Ineos Grenadiers tease Tour de France bike and new colour scheme; ULTIMATE TdF team reveal in a time of pandemic …goes viral; Trump ‘will never ride a bike’; Before and after bike lane road transformations; Groupama–FDJ boss in OTT victory dance + more
SUMMARY
Weekend catch-up
Did you go out for a bike ride, get blown away and have only just managed to battle your way home? If so then here’s what you missed on road.cc…
Nonsensical ‘cyclists dismount’ coronavirus signs popping up around the country
Pimlico Plumbers appeal to catch cycling ‘criminal’ – but get accused of faking footage
World Naked Bike Ride London warns of fake ride scam – no official ride this year
Team Ineos pulls riders from Italian national championship after one tests positive for COVID-19
Near Miss of the Day 460: Van driver sacked after close pass
Cyclist attacked and robbed in Wigan, with bike, phone and wallet stolen
Police hunting four men after cyclist was killed in Birmingham hit and run
Marc Madiot's NSFW celebration as Demare wins French national champs is hilarious and terrifying all at once
“C’EST ÉNORME” 🎬#NSFW pic.twitter.com/JKkDn12SzR
— Équipe Cycliste Groupama-FDJ (@GroupamaFDJ) August 23, 2020
Hilarious because it just is, and terrifying because if his star rider Thibaut Pinot does actually win the Tour de France, then there’s a strong possibility Madiot could actually explode. If you want to see what set him off, here are the race highlights…
Before and after vid show how bike lane has transformed a Toronto road
Danforth Ave. in Toronto, before and after bike lanes. Which one looks safer? 🤔 #bikeTO pic.twitter.com/qO7DxpSQfq
— Michal Kapral (@mkapral) August 21, 2020
The clips from Michal Kapral (who in unrelated news holds the world record for the fastest marathon while juggling, or ‘joggling’, at 2 hours 50 mins) show the same journey taken before and after the cycle lane installation… and what a difference it makes.
We should note that the video is sped up, but in the pre-bike lane footage Kapral is close passed at least twice, and it generally looks like quite an unpleasant experience with cars whizzing past. In the post-bike lane example, wands are installed to separate cyclists from traffic, and some locals have commented that they’re now cycling on the road when they rarely, or never, would have previously.
It’s amazing!! I NEVER rode on Danforth bc it was terrifying. This change is most welcome!
— alison thompson (@misspencil) August 22, 2020
I can’t believe I actually rode on Danforth before the bike lanes. When I rode Danforth before. I was literally putting my life on the line. Now I and others can ride safely!
— Hafeez A. (@trainguy89) August 21, 2020
Omygosh for YEARS the Danforth was the most dangerous road to cycle, and drive as well. Drivers weaving in and out of the curb lane, speeding on the right, passing on the right too close. I dared never cycle on it. #bikeTO It’s about TIME!
— Marie Belanger (@MsMarieB) August 22, 2020
Bora-Hansgrohe sign 22-year-old Brit Matthew Walls
Pleased to finally announce I will be riding with @BORAhansgrohe as of next year😀
Thanks to everyone who has helped me along the way👍🏻
Can’t wait to get racing with these guys https://t.co/Sn3gCWJ7g9— Matt Walls (@wallsey_98) August 24, 2020
Road and track rider Walls – who won bronze in the Omnium at the 2020 World Championships – will get to ride with that man from Slovakia after signing with the German team. Bora have also signed 19-year-old Frederik Wandahl, with both penning three-year contracts.
Sports director and Scout Christian Schrot commented: “Matthew completed British Cycling’s talent development program on the track. We are confident that this foundation will enable him to cope well with the jump to the WorldTour. We will endeavour to bring him up to the necessary level in the next few years and build him up as a sprinter. With his speed, we believe that he possesses a strong basis for this.
“Frederik is a very young athlete, however, he possesses a lot of talent for various tasks. At the junior level, he showed himself to be a complete rider, whether in one-day or stage races.”
