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news
“Those cobbles are cushions for him”: Cyclists impressed by Van der Poel taking off vest while turning on cobbled climb; Cab driver turns left without indicating, almost hits Jeremy Vine… and laughs it off; No AI Wout van ‘Art’ + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Van der Poel taking off vest at E328 March 2025, 15:40
“Those cobbles are cushions for him”: Cyclists impressed by Van der Poel taking off vest while turning on cobbled climb
Just a crisp and pointed reminder of the skill gap between us amateurs, mere mortals, like most readers of this live blog (and your live blog host, of course), and the pro cyclists at the highest level, doing tasks that we won’t even bother with.
Before the attack on Taaienberg, former world champion last year’s winner Mathieu van der Poel was seen tackling a bend on an uphill section on the cobbles, while also taking off his upper vest layer.
Cycling fan and host of the Lanterne Rouge podcast, Benji Naessen wrote: “Just the simple action of taking a jacket or arm warmers off while riding without hands, on a cobble sector… That’s something I know I’ll never be able to do.”
Another person replied: “And he did it on a turn… handling God.”
Meanwhile, commenting under Velon’s post, one person noted: “I can’t even change my clothes standing still next to the bike without falling over,” while another remarked: “Those cobbles are cushions for him.”
MVDP’s technique is the good that he is confident enough to casually taking his vest on an uphill cobbled sector 🤯 #E3SaxoClassic pic.twitter.com/Wnqp7FdQDJ
— Lukáš Ronald Lukács (@lucasaganronald) March 28, 2025
This brings to mind Van der Poel’s heroics at the Glasgow road world championships in 2023, when the Dutch rider crashed with just 16km to go and was left with a damaged cleat, along with a bruised shoulder and torso.
As he was getting back up on his saddle, you could see the top BOA dial floating about on his personalised Shimano S-Phyre RC903 — now almost at the back of the shoe, barely held together by the laces but it wasn’t doing much, definitely not what it was originally supposed to.
And just like this time, and countless others, cyclists couldn’t help but tip their hats in chapeau, as on the ride that would make him the world champion, he spent few minutes after getting back on the bike fiddling with the dial, getting fed up with it, and ripping the thing off.
28 March 2025, 16:44
“Mathieu magic”: Van der Poel lays down a marker before Ronde van Vlaanderen, as he soloes to a dominant victory at the E3 Saxo Classic for a second year in a row
Talk about someone at the top of their game. “Nobody can match him. Nobody can come close,” as the commentators said. Three one-day races in 2025, three wins. Take a bow, Mathieu van der Poel.
Coming off the back of the E3 and Tour of Flanders double from last year, Van der Poel has passed the first cobbled test before the Ronde showdown with Tadej Pogačar, and if you were to ask your live blog host, he’d put his money on the flying Dutchman right now.
With an early crash catching him out and separating him from the lead by almost three minutes, a superb effort from the Alpecin-Deceuninck team saw him well-placed to follow Mads Pedersen’s first attack on the Taaienberg, before he left the five-man breakaway licking their wounds with a blistering burst of acceleration on the Oude Kwaremont.
From there on, it was a breezy ride, sealed at the end with a gleeful thumbs up from the former world champion, as he crossed the finish line over a minute ahead of Mads Pedersen, followed by Filippo Ganna, who marked another podium finish after Milan-Sanremo, finishing more than two minutes behind the leader.
It's a casual thumbs-up from Mathieu van der Poel, who continues to dominate with ANOTHER Classics win at E3 👍
Mads Pedersen and Filippo Ganna round off the podium 👏 pic.twitter.com/iBglEQ3gGD
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) March 28, 2025
Van der Poel said at the finish: “I’m very, very happy. We had a tough race with team, but I have to thank my whole team for the amazing job they did today. I was really motivated to finish it off.”
28 March 2025, 21:47
Man of the moment Matty Brennan strikes again at Volta a Catalunya after crosswinds chaos, as Juan Ayuso nabs race lead back from Primož Roglič ahead of decisive final weekend
The kid really is the real deal, isn't he?
28 March 2025, 17:30
road.cc Podcast centennial, and there could only ever be one guest...
Yes, it's BBC Radio 2 and Channel 5 presenter Jeremy Vine, who sheds a light on his dramatic, jazzily edited encounters with London’s vast array of careless, distracted, and often dangerous drivers, and also talks about how he was once, in his own words, “car-brained”...
