Could you ride 100 miles out the saddle?; Tao looking forward to “unpredictable” Tokyo road race; Bike lane bust-up; LTN ignorance; Group ride with all the gear drafted by keen commuter; Cav for SPOTY; Emotional Fabio reacts to win + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
South African group ride with all the gear drafted by keen commuter
It’s not about the bike! This guy spinning happily on his no-frills steed is able to keep up with this all the gear group ride in Johannesburg, with the help of a little bit of drafting. In fairness, his ride probably weighs the same as two of the racers’ top-of-the-range models…
The clip from the Cyclists With Cameras Reddit thread got everyone talking about times they’ve kept up with pro-looking riders despite their equipment handicap and reminded us of the time EF Education-Nippo pro Rigoberto Urán was drafted by a backpack-wearing local at 45km/h.
When have you been outgunned but held the wheel on legs alone?
Matej Mohorič denies knowing that his 'zipped lips' Tour de France stage win celebration was a gesture infamously used by Lance Armstrong
Victory salute… witness statement? 🤐 pic.twitter.com/Gn7h4dZNNk
— the Inner Ring (@inrng) July 16, 2021
Double stage winner at this year’s Tour de France, Matej Mohorič, has denied knowing the history of the celebration he showed the world while crossing the line as the winner on stage 19. Mohorič put his finger to his lips like Jamie Vardy goading a baying stand of away fans before zipping his lips, à la Lance Armstrong.
Mohorič replied to a tweet questioning his choice of celebration: “I didn’t know. If I knew, I wouldn’t have done it. I think a public apology would fall on deaf ears. Those who are hostile by nature won’t change their opinion anyway. Those who know me don’t need an explanation about this.”
Many questioned the Slovenian’s defiance, especially given the context that Bahrain Victorious’ team bus and hotel had been raided by French police just 48 hours earlier.
Tour de Tietema returns to feed Chris Froome pizza in Paris
Stick the subtitles on for Tour de Tietema’s final episode from the Tour de France, including all the footage from when they found out ASO were blocking their vids. The team did their traditional Paris finale…feeding hungry pro riders pizza. Chris Froome, Sepp Kuss, Mads Pedersen and Matej Mohorič were four of the riders ecstatic to see something other than pasta or rice on the menu…
LTN ignorance?
I do hope the cameras are switched on in Pitfield Street.
Amazing that almost as soon as you remove the actual physical restriction drivers will just find the opening and start using it despite multiple signs that through traffic is prohibited. pic.twitter.com/uXzqAtPQ1G— filter more streets (@iambrianjones) July 21, 2021
Fabio Jakobsen reacts to emotional first win back
We love you too, @FabioJakobsen 💙 pic.twitter.com/bXdDomFp0z
— Deceuninck-QuickStep (@deceuninck_qst) July 21, 2021
Nobody would begrudge Fabio Jakobsen his win yesterday – his first in 19 months and also the first since returning to the sport. It’s not been a bad month for Deceuninck-Quick-Step sprinters making comebacks…
After the win the Dutchman had plenty of people to thank: “I need to thank a lot of people: my girlfriend, my family, the doctors and the team – without them it wouldn’t have been possible. This is also their victory. I am so happy I am in this team and will be part of it in the future. Together we worked on my comeback and it panned out well.
“It’s been quite a long comeback and to stand here today after that crash is an emotional moment for me, especially as my family is also here and they could see me do what I love so much and take the victory. These last couple of months have been a process where I made step after step, faced some setbacks at times, but continued fighting and believing in myself. I had already won several times before today, but being able to sprint and get the win is a big relief for me.”
Could you ride 100 miles out the saddle? US Cat 2 rider completes stand up century
Chad Tavernia (yes, that ‘us’ in his Strava name is where he’s from) completed a century with a difference yesterday in New York State…100 miles (obviously), all out of the saddle…
Ridiculously he held an average of 33.2km/h during the ride that took in more than 1,400m of climbing – so not pan flat either. Why? On Strava, Chad said it had always been a dream to complete a century out the saddle. Each to their own, I guess. He rode the 100 miles without any stops and says he only had one bottle and no food…
Starting just outside the small Franklin County town of Malone, Chad climbed to a maximum elevation of 620m near the Chazy Highlands Wild Forest, before finishing back where he started about 10 miles south of the border with Canada.
