Former pro cyclist Tom Dumoulin clocks a blistering 1:08:42 half marathon… but grumpy runners aren’t impressed; Bike shop owner’s heroics in LA fires; Hope for Maindy Velodrome; “So much for hi-viz”; Another Rouvy/FulGaz update + more on the live blog
First Published: Jan 23, 2025
SUMMARY
"So much for hi-viz": Cyclist famous for riding with pet cat narrowly avoids collision with driver "looking me right in the eye" but who "decided to pull out anyway"
We’re kicking off Thursday with some road safety chat, everyone’s favourite. Travis and Sigrid, the page that shares the adventures of… well, Travis and Sigrid, the viral sensations who we’ve also spoken to for features and a podcast episode in the past too. Sigrid, a Norwegian Forest cat, and her owner, Travis Nelson, have been taking the internet by storm over the last few years since Nelson decided to take her for a ride during Covid.
> Meet Travis the human and Sigrid the cat, the viral sensations who have just switched to an e-bike
While many of their videos include pleasantly surprised pedestrians and wholesome feline fun, the reality of cycling on UK roads means some end up like this…
“So much for hi-viz,” was Travis’s takeaway from this one, the rear-view showing the bright yellow hoodie he was wearing at the time. It looks like a classic ‘sorry, mate, didn’t see you’ situation where the driver saw the car in front go, saw the Tesco van stopped, and continued without a look right at the imminently arriving pet and pedaller.
As a side note, Threads is a lot more enjoyable for reading comments and replies. As Travis pointed out underneath this, the same Twitter video “got 40k views and about 50 comments blaming me”. Anyway, some more pleasing Travis & Sigrid content followed… including a demonstration of just how visible that hoodie should have been…
Our scroll on Threads also brought us this discussion started by rock_n_donuts, a graphic designer and cycling kit designer based in the UK.
“Is cycling getting too dangerous?” he asked. “I used to ride 200-300 miles a week and now I’m starting to prefer running more than cycling! last year got hit twice by cars [drivers] which is maybe why I’m getting biased on the matter but I’ve ridden for 14 years now.”
The comments made for pretty depressing reading, numerous people making similar points and raising the standard of driving, near misses and worse as the reason why they’ve been put off riding on UK roads.
A selection of the replies:
“Bigger cars with more distracted drivers between phones and touch screen monitors, I think for sure it’s not as safe. I try and do as much MTB and gravel as possible to make up for it.”
“That’s why I ride MTB/gravel pretty much exclusively now. Used to do a 70km round trip commute but not keen on the road any more.”
“In a word; Yes. Will I ever stop? No. Here’s to 14 more good years in the saddle.”
“The local area is particularly bad, we train and race all over the country and this region has the biggest number of road rage and near misses.”
Has anyone here reduced their mileage due to the danger of British roads? Has gravel and MTB become more tempting? As ever, let us know your thoughts in the comments and we’ll round up some on the blog later…
BBC claims its Panorama episode about e-bikes was "fair and impartial and clearly not an attack on the e-bike industry"
In the same letter they also refer to EAPCs as Electrically Assisted Peddle Cycles, so there’s that too… now those pesky e-bikes are selling goods up and down the country as well as being a menace. Disgraceful.
Javier Romo lands surprise stage win at Tour Down Under
Javier Romo wasn’t a name too many had on their lips coming into the Tour Down Under, but the Spanish rider earned Movistar their first victory of the 2025 season with a perfectly timed late attack on stage three.
Despite some desperate last-ditch pulling in the heavily reduced front group, Romo held on impressively and takes the race lead too. Behind, it was Jhonatan Narváez in his new UAE Team Emirates colours who was the fastest from the bunch; while a rider who left UAE this winter, Finn Fisher-Black, was third.
It all sets the rest of the week up nicely, a host of talented riders, including Jay Vine, Magnus Sheffield, Chris Harper, Luke Plapp, Juan Pedro López, Sergio Higuita, Bauke Mollema, and British pair Oscar Onley and Thomas Gloag all 15 seconds down on GC. Defending champ, Welsh rider Stevie Williams, has work to do having slipped into the second group on the day and now finds himself 35 seconds back on GC.
