The next Tadej Pogačar? 15-year-old boy smashes 340km at 27km/h; Should you use WD-40 on your chain?; Aero bars; You can’t park there, Sir; Mur de Huy hell; Commute checklist; “A cycling city” + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
The next Tadej Pogačar? 15-year-old boy from Northampton smashes 340km at 27km/h
What were you doing at 15? Actually, probably best you don’t answer that one… Whatever the answer, it’s almost certainly not: “Yeah, I was just casually knocking out 340km rides with 2,800m of elevation in under 12 and a half hours. Average speed? Think that was 27.3km/h, but I’d have to check, pal…”
We’re pretty baffled/impressed/stunned by this monster day out by 15-year-old Alec Perry. I’ll say that again…15 years old…
Twitter, do your thing… my 15 year old has spent the day on his bike. He can’t be the only bike obsessed teenager out there! 211 miles in one ride, he is desperate to be in #TdF. Please RT – see if we can pair them up! #cycling @UKCycleChat @GarminUK @steve_abraham74 @SirWiggo pic.twitter.com/OV7KchBBWt
— Leah Hunting (@whoopydeedoo) April 19, 2022
Alec’s Strava is private, so you’ll have to request a follow to leave some well-earned kudos, but Leah shared her son’s ride, saying he is desperate to be in the Tour de France. Going like that the 2027 peloton better watch out…(cc: Dave Brailsford).
Tom Pidcock, Sir Bradley Wiggins and Jeremy Vine were just three of the names getting the ride forwarded to them. I suspect this won’t be the last we hear of this one…
Amazing to see the next generation of cyclists coming through! Chapeau 👏
— Garmin (@GarminUK) April 20, 2022
Now, allow us all a second to retrieve our jaws from the floor, and we’ll get stuck into some of the amazed reaction to Alec’s epic…
Looks more like the next Christoph Strasser, ultra cycling legend, to me. The origin of Le Tour is from long distance racing with 400km stages.
— steve abraham 💙 (@steve_abraham74) April 19, 2022
I made him a very large plate of chill pasta with salmon and veg and he looked at it and said ‘I won’t eat all of that’ and proceeded to demolish it! He then had some flapjack he had made in preparation for todays ride. #coeliac
— Leah Hunting (@whoopydeedoo) April 19, 2022
Yep, he has experience of a velodrome and regularly rides with a club, so used to pack riding and working on the front! He is interested in racing but finds a half hour race a ‘bit boring’! But that’s where he will be spotted! 🤷🏻♀️ It will be better when he can race with adults!
— Leah Hunting (@whoopydeedoo) April 20, 2022
Get that man a beer! Sorry, no…not beer…I mean…age-appropriate drink of choice…
My kind of aero bars...
I’ve fitted some aero bars. pic.twitter.com/GuxY1U6XUO
— Real Gaz on a proper bike #fbpe (@gazza_d) April 19, 2022
Should you use WD-40 on your chain?
When does the milk go in the tea? (At the end, obviously) Tea, dinner or supper? (Tea) Disc brakes or rim brakes? (Honestly, whatever you want, I don’t care) Coca-Cola or Pepsi? (Either) Was that dress blue or gold? (Blue) WD-40 as chain lube? (No comment)…
It’s a community-splitting question as old as blue cans of multi-purpose lubricant… should you use WD-40 to lube your bike chain?
Neighbour knocked earlier with his rusty chained bicycle. He’d “run out of WD40 to put on it” and asked if I had any. I explained that it’s not the right stuff to put onto chains and it can damage them. I gave him some proper wet lube. Friends don’t let friends WD40 their chains!
— Elisabeth Anderson 🚲🐺 (@velobetty) April 19, 2022
WD-40 quite literally say that “WD-40 should not be used on bike chains” is a “myth”. pic.twitter.com/rbywkShQDw
— The Department of Parks & Recreation 🦌 (@ldnparks) April 20, 2022
What do we reckon? Yay or nay? Play nicely, let’s try not to fall out in the comments…
POLL: WD-40 as chain lube?
