Anonymous pro cyclist claims Tom Pidcock “a bit of a loner” at Ineos Grenadiers and caused friction in “bizarre” transfer saga (also claims double Olympic champ’s buyout would cost new team €12 million) + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
History-making trio become first British women's team sprint squad to win world and Olympic titles in same year
Great Britain’s women’s team sprint doubled up the Olympic gold they won this summer with gold at the UCI Tissot Track World Championships last night, becoming the first British women’s team sprint line-up to pull off the historic double in the same year.
Sophie Capewell, Emma Finucane and Katy Marchant qualified fastest and made it through to the gold medal ride where they beat the Dutch to add a trio of rainbow jerseys to their impressive 2024.
Marchant said: “Today was a tough day on the bike and perhaps a little bit harder than winning an Olympic gold medal for different reasons but I’m really glad we showed up today. We’re absolutely over the moon.”
Capewell added: “It’s the kind of thing that as kids growing up in sport, they’re the two big things to aim for… the reality is very much a dream come true. It feels like the icing on the cake and the cake was pretty damn good in the summer so that’s topped it off quite nicely!”
The men’s team sprint line-up of Joe Truman, Harry Ledingham-Horn, Hayden Norris and Marcus Hiley qualified fourth fastest but were pipped to bronze by Japan.
"Why people don't cycle has had the same reasons for decades": Reaction to survey finding 90% scared of cycling in UK cities
Some of your thoughts:
the little onion: “The solutions are either: build high quality infrastructure, build infrastructure that is of high quality, build infrastructure, and make sure the quality is high.”
Daveyraveygravey: “It’s not just urban cycling, it’s any road in the UK! And it isn’t just the risk of being hit, the risk of being nearly-hit is off the scale. Solutions? Make the driving test harder. Make people re-do it every 10 years, if not five. Make cycling part of the driving test, make it a road user test. Have some actual traffic police, not just cameras on every corner. Have a justice system that actually punishes people, when they actually get as far as court. Link car ignitions to the DVLA, so your bloody car won’t start if you haven’t passed your test, or currently banned.
“But no-one else gives a s**t. Which is why we have ended up with 85 deaths and serious injuries every day.”
eburtthebike: “Anyone familiar with the history of cycling in this country will be wondering why the company wasted its money on yet another survey to find out exactly what all the other surveys have said. Why people don’t cycle has had the same reasons for decades, the problem is that successive governments haven’t given a flying flamingo, quite happy to announce massive spending on cycling, and having got the headlines, withdraw the funding.
“It is to be hoped that Louise Haigh’s promise of unprecedented funding will break the mould and actually be realised: it’s certainly way, way overdue.”
Another way of making the first part of that point, Car Delenda Est asked if “the report made any mention of the Pope defecating in the woods?”
No, but it did suggest the bear in question is indeed a Catholic…
Firefighters cut free girl who "slipped off her bike, trapping her ankle between pedal and bike frame"
Not something you read every day…
“Earlier today 13-year-old Grace unfortunately slipped off her bike trapping her ankle between pedal and bike frame,” someone from Rewley Road Fire Station explained.
“After trying to free Grace’s ankle themselves, her parents called 999 where Red Watch from Rewley Road fire station attended the incident near the underpass in Raleigh Park Hinksey and used specialist cutting equipment to release the entrapment.
“Well done to Grace for putting on a brave face whilst firefighters cut her free!”
It's not just Ineos and Pidcock falling out... Cofidis say goodbye to Alana Castrique due to "disloyal behaviour"
Four weeks ago AG Insurance – Soudal announced that Alana Castrique would be joining their ranks next season…
Somewhat late to the party, Cofidis, the team Castrique has spent the past three years with, yesterday said they were terminating her contract with immediate effect “for disloyal behaviour that has damaged the image and integrity of the team”.
You didn’t dump me, I’m dumping you!
"Careful, it can break a crank arm..."
