“Should be broadcast far and wide”: Praise for close pass advert encouraging drivers to “leave space for a life” when overtaking cyclists; Is Pidcock’s Sa Calobra time unbeatable?; Deer Miss off the Day; Giro sprint stage + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Is the most competitive Strava segment in the world Tom Pidcock's forever?
We’ll get talking about the Giro in a bit but, as everyone knows, Strava KOMs are much more important. 2019 British national hill climb champ Ed Laverack is over in Mallorca and had another go at setting a PB up Sa Calobra because when in Rome… or more accurately when in a Balearic Island hotspot for the world’s two-wheeled visitors…
[Strava/Ed Laverack]
The backstory to all this is that Laverack smashed the KOM a couple of years back, the climb widely regarded as quite possibly Strava’s most competitive segment due to its popularity with the pros and year-round visits from those aforementioned never-ending pelotons of visitors.
Then, during a winter training camp, a random cyclist by the name of Tom Pidcock (apparently he’s quite good…) came along and obliterated the KOM by almost two minutes. And while nobody seems to know just how much Ineos Grenadiers drafting that mind-boggling 22:46 came with, it now seems pretty unbeatable (unless Tadej Pogačar gets bored with smashing the Giro apart and heads over for some rest day fun).
Laverack took 18 seconds off his previous best to solidify his place in second on the segment leaderboard, 1:32 behind Pidcock, but impressively ahead of Simon Yates and other notable current and former pros.
“Stunning day for it and the legs showed up,” he told followers on Strava afterwards, with full behind the scenes YouTube video to follow this week. “388w (6.4wkg ish) and perfect pacing meant I made up all of my advantage in the final 6km, going 30s faster than my PR on that section alone! Maybe next time we will have some fun for YouTube and pace behind a team of climbers or a motorbike and see how fast we can really go!”
Tadej Pogačar jokingly threatens to attack "from the gun" today... after Geraint Thomas asks for "nice quiet day"
Any thought that Tadej Pogačar might do as little as possible to win this Giro d’Italia in order to save some energy for the Tour de France double attempt disappeared this weekend, just as quickly as… well, the Slovenian when given half a chance to attack.
Second on stage one, stage-winning destruction on day two, attacking on stage three’s sprint finish. Just a normal opening Grand Tour weekend for the sport’s great entertainer. Surely he couldn’t?
Me too, G…
Today should be another sprint, but like yesterday when Thomas and Pogačar leapt to follow Mikkel Frølich Honoré’s attack, there’s a small climb just a few kilometres from the line. Enough to tempt Tadej? Three times as much climbing as on yesterday’s stage, most of that in the first half of the day. Jonathan Milan is the name on this live blog predictor’s mind…
The most common bike fit mistakes and how to avoid them: nail your saddle height, cleat set-up and more with these top tips
World Donkey Day: Strava art edition
Live blog favourite Anthony Hoyte, famous for his incredible Strava art, has delivered the goods yet again, this time in honour of World Donkey Day tomorrow. Asspectacular effort… I’ll see myself out…
The ‘Pedalling Picasso’ has added donkey to his gallery of GPS classics, which includes reindeer, portraits, an award-winning flock of birds, written messages and a Parisian Santa.
So, how does one go about creating such enormous pieces? Speaking back in 2017, Hoyte said: “You need the concentration of roads to do the complicated ones so I look for different cities across the UK. I made a special trip to Cardiff to do the face but the other ones I managed to do in spare times on trips for work. I do quite a bit of research using route planners.
“It does take a ridiculous amount of preparation. I couldn’t really put a time on it. I do it in my lunchbreaks on a rainy day, each one over a period of weeks but spending an hour here and an hour there.”
"Seems like a pretty good investment to me": Chris Boardman enjoys video of London commuters flocking to city by bike in the sunshine this morning
London’s Walking and Cycling Commissioner Will Norman posted the video below on social media this morning, showing the popularity of two-wheeled commuting in the English capital.
London Loves Cycling!
