Cyclist gets stick for riding on pavement, but bike lane is blocked by beer lorry; Rapper Gorilla Nems launches foul-mouthed bike lane tirade; Luke Plapp’s nasty road rash from Tour Down Under; Cycling legend Mick Ives dies aged 84 + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
"That's going to sting for a while": Jayco-AlUla's Luke Plapp with some of the worst road rash we've seen... but still manages to complete stage three of Tour Down Under
“Hard as nails”, was the verdict from the former GreenEDGE racer and now commentator and pundit Adam Blythe.
“I don’t ever want to be in that situation”, would be the verdict from me, and I’m sure many other cyclists who’ve dealt with the pain of performing simple acts like you know, sleeping, with road rash on your back, would agree with me.
Lucas Plapp, Team Jayco-AlUla’s young Australian rider, who’s won the last three editions of the national road championships, saw his dreams of a winning on home soil come crashing down as he found himself in a massive pile-up towards the final 10 kilometres of the stage three of Tour Down Under.
As the riders descended to make their way towards the finish at Campbelltown, a number of Astana Qazaqstan riders crashed along with Bahrain Victorious’ Cameron Scott, and the home hero Plapp. However, all the riders managed to get to the finish line except Rudy Mollard from FDJ Groupama, also a victim of the same crash (more on him later).
Team Astana take a big hit with less than 10km to go!@SantosLtd #TourDownUnder
📺 Stream the race now on 7plus: https://t.co/k2Exq3FDwl pic.twitter.com/LLdg8CBKSw
— Santos Tour Down Under 🚴🚴♀️ (@tourdownunder) January 18, 2024
It’s not confirmed if Plapp is in a position to start the next stage tomorrow. A team statement read: “Plapp has been seen by the onsite medical team at the finish line. Many superficial wounds, swollen elbow and ankle. He won’t travel to hospital.
“We will monitor him overnight and make an assessment tomorrow before the stage.”
Blood, sweat & tears. 😢
Cycling is not for the faint hearted.
🇦🇺 #TourDownUnder pic.twitter.com/8O3FB1JclS
— GreenEDGE Cycling (@GreenEDGEteam) January 18, 2024
Cycling, not for the faint hearted — that I agree with.
Plapp, meanwhile, joins our club of pros with nasty road rash, becoming the latest entrant since last year’s intro of Gleb Syritsa who took a tumble at the 4 Jours de Dunkerque last year (still feels weird calling it last year doesn’t it?). I can tell you one club I’m not keen on joining anytime soon!
> Astana pro shows off some of the worst road rash we’ve seen
"Honey, what are you doing in the kitchen with the fryer?" "NOTHING!"
I can’t speak for you all, but that smells like breakfast to me!
Starving, can’t wait for dinner… pic.twitter.com/qOcOkWsxld
— Alan Myles 🇵🇸 (@AlanMyles8) January 17, 2024
"Could have been worse": Groupama-FDJ pro's Tour Down Under comes to a bloody end
In the same crash which saw Luke Plapp’s treacherous road rash and many other Astana riders go down in yesterday’s stage three of the Tour Down Under, another rider was caught in the pile-up in the final 10 kilometres to the finish.
Groupama-FDJ’s French rider Rudy Molard was the only one to didn’t finish the stage, and has now shared this picture on Instagram, letting us know that he’s okay. “Could have been worse,” he wrote. “All good just need time.”
Best wishes and a speedy recovery!
Meanwhile in Finland...
For all the cyclists too afraid to go out in this weather (yes, I’m looking at myself), here’s a snippet from Oulu, Finland, where it’s -28 degrees Celsius, and almost 1,300 people have cycled on just one bike route alone!
As you all know, cycling is a fair weather activity. And we can prove it. Right now it's -28°C in Oulu, and we've had almost 1300 ppl cycle today on this path alone 👌🫡☃️🚲💨#Oulu #MeanwhileInOulu pic.twitter.com/hiS6OHr7Hd
— Pekka Tahkola 🇺🇦 (@pekkatahkola) January 16, 2024
Why don't cyclists use the cycle lane? Because a farmer has dumped hundreds of tonnes of sugar beet in it
Barely three weeks into the new year and we already have a strong contender for the strangest story of the year — a cycle lane in Suffolk blocked by a dumped pile of sugar beet estimated to weigh 700 tonnes.