"Steve never thought of his own business, only other people and their property": Fundraiser launched for heroic bike shop owner who lost business to LA fires as he tried to save homes elsewhere
Steve’s Bike Shop, an Altadena cycle shop that has served the cycling community for over 40 years, burned down during the LA fires — a GoFundMe campaign now being launched to support its owner who, along with his sons, had been fighting fires elsewhere and “ignored their own interests and safety in order to help save other people’s homes”.
The fundraiser states: “They saved other business owners’ homes and structures under HORRIFIC high wind and heat conditions. Steve never thought of his own business. Only other people and their property.
“Due to the fire, he lost his entire bike shop. Tools, inventory, and the building he rented. In exchange he fought to save the community he cares deeply about. I worry about his financial future after this loss and am asking for help. It is something he would NEVER do for himself. That is why I am asking for him.
“My name is Kelsey Chapman and I’ve had the pleasure of being his mechanic for the past 11 years. He is more than my boss, but a mentor and a best friend.
Please help me help Steve. Altadena’s original bike shop needs to stay in our community. We are far stronger with Steve here.”
More than $15,200 has been donated at the time of writing and all the details can be found at GoFundMe.
"A very poor decision by British Cycling": Reaction to Cyclocross World Championships selection, as no British riders selected for elite women's race
British Cycling’s selection for the next weekend’s UCI Cyclocross World Championships has sparked plenty of discussion due to the fact Great Britain will have zero representation in the elite women’s race.
Not even Xan Crees, the newly crowned national champion, has been selected for the biggest event on the calendar.
We’ll have a more in-depth look at this later today and we’ve contacted British Cycling for clarification about the selection process, but for now here’s some of the reaction.
Former national champion on the road Brian Smith has called it a “very poor decision”. He wrote on social media: “I know the sacrifices to become a national champion… I think it’s a very poor decision by British Cycling not to allow newly crowned national women’s elite champion Xan Crees to test herself against the best at the upcoming World Championships.”
Tagging British Cycling’s performance director, Smith continued: “Don’t even mention budget. Send our national champion.”
On Facebook, Crees’s team Spectra Racing commented under British Cycling’s selection announcement: “We are incredibly heartbroken to publicly see the news that our Xan Crees (the new national cyclocross champion) was not selected for the World Championships. We also feel the same for Anna Kay. Both deserved to go!
“Regardless of selection criteria, and whether either Xan or Anna met said criteria, which most cyclocross criteria is often times vague and elusive, the point and what should have been a factor in selection is *representation* in all age categories. Not just the elite women but also the U23 men.
“The UK’s proximity to these World Championships (being in France) should have provided a perfect opportunity to really fly the GB flag with more than 2 riders in each men’s race and only 3 in the junior women’s. Where it is incredible to see the U23 women squad be the biggest, and there certainly is some incredible talent in that age category, we shouldn’t have *just* 11 riders representing GB when we have some great talent!
“It should be more than just medals, it should be about providing lifetime opportunities because unless BC are going to invest Olympic medal funding into cyclocross, the criteria can’t just be about medals.”
We’ll have more on this story later…
Caleb Ewan signs for Ineos Grenadiers
Australian sprinter and multiple-time Grand Tour stage winner, Caleb Ewan, has signed a one-year deal with Ineos Grenadiers for the 2025 season. Ewan’s future had been the centre of speculation in recent weeks and there was even a very short-lived rumour that he might be retiring from sport, although that was quickly rubbished.
“This is a really exciting new challenge for me and a fantastic opportunity to get back to my best,” Ewan said. “In 2025, my goal is to return to winning big races. It’s been a few years since I’ve won some of those major events but I firmly believe I have it in me. I’m still only 30, and with the right guidance and the expertise that Ineos brings, I believe I can rediscover my best form here.”
Controversial cycling ban to be eased to "cut congestion" – less than a year after council claimed restrictions had "wide support"
"We think it makes no sense to keep both platforms open and will eventually be transitioning FulGaz to Rouvy."
