17:14
Fines issued to pavement cyclists will be based on "behaviour, not location" says council, in town where female cyclist was fined £100 for riding on cycle path and others threatened with £1,000 penalties by "cowboy wardens"
14 November 2024, 17:01
"Allowing Zwifters to take Watopia on their outdoor adventures": Pinarello and Zwift release limited-edition Dogma F
2024 Pinarello Dogma F x Zwift

News from Rouleur Live to finish the day... where Pinarello and Zwift have joined forces to unveil a limited-edition Dogma F to "allow Zwifters to take Watopia on their outdoor adventures". The Watopia-inspired colourway will be available on 50 of the Italian bike brand's flagship framesets.

2024 Pinarello Dogma F x Zwift

"Blending the meticulous craftsmanship of the Dogma F with the number one fully immersive indoor cycling app, this collaboration marks the next step for cyclists looking to merge the two worlds of indoor and outdoor cycling," Pinarello tells us.

It's bringing the "striking frameset" which had been available in-game to the real world... if you've got a spare £5,500 knocking around. It's on display at Rouleur Live today and will be "a special collector's item for Pinarello and Zwift fans worldwide".

 

2024 Pinarello Dogma F x Zwift
14 November 2024, 16:05
Shoehorning this into the blog

Incredibly tenuous connection to cycling in the UK via potholes...

Rod Stewart potholes (Twitter)

 

14 November 2024, 16:02
It's a landslide! The people (well, 270 of them) have spoken...
Live blog poll 14/11/24

 

14 November 2024, 15:55
What makes a great kids bike? Beginner-friendly balance bikes to junior road bikes explained, plus a selection of our favourites
14 November 2024, 15:20
In the comments today: Does the grass 'hack' actually work? Who's paying for Paddy McGuinness's knees? What to do with your socks in winter? road.cc readers ask all the most important questions

Comments time... 

Fix your punctures with grass (Bike Life Facebook)

chrisonabike is concerned by our promoting of a potentially dangerous practice. No, not what happens when the grass-filled tyre inevitably comes off and that carbon wheel decides it doesn't like what you've put it through. 

"That all sounds fine until you realise that this may attract the unwanted attention of another moode of transport (which kills tens every year) — cows."

Owd Big 'Ead has pulled it off successfully (the grass hack, not hailing herds of cattle with your flat-fixing): "Used grass before, to get me out of the shit, during my messenger days, many moons ago."

Smoggysteve: "I saw a demo of the grass in tyre truck and was surprised how effective it was. You do have to cut your innertube in half and if the puncture is near the valve you're screwed. But it just involves cutting the tube. Tying both ends up with a knot then pumping it up on the rim and the grass fills the gap in the tyre. It's messy but rather that than waking home... or just tubeless and it's not an issue."

I've got a video idea to pitch to Jamie, back in a sec...

Shout out to Steve K for doing the job I should have done. He found this in the road.cc archives, '12 of the best emergency bike fixes — get going again with these smart bodges'. In there we heard from a rider who mentions the old tie the tube in a knot method, as well as Andy Fraser's... "I once stuffed my mtb tyres with grass to get me home" method. Nice.

Rendel Harris: "Never tried it myself as I am what you might call a puncture paranoid, usually like to carry at least five tubes between two of us as well as patches, but the grass method in an emergency was often talked of by touring and adventure cyclists way back when I were a lad, definitely a thing."

Elsewhere in the comments there's a bit of discussion about the great sock debate...

lesterama: "Belgians wear their socks over their bib tights. Everyone else has socks underneath. When in Flanders, do as the Flandriens do."

Oh, brooksby is wondering if Comic Relief will be paying for Paddy McGuinness "to get new knees" after his Chopper epic? I can see the tabloid headlines already: 'Selfish Lycra-clad cyclist steals charity money for knee operation'...

14 November 2024, 15:03
"For some, it's lines and wasted space, But for others, a much safer place"... a fitting response to anti-bike lane poetry...

You've heard of rap battles, but what about cycling infrastructure-related poetry battles? On Tuesday, we shared the bizarre news that a local newspaper had published one Wirral resident's interesting poetic protest...

Birkenhead to Liscard Active Travel Project (Wirral Council)

> "They'll carry on with their cycle crusade, while we're stuck in the mess they made": Local paper publishes bizarre anti-bike lane poem protesting council's "new crazy scheme"

Well, we've received a rhyming reply, Cllr Ed Lamb of the Wirral Green Party forwarding the following work... an Ode to the New & Existing 'Active Travel' Paths of Wirral (and Beyond!)...

On Wirral's roads, where wheels now turn, A path to change, though tempers burn. For some, it's lines and wasted space, But for others, a much safer place.

Beneath the skies, through sun and rain, Runs the vision for bright new lanes— Where walkers stroll and cyclists glide, And breathe fresh air as fumes subside.

