‘Cyclists are more dangerous than 4x4s’; Taxi drivers love cycle lanes; What’s your favourite grand tour?; Royal Parks cycleway closures; Countdown to the Giro; Upright bottle baffles readers + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
“Taxi drivers love the Blackfriars Road cycle lane so much they want to use it too”
Footage from a cyclist’s London commute sent Twitter into a bit of a meltdown last night (and no, before you ask, it wasn’t Jeremy Vine), after a taxi driver was filmed taking up a decent chunk of the Blackfriars Road cycle lane in Southwark.
Taxi drivers love the Blackfriars road cycle lane so much they want to use it too. pic.twitter.com/i8cRlMnLx1
— Timothy (@westcountrytim) May 4, 2022
I did think he might have broken down, but as it’s right outside a hotel I think he couldn’t be bothered to drop passengers either on the drop curb section on the road or down the side street at the Taxi spot. pic.twitter.com/tghUGRALrn
— Timothy (@westcountrytim) May 4, 2022
Needless to say, the cabbie came in for quite a bit of stick from baffled Twitter users:
Oh wow! Sometimes think they will come out a side street and take a load of cyclists out. Have never seen this!!! @London_Cycling @psimonk @theJeremyVine @willnorman @roadcc
— Railton LTN (@RailtonLTN) May 4, 2022
I see loads of pavement parking but never this!
— Railton LTN (@RailtonLTN) May 4, 2022
This is a hard section to pull out in a car, it’s really hard to see. That taxi will be totally blocking the view for drivers crossing the lane (never mind being a direct danger to cyclists)
— Zoe Kennedy (@zoekennedy) May 4, 2022
That very same cabbie would likely whine cyclists don’t use them.
— Monsieur_Growl (@growl3d) May 4, 2022
Got their hazards on. Doesn’t count. Means you can park anywhere you want.
— Damien Byrne (@dtb80) May 4, 2022
I think they’re taught to do that as part of the knowledge
— GaryEast (@GaryEast13) May 4, 2022
Took this about an hour later, he’s started a trend! pic.twitter.com/vnT3KrcGFP
— Rob (@krunties) May 4, 2022
However – and perhaps just as inevitably – some motorists came to the driver’s defence, pointing out that the cabbie may have been unloading a wheelchair at the time the footage was filmed:
That was at around 5.20 this afternoon, during the rain. It looked like he’d just unloaded a wheelchair from what I could see. Probably didn’t want to block the road and dump his passenger 20 yards from the front door in a downpour. You’d know that too, seeing as you filmed it.
— A.J. Stranger #UTAG (@AStrangerJ) May 4, 2022
Should be in Meymott St. then, by the side of the hotel. No justification for driving in a dedicated cycle lane.
— Sam McLeod (@DeepsMcLeod) May 5, 2022
The street to the side is the more direct access point….
— Brazel (@Brazelephantman) May 5, 2022
What do you think? Did the driver, as one commenter claimed, have “no excuse” for parking in the bike lane, or can it be justified in certain circumstances?
Giro + EF-EasyPost + AC/DC = Vibes
.@EFprocycling arriving to the team presentation as AC/DC plays is my aesthetic no further questions
— giro(byn) d’italia (@robynjournalist) May 4, 2022
Unfortunately, I missed last night’s Giro team presentation (I’m as shocked and appalled as you are), but I really hope Jonathan Vaughters’ charges took to the stage to the tune of Acca Dacca’s aptly named Dirty Deeds-era classic ‘Ride On’.
Though it was probably ‘Thunderstruck’, wasn’t it?
Now, if we were back in the 1990s or 2000s, I doubt the DJ would have resisted the urge to play AC/DC’s homage to that particularly murky era of pro cycling, ‘If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)’.
