GB News presenter Alastair Stewart schooled over two abreast preaching; Lotto-Soudal pro Jasper De Buyst hit by driver; Tom Pidcock marks UK return at mega Dales sportive; Germans smash team pursuit world record; Marginal gains + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
GB News presenter Alastair Stewart schooled over two abreast preaching
I’d also like to know if cyclists are supposed to stick to a maximum two-abreast, especially on narrow country roads…. https://t.co/NRzgrHhl2E
— Alastair Stewart (@AlStewartOBE) August 1, 2021
Alastair Stewart’s blocked list was the place to be this weekend. The GB News presenter wasn’t too pleased by the reaction to his enquiry about cyclists riding two abreast…possibly because most of it centred on his 2003 conviction for drink driving.
I see they let you back on the roads in charge of a car again.https://t.co/grXcaIlzza
— Jo Rigby (@Jo_Earlsfield) August 1, 2021
No, we’re not. And as a camera cyclist, one of tens of thousands, I’d suggest you drive VERY CAREFULLY around cyclists. My camera has had around 15 drivers banned for 6mnths. Rather less than your 23 month ban for drink driving eh? My father was killed by a drink driver like you.
— CyclingMikey tired of road crime. 🇪🇺🇳🇱🇿🇼 (@MikeyCycling) August 1, 2021
Labour councillor Jo Rigby was one of the many to be purged from Stewart’s page. Wait until the presenter hears about Friday’s news of the updated Highway Code changes giving cyclists priority at junctions when riding straight ahead…
Here’s some more of the reaction…
No, there is no such legal or moral requirement. What’s the prescribed BAC limit when driving a mechanically propelled vehicle on any highway and any other road that is accessible to the public? pic.twitter.com/JB5wttyI3U
— Black Country Ste (@CCSteV) August 1, 2021
Alistair Stewart gas lighting cyclists & getting mardy when you remind him that his drink driving ban lost him all road preaching privileges. pic.twitter.com/01sLhxUing
— Jo Rigby (@Jo_Earlsfield) August 1, 2021
Olympic track cycling starts with a bang: German women smash team pursuit world record
“Germany haven’t just broken the world record, they’ve annihilated it.”
History for Germany’s women’s team pursuit cyclists! 🇩🇪
Watch on @BBCOne and online https://t.co/Onici840T3 #bbcolympics #tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/RUFc4StHcy
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 2, 2021
The real Olympic cycling is underway…The Germans left their mark on the boards this morning with a stunning world record in the women’s team pursuit. What a start!
Team pursuit round-up: GB women qualify second fastest as Denmark's men set Olympic record
A time of 3:47:507 for the men means they qualify currently in 4th place!
Smashing it 🚀#TeamGB #Tokyo2020
📸 @swpixtweets pic.twitter.com/rCLNtcRyKI— British Cycling (@BritishCycling) August 2, 2021
In the women’s team pursuit, Team GB will face the USA after qualifying with second fastest time. The star-studded team of Laura Kenny, Katie Archibald, Elinor Barker and Josie Knight clocked the second fastest time in history. It sets up a clash with Stars and Stripes sensation Chloe Dygert tomorrow. Unfortunately for the Brits, the Germans went 1.7 seconds faster than the world record Archibald, Kenny and Barker set in Rio and are now strong favourites to win gold.
On the men’s side of things, Ed Clancy, Ethan Hayter, Ethan Vernon and Ollie Wood went fast enough for a national record, but will have to wait to see if they are still racing for a medal. The Australian team will be allowed another run after Alexander Porter crashed heavily when his stem snapped. If the Aussies go faster than GB, the Brits will be demoted down to fifth place and out of the medal hunt. Italy, powered by Filippo Ganna’s engine, set an Olympic record, before world record holders Denmark broke another record, clocking a new benchmark time of 3:45.895.
