CyclingMikey confronted by angry passenger for stopping corner-cutting cabbie; Grant Shapps’ strange Fix Your Bike promo vid; Gridlock traffic chaos replaces LTN; Rwanda World Champs?; Incredible KHS scenes; Spring sunshine + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Gridlock traffic chaos replaces low traffic neighbourhood
So, so lovely. Meanwhile in Wandsworth, this is one of the LTNs that they cancelled and this was our normal evening traffic. pic.twitter.com/AFaZYXv3mX
— Sasha Brendon 💙 (@SashaBGood) March 29, 2021
Heavy traffic and congestion in your area? Step one: blame low traffic neighbourhoods. Step two: get low traffic neighbourhoods removed. Step three: return to traffic-free, empty streets…Oh, hang on a second…
Some scenes from Wandsworth last night where an LTN scheme was removed after complaints. Wandsworth Labour active travel and transport cabinet speaker, Jo Rigby, commented on the video saying: “‘‘Open our roads’ they demanded. Chances are that every single one of these drivers signed a petition to end the LTNs.”
One local disputed Rigby’s claim, arguing that the problem is that, “that particular road was narrowed last year which was not reversed. As a local driver, I have been stuck here too and believe that is the reason for the build up, nothing to do with LTNs.”
However, as Steve Morgan pointed out: “Reason for the build up is the cars. The cars that are blocking the road for…other cars. If the road has been narrowed and some parked cars have blocked the road. Then the reason is…cars.”
By contrast, elsewhere in London…
Just a reminder that the London Fields Low Traffic Neighbourhood was implemented on 9 September 2020.
As of today it has been in place for 6 months and two weeks.pic.twitter.com/rAGOyl3yVw
— London Fields #LTN (@enjoyLDNfields) March 29, 2021
UCI to assess Rwanda's bid to host the 2025 World Championships
43 days to go, the greatest tour! #TdRwanda21 #cycling #Rwanda pic.twitter.com/6vTJUKP2aA
— Robert Cyubahiro McKenna (@RobCyubahiro) January 8, 2021
Rwanda is bidding to be the first African country to host cycling’s World Championships, with an inspection team from the UCI expected to visit in May. The East African country faces competition from Morocco for the 2025 championships. This year’s rainbow bands will be won in Flanders before Australia in 2022, Glasgow 2023 and Switzerland in 2024.
Rwandan Cycling Federation president Abdallah Murenzi said he is keen to meet with the UCI’s technical team to persuade them Rwanda is a suitable host. “A technical team from UCI is expected in Rwanda in May to assess whether what we presented in the document of submission are the same as what is on ground,” he told New Times Sport. “We have received positive feedback about our bid, but that won’t be enough for us to win the bid because we still face competition from Morocco. What the inspection team will observe during their field visit will decide who wins the bid.”
Monday's poll results: what are your riding plans under the new rules?
British Cycling asked cyclists to treat 15-person group rides as a maximum not a target now that the lockdown rules have eased slightly. British Cycling-affiliated clubs can go out with up to 15 riders, with the rule of six in play elsewhere. We’re interested to hear about your plans, especially having heard concerns 15-person rides might be mistaken for rule breaking by those not in the know…
Most of you said you’d stick to riding on your ones for now.
Philippe Gilbert to skip the Tour of Flanders to take physical and mental rest
🎙️ @PhilippeGilbert: “We took the time to analyse everything there was to discuss and we came to the conclusion that it is a lack of mental and physical freshness. I think it is due to all the work I did after my crash at the Tour de France last year.”https://t.co/HyICsXPxzw
— Lotto Soudal (@Lotto_Soudal) March 29, 2021
Lotto-Soudal have announced their star rider and five-time Monument winner Philippe Gilbert won’t be racing at the Tour of Flanders this weekend. Gilbert won the race in 2017 but hasn’t reached his usual best this season and “will take a period of necessary rest, both physically and mentally” before the Ardennes Classics later in April.
“We decided with the team that I would take a period of rest now because it is not going well at all,” Gilbert explained. “It’s been a few weeks now that things haven’t been going well. We took the time to analyse everything there was to discuss and we came to the conclusion that it is a lack of mental and physical freshness.
“I think it is due to all the work I did after my crash at the Tour de France last year. I am still human. I put in a lot of work, without any decent rest really, because during the weeks off the bike. When you find yourself in this stage, the only way to let your body work naturally, is to give it some rest.”