What could ever go wrong with a yes/no vote?
Schwalbe UK goes carbon neutral
Schwalbe UK is now carbon neutral, the company has announced. Bikebiz reports the tyre brand has calculated its operational carbon footprint to 70.46tCO2e and has bought verified carbon credits to rebalance its operational greenhouse gas emissions for 2021/2022.
The carbon credits project will ensure 28,752 hectares of forest is protected for conservation purposes, and by working alongside Plannet Zero, Schwalbe says it has achieved carbon neutrality in accordance with PAS 2060.
“At Schwalbe, we strive to be the most sustainable bicycle tyre manufacturer in the world. This is why Schwalbe UK began working with Plannet Zero in 2021 to help measure our operational carbon footprint,” a statement said.
You can't park there, Sir!
The greatest piece of parallel parking you’ll ever see!#WorldBollardAssociation pic.twitter.com/c53yr3HZVe
— World Bollard Association™ (@WorldBollard) December 31, 2021
As hard a climb as you're ever likely to find — Mur de Huy hell
Prior to this morning, 12 of the past 15 winners of the women’s Flèche Wallonne were from the Netherlands, the last seven (all Anna van der Breggen) were all Dutch winners too.
But, Annemiek van Vleuten could not quite make that 13 from 16, as Marta Cavalli rounded the Movistar rider as the steepest ramps of the infamous Mur de Huy softened, meaning the Italian is on for the Amstel Gold, Flèche Wallonne, Liège-Bastogne-Liège hat-trick.
Just look at those gradients…
🥇 Amstel Gold Race
🥇 𝐋𝐚 𝐅𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞🇮🇹 Marta Cavalli ends the Dutch domination at Fleche Wallonne 🙌#FWwomen | @marta_cavalli98 | @FDJ_NAqui_Fut pic.twitter.com/rOFZfn8f9e
— Eurosport (@eurosport) April 20, 2022
Mur de Huy is one of the hardest climbs on the calendar and makes the pros look like us lot blowing our way up the local rise. The men’s race is underway, with three-time champ Julian Alaphilippe back to defend his crown against: five-time winner Alejandro Valverde, Michael Woods, Tadej Pogačar and Tom Pidcock. The only big-name missing is Alec Perry…
Tadej’s tuft is out, can anyone beat him?
Commute checklist
It’s come to this then. pic.twitter.com/8xsIiXVyY1
— Jon (@Jontafkasi) April 20, 2022
"A cycling city"... as a motorist drives down the bike lane
“Oxford, a cycling city”
says the sign
As a car drives down the bike lane. pic.twitter.com/f1vGK95ndu— Oxfordshire Wild (@OxfordWildFood) April 18, 2022
What is it actually like to ride the Paris-Roubaix cobbles?
So...who is 15-year-old cycling sensation Alec Perry?
We came across Alec’s monster ride earlier today, and shortly after road.cc Simon pointed out he has made headlines before…
In 2016, Alec made local paper headlines for inspiring a GP to ride Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society. Alec was diagnosed with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis two years before then, and described it being like “a burning volcano in his joints” but refuses to let it get in the way of doing what he loves – riding a bike.
Then, during those surreal sunny lockdown days of summer 2020, Alec was back in the papers having become a “local legend” for racking up the miles without that pesky school day getting in the way.
Alec hit the 6,500-mile mark five months after the schools shut, clocking 400 miles a week on average.
Dylan Teuns steep gradients into victory
A Teun up for the books and all other Teun-related puns…
Pog went pop, Valverde was distanced moments later and Alpahilippe too far back either to make a challenge. This was the outcome:
Dylan Teuns wint een klassieker! 😍 pic.twitter.com/xhHzhGqTv3
— sporza (@sporza) April 20, 2022
Something of an upset with the Bahrain Victorious rider soloing away up the Mur de Huy. On a side note…
I love to give my bottles to supporters.
But don’t ‘pssshhhpsshhhh’ me on a disrespectful way while pointing your finger to my bottle, when I just finished my race on top of the Mur de Huy.