Team GB qualify fourth fastest and are through to the men's team pursuit semi-finals
Australia’s re-run places them in 5th position, meaning #TeamGB’s 4th place in qualifying doesn’t change. #Tokyo2020
📸 @swpixtweets pic.twitter.com/273KIK4gyK— British Cycling (@BritishCycling) August 2, 2021
Alexander Porter and the rest of the Aussies bravely got back on the boards for a second attempt, but having already pushed five tough laps first time around, it was always going to be a tough ask. It means GB go through to tomorrow’s semi-final and take on the fastest team from the qualifying round – world and Olympic record holders, Denmark. No pressure.
New Zealand qualify third fastest and face the unenviable prospect of challenging Filippo Ganna’s imperious Italians. The semi-finals are tomorrow, with the winners going ahead to Wednesday’s final. How many new world records will we have by then? I say two…
Want to see what courage looks like? 💛💚💪
Aussie Alex Porter’s handlebars snapped in the men’s team pursuit, and he went face first into the velodrome floor.
20 minutes later, he was back on the bike, ready to ride for the country.
Incredible. #Tokyo2020
📸 – Channel 7 pic.twitter.com/FO160TX0hv
— ABC SPORT (@abcsport) August 2, 2021
Track cycling fever + which pro team could name the best team pursuit line up?
Bloody love the Team Pursuit!
— Geraint Thomas (@GeraintThomas86) August 2, 2021
G’s tweet has got me thinking. Which pro team would have the best team pursuit squad? Ineos Grenadiers’ problem might be narrowing it down to four from: Filippo Ganna, Rohan Dennis, Geraint Thomas, Owain Doull and Ethan Hayter. Team BikeExchange’s Aussies would give it a decent go too: Michael Hepburn, Callum Scotson and Alexander Edmondson all have an Olympic silver from Rio. Chuck Luke Durbridge’s engine into the mix and I think we’ve got a decent pro team pursuit final…
Marginal gains
Denmark using plasters to get around the sock rule. Marginal 👌🏼 pic.twitter.com/14kxBkeCx1
— Jim Hancox (@Jimhancox1) August 2, 2021
This is the level of detail Team GB’s men’s team pursuit squad is up against…The Danes may have now stripped GB of the marginal gains crown. Just take a look at this sock length extending plaster providing the world record holders with a touch of extra aero…
Brompton opens new flagship store in Covent Garden
Folding bike specialist Brompton has opened a new expanded flagship store in London’s Covent Garden. The UK’s largest bicycle manufacturer says it is looking forward to welcoming customers to its new hub, set over two floors, with the full range of bikes, luggage, clothing, accessories, as well as a dedicated Brompton workshop for servicing and repairs. To man the site, Brompton is hiring 17 members of staff and will soon offer workshop bike maintenance sessions too.
Danish fighting talk: Rasmus Pedersen says British era of dominance is over
Every rider with the same injury on both legs requiring ‘medical tape’ down the front of their legs, coincidently exactly where it would be aerodynamically advantageous 🤔🤔🤔 https://t.co/l4mFuDFsww
— Chris Boardman (@Chris_Boardman) August 2, 2021
Chris Boardman isn’t convinced…Danish world champ Rasmus Pedersen had some pre-competition fighting talk for the Brits today, saying the all-conquering track team had been “caught”. Talking to France 24, Pedersen said: “They had a big leap for a while with their equipment but everyone has caught up with that now.
“That makes the physical side more prominent and I think GB has lacked a bit of that in their training, maybe they’ve slipped a bit because they’ve always been the best. But they still have a strong team. If you look back to Rio, the World Championships before was won by Australia and when it came to the Olympics, GB smashed everyone.”
The Alastair Stewart blocked club continues to grow
— London Cycling Campaign (@London_Cycling) August 2, 2021
London Cycling Campaign is the latest victim of Alastair Stewart’s bountiful block button…
I wonder if Surrey Roads Policing Unit are next up?
