"We have to buy this... for science": Cyclists in awe (and a bit scared) of £80 "handmade" auction bike found online that "the longer you look the weirder it gets", including bizarre "knee destroyer" cranks; TDF in UK reaction + more on the live blog

Brace yourselves, the good people of Reddit have found another online auction bike that's equal parts intriguing, equal parts absolutely terrifying.

We've been staring at it for most of the morning and are still not 100 per cent sure what we're looking at. As one Reddit user put it, "The longer you look the weirder it gets". The context is that this is up on Yahoo auctions in Japan so, naturally, we stuck a VPN on and went to have a look. The highest current bid is 16,000 Japanese Yen (£83) and the bidding ends just after 9pm tonight.

The seller explains: "A vintage homemade road bike. There is no manufacturer information and it is an old item, so please consider it as is. We would appreciate it if you could judge the condition from the images as much as possible. Everything in the photos is included. Please look at the photos and consider your purchase."

We shall try to judge it from the pictures, as asked, although something tells me there'll probably still be quite a few questions. That crankset is what got most people talking online, it quickly dubbed the 'Knee Destroyer 2000' or the bike that only goes down hills. A few intrigued people had suggestions, perhaps that it is "trying to emulate a running motion".

Someone else said: "Those few inventors attempting to change how cyclists pedal their bikes, in this case — an experimental prototype tested only on a closed track — some wanting to emulate walking or running, while trying to achieve higher speeds."

Another user commented: "My guess is to try to mimic running for a tri athlete who runs more than bikes. My guess also is it failed to improve anything for anybody. Unless maybe the user had a range of motion injury it helped with....which given it reduces how high up your knee comes, seems possible."

On the injury idea, someone else suggested they'd heard a story from a pro bike fitter who'd had to make some sort of modification that sounded a bit like this. "It was hard to imagine at the time as there were no pics," they said, but it was "for someone who had surgery on their knee, lost range of motion, and didn’t have enough bend in their knee to keep riding a bike".

The other big question people wanting answered was... how does it ride? We're going to guess not incredibly comfortably. Now there's an idea, perhaps we should make an 'investment' and see how Jamie goes on it for your YouTube-viewing pleasure?

One commenter said: "This thing is amazing, I'd absolutely watch a long form YouTube review of this as they break down every very important mod done and the dental work after hitting one pothole."

Another made the interesting point that it's been built with Dura-Ace rather than just whatever cheap groupset they could get their hands on, so obviously the "builder must be some kind of mad scientist genius with humongous quads"... it's only logical.

From the bars, to the "spaghetti rear end", random rear light (suggesting it's not just a track bike), Dura-Ace, that saddle, the rear derailleur cable routing straight through the frame, oh... and the frame and cranks... it certainly takes a lot of working out. Here's the link if anyone wants to put a bid down because, after all that, why wouldn't you want it? Comfort, practicality, financial and potential safety issues aside...

 

 

 

 

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Born in 2005. Disgusting.

Cycling clothing brand Q36.5 is celebrating Milan-San Remo coming around again by releasing two limited-edition Gregarius Pro jerseys commemorating the iconic victories of Maurizio Fondriest and Vincenzo Nibali.

"Designed with elite craftsmanship and innovation, these jerseys pay tribute to two unforgettable moments in cycling history, where tactical brilliance, endurance, and sheer determination led to legendary victories on the Via Roma," Q36.5 said of the project.

They're available to buy from today, a "true collector's item" according to the brand, and in sizes from XXS to XXXL, priced at £130. Let's hope there's a Pidcock edition for next year... not that we're biased or anything.

David Lappartient was unsuccessful in his bid for sport's top job, Zimbabwe sports minister and multiple-time Olympic swimming champion Kirsty Coventry today earning the IOC presidency with a landslide victory in the first round of voting. Ah well, David, back to the sock length-measuring and tedious rider fines (more on that shortly).

> UCI president David Lappartient vows to stand up to Donald Trump in pitch for top Olympic job

UPDATE: The IOC has since released the voting figures, which show Lappartient received four of the 97 votes.

mdavidford called it the Frankenbike and we're going to run with it. Shout-out to Paul Ashleigh who got in touch by email to flag the Alenax design of days past, seen in this video below (we're putting you through a lot on today's blog, I know)...

Back on the Yahoo auction monstrosity we found earlier, eburtthebike disagreed with the Reddit user who reckons it needs to be bought... for science purposes. "No.  Bury it deep, very deep. In a lead-lined coffin."

GMBasix: "Did that once. Invited the bike into my garage. Would show you a photo of it, but for some reason the image wasn't clear. Ended up burying it in a deep grave by a church above Whitby.

"On stormy days I can still hear the creak of the bottom bracket and the clatter of a gear change that never settles.

"I will never be free."

*Goes to plan route on Strava, remembers he forgot to turn off VPN after visiting Japanese Yahoo auctions.

Not a whole lot more info regarding Japser Philipsen's crash at Nokere Koerse yesterday, the Belgian taken away in an ambulance just days before he was set to race Milan-San Remo as part of Alpecin-Deceuninck's line-up seeking to win the opening monument of the season for the third consecutive year.

In a statement on Instagram the team said: "Nokere Koerse ended in an anti-climax for us. After an impressive race with the entire squad in the spotlight, led by our captain Jasper Philipsen, we were gearing up for the sprint when Jasper crashed in the final kilometre."

"I had nowhere to go," the Belgian sprinter said. "This is really disappointing because I was feeling great and had my sights set on the win."

He suffered multiple abrasions and required stitches on his right hand, the team continued, adding that they will "have to see how he recovers overnight before deciding whether he will defend his title at Milan-San Remo on Saturday".

"We'll update you as soon as we have more news," Alpecin-Deceuninck said.

There was a wee bit of cycling news last night, the Tour de France returning to the UK in the near future as Edinburgh is set to host the start of the Tour in 2027. Full route details are to be announced in the autumn but the opening three stages of the race will be held in Scotland, Wales, and England. It was also confirmed that the first three stages of the 2027 Tour de France Femmes will take place in the UK.

"Time to start looking for a devil costume," road.cc reader Craig Robertson told us on Facebook.

Unsurprisingly, plenty of the discussion still revolves around the impending loss of free-to-air coverage of the race, even if Tour director Christian Prudhomme says he is optimistic a deal can be secured to ensure that the races' UK-based opening stages will be available free-to-air.

alchemilla: "The first three stages might be free to view, but after that, we can't watch any more. Seems like a kick in the teeth to UK viewers."

HarrogateSpa: "I agree, TV coverage of three stages as a one-time-only does nothing for the sport of cycling."

super_davo: "It's a start. If it's a success, there are big crowds and great viewing figures, then maybe that provides a route back to something akin to the ITV4 coverage. Before this announcement, was difficult to see the UK busting out of the loop that was making cycling ever more niche, this might be it."

ubercurmudgeon: "I'm sure millions will line the route, to see the cyclists, as they did the last two times the Tour came to Britain, and yet we're told there isn't sufficient interest in cycling in this country for it to earn a place on free-to-air television, beyond maybe the first three stages because supposedly all people will be interested in is seeing helicopter shots of places they know."