Another story from earlier in the week was Rouvy’s purchase of fellow indoor training app FulGaz. We’ve been in contact with Rouvy CEO Petr Samek after rumours of redundancies and everyone being laid off at FulGaz were reported by DC Rainmaker today.
He did not address the redundacy report, instead commenting: “We will spend some time fully assessing the situation, listening to their views and making sure all FulGaz users can enjoy a smooth and satisfactory experience but we think it makes no sense to keep both platforms open and will eventually be transitioning FulGaz to Rouvy.”
The rise of Chinese cycling brands: a guide to the bike and component manufacturers challenging the big Western marques
Obscure Barclays-era defender takes up cycling post-retirement
Our Wolves-supporting editor, Jack, was ‘delighted’ to be reminded of Jelle Van Damme, a defender who made 12 appearances for Southampton and Wolves, and won 31 caps for Belgium during a footballing career that also saw him play for LA Galaxy, Ajax and Anderlecht. Well, Van Damme has taken up cycling post-retirement and even competed at last year’s UCI Gravel World Championship.
Unbound is on his radar for 2025 and the retired footballer’s Instagram bio tells us he’s got some fairly handy sponsorships too: BMC, Pirelli, Isadore and Nimbl. The Sun has claimed he’s become a professional cyclist and “swapped pitches for pedals”. Deary me.
The tabloid also notes he has trained with Greg Van Avermaet and printed some quotes from Van Damme…
“If I could have my time over again I would set out to be a racing cyclist — despite all I have experienced in football,” he said. “I think I would succeed given my mindset and personality. I always compare myself to [Belgian pro] Tim Declercq. I’m not someone who looks to win the races, but a good ‘servant’ who helps my teammates achieve the best possible finish.
“My passion for the sport has grown. I have taken on a coach, and I now have full sponsorship. I want to peak this year at the Unbound event in the US. I began cycling with my brothers and nephews, doing 40-50km rides, but now I can do 120km distances.
> Footballers who cycle XI — the Premier League stars who love life on two wheels
“Just like in football, I can suffer on the bike. I can break down, but I’ll recover quickly. As an athlete I will want more when I see that I’m getting better. I can be a right bastard at times. I was like that as a footballer, and I’m the same now when I get on my bike.
“I think I can ride well, and when I’m in a peloton I am not afraid to throw myself around. My family group calls me Kamikaze, as I’ll go from zero to flying round bends at top speed. Once an athlete, always an athlete.”
Loss of historic Maindy Velodrome looks "less likely" after plans for new site quashed
The Cardiff velodrome that helped develop Geraint Thomas and other top cyclists is now “less likely” to be lost after plans to build a new facility elsewhere in the city have been scuppered. Maindy Velodrome, built in 1958, was set to be lost, with Cathays High School expanded onto the land that hosts the cycle track and a new velodrome to be built at the International Sports Village in Cardiff Bay.
However, plans for the new velodrome have fallen through, the site now earmarked for a new golf attraction, according to the BBC. It means campaigners are more optimistic Maindy Velodrome will be saved.
The co-chairman of the club based at the velodrome, Maindy Flyers, today suggested the loss of the velodrome now “looks less likely”, something the club is understandably “delighted” about.
“We were never opposed to a new velodrome in the bay,” Alan Davis said. “Our opposition was to the loss of Maindy. That loss now looks less likely and we are delighted about that.”
Cardiff’s council has also noted that it has the chance to enter negotiations for an alternative site for the school’s expansion which, if successful, could see the local authority “reconsider how to bring a closed-loop cycle track and velodrome to the city in the future”.
Welsh Cycling says it has “full commitment to working in partnership with Cardiff council to ensure the development and delivery of high-quality cycling facilities across the city”.
There, possibly a bit of Thursday good news to brighten up a grey January day…
"It can't just be about medals": British Cycling under fire for "disgraceful, sexist" failure to send elite women's squad – including national champion Xan Crees – to cyclocross world champs, but governing body says omitted riders failed to meet criteria
More on this, as promised…
Former pro cyclist Tom Dumoulin clocks a blistering 1:08:42 half marathon... but grumpy runners aren't impressed
The Running Week is pleased to report former Giro d’Italia winner and 2017 world time trial champ Tom Dumoulin is bloody good at running. We already knew this, to be fair, Dumoulin’s 32:38 10k time turning heads a few years back. Now, he’s clocked a 1:08:42 half marathon, the running site hailing: “When champions switch sports… and still dominate.”
