Groin-BREAKING NEWS: Cyclist painfully photobombs live TV report by smashing groin into his bike; Covid restrictions cancel cyclo-cross WC round; Tom Pidcock world tour; Mini Vans bikes; Loads of new kit + more on the live blog

 

 

 

 

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It’s a harsh lesson to learn, especially when the whole world is watching thanks to a live news report. Take some deep breaths, lad…we’ve all been there.

At least it didn’t happen during the biggest moment of his life, as happened to Angelo Caro Narvaez at the Tokyo Olympics. Google search him and beyond Instagram and Wikipedia it’s just the world’s press delivering all the nutcracker puns you could ever need…

Peruvian skateboarder Angelo Caro Narvaez takes brutal shot to groin, manages to finish fifthhttps://t.co/7qNq5glJEu#peru #Olympics2020 #Olympic #skateboarding pic.twitter.com/BfaVr9316O

— NewsWire (@NewsWireLive22) July 25, 2021

 Our unfortunate Aussie cyclist’s incident happened as Channel 10 was reporting on a fire at a linen factory in Perth, Western Australia. His momentum kept him moving forward, leaving nowhere to go but that unforgiving top tube/headset/stem area.

I’m sure Roma and England striker Tammy Abraham can empathise…

Phil Babb moment for @tammyabraham. Don’t cough lad #VAring #NoNutFeb pic.twitter.com/Cp865Nx3hA

— VAR (@Video_Aggy_Ref) February 22, 2020

At least the comments were full of sympathy and absolutely nobody making fun of him…

 Maybe not.

La Passione has dropped its winter collection with winter jackets, tights and thermal jersey options across its premium Prestige, comfy Club and women’s specific Grace lines.

In the range-topping Prestige line you’ve got two top half layers; La Passione says the Winter Jacket (£160) offers excellent temperature regulation thanks to its compact and elastic membrane fabric, while the Thermal Jersey (£110) consists of a highly elasticated soft fleece fabric for keeping the body warm. Then there’s the Prestige Winter Tights (£152) which are made from ThermoRoubaix fabric with an Endurance finish that makes them resistant to moisture and splashes.

For those looking for a more comfortable cut without sacrificing a good fit, that’s where La Passione’s Club line comes in. The Club Winter Jacket (£132), for example, is made with a three-layer membrane fabric on the front while the back and underarm areas use a thermal stretch fabric with DWR treatment. This fabric together with the larger shoulder diameter should improve the fit and range of movement for comfort. 

La Passione’s women’s line, the Grace collection, also includes a winter jacket as well as Winter Tights (£132) which feature a specific rear insert in perforated fabric to improve the stabilisation of the tights. 

Tom Pidcock and Wout van Aert’s first seasonal head-to-head at a cyclo-cross World Cup event has been cancelled following a tightening of Covid restrictions in Belgium due to the worsening situation in the country. The pair will still meet at the Boom Superprestige on Saturday, but Sunday’s World Cup round in Antwerp is off after organisers feared crowd restrictions would dampen the atmosphere.

Dutch outlet Wielerflits reports that the organisers pulled the plug on the event as cyclo-cross “lives by virtue of the massive turnout of the public and of the atmosphere and ambiance.”

“Cyclo-cross in Antwerp lives from the public and it is traditionally a meeting place for all Antwerpers who love cyclo-cross and atmosphere,” Christophe Impens of organiser Golazo told Wielerflits. “But to optimally guarantee the safety and health of everyone, we would have to impose a lot of extra measures that are also hardly controllable.

“That applies to the public along the course, but all the more so in the so-called atmospheric tents, as well as in the VIP tent. It is not an obvious decision, but the City of Antwerp understands it in view of the difficult corona situation and the changed measures.”

The World Cup will continue in Italy on December 12, before a Dutch round on December 18. December 19’s Namur round will likely depend on Belgium’s reassessment of the pandemic in the week prior.