‘You can dodge the rain, but you can’t dodge The Royal Parks’ cycle lane closures’
Seems you can dodge the rain but you can’t dodge @theroyalparks cycle lane closures@MayorofLondon @tfl seriously 6 weeks this is ridiculous. pic.twitter.com/M9TsxkdG2g
— Jonathan Kelly (@JKBartsHeart) May 4, 2022
Please tell me I’m not the only one who read that tweet in the style of Rip Torn’s character Patches O’Houlihan in Dodgeball….
Remember Lance Armstrong’s cameo in that film? Ah, 2004, simpler times.
> Queen’s Platinum Jubilee forces six-week closure of key London cycleway
If you’re not up to speed with how the ceremonial habits of the aristocracy have impacted upon London’s cycleways, you can catch up on the full story here.
And it’s fair to say that not everyone is happy about changing their daily commute to accommodate Liz’s party schedule:
This is indeed ridiculous. Thousands use this daily. Zero attempt at any alternative. It’s really really poor
— betterstreets4kc (@betterstreetskc) May 4, 2022
Just change the signs to this and problem solved. pic.twitter.com/zAnRwssTT5
— Melston (@matthewelston) May 4, 2022
Some people cycling cannot physically dismount. Slowing down, or share with care should have been the less discriminatory advice.
— Beyond The Bicycle (@BeyondBicycle) May 5, 2022
Until drivers are instructed to get out of their vehicle and push, I refuse to do similar with my bicycle.
— Centurion, why do they T_w_itter so? (@_JamesSteward_) May 4, 2022
Poll: What’s your favourite grand tour?
If you haven’t already guessed it from my excitable tone, grand tour season is only 24 hours away!
So, to celebrate, I’ve decided to roll out that ever-popular pro cycling debate: what’s your favourite three-week stage race?
Is it the Giro d’Italia, the handsome, suave, and ever-so-slightly pretentious wine-drinking middle sibling of the grand tours, who occasionally loses the plot and throws a massive house party, with the best food, booze and entertainment, only for none of their older brother’s friends to turn up?
Or is it the Tour de France: the ultra-successful, hyper-driven eldest child, who works a high-powered job at PWC and almost exclusively listens to Ed Sheeran, but who has recently tried to prove to his other siblings that he can be just as cool as them (‘Hey guys, check out this kilometre-long stretch of gravel, so dope, amiright?’)?
Or maybe you long for the Vuelta a España, the kooky, punky and endearingly weird youngest sibling who, after being neglected for so long, is now being mentored by their older French brother in the ways of the boardroom…
Well since we’re all voting today anyway, why not have a poll to decide?
As we say here in Northern Ireland: vote early, vote often!
‘Cyclists are more dangerous than 4x4s’: Anti-Bike bingo reaches new heights as Australian Daily Mail calls for cyclists to carry licences
Folks, I think we’ve reached a new pinnacle for anti-cycling bingo.
This morning, the Australian Daily Mail – it’s never going to be great, is it? – published an article ostensibly devoted purely to motorists on social media calling for cyclists to carry licences, criticising those on bikes for taking up “car lanes”, and claiming that cyclists are “more dangerous” than 4×4 drivers.
According to the Mail, these angry Aussie drivers took aim at cyclists amidst a separate debate about the need to introduce special licences for off-road 4×4 motorists, as towing companies say they are being faced with increased calls from drivers bogged down in mud.
In a classic case of whataboutery so severe it would give you whiplash, one commenter wrote: “What about cyclists? They’re more f***ing dangerous”.
Another duly replied: “True story mate, they are unreal taking up a car lane with more than 20 riders, it makes me sick.
“They’ve got all the bikeways in the world and they want to ride on the road.”
One commenter said that if 4×4 (or 4WD) licences were introduced, then “cyclists need a f**ing licence and have to pay rego [Australia’s Vehicle Registration certificate]”.
Full house!
> New South Wales ditches plans to force cyclists to carry ID
This debate certainly isn’t a new one in Australia, where attitudes towards cyclists can be pretty hostile in places.