So, how has Dumoulin’s impressive athletic feat been celebrated by the running community? Oh, with grumpy comments on social media. Fantastic.
“Yeah that isn’t that impressive considering he was a pro cyclist. I would expect faster. But I mean he was a pro cyclist so he has accomplished a lot.
That is a fast time just not for someone with his aerobic ability.”
“If he would have beaten an international tennis player or played football for a pro club then that would be impressive. Being good at two endurance sports is not very uncommon.”
“Doesn’t surprise me, a pro cyclist V02 max is through the roof.”
Anyway, negative Nigels out the way, Zach Yauch commented: “Very impressive. Not sure why people are so negative. This is an incredible time. Some weirdos seriously.”
Obviously, it wouldn’t be a post about Tom D without someone reminding the world of that fateful day back at the Giro d’Italia all those years ago. A good excuse to bring Ryan’s crap feature out of the cupboard…
> From Deux Moulins to Dumoulin: Pro cycling’s most iconic toilet stops
“Hope he doesn’t use the same gels, then it is bye bye records,” was one very helpful contribution from a Running Week follower.
At the more constructive end of the discussion were the people pointing out Dumoulin’s seemingly unstructured approach to training and desire just to enjoy running. Anyway, we wish we could run a 1:08 half marathon and not impress the grumpy Facebook lurkers too… something tells me if they saw me run half a marathon they’d really have something to moan about.
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A cooling sleeve cools you down for maybe 30 minutes and then it becomes a hassle, it also prevents heat leaving the body as an "empty" sleeve now becomes an extra layer. It does make some sense for a time, but in the long run it's just problematic to use. It's just much easier to just pour water over your body.
This kind of journalism makes me laugh. As climate change brings ecological breakdown and migration on a biblical scale and international food security puts the price of food out of most people's pockets then there isn't going to be any bike racing in the morning or any other time. Get an allotment and learn how to protect it. Good luck everyone.
I often wonder why they don't wear cooling arm sleeves and cooling hats under their helmets. At a guess it's probably something to do with 'the rules', as this is road racing. Headsweats caps and similar make a big difference to how hot you get and you avoid getting your head sunburnt through the gaps in your helmet.
It's good going to keep the Vanquish price at £485, especially if you can still get a discount through Cycling UK or British Cycling, or maybe a cashback site (I've seen 10% via Complete Savings before). Shame Halfords didn't change the cassette as road.cc suggested in their review last year though.
Plenty of distinguishing features to identify the place including "Dubai, UAE" right at the top of that Insta post. And using a mobile phone while driving is illegal in Dubai and across the UAE.
The Guardian isn’t a source of scientific data It's a much better source than climate change denying nutters!
Given that he is holding his hand on the steering wheel while controls on the central panel, including the driving mode selector, are illuminated, it is highly doubtful that the car is parked with the engine off.
This is over-simplistic and false. The Guardian isn't a source of scientific data.
Seeing as his car is probably a gold wrapped Hummer or G Wagon, it would appear that his taste mechanisms have been out of action for some time.
31 thoughts on “Former pro cyclist Tom Dumoulin clocks a blistering 1:08:42 half marathon… but grumpy runners aren’t impressed; Bike shop owner’s heroics in LA fires; Hope for Maindy Velodrome; “So much for hi-viz”; Another Rouvy/FulGaz update + more on the live blog”
Seems a beginner error to
Seems a beginner error to believe a car driver actually sees you if they are looking through you?
If there was a collision, the sun was behind you & it blinded them, so they had to pull out.