In short, no. Vulnerable road users, like horse riders and cyclists are actively encouraged to take the middle of the lane when on narrow roads. It helps stop bad drivers trying to attempt dangerous overtakes. Good drivers will be able to plan a safe overtake easily. pic.twitter.com/fGEyca8Jao
— Roads Policing Unit (RPU) – Surrey Police – UK (@SurreyRoadCops) August 2, 2021
It’s not the first time the traffic cops have been on fine form. Back in June the account admin slid into the DMs of one angry driver to explain why cyclists might ride in the middle of the road…
While in 2017, the admin delivered a cool dose of reality, blasting one Twitter user as “too childish to drive” after one foul-mouthed rant…
Lotto-Soudal pro Jasper De Buyst hit by a driver while training in Andorra
Got hit by a car riding on the opposite side of the road while he was passing 2 cyclists on their ascent of coll de rabassa in this corner, i was descending and got hit by the car.I am looking for the 2 cyclist who were going up the climb. So if somebody can help finding them?! pic.twitter.com/zgbBf18xYM
— Jasper De Buyst (@JasperDeBuyst) July 30, 2021
Lotto-Soudal’s Belgian leadout man, Jasper De Buyst, has suffered broken ribs after being hit by a driver while training in Andorra. De Buyst was descending Coll de la Rabassa when a driver, overtaking two riders ascending the climb, struck him. The 27-year-old is now appealing for help tracking down the cyclists to help with the insurance report.
He wrote on Twitter: “To be clear the car driver didn’t leave me there and did help me but it was important to find the two cyclists for the police and insurance report.”
Some social media sleuthing is underway, with helpful fans analysing Strava leaderboards for the climb, looking for two riders with similar ascent times and checking ride ‘Flybys’.
De Buyst is a key part of Caleb Ewan’s Lotto-Soudal leadout train, but was forced to abandon the Tour de France on stage nine to Tignes. It appears likely he will now also miss the Vuelta a España because of his injuries.
Ribble expanding with new Nottingham showroom
Just like Brompton this morning, Ribble is expanding. The brand has opened its new showroom in Nottingham to add to its flagship store in Clitheroe, and there are more to come…The next will be opened in Bristol in September and others are expected to follow over the next 18 months.
Thread: Ever wondered how the peloton could look like in a parallel universe? AG2R-Nutella and Ineos PS5s
The one with the delivery guy@TeamEmiratesUAE x @UberEats pic.twitter.com/R8C2cN9mNR
— stycle_design (@stycle_design) August 1, 2021
It says a lot that almost every single one of these concept designs are an improvement on the current kits…I’d list my favourites, but I think they all are. If you put a gun to my head, I’d go for top three: AG2R Nutella because well, it’s Nutella. Qhubeka Applessos and U(AE)ber Eats…Who wouldn’t want to see Tadej Pogacar zooming around town on his yellow Colnago for a cheap food delivery ad? Enjoy.
The one with the screenscaver@QhubekaAssos x @Apple pic.twitter.com/0OAbdqIruA
— stycle_design (@stycle_design) August 1, 2021
The one with the spoon and the jar@AG2RCITROENTEAM x @NutellaGlobal pic.twitter.com/1JHBGt2QqF
— stycle_design (@stycle_design) August 1, 2021
In at the deep end
Pretty cool experience last night racing with my new mate Pogacar 😁😁@DaveRaynerFund @PedalPotential @AVC_Aix pic.twitter.com/97NI7m3SQ9
— George Mills-Keeling 🇬🇧🇪🇺 (@keeling_mills) August 2, 2021
19-year-old George found himself with a tough gig over in France yesterday…
Tom Pidcock marks return with 120 miles in the Yorkshire Dales
With an Olympic gold medal in the bank, you might expect young Tom Pidcock to be taking his foot off the gas for a minute. But with his first Grand Tour, the Vuelta a España, two weeks away, the 22-year-old is kicking on. That meant marking his return to the UK with a mega spin in the Dales at his very own sportive – the Tom Pidcock Gran Fondo.