“We are waiting for the next federal consultation committee on 15 December. Depending on the decisions made there, we will look at our next cyclo-cross races one by one, of course always in close consultation with the local government,” Impens explained.

Mulga is a local mural artist to cycling apparel company Soomom in Sydney, Australia and the two have now joined forces for a new limited edition collection of jerseys, with four arty designs in total. 

“His iconic, fun and larger than life characters light up many walls around Sydney; along Bondi Beach and inner city zones like Newtown,” says Soomom.

Interested in finding out about Mulga’s work and his inspirations? Soomom has a cool interview over here. 

Meet Vans LiL’ Ripper, the work of a collaboration between SE Bikes and footwear brand Vans, who say this is the “perfect bike for kids, as well as BMX dads who want to ride a rad pit bike”. It features neat details like a Vans checkerboard padset and Vans ‘66 valve caps.

To complete the LiL’ Ripper collaboration, Vans has also produced Vans x SE LiL’ Ripper shoes, complete with reflective checkerboard detailing and LiL’ Ripper sidewall art.

Priced at $619.99 (~£463,94), only 250 of these 16” bikes are being sold, and each is individually numbered on the inside of the rear dropout – sorry, it’s only American kids who’ll be rocking this cool look though.

Nearly time to get the dancing shoes back on! https://t.co/nkDIo71BWv

— Tom Pidcock (@Tompid) November 29, 2021

Antwerp might be cancelled, but plenty of other dates to catch Pidcock flying around muddy fields this winter… 

Womenswear that works well on and off the bike is being sold by startup Vaela, to make cycling easier, better looking and even more sustainable — think daywear not sportswear, with subtle details that suit the demands of riding.

 “Our clothes are super comfortable; they avoid bum cleavage, tight shoulders and uncomfortable seams,” says Vaela. “They have reflective elements, that are visible only when you want them to be, they have stretch where required, and they’re durable and crumple-free.”

Vaela says it’s also working hard to be sustainable and as a Pending B-Corp, it is subject to third-party verification of its performance against ambitious goals and targets.

The brand will be donating two per cent of its revenue to charities that are aligned with its overall mission to promote women’s cycling.

Selling direct to customers and offering a 25 per cent discount for pre-orders on its first very limited collection consisting of a Cotton Jacket (£195 on pre-order) and Jeans (£120 on pre-order). A bag that triples up as a rucksack, a tote and a pannier is also coming in early December .

Café du Cycliste (CDC) has added a limited edition Morgane long sleeve jersey (£186) to its unique Atelier collection. Available in both men’s and women’s race-fitting cuts and in two different colours and happy patterns — Tangerine Blossom and Wading Birds — this jersey can be worn layered or alone during autumn and spring rides.

Constructed from a high stretch ribbed fabric CDC says it also performs well during periods of intense effort. Other features include a low profile collar and a five back pocket layout for added capacity on longer rides.

Atelier is CDC’s collection comprising one-off pieces produced in small quantities.

“By limiting the constraints which are inherent in standard production, the creative possibilities increase exponentially, producing a richer landscape upon which to work,” says the brand. 

 

 

 

 

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Anthony Roux has launched a campaign to get more people picking up litter. The Frenchman who rides for FDJ said he was fed up of seeing rubbish every time he went out on his bike.

“When I looked at the side of the road, it disgusted me to ride in these unpleasant surroundings,” Roux said. “For a long time, like most people, I complained but didn’t take action. Many say it is horrible, unacceptable. I said that too, but I didn’t stop to pick up a piece of paper and put it in the trash.”

Roux now takes a bag on training rides or walks to collect discarded waste. “Many complain but do not act. It’s to shake things up a bit and use my little image to encourage people to make a gesture,” he continued.

The 34-year-old estimates he has collected between 400 and 500 litres of rubbish in the past year.