In 2016, the New South Wales government ditched plans to bring in mandatory photo ID for cyclists, after a petition against road minister Duncan Gay’s proposals attracted over 10,000 signatures.
> NSW: tough new fines inspire people to stop cycling
While Gay’s aim to bring in cycling licences failed, he was responsible for increasing fines for cyclists by up to 50 percent, including A$319 for not wearing a helmet and A$100 for not carrying a bell.
While the minister claimed that the new fines would make cycling ‘safer’, they only served to put people off riding their bikes (colour me shocked) and made New South Wales, according to academics, the “worst state in the world” for cyclists.
But, whatever you do, don’t go after their 4x4s…
Giro countdown: Is Valverde Hungary for pink?
Can the wizened old master Alejandro Valverde finally add a pink jersey to his illustrious collection in Visegrád tomorrow?
The signs are looking good:
Valverde just destroyed the KOM for tomorrow’s uphill finish at the #Giro, putting over a minute into the previous best time. Stage win and maglia rosa incoming for the 42-year-old?https://t.co/WFO8IfzyhG
— Will Newton (@InsidePeloton96) May 5, 2022
Then again, with MVDP about, maybe not…
— LangeToepie (@LangeToepie) May 5, 2022
“Ah, that’s why I’ve been losing races”: Readers react to ‘Upright’ cycling water bottle
Our story yesterday on the ‘Upright’ cycling water bottle, which allows the rider to drink without having to rotate the bottle, turned a few heads in the comments and on social media (though isn’t head turning what it’s supposed to prevent?).
The bottle, produced by Dutch start-up Nothirst (very inventive titles guys), is designed with an angled bottleneck, allowing you to maintain your carefully tuned-in aero tuck and keep those watts where they belong, while still keeping hydrated and your eyes on the road.
Judging by our readers’ response in the comments and on social media, it turns out I wasn’t the only one who has never noticed the disastrous effects drinking from my normal water bottle has had on my 10-mile TT times:
How is this an innovation? Bottles with angled heads were common in the 1990s. I had a purple one. I thought it looked cool. But then again, in the 1990s I thought purple-anodised chainrings looked cool.
Feels a bit like L-shaped cranks… The “angular neck” achieves nothing different to an angled straw, and water bottles with angled straws are a dime a dozen.
And if you’re serious about aerodynamic drinking, there are of course far more effective systems already in existence (e.g. hoses attached to aero bars.)
This sounds so desperate – trying too hard to pitch a weak idea. If the rider in their picture was wearing a more aero jersey they will save far more effort…
But won’t it be less aerodynamic for 99.9% of the time, e.g. when in the bottle cage?!?
If you’re really going for it isn’t your head slightly lower than your rear? I mean if they’re really worrying about the most aero way of rehydrating…
Who wore it better?
Who wore it better? #Giro pic.twitter.com/fiP6rkYXeR
— Belinda (@reallyspoketome) May 5, 2022
Alpecin-Fenix divides opinion with special Giro kit
After EF Education-EasyPost’s triumphant unveiling of their now-traditional (and very cool) Giro alternate kit yesterday, Mathieu van der Poel’s Alpecin-Fenix squad followed up with a… shall we say… controversial new design especially for the Corsa Rosa.
‘Verde Comodoro’ it is! So, do you like our #Giro kit in this soft, timeless shade of green?
Our partner #FENIX developed a high-quality, flexible wall covering called X-KIN with the FENIX’ signature features: extremely matt, incredibly soft-to-the-touch, & anti-fingerprint. pic.twitter.com/i1XPJEuZRb
— Alpecin-Fenix Cycling Team (@AlpecinFenix) May 4, 2022
Going out for our first ride on Hungarian soil in our #VerdeComodoro jersey! Mission #Giro officialy started now! 🔥@giroditalia pic.twitter.com/nvQTkjfLns
— Alpecin-Fenix Cycling Team (@AlpecinFenix) May 5, 2022
Was dehydrated pet vomit the look they were going for?