28 March 2025, 16:34
“A reminder of what can happen — it’s never over until it’s over”: MvdP’s close call, and an awkward save
After all that talk of superhuman skills and “god-like” handling, Van der Poel came perilously close to disaster on a wet roundabout.
Is he washed? Nah, he still saved it (I would’ve definitely landed on my face). Scratch that, he’s still superhuman, I’d say 95 per cent of times.
28 March 2025, 14:58
Milan-Sanremo all over again?! Pedersen attacks on Taaienberg… and Mathieu van der Poel follows, with Flippo Ganna in pursuit
It’s as the saying goes: The more things change, the more they stay the same…
Just like Saturday, just like Cipressa and Poggio, a familiar sight has just unfolded at the E3 Saxo this afternoon. Just how Pogačar took the onus on himself to separate the cream from the pack, today it was another former world champion who has decided to try the same trick.
And just how he held on to Pogačar’s wheel and never let go, Mathieu van der Poel is now glued to Pedersen’s wheel, with Filippo Ganna once again digging deep and playing the role of the chasing party.
It's nearly a repeat of Milano-Sanremo 🥵
Mads Pedersen attacks on the Taaienberg... and Mathieu van der Poel follows, with Flippo Ganna in pursuit 💪💥 pic.twitter.com/1ZHZh9aljR
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) March 28, 2025
How will it all unfold? We’ll have the answers with you soon…
28 March 2025, 14:39
The latest mad thing from Mads: Pedersen opts for monster chainring and gravel cassette
First, the switch over to 1x, then the constantly increasing chainring sizes across the peloton, and now the classics specialist from Denmark has gone for not only a monster chainring, but also what looks like a 10-36 gravel cassette from SRAM
28 March 2025, 10:08
“They don’t care, plain and simple”: Cab driver turns left without indicating, almost hits Jeremy Vine… and laughs it off, as broadcaster asks cyclists “why so-called ‘professional drivers’ are among the most dangerous”
A (not) good ol’ left-turning driver ignoring to check for cyclists to kick off the Friday blog…
This time, it was Jeremy Vine who was on the receiving end of the driving manoeuvre that we’ve seen way too many times here at road.cc. The broadcaster shared the video on social media this morning and wrote: “Can anyone explain why so-called 'professional drivers' are among the most dangerous users of our roads? This taxi driver LAUGHED instead of indicating.”
The driver, who slows down and comes to a halt at a Belisha beacon crossing in London, turns left without using their indicator, nor without checking for anyone on the left.
Cue Jeremy Vine blaring his deafening horns (sure you know which one by know), and the driver panicking and remembering to turn on his left indicator, as the BBC Radio 2 and Channel 5 presenter says: “You’re not going left are you? You didn’t signal,” before riding away, muttering a dejected “incredible” under his breath.
Can anyone explain why so-called “professional drivers” are among the most dangerous users of our roads? This taxi driver LAUGHED instead of indicating pic.twitter.com/mduEMSwSOP
— Jeremy Vine | Here, on Insta & Facebook (@theJeremyVine) March 28, 2025
David Kirkwood replied under the video: “Our authorities inculcate into the public’s collective psyche the notion that public highway is primarily for driving on. The driving public regard the non driving public as getting in the way - the reality is the opposite, but no one in authority can admit to that.”
Mustapha, meanwhile, said: “They don’t care, plain and simple,” to which a reply from Jerry read: “Why would they care when the police don’t care, the CPS don’t care, and the courts don’t care?”
At the beginning of this year, Vine had revealed that his new year’s resolution would be “not to get cross when I'm cycling and drivers do things like this”, after a similar case of a van driver turning across a cycle lane, not giving the cyclist priority as the Highway Code advises.
Who would have thought that it’d be incredibly difficult to maintain your resolution when drivers keep doing stuff like this on roads…
28 March 2025, 14:10
Average ‘Murican roundabout with average nonsensical laws… and average anti-cycling comments (it might remind of you of a recent story from close to home)
Imagine building a roundabout with high-speed exits where motorists have the right of way and there are no safe road crossings for pedestrians and cyclists — and then blaming the vulnerable road users for breaking the law and putting yourselves in danger.
That’s what the Twitter/X account of Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office in Florida has done, writing: “Stop signs on the Pinellas Trail aren’t suggestions—they’re lifelines. Each time cyclists and pedestrians ignore them, they’re gambling with lives. This video shows how common this dangerous behaviour is. STOP. Look. Then go. Those few seconds matter.”