A dip into the archives for some more silly centuries found this gem from 2019…Rich Flanagan, also from the US, attempted to ride a 100-mile wheelie…but was foiled by a gust of wind at the 50-mile mark. Still, he added 24 miles to the previous Guinness World Record.
Good driver, bad driver
HGV driver waved me out past the white van! pic.twitter.com/4j4ZMBEmtf
— JimsWheels (@JimsWheels) July 22, 2021
Mark Cavendish joint-favourite for Sports Personality of the Year 2021
Mark Cavendish is a joint-favourite alongside Team GB sprinter Dina Asher-Smith to take home the Sports Personality of the Year crown for 2021. Cav won in 2011 off the back of five Tour de France stage wins, the green jersey and winning the World Championships in Copenhagen. This year, only the second time he’s won the Tour’s points jersey, the Manxman is back in the picture for the BBC award.
According to Oddschecker, the 36-year-old’s closest competition is Tokyo-bound Asher-Smith, who has a strong chance of repeating her silver and gold in the 100m and 200m at the World Championships in 2019. Beyond GB’s top sprinter, the bookies have Lions captain Alun Wyn Jones, Adam Peaty and track cycling star Laura Kenny as potential winners.
Peterborough Cycle Forum hits out at county's metro mayor over "misuse" of funding for new cycling infrastructure
Peterborough Cycle Forum has penned a letter to its metro mayor and the government saying funds for cycling infrastructure are being misused. The group hit out at the city council for ignoring calls to use funding to continue the Crescent Bridge pop-up cycle lane. The Peterborough Telegraph reports the council has instead opted to use Department for Transport funding to create a segregated lane elsewhere.
For now the pop-up lane in Crescent Bridge has been removed and the forum claims the new lane connecting Longthorpe to the Thorpe Wood Business Park and South Bretton will be part of an upgrade funded by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority. This has been disputed by the council.
Council leader Wayne Fitzgerald has claimed the pop-up lane is not being used and has led to a rise in traffic…The cycle forum disputes this and said in a letter: “We feel this decision is a misuse of the DfT’s funding and as such has very serious implications for the combined authority, especially with regards to accessing future funding for walking and cycling, and road schemes.
“We have significant concerns that the DfT will not allow Peterborough City Council to use their Tranche 2 of the Active Travel Fund on the Junction 15 (A1260 Nene Parkway/A47 Soke Parkway) scheme. It is already a multi-million pound road scheme, being built to create more capacity for motor vehicles.”
The forum described the now-removed Crescent Bridge pop-up lane as “an important, strategic corridor” and argued using the current funding to improve it would “ensure pedestrians, cyclists, wheelchair users and motor vehicles are all safe, and separated.”
Tao Geoghegan Hart looking forward to "unpredictable" Olympic Games road race
Tao Geoghegan Hart is one of the four GB riders who will compete in the men’s road race during the early hours of Saturday morning (UK time). The Ineos Grenadiers’ rider is alongside trade teammates Geraint Thomas and Adam Yates, as well as Adam’s twin brother Simon.
“It’s going to be a very unpredictable race,” Geoghegn Hart told Sky Sports News. “You could easily write down 15 or 20 names that could win the gold medal, if not more. Obviously it’s small teams as well, the fact that we’ve got four guys that could realistically have cards to play in the final, or even anticipating that final is a really positive outlook for us.
“I think all four of our Team GB representatives could on their day stand on the top step of the podium. It’s just about playing those cards that we have, going in confident and working with each other, we all know each other very well, three of us are team-mates and have raced together all year.”
Slovenia will start as the heavy favourites with their two-pronged attack of Tour de France champion Tadej Pogačar and Primož Roglič. Meanwhile, defending champion Greg Van Avermaet will likely be supporting the all-conquering Wout van Aert on the mountainous course around Mount Fuji. Oh, and the Belgians have Remco Evenepoel too if they need any more options.
The 'we're not really doing cycling infrastructure' sign...
After many visits I’ve come to realise this sign means we’re not really doing cycling infrastructure. pic.twitter.com/X6BA7NsVqW
— Steve Chambers 🚇🚌🏙️ (@respros) July 22, 2021
22 July 2021, 08:03
22 July 2021, 08:03
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@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.