I should have given him that bottle though. On his head.
It was a grown-up man btw.
— Mieke Docx (@MiekeDocx) April 20, 2022
20 April 2022, 08:07
20 April 2022, 08:07
20 April 2022, 08:07
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Latest Comments
Nah - it's entirely irky, not just some of it.
So, 'no explanation was given for the sacking'. It might be nothing to do with his clothing. Perhaps there was another reason, who knows. Just a load of conjecture.
I like the Tour de France- all those motorists at the roadside applauding cyclists.
@mitsky Nail on head time there. Police, time, resource, all wrapped up in one little sentence.
@mdavidford Could that lack of fluency in English possibly be described as irksome?
@mdavidford Could that lack of fluency in English possibly be described as irksome?
@Mr Blackbird motorists who drink alcohol should be required to pass the test twice, once sober and once after three drinks in two hours. Then they can get an endorsement on their licence for driving home from the pub after a few pints.
In France, the closer the cyclist gets to the Mediterranean Sea, the weirder car drivers behave. Some of them being repeat road deliquents. Encounters with 13, 31, 34 and 84 may prove hairy. Drivers with plates showing 84 (Vaucluse) think light signalling is no longer necessary before making a turn or exiting a roundabout. Pity UAE Team came to the decision not to press charges.
@MaxiMinimalist We can fear such a ban to varying degrees. But I'd be surprised if it happens. Even if it does the police don't have the resource and time to deal with dangerous drivers. So I guess they will ignore it anway.
Sooner or later, there will be public calls for cycling ban on specific roads and / or at specific times of the day. The great divide that separates cyclists from drivers of motorized vehicles with 4-plus wheels isn't going to narrow anytime soon. In spite of the net-zero madness, there is zip political ambition to allocate massive funds to cycling, build proper infrastructure, elaborate a nationwide integrated cycling network, educate all road users. Why? Because motorists of all kinds are voters and taxpayers.
48 thoughts on “The next Tadej Pogačar? 15-year-old boy smashes 340km at 27km/h; Should you use WD-40 on your chain?; Aero bars; You can’t park there, Sir; Mur de Huy hell; Commute checklist; “A cycling city” + more on the live blog”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-61155735
“People using self-driving cars will be allowed to watch television on built-in screens under proposed updates to the Highway Code.”
Right, because that’s definitely going to work. In any case, if the vehicle requires someone to take control from time to time, then it’s not really self-driving, is it?
Instead insurance companies, not individuals, will be liable for claims in many circumstances, the DfT said.
So it just becomes a matter for insurance, with nothing to be done about it – just chalk it up to a necessary cost of driving.
I read that.
I read that.
So, the idea is that the vehicle does all the driving in slower steady traffic on motorways, and the human gets to play games or watch a film (but not to use their phone, which seems weird).
BUT the human has to be ready to take control if circumstances change or traffic speeds up or they want to leave the motorway.
Yeah, no possible problems there…
ABI: “… and who pays when
ABI: “… and who pays when the collisions happen? Haha… F**k. That!”
So is the insurance tied to
So is the insurance tied to the car and its manufacturer, or is it tied to the owner (like at present). If the latter, I wonder how many uninsured self-drive cars will be driving around because the owner thought (or says they thought) that it was the former…?
Well – I guess it depends on
Well – I guess it depends on how / what they actually categorise as self-driving. I’m not sure anything counts in the UK ATM? Not my specialist subject though.
It sounds to me like “we’ve decided to let this happen regardless – because we think it will anyway. Furthermore we want this ASAP as we get cash from these manufacturers and also ‘I want one now’ from the public”. So I think this is “better have something in the guide to cover complaints”.
Just like Cars 1.0 a generation will have to cope with the fallout while kinks are sorted out. Again – wait for the full detail but this certainly appears to offer a fee of loopholes. “Can you prove that the system alerted my client that he should pay attention before the crash? No? The defense rests.”
Currently nothing in the uk
Currently nothing in the uk is “self driving” , not for the public – manufacturers are testing g level 3.5-4 autonomy right now tho.