A network growing, step by step, Though costs seem high, the gains are kept— In health, in joy, in cleaner air, A legacy for all to share.

Some grumble now, these paths are "new," But thoughts did rise as patience grew. For here, no ambulance delays, No blocked-up streets, no lost ways.

And yes, the roads are still your own, For those who drive, or call car home. With fewer cars as walkers grow, More space to ease the traffic flow.

Congestion fades as wheels spin free, And life reclaims the right to be. Let leaders stand, and see it through, To build a Wirral bold and new.

Where young and old, with paths to roam, Can journey safely close to home. A cycle lane—a simple line, But what it brings, in time, divine.

14 November 2024, 12:14
Government "prioritising active travel over safety", claims councillor – who says new bike lane was so wide "I thought it was a dual carriageway they were building!"
14 November 2024, 10:23
"British Cycling went all guns blazing and threw a load of money at research into females and the chamois": Dame Laura Kenny details "career-changing" developments in female-specific kit that helped her overcome "almost unbearable" saddle sores
Laura Kenny (Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com)

Speaking to the Telegraph, Dame Laura Kenny explained how "horrific" saddle sores left her unable to go to the toilet without being in significant pain and that British Cycling's extensive research into female-specific kit finally saw an end to her problem.

Kenny called the advances in women's kit "career-changing" as up until that point she had struggled with "almost unbearable" saddle sores. 

"Every time I went to the toilet it really, really hurt. And I just thought, 'Well, this is the norm'. And it wasn't actually until 2016 and I went to the doctor and I said, 'This is getting unbearable, I can't really sit on the saddle, this is awful'," she explained.

"It was because we didn't actually have a female-specific chamois in our skinsuits. We all had the exact same, which was fine for the men because they could just have it kind of flat, kind of plain, they didn't really need much else to be honest. And then we added into the mix that the saddles also weren't really female-specific at the time.

Laura Kenny Alex Broadway:SWpix.com

"British Cycling just went all guns blazing and threw a load of money at research into females and the chamois, and, honestly, it was career-changing for me. Like the difference between pre that research and post… It meant basically I wasn't missing sessions. But I find it mad that it took until then, 2016 is not that long ago really. The amount of female cyclists that must have passed through the system, that have had to have operations because the kit was based around men rather than women."

14 November 2024, 10:02
"I've never felt as cold": Paddy McGuinness hits Scotland on epic Raleigh Chopper ride
Paddy McGuinness Children in Need Raleigh Chopper challenge

Paddy McGuinness is in Scotland for day four of his 300-mile Wrexham to Glasgow charity ride for Children in Need. Oh, he's doing it on a Raleigh Chopper, if you hadn't heard. 

Despite being "completely broken, dejected and finished" McGuinness made it over the big hills on yesterday's route and was pictured sat by the roadside having reached the 420m summit of Shap Fell. He made it into Scotland too, which is where day four has begun, the planned route from Ecclefechan to Dumfriesshire through to Lanarkshire.

"The sun's just come out in Scotland which is amazing because it’s been absolutely freezing this morning," he told the BBC earlier. "Warming up a little bit now but I’ve never felt as cold as this morning like my toes and my fingers are freezing so I’m really looking forward to a hot cup of tea.

"After doing Shap yesterday it's my quads today. They are so tight, and my fingertips and my toes today, I've never felt them as cold, no matter what I'm doing, you know? I'm trying to wiggle my hands, put on toe warmers, you know, it's just absolutely freezing. And my backside, my noisy neighbours are still there... but I'm just ignoring them for now."

14 November 2024, 09:25
Move over disc vs rim brakes... there's a new great cycling debate... socks over or under bib tights/leg warmers?
2021 Nopinz Endurance Roubaix Leg Warmers - ankle gripper.jpg

Okay, I said 'new', there's nothing new about this 'debate'. Do you go over? Do you go under? Does anybody actually care? It's the final option for me, but plenty have a strong opinion on this one... in fact, the 'roadbike cycling' Facebook group has seen a discussion on this very topic get 76 comments (including some quite amusing, light-hearted answers)...

"There is no debate. There are only people who are right and people who are wrong."

"Do you wear underwear on the outside of your jeans?"

"Plot twist. Socks go under leg warmers but over bibs."

"Depends on the weather and the colour of the socks! Dry and cool - white socks over tights. Damp - black/dark socks under tights. Proper wet or cold - overshoes."

"Never occurred to me to put socks over tights. Obviously, I'm in the under camp."

"Over. For me, in the winter everything gets tucked. Anything to keep the cold off my skin."

"Over only if you’re playing baseball afterwards."

 That was actually quite a fun comments section. Time to settle it, in what will invariably be the biggest democratic event of November... (we can't think of anything else bigger anyway)...