Pidcock wasn’t hanging around either, no leisurely social spinning here. GB’s mountain bike hero pushed on at an average speed of just over 29km/h for the full 120 miles. And, being Yorkshire, there was 2,800m of climbing to be done too. Anyone here ride the Pidcock Gran Fondo? Chapeau if you did, it looks a killer…
Your Monday dose of doggo
Home sweet home after almost 6 weeks. What a wild trip that was. pic.twitter.com/AarBXmubbh
— Simon Geschke (@simongeschke) August 2, 2021
It’s Monday, you deserve it, here’s Simon Geschke’s adorable welcome home from Tokyo. If anybody needed cheering up, it’s probably the Cofidis rider. Geschke tested positive for Covid before the road race so couldn’t take part and instead spent his Olympic experience quarantined in a hotel room…
2 August 2021, 08:06
The velodrome is open for business...check out Team GB's speed machine
How the new Hope/Lotus British Cycling Olympic track bike was designed and made for Team GB riders
We find out what the stunning new British Cycling Olympic track bike is all about with a visit to Hope Technology where it was made
2 August 2021, 08:06
2 August 2021, 08:06
2 August 2021, 08:06
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Latest Comments
@Rendel Harris Agree, I am baffled that the 84 year old who is now banned from driving for year can then start driving again without a retest. We should be re-tested regularly.
@mitsky Just checking the figures and apparently the 2026 average cost is £58,000 per year per prisoner; worth noting that is only the direct cost, you then have to factor in ten years of lost tax income from the prisoner, ten years that the prisoner is making no contribution to society as a worker or as a consumer, plus the fact that if they were the primary breadwinner very likely the costs will include benefits for their family as well. None of which should be a reason for keeping violent recidivists out of prison of course, nor drug/drink drivers who kill, but it is a factor worth considering for lower-level offences.
@Surreyrider I ride in Surrey a fair bit and absolutely many do look like that but the point is they all *think* they're driving perfectly reasonably (as one discovers when remonstrating with someone who's skimmed one by 30cm, "I gave you masses of room") so deterrent penalties have little effect. That's why we need to strike at the root cause and actually train drivers properly and test them stringently (and more than once over the course of a potential 70+ years of driving, it's absolutely absurd that competence and knowledge in what for most people is the activity in their life that will run the biggest risk of killing people you never have to have your qualifications renewed).
@mitsky Imprisonment currently costs over £50k p.a. per prisoner and obviously that will rise over the course of a ten-year stretch with inflation. Regarding culpability and mitigating sentences etc, of course I'm not against condign punishment for drivers who kill (and cyclists on the tiny, tiny handful of occasions when this happens), including prison as appropriate; I was objecting to the ridiculous and oft-repeated demand of MM that drivers who kill cyclists must get ten years, "no excuses, no exceptions".
Hey, but their wool blend cycling adjacent t-shirts are/were fantastic.
@Surreyrider Still the boss. Ride one, you'll see why
@Smoggysteve "Most would happily ride on the roads and be treated with respect by drivers". But people aren't - and as far as I can see they won't be. Not until there is a lot less driving and it's slower around cyclists, and far more people driving have "skin in the game" eg. they sometimes cycle and their friends and family do also. That's what leads to the model - which is perhaps most advanced in NL - where cycling, walking and driving are all seen as separate normal transport modes. Their needs, vulnerabilities and any dangers to others are considered. And *that* leads to "mix / share when possible, separate when necessary". But "possible" is "where your 10-year old would be safe to cycle unsupervised" - so very few motor vehicles, going slow! And AFAICS everybody - even "existing cyclists" - is happy with the result. (I dunno about a few pro cyclists - but don't they tend to have training camps in different counties anyway?)
@quiff as an Edinburgh resident I can confidently say he's speaking without moving his lips in one sense: - while as I noted in a separate comment there *is* now some real separated cycle infra, all the examples i can think of have *at least as much space* for pedestrians. The rest of the "cycle infra" is essentially similar to the situation in the rest of the UK: eg. bus lanes*, cycle lanes and shared use paths (eg. "build" infra by sticking up a sign). Edinburgh is one of the places with a moderately extensive network of former railways which have been converted to "shared use" paths (completely motor traffic few). However though shared they are not narrow by UK standards. And this is all effectively a "free extra" for all non- motorised users, not like the "sign a cycle path" where pedestrians do lose space. I think this all comes from the "popular understanding" of cycling in which ultimately cyclists are the "other". They don't fit "motor vehicle" or "pedestrian" (including wheelchairs on the very rare occasions people think about that). Thus "cyclists are cheating" in multiple ways! They shouldn't get their own space as "there aren't enough" of them. And "they can just use the road / path". But being able to *choose* "on the road" or "on the footway" (shared use path) is clearly unfair - nobody else gets to do that! BUT of course even if they did pick just one of road OR pedestrian space it's still not fair anyway because they're "too slow" for the road (don't pay "road tax" etc...) and "far too fast" for pedestrians... * Though some existing cyclists may appreciate them when there are few buses, buses and bikes are a very poor mix for several reasons.
