CyclingMikey loses out to Hitler for the title of the “worst person in history” in bonkers Twitter poll; The great helmet saga continues as Giro and Visma hit back at UCI; Evenepoel calls head sock ban “laughable”; Strava for dogs + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Police vow to clamp down on “unacceptable” drivers flouting bus gates and putting vulnerable road users at risk, after child knocked off bike by motorist in low traffic neighbourhood
Campaigners in Exeter who took matters into their own hands last month by acting as “human bollards” to enforce a bus gate that was constantly being violated by motorists – and saw two cyclists, including a child and a mother with a baby, struck by drivers – have welcomed the police’s decision to undertake “random and unpredictable enforcement” at the entrances to the low traffic neighbourhood.
“They want to play with our balls”: Remco Evenepoel dubs UCI’s decision to ban head socks as “laughable”, as the great pro cycling TT helmet war wages on
Back in the day, when pro cyclists would kick up a fuss and claim the UCI’s policies were turning the peloton against the sport’s governing body, it was usually about doping.
Now, apparently, it’s about head socks.
After a week that’s been dominated by that helmet from Visma-Lease a Bike and Giro, riders in the peloton have expressed all sorts of thoughts and opinions, following the UCI’s announcement to review the regulations amidst “even more radical designs of helmets”.
Ahem, radical designs like these, I would hope? Except the Cybertruck one of course, that can go straight to hell. I mean, imagine rocking up to the races in a Daft Punk helmet (Research is still ongoing on whether listening to the Tron: Legacy soundtrack while riding turns your bike into a light cycle).
But after Thomas De Gendt and Sam Welsford agreed in unison that it might be a good time to pack up your bags, go home and give up the ghost of cycling in light of the new helmets that have broken the internet over the last couple of days (at least in the cycling realm), now, it’s Remco Evenepoel’s turn to weigh in, albeit on a pretty different tune.
Because one thing that got slightly glossed over in all the hullabaloo of the UCI’s announcement about its impending decision on time trial helmets, was that it was also banning those funky ‘head socks’, as seen poking out from under Specialized’s TT5 helmets for the last 18 months, with effect from 2 April 2024.
Specialized supplies its helmets to Bora-Hansgrohe, TotalEnergies, and of course, Soudal Quick-Step, with the current men’s time trial champion, Evenepoel. While the American company said that it had been “disappointed” with the decision taken by pro cycling’s governing body, claiming that it would greatly affect the riders and teams who’ve spent months training with the equipment, Evenepoel used a little less of that corporate lingo, instead opting for the more Belgian no non-sense approach.
“It’s laughable. There are rules around brake levers, but I still see riders riding around with their brake levers tilting inwards,” the 24-year-old told Sporza. “Two years ago, they authorised our helmet, and now they’re taking it out. I kind of feel like they want to play with our balls.”
“It’s not very friendly what they’re doing. There are other teams that are almost riding with a time trial helmet in the peloton. I’m thinking of EF Education-EasyPost. They are dragging cycling into the ridiculous and they’re making all the riders turn against the UCI.”
The slight at EF Education (the team with the best 2024 kit) comes obviously in light of the new over-the-ears aero POC helmet, to be used by the team in road races. Ineos Grenadiers also announced that they would be running a similar over-ears helmet with the Kask Utopia, looking for those marginal gains.
The comments from the outspoken rider came just a day after Evenepoel criticised his ex-teammate Tim Declerq for his antics during the team time trial stage at Paris-Nice two days ago, accusing him of riding in front of the Soudal Quick-Step effort behind on a technical bend after the punchy domestique was dropped from Lidl-Trek’s TTT effort.
“A thank you to him. That was really nasty. Tim may have been an ex-teammate, but you don’t do something like that. Did he do it on purpose? I hope not, but it is possible,” Remco said. However, not long after, the 24-year-old cooled off and wrote on Strava that he was “a bit overhyped” and “I don’t blame him for getting in our way […] the commissioner should have warned him so he knew we were getting closer[…] Tim didn’t make us lose the race today.”
