Rigoberto Urán drafted by backpack-wearing local at 45km/h; MTB’er jumps straight into collision; Cyclist struck by bottle from passing pick-up; Skoda Octavia with anti-dooring tech goes on sale + more on the live blog

While cranking out more watts is definitely helpful, the Israel Start-Up Nation rider and former Hour Record holder has some wise words of advice for young cyclists who have ambitions to make it at World Tour level. 

Hahahah serieus maar waar was deze fietser mee bezig dan? 🤷‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/1bgRB7YTgV

— Bas Tietema (@BasTietema) June 8, 2020

While the phrase ‘Sorry Mate I Didn’t See You’ has been bandied about by countless inattentive drivers since the dawn of the motor vehicle, we can safely say that in this case, the driver most certainly wasn’t at fault. As he approaches a crossing, a man appears flying through the air on a mountain bike and crashes straight into the windscreen; hopefully the cyclist suffered no serious damage, and will think more carefully before using a road as a stage to perform stunts on in future. 

Though the caption is in Dutch we’re not certain if the video originates from the Netherlands; but if it was, ‘presumed liability’ law usually dictates that in traffic collisions between motor vehicles and cyclists/pedestrians, the driver of the motor vehicle is considered to be at fault as a starting point when cases go to court. You’d like to think that in this instance, however, common sense and the video evidence would exonerate the driver…

The Sainsbury’s Chop Chop service – which aims to deliver essential groceries by bike to customers within the hour – has now extended beyond London to 20 more cities. The Yorkshire Post reports that the service landed in Leeds today, and by the end of June a total of 50 stores will be offering Chop Chop. 

Sainsbury’s re-launched the service in April, citing unprecedented demand due to the lockdown and those who were self-isolating. Customers can choose up to 20 essential items, and they promise delivery within 60 minutes of an order being placed. Sainsbury’s say they have doubled the number of orders they can fulfill in the London stores that are offering Chop Chop since the start of April, and rolling out to the extra 50 stores countrywide will increase capacity by another 400%. 

Once this legislation has been
passed specific waste streams will be targeted and DEFRA have confirmed that bike
tyres will be one of the first. It is good that the UK cycle trade is one step ahead.#recycling #sustainability https://t.co/AZ607xaULv

— VelorimLtd (@VelorimL) June 9, 2020

It’s something that has long been advocated by tyre and inner tube recycling innovators Velorim; and now the government are stepping in to ensure bike tyres are suitably recycled, making it illegal to dump them. 

While dumping car tyres was outlawed in 2003, Cycling Industry News report that due to a lack of viable recycling schemes, this never extended to bike tyres despite them being made of almost identical materials. 

Velorim will take charge of a collection and recycling scheme that is set to be rolled out by the end of 2020, with participating bike shops, workshops and hire schemes becoming collection points. Their CEO Dave Hawthorn commented: “The introduction of the National Bicycle Tyre Recycling Scheme will mean that cycling can rightly claim to be the most environmentally responsible of sports.”

Velorim say on their website that currently, over 30 million bike tyres and 152 million inner tubes are disposed of annually in the UK, with 99% ending up in landfill. 

You remember those bicycle cops? LMAAAAO 🤣 pic.twitter.com/I8EGcu1mGo

— Witch Doctor Seuss (@X_sequitur) June 7, 2020

Last week, a rather cringey video surfaced of a police ‘Bike Response Team’ performing some pretty unimpressive skids… and now, another clip has gone viral in which a cop performs a similar move, before dismounting and taking quite a tumble while attempting to pursue a Black Lives Matter protestor.

It’s been suggested that scenes such as this could have had a negative impact on bike brands that appear in the footage, with the officers in the ‘Bike Response Team’ video all riding Trek hardtails; although Trek’s president John Burke has already written a lengthy blog post strongly condemning the killing of George Floyd and calling for change.

At a time where US policing is under intense scrutiny following the outrage over George Floyd’s death, Fuji have already recognised the potential for damage to their brand and stopped supplying bicycles to police departments: they said in a statement: “In an effort to make real change, we are beginning a dialogue with police departments nationwide to address how bikes are used in police activity and to ensure that police’s on-bike training reinforces that bicycles are not a weapon against our community.

“At this time, we are suspending the sale of Fuji police bikes until a conversation with these departments has occurred and we are confident that real change is being made.”

 

 

 

 

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Mijitos vean pues, cuando le sale a uno la verdadera competencia en el camino.