Grunduro Wales postponed until 2021
While at the start of the pandemic we were seeing events being postponed until later in 2020, it’s now become apparent that even this won’t be possible, with a number of events now postponing until next year. Grinduro Wales is the latest, with the organisers saying in a statement:
“The middle of October 2020 was due to be the date when the Grinduro express rocketed into mid-Wales and painted the landscape a vivid purple hue. We had hoped to bring the ultimate party:race ratio to the town of Machynlleth, but even though we kept our fingers crossed and made regular offerings to the trail gods, the Covid19 situation has conspired against us.
“As event organisers, we’ve got a huge responsibility to make sure all the competitors, local residents and event staff remain safe, but we also need to make sure the spirit of Grinduro continues with an event that is fun and everyone has a great time.
“With current UK Covid19 guidelines we just don’t feel we can offer the Grinduro experience we pride ourselves on – we are an event about bringing riders together not distancing them. For this reason, we’ve taken the difficult decision to postpone Grinduro Wales until 2021.”
Anyone registered for 2020 will automatically have their entry carried over to the 2021 event, which will be held on 24th July.
Everyone needs to "take a deep breath" over new cycle lanes, says Labour MP
There’s been much debate in Brighton and Hove recently about the installation of new cycle lanes on busy roads to promote safer cycling around the city, with some claiming that the lanes are increasing congestion. Last week, B&H Buses of Brighton appeared to state as fact that heavy traffic in central Brighton was “due to the new cycle lane on the coast road”, and Labour Councillor Peter Atkinson wrote in Brighton and Hove News that the lanes on Brighton’s busy Old Shoreham Road “must go”.
Now, after claiming to have completed journeys in the area by bike, car, on foot and even by e-scooter, Labour MP for Hove and Portslade Peter Kyle has spoken out, urging people who are angry to “take a deep breath” over the new measures.
He said: “I have seen with my own eyes people shouting at each other across a road, a driver in a rage bulldoze bollards on Hove seafront, and experienced a cyclist whizz past swearing at me and everyone else for not going fast enough when in fact he would have been breaking the speed limit had he been in a car.
“Please everyone, take a deep breath. Cyclists can’t wish away cars and drivers can’t wish away pedestrians, and none of us can stop the rise in popularity of new forms of getting around like e-scooters.
“Powerlessness is a horrible feeling. Right now there are a lot of people feeling utterly powerless and bewildered about who and how decisions about road use are being made.
“Having spent so much time in recent days travelling around, plus reading so many of your messages, I really do understand and share this feeling.”
These quotes are part of a lengthy essay Mr Kyle has written on the subject that was posted to his Facebook page over the weekend, which can be found here.
Remco Evenepoel will be able to leave hospital "this afternoon"
The 20-year-old Belgian had a horror crash at the Tour of Lombardy last Saturday, and will reportedly finally be able to leave hospital today. Sporza claim he will be out this afternoon, while the man himself simply said he’s “coming home” on his Instagram and Facebook accounts.
Trump "will never be riding a bicycle" he confirms during campaign trail speech
This might not come as a surprise, but the US President has confirmed that he won’t be following in the pedal strokes of his 2020 rival for the White House Joe Biden (the latter was spotted out riding with friends two weeks ago), as he doesn’t want to “get hurt” riding a bicycle.
During the speech in Old Forge, Pennsylvania, Trump appeared to link a cycling accident suffered by US Secretary of State John Kerry in 2015 with the way he handled the signing of a nuclear deal with Iran, saying he “never got up and walked.”
Trump continued: “He (Kerry) rode his bicycle remember. He was in an accident. I promised at 73-years-old, I said I’ll never be riding a bicycle. He had the helmet, he had the names, the insignias all over. He had insignias like, you know… like he was a 20-year-old great cyclist from France.
“…so I promised I wouldn’t do that. I might get hurt, but I’m not getting hurt riding a bicycle.”
Trump has a bunch of jokes about John Kerry’s bike accident pic.twitter.com/RlPdTPTrG5
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 21, 2020
It’s not the first time the president has referred to Kerry’s bike accident; in simpler times when he was simply a ‘White House-hopeful’, Trump incorrectly stated that Kerry was in a bike race when he fell and broke his leg, saying: “He falls, breaks his leg. I don’t want him on a bicycle during nuclear negotiations.”