Stop signs on the Pinellas Trail aren't suggestions—they're lifelines. Each time cyclists and pedestrians ignore them, they're gambling with lives. This video shows how common this dangerous behavior is. STOP. Look. Then go. Those few seconds matter. pic.twitter.com/KLWwUtNWYr
— Pinellas County Sheriff's Office (@SheriffPinellas) March 26, 2025
You wouldn’t be wrong to assume that the anti-cycling comments go hand-in-hand with a post such as this.
If this seems a bit perplexing and preposterous just because it’s our friends across the Atlantic, maybe a look closer home could also serve us well. Norfolk County Council has been under fire from cyclists, pedestrians and NHS workers for “severing” a popular walking and cycling route connecting the city centre to Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.
In what were initially proposed as “improvements”, the council’s roadworks instead have been described as a “serious downgrade” — removing toucan crossings and replacing them with completely unregulated dropped kerb crossings, in the midst of fast-moving motor traffic…
28 March 2025, 12:18
At least it’s not AI Wout van “Art”…
With Wout van Aert finally joining the party after an altitude training camp with his participation at the E3 Saxo Classic today, here’s an interesting artwork from Red Bull Belgium.
At least it’s not made with generative AI…
28 March 2025, 12:09
Cyclist accused of smashing car windscreen with bike lock, “turning it into a weapon”, in alleged road rage clash with driver
“The cyclist, who I presume obviously didn’t see him, must have gone into the back of him,” the motorist’s father said about the initial incident that sparked the confrontation, which they claim was captured on a bus driver’s dashcam
28 March 2025, 11:45
“We rode all the races in our time, didn’t we? Can you win 512 races like I did in this day and age?”: Roger De Vlaeminck issues brutal criticism of current-day riders shortening their season, and plays down Pogačar at Paris-Roubaix hype
Monsieur Paris-Roubaix is not all that impressed with the excitement and buzz among cycling fans with the news that world champion and three-time Tour winner Tadej Pogačar would be racing the Hell of the North for the first time in his storied career in two weeks’ time.
Former Belgian cyclist and legendary classics rider Roger De Vlaeminck, who boasts a palmarès comparable with very few (four Paris-Roubaix, three Milan-Sanremo, two Il Lombardia, and a Ronde and Liège-Bastogne-Liège each), has expressed his disappointment at the current crop of riders cutting down races in the fear of “burning out” quickly.
Speaking to Belgian news website Sporza, De Vlaeminck said that he didn’t get all the hype projected by Tadej Pogačar’s participation in Paris-Roubaix. “It’s like you’re suddenly very happy now… I think it’s all normal, you know,” he said, adding that he was having a hard time understanding why Pogačar removed today’s E3 Saxo Classic and Sunday’s Gent-Wevelgem from his programme.
He added: “We rode all the races in our time, didn’t we? I rode at least 120 races, about 15 cross-country races and a few six-day races. I myself have won Tirreno-Adriatico six times and in those years also three times Milan-Sanremo.
“Why should that not be possible now? That the riders now fear that they will burn out too quickly? Am I burned out myself, perhaps?”
According to De Vlaeminck, it perhaps has to do with team bosses playing a major role in determining the riders’ schedule, as was evident when UAE Team Emirates boss Mauro Gianetti warned Pogačar against jeopardising his Tour de France chances, and potentially ruining his season, by crashing on the cobbles.
“Those riders don't choose, it's the bosses around them who do. We rode everything,” he added. “Winning 512 races like I do, is that no longer possible these days? Why not? Of course not if you only ride 400.
“We have also earned our living well, but we also had to ride a lot of races for it. It sometimes makes me sick.”
28 March 2025, 11:22
Pro cyclist’s horror three-metre plunge over guardrail sparks call for more earpieces, gear limits, protective kit, and other safety measures
Adwitiya joined road.cc in 2023 as a news writer after completing his masters in journalism from Cardiff University. His dissertation focused on active travel, which soon threw him into the deep end of covering everything related to the two-wheeled tool, and now cycling is as big a part of his life as guitars and football. He has previously covered local and national politics for Voice Cymru, and also likes to write about science, tech and the environment, if he can find the time. Living right next to the Taff trail in the Welsh capital, you can find him trying to tackle the brutal climbs in the valleys.
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Its not a booby trap as it says clearly right on the side the outcome of cutting it. The same as aerosol paint cans have warnings not to...
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A comedian with a purpose can achieve more than the politicians e.g. Zelesky.
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Sounds a bit specific though given 90% are bought on some sort of finance.
