Griff Rhys Jones Vs “yob" cyclists takes a twist; What the… 'CycloCrocs’!!?; Daily Mail's Andrew Pierce has cycle lane meltdown; New Canyon Grail; Storm Francis turns Cycleways to rivers; Pacman ride + more on the live blog

Oh FFS Tower Hamlets, just as winter is due to kick in and Victoria Park closing early. This would have been the only safe route for families, except the narrow shared footway on Victoria Park Road in Hackney. Wrong decision pic.twitter.com/WQJug9t4iM

— Hackney Cyclist (@Hackneycyclist) August 24, 2020

Just completely the wrong decision and the wrong message to send about liveable neighbourhoods and active travel. You've got this completely wrong @TowerHamletsNow when you have an ongoing narrative about creating safe cycle and walking routes.

— Kყ-Cყƈʅҽ-ʅιҽ (@netwench) August 24, 2020

What a stupid decision @TowerHamletsNow! Now is a golden opportunity to make permanent changes which benefits the masses, and not the minority who own cars.

— Toby Edwards (@IsSaddleThereIs) August 24, 2020

Hopes of a traffic-free route to school for local children have evaporated after Skew Bridge on Old Ford Road, Bethnal Green reopened to motor vehicles today. 

Kevin Brady, a the Labour councillor for St Peter's Ward, Tower Hamlets, said in the comments: "The bridge was always due to reopen once the traffic levels started to build up post-lockdown. A closure will still be considered as part of the Old Ford Road Liveable Streets scheme which would manage the entirety of the area holistically."

It comes amid numerous rows countrywide about the implementation of Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, including in Islington where those in opposition have been taking to the streets weekly to protest the changes; ironically on foot, and blocking the road to motor traffic... 

Last month, the 66-year-old TV presenter penned a Daily Mail article complaining about "yob" cyclists using his footpath, claiming one went by him "at approximately 40 miles an hour" (which didn't much amuse Alex Dowsett)... and now, although the footpath that runs through Rhys Jones' garden has no specific by-law that prevents cycling, Suffolk Highways have reminded cyclists that without permission from landowners, they could be trespassing.

A spokesman for Suffolk Highways told East Anglian Daily Times: “Over the last few months, during the Covid-19 lockdown, many road users have been encouraged to take up walking and cycling.

“Since the interest in cycling has increased, Suffolk Highways has received a higher number of reports regarding cycling on public footpaths, particularly on river walls, because of their narrow nature.

“Although it is not an offence to cycle on a public footpath, doing so without permission from the landowner is likely to be trespassing.”

In Rhys Jones' article, he was picture next to a 'no cycling' sign he had installed himself; however Suffolk Highways have asked landowners to familiarise themselves with the law and refrain from erecting barriers to prevent cyclists.

Thames Valley Police are appealing for witnesses after the cyclist, a man in his 40's, collided with the the driver of a vehicle that didn't stop at the scene at 9.45pm on Sunday evening. After the incident on H9 Groveway, the victim was taken to the hospital where he is still receiving treatment. 

Investigating officer PC Adam Stevens said: “We believe that the vehicle involved is a Volvo V50, S40, C30 or C70 from debris recovered from the scene. Therefore we are also appealing to anyone who knows of a Volvo that has recently sustained damage to its headlight, front bumper and bonnet to please get in touch.

“Further, if you were in the local area around the time of this incident and have a dash-cam, we would urge you to check the footage in case it has captured anything that could assist our investigation.

“Anyone with information can contact police by calling 101, or making a report online, quoting reference 43200265069.

“Alternatively, if you wish to remain anonymous you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

Canyon has updated its Grail gravel bike range with a move away from 1X drivetrains that have been so dominant on the gravel market in recent years. Instead, its back to double chainring setups with the only single ring offering being the new entry-level aluminium Grail 7.

The new bike, costing £1,699, gets a 1X Shimano GRX groupset with a 40t chainring paired to an 11-42T cassette for a good amount of range.

The move away from 1X setups is surprising given the way that the gravel market has been pushing the benefits of ditching your front derailleur and it will be interesting to see how consumers react.

Canyon has also switched saddles to Fizik’s Argo for all Grail models except the new 7 and the WMN models.

The Grail range is still topped by the CF SLX 8 eTap at £4,779 with the new Grail 7 being the most affordable at £1,699

Canyon.com

At last there has been a revolt against cycle super highways turning our towns and cities into polluted car parks. When will the war on motorists come to an end? https://t.co/QoyvV1fGX6

— Andrew Pierce (@toryboypierce) August 24, 2020

In a prime example of someone putting two and two together and arriving at anything other than four, Andrew Pierce complains that London is a "car park"... yet places the blame on cycle lanes rather than the cars themselves for London's congestion woes. Pierce continues: "The speed limit roughly... the average speed in central London when we're not in Covid of course is 6mph. And why? Because of all those wretched cycle superhighways. And I'm afraid cyclists, they don't deserve them. 