The issue is the insurers aren’t wanting to take the risk, they’re saying the manu should be as they’re the ones proving the systems.
I get that it’s to try to
I get that it’s to try to jolly on the insurers. I’d be doubtful as an insurer given a) the complexity of what is mostly a software solution and b) the fact that we’re less towards “software as a service” and more “software as fast fashion”.
Not my fight – in fact rather the opposite. Aside from saving people from rather boring jobs (but also making them unemployed) self-driving motor vehicles are my definition of “just because you can doesn’t mean you should”.
Basically, self-driving car
Basically, self-driving car premiums will be so high that they will be uninsurable, I think that’s the point – it’s not the Luddite Government banning these things, oh noes, it is the evil insurers. As for watching TV, what they are saying is that self-driving cars really have to be capable of operating with zero intervention so by suggesting watching TV (as if that was a good use of time) they are clarifying that the driver is allowed to pay zero attention to the road, not be in a supervisory role – setting a very high bar for the software to achieve.
My suspicion is that although theoretically self-driving cars should be less error-prone, that only works in an environment where the overwhelming majority of vehicles are self-driven. WIll early adopter self-driving cars notice the subtle movements we pick up on that lets us know that a car is about to do something stupid? Does a self-driving car know to just ease off a little in the expectation that the car following the lorry is about to pull out, or alternatively will it just nudge the speed up to avoid tracking a car travelling at a similar speed, sitting in its blind spot, or trapping it in lane, do they cope with cars merging in from a slip road – change lane, slow down, speed up, hold station depending on what the other car is trying to do? There is a lot of subtlety to driving incident-free on motorways even when you are dealing with sensible drivers. Most of the big accidents reported on Teslas and the like have been because of odd things that happen (which makes it alright to crash, right?).
I suspect the software and
I suspect the software and sensors – like most – are already better than the average human in most environments. Computers don’t get bored and normally have much faster reactions.
I’m not sure the actual “correctness” of the system is the issue though – for the law. I think it’s the “level of proof” / “reasonable doubt”. Tech companies would need (or ought to if our leaders weren’t so keen to give them a pass…) to convince a court that their system got it right and a human got it wrong. And their system will be complex to explain. Most people seem to be pretty motivated to assume that such systems are inherently stupid / inflexible. At small scale this is indeed true but it turns out that billions of tiny stupid robots can sum to something very “smart”.
Mind you that was no problem for the Post Office with their defective Horizon system from Fujitsu so it probably just means some lawyers getting richer.
I once attached some hazlenut
I once attached some hazlenut chocolate bars to my stem, but that’s a different Topic…
I tried a Twirl on my bars
I tried a Twirl on my bars once – that just ended in some Time Out.
Rendel Harris wrote:
That’s nuts!
I nicked a bike once.
I nicked a bike once.
The police put a Bounty on my head. Which was nice.
*Snickers*
*Snickers*
But this could turn in to a Marathon joke session.
I’ll Breakaway from it now
Taking a Time Out would be a
Taking a Time Out would be a good idea.
I’m struggling to think of a
I’m struggling to think of a confection based pun…
Oh well, I’ll Fudge one in somehow.
I’ll get my coat…
Gah. That pun drove me curly
Gah. That pun drove me curly wurly
I did need the afternoon Boost tho…
And I thought it was only
And I thought it was only Smarties that had the answer…
Let’s hope nobody has a
Let’s hope nobody has a Crunchie with a Double Decker on the road to Yorkie because they were trying to get too Aero.
Just as well SRAM don’t make
Just as well SRAM don’t make reverse gears.
Mungecrundle wrote:
????
Mungecrundle wrote:
.
Asked and answered…
Asked and answered…
WD-40, it’s in the name.
WD-40, it’s in the name. Water Displacer, not lubricant
Shake wrote:
It’s a water displacer and a lubricant, it drives out water and lubricates at the same time as well as providing an anti-corrosion layer. It’s not ideal for bike chains as it’s too light, you’d probably want to give it a new coat every ride, but it’s certainly not just a water displacer. They do make a bike-specific range as well but I’ve yet to try it.