The crop, which caused confusion and some amusement when it was spotted in the cycleway and bus route on the Old Norwich Road just outside Ipswich on Tuesday, has since been removed.
A farmer later apologised for the beet blockage believed to weigh up to 700 tonnes and said they “certainly didn’t go out of our way to cause havoc” but “it’s kicked off big time”…
"Repair, not replace": EU's Right to Repair legislative extends to include cycles as governing body aims to reduce waste
The European Parliament has included bicycles in its instrumental Right to Repair regulation, which aims to encourage consumers to repair products instead of buying new ones in the hopes of reducing waste.
If you didn’t know, Right to Repair is a legal right which argues that owners of devices and equipment should be able to freely modify and repair products, without needing proprietary tools and support, including when the product is in its guarantee period.
First presented by the EU Commission in March 2023, the scope of the ‘right to repair’ proposal has also been extended to include bicycles, Bike Europe reports. It aims to ensure favourable conditions for an independent repair market and prevent manufacturers from hindering repairs.
According to the European Commission, the premature disposal of viable consumer goods generates 261 million tons of CO2 equivalent emissions, uses 30 million tonnes of resources and results in 35 million tonnes of waste in the EU every year. At the same time, consumers opting for replacement instead of repair lose approximately €12 billion per year.
Bicycles are named in the proposal alongside household products such as washing machines and vacuum cleaners. Producers of these products would be obliged to repair products even if they fall outside of the scope of a legal guarantee. Sellers would also be required to offer free repair within the legal guarantee period, except when it is more expensive than replacement, it is factually impossible or it is inconvenient for the consumer.
On adoption of the proposal, lawmaker René Repasi said: “Today we established direct repair obligations for producers and introduce new incentives for consumers to choose repair. We strengthened the role of independent repairers and place them at the centre of improving repair in Europe.
“Through better access to relevant technical repair information and affordable spare parts for repairers, including promoting 3D printing for parts, more competition will drive down repair costs. We coupled this with an obligation on member states to establish financial incentives to kick-start the repair sector.”
The news comes along at a time right when road.cc reported on the UK’s alleged mechanic shortage, with retailer Go Outdoors deciding to offer a new apprenticeship programme apparently designed to address the “needs of the cycle trade” and the current “national bike mechanic shortage”.
It's gravel time! Check out the best gravel and adventure bikes of 2023, in our latest edition of road.cc Recommends awards
The awards season is still underway, and if your New Year Resolution was to get out and ride more on roads less tarmac-ed, we’ve just got the list for you.
Our expert team has rigorously tested and evaluated a plethora of two-wheeled adventurers to bring you the definitive list of the past year’s top performers. From steel steeds crafted for loaded expeditions to high-tech carbon speed demons designed for podium finishes, our selection spans the diverse landscape of gravel riding…
> road.cc Recommends Bikes of the Year 2023/24: check out the best gravel and adventure bikes
Mick Ives, a bonafide legend of British cycling racing, dies, aged 84
Mick Ives, a legend who took British cycle racing to the next level, dedicating his life to the sport, has died at the age of 84.
Hailing from Coventry, his impact on British cycling has been monumental, not only having raced for 65 years but also having managed a number of sports teams.
Besides road racing, Mick had been also an incredible part of the UK Cyclocross scene. He was a six-time UCI World Masters Cycling Champion, and stepped on the podium a further six times. He also won 85, yes 85, British national cycling champion titles, and won over 1,000 races in his lifetime!
His eight-year stint as a professional on the road was followed by a further eight years as a pro mountain biker, after which Ives moved into management both for trade teams and the national team at mountain biking and cyclo-cross world championships.
Mick managed many teams, including the Eveready road team, the British national MTB team and was also involved at Moore Large, the UK’s first Scott Racing MTB team in 1991.
He also went on to form the Team Jewson MI Racing Team in 1997. The team has won more than 1,000 races all over the UK and mainland Europe.