For a team that brought us the perfect one-stage-only homage to the Mercier kit worn by MVDP’s grandfather Raymond Poulidor at last year’s Tour de France, it’s all a bit underwhelming – and confusing.
A quick Google, however, and you’ll find out that ‘verde comodoro’ is actually a colour used by sponsors Fenix in their kitchens. It all makes sense now… (kind of).
Unfortunately, the Belgian squad’s new “soft, timeless shade of green” has divided cycling fans on Twitter:
Why have you tweeted a photo of an empty garden
— Mike Lear (@gooseyboi96) May 4, 2022
Bold move making MVDP wear an ugly jersey to incentivize him to wear pink https://t.co/7uqv9oNSKH
— Erik Rehnberg (@erikrehnberg) May 4, 2022
There’s been some shabby kits in the Peloton in the past few years, but kudos to Alpecin-Fenix on this horror show. What was the marketing brainstorming session that came up with this like? “Hey, you know what? We should make a kit that’s the colour of a 1970s bathroom suite…” https://t.co/yBGRzVzH9J
— Bang Average 3rd Cat (@BangAverageCat3) May 4, 2022
Me: Hmm not sure I like the colour of Alpecin-Fenix’s jersey for the Giro.
Also me: pic.twitter.com/SFpkn6RDEu
— Tim Bonville-Ginn (@TimBonvilleGinn) May 4, 2022
Big fan of the Alpecin-Fenix helmets for the #Giro2022. https://t.co/8Jb1hLbFkU pic.twitter.com/Me5agyR91i
— Felix Lowe (@saddleblaze) May 4, 2022
I might not like the Alpecin-Fenix kit but it did make me go and look up what on earth Fenix is, so I guess that’s a win for them.
They do wall coverings, by the way.
— Sadhbh O’Shea (@SadhbhOS) May 5, 2022
All of a sudden I love it pic.twitter.com/L5Penc2eeD
— Dan Deakins (@DanDeakins) May 5, 2022
Bikes at polling stations
For the day that’s in it…
Early start for #BikesAtPollingStations #VoteByBike pic.twitter.com/HnzlYKibex
— The Ranty Highwayman (@RantyHighwayman) May 5, 2022
Thank you to everyone who has supported our #ClimateSafeStreets campaign.
🗳️ Don’t forget to vote and tweet your #BikesAtPollingStations photos!#VoteByBike#BicyclesAtPollingStations pic.twitter.com/TfiTzSmK3Y
— Hackney LCC (@hackney_cycling) May 5, 2022
The single most effective action we have to fight Climate Change is our #Vote. So go #Vote #GoVote#BikesAtPollingStations #ThisMachineFightsClimateChange#ClimateCrisis #ClimateChange #ClimateAction #StJohnsWood #NW8 #RegentsPark #RegentsParkWard #Election pic.twitter.com/MTEFevIC35
— Suami Rocha (@suamirocha) May 5, 2022
#bikesatpollingstations in #Northfields @EalingCyclists pic.twitter.com/DJgCh09SH2
— John Tozer (@JhnTzr) May 5, 2022
And, finally, my personal favourite – a special dogs in bikes at polling stations tweet:
I voted earlier #BikesAtPollingStations #DogsAtPollingStations #DogsInBikesAtPollingStations pic.twitter.com/KGlMHVWC6l
— Niamh Kenny (@niamhck) May 5, 2022
Anyone else riding a bike to exercise their democratic right to vote today?
EF-Education-EasyPost to use compostable bottles at Giro d’Italia
It’s a very EF-EasyPost kind of day on the live blog…
The American squad, led at the Giro by British grand tour contender Hugh Carthy, will ride the Italian race using 100 percent compostable water bottles developed by Cannondale.
The bottles are made from plant-derived materials, and the cap, body, and bite value are entirely compostable and plastic-free.