Crackin’ day for a ride #tenby ☀️ pic.twitter.com/gNNqgsg7lU

— Geraint Thomas (@GeraintThomas86) November 30, 2021

Hmmmm I reckon G might be having us on. Those are some big, old mountains for #Tenby… 

Plurrrghhh…. Just watching this makes my eyes water https://t.co/Izcrcnv9rM

— Real Gaz on a proper bike #fbpe (@gazza_d) November 30, 2021

I think most of us with the relevant equipment can empathise with the poor lad’s top tube collision…

Shaun Dolphin on Facebook certainly can…”Been there. Done that. Got the Tshirt!”. In true sympathetic style 11 of the 16 likes on our post sharing the story used the laughing emoji…nothing unites people like seeing someone else getting one where it hurts… 

Under the blog, Rendell Harris commented: “That’s a low blow Down Under…”

Now I hope everyone’s finished with their lunch. I had a little dig into our archives to see if we have covered anything similar, and boy have we…

> Surgeons reattach man’s testicles after disastrous bike crash

It’s not one for the faint-hearted…shifting the description of the crash from your mind can be a bit of a ballache…

Southend Borough Council is working alongside one of the soon-to-be city’s MPs to stake a claim for a Tour de France stage should a bid for the 2026 Grand Départ be made. Last month, the government confirmed it was interested in committing spending towards bringing the race back to UK roads for the first time since 2014.

> UK government confirms bid for 2026 Tour de France Grand Départ

According to the BBC Local Democracy Reporting Service, Essex councillors and MPs are keen to build on the county hosting the Women’s Tour. Cllr Dan Nelson said it had “proved to itself” it could host major cycle races.

Stage three of the 2014 race passed through parts of Essex on route to London. Cllr Nelson continued: “The government announced that it will be putting money towards bidding for more major events in the UK, including a fund to get the Tour de France to the UK.

“I’m of the view Southend proved to itself that we can hold major cycling events, and I am pleased to say that James Duddridge agrees with me and has written to the secretary of state asking them and making sure that Southend is a part of that bid, and I’m hopeful that we will be successful.”

Canadian power meter brand 4iiii finally has its UK facility open for factory installs of its single and dual-sided power meters onto customers’ existing cranksets.

You can send a Shimano left-hand crank to 4iiii to have the power measurement technology installed for £259.99. Your new power meter will add just 9g to your crank and it runs on CR2032 batteries which are readily available.

4iiii offers this service for 105 5700 through to XTR M9020. The latest Shimano Ultegra and Dura-Ace groupset aren’t listed, but we understand that availability on these will be coming soon.

“Our Factory Install offering has been very popular for customers looking to add a proven power meter to their bike at an industry-leading price,” says 4iiii President Phil White. “Expanding into the United Kingdom allows us to bring the same quick turnaround and great experience to our UK customers.”

4iiii claims a maximum turnaround time of 5 days and they say that most are being fitted within 48hrs of the crank arriving at the factory.

The install time used to be quite a bit longer for UK customers as the crank had to go all the way to 4iiii’s HQ in Canada.

4iiii.com

World champ Julian Alaphilippe spoke to Gazzetta dello Sport about his ambitions in the sport as he moves towards his thirties. What do you do when you’ve won almost everything? Target the Tour de France? “Never say never,” Alaphilippe told the Italian paper.

“Why not think about it before the end of my career? There are a lot of questions to be asked and I’d need to speak to the team. But I don’t want to end my time with the regret of not ever trying. I’ve never raced a Grand Tour thinking of winning it, so there wasn’t the same pressure. But I can understand why it’s been difficult for [Thibaut] Pinot and [Romain] Bardet.”

In the short-term an Ardennes Classics campaign and his home Grand Tour are on the cards for 2022, although Alaphilippe was keen to point out an appearance at the Giro is also on his radar, just not next year. A fourth Flèche Wallonne, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the Tour de France and a third consecutive rainbow jersey…how about that for a campaign befitting a world champion. France can dream…

#HappyStAndrewsDay to our New Scots and supporters 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💛 pic.twitter.com/QY43zamXsX

— Bikes for Refugees (Scotland) 🧡 (@Bikes4Refugees) November 30, 2021