A post shared by Rigoberto Urán (@rigobertouran) on Jun 8, 2020 at 5:38am PDT

He has all the gear and a very good idea, but still Rigoberto Urán was humbled by a cyclist carrying a backpack and dressed in baggy khakis on a training ride in his native Colombia. Dressed in full EF Pro Cycling kit and riding a Cannondale SuperSlice TT bike, Urán appears to be putting plenty of effort in, but our hero hangs on quite comfortably. Unless they’re some SPD-equipped heavy duty boots we don’t know about, his footwear isn’t exactly advantageous either. 

According to Marca, the cyclist is a farmer and the pair were riding at around 45km/h. When they stopped for a quick chat, Urán says he was “surprised” by the man’s speed despite his advanced years: “This streamlined guy appears alongside me and I thought, this one is getting ready for the Tour”, he added. 

It appears this definitely wasn’t a set up photo/video opportunity either; Uran’s Strava account shows that he completed a four hour jaunt yesterday morning, taking in over 2,000m of elevation over a distance of 112km. 

In fairness, the days don’t half all seem samey at the moment… 

Speaking to The Guardian, Andrew Bebesi – owner of independent bike shop Brisycle – claims that he works up to 18 hour days and has doubled staff numbers due to the rise of cycling since the start of the pandemic: “Last Saturday, we sold eight bikes in 20 minutes. As soon as we opened the door, they were just pulling the bikes out”, said Bebesi. 

With traffic beginning to return to the roads, cycling advocacy groups are doing all they can to ensure councils and the government continue the legacy by securing funding for cycling infrastructure. Cycling UK’s Duncan Dollimore told The Guardian: “In another month, time will be running out – traffic will be increasing, people won’t be able to use public transport. There’s an urgent need to act, otherwise people who can’t use public transport will choose to get in the car again. Get on with it or the moment will have gone and we will have lost this opportunity to have this once-in-a-lifetime change to the way people move around urban areas.”

Northamptonshire Police say that the incident took place between 6.10pm and 6.20pm in Burystead Place, Wellingborough on 21st May, as the cyclist was passing through Croyland Gardens. The cyclist rang his bell to alert two men who were on the footpath that was coming past; however as he cycled past, one became verbally abusive and used racist language. The 44-year-old cyclist then stopped, and the offender punched him in the face. He is described as a white male in his 20’s, of a slim build and around 6ft tall, and was carrying a can of beer at the time of the assault. 

Up cycling 😂 pic.twitter.com/6Xzk7N41NI

— CCTV_IDIOTS (@cctv_idiots) June 9, 2020

Coinciding with Bike Week, Skoda’s fourth generation Octavia is now available to order to UK customers, and includes their ‘Exit Warning’ technology that alerts drivers/passengers to potential hazards when opening a car door. The car also features Predictive Cycling Protection, which gives warnings to the driver if a cyclist is detected ahead. 

A Skoda spokesperson told ShinyShiny: “The all-new fourth-generation Octavia is the most technologically advanced Skoda yet and one of the most cycle-friendly cars on the market.

“Naturally cyclists face daily challenges associated with cycling on busy roads, including avoiding car doors as they open. The technology introduced in the new Octavia, particularly Exit Warning, is there to assist drivers in helping to mitigate and reduce potential accidents.”

Ford also revealed they were working on anti-dooring technology earlier this year, which would prevent car doors from opening fully when cyclists approached. Cycle safety advocates promote the ‘Dutch reach’ as the most effective non-technological way to prevent dooring; this involves the car driver or passenger opening their door with the hand that is furthest away from it, forcing them to look over their shoulder.  

Thames Valley Police are appealing for information after a cyclist was left with bruising and inflammation to his chest due to a water bottle being thrown from a white pick-up truck. 

The incident happened at 2.35pm on Sunday 31st May, and the male victim was one of two cyclists riding on the B3021 Southlea Road from Datchet to Windsor when the assault occurred. A person from the pick-up travelling in the opposite direction threw a drinks bottle at the cyclists, which hit the victim in the chest; the victim didn’t require hospital treatment. 

Investigating officer PC Alexander Massey said: “This was a frightening experience for the two cyclists, and I am appealing to anyone who has any information about this incident to come forward.

“If you were driving or cycling in the area at the time and saw anything, please get in touch. You can contact us using the online reporting form, quoting reference number 43200160762. If you cannot report online, call the 24 hour non-emergency number 101.”