EF says the bottles, when exposed to micro-organisms, heat, and humidity, will disintegrate within three months.
Both the men’s EF Education-EasyPost and the women’s EF Education-TIBCO-SVB squads (who previously went through around 34,000 one-use plastic bottles annually) will begin using the bottles immediately, while Cannondale hopes to invite all WorldTour teams to adopt the technology in a bid to help build a more sustainable future for professional cycling.
And it means we’ve also been treated to a top-notch bit of acting from Lachlan Morton…
No more plastic bottles 💦 We’re now using the peloton’s first entirely compostable bottle from @RideCannondale 🙏
Read the full story 👉 https://t.co/nItzDxp00r pic.twitter.com/kyd49Ec4tB— EF Pro Cycling (@EFprocycling) May 5, 2022
Fenton! Deer run across peloton during first stage of Junior Peace Race in the Czech Republic
Course de la Paix jr @OutOfCycling pic.twitter.com/Bf6niQ0vEQ
— Vegar Kulset (@VegarKulset) May 5, 2022
Tweet of the day surely goes to James for this now obligatory, but still funny, Opi-Omi reference:
Pretty sure I saw one of them with an Allez Opi-Omi sign.
— James Clarke (@ilovehertford) May 5, 2022
Return of the Phil: Gilbert wins for first time in almost three years at the Four Days of Dunkirk
🇧🇪 Philippe Gilbert is back baby!! He wins the stage in #4JDD! pic.twitter.com/TjuM7UuS1u
— Domestique (@Domestique___) May 5, 2022
While the prospect of a Valverde win at the Giro tomorrow is enough to fill most cycling fans with a powerful sense of dread, the long-anticipated winning return of another old timer, Philippe Gilbert, has been met with almost universal acclaim.
The 39-year-old former world champion’s last professional victory before today came at the Vuelta a España in September 2019.
But that 966-day barren run came to an end this afternoon as the Lotto-Soudal rider outsprinted Jason Tesson and Julien Simon on stage three of the Four Days of Dunkirk.
Gilbert’s win also moved him level on time with new race leader Arvid de Kleijn, after former pink jersey Tesson was docked 40 seconds for drafting too long in the cars earlier in the stage.
Ten years on since he was arguably the finest rider in the world, Phil Gil’s return to winning ways has brightened the day of cycling fans everywhere:
File immediately under ‘things we love to see’ 😍 https://t.co/KPSI4EpHMu
— Katy M is counting down to the GIRO (@writebikerepeat) May 5, 2022
Very happy for Philippe, I thought he would never win again before his retirement.
— Robin (@granata948) May 5, 2022
— Cycling Memes (@Cycling_Memes1) May 5, 2022
Footage captures moment road rage motorist was assaulted by cyclist
An angry motorist got more than he bargained for after confronting a cyclist during an apparent road rage incident in Glasgow this morning.
According to the person who filmed the rush hour brawl, the driver in question cut off a cyclist on the city’s Edmiston Drive, close to Ibrox Stadium, the home of Glasgow Rangers Football Club.
The amateur videographer then claimed that the motorist emerged from his car to angrily confront the cyclist, only to quickly end up on the receiving end of a barrage of punches.
Of course, we will never condone violence towards any road user – judging by the video, it’s clear that the driver received no sympathy from his fellow motorists for his miscalculated act of road rage.
Police Scotland said that they have received no reports of the incident.
Poll result: The Giro, road.cc’s favourite grand tour
Turns out half of you are cycling connoisseurs, selecting the Giro as your favourite of the three grand tours.
That is, of course, the correct answer (and for those of you wondering, the best classic is the Tour of Flanders and the best week-long stage race is Paris-Nice, but that’s a debate for another time) – though as some of you said in the comments, it does help that the Giro is starting tomorrow…
5 May 2022, 08:23
5 May 2022, 08:23
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Likely due to the right wing oligarchs that almost all our media. Even the BBC is right wing and will even frame questions using a far right wing world view when interviewing Greens or Lib Dems (are they even still around?).