Cyril from Stratford-upon Avon Swan Rescue using his Pashley Parabike Fleet to rescue another swan from peril.#stratforduponavon #Swans pic.twitter.com/ra1UlGvT3v
— Traditional Cycle Shop (@Trad_Cycle_Shop) October 17, 2024
All credit to Jo for that inspired caption contest while I was faffing around trying to shoehorn Lake in there somewhere… get it? Swan Lake? The cycling shoe brand and the ballet? Right… you got it the first time… Swan (disc) brake? Sure, I’ll stop…
Alpecin-Deceuninck and Mathieu van der Poel raise €149,000 for Stand Up to Cancer Day by auctioning off Merci Poupou Canyon Aeroad ridden on Tour de France rest day
Alpecin-Deceuninck wrote on social media this morning: “Today, on ‘Stand Up to Cancer Day’, we want to share that €149.000 was raised through the auction of MVDP’s bike, in collaboration with Vive Le Vélo during the Tour de France.”
I’ve got to admit I read that as €14,900 at first, the €149,000 incredibly impressive. The team is also giving 10 charities limited-edition Merci Poupou shirts to support their own fundraising efforts.
"The streets belong to the people": Cyclists riding on closed roads before New York City Marathon will be removed from course, organisers say – as locals slam "embarrassing" bike ban
What is a bike library?
The Manchester Evening News reports a new bike library has opened in Trafford, encouraging people to cycle by offering free use of bikes, locks, lights, hi-vis jackets and helmets…
It’s based at Davyhulme Library, with three local councillors volunteering as part of the scheme.
Cllr Barry Winstanley told a council meeting last night it is “such a delight to see someone who hasn’t been on a bike for years riding off”.
“It’s an old cliche but you never forget how to ride a bike, but it’s so true,” he said.
Transport for Greater Manchester provided start-up funding, allowing all borrowing to be done free of charge, with members of the public having also donated bikes to the scheme. In the long-term, it is hoped borrowing bikes will become part of “everyday library operations”, with other items such as panniers available too.
Cllr Michael Welton said: “A bike library is an amazing starting point for people who want to get riding and who may not have had the opportunity before. We know that access to bikes is a social justice issue. It’s the cheapest and one of the most time-efficient modes of transport, opening up employment and training opportunities that might otherwise be out of reach, and can bring families and communities closer together.”
Drug driver who smashed into cyclist on pavement while twice the legal limit for cannabis, flinging rider through the air and leaving him with life-changing injuries, handed six-month suspended sentence after motorist claimed he "faced impossible choice"
Valtteri Bottas trains with you know who...
Sometimes it is, Valtteri, just sometimes…
Can we make indoor cycling more bearable for less than £75?
Anonymous pro cyclist claims Tom Pidcock "a bit of a loner" at Ineos Grenadiers and caused friction in "bizarre" transfer saga (also claims double Olympic champ's buyout would cost new team €12 million)
It’s probably not surprising to hear the saga surrounding Tom Pidcock’s likely premature departure from the Ineos Grenadiers this winter “is also raising eyebrows in the peloton”. That’s the account of a ‘secret cyclist’ in the Belgian press who has a regular column with Sporza where they divulge all the gossip and secrets (well, some of them) from the peloton.
According to the ‘spy in the peloton’, presumably known as 007-speed or something equally bad, the riders on other teams have had their heads turned by the “bizarre” Pidcock saga too.
“Pidcock is a bit of a loner within Ineos,” the anonymous pro claimed.
And while we’d argue there’s probably a bit of a difference between a maverick doing their own thing, perhaps hard to pin down away from races and with some differing training opinions, to a super-talented multi-discipline specialist ditching the road to rack up world-class wins in mountain biking and cyclo-cross every so often, it appears this has all caused friction with Ineos management, the spy claims.
“With his own doctor and his own staff. He wants to do his own thing a bit,” the secret pro continued. “For example, the team didn’t want Pidcock to go mountain biking in Canada at the end of last season. But he crossed the pond anyway. Since then, the water between the two parties has become deeper and deeper.”
But where will he go? The mystery rider claims whichever team wants Pidcock will have to stump up €12 million to get him out of his Ineos contract that still has three more years to run.
“Which team can put 12 million euros on the table?” the spy asked. “Because that is Pidcock’s buyout fee. Unless there is a back door in the contract. Q36.5 and Visma-Lease a Bike in particular would be interested in prying him away from Ineos. Pidcock at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe seems less likely.”