There was never really anything to say about le col kit. Most of it was alright. Some of it was poorly designed/made. Trying to position yourself as a Rapha competitor whilst always offering 40% or more off doesn't scream premium though.
Up next in the MucOff product line; for when the cassette won't budge, (chain)whip-it!
34 thoughts on “Could you ride 100 miles out the saddle?; Tao looking forward to “unpredictable” Tokyo road race; Bike lane bust-up; LTN ignorance; Group ride with all the gear drafted by keen commuter; Cav for SPOTY; Emotional Fabio reacts to win + more on the live blog”
To be honest, it doesn’t look
To be honest, it doesn’t look like there’s much ‘keeping up with’ required there – they don’t exactly look like they’re going full gas.
I mean, I could probably keep up with the Quickstep train…
…at the mid-ride cafe stop.
Big rise in UK weekend
Big rise in UK weekend cycling amid calls for more investment
Leisure cycling up by 60% in some areas but campaigners say safer routes needed post-pandemic
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/jul/22/big-rise-in-uk-weekend-cycling-amid-calls-for-more-investment
brooksby wrote:
[I]…However, weekday cycling numbers in England remain at pre-pandemic levels, prompting campaigners to warn that without investment in safe cycling infrastructure, as traffic volumes return to normal, more people will turn to cars for everyday trips.[/i]
The big difference is that for leisure cycling you get to choose pleasant/safe cycling routes. Whereas for commuting your choice of route is more limited.
The difference in the numbers says it all – more people than ever are getting out on their bikes and enjoying it, and yet do not feel able to replace car journeys.
Sriracha wrote:
Big rise in UK weekend cycling amid calls for more investment
Leisure cycling up by 60% in some areas but campaigners say safer routes needed post-pandemic
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/jul/22/big-rise-in-uk-weekend-cycling-amid-calls-for-more-investment
— Sriracha [I]…However, weekday cycling numbers in England remain at pre-pandemic levels, prompting campaigners to warn that without investment in safe cycling infrastructure, as traffic volumes return to normal, more people will turn to cars for everyday trips.[/i] The big difference is that for leisure cycling you get to choose pleasant/safe cycling routes. Whereas for commuting your choice of route is more limited. The difference in the numbers says it all – more people than ever are getting out on their bikes and enjoying it, and yet do not feel able to replace car journeys.— brooksby
I also find it harder to commute by bike currently as showers at work are closed (have there been cases of people catching covid using a shower aftersomeone else?) and I can’t leave anything at work for fear of getting symptoms or pinged and not able to go in to the office the following day.
“as showers at work are
“as showers at work are closed”
Have they closed off the toilets as well then? Our showers are open (single self contained rooms with toilet and sink) but with the provisio we wipe down surfaces used after. However they have closed the drying cabinet which means damp clothes and towels need to be brought up to the office to dry (basement is too cold for sufficient drying). I expect my sweat soaked cycling gear hanging up in the office all day is more of a spreading risk then being in the drying cabinet with 2-3 other peoples.
wycombewheeler wrote:
“Showers at work”?? Now, there’s posh! 😉
wycombewheeler wrote:
None that I have heard of.
I find this odd. We are told soap and water gets rid of covid contamination from our hands, and encouraged to do so as often as possible, with no suggestion that the risk of contracting it from the wash basin outweighs the benefit. Why is the equation reversed when it comes to washing the rest of ourself?
Yeah – I noted that one of
Yeah – I noted that one of their anecdotes was some guy saying he’d started cycling six miles to work during ‘lockdown’ but that once traffic levels started rising he’d gone back to his car.
I’m not entirely convinced that the great modal transport change which was being talked about in April last year ever happened – seems to me that most people recreationally cycled more cos they were furloughed and had free time, and then as soon as places started opening up again they just got back in the car…
Sriracha wrote:
Indeed. In the UK we are still a long way from cycling being seen as a viable ‘mode of transport’, as opposed to just being a competitive sport or for maintaining fitness. Until the infrastructure reflects the potential utilitarian uses then that will surely continue to be that case.
And that is seemingly
And that is seemingly unlikely, as there doesn’t seem to be the will to make this happen. No matter how much persuasion takes place, people want the ease of a car to get around. Cycling, walking et al isn’t as easy. Even spending time in queues commuting doesn’t put people off – they’ll still do it.