It all seems a little contradictory when we consider that Trump was the headline sponsor for a US bike race called the Tour de Trump back in 1989, that he believed could “rival the Tour de France” one day. He did also admit that the last time he rode a bicycle was when he was “7 or 8 years old”, and it sounds like he probably hasn’t got in the saddle since. Knock yourself out with the full archive clip below, and imagine a world where The Donald was simply organising one of our sport’s biggest bicycle races, rather than holding arguably the most powerful position in world politics…
UCI confirm first Esports World Championships to be held on Zwift
The UCI’s president David Lappartient said the virtual event, taking place between 8-9 December,will be “an exciting step forward for our sport during these challenging times.”
There will be Men’s Elite and Women’s Elite categories, with the real-life 2020 UCI World Champions getting rainbow jerseys on their avatar for sanctioned esports events in 2021 (that’s if the worlds do go ahead somehow). The UCI will allocate National Federations with participation quotas, to be announced soon, and automatic invitations will be sent by the UCI. They also say the aim is to represent all five main continents, with the same number of total entries for women as men.
Lappartient added: “It’s with great pleasure that we are able to confirm the dates and plans for the first UCI Cycling Esports World Championships. The year has certainly been a challenging one for all, but we are now back to enjoying racing and have a new UCI World Championships to look forward to at the end of 2020.
“Virtual races were hugely popular during the period that competitions ceased, and I truly believe in the potential of esports to help grow participation in our sport. This is a historic moment.”
Mathieu van der Poel wins Dutch Road Championships with monster 44km solo breakaway
Mathieu van der Poel is the new Dutch road champion. 🇳🇱 This is the moment VDP said goodbye to everyone with 44 km to go. 🚀 BEAST! 👏 #NKwielrennen2020 pic.twitter.com/memQxgT9Rx
— Mihai Simion (@faustocoppi60) August 23, 2020
The 25-year-old Alpecin–Fenix rider was in a different league to everyone else yesterday and here is the moment he got away from the peloton. There’s also the part where he rode on a tiny strip of smooth tarmac next to the cobbled section to get some advantage over his rivals: “a strip thinner than his tyres”, according to Wieler Revue.
Mathieu van der Poel op een strookje dunner dan z’n banden.. pic.twitter.com/sTqDGeQdcp
— Wieler Revue (@wielerrevue) August 23, 2020
"Road safety is everyone's responsibility": Police Superintendent Andy Cox reiterates calls for public to report traffic offences
You rightly make requests of policing. Now I need your help.
Please tell ‘at least 10 people’ about the #London road safety public reporting system of traffic offences and encourage them to report offences. Spread the word and be part of the solution. 24/7 👀#Dashcam #Headcam pic.twitter.com/8JC1BKTA5c
— Andy Cox (@SuptAndyCox) August 22, 2020
Superintendent Cox seems to make this blog regularly nowadays for his pro-cycling views, often dipping in on Twitter to urge members of the public who share footage showing bad driving, assaults and more to report it to the police.
He’s now asking Londoners to tell 10 others about the Met’s road safety public reporting system for traffic offences, encouraging people who may think chances of prosecution are slim to come forward. He also reminded us of these unfortunate stats, asking drivers to be more considerate.
As you set off on your journey today please give this infographic a thought. The purpose of any journey is to get from A-B safely but unfortunately many drive with a complacent risky attitude assuming nothing will happen to them. The below shows it can and does.#MondayMotivation pic.twitter.com/X9FHiAK66H
— Andy Cox (@SuptAndyCox) August 24, 2020
Connor Swift to make Tour de France debut with Arkea-Samsic
Notre sélection pour le Tour 2020
Nuestra seleccion para el Tour 2020
🔴⚫️#Tousensemble 🤜🏻🤛🏻 pic.twitter.com/bIkbsNFbw2
— Team Arkéa Samsic (@Arkea_Samsic) August 24, 2020
Arkea-Samsic have unveiled their TDF team, with the 24-year-old making the cut to assist Nairo Quintana in his quest for the yellow jersey. The squad also includes Nairo’s younger brother Dayer, but there’s no place for sprinter Nacer Bouhanni.