It’s been a wild seven days in the autumn’s biggest transfer saga, Pidcock “deselected” by Ineos management from Il Lombardia the night before. The 25-year-old wrote on Instagram: “Just as things were on the up after a turbulent end to the year I am deselected for Lombardia tomorrow. I am in great shape and was really looking forwarded to it! Good luck to the boys, I guess off season starts early. Thanks for everyone’s support even in the tough times”.
Sports director Zak Dempster confirmed the decision had come from the top, not him, and was not performance based, admitting it “does look strange”.
Then, on Monday, Geraint Thomas addressed “the elephant in the room”, calling it a “really crap situation” and saying it’s “just messed up”.
“I don’t actually know what has gone on, but all I know is, when you’re the highest-paid rider in your team, and it’s obviously a really crap situation. He’s not happy, the team’s not happy. How has it got to this point? I don’t know,” Thomas said.
“People who are around Tom, I don’t think help. I don’t know how… The fact is that he had a great chance of performing today [at Il Lombardia]. I saw that Zak had said it’s a management call, it’s not a performance call. I certainly don’t know anything about that. We’re just riders, eh? What do we know about management?
“It’s just not good, is it? All the bull**** aside, he’s a great talent. He’s a good guy, when I’m around him we have a nice time, so it’s not good to see that situation. We’ll see what happens…”
17 October 2024, 08:04
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I'm going to take a close look at some of the lights mentioned. For reference: I extensively used the following: - Nightrider lumina (don't recall the exact model): horrible temperature control and after 18 months it bricked up on me and they refused to honour the warranty, will never buy anything from them ever again; - Lezyne 1600 XXL, two issues, firstly the strap that attached it to the handlebar never kept in place really well over rough terrain. Secondly: a cop stopped me and although -to me riding the bike- it appeared well adjusted, he claimed I was blinding oncoming traffic. He actually held the bike so I could check for myself from inside his car and he was simply right: the light level on the ground was ok but indeed, I was blinding oncoming traffic. That's a hard no, it had to go even though he didn't fine me. I don't want to annoy/be a risk to other road users; - Then the Lupine: solid as a rock, mounted on a GoPro mount, USB-C charging, StVZO compliant...but alas not enough oomph considering terrain and desired speed; Thinking back, it somehow seems like a light I had on my bike back when I was riding long distance events (Audax, crazy distances but lower average speeds) might have been ideal, that was a Son Edelux and it ran on a Son hub dynamo. But I don't want to install a dynamo and again, lower speeds.
Well that all blew up quickly! A pause to savour: "cyclists have a dislike for linguistic accuracy and authentic meaning." Apparently it's something to do with the cyclic muscle movements - ah, no, that would affect runners and rowers also. Circular motion of the limbs?
@mattw Yeah, and Oxford Street will be full of unicorns and rainbows by then as well. 🤣
@stulemanski Actually I think they do, as long as there is good behaviour. Complete cycle bans are vanishingly rare in the Netherlands, which is the best comparison. In 10-20 years time there will be a mobility track, and there will be no real problems.
@Rendel Harris That assumes training, expertise, and the time to do a proper job including full consultation. This does not happen, and then rapid assumptions are made based on "me". That also happens with cycling groups who campaign for something and completely ignore eg tricycles or other varieties of vehicle, in favour of standard cycles. Both lived experience and professional experience are essential. This week I have been looking at a brand new £50k 3m-wide path upgrade in my local Green Flag Park, where the Council have spent perhaps £3k installing a 3 ply chicane with 1.5m gaps and 1.5m spacing between barriers at one end of it. The path also includes a 1-in-9 30m long hill. I have since been talking to a lady who is a wheelchair user and has a fully-trained assistance dog which walks alongside, who is thereby prevented from entering the park she pays for with her Council Tax. Those dimensions are unusable for most small mobility scooters, never mind other mobility aid users, and are flat out unlawful, and not in accordance with several sets of Government Guidelines. Yet when I complain I expect to be stonewalled to the door of the Court in the hope that I will get exhausted and go away. At the door of the Court they usually capitulate, and will have spent 7-10k on legal letters and compensation and doing what they should have done at the start. That £3k could have been spent sorting out perhaps 10 other anti-disabled barriers around our Green Flag Parks. Every complaint so far I have made has been met with "Does Not Meet Threshold for Action".