Alas, the immediate UK response to increased petrol prices after decades of "we have to drive" is more likely to be cycle lanes blocked by drivers! Those would be a) protesting about paying fuel taxes when fuel prices go up and b) parking in the cycle infra to avoid driving around looking for a legal parking spot. We collectively missed an opportunity in the 1970s with the oil crisis. That was one of the factors that propelled the course correction by the Dutch. (The outlines of that story told here. https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2021/11/17/how-did-the-dutch-get-their-cycle-paths/ They were primed by them being a bit behind the UK in the adoption of the car ahead of all other modes. And indeed the bulldozing of cities to make room for it, and the spike in road deaths resulting from it. Plus they still had mass cycling and reasonable public transport. Indeed they already had some "cycle infra" albeit the primary purpose may have been for the safety of moped riders.)
Give them the sugar sandwich treatment: 1) they have to cycle around London - as likely many / most have simply no idea of the cycling perspective, and the few that do are perhaps "cyclist myself" occasional roadies. 2) then send them for a few days in somewhere cycling is normal so they understand how or could be. So NL - or perhaps better Copenhagen, Seville etc. so they don't simply say "that could never work in the UK". 3) ... and finally they have to do some rides back in London to see just what all the blockers to safer, more pleasant urban areas are.
Straits of Hormuz closed. Petrol predicted to rise to £2.00 a litre. Let's see how underused cycle lanes are now!
exactly - cyclists generally don't need saving from themselves hopefully, this will mean more resources put into general roads policing
If a spell cycling around london were to be a prerequisite for traffic officer and video reviewer posts I suspect we would see a huge improvement in the police response to poor driving around vulnerable road users.
“ In 2026, I can get from almost anywhere in the capital to the various centres of London using separated bike paths” Sorry, but that’s not true. If you cycle in central London there are lots of separated paths. But they are far from contiguous. For example, Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea don’t offer much, if any. In some outer boroughs there are also CS lanes (but only in a minority of boroughs) and they are not ‘separated’. They are often ‘quiet ways’ or paint. But it is loads better, I agree. I started cycling to primary school in London about half a century ago, so I have experienced a lot of change, indifference, neglect and improvement.
Something nobody seems to have remarked upon is that the Cycle Safety Unit was primarily concerned with cyclist behaviour rather than taking action to keep cyclists safe. They didn't go around ticketing cars parked in the cycle lanes or reporting on how junctions could be improved to make cyclists safer; they generally gathered in groups stopping cyclists and telling them off for not having lights, riding through reds et cetera. I well remember seeing them in action a few years ago as I was riding through Elephant and Castle on the top deck of a bus: it was the day after a cyclist had been tragically killed through no fault of her own by a left-turning lorry driver. The cyclist safety unit was out in force, but rather than stopping lorries and checking their paperwork and advising them on how to drive safely around cyclists, as one might expect/hope, I saw three of them surrounding and haranguing a cyclist who had stopped at a red light with his front wheel over the stop line. The closure of the unit will make little or no difference to cyclist safety in London.
Key word is "combination". To be clear: their wheel with one specific tyre is tested as safe. When your first set of tyres wear out you'll very likely stick on a set of tyres that they haven't tested as safe.
I have just sent off for a helmet mounted mirror, partly because an average week’s riding includes town centre roads (food shopping) and the A603, a single carriageway road with 50mph traffic including eighteen ton lorries. If anyone is seriously interested I will post a description of how useful it is. I wrote the above in answer to to two people's comments, but re-post it here in case it is not accessible for everyone else.