Pro cycling chitter-chatter and the UCI’s seeming clampdowns on whoever steps out of line aside (the Big Helmet industry to blame, I say!), all this means that come the time trial championships later this year, Evenepoel will be without the head sock on his TT5 helmet to defend his rainbow jersey.
London's cycling network over the last six years, in a gif
Since @SadiqKhan became @MayorofLondon we’ve QUADRUPLED London’s cycle network to 360km.
Our network now reaches 1/4 of Londoners. It’s enabled a massive growth in cycling to 1.26m journeys per day – making London a greener safer & healthier city for all.
🚲🚲🚲🚲🚲🚲🚲🚲🚲🚲🚲 pic.twitter.com/1SGHRV3Pkr— Will Norman (@willnorman) March 6, 2024
Strava, but make it for dogs! (Yes, it's real)
I mean, after rolling out its messaging feature (seriously, who was asking for this?), Strava has finally managed to regain some goodwill from your live blog host with its release of the probably the best feature imaginable: activity tracking (pup-tivity, if I may) for dogs!
Collaborating with Fi Smart Collar, the popular activity training app used by many athletes (and non-athletes, like me) now has the ability to “seamlessly integrate their active lives with their dogs, and share with their communities on Strava”.
“Strava data has shown that pets are a key motivator for many athletes in pursuing their goals,” said Mateo A. Ortega, Vice President, Connected Partnerships, Strava. “This partnership with Fi is a natural fit, and a way for athletes to not only include pets in their community, but get credit for all of their movement including the daily dog walks.”
> Strava to automatically flag suspicious activities in hopes to improve leaderboard accuracy
The new partnership allows Strava to log distance traveled and number of steps taken, and tracks Fido’s progress towards goals like activity streaks and daily step totals. The app will then upload a route of your dog’s walk or game of fetch onto a map that you can see.
If you were wondering: No, dogs won’t be eligible for KOMs or course records. But you’ll be able to see in the Fi app how your four-legged friends’ activities stack up against other local canines based on daily activity, with competitive categories based on size.
Visma-Lease a Bike blames “social media reaction” from “jokers on the internet” for strong backlash against THAT time trial helmet
You know which helmet I’m talking about, right?
What’s your favorite jumbo TT helmet picture/meme? pic.twitter.com/grZSIFZihF
— TipsNstars (Thomas) 🔮 (@tipsnstars) March 7, 2024
I remember when the photos were originally posted by Visma-Lease a Bike ahead of the time trial stage at Tirreno-Adriatico, people weren’t even sure if that was real!
Our own Jo Burt couldn’t even believe his eyes, asking in the road.cc group chat: “Can someone tell me this is real and not AI-generated?”.
The world is a changed place now, hell has frozen over, and we walk on scorched earth. But the fallout from Visma’s helmet continues, just two days after the UCI was spurred to hastily announce that it’s planning to review the helmet designed by Giro, as fans quiver at the thought of “even more radical designs” which could very well be on their way, as hinted by the pro cycling’s governing body.
However, one person unhappy with this announcement (besides Remco Evenepoel, for other reasons we discussed earlier in the day) is Visma-Lease a Bike’s head of performance Mathieu Heijboer, who slammed the UCI’s announcement and indicated his fear that a year-long development project could be banned.
“A year ago, the rules were drawn up regarding dimensions and safety. We and the helmet manufacturer Giro started working within those frameworks,” Heijboer told AD. “It is quite striking that this statement has now come.
“It’s driven by emotions and all the reactions on social media,” Heijboer said. “I have no problem with jokers on the Internet. But if the UCI has a problem with the design, they should have indicated this when the helmet was submitted for approval.”
‘Kings can’t stand one thing, and that’s being made fun of by jesters’, as the brilliant Hasan Minhaj once quoted (that might need some fact-checking), and there’s your evidence! Jokers of the internet, unite. You have nothing to lose, but your… actually, there is nothing to lose!