In my (thankfully limited)
In my (thankfully limited) SMIDSY experience:
a) Not looking at all (perhaps they dive have one look, or got distracted by something in the middle of their observation e.g. following a vehicle in another lane…)
b) Only looking for motor vehicles.
c) Eyes are open but nobody’s home
Obviously I can’t distinguish between b) and c) from my perspective – they’re both “looked but didn’t see”. Can be difficult to choose whether you can avoid collision most safely by throwing out the anchors or trying to sprint to safety. The rider here perhaps chanced things (the driver could have accellerated) but they did at least spot that the driver wasn’t stopping.
chrisonabike wrote:
from an exchange with a WPC after the nearest of misses a few years ago;
plod “well of course they could see you, they just didnt see you”
me ‘so you agree that this wasnt a vision, but instead a perception error?’
plod “well yes”
me ‘which means they were driving without due care and attention’
plod “… NO! they just didn’t see you!”
Car and van drivers etc who
Car and van drivers etc who are trying to pull out or cross the the road from the right or left look to see if motor vehicles are coming, it’s just a coincidence if they notice a cyclist coming – motor vehicles are a danger to them, cyclists are not.
Suspect the Tesco truck
Suspect the Tesco truck signalled the driver to pull out, and the BMW driver is expecting you as the cyclist to be as charitable & stop. Seen that happen a few times the driver has definitely seen you, just expects you to give way to them.
TBH, I’m not sure – I had
TBH, I’m not sure – I had been talking to the Tesco driver just prior to this as he is a big fan and was excited to see us in person. He sped up ahead and then stopped, so I was assuming he wanted to film us riding by (not unusual, drivers do some very weird stuff when they see us). But you’re right that drivers often just “take” priority from you because they know they can bully you.
Which is fair enough, just
Which is fair enough, just seemed an odd place for them to be stopped, and probably unintentionally encourages the BMW driver to try to exit the junction in front of you, as they’re seeing what looks like a helpful gap quickly shrinking.
At least you made it past unscathed, even if the heart rate jumped.
The thing is…there’s
The thing is…there’s looking, and there’s looking. Years ago I nearly took a cyclist out, I was driving, approaching an angled junction with a Give Way line, I glanced to my right, didn’t “see” anything coming and was about to accelerate onto the main road. For some reason, I had another look, and I saw a cyclist who I would have either driven into or forced to take evasive action, but I stopped in time.
I was mortified, and have used it as an experience to improve my driving and riding, namely to always take the time to look properly.
Windscreen pillars are now 70-80 mm thick, they used to be around 20 mm when I learned to drive. But that’s no excuse.
Too many people only look for another car, or something big enough to hurt them such as a truck.
If anyone says “Sorry mate I didn’t see you” to me they get a full on rant. It isn’t good enough.
Yeah… it’s all these things
Yeah… it’s all these things e.g. making it a little harder to do proper observations. E.g. you actually need to move your head – though you should anyway…). Then we are continually (but unconsiously) training our brains to “look for motor vehicles” not “road users” *. Plus there is some measure of voluntary chancing it e.g. “they must have seen me so I’ll just go” or “they’re a cyclist so they’re slow and they’ll keep out of my way anyway” as stonojnr mentions.
Stuff the excuses… BUT at the same time I am for recognising “but humans” and trying to make it easier for lazy, entitled people (because humans) to do the right thing. (If we also did more road user training, and more than once per lifetime testing, that would be even better…)
* I don’t think the brain is entirely absent, just trained to pay maximum attention to some things. Everything else which is “normal” gets neglected (human attention is *very* limited). My supposition is reinforced by my experiences on my old recumbent which did look a bit odd even for an odd vehicle (banana yellow tailbox). I got a LOT of attention on that, zero SMIDSY. (Of course this is hardly scientific – I rode that less than my uprights plus I rode it differently, avoiding the worst of the traffic).
Daveyraveygravey wrote:
This is a well known phenomenon…
https://singletrackworld.com/2018/01/collision-course-why-this-type-of-road-junction-will-keep-killing-cyclists/
…I understand that this particular junction has been updated
Looks like they’re finally
Looks like they’re finally making a start on undoing the Clevedon seafront work…
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4g3eq0xdx8o
Quote:
I was following a – I think – Tesla the other evening. With a big touchscreen display on its dashboard about the size of an iPad Pro?
