Jumbo-Visma sprinter crashes into ravine; Simon Cowell vows to wear a helmet after second fall; Must. Not. Wait. For. Bike; Highway Code sensibleness; ECHELONS; Are you a lentil-munching barista?; Team Qhubeka continues; FOI data + more on the live blog

“I’m turning. Your problem mate”. pic.twitter.com/LqYKdBW5sS

— BecBikeUser (@PavelPietrzak) February 2, 2022

Dutch road race national champion Amy Pieters is "breathing independently" but "currently not conscious", according to SD Worx's manager Danny Stam. Stam told Cycling Weekly there is "not very much difference" from the news we heard before that Pieters remains in a coma following a crash in training on December 23.

"The situation is still stable but not good," Stam updated. "Amy is still in a deep coma and until now there are not so many improvements. Only when she wakes up can there be a prognosis for how she will be in the future. 

"First she needs to wake up. It is a difficult time for everyone. I think for the parents and the boyfriend it’s the hardest time. For the moment, I’d love to tell you more but we don’t know anymore, but that is for everybody a pity. We hope [for] the best, that’s the only thing we can say at this point."

Someone did an interesting FOI request to West Yorks Police it appears motorists are the biggest "Grass" but cyclists are the better judge of what actually constitutes a driving offence. It doesn't include educational courses. @theJeremyVine @MikeyCycling pic.twitter.com/jhbKQFyK97

— Bikery (@Bikery1966) February 3, 2022

 Some interesting Freedom of Information request data here, showing that perhaps unsurprisingly considering the respective numbers of road users, motorists in West Yorkshire submitted more than twice as many videos than cyclists between August 2020 and December 2021.

But when it comes to videos submitted leading to penalty points or a fine, videos by cyclists were significantly more likely to lead to action. 34 per cent of cyclists submissions resulted in action, compared to just 1.8 per cent of motorists', 29 per cent of pedestrian submissions led to points and/or a fine.

What do you make of this? As expected? Surprised cyclists' videos seem to be acted upon fairly often?

green cycling lentil munching baristas pic.twitter.com/MLclt3oAKO

— Thomas O. Cornwallis (@UrbanistTOC) February 2, 2022

I don't eat lentils and rarely drink coffee...am I even a cyclist?  

Dr Paul Arnell has written a column for The Scotsman addressing the "wave of criticism" of cycling and the Highway Code changes...

In it he questions why some portions of the media choose to continue to peddle anti-cycling lines, while ignoring "the simple fact that increased cycling benefits everyone."

It might make slightly easier reading than some of the opinion pieces we shared on road.cc last week...

Dr Arnell concludes that: "The changes to the Highway Code reflect the simple fact that all road users must compromise. It is not a matter of us and them, drivers against cyclists. It is a simple fact that increased cycling benefits everyone."

Simon Cowell has broken his arm in a bicycling accident. Luckily everyone is saying helmets which would have....protected....his...armhttps://t.co/4h5JxlMNPO

— Jon (@Jontafkasi) February 1, 2022

Simon Cowell has spoken about his second e-bike crash in 18 months, and promised to wear a helmet in future...(no promises were made about arm or knee pads, though)...

The reality TV mogul broke his arm, suffered facial cuts and sustained a suspected concussion after falling off an e-bike near his west London home...18 months ago Cowell broke his back after a crash in Malibu.

Speaking to MailOnline, Cowell said he'd definitely be donning a helmet next time..."I'm a bit of a nutter. I'll definitely wear a helmet next time," he said. "I'm OK. I'm feeling much better thank you. It happened just round the corner."

A workman renovating a house nearby told the online news outlet: "He nearly bumped into me the other day. You often see him racing about on his bike although I must admit I haven't seen him on it for a few days. Now I know why. 

"He dashes round the corner without stopping and he's never wearing a helmet. The roads can get very busy round here so he's taking a bit of a chance. You'd have thought he would have learned his lesson after what happened before."

A source added: "Simon has been warned many times to wear a helmet but he doesn’t always take it on board."

Keep 'racing' around, Simon. That helmet will keep you out of hospital for good...(maybe)...

In the same way banks only ever seem to do adverts of friendly branch staff waving at children, car advertisers love to fall back on the classic adventure ad. Cue scenes of a sparkly new motor (not a dot of dirt anywhere) traversing an epic mountain landscape to a vista where a couple inevitably starts a campfire while watching the sun set.

In the summer, Toyota went one step further and snapped a £27,000 adventure model next to a £70 bike that could be bought from Walmart, with the caption 'Our Ideal Adventure'.

More positively, on the car ad topic, new legislation in France means car adverts will have to promote cycling and walking, as the Macron Government ups attempts to encourage people to swap four wheels for a pedal-powered two.

We're biased, obviously. But I'm sure this quote we spotted this morning may resonate with a few of you...

"Bicycles deliver the freedom that car commercials promise". pic.twitter.com/OKivbUaGyl

— ⛑️Car Helmets⛑️ (@CarHelmets) January 29, 2022

It's why so many of us were attracted to taking up cycling in the first place: exploring new places, a sense of freedom etc. Ernest Hemmingway famously said, "It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up hills and coast down them"...

Where's your next adventure going to be? A new route this weekend? A long-awaited summer adventure? Give us some inspiration in the comments...