Polls

14 November 2024, 09:05
Questionable puncture fix sees cyclist stuff flat tyre with... grass?!
Fix your punctures with grass (Bike Life Facebook)

I've been distracted thinking about this ever since it popped up on Facebook this morning. Shared originally by Bike Life, it appears to show an unfortunate puncture sufferer stuffing his tyre with roadside grass in a desperate attempt to get some firmness back in there.

Despite the crowded group ride stood around watching, nobody seems to offer a spare tube which has me slightly dubious this might all be for the internet clicks, call me cynical... or maybe they're all so confident in their tubeless/have lovely dry roads/a wonderful significant other who'll pick them up from wherever, so they never bring spares?

Unfortunately, or fortunately for those very fancy wheels, there's no follow-up footage of the 'grass tube' in use... just how much grass would you have to get in there to get yourself home?

Fix your punctures with grass (Bike Life Facebook)

The jury was out in the comments, some reckoning you could just about limp a short distance, others already feeling the pain the man's carbon wheels would go through to get there...

"That's a good fix till you get home. Does the ride feels different or not?"

"Fine until your tyre comes off and you destroy your $2,000 wheelset"

"Or just carry a spare tube"

"No vegan jokes here. This is a great idea. It does work."

I think we'll leave it to others to try first, although I'm in no position to preach about puncture repair after last Saturday's flat, change tube, flat, change tube, flat, catch a lift home with South Western Railway debacle.

You'd have thought after the first lazy check for offending tube-puncturing item, and subsequent second flat not long after, I'd be a bit more thorough on the second tube... nope... I can tell you now, it feels really silly to find that tiny sharp stone lodged in a tyre cut only once you're back at home and another tube down... painful.

Dan is the road.cc news editor and joined in 2020 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 has been at road.cc for four years and mainly writes news and tech articles as well as the occasional feature. He has hopefully kept you entertained on the live blog too.

Never fast enough to take things on the bike too seriously, when he's not working you'll find him exploring the south of England by two wheels at a leisurely weekend pace, or enjoying his favourite Scottish roads when visiting family. Sometimes he'll even load up the bags and ride up the whole way, he's a bit strange like that.

Add new comment

41 comments

Avatar
brooksby | 4 weeks ago
3 likes

Rod Stewart considers selling his sports cars because of local potholes

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/nov/14/rod-stewart-considers-sell...

Avatar
belugabob replied to brooksby | 4 weeks ago
8 likes

"I am selling...I am selling..."

Avatar
mark1a replied to belugabob | 4 weeks ago
5 likes

I don't think he wants to talk about it...

Avatar
nniff | 4 weeks ago
0 likes

Socks always under bib longs.  When the weather is really vile and the socks are waterproof, then the several wraps of wide, good quality masking tape stops the water running down your legs and filling your socks up.  Masking tape over tights doesn't work.

The real debate is masking tape or gaffer tape.....

I'm sure gaffer tape is superior, but I'm just not brave enough!

Avatar
chrisonabike | 4 weeks ago
6 likes

Am I the only poster worried about this site promoting the use of grass in tyres?  That all sounds fine until you realise that this may attract the unwanted attention of another moode of transport (which kills tens every year) - cows.

Plus emissions (affecting hayfever sufferers).

Avatar
mdavidford replied to chrisonabike | 4 weeks ago
4 likes

chrisonabike wrote:

Am I the only poster worried about this site promoting the use of grass in tyres?

No - inhaling all those rubber fumes seems like a terrible idea to me.

Avatar
Mr Hoopdriver | 4 weeks ago
0 likes

My socks always under.

The real argument is stirrups.  Elasticated rubber bands on the ankle don't work very well over socks - <flame>sensible people like ME buy leggings with stirrups</flame>.

yes

Avatar
Owd Big 'Ead | 4 weeks ago
1 like

Used grass before, to get me out of the shit, during my messenger days, many moons ago.

Avatar
Smoggysteve | 4 weeks ago
1 like

I saw a demo of the grass in tyre truck and was surprised how effective it was. You do have to cut your innertube in half and if the puncture is near the valve you're screwed. But it just involves cutting the tube. Tying both ends up with a knot then pumping it up on the rim and the grass fills the gap in the tyre. It's messy but rather that than waking home. 
 

 

 

 

 

or just tubeless and it's not an issue 

Avatar
Hirsute | 4 weeks ago
1 like

rubydash cam featuring Mitsky from here

https://youtu.be/arTFbb5DMok?t=166

Avatar
mitsky replied to Hirsute | 4 weeks ago
2 likes

Thanks.
No idea how to report that as I did not give permission for anyone else to use it.