In 2005 Mick became the first pensioner to complete the Tour de France route riding alone two days ahead of the big race itself. He completed the 3,608 km distance under par, in just 20 days, having ridden two of the stages in one day. He is the only rider in the world known to complete the race route solo!
In 2016, the veteran took his 85th national title, racing for Team Jewson-MI Racing-Polypipe and winning the Veteran Time Trial Association National 25-mile Tandem Championships on Sunday in partnership with 75-year-old Murray Kirton.
The next year, Mick Ives rode the full route of the 100th Giro d’Italia, at age 77. He aimed to raise £60,000 for four charities, including hospices and kidney research centres. Naming the challenge Mick’s Italian Job, he described it as “a daunting task for anyone, but possibly the toughest task I have ever faced during my 60 years of competitive cycling.”
road.cc would like to extend our thoughts and condolences to Mick’s family, friends and loved ones.
"If you want more groups to cycle, you can't just build more cycle paths": Researcher behind study into attitudes towards cycling suggests "range of needs and preferences" must be considered
A researcher from Malmö University who studied attitudes towards cycling has suggested that building more cycle paths is just one part of encouraging more people to cycle and that there is “a range of needs and preferences to consider”.
Zahra Hamidi published her work ‘Examining Inequalities in Cycling Motility: A Pathway Towards Cycling Justice’ with Malmö University Publications, in which she aimed to inform policies to promote cycling by “providing insights into what could make cycling achievable for more diverse social groups through engaging with theoretical perspectives from transport geography, the mobilities paradigm and social justice”.
Why don't cyclists use those cycle lanes? Well... 🦒
Well, the age-old question, answered with a twist. A tall one, that. Points to Twitter user CyclingInASkirt!
Why cyclists don’t use cycle lanes reason 694 – giraffes……! 🤪 https://t.co/MPfhFnBg1P
— CyclingInASkirt (@CyclingInASkirt) January 17, 2024
"F*** these bike lanes, this ain't Coppenhagen": Hip-hop artist Gorilla Nems launches foul-mouthed tirade at New York's cycling infrastructure and "anything pedestrian"
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Well, we all know that you can’t expect celebrities and artists to act like role-models — if anything, we, cycling fans, have seen our fair share of pros we love and adore put on far from the best behaviour — but with social media’s reach and influence, when one acts like a complete *enter expletive*, it doesn’t help.
New York’s underground hip-hop artist Gorilla Nems (I’d say I’m familiar with the name but never got around to listening his music), also known as Travis Doyle, is popular for his trashmouth approach to life and all things in general. But the rapper, probably known the most for the viral ‘Bing Bong’ trend on TikTok and Instagram, has gone after bike lanes. And worst of all, asking his viewers and fans to break rules on the road.
On the regular series called ‘Subway Takes’ hosted by Kareem Rehma, Nems goes deep, way deep into his distaste for the bike lanes, which he believes are responsible for ruining New York.
“Bring it back to the old New York, man. F*** these bike lanes. F***, f*** f****** anything pedestrian, you know what I’m saying?”
Kareem Rehma responds, “Havoc in the streets?”, to which Nems replies: “Yeah who gives a f***. Ride like they used to bro. This ain’t Copenhagen… You don’t remember when…?”
Umm, no, I don’t remember when what? Host Rehma asks the same question, but Nems maybe doesn’t remember himself. But he continues anyway: “Don’t wait for the walk signs. That’s how we know you’re not from New York, because real New Yorkers don’t wait. We look both ways, like common sense tells you to.”
His long rant seems to meander to a lot of other different places, like suggesting viewers to not be courteous, break rules (“hop the turnstile”), and stop being, ahem, “p**** all your life”.
Umm, okay, sure Nems. Because who else would we turn to for safe road behaviour if you not you?
Has the move to full internal cable routing on road bikes been worth it?
Now, I don’t know if this is going to prove controversial with you lot or not, but if you ask me, I think it’s a no-brainer isn’t it? Internal cabling is cleaner, better protected, apparently more aero, and did I say, just look more tidy?