Haters will say it's photoshopped...
Find out more about why we urge @MayorofLondon and @grantshapps to collaborate and stop this rogue borough from leaving cyclists exposed to preventable road danger https://t.co/Kjl7aw5jCY
— London Cycling Campaign (@London_Cycling) March 30, 2021
Italian pro Matteo De Bonis tests positive for EPO casting doubt on his team's participation at the Giro d'Italia
Matteo De Bonis (Vini Zabù) currently suspended by the UCI for the use of EPO.
It’s the second doping case within a 12 month period for Vini Zabù which means they’ll get a 15 to 45 days suspension and could be out for the #Giro. https://t.co/kvbFMe9PAl
— La Flamme Rouge (@laflammerouge16) March 30, 2021
Vini Zabù–Brado–KTM’s Italian pro Matteo De Bonis has tested positive for EPO in an out-of-competition test in February. The rider has been provisionally suspended in a case which may have implications for the Giro d’Italia as it’s the team’s second adverse analytical finding in 12 months.
Matteo Spreafico tested positive for osterine during last year’s Giro and the team has be automatically suspended for 15 to 45 days after today’s news. The Giro, which Vini Zabù are due to take part in, starts in Turin in 39 days…Will Androni Giocattoli–Sidermec and Gianni Savio be getting a late call up?
Both the team and rider’s suspensions have been referred to the UCI’s Disciplinary Commission.
Might be too hot
In tribute to one of the finest pieces of British culture and the fact we could be in the Med with our temperatures today, help us settle an age-old question….Is it too hot today? Are you feeling like Julian or Davide Ballerini?
Ballerini represents a rider from Norway riding in 17 degrees.
Alaphilippe represents a rider from southern Spain riding in 17 degrees.
— La Flamme Rouge (@laflammerouge16) March 30, 2021
Water, sun cream and all that good stuff if you’re out and about today…We’ve waited all winter for some nice weather.
Also, check out our survival guide and top tips for looking after your skin when riding in the sun…
But don’t just look after yourself. The turn of the seasons is a great time to take a look at your bike and get all that harsh winter riding cleaned up. It’ll stop excessive wear to your components and get everything looking shiny and ready for a summer in the lanes…
Maybe I’m getting ahead of myself with April not yet here, but why not plan ahead and take a look at our buyer’s guide of the best summer cycling jerseys for beating the heat?
All readers from warmer climates can stop rolling their eyes now.
Giant sales up 10 per cent in 2020 as net profit rises by 47 per cent
Giant Group saw sales rise across all its companies in the US, Europe and China along with a net profit increase of 47 per cent in 2020. Interestingly, the brand says that e-bikes now account for 26 per cent of all their revenues.
“Giant foresees as more consumers are choosing bicycle and e-bike as a means of transportation, leisure and sports, bicycles and e-bikes will become a part of the new lifestyle post-pandemic,” Giant explained.
They foresee sales growth continuing into 2021 too with the pandemic playing a big part in changing people’s lifestyle and transport choices. “This pandemic has certainly changed the way of living and there is a huge shift in people’s awareness on health and fitness.
“In addition, there is a continuous push from governments across different nations to reduce carbon footprint by encouraging people to use bicycles or e-bikes, increasing investments in establishing bicycle related infrastructures and offering bicycle purchase subsidizes, therefore, Giant foresees the demand will continue to exceed supply.”
"I ate a lot during the race so I didn't want to run out of fuel, but I overdid it and had too much in my stomach": Sam Bennett explains now-infamous Gent-Wevelgem sickie
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 https://t.co/4WfT8uYT6N
— Sam Bennett (@Sammmy_Be) March 28, 2021
Sam Bennett put his Gent-Wevelgem sick day down to overeating. Funnily enough that’s what I put my bad days on the bike down to as well. It also gives you another reason to stuff yourself at the cafe knowing you’ve got a handy excuse for later on…
The Irishman said he was so preoccupied with making sure he didn’t bonk during the 250km race that he overate.
“I went a bit too much into the red and although I managed to hang in, I paid for this later as my legs were full of lactic acid,” Bennett explained.”I also made a mistake, as I ate a lot during the race so I didn’t want to run out of fuel, but I overdid it and had too much in my stomach inside the final hour of racing, which everybody could see when I threw up.