I’m delighted that we’re working with @TidewayLondon to reopen the slip road connection between Cycleways 3 & 6. The new sewer & the Bazelgette Embankment will be completed soon and reopening this link will reduce the congestion in this area. pic.twitter.com/Ql3G1ed4ZU
— Will Norman (@willnorman) May 7, 2024
To which Chris Boardman commented: “Imagine if the whole country had the same transport choice as London. Seems like a pretty good investment to me.”
Boardman also had praise for this Cycling Scotland advert, supported by Police Scotland, which have been released with the aim of “to remind people driving they always need to drive safely around someone on a bike” and give safe passing distances.
“These adverts are very good and actually make people think,” Boardman added. “Be great if other home nations followed their lead.”
Today we launch our road safety campaign, supported by @PoliceScotland, to remind people driving they always need to drive safely around someone on a bike. Give at least 1.5 metres of space when passing someone on a bike.#GiveCycleSpace pic.twitter.com/ngGDFgW6C7
— Cycling Scotland (@CyclingScotland) April 29, 2024
Deer Miss of the Day
Sent in by Jonathan from his Saturday ride, enough to get your heart rate up a bit…
Matej Mohorič "saves the day" for cyclists who suffered puncture in the Alps
This was the moment some cyclists from London got a professional puncture repair service thanks to Bahrain Victorious pro, triple Tour de France stage winner, Milan-San Remo conqueror (and road.cc Podcast guest) Matej Mohorič.
10IronWomen, a group formed with the aim of inspiring women to take part in triathlon events, shared the snaps of their professional helping hand on Instagram, Mohorič training in the Alps ahead of the Tour de France when he came across the riders who’d punctured on Col de Braus.
The Slovenian saved the day and has been promised a beer on them the next time he’s in London. He also joins the mechanical-assisting good guys club (alongside Peter Sagan)…
> Peter Sagan comes to the aid of “flabbergasted” British cyclo-tourist in Gran Canaria
The rest of the weekend round-up: Registrations for cyclists back in the spotlight... (sort of); Vollering's Vuelta victory; Bike mechanic horrified by Halfords
Later than usual due to a certain live blogger getting distracted by unforeseen donkey and deer-related tangents, here’s the rest of what went down over the bumper bank holiday weekend, starting with everyone’s favourite subject. Well, after rim brakes, helmet debates and the rest…
On a cheerier note, Demi Vollering wrapped up Vuelta Femenina in the best possible style, with a stage win and display of dominance over her rivals. After a slow(ish) Classics seasons where there was no victory at all for the Dutch rider, let alone another sensational Ardennes ‘triple crown’, Vollering hit form bang on time for the opening Grand Tour of the year, winning two stages and the GC.
Decent celebration too…
Closer to home, a mechanic raised the alarm about what he called a “criminal-level abdication of duty” after a customer crashed on their first ride on a bike bought from the retailer on which it is claimed the stem bolts had not been tightened.
We also reported on the story that was published by The Telegraph about a high-speed collision in Regent’s Park that saw a pedestrian seriously injured before dying in hospital two months later.
"Waste of money" cycle lane slammed, as some locals call for more space for drivers – "because that's the majority"
Biniam Girmay abandons the Giro d'Italia after double crash on stage four
Desperate news for Biniam Girmay and Intermarché – Wanty, the Eritrean sprinter (who would have fancied his chances today given the near 2,000m of climbing in the first half of the route to fatigue the pure sprinters’ legs) has abandoned the Giro after a double crash on the big descent back down to the coast.
💥 Major crash in the peloton, involving @ben_oconnor95, @MATTEOTRENTIN, @FndoGaviria and also @GrmayeBiniam, who goes back on the bike, but seems to be in real pain. #GirodItalia pic.twitter.com/egsZfgfjnf
— Giro d’Italia (@giroditalia) May 7, 2024
The first involved numerous riders, Ben O’Connor and Matteo Trentin also affected, the second coming moments later as Girmay limped onwards after a few minutes at the roadside in obvious discomfort. Slick Italian roads, still damp, and Girmay appearing to gesture towards his tyres after the second fall having slipped out on a fast bend.