But that’s of course my opinion as a cyclist. I presume internal cables on a bike would be a mechanic’s worst nightmare and it also hides them from you know, the usual checks you, as a cyclist can give them, to make sure everything’s in tip-top condition.
So, to put the question to bed once and for all, we went to industry experts, from aerodynamicists to framebuilders and WorldTour mechanics…
Ladies and gentlemen, brace yourselves... you are about to experience Arnauld de Lie this spring
While we are at marvelling at cycling superstars born in the noughties (gosh, they are younger than even me!) such as the 20-year-old Isaac Del Toro who lit up the race and took on the entire front of the peloton all by himself with a flamboyant, mercurial attack in the second stage of Tour Down Under, here’s another star who’s more than ready to announce himself at the biggest stage this year: Lotto-Dstny’s Belgian talent, Arnauld De Lie.
“Explosion” is right👇
Arnaud De Lie’s workout today
Good gracious – this guy is such an animal (can’t wait to see him flying this spring)
The man did 4 x 30 second intervals at…
~1,200 watts each!!!
1,264 / 1,292 / 1,206 / 1,161w for each of the four 30 sec explosions pic.twitter.com/qyzYfpsrrt
— Atlanta Rouleur Collection (@AtlantaRouleur) January 18, 2024
"We would recommend cycling to our patients, but don't because it is simply not safe or pleasant enough": Medics join cyclists to call for action on dangerous junctions
Medical staff in north Essex have joined forces with Colchester Cycling Campaign and written to the cabinet member for highways at Essex county council, Tom Cunningham, to ask him to bring the issue of dangerous junctions to the top of his to-do list.
Health professionals recommend that people take more exercise and cycling is a cheap, efficient and low-impact way to become more active and incorporate all-round, high-quality exercise into daily life. They argued that inactivity is responsible for one in six UK deaths (equal to smoking) and is estimated to cost the UK £7.4 billion a year (including £0.9 billion to the NHS alone).
They said that some of Colchester’s junctions present an unacceptable level of risk to people who would otherwise cycle for health reasons. Dr Paul Byrne, a consultant rheumatologist who works in Colchester and Clacton, said: “It is unacceptable that so many of Colchester’s junctions are far too dangerous for cyclists. Essex County Council must improve these urgently.
“Knowing the profound mental and physical benefits of exercise, we would recommend cycling and walking to all of our patients, but don’t because it is simply not safe or pleasant enough. The infrastructure needs to encourage exercise not discourage it. People should not have to risk being maimed or killed when trying to improve their fitness.”
Stuart Johnson, the chairman of Colchester Cycling Campaign said: “We have examined the statistics for injuries to cycle riders and have identified the worst junctions for cyclists. Essex county council must take action to improve these junctions before more people are injured or killed.
“The Safer Essex Roads Partnership has unveiled Vision Zero – the aim of which is to eliminate death and serious injury caused by road collisions in the county by 2040. Essex County Council is a partner in that strategy. We have only 16 years left to reach that target and we need to be taking serious action now.”
Is there finally some good news? Bike industry "on the road to recovery", new research suggests
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After a few incredibly challenging years in the bike industry things are predicted to become a bit brighter in 2024, new research suggesting new bike sales could grow by 12 per cent with “easing inflation and wage growth helping to improve consumer confidence” and cycling for transport seen as an effective means to “reduce spending on petrol and public transport”.
Read more: > Bike industry “on the road to recovery”, new research suggests
Cyclist gets stick for riding on the pavement — after posting about a truck illegally parked on the bike lane to unload beer kegs
As someone who makes a lot of stuff up in his head, there are moments when even I’m forced to go, “Nope, you can’t make this stuff up”.
A cyclist and active travel campaigner, with the Twitter account “Leeds Cyclist” had shared a video captioned “Reason 617184 why cyclists don’t (can’t) use the cycle lane”, with a lorry blocking the two-way bike route at New Briggate, Leeds, and people hauling down kegs of beer.