Every time the car stopped in traffic, the driver reached across and started fiddling with Spotify (I recognised the icons, which were big enough that I could clearly see them).
brooksby wrote:
Bigger than that I think, they look about eighteen inches at least to me. Had an amusing one recently, had a Tesla something or other Uber or other PHV cruising alongside me at 20mph down the Old Brompton Road and could clearly see the screen on which he had driver radar, it was brilliant, could see all the cars and me and Mrs H, who was just behind, showing up clear as anything on the screen. Well at least that’s useful I thought, right up to the point he cut straight across me without indicating to get into a parking spot…
“So much for hi-viz”
“So much for hi-viz”
Can I be the first to say “BMW driver”.
Actually, it would be interesting to compare make, model of car with collision data. It might not just be my prejudice.
eburtthebike wrote:
This is from 2016, not sure if there’s anything more recent available.
I’ve previously owned a BMW 530D and a VW Bora. Never crashed either of them though.
Thanks. BMW has two models
Thanks. BMW has two models in the top five!
And five from ten are PSA
And five from ten are PSA group…
There’s even an Insta channel
There’s even an Insta channel for the “winner”…
https://www.instagram.com/badpriusdrivers/
I think you need to know the
I think you need to know the proportion of the total UK vehicles on the road for each model represents for that data to be meaningful.
Also, how did those collecting the data know that they were all “accidents”?
Pub bike wrote:
It’s the number of crashes per 10,000 of that model on the road. AIUI it the information has come from STATS-19 data, so it’s collisions resulting in an injury.
Thanks – it would also be
Thanks – it would also be useful to know what proportion of the “accidents” resulted in those inside vs outside the vehicle being injured. My hunch is that that for the smaller/cheaper cars the occupants are injured whereas for the larger cars (e.g. BMWs) it was those outside.
“However, plans for the new
“However, plans for the new velodrome have fallen through, the site now earmarked for a new golf attraction, according to the BBC.”
So turns out golf is the new golf.
Re Tom De Moulin’s half
Re Tom De Moulin’s half marathon. It isn’t a blistering time, but it is a good time. It is at the level of an elite club runner, who would finish in the around the top 50 – 100 in the English Cross Country Championships.
Although his vo2 max will be huge, the blood supplies may be optimised to feed cycling rather than running muscles and he must be getting towards his late 30s. So still a pretty good achievement. If he concentrated on running, he would probably go a lot quicker.
A mate sent me this – https:/
A mate sent me this – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB7pBrudFbg. Another one for the list of reasons you should never buy a bike from a crowd funder!
kamoshika wrote:
That’s hilarious
Unless you actually put money into it, I guess…
brooksby wrote:
“The worst bicycle in the whole world” – that’s quite an accolade! It is a fine example of marketing BS with nothing behind it, a truly disastrous product. It weighs 30kg+ and as soon as I saw the weedy caliper brakes I thought “No, is this cannot be real!”. The YT comment by @teldrah sums it up well:
The video is at 4.2 million views so at least Seth will get some of his money back.
Simon E wrote:
Given that it is trying so hard to be really very modern and hi-tech, I’m sure that there would have been a better way of sorting out braking on such a beast.
kamoshika wrote:
I watched that yesterday as it popped up in my YouTube algorithm.
There’s so many enthusiastic people trying to invent better bikes, but there’s really good reasons why pneumatic tyres, spoked wheels and double triangle frames haven’t been beaten.
That’s because of old
That’s because of old-fashioned thinking and a conspiracy of the Legacy Bike Manufacturers!
We should disrupt that! With the power of AI we’re free * to imagine! What if a bike didn’t need two wheels? Or handlebars? Or the ground?
* We’ve automatically handled your payments for this – you don’t ever need to worry about how this happens! {That’s brat! | adjust to some almost up-to-date phrase here}
Hi viz sometimes makes no
Hi viz sometimes makes no difference if drivers don’t look, even if there is cycle lane segregation in place…
My example: https://youtu.be/vEeljHmz6KA
Tom Dumoulin’s half marathan
Tom Dumoulin’s half marathan time may be quick, but surely Chris Froome would be quicker??