💔 2 consecutive crashes, and the end of the #GirodItalia for @GrmayeBiniam, forced to leave the race
❤️🩹 Heal up quickly Bini, see you in 2025 #GirodItalia pic.twitter.com/bGORQ8JXy2
— Giro d’Italia (@giroditalia) May 7, 2024
New SRAM... with a bottle opener on the outside of the box?!
Amid new SRAM groupset talk from the Giro… this has got some people all sorts of excited… (mainly because of the bottle opener)…
⚠️Scam website warning⚠️
Jonathan Milan wins stage four of the Giro d'Italia with monstrous sprint
It was all about the powerhouses on stage four, Filippo Ganna trying his luck up the final lump a few kilometres from the finish only to be caught in the high-speed run to the line. Lidl-Trek had done plenty of work all day, their Kittelesque sprinter Jonathan Milan unleashing all his power in the final 200m to take an impressive victory.
🥵 A very fast final KM on the seaside in Andora, with the sprinters chasing a lone rider for the second day running.
🔥 But once again, the sprinters prevailed, with an uber-powerful sprint by @MilanJonathan
⏪ The @Continentaltire Ultimo Kilometro ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/TLZoo5YdH6
— Giro d’Italia (@giroditalia) May 7, 2024
There was a Milan-San Remo feel to the day, some climbing early on followed by a flat(ish) run along the scenic coastline, a full effort climb, descent, sprint, done. Just up the coast from the roads of San Remo, the action exploded into life on the Capo Mele, Ganna making it over the top in the lead, holding his advantage on the descent before being reeled in as the line neared.
Once the sprinters got the green light it was all about Milan, the Italian who won the points classification and a stage last year, powering to victory despite the efforts of Kaden Groves, Phil Bauhaus and Olav Kooij.
The stacked field of sprinters might beg to differ, but the visual impression of that Milan win, and the strength of his Lidl-Trek support, makes it hard to believe he won’t be back on the podium for a stage victory (or more) over the next few weeks. And boy is his all-out, watt-smashing, bike-wrenching style fun to watch…
Long-distance lace-ups, an endurance bike bargain and inner tube perfection: road.cc Recommends updated with products from Boardman, Revoloop, Quoc + more
"Should be broadcast far and wide": Praise for close pass advert encouraging drivers to "leave space for a life" when overtaking cyclists
Here’s a bit more on the Cycling Scotland advert that we mentioned earlier, created with support from Police Scotland and attracting praise from Active Travel Commissioner Chris Boardman.
Today we launch our road safety campaign, supported by @PoliceScotland, to remind people driving they always need to drive safely around someone on a bike. Give at least 1.5 metres of space when passing someone on a bike.#GiveCycleSpace pic.twitter.com/ngGDFgW6C7
— Cycling Scotland (@CyclingScotland) April 29, 2024
And while some suggested Police Scotland might be better off implementing a reporting portal so cyclists can report video footage of dangerous incidents (à la Near Miss of the Day 903) the actual advert itself has earned plaudits.
Boardman commented: “These adverts are very good and actually make people think. Be great if other home nations followed their lead.”
One reply to Boardman added: “I’ve been an advocate of adverts like these for years. We need to humanise the bicycle. There isn’t even anyone riding the one on the road sign for a bicycle. I’ve been ridiculed for making this point but I can’t see how drivers attitudes will changes until we are seen as people.”
Another called it a “first-class advert” that “should be broadcast far and wide by terrestrial television in the UK”.
Cycling Scotland have also followed up the video advert with shorter social media clips.
When you’re driving, look out for people on bikes. More people are cycling, so be extra aware. Leave space for a life.#GiveCycleSpace pic.twitter.com/ZjM3ygG1kf
— Cycling Scotland (@CyclingScotland) May 6, 2024
The lack of camera footage reporting portal in Scotland has come up as a major issue, with some saying this is more important to them and cyclist safety than expressing support for adverts.
One rider told Cycling Scotland: “The best thing that Police Scotland could do is implement an online reporting portal and mass processing team like every other police force in the UK already has. The kind of driver that doesn’t give a damn about close passing a cyclist won’t change their behaviour because of a few tweets. A brown envelope on their door mat and a few years of high insurance premiums on the other hand…”
Others attempted to add some comedic flourishes to the discussion…
Where do you buy those fancy screens for your arms?