Police appeal as cyclist was knocked off and "shouted at" by car passenger
Norfolk Police are appealing for witnesses following the incident in the village of Booton last Thursday, after “a car collided with a cyclist” shortly after 6pm on Norwich Road. It’s said that prior to the incident, a female passenger of the car was shouting at the cyclist, a male in his 30s.
Police want to hear from anyone who may have witnessed the incident or could have dash cam footage, asking those with information to call 101.
How to behave in a car behind cyclists
For avoidance of doubt , this is how you behave in a car behind cyclists. It’s really very simple. Absolutely no reason to not drive in any other way. Just wait. Chill out and give them room. @MikeyCycling #dontbeatwatdriver #space #stopkillingcyclists pic.twitter.com/07MlucCPoT
— Ben (@BendyBen999) August 22, 2020
Not that difficult, is it!?
Unveiling your Tour de France team, pandemic style
Unveil those masked men! 👺
We present our 🇫🇷 @LeTour lineup. 👇
Read more in our #TDF2020 preview
👉 https://t.co/2HM5xfFJR8 pic.twitter.com/dNEnfq1rmw— Trek-Segafredo (@TrekSegafredo) August 24, 2020
Take it away Trek-Segafredo, who unmasked Bauke Mollema, Richie Porte, Mads Pedersen, Kenny Elissonde, Niklas Eg, Toms Skujins, Jasper Stuyven and Edward Theuns as their eight-man squad for the Tour de France.
The team’s Sports Director Kim Andersen outlined the team goals, saying: “The objective of our team is to go for the GC with Bauke Mollema and Richie Porte. But our other main goal is to win one or more stages. We will try to keep at least one of the captains up there for GC, and otherwise go full for stage wins.
“In the team we have some strong, fast guys like Jasper Stuyven, Mads Pedersen, and Edward Theuns. I think there will be many stages with breakaways, and we can try to put them in there. They will also be good to protect the leaders. In the second week, we can give a lot of freedom to the Classics riders.
“I have been to the Alps to see the final stages and I can see that it will be a really hard last week. I think that it will be a very difficult Tour de France because you need to be ready at the start of the Tour, as you already have mountains in the early stages, but also fresh enough for the tough final week. I like the parcours very much, I think we will have a lot of exciting bike racing.”
Ineos Grenadier team bike teased, kit appears confirmed
It’s been a month now since Team Ineos announced that as of this week they will change their name to the Ineos Grenadiers, in a PR move to support the forthcoming 4×4 vehicle from Jim Ratcliffe’s giant petrochemicals group.
This evening the team teased a picture on Twitter of the new colourway on the bike Dylan van Baarle will be riding in the Tour de France, which starts in Nice on Saturday.
26.08.20@Pinarello_com @INEOSGrenadier pic.twitter.com/ybKcXHYDyB
— Team INEOS (@TeamINEOS) August 24, 2020
Navy blue is the colour it seems, together with a vertical red chevron, echoing the stylised ‘A’ in the vehicle’s logo.
Renderings of the riders’ Castelli kit have been doing the rounds for a while, again navy blue with that red chevron on the chest.
The initial image, it seems, came via Tour de France organisers ASO, and is now confirmed in the roadbook for the race, from which the (rather blurred, sorry) image below has been taken.
The official reveal takes place on Wednesday.’