“Because of this and the effort I put in during the day, it just happened and I ended up going from one extreme to another, as after this I was completely empty and had no more energy left.”
3D-printed e-bike wins design award
The Platzhirsch 3D-printed e-bike beat 18,000 submissions to win the Red Dot Award for best Bicycle Design. It is the second time the work of Sebastian Meinecke has earned a Red Dot Award after his Stadtfuchs won the Product Design Best of the Best in 2019. The Platzhirsch, 3D-printed in Magdeburg, benefits from a partnership with MAHLE ebikemotion who provided the electric components. It can produce 40Nm of torque at the rear wheel and has a discreetly hidden battery in the down tube with an 80km range.
More Peloton weirdness
the peloton going up their second category one climb of the day in the heat of july at the tour de france pic.twitter.com/svhZrXxwuF
— Robyn (@robynjournalist) March 30, 2021
CyclingMikey confronted by angry passenger for stopping corner cutting cabbie
CyclingMikey captured two rule-breaking drivers, one angry passenger, one of the drivers mounting the pavement, one ungraceful retreat and a grateful law-abiding driver all in a five-minute clip…Worthy of a BAFTA, his latest YouTube video shows him stopping a corner cutting cabbie at the infamous Gandalf Corner. Some shouting and another driver trying to cut the line causes a scene, before the second motorist and cab’s passenger jump out for a word and a jostle.
The passenger didn’t seem best pleased that the whole confrontation is on camera and quickly got back in the taxi, only for the driver to have to reverse back to the point in the queue they could have passed five minutes ago…
Both drivers paid for and completed a driver course to avoid being prosecuted. One of CyclingMikey’s last run-ins with a black cab driver ended with a £280 fine, £115 in costs and five penalty points…
Grant Shapps plugging Fix Your Bike is leaving us with more questions than answers
Today I’ve launched another round of Fix Your Bike vouchers- 150,000- to help you get your bike fixed this Spring 🚲🛠
Here I am, talking about how I repaired my bike and what I love about cycling in my local area 👇 pic.twitter.com/b0zDaJo8EE
— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) March 30, 2021
It’s become clear over the last year or so that certain members of the Cabinet are partial to the odd photo/video op to further their cause… and the latest release of 150,000 Fix Your Bike vouchers afforded the Secretary of State for Transport his opportunity to take centre stage.
We’re introduced to Shapps kneeling next to a knackered Baracuda bike, which he admits is in “a bit of a state”… yet in the next frame, Shapps’ bike has turned into a slightly less battered white, red and black Probike hybrid. He says he “just changed” the front brake caliper, put some oil on the chain and changed an inner tube and he’s good to go. Revealing himself to be a pretty handy mechanic, perhaps it’ll be Shapps himself who will be repairing your bike if you’re lucky enough to have nabbed one of the £50 vouchers.
We then see our man set off (helmetless) and then in the next frame skid to a stop (helmet on) to deliver his outro. Shapps says he doesn’t wear Lycra, and just “grabs the helmet” (or helment according to the subtitles) when he goes for a ride.
Not all of his words and actions are questionable, however, with Shapps outlining some worthy reasons to choose bike: …”Active transport, getting on a bike from A to B doesn’t just get you there, it’s also of course great for people’s health, it’s something we want to see continue in the future.”
And that concludes our snap late night analysis of this clip, which we’ve taken roughly seven minutes to write in tribute to how long we reckon Shapps’ team took to edit and slap it on his Twitter page.
30 March 2021, 08:06
30 March 2021, 08:06
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Latest Comments
Hey, but their wool blend cycling adjacent t-shirts are/were fantastic.
@Surreyrider Still the boss. Ride one, you'll see why
@Smoggysteve "Most would happily ride on the roads and be treated with respect by drivers". But people aren't - and as far as I can see they won't be. Not until there is a lot less driving and it's slower around cyclists, and far more people driving have "skin in the game" eg. they sometimes cycle and their friends and family do also. That's what leads to the model - which is perhaps most advanced in NL - where cycling, walking and driving are all seen as separate normal transport modes. Their needs, vulnerabilities and any dangers to others are considered. And *that* leads to "mix / share when possible, separate when necessary". But "possible" is "where your 10-year old would be safe to cycle unsupervised" - so very few motor vehicles, going slow! And AFAICS everybody - even "existing cyclists" - is happy with the result. (I dunno about a few pro cyclists - but don't they tend to have training camps in different counties anyway?)