— ijonas (@ijonas) April 29, 2024
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Latest Comments
@Rendel Harris You know damn well what I mean, Rendel. The bikes here are just a nice angle to make their point about how tech has changed over the years. They could have easily used two other bikes for exactly the same purpose. They chose these because they already had an article that looked at the old bike in depth, and because Seixas' bike is new. You keep cherry-picking, to try to win this silly argument on semantics, but the intro actually says it quite clearly: "We compare Jaan Kirsipuu’s early-2000s AG2R race bike with Paul Seixas’ latest machine TO CHART A QUARTER OF A CENTURY OF TECH PROGRESS". The article is not ABOUT these bikes, it USES these bikes to illustrate that tech progress, hence, the article is about that tech progress.
@Sreedlums That's hilarious, the article is literally about two Decathlon Tour de France bikes and comparing them. It says that everywhere, in the headline, in the subhead, in the body text. It says it's "a good excuse to look back at how Decathlon’s top-level race bikes have changed over the last 25 years", how on earth can you get from that to "this article was *not* about these two bikes"? Go on swearing black is white all you want, but you are totally wrong.
@Sriracha They have got what makes bicycles be recognized by the public as bicycles, and what motorbikes haven't got - pedals, that's why.
@Rendel Harris Oh wait, so now the article is only about Decathlon's TdF bikes? Because that's in the headline? That's funny, because in your previous comment you said "I think if you look really hard you can see this is an article about how Tour de France bikes have changed",. So, which is it? You can keep cherry-picking snippets of text, but it doesn't change the fact that this article was *not* about these two bikes, nor was it about TdF bikes. This article took these two bikes as examples of top road bikes of their time, to take a broader look at how road bike tech has changed in 30 years. And my original comment was about exactly that; road bikes then and now.
@Sredlums Did you miss this bit? See the words "Tour de France bikes" there? Easy to miss, only being in the headline and all...
@Rendel Harris Except of course, Rendel, it is not. This sentence is in the intro of this article: "We compare Jaan Kirsipuu’s early-2000s AG2R race bike with Paul Seixas’ latest machine to chart a quarter of a century of tech progress", and this is the sentence with which they end the article: "Would you like to have a soft spot for bike tech of the past? Or is it best left to history?". Nowhere does it say they are looking only at bikes from the TdF. They honed in on these two specific Decathlon bikes to compare bike tech then with bike tech now.
@Sredlums Well, Sredlums, I think if you look really hard you can see this is an article about how Tour de France bikes have changed, so if you were talking about road bikes in general (which you did not make clear) it was your comment, not my reply, that was not pertinent.
Looking at Google shopping results for 'road bike', and then at a variety of retailer sites (Halfords, Decathlon, Sigma Sports, Ribble, Winstanleys, etc. etc., plus a couple of our local shops with ecommerce presence), on none of them are more than about one in eight black or dark grey, and often that's just one of a number of colour choices. So if there are a preponderance of such bikes around, it seems like it's less because bikes have become more 'boring' than it is because the people buying them have.
@Rendel Harris Well, Rendel, I think if you look really hard you can see that I wrote "how much more boring road bikes have become" and not 'how much more boring road bikes IN THE TOUR DE FRANCE have become". Simply look around you, when you see a group of road bikers pass by. Look in the bike shops. It's black, black, more black, some dark grey, more dark grey, matte. And black parts, like on all the bikes you showed as an example.
Exactly. Agree. But that doesn’t give ProCycling a free pass – instead the UCI and all pro teams should be leading the way as ambassadors for cycling as the greenest sport. Pro cycling could be green, but it will take significant change. Frighteningly however, it’s greenwashing that is still the aim and motivation for the majority of pro cycling sponsors. It’s not good enough. Such sponsorships should be banned. Like tobacco and alcohol. It’s as simple as that. Our planet is sending a very clear message through ProCycling – not sustainable.