24 August 2020, 08:46
24 August 2020, 08:46
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I use this cycle path regularly. It is used by commuters during the week but it is used more and more by families with young children evenings and weekends when the weather is fine. The car boot takes place on a Sunday which conflicts with this leisure use. One problem is with cars stopping on the cycle path to wait for a gap in traffic (as in the picture). Even if the car is stopped and there is space behind it, as in the picture, you can't be sure that the driver won't reverse or the driver behind won't close the gap so you have to slow down to almost a stop to get through safely. You would have to dismount as well as you would be using the footway part of the path. This isn't a huge problem going up the hill into Cheltenham, (coming towards you in the picture) as it is relatively steep and usually against the prevailing wind if there is any, so you are going slowly anyway. Going down the hill however it is easy to reach 30mph and this is where cyclists are going to be seriously inconvenienced by having to slow down and dismount. I don't think it's a huge safety issue but it will be annoying. Obviously the driver should not be blocking the cycle path at all and should wait in the entrance, which has good visibility, until there is a gap in both the road and the cycle path traffic. This is obviously beyond the skill set of the majority of motorists who would not dream of blocking the road but can't see any problem with blocking the cycle path. The main problem, however, is with drivers from Cheltenham crossing the oncoming traffic to enter the car boot sale. There may be nothing blocking the cycle path and the drivers will be looking for gaps in the (usually continuous) oncoming traffic. When a gap appears they will go but will they have checked that there are no cyclists on the track who will expect the driver to give them priority as instructed in the highway code. A cyclist coming from Cheltenham down the hill will be travelling at speed from behind the driver and the driver will cut across them from their left if they are not seen. Experienced cyclists will be watching out for this but that is not who the cycle path is intended for, it is intended to encourage new cyclists to get on their bikes. Another concern is when a driver is turning into the site and does notice a cyclist and does give way. The driver behind may not be expecting the car in front to stop and there is potential for a rear ending incident. The speed limit is 40mph but it is only adhered to in heavy traffic. I rarely drive but I did drive the road recently and I was doing exactly 40mph when I was overtaken. None of these would be a problem if drivers could be relied upon to obey the highway code but it seems to me that it is asking too much in today's "drivers come first" and "must drive as fast as possible" mentality. Finally one time I cycled when the car boot was on there was a person in a hi vis jacket directing the traffic. If the individual has received training then it should be safer but it will still inconvenience cyclists unless we are given priority.
@KiwiMike Respectfully, I don't think "oh well people can afford it" is a valid excuse for blatantly overcharging for a product. Yes of course it's people's choice whether they want to pay for it or not, just as it's my choice to point out that in my opinion, as with so many cycling products, it's a rip-off.
I guess you’ve never been for a ride in the countryside, and wanted to stop somewhere there isn’t a perfectly-positioned tree, fence or wall? Or have always had the good fortune to have a bike rack or wall positioned perfectly where you need it, and been happy to balance your bike and trust no-one will nudge it. I accept that’s a valid use case.
If you can afford a £3000 ebike you can almost certainly afford this. Especially as it’s the last one you’ll ever need to buy. Of course people will value the utility in their own way, there’s no definitive right / wrong, there’s just choice.
@jackcycles "The idea that you need a dedicated cycleway in order to ride a bike is ludicrous and false" You might not need one because you're a brave cyclist. There are many people in this country who aren't brave, who don't like mixing with traffic, and who won't cycle if they have to. So they need a dedicated cycleway, despite your protestations. "Just be more assertive" will never, ever work as a tool to enable more cycling.
@neilmck Other studies have shown different results, however, e.g. a 2025 study in Barcelona showed injury rates on uni-directional cycle paths were slightly higher than on bi-directional ones - I'll post the link below as otherwise might end up in the black hole of link approval quarantine. The study you cite is from 1990 when in many areas cycle provision was very much in its infancy and drivers were much less accustomed to watching for cyclists in separate infrastructure than they are now. As ever, in my experience at least, the issue is not the cycle lane per se but junction design, with proper mitigating measures e.g. raised tables at junctions, different surface colours, warning signage, set back give ways etc there's no reason bidirectional lanes should be more dangerous.
Bi-directional cycle paths are very dangerous and councils should use extreme caution when deciding to install them. The problem is the complexity they provide motorists who have to cross them. There was a study made in Berlin that shows you are 12 times more likely to be killed at a crossing on a bi-directional cycle path than if you cycled on the road. https://www.bikexprt.com/bikepol/facil/sidepath/adfc173.htm
That - if it is like the photo - seems to be an inadequate and very poor entrance design. Where are the physical features to enforce behaviour? There will be a queue of cars sitting on the mobility track. The LHA could have CPOd a small slice of land to make it adequate and given a one or two car standing area by the carriageway with a bent-in mobility track. I'd say the designers have looked the other way.