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MORE LANES, MORE LANES!!!!
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The numbers don't tell anything like the whole story....
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Just squirt some thick grease all over his side windows and door panels. If you're feeling really uncharitable you could throw some sand at the...
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check under 'W'for "What cars do to people"
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good to see you're testing the farsports wheels - hope to see road.cc continue to expand the range of brands it considers. These or the shallower...
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Sadly very normal. And the sand contains loads of evil little shards of flint.
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37 comments
As I've also placed here the nutter Audi and white van drivers, I've decided to give those no-nonsense keep-the-country-moving BMW drivers a list of their own they'll be proud of, for citation purposes
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62zyqdqv77o
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/breaking-kendal-tragedy-child-dies-34804015
Photos of the BMW i40 after the driver killed Poppy Atkinson by smashing through the fence surrounding a games pitch at Kendal Rugby Club
https://upride.cc/incident/817ath_bmwi4_closepassuwlcross/
https://upride.cc/incident/a15tjv_bmwm4_redlightpass/
https://upride.cc/incident/lc64tge_bmw_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/n10hut_bmw_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/sd15ulz_bmw_speeding/
https://upride.cc/incident/fd67nej_bmw420_redlightcross/
https://upride.cc/incident/bu63ayy_bmw_uwlcross/
https://upride.cc/incident/j111kdw_bmwgrancoupe_closepassuwlcross/
https://upride.cc/incident/j111kdw_bmwgrancoupe_uwlcross/
Ah yes, Florida....
In Tallahassee, Fla., where many pedestrians were dying on the streets last year as they were in Anchorage, local prosecutor Jack Campbell explained to WCTV that a driver being negligent isn’t enough to constitute a crime even if the driver kills someone.
"You’re still responsible financially, so there’s a disincentive to it,” he told the TV station. "I can be sued because I was driving, but it wasn’t to the point that we want to put you in jail."
Re the Vine clip. It doesn't really matter who was in the right, from a self preservation point of view, I wouldn't put myself in that position.
I'm not saying the taxi driver was in the right either.
Exactly. We live in a jungle where the stronger always wins.
RE: Average ‘Murican roundabout with average nonsensical laws…
As I understand it, the average American roundabout doesn't exist - to a first approximation they just don't do them. Not "there are no cycling - equipped roundabouts" - almost no roundabouts full stop (more on this here, here, here, here). There are a couple of notable exceptions (particularly Carmel, Indiana).
So... as so often I think we are best just leaving the US to their own traffic problems in their own way. We have our own anyway; and the solutions are a lot closer!
Of course roundabouts don't exist there - they are traffic circles !
Other than a few mini roundabouts that have four-way stops, I think there are about five in or around my town.
Here's a lovely one I sprint through downtown, keeping up with traffic. If you hit the portal fast enough, it activates and you end up on another planet.
I love it - it's a roundabout with a sculpture of a roundabout on its desk!
Just to redress the balance slightly re white van drivers, one time I was at the side of the road fixing a mechanical when a WVD stopped and offered to help and another when I had a catastrophic tyre tear in which all the sealant flowed out a WVD went out of his way to give me and my bike a lift home.
There's good and bad on bikes, in cars, and vans.
Exactly that.
Just to redress the balance slightly re white van drivers
https://upride.cc/incident/kv69zns_sprinter_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/sc19usu_brosterbuilders_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/dl51jml_vwtransporter_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/pf72wxt_transit_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/cu19exj_hannanblindsexpert_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/rx17mxlpn66kna_2lorriestogether_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/dg07tmo_mbvito_closepass/
https://upride.cc/incident/po13jsx_berlingo_closepass/
And that's only going back a year (and did you spot the black one?)
In general, I'd say bus drivers in London were far worse than black cab drivers.
When bus drivers behave like this, I can see why:
https://youtu.be/SF4u42-lx84
It's all Ok the government have road safety in hand.
From a commons debate 27th March :
Hopefully it will fix left hooks as well.
Personally, I am of the opinion that they ought to carry out a comprehensive road safety review before they start announcing any new strategy…
I'm of the opinion they should simply announce whether they really want change or are happy enough with the status quo - acknowledging that comes with deepening road maintenance costs, worsening congestion, no change or a worsening in the casualty rates etc.
Of course no government would commit to a statement of "plan is - like now but a bit worse because frankly change is politically unpalatable, there are vast and powerful vested intests and we can't see a fast political payoff (or indeed some free tickets from the cycle industry / jobs for my constituents in a new pannier factory)"!