Reason 617184 why cyclists don’t (can’t) use the cycle lane… pic.twitter.com/oXhWR5oSYF
— TheLeedsCyclist (@TheLeedsCyclist) January 11, 2024
As absurd as it may sound, seems like a pretty routine occurrence here, doesn’t it? And once again, as absurd it may sound, we all know that posting anything like this instantly brings forth the anti-cycling brigade, resorting to name-calling and accusations of “Oh, you can’t deal with the slightest inconvenience, can you?!”.
But the cyclist was probably not anticipating being called a “lawbreaker”. With the lane being a protected (I didn’t write segregated, cheers road.cc reader mattw) one, the cyclist couldn’t, and frankly shouldn’t, have gone on to the road. So instead he decided to take a detour through the fairly-empty pavement, and rejoin safely after passing the truck.
> My Guinness! Truck driver smashes down cycle lane wands, cuts across and parks on the pavement
But cue, people accusing him of breaking the law for cycling on the pavement! “But absolutely no reason why you should cycle on a pavement”, “And yet you illegally went on a pavement”, “But it’s ok for you to cycle on the pavement. Another mr entitled who thinks the world revolves around him”… so on and so forth.
And if you were asking, the cyclist also said that there two designated loading bays within approximately 100 metres from where lorry was illegally parked.
Two designated loading bays (red circles) within max 100m of the illegally parked lorry. pic.twitter.com/piekrsWFvL
— TheLeedsCyclist (@TheLeedsCyclist) January 11, 2024
What do you think, would you rather get off your bike, hop on the pavement, and get on it again? Or is TheLeedsCyclist in the right and did nothing wrong? Let us know in the comments!
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Latest Comments
You missed out DEI...
I don't know why people keep pushing this conspiracy theory. 1x is popular with consumers, including me. I live in Berkshire and have had a 1x gravel bike for 9 years and works never go beck to 2x For my road bike I still have 2x but on faster group rides I've noticed I barely touch the smaller ring. For my next road bike therefore I am seriously considering a 1x. That said, if I lived in Majorca, Alpes Provence etc 2x def makes more sense on the mountains we don't have in the UK.
@Rendel Harris oops, missed that. I wonder how comprehensive the list of 42 is. It's still going to be really hard to enforce.
Or maybe he just said he wasn't using it and the judge believed him.
It's targeted action against specific retailers - they may well only be selling complete machines, rather than conversion kits. Of course that wouldn't prevent them coming back later and using further orders against those selling kits.
The judge's comments say there was no phone use... I don't know how the process works for checking if there was phone use after a collision. Maybe he has two and the police only checked one?
@andystow The whole initiative is aimed at online retailers though, isn't it, so no harder to police those selling illegal conversion kits than those selling complete bikes, one would have thought.
@Smoggysteve It needn't be the case at all that all arms of the company will fold if there's no overall buyer, and I'm sure it won't be. The creditors will most likely split the company assets up to maximize returns; some, like sadly Raleigh, might well die but a standalone popular brand with three factories making 90,000 bikes a year and a WT supply contract is unlikely not to attract a buyer.
Someone I met at a walking, wheeling and cycling conference said the way to sell active travel to Tory and Reform types is to talk about dog walking. Then they suddenly get its importance.
@mitsky most of those are probably bought online, so that will be tough to do anything about.
19 thoughts on “Cyclist gets stick for riding on pavement, but bike lane is blocked by beer lorry; Rapper Gorilla Nems launches foul-mouthed bike lane tirade; Luke Plapp’s nasty road rash from Tour Down Under; Cycling legend Mick Ives dies aged 84 + more on the live blog”
As absurd as it may sound,
As absurd as it may sound, seems like a pretty routine occurrence here, doesn’t it? And once again, as absurd it may sound, we all know that posting anything like this instantly brings forth the anti-cycling brigade, resorting to name-calling and accusations of “Oh, you can’t deal with the slightest inconvenience, can you?!”.
Well, deal with the inconvenience of not getting past me and waiting for a safe spot, then!
Judging by the number of
Judging by the number of drivers I’ve filmed driving on the pavement to avoid (completely legal) obstacles, not sure they’re all that good at dealing with minor inconvenience either!
What was preventing the
What was preventing the cyclist from dismounting and walking on that section of pavement?
(Two wrongs don’t make a right.)