I’m not sure this is a problem really. How often does the car boot sale take place?once a week at most, and not every week either? And not all day. I’m sure all users can manage and it would mean everyone taking car at the entrance / exit.
Many years since lived in Cheltenham but if the coach park is where I think it is there is another car park on the opposite side of Evesham rd also part of the race course and has an entrance off the main road and off a side road unlike the coach park it has no hard standing though ...
17 thoughts on “Ineos Grenadiers tease Tour de France bike and new colour scheme; ULTIMATE TdF team reveal in a time of pandemic …goes viral; Trump ‘will never ride a bike’; Before and after bike lane road transformations; Groupama–FDJ boss in OTT victory dance + more”
Groupama FDJ had 17 of the
Groupama FDJ had 17 of the 132 starters, so they did have numbers on their side a bit.
In terms of probabilities of
In terms of probabilities of winning yes just by sheer numbers of riders having a chance,but it’s what kept bugging me on the Eurosport commentary during their coverage of races saying such and such team would bring a breakaway back or that the breakaway contained x many members of a team and thus had numerical team advantage,basically treating it like a normal race, but there are no teams in national championship races,each rider is supposed to ride to defend their own chances,that some of them wear the same kit with the same sponsers isnt supposed to impact how they ride it
That Danforth Ave clip – in
That Danforth Ave clip – in the ‘before’ – shows a ,lot of motorists who don’t appear to be looking ahead of the end of their car’s bonnet: even the ones who aren’t (IMO) ‘close-passing’, are doing a lot of ‘sudden swerving out’.
“Powerlessness is a horrible
“Powerlessness is a horrible feeling. Right now there are a lot of people feeling utterly powerless and bewildered about who and how decisions about road use are being made.”
Peter Kyle is right, and that’s exactly how I’ve felt for the past thirty odd years; powerless. I was just trying to get councils to follow their own transport policies, but all we got were more roads, creating more motor trips, more danger and more pollution. Isn’t it funny how your perspective changes when they stop doing what you want, Peter, and do something else?
It’s the usual rubbish –
It’s the usual rubbish – ‘everyone is equally responsible for any problems, and we all just have to be nice and everything will be fine.’
The truth is that motorised vehicles have been given extraordinary priviledge and priority over decades, and we’ve developed a culture of ‘might is right’ on our roads.
It’s past time to redress the balance, and reduce the carnage caused overwhelmingly by cars, vans and trucks.
Madiot is one of my favourite
Madiot is one of my favourite DSs. It’s all joy or despair with him. After Chavenel got taken out by Shimano Neutral Service a few years back he was incandescent with rage
https://www.velonews.com/news/road/neutral-service-cars-take-out-two-riders-at-tour-of-flanders/
He reminds me of Herve Poncheral in motorbike racing (who won his first MotoGP yesterday)
Can you even imagine the
Can you even imagine the scenes if Pinot wins the Tour
I hope Marc Madiot never gets
I hope Marc Madiot never gets Covid, because with his lung capacity he could be a super-spreader.
Reporting on Trump’s comments regarding cycling is a bit like reporting that a sewage outflow pipe has burped out a big blob of effluent in the shape of a bicycle. It is meaningless.
handlebarcam wrote:
Not meaningless. Viral Youtube and front page news on the Daily Star, I’d wager…
Erm. So: yes, pretty much meaningless.
Look, I’m all for the odd
Look, I’m all for the odd cycle-related political comment, but I do draw the line at Trump. Unless he gets run over by a bicycle.
I always thought this one was
I always thought this one was a good trump bicycle related thing.
That’s always the first
That’s always the first picture I think of when I hear ‘Trump’ and ‘bicycle’ 😀
IIRC she lost her job over that little expression of freedom of – er – gesture…
But I believe there were
But I believe there were offers of employment after.
ktache wrote:
Yeah, ok, that one aside.
Ineos riders spending the
Ineos riders spending the rest of the season looking like a shit Captain Atom
Thanks for the Danforth video
Thanks for the Danforth video. It used to be my neighbourhood and now I want a gyros and some fresh baklava!
“Trump “will never be riding
“Trump “will never be riding a bicycle” he confirms during campaign trail speech”
Good.