Whilst a shame for any employees, their bib shorts had the worst chamois pad I’d ever encountered, utter waste of my money. Even though they were Strava challenge discount purchases, still a waste of money.
Thanks, just going to have to suck it up. Got next week off and will take the easy, if expensive option...
37 thoughts on “GB News presenter Alastair Stewart schooled over two abreast preaching; Lotto-Soudal pro Jasper De Buyst hit by driver; Tom Pidcock marks UK return at mega Dales sportive; Germans smash team pursuit world record; Marginal gains + more on the live blog”
Hey Road.cc, has be blocked
Hey Road.cc, has be blocked you guys on twitter yet ? If not, I’m sure he will soon.
If you haven’t been blocked
If you haven’t been blocked by @AlStewartOBE then your tweet didn’t happen
@road.cc
@road.cc
You forgot to hightlight the bits about him being done for drink driving….
Edit: but Twitter clearly didn’t. Alistair’s block button must be worn out by now…..
Can’t understand why he didn
Can’t understand why he didn’t simply delete the tweet, he must know it’s not in his best interest to leave it up.
StuInNorway wrote:
He’s getting an utter pasting, virtually no supporting tweets. I don’t get it either
GBNews now mate. Can’t be
GBNews now mate. Can’t be seen to be making any consideration to common good otherwise they get sacked over not maintaining their standards. I mean look at the difference between the person who took a knee in support of the black footballers and then the person who stated “they will never take a knee for anyone”. Both are contravening he supposed “Standards” of not taking a side, yet one is let go.
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:
I thought the entire point of GBNews is that they are one-sided and biased?
And to address why he’s left the tweet up – it’s free publicity.
Not sure how this is good
Not sure how this is good publicity despite the addage.
I said ‘free’, not ‘good’.
I said ‘free’, not ‘good’.
I’d guess that GBNews target audience are probably anti-cyclist enough that they don’t care about some previous ‘technicality’ that an upstanding, honest driver may have been caught out on.
You forgot ‘hardworking’.
You forgot ‘hardworking’.
hirsute wrote:
Not to mention “hard-pressed”
Was top lawyer Nick Freeman
Was top lawyer Nick Freeman unavailable to him? Or was there no loophole wide enough?
Captain Badger wrote:
And tax-paying.
hirsute wrote:
And you forgot that he was at the time momentarily distracted from not being 3x the legal drink limit while driving.
GMBasix wrote:
A “moment of madness”
Careful now, he will block
Careful now, he will block you on twitter !
I agree they are. However
I agree they are. However they try to give an impression that they are middle of the road, for free speech. Hence the mealy mouthed “we aren’t against anti racism and our presenters can do what we want but our impartiality standards were breached” because their own followers, who supposedly hate cancel culture, were boycotting them.
From their Wikipedia page:
From their Wikipedia page: BBC media editor Amol Rajan said that “it is not the first channel to be set up in Britain with a strong worldview… But GB News is the first to be set up with an explicit political leaning”.
So anohter right wing drunk
So anohter right wing drunk driver having ago at cyclists as a concern or danger to the roads. Just a shame the man sacked for percieved racism in his tweets decided to go back onto Twitter to pollute it once again.
That’s the problem with
That’s the problem with celebrity culture. Just because someone is well known for being good at a particular job doesn’t mean that their opinion in other fields is of any interest, yet social media will always amplify ‘famous’ people due to human nature.
He’d be far better off going on a crusade against drink-driving as he has some insight into the causes and can declare how reformed and penitent he’s become. Instead, he comes across as a selfish, entitled prick.
hawkinspeter wrote:
— hawkinspeterBecause he is.