40 thoughts on ““Should be broadcast far and wide”: Praise for close pass advert encouraging drivers to “leave space for a life” when overtaking cyclists; Is Pidcock’s Sa Calobra time unbeatable?; Deer Miss off the Day; Giro sprint stage + more on the live blog”
Hi Road.cc team, any chance
Hi Road.cc team, any chance you could not post the results of the Giro (or any significant race for that matter) until the following day? Those of us who work want to watch the highlights in the evening without the spoilers!
Surely if you don’t want
Surely if you don’t want spoilers, then the easiest option is for you to just avoid specialist cycling news websites for the day, rather than asking said specialist websites to delay reporting on significant, relevant events?
Thats what i try to do, but
Thats what i try to do, but often forget…
Basically you have to avoid
Basically you have to avoid pretty much all news and online media to avoid spoilers. Something rather difficult to do in today’s world. I stopped following several bike publications because of their need to reveal results ASAP. It’s not hard to use headlines that are not spoilers in folk’s social media feeds, but that just doesn’t happen.
Most folk work and if lucky, they can get to watch a highlight shown in evening. Unlike journalists who wach events live in daytime and forget how most folk consume sport.
During the TdF I have to not look at anything online, from midday until 8 or 9pm at night when I get to see the hour highlights show.
The Giro result is fairly
The Giro result is fairly easy to miss until the highlights show, TdF a little more difficult. I don’t road.cc during the month of July before the highlights show if working.
Avoiding F1 results a little more tricky, C4 news don’t mention it, of course, but have to make sure to not look at the sport section on the guardian’s website, but radio news often slip ot in there.
That Milan is very big, strong and fast isn’t he?
It’s worth unsubscribing from
It’s worth unsubscribing from their emails as well, as often they will put either the result or a massive spoiler in the subject line and this can be pushed to your phone.
Agree. Lazy journalism.
Agree. Lazy journalism.
A spoiler result headline won’t attract someone who doesn’t care about the race. A non-spoiler headline will still attract those who are interested and aren’t avoiding the result. Those that don’t want a spoiler won’t look.
I’ll avoid road.cc when I’m busy during a grand tour but have a few mins rest to browse.
Hey road.cc, what happened in
Hey road.cc, what happened in La Vuelta Femenina?
Or do you not give a damn about the women’s side? Your reporting of it has been p*ss poor.
They’re holding off the
They’re holding off the reporting till nick sprink has watched it on Eurosport/discovery+
Thought this would be in the
Thought this would be in the blog
https://twitter.com/EnemyCoastAhead/status/1787182732109586839
Sorry if you are not on twitter.
I’d say the cyclist has some responsibility but not sure of the % to attach.
Hi, we’ll have something on
Hi, we’ll have something on this later today, just in the process of talking to someone involved.
Thanks!
I hadn’t really noticed how
I hadn’t really noticed how the drivers of the cars alongside just drive off, no offer to witness, just go, not my problem mate.
Some dubious cloning in that
Some dubious cloning in that Peter Sagan image….double cassette.
my apologies, the issue was brought up in the original article..
How long before we see this
How long before we see this on Kickstarter?
The Daily Mail and the usual
The Daily Mail and the usual Twitter cycling haters are trying to make out the cyclist got away with killing the elderly lady in Regents Park, and that legislation needs to change because of this (ie speed limits for bikes).
Cannon Hill Park today after
Cannon Hill Park today after members of the public found an emergency access gate open & took the opportunity to drive into, around, & park in the park itself. Police attended but couldn’t do anything due to their being “too many cars”
We went for a walk in the nearby woods yesterday to then dodge 2 off road motorbikers who had complete disregard for anyone. No numberplates either and one of them was under 16.
Couldn’t they have just sent
Couldn’t they have just sent in a squadron of flatbed trucks to tow away the lot of them?