Nor - far worse - the opposite, a decision that no, we can't go on like this and we are prepared to do what it takes to change (even just a little bit).
Increasingly I doubt that the UK can change (positively) at regional / national level without making a commitment to some drastic (for us) shifts in policy *.
Why? Well it was pretty disruptive for the Dutch when they made their change in direction in the 70s. And that happened when a large percentage of people still cycled and walked, they already had a lot of "roughly good enough" cycle infra (though it may have been "for" motor scooters) in many places and there were fewer motor vehicles and journeys per head of population. Plus - like many countries - road deaths were still increasing ** and an oil crisis had just focussed minds on the lack of resilience of motor transport.
* Very fortunately active travel is "small" and "local" - so things can be done e.g. in a town, or part of a city.
** Hence "Stop De Kindermoord" had real visceral appeal (even the minister of transport had lost a child). Unlike now in the UK where for most it's just in the background (or one of the many worries of parents).
The hon. Lady raises a very important question, and I am passionate about this issue. She will be aware that the Government will be bringing forward a new road safety strategy—the first one in over a decade
APPGCW 2017 Report: many problems remain, particularly where cyclists are the victims. The Ministry of Justice should examine in more detail how these offences are being used, including the penalties available for offences of careless and dangerous driving.
APPGCW 2023 Report: In December 2021, the Government recommitted to review road traffic offences, a commitment initially made in 2014. The review still has not commenced, however.
APPGCW 2027 Report?
Even better, concerning the dodge most beloved of the police (after he didn't see the cyclist; he didn't mean to do it and it was only a momentary loss of concentration/ doesn't remember the incident/ experienced a fit/ medical episode)
APPGCW 2017 Report: The length of time required by the Police to serve a Notice of Intended Prosecution for a road traffic offence is currently just 14 days and must be extended. This period is too short to enable many cases to be adequately processed and in some cases may enable offenders to escape justice.
APPGCW 2023 Report: No progress but look what's happened by 2025!
Bungle's quotation from Parliament: the perception of and actual issues with safety on our highways
That must be it- it's all just a perception! These happened within 2 minutes:
https://upride.cc/incident/cd10wer_audiq7_closerpass/
https://upride.cc/incident/wj19kwe_karoq_closepass/
I'm sure your local police will be happy to deal with perceptions - or even extra laws - in exactly the same way they have up to this point!
Your perception is spot-on!
Pretty appalling those numbers although tbh 54% and 74% of a very small number is hardly anything.
She was saying that 29% of women and 46% of men do cycle, so in the UK as a whole that would amount to about 15 million men and 10 million women, perhaps disappointingly small but not "hardly anything".
That must be in the sense of "x% of population cycle" that our occasional US friend seems to use e.g. perhaps for 30 minutes in the park, once every decade or so? Or does it actually mean "own a bike"?
Unless - like so many drivers - I am literally not seeing the cyclists? I'm pretty sure I'd have noticed if 46% of men in Edinburgh cycled with any regularity. But perhaps they're all commuting on the bypass (motorway rules so not legal, so I have never ridden there myself)?
Or does the entire population of e.g. SE England cycle-commute?
"lies, damned lies, and statistics"
She seems to have confused 'have cycled' with 'do cycle'.
My list of driver types that require extra caution by other road users :
Taxi drivers,
Parents in SUVs near schools,
Customers near takeaway outlets,
White vans,
VW Golf owners (especially the ones wearing baseball caps),
Drivers with hoodies in the up position,
Anybody after 12.30 pm on a Friday.
SUVs with gleaming mountain bikes strapped to the rear
Here it's not so much the golf owners as the fiesta drivers and the pickup trucks.
Also anyone wearing a baseball cap while driving
+ Teslas (seem to have become new Audi/BMW)
Big pickup trucks that have clearly never been used for their intended purposes
Any motorcycle or electric bicycle with a Just Eat/Uber/Deliveroo bag on the back
Scaffolding lorries/skip delivery lorries
Cars with "baby on board" stickers
Cars with any bling modifications such as expensive alloys, LED lights on the underside et cetera
Plus everybody else.
On my LEJoG, I noticed worse driving by the people driving hired caravans in Scotland, and any white hatchback with an Arnold Clark sticker on the back window.
But the worst close pass was of course a big, newer BMW.
I think it's difficult to categorise like this.
I've had boy racers in souped up cars be very respectful when passing and others who have put all road and footpath users in danger.
Same for taxi drivers and white van men/women.
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