The bike specific range is
The bike specific range is very good. I prefer to clean and lubricare chains reguarly as I really don’t like wet lube. It’s so sticky and attracts so much urban filth onto the chain.
“Should you use WD-40 on your
“Should you use WD-40 on your chain?”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-61022329
Islington Council, which charges £25 a year for electric vehicle permits, and as little as £30 for other cars, has the highest bike hangar rental cost in London, at £107 a year.
Seems a bit unbalanced in terms of charges.
And this surprises you how,
And this surprises you how, exactly…? 😉
That the bike charges are so
That the bike charges are so low !
About time these cyclists started paying for the roads !
Remember that’s £107 per
Remember that’s £107 per space – and there are six spaces per bike hangar. And two hangars can be fitted into one car parking space. So that’s a lot.
However, Islington don’t profit on the hangars as they cost money to install and to maintain and manage. (I don’t work for Islington by the way)
There are other reasons why the cost is high. In other boroughs where the cost is subsidised residents obtain spaces in a hangar and then don’t use the space. The result is half empty hangars which frustrates those who don’t have a space and gives ammunition to the antis.
Lukas wrote:
Unlike car parking spaces which don’t require any maintenance from having cars continuously driven in and out of them.
“Have you started Strava” is
“Have you started Strava” is higher up the list of priorities than “Keys” and “Rear light”???
Sounds like an honest more
Sounds like an honest more than sensible cyclist ?
Yes. And?
Yes. And?
Miller wrote:
Yes. And?
Starting Strava before you’ve
Starting Strava before you’ve checked for your pass, keys, etc. seems like a bit of a fail.
Asking as a non Strava-ist:
Asking as a non Strava-ist: doesn’t that mean your journey would be logged as taking several minutes longer than it actually did?
I just look at the “moving
I just look at the “moving time” rather than “time elapsed” – removes any temptation to risk orange lights or similar for time’s sake, also saves any faffing about stopping and restarting it at cafe stops etc.
Yeh, but you can just crop
Yeh, but you can just crop the ride and take that time wasted looking for keys and stuff off.
Dagnammit – I’m late to the
Dagnammit – I’m late to the choco-joke party.
Anyhow, just finished eating a whole Yorkie
…and been banned from Crufts
Just been looking through my
Just been looking through my paper copy of the new Highway Code.
Rule 163 on overtaking actually says at the end “You should wait behind the motorcyclist, cyclist, horse rider, horse-drawn vehicle or pedestrian and not overtake them if it is unsafe or not possible to meet these clearances.” (my emphasis).
Well, that hasn’t changed anything yet…
Having just come back from
Having just come back from Australia, where my preferred chain lube, GT85, is not available except by extremely expensive import, I did some research, and found out that WD40 bought out GT85. WD40 do produce something similar to GT85, WD40 with PTFE, but it is three or four times the price of GT85.
Wierd. It looks as if they bought GT85 just to stop it being sold in some markets.
eburtthebike wrote:
Good lord. You really think a huge multinational would do something like that?? My faith in humanity is gone…
eburtthebike wrote:
I’m still using a can of GT85 (not for chain lube though) though I can’t remember where I bought it from (not Australia though). You can buy it from EBay for under £5 a can.
Edit: just realised you said that Australia is where you can’t buy it
hawkinspeter wrote:
— hawkinspeterAldi regularly sell it for a ridiculous price, less than my wholesaler was charging.
Not to poo-poo the Schwable
Not to poo-poo the Schwable accomplishment but I’m assuming its only a sales and distribution operation so a fraction of the carbon costs of making the tyres that happens in other country.
Also offsetting is sometimes percieved as the lazy option rather than reducing….
Secondhand bikes and city
Secondhand bikes and city traffic: the joy and grit of an African cycle race
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/apr/21/secondhand-bikes-and-city-traffic-the-joy-and-grit-of-an-african-cycle-race