Like many in our geat country
Like many in our geat country Alaistair likes to make up his own rules and doesn’t neccessarily believe that those of society a meant for him. From family experience we voted him a cock in 1982 and he has only made it worse since.
People are concentrating on
People are concentrating on Stewart, but ignoring the initial twitter that started it. Lucrezia Millarini happens to be an ITN news journalist who decided to post the dogwhistle question instead of, I don’t know, investigating it like a Journalist should to supply facts.
And within that tweet, one of the top reply nests to a similar “single file” post contains this unironic gem of a Law Breaker. (Her bio contains atheist, fair enough, but then to that is added IslamDenier which seems targetted and superfluous as she already described herself as that with Atheist. )
“3h
I’m now a cyclist (mountain bike, just for fun) but being a driver first I am very aware of people using the road, I try to go on the pavement if possible so as not to hold traffic up and also my safety is my responsibility”
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:
So she is not merely admitting breaking the law by choosing to ride on the pavement, she implicitly says that she does to to stay safe? Presumably unaware that the things that make riding on the roads less safe than it should be are all those drivers in motor vehicles who can’t obey the law either!
How utterly depressing this
How utterly depressing this ongoing war against cycling is. You come to expect it from tired, old, convicted drunk driving, has-beens like Alastair Stewart, but when the likes of Lucrezia Millarini join in, I just despair. As a prolific news journalist she knows only too well how utterly wrong and abhorrent it is to characterise any particular group based on stereotypical tropes. Were she to express her views against any group because of their race, religion or gender she would be fired. Yet here she is, on her public Twitter account fueling hatred towards a group of people that happen to enjoy cycling. I can only imagine her outrage and reaction were any of us to characterise all women drivers or all female TV presenters because of a behaviour we see in a handful of them!
mpdouglas wrote:
— mpdouglasYes, but since they can’t attack those groups, the main out group left is cyclists. It demonstrates the intolerant attitude and complete lack of empathy shown by racists, sexists and religious bigots. We’re just an easy target for these sad excuses for human beings who have to hate someone.
I’m sure she would agree that
I’m sure she would agree that all bigotry is based on ignorance.
I would argue no. Maybe in
I would argue no. Maybe in older days when people were less travelled and information was not easy to find. But now it is a concious choice for lots of well educated people.
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:
An interesting philosophical point; does wilful ignorance count as bigotry?
I’m not sure that travel and information are any competition for human bias and prejudice; there are none so blind as those who will not see.
This would be my take on this
This would be my take on this. So much anti cycling rhetoric is demonstrably wrong when checked against Google.
Last year, I spent some time seeking out black Voices on line to educate myself. It’s obvious that many didn’t.
Historically, most people got their ‘facts’ from the msm, I think many still do. In the world of click bate they have become more inflammatory, but people want a distilled truth rather than a nuanced argument that allows them to draw their own conclusions.
“Alistair Stewart & Friends”
“Alistair Stewart & Friends” Really?
As soon as I saw that tape on
As soon as I saw that tape on those Danish shins I instantly saw that it was massively beneficial aero device, most likely to provide a “trip” for turbluent flow and boundary layer improvement each side of the lower limbs.
Rather surprised and disappointed they are allowed to do that!
ChrisB200SX wrote:
Couldn’t they have just shaved a strip down their shin and left the rest of the leg hairy, or vice versa?
PRSboy wrote:
Maybe they just forgot to yank the tape off?
Let’s hope all the other
Let’s hope all the other countries have the same tape applied for the next round. We’ll see what the IOC does then.
I miss ‘normal’ bike shops.
I miss ‘normal’ bike shops. When you could walk in and find a whole different range of bikes, accessories, and clothing by a whole range of different manufacturers and – you know – browse…
Evans has gone all SportsDirect and only stocks weird zombie brands.
And the rest of the bike stores either have practically no stock (“we can order it in” “yup – so can I”) or are dedicated single brand Trek / Brompton / Ribble / Giant stores.
I *LOVED* the look of the
I *LOVED* the look of the nutella Jersey HAHAHA. I would love one!