33 thoughts on “‘Cyclists are more dangerous than 4x4s’; Taxi drivers love cycle lanes; What’s your favourite grand tour?; Royal Parks cycleway closures; Countdown to the Giro; Upright bottle baffles readers + more on the live blog”
I’m 100% absolutely positive
I’m 100% absolutely positive that the MET will prosecute that taxi driver to the full extent of the law
Typical ableist post! The
Typical ableist post! The taxi could have been dropping off someone who was not able to ride a bicycle.
Even if the taxi was loading
Even if the taxi was loading/unloading a wheelchair user, I can’t see that their choice of stopping location was justified. There are decicated loading/disabled bays literally meters away https://goo.gl/maps/zMuSmxBeP8UMq1MA7 with level access to the hotels where the taxi could have stopped completely legitimately*. The video makes it clear that these bays are available for use.
Yes it was raining but I don’t think preventing someone getting wet for an extra 20 seconds justifies endangering lives (noting that, as well as obstructing the path while parked there, the taxi driver must have driven to and from that location along the evidently busy bike lane).
*I’m assuming the taxi could legally use the disabled bay to unload/load a disabled passenger, which is the most convenient location for the level access, but even if not the point stands given the general loading bays immediately adjacent.
I think one of the responses
I think one of the responses defending this is instructive:
So the main concern actually isn’t a disabled passenger but the convenince of motorists. On the driver’s part that would be wanting to avoid hassle from them (but taxi driver…). OK to block the cycle lane though. Maybe some disabled people needed to use the cycle lane? What am I saying, disabled people don’t / can’t use cycle lanes…
It’s natural enough to want to get people as close as possible to the destination. I wonder though if this also shows up some of our general assumptions e.g. “disabled – so therefore incapable of getting an extra 20 yards along a pavement / withstanding rain”?
“Probably didn’t want to
“Probably didn’t want to block the road”, so blocked a different part of the road.
I’m not sure the “keeping the poor disabled person out of the rain” line really works either: is he getting wheelchair users mixed up with Gremlins?
Interesting read in the
Interesting read in the Graundia:
New York banished cars during Covid – could its open streets be preserved?
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/may/05/new-york-cars-free-covid-open-streets
Got their hazards BOLAs on.
Tch!
I think the Australians
I think the Australians calling for cyclist licences is just a pretext to get the police to stop and harass anyone with different coloured skin. It’s an extension of harassing disadvantaged groups for not wearing their mandatory bike helmets, but the advantage of cycling licences is that the police can have an excuse to stop and search anyone on a bike that they don’t like the look of (i.e. non-white).
Quote:
I bloody hope not, that old cheat should have been sent to the retirement yard years ago. His continued ‘elite performances’ just highlights the (bad) past.
??
??
brooksby wrote:
Valverde served a suspension in 2010 and 2011 after a bag of his blood, containing evidence of EPO use, was DNA matched by Italian anti-doping officials who had taken a blood sample at the 2008 Tour de France. His blood was matched to blood bags taken in 2006 when the Operación Puerto doping scandal errupted.
Valverde admitted nothing. He was never ‘convicted of doping’ He returned to racing in 2012 and won his first race back.
Sorry, pete – I meant that I
Sorry, pete – I meant that I think you were replying to the wrong post by peter…
Posted a reply rather then a
Posted a reply rather then a new comment.
You forgot to mention that he
You forgot to mention that he returned to racing better than ever before, at least in the Ardennes classics – though he never quited regained the imperious grand tour winning form of the 2009 Vuelta (when he probably should have been suspended anyway).
It’s interesting how, by going on for so long, he’s been able to shift the narrative away from his doping anti-redemption to his status as the sport’s old man (a shaky one, to be fair, given the questions around how good he still is at 42).
Unlike one of his Puerto contemporaries, Basso, who never really regained his place in the fan’s hearts despite his Giro win.
Old Piti, the gift that keeps on giving… or the one you wished you could send back to the shop.
Couldn’t agree more, a
Couldn’t agree more, a convicted cheat who has never provided any explanation for the offences for which he was banned for two years, it sickens me to see commentators framing him as the grand old man of cycling and encouraging people to cheer him on.