Just close the gate. Let them
Just close the gate. Let them walk home and come back next time there is an emergency and the gate is open to retrieve their cars…
Yeah – actually that would
Yeah – actually that would work better
FFS
FFS
Deer Near Miss. Muntjac are
Deer Near Miss. Muntjac are a menace but they tend to be solitary and small. During the nightime leg of the London Wales London Audax (a fab 400km event) I was landed on by a Fallow Deer (60kg plus) that had leapt a hedge to my left and about 6ft above head level. Needless to say I was badly damaged, requiring ambulance, A&E, Trauma Ward and 10 weeks off work. These things come in herds so if you see one follow the good practice in this clip. Also, go out today and buy venison (the fact is if we ate more there would be a market for their meat and so, less of them about).
Like how very few cows there
Like how very few cows there are.
Only 6% of the combined mass of mammals on earth is wild. The rest is livestock.
Apparently one of the most
Apparently one of the most deadly creatures in the UK (trailing a long way behind humans of course).
For those who couldn’t be bothered the others are bees / wasps and dogs.
Following Samtheeagle’s idea though, surely we should all be eating motor vehicles?
Samtheeagle wrote:
Isn’t it a little dear, though?
hawkinspeter wrote:
My butcher offered me 4 legs of venison for £200.
I said “That’s two deer!”
Shouldn’t that be 8 legs?
Shouldn’t that be 8 legs?
IanGlasgow wrote:
Remind me how many legs a deer has…?
If anyone argues we should
If anyone argues we should have cycle “registration” to help catch errant cyclists…
Ask them if registration has prevented/caught these vehicle users who have had expired MOTs and VED for months, if not years…
RV66 DKU, no MOT and VED for over 2 YEARS.
L333 CTB and PO60 OLV.
All seen being driven/parked badly in the last 2 months.
Not forgetting the close pass I had a couple of years ago.
The Met police issued an NIP only to find the plates were cloned.
So despite wanting to go after the close pass AND then finding the driver was using cloned plates, the police gave up on it.
Cold road.cc do a review of
Could road.cc do a review of the Telraam S2 “stick on my window” traffic counter that is under £200?
Looks like a useful tool for campaign groups.
https://telraam.net/en/S2
Re the Cycling Scotland, this
Re the Cycling Scotland, this has run before but it hasn’t made any difference.
As for Polis Scotland, a chocolate teapot would be more useful. They are institutionally corrupt and not just anti-cycling.
Further to this, out for a
Further to this, out for a bike ride this morning, in one of a number of crap passes I was overtaken on a bend into on coming traffic, solid white lines, I was doing about 20mph, and you would never guess who it was…
Yes, that’s right Polis Scotland. They are simply scum of the earth.
Possibly newsworthy for this
Possibly newsworthy for this site as so many readers are users: just received an email from Zwift saying that the monthly subscription will go from £12.99 up to £17.99 from June. 38%, quite a leap…
Just got mine too, I have an
Just got mine too, I have an annual subscription going from £129.99 to £179.99, renewing in January. I’ve got 7 months to decide whether to go back to monthly and pause it during the summer, suck it up, or try something else.
Realistically I’ll suck it up I expect, it’s a premium platform along with TR (I wonder how long the new upstarts will stay around). I guess it’s the first price increase in many years so fair play to them for hanging on. It just feels like a lot because it was free when I started on it in 2015, then £8.99, followed by £12.99, now this.
I feel it might be time to
I feel it might be time to cancel: that’s just taking the micky of an increase.
Perhaps Road CC could do an updated: “”What instead of Zwift” article?
essexian wrote:
MyWhoosh is free and not bad, I did give it a try but I guess I’m a creature of habit and like Zwift for familiarity plus I didn’t like the repressive regime connatations.
Just bear in mind mywhoosh is
Just bear in mind mywhoosh is funded by a petrostate.
Secret_squirrel wrote:
Hence “I didn’t like the repressive regime connatations”!
Its a huge jump especially
Its a huge jump especially considering what most people use it for. Will be interesting to see how much it effects their value as I’m sure plenty will cancel or at least cancel when they know its going to be less used. 38% though… nah. They will make a killing with the new pricing. Amazed they went for that though instead of 20% or something.
I agree I guess, it’s only an
I agree I guess, it’s only an extra quid a week, just a bit of a surprise to get such a big rise in one swoop.
Ill pause it till Autumn, see
Ill pause it till Autumn, see if a mass exodus leads them to change their minds.