"They're inconsiderate, they're rude, they're ignorant, they drive through red lights, they cycle through amber lights, they cycle on the pavement regularly, often shouting at me to get out of the way when I'm on the pavement." 

I think you'll find it is cars that have turned our cities into polluted car parks.

— Cycleops70 (@Carrot70) August 24, 2020

Right it’s the cyclists causing traffic jams. Not the cars. That makes total sense.

— Carlos Fridge (@carlosthefridge) August 24, 2020

You have an unerring ability to come down on the wrong side of every issue. It's almost uncanny. Tell me how a nearly 10 year freeze on petrol duty constitutes a "war on motorists".

— Brian Tutt (@tutt_brian) August 24, 2020

Pierce hasn't replied to any of his detractors, instead turning his attention to the "PC-brigade" in his latest video upload today over the BBC's decision not to feature lyrics to 'Land of Hope and Glory' and 'Rule, Britannia!' at Last Night of the Proms (priorities and all). His thoughts on cycle lanes and cyclists appear to be reminiscent of Talkradio's Mike Graham, who last month claimed that the cycling community is "an absolute eyesore on the entire country”, adding: “What we don’t need in this country is more cyclists. What we do need is more space for cars."

Are these baseless rants the last bastion of a car-dominated culture that is slowly unravelling, or are there even more troubling times ahead? Let us know your thoughts  in the comments as always. 

Trek Segafredo rider Deignan triumphed over the 101 kilometre course for her first win of 2020, beating fellow Lizzy and fellow Brit Lizzy Banks in a two-up sprint after burning off the rest of the competition. 

Deignan said: “I’m delighted, it’s been a difficult season for everybody so far and we’ve had a lot of bad luck in the first few races. It’s been clear to me that we’ve had the strongest team in all the races and finally the luck was on our side."

In the first trial of its kind on the platform, cycling apparel brand Le Col will "reward riders for every kilometre they ride and upload to Strava" with the Rewards For Riding programme, currently in beta mode. All you need to do is make an account on Le Col's website, link your Strava account and then watch your points tally up as you upload more rides (1 kilometre = 1 point). The more points you accrue, the greater discount you can get on Le Col gear. 

Le Col say they're already working on a Beta 2.0, which will offer extra points to those who are paid Strava subscribers. Le Col's founder Yanto Barker comments: “We know cyclists put in hours of dedication to the sport, so this collaboration with Strava gives our members a chance to not only be rewarded for their riding but also give them access to performance focused apparel that can improve riding times and experience.”

Find out more here. 

🇫🇷 #BretagneClassic 

We'll be lining up at the @GrandPrixPlouay this morning. Here's what it'll entail:

📍Plouay ➡️ Plouay
🚩 Start 09:45
🏁 Finish ca. 16:00
🛣️ 248km pic.twitter.com/ivlEwXTARy

— BORA – hansgrohe (@BORAhansgrohe) August 25, 2020

📝 UPDATE: BORA - hansgrohe withdraws team from the Bretagne Classic due to positive COVID-19 test.

Read more here: https://t.co/Zdn9GgFhBM pic.twitter.com/TNxRvckQgz

— BORA – hansgrohe (@BORAhansgrohe) August 25, 2020

Two hours ago, Bora-Hansgrohe took to Twitter to announce that they were lining up for the French one-day race later on today... and now, they've had to withdraw due to a positive coronavirus test on the team.

The rider hasn't been named yet, with a statement saying: "One of the team’s riders received a positive result from the 3-day test after a negative 6-day test. As a result, BORA-Hansgrohe has withdrawn the entire team from the race. All necessary measures for contact tracing have been initiated immediately.

"We received the positive result this morning and reacted immediately. The team cannot participate in the race. All team members who have been in direct contact with the rider will go into self-isolation according to official regulations. The affected rider is asymptomatic and displays no signs of illness.”

The riders in Bora's Bretagne Classic squad were Cesare Benedetti, Marcus Burghardt, Jempy Drucker, Oscar Gatto, Patrick Gamper, Jay McCarthy and Ide Schelling. 

Almost as weird as the legs themselves, is that pro cyclists feel the need to share photos of them on social media. The latest is from Ben King, with the 31-year-old American taking to his Instagram stories to ask followers if his leg is 'strong' or 'weird and gross'... what do we reckon?

See Pawel Poljanski and Jose Joaquin Rojas for other notable examples from the weird veiny leg archive.