The best grand tour is always
The best grand tour is always the one that’s just about to start.
Not true – they were always
Not true – they were always better ‘back in the day’.
captain_slog wrote:
I’m with the captain on this 🙂
Quote:
Will they last three weeks at the Vuelta, though?
I believe this type of
I believe this type of product could biodegrade in theory but tends not to in practice.
Judging from the pics posted
Judging from the pics posted on the Bike at Polling Stations report, a new one of Bikes Stolen from Polling Stations might be needed later on tonight / on tomorrows blog.
“Road rage motorist beat up
“Road rage motorist beat up by cyclist”. What an utterly stupid video, accompanied by a cretin headline and a bewildering “article”.
Bye bye road.cc
It’s so easy to criticise,
It’s so easy to criticise, but in the heat of the moment I’ve done likewise more than once.
Am I proud of it, no.
Did I feel justified at the time, yes.
Sometimes bullies need to be bullied, especially when they are driving around in a couple of tons of steel, thinking they can do what they want regardless of whoever else is on the road.
S/he’s not criticising the
S/he’s not criticising the cyclist – nor am I – but the apparent assumption that the cyclist must be in the right, even though we can’t see what happened, and the apparent revelling in the violence implicit in the tone of the writing. There can be bullies on bikes too, more than once I’ve had to step in and defuse when a fellow cyclist has decided to front up when they were actually at fault.
Quote:
The tone of the reporting and the unquestioning acceptance of a narrative we can’t see in terms of what the incident that sparked the confrontation was and who instigated the violence, along with the general joyfulness of “he got more than he bargained for” seems to pretty much lean towards condoning it. Were the positions reversed and it was a cyclist “who ended up with a bloodied face and some dented pride”, we’d rightly be outraged. Not good, guys. Not good at all.
Rendel Harris wrote:
The tone of the reporting and the unquestioning acceptance of a narrative we can’t see in terms of what the incident that sparked the confrontation was and who instigated the violence, along with the general joyfulness of “he got more than he bargained for” seems to pretty much lean towards condoning it. Were the positions reversed and it was a cyclist “who ended up with a bloodied face and some dented pride”, we’d rightly be outraged. Not good, guys. Not good at all.
I agree with the statement about the article condoning the violence but the cyclist can only have been fighting back. The driver had to have made a concious decision to stop their car, get out and confront the cyclist, even if they did not intend the interaction to get violent. If the cyclist was the only aggressor the driver could have locked their doors and driven away.
Patrick9-32 wrote:
I am very much not in the business of defending drivers, but without further information we can’t really see who the aggressor was here, the cyclist could’ve kicked the car or similar, the driver could have got out to remonstrate and then the cyclist hit them, we just don’t know. Certainly as you say the driver has made a decision to continue/escalate the situation, but the cyclist may have done something to provoke that, who knows?
Purple anodised chainrings
Purple anodised chainrings are cool!
Thank God, it’s not just me
Thank God, it’s not just me.
They look great on my Klein.
Bristol named one of most
Bristol named one of most dangerous UK cities for cycling
The city may not have been listed as the most dangerous city for cyclists, but it has made it to the top 10
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-named-one-most-dangerous-7039843#comments-wrapper
It seems to me that larger,
It seems to me that larger, busier cities or cities with more cyclists are counted as more dangerous than smaller, quieter cities with fewer cyclists.
So presumably a small flat village where nobody cycles would be the safest of all!
That’s from the Post, easily
That’s from the Post, easily as reliable as the DM, and the study appears to have made no allowance for exposure. No cyclists=no cycling collisions. Tens of thousands of cyclists=collisions.
I’ve found out how to stop
I’ve found out how to stop drivers pulling out on you at junctions. Just need heath Robinson to supply the kit.
https://mobile.twitter.com/Peteer/status/1523032356730376193