@flowboy I'm not sure what your point is, FB. Unforfunately, in a world of insufficient resources and gutted Councils with no expertise (for example the near-vanishing of Accessibility Officers) due mainly to available resources being halved since 2010, the only things that will get a response are likely to be details supported by a credible threat of legal action. That's how it is. Even then they often rely on obfuscation via complaints procedures that can take 12 months and have no teeth.
@flowboy I'm not sure what your point is, FB. Unforfunately, in a world of insufficient resources and gutted Councils with no expertise (for example the near-vanishing of Accessibility Officers) due mainly to available resources being halved since 2010, the only things that will get a response are likely to be details supported by a credible threat of legal action. That's how it is. Even then they often rely on obfuscation via complaints procedures that can take 12 months and have no teeth.
@Rendel Harris I have recently come out. I have been called a lot worse. Sticks and stones. So are you saying I cannot call people like myself names? If a call myself and people like me, a ‘homophobic slur’ are you going to get the nasty words police on to me? If you are straight, then your opinions and fake anger mean nothing. Unless you are gay, you are clueless. So stop getting all worked up about a name. I can cope with it. If you can’t, it’s on you.
@No Reply, ah I see which PBU you are now. Tiresomely familiar. Rather than waste any more time on you I’ll leave it to the good judgement of road.cc readers as to exactly how much credence to give the words of someone who claims that calling someone a “bum chum” is not a homophobic slur.
I'm sure everyone involved is very well intentioned but I'm sorry Scottish Cycling, young people don't need "confidence", they need safe infrastructure. They need a national government that doesn't repeatedly fail to live up to its previous promises on active travel spending and then tries to obfuscate that fact, while diverting huge obscene sums of money to road building and blocking attempts by councils to implement congestion charging. They need local councils that are actually incentivised to deliver infrastructure at pace where funding is available rather than soft-soaping and slow-rolling constantly to try and avoid bad press from deranged anti-cycling wingnut columnists in local rags. Most relevantly, they need people with access to power and politics who're willing to advocate for those things, certainly far more than they need a Tour-themed rebrand of the ineffectual Bikability scheme which is what this initiative seems to amount to.
19 thoughts on “Anonymous pro cyclist claims Tom Pidcock “a bit of a loner” at Ineos Grenadiers and caused friction in “bizarre” transfer saga (also claims double Olympic champ’s buyout would cost new team €12 million) + more on the live blog”
See comment from Ben Sandy on
See comment from Ben Sandy on this FB post from Stafford Borough Police:
> “I witnessed a driver knock a man from his bike last night, the driver then reversed over the bike before speeding off. I waited for an hour and a half on 101, reported it online and called the PCSO numbers I already have and no one has been in touch.”
https://www.facebook.com/StaffordPolice/posts/pfbid0mna17UQogTfgdvhDkxYmxKeD1quZUW6h1Tx8YzBNq18TrcHgyak5eVw7AnGaEUMtl
Sounds like a story.
Not really. That was a 999
Not really. That was a 999 job.
It’s only 999 if it’s a
It’s only 999 if it’s a threat to life or a crime in progress. Once the perp has driven off and there’s no longer a threat, it’s a 101 job.
Is failure to stop at the
Is failure to stop at the scene of an accident a crime? If so does the crime continue to be committed until the driver sees sense, returns and calls an ambulance/exchanges details/reports to police/offers assistance. I would have rung 999.
Although it’s quite a
Although it’s quite a different context, this article quotes a senior police office saying that you should phone 999 immediately after a crime has been committed to give officers the best chance to catch the culprit. It might be a bit different if you’ve got details like a car registration plate, but if you’re relying on a more general description (e.g. make/model/colour) then a 999 call is probably worthwhile.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/oct/09/they-rob-you-visibly-with-no-repercussions-the-unstoppable-rise-of-phone-theft
Not about a cyclist being
Not about a cyclist being killed, a pedestrian. The sentence beggars belief
https://www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/24658895.man-killed-glasgow-childrens-hospital-worker-sentenced/
The sun was in his eyes but
The sun was in his eyes but he also believed the lights were green.