@quiff as an Edinburgh resident I can confidently say he's speaking without moving his lips in one sense: - while as I noted in a separate comment there *is* now some real separated cycle infra, all the examples i can think of have *at least as much space* for pedestrians. The rest of the "cycle infra" is essentially similar to the situation in the rest of the UK: eg. bus lanes*, cycle lanes and shared use paths (eg. "build" infra by sticking up a sign). Edinburgh is one of the places with a moderately extensive network of former railways which have been converted to "shared use" paths (completely motor traffic few). However though shared they are not narrow by UK standards. And this is all effectively a "free extra" for all non- motorised users, not like the "sign a cycle path" where pedestrians do lose space. I think this all comes from the "popular understanding" of cycling in which ultimately cyclists are the "other". They don't fit "motor vehicle" or "pedestrian" (including wheelchairs on the very rare occasions people think about that). Thus "cyclists are cheating" in multiple ways! They shouldn't get their own space as "there aren't enough" of them. And "they can just use the road / path". But being able to *choose* "on the road" or "on the footway" (shared use path) is clearly unfair - nobody else gets to do that! BUT of course even if they did pick just one of road OR pedestrian space it's still not fair anyway because they're "too slow" for the road (don't pay "road tax" etc...) and "far too fast" for pedestrians... * Though some existing cyclists may appreciate them when there are few buses, buses and bikes are a very poor mix for several reasons.
Whilst a shame for any employees, their bib shorts had the worst chamois pad I’d ever encountered, utter waste of my money. Even though they were Strava challenge discount purchases, still a waste of money.
Thanks, just going to have to suck it up. Got next week off and will take the easy, if expensive option...
@ktache Just go for the TNT Sports only package, £30.99 for a month. Alternatively have you considered experimenting with a VPN for a few pounds, allowing you to sign up for a free stream abroad, e.g. SBS Australia which streams the Tour live? If I didn't have a kind mate's login that's what I'd do!
So, it's now the month of July and I'm going to have to pay to watch the TdF, for one month only. On a tablet unfortunately, as I didn't manage to get a laptop to rig up to the TV, grrr. Just wondering, what package will I have to fork out for? Not wanting to pay for the wrong one...
Not that it sounds like a dealbreaker given the other faults you've identified, but that cable isn't really a "proprietary" cable, four pin magnetic cables like that are quite common on bone-conducting headphones and other devices (my inexpensive smartwatch uses one) and they can be had for £4.99 on UK Amazon.
21 thoughts on “CyclingMikey confronted by angry passenger for stopping corner-cutting cabbie; Grant Shapps’ strange Fix Your Bike promo vid; Gridlock traffic chaos replaces LTN; Rwanda World Champs?; Incredible KHS scenes; Spring sunshine + more on the live blog”
In reply to Jon Burke
In reply to Jon Burke yesterday, a LTN denier account has posted to a Daily Mail article showing three emergency vehicles caught in traffic on Chiswick high street and blaming the Cycle lane with obviously throwing in an Anti LTN message as well. It starts with all the blame laid at the cycle lane even though that is not blocking the emergency services but traffic is.
“A controversial London cycleway has blocked three emergency service vehicles in just 24 hours.”
The typical bingo words like “War on Motorist” and “empty cycle lanes” are used with the rest of the story padded out by other throwbacks to nothing stories including a lady moaning her School run takes 30 mins instead of 10 mins now due to an LTN. Suprisingly she hasn’t thought about walking a distance that is 5 mins drive away in rush hour London.
Someone needs to show that
Someone needs to show that video to the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea…
There seems to be an elephant
There seems to be an elephant in the room; the police bill currently in parliament, which would make almost any protest illegal, including reclaim the streets, or any gathering of cyclists protesting at the car culture. How about it road.cc?
LTNs.
LTNs.
I’m kinda of the opinion now of feck ’em and let them get on with it.
Many of these LTN opposers will be in their late 40’s plus, and will often be heard reminiscing about the good old days, and how kids don’t play on the street any more … Often blaming computers and games consoles for the demise of on-Street playing.
So, we give this generations kids a chance to find out what us Gen X, Boomers, and before had … And then we moan like fuck about it.
So fuck ’em.
Let them sit in their cars.
Let them continue to stretch a 5 minute walk in to a half-hour traffic sit.