The Home Office guidance,
The Home Office guidance, which I believe hasn’t been rescinded and was supported by the National Police Officers’ Council and the Department for Transport, is that it is acceptable for cyclists to ride on the pavement if they are “…responsible cyclists who sometimes feel obliged to use the pavement out of fear of traffic and who show consideration to other pavement users when doing so.” Given that the cyclist would’ve had to get over the kerb of the protected lane, cross two lanes of traffic, ride twenty yards and then cross two lanes of traffic and get over the kerb again, it seems quite reasonable that they wouldn’t want to expose themselves to the traffic there, and they certainly didn’t inconvenience, hamper or endanger the single pedestrian who was on the pavement.
Imagine a different scenario where a lorry was blocking a narrow street and there were half a dozen motorists who could get past by putting one wheel up on the pavement: if there were no pedestrians present, would it be reasonable to say that all the cars should reverse back down the street and go round the block, or would it be okay to use a bit of pragmatism and common sense?
I would have slowed down a
I would have slowed down a touch though.
Rendel Harris wrote:
I think it’s safe to say that in such a case, drivers would be two wheels up on the pavement whether or not there were pedestrians present. Considering the frequency I have had drivers moving directly towards me forcing me to step aside, when they want to park on the pavement.
Rendel Harris wrote:
What would prevent them from getting out of the car and pushing their car on that section
I think the police had
I think the police had something to say about it in my case:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qO2FIe5poE
And yes, annoying as the waste collection lorry was in the way and its driver could have potentially parked out of the way, it doesn’t excuse the multiple drivers from going onto the narrow pavement when parents with children are walking to school.
(Not sure what happened to the vehicle reg after this was dealt with…)
mitsky wrote:
Of course it doesn’t, you’ll note in my imaginary scenario I did say “if there were no pedestrians present.”
My apologies.
My apologies.
My “it doesn’t excuse the multiple drivers from going onto the narrow pavement when parents with children are walking to school.” was specific to the incident in my clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qO2FIe5poE
Rendel Harris wrote:
1) You didn’t answer my question.
2) Guidance does not override law.
Benthic wrote:
I would answer your question with another question, rather than “what was preventing the cyclist getting off and walking” I would ask the question “what was preventing the cyclist riding on the pavement for a short distance”, the answer being nothing as there was a single pedestrian whom the cyclist passed with plenty of room and didn’t impede in any way.
No, you’re right, guidance does not override law, but it is there to provide guidance (clue’s in the name) as to how the law should be interpreted and in this instance I think it’s perfectly clear that the Home Office guidance indicates that it is acceptable for the cyclist to use the pavement.
If you are going to post on
If you are going to post on twitter that would have been best !
(also the same with using a camera – you end up being very law abiding if you want to submit footage).
Benthic wrote:
I got off and walked a short distance on the pavement yesterday as a water leak had frozen in the road. Unfortunately two cars were parked side by side outside a gym completely blocking the pavement.
Anyway, on a completely different subject, I hope broken mirrors are cheap to replace.
Another why don’t cyclists
Another why don’t cyclists use cycle lanes from Facebook this morning. Stupidly I looked at some of the comments ?
I assume he is delivering the
I assume he is delivering the car behind.
That road is 3 vehicles wide by the look of it, so no reason whatsoever other than not giving a damn about anyone else for him to be parked on the cycleway blocking visibility at the junction.
Needs an ASBO.
Another drug-driver…
Another drug-driver…
https://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/news/thames-valley/news/2024/january/15-01-2024/appeal-for-witnesses-to-fatal-road-traffic-collision–newport-pagnell/
Re parking in bike lanes,
Re parking in bike lanes, definitely think we need a just a minute campaign in this country.
I love where the Police stop listen to the protesters and drive of. https://youtu.be/kDboYpYvT2o?feature=shared
The cyclist shouldn’t have
The cyclist shouldn’t have been cycling on the footpath. The fact that someone had parked his lorry on the cycle lane doesn’t change that. That said, if it wasn’t possible to cycle on the road and I would probably have ridden on the footpath too, but I would have been extremely cautious (i.e. walking speed) if there had been peds around.