Driving is now a matter of belief.
In Scotland it seems it is
In Scotland it seems it is literally that. You can be witnessed sat at the wheel of your car moments before it collides with someone, then again after that, with no evidence for “medical episode” – but because you say you don’t recall the intervening time obviously you can’t be held to have been “driving” – so you can’t justly be held responsible for the consequences.
This is also the country where a police report was withheld from the jury apparently on the grounds that it unfairly made the defendent look like he was a bad driver (because… he was) and it stated that it wasn’t the cyclists’ fault.
2 1/2 years ago they amended
2 1/2 years ago they amended the Highway Code to introduce the concept of “strict liability”, where motorists have a greater responsibility for more vulnerable road users. It was a waste of time, because the Courts ignore this presumed responsibility. – It would seem drivers cannot be held responsible unless they confess to seeing the pedestrian/cyclist/redlight…
Well… AFAIK there was no
Well… AFAIK there was no new law, it was just emphasising what was already there. And (again – I stand to be corrected) the “Hierarchy” bit doesn’t actually introduce anything other than some more principles in the Highway Code which you could then point to as backing up something like “careless / inconsiderate driving”.
TBF “strict liability” – at least in NL – is only applicable in civil cases e.g. for compensation. So the UK criminal courts would be forging a rather innovative path if they did …
Mr Anderson wrote:
You’re describing 2 seperate things.
There is no such thing as strict liability mentioned in the HC.
There is a pyramid of responsibilities with vunerable road users at the top.
I didn’t read it like that as
I didn’t read it like that as strict liability was in quotes. I think they meant the concept has been introduced at a very low level and can be built on in future to have actual strict liability.
How come Belgium has more
How come Belgium has more cycling journalists than the rest of Europe put together?
Nothing particularly new by that so called “insider”. all known facts.
INEOS knew what they were getting when they signed Tom for a truckload of cash and a load of clauses about his own support team – a multi-disciplinarian with a glittering junior career. The fact that was ok for 2 years and its just been in the last 2 years says more about the upheaval in the INEOS management team rather than Tom. Some mid-senior managers with brittle Ego’s I suspect….
If you ignore the disciplines he’s still had more podiums than anyone but maybe Ganna this year?
He’s done his job – about time Ineos management did theirs and got a grip.
Ineos clearly miss Brailsford
Ineos clearly miss Brailsford’s hands-on management, love him or loathe him.
That young girl needs ultegra
That young girl needs ultegra cranks.
Re: Pidcock, I’m surprised
Re: Pidcock, I’m surprised Ineos allow outside doctors to cater to individual riders’ needs, for obvious reasons (and I’m not in any way suggesting any impropriety here).
Plus the thing in this year’s Tour, where Pidcock basically publicly announced that Steve Cummings wouldn’t be DS if they wanted him to ride, so poor old Steve got ditched, and from memory, in came Pidcock’s coach as DS? Steve is quirky, possibly a bit prickly sometimes, but employees don’t publicly sack their bosses like this, it’s just not on. Brailsford would’ve been all over this like a rash, but since he left to work on Ratcliff’s football interests, the cycling team has gone down the toilet. Similarly, I suspect they miss the now long-gone sports psychologist Steve Peters, greatly.
Sky begat Ineos, can Ineos ever recover? Very sad.
Sir Chris Hoy
Sir Chris Hoy
“You know, we were all born and we all die, and this is just part of the process.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj4dr9xdxgro
Damn. Brave man.
Damn. Brave man.
Also a supporter of cycling in general e.g. Scotland’s Pedal On Parliament.
What a fabulous quote, bought
What a fabulous quote, bought a tear to the eye this morning and also brought a quote from Henry IV to mind:
May we all be as brave as Chris when faced with our end, and here’s hoping he gets at least into the higher range of the remaining span predicted. Four years is a long time in medical research, you never know…