Let them curse and swear at each other … And we’ll just go quietly by, mentally raising two fingers to these dickheads.
I feel sorry for the kids, but then it technology was then, what it is now (and as affordable), then we’d probably have never left the house either.
Oldfatgit wrote:
I’m kinda of the opinion now of feck ’em and let them get on with it.— OldfatgitI understand that. But that condemns everyone to the kind of hell shown in the Wandsworth clip, including all the people who wanted the LTN and anyone who doesn’t drive.
And I can’t help wonder what kind of shitty experience those drivers have – perhaps they’ve had a long day at work then have to sit in a queue of idling traffic for far longer than they’d like before they finally get home, angrey and stressed. What a miserable f*cking existence!
But it boils down to this: If you’re not part of the solution you are part of the problem.
I do enjoy CyclingMikey, but
I do enjoy CyclingMikey, but surely the council just replace him with a camera on Gandalf Corner? As a bonus it’s a visible deterrent.
What an outrageous suggestion
What an outrageous suggestion. Any sort of speed or traffic camera would clearly ruin the heritage nature of the (busy and traffic choked boundary road of the) park! Oh, parking machines are of course fine, somehow they don’t have the same effect, nothing to do with the revenue they bring in of course. Thanks to the benevolent CEPC that looks after the interests of the (extremely wealthy and Range Rover loving residents of the) Park!
https://www.cepc.org.uk/
Jenova20 wrote:
I asked him that on Twitter, thinking that judging by his videos it’d pay for itself in weeks, he said Royal Parks don’t want one there “for heritage reasons.” Which is why Regent’s Park is still lit by gas lighting and the roads are all untarmacked…wait now…
I suspect most of the ones
I suspect most of the ones who do that live or work in the Royal Park so……
Wandsworth ex-LTN; congestion
Wandsworth ex-LTN; congestion clearly caused by the two parked bicycles.
I gave up watching Mikey, but
I gave up watching Mikey, but, hey…
The CyclingMikey video ia
The CyclingMikey video ia absolute gold!
Nice one CyclingMikey. Did
Nice one CyclingMikey. Did the passenger get prosecuted for that assault? The passenger missed an opportunity to sue the driver for putting their safety at risk by cutting the corner, but instead chose to pick a fight with someone who seems to be a lot taller than them.
Cycling Mikey is an
Cycling Mikey is an irritating prat.. I for one would pay good money to see him dislodged from his footing.
grOg wrote:
Of course you would, because this and other comments show that you’re definitely on the side of the cowards, thugs and bullies of the road.
You should come over here,
You should come over here, drive round that corner, then when he appears you could get out and punch him to the ground and smash his camera up.
Are you also one of these australian traffic cops who hates cyclists ?
I, too, am full of admiration
I, too, am full of admiration for Cycling Mikey! Great work!!
CyclingMikey – a bit
CyclingMikey – a bit vigilante, hiding behind a bush waiting for the taxi to break the law, but he made his point and it was very funny!
i fully support mikey in his
i fully support mikey in his phone driver catching videos, and on the gandalfian corner. I dont agree with one of his older videos, where a car passes him with a fair distance which then turns into a roadside argument for no good reason. He said previously his father was killed by a drunk driver, so of course he’s got the drive to catch the bad drivers. I wouldnt stand in the front of the cars like he does though, id feel concerned someone would stab me, not just the driver or the passenger who got out in his latest video, but how does he know someone is not right behind him, who has seen the viral videos ? Too risky for me that is. He’d be better off sitting on the corner with a crystal clear cam, recording every single vehicle that did it, then reporting them that way. Much safer too. The old guy taking his photo then saying he should get a job is irritating. We all know mikey is a ice skating instructor 😀 [ i suspect he actually works in IT, like cycle gaz does]. Maybe the old man should get a job instead of plonking himself in a taxi that goes on the wrong side of the road. Then mikeys face is already over tv- he did an interview with ITV i think it was, explaining how he caught guy ritchie, so the old male karen hasnt gained anything.
Yes to Rwanda
Yes to Rwanda
The Shapps vid confuses me,
The Shapps vid confuses me, and not just for the fact that changing the brake pads turns it into another bike; is it to encourage people or to discourage them? I’m so glad they didn’t waste any money with professional, slick promo, which would at least have had a continuity checker.
I suppose they spent all the money on the Boris Bunker https://www.facebook.com/gordon.young.16/videos/4179610592070271