Avatar
Mybike replied to mitsky | 4 weeks ago
0 likes

why report it It just generte more hits for you. Plus you post a video on the worlds biggest video shareing site U tube You can see the share button?  It there for people to share videos they seen or like. 34k views you should be thanking him for posting your link instead. And yes I do artwork and I dont care if someone shares my works or even uses it for there own works Just dont post it as your own work.  Anyways If you want to Lawyer up just get your lawyer to email him a cesed and desit letter or whatever it called in your country.

Avatar
Rendel Harris replied to Mybike | 4 weeks ago
4 likes

There is a world of difference between allowing your own video to be shared and other people lifting your video and including it in their own compilations. It's akin to the difference between allowing your books to be borrowed from libraries and allowing other people to copy sections of your books to put in their own work.

Mitsky, if you click on the three dots on the right directly under the video there is the option to report the content to YouTube. Whether they will act or not I don't know, I have noticed in the past to that they are better at reacting to complaints than Facebook or Twitter so they may...

Avatar
brooksby replied to Rendel Harris | 4 weeks ago
3 likes

Rendel Harris wrote:

It's akin to the difference between allowing your books to be borrowed from libraries and allowing other people to copy sections of your books to put in their own work.

Or letting it be pirated so ChatGPT and their ilk can learn how to replace you…

Avatar
quiff replied to Hirsute | 4 weeks ago
1 like

At 4:30 - some sort of swing arm on a lorry swinging round like a helicopter rotor   

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Hirsute replied to quiff | 4 weeks ago
0 likes

That appeared on a rival series too. I think it's the lifting arm for heavy pallets.

They are all useful for reminders of typical hazardous situations that you can recognise when on the road. What beats me is the numbers of drivers speeding into the hazard instead of easing off.

Avatar
Secret_squirrel | 4 weeks ago
10 likes

I think I speak for most of us when I say "Thijs Zonneveld can get to fuck".

Cav has earned the right to end his career any way he damn well pleases.

Avatar
Clem Fandango replied to Secret_squirrel | 4 weeks ago
9 likes

Dutch sports media:  Max Verstappen is a legend & walks on water.  Anyone who says anything even remotely questioning his saintly status is just a biased/racist member of the British media

Also Dutch sports media (with not a shred of irony) : Mark Cavendish can be petulant & ruthless in his pursuit of victory. Oh and a "race" was fixed in his favour.

   

Avatar
the little onion | 4 weeks ago
5 likes

I think the socks-under people and the socks-over people should unite against their common enemy.

Cyclists who wear black socks.

Avatar
Clem Fandango replied to the little onion | 4 weeks ago
10 likes

I thought you were going to say triatheletes (non-sock wearing heathens

Avatar
the little onion replied to Clem Fandango | 4 weeks ago
8 likes

Clem Fandango wrote:

I thought you were going to say triatheletes (non-sock wearing heathens

 

they aren't the enemy. They are worse than that

Avatar
brooksby replied to the little onion | 4 weeks ago
6 likes

the little onion wrote:

Clem Fandango wrote:

I thought you were going to say triatheletes (non-sock wearing heathens

they aren't the enemy. They are worse than that

Reform UK?

Avatar
slc replied to the little onion | 4 weeks ago
5 likes

the little onion wrote:

I think the socks-under people and the socks-over people should unite against their common enemy.

Cyclists who wear black socks.

Hang on, I'm confused. Black socks match my saddle, tyre sidewalls, bar tape, and more often than they should, my chain. I never turn the socks upside down so surely this is OK?

Avatar
Pub bike replied to slc | 4 weeks ago
1 like

In winter I tend to put thicker black socks on over white socks.  The white socks go under my leg warmers, yet the black socks are too thick to go under so they have to go over.  Overshoes then go on top of the black socks,  Where does that leave me in all this?

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andystow replied to the little onion | 4 weeks ago
5 likes

Can we agree that socks go over trousers like my dad showed me to do (and still does.)

 

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rct replied to the little onion | 4 weeks ago
0 likes

I'll admit to wearing black socks, under tights and over shoes this time of year.

Avatar
Steve K | 4 weeks ago
6 likes

I may be misremembering - or it may have been another site - but I could have sworn there was an article on this site once about emergency repairs which include the grass for puncture repair.

Avatar
Steve K replied to Steve K | 4 weeks ago
4 likes

The joys of google (other search engines are available) - it may just have been the brief mention here that I am recalling https://road.cc/content/feature/12-best-emergency-bike-fixes-273323

Avatar
Rendel Harris | 4 weeks ago
3 likes

Never tried it myself as I am what you might call a puncture paranoid, usually like to carry at least five tubes between two of us as well as patches, but the grass method in an emergency was often talked of by touring and adventure cyclists way back when I were a lad, definitely a thing.

Avatar
slc replied to Rendel Harris | 4 weeks ago
2 likes

I'm quite proud of the time I made a tyre boot from litter on a country lane. Not so proud of the reason I needed a boot. 

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