As long as they can continue to use the car, they will. The time for persuasion is over – they need to be forced out of the car. But this is almost impossible.
‘They need to be forced’.
‘They need to be forced’.
What, like the 3rd Reich sort of thing?
Hmm, you’re not convincing me.
Did you oppose stopping
Did you oppose stopping smokers increasing the likelihood of others getting cancer by banning smoking indoors?
I can’t help thinking that we
I can’t help thinking that we don’t need a lot more infrastructure or money for cycling. If we reduce all the (non motorway) speed limits by 10mph and have proper enforcement then we would encourage more cycling, reduce CO2 emissions and it would all be self finance through fines. Simples!
Whilst what you suggest would
Whilst what you suggest would help (a lot) the evidence shows that where good cycling infrastructure is put in place people who would otherwise not cycle will use it. I live adjacent to a local greenway which is heavily used. It is remarkable the number of people who drive to get to it only to unload their bikes, and I’m not just talking about adults. Similarly I’ve had so many conversations with people who say they would love to cycle but consider it too dangerous to cycle on the roads with cars.
It seems to me we either need
It seems to me we either need better infrastructure or make the existing roads safe for active travel. The latter would be a lot cheaper and less disruptive if it cold be done.
“It is remarkable the number
“It is remarkable the number of people who drive to get to it only to unload their bikes, and I’m not just talking about adults.”
Your local roads must be a nightmare with all the children driving around travelling to and from the greenway.
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:
thats why they are too dangerous to cycle on, as any fule know that the requirement for a license makes everyone perfectly well behaved on the roads, and clearly the children are to young to have taken the test.
iandusud wrote:
Children drive to it and unload their bikes?
I’ve followed cycling since
I’ve followed cycling since the days of Eddy Merckx and didn’t know about the zipped lips gesture.
Although I didn’t watch so regularly during the Indurain and Armstrong eras so may have missed it.
I remember it from when a
I remember it from when a young Italian rider (Simione?) tried to stand up to Armstrong and during thre race Armstrong rides along the side of him, puts a friendly arm around him, has a chat and then cycled off doing the zipped lips ‘omerta’ sign.
I refuse to believe Mohoric didn’t know about the gesture as it’s quite famous and the omerta is something that’s been in cycling from the start.
Mohorič was 10 years old when
Mohorič was 10 years old when Armstrong made the same guesture. Seems entirely plausible that he was unaware
What’s the purpose of the
What’s the purpose of the gesture otherwise? It’s clearly about doping – what other context is there?
Wouldn’t he have been
Wouldn’t he have been fantastically stupid and monumentally arrogant to have done that?
My interpretation was that he was attempting to tell everyone just to shut up and stop maligning the team.
However, it was a poor decision whatever his meaning.
Talk about social media
Talk about social media reading too much into something. What pro cyclist in their right mind would conciously echo something Armstrong did? Especially 2 days after a drugs search. Unless he was deliberately mocking the french rozzers.
Personally I think he deserves the benefit of the doubt. Talk about innocuous. Social Medja’s gonna social medja.
Quote:
Too much cheese before bedtime?
Standing century:- according
Standing century:- according to his strava stats he is lighter then bernal and most of the rest of the Pro Peloton so that probably helped his effort.
I once did 13 miles out of
I once did 13 miles out of the saddle when my seat bolt sheared off and the only alternative was a bit of a shafting.
I wonder if Mr Taverniaus
I wonder if Mr Taverniaus removed his saddle (and temptation…)?
He did according to the pic
He did according to the pic he added to the Strava ride. Pinarello F8 with no saddle or seat post. Looks like he sealed off the top of the seat tube as well to stop any discomfortable holes flesh could squeeze into. Question is did he do the now illegal frame rides down hill?
LTN Ignorance: At least we
LTN Ignorance: At least we know where Socrati turned up after leaving here. Signed up to Twitter under the username Cyclists against LTNs.
I suspect Socrati never
I suspect Socrati never exactly left. I think a lot of our trolls still lurk around, changing usernames and re-registering as new users.
There never seem to be more
There never seem to be more than 2 concurrent trolls I think it is some software setting.
Trolls are territorial – two
Trolls are territorial – two many in one patch and they will fight each other to the death.
Cav for SPOTY Huzzah!! where
Cav for SPOTY Huzzah!! where do I vote?