Cyclist slams undertaking motorist’s “utter bollocks” claim that he mounted grass verge “in panic” to avoid colliding with car
“He was clearly overtaking a number of vehicles and took evasive action – he undertook the minibus too before he undertook me,” the cyclist says, after the driver was banned for 12 months for the dangerous close pass
Road, mountain... cargo? Check out the new entrant into Peter Sagan's favourite bikes list
My two cents are that if riders are to do sponsored posts, these are always miles better than posing in front of an Ineos Grenadier or a Lamborghini.
Ourselves Alone (in a car): Sinn Féin councillor claims “crazy” cycle lanes are making roads more dangerous – and are designed for a “privileged” minority
Cycle lanes are for a “privileged minority”, negatively impact “ordinary people”, and are making the roads more dangerous, a Sinn Féin councillor has claimed during a debate on the potential continuation of a “Netherlands-style” active travel scheme in south Dublin.
Another councillor argued that bike lanes were “causing crashes” and confusion, while increasing emissions – but one Green politician said “we need to stop concentrating on how a car gets around the place”
Ribble launches Rebellion, an all-new cycling team to "disrupt" the global Crit circuit
Well, haven’t you heard, crit races are all the fever these days?
I jest, but across the pond in the Unites States, as well as other spots around the globe, Criterium races have been carving out a niche for themselves, separate from the traditional post-Tour of France processional, pre-decided events as here in the Europe (I blame shorter attention spans of the Gen Z but that’s a different conversation).
And to recognise these new crits, Ribble has launched an all-new team, titled Ribble Rebellion. Its primary goal? “Disrupt the global Crit circuit,” says the British manufacturer.
> Bike@Bedtime: Turntables to tarmac – DJ Spoony’s Custom Ribble Ultra SL R is inspired by lyrics
The team will feature riders from the UK, US and Europe, and is aiming to compete in cycling’s most prestigious criterium races and go toe-to-toe with the world’s best crit racing teams.
Ribbble CEO Andy Smallwood said: “This is an exciting opportunity to see our bikes race in the world’s biggest crit races, getting our brand in front of millions of cyclists – we saw that with the crowds watching as the Ultra SL R won the UK National Crit Series last year.”
RIBBLE REBELLION riders will be armed with the same aero-optimised Ultra SL R which won at the National Circuit Series, but this time painted in a bold and bright colourway to bring something fresh to the crit scene. In fact, each individual rider will have their own unique rider colour emblazed across their Ultra aero bars and forks, to distinguish them from the pack. Well, now that is one feature I can get behind for the pro peloton!
The great TT helmet saga continues: Giro hits back at UCI, claiming that they’re playing “by the rules”
Apologies to all the live blog readers if you are getting a bit fatigued by the constant bizarro helmet news cycle — and no, not the usual type we have here at road.cc — but it doesn’t seem like it’s going away anytime soon.
In the next chapter in this ongoing clash of titans, Giro has spoken out, hitting back at the UCI by posting a picture of the official document showing the pro cycling body’s approval for its bizarre TT helmet, captioned: “We design for sport. Sport has rules. We play by the rules.”
The document reads: “Following your request from 12 December 2023 and in accordance with article 1.3.006 of the UCI regulations, the UCI Innovation Unit has approved the use of the product mentioned below as a prototype from 18 January, 2024 to 17 January 2025.”
However, a paragraph below also states that the “authorisation is based on the information provided to us by you and on our current knowledge and assessments. “The authorisation is thus provisional and may be amended or withdrawn at any time without notice on the basis, notably, of further facts, experience of use of the equipment in competition or new intelligence that may be acquired,” the UCI adds.
Giro’s statement of defiance comes right after Visma Lease-a-Bike’s head of performance Mathieu Heijboer slammed the UCI’s decision to review the radical design of latest TT helmets, including Giro’s xenomorph-like lid which was used by the team’s riders at the time trial stage of Tirreno-Adriatico.
Ladies and gentlemen, hold tight, I have a feeling there’s going to be some more fireworks in this saga.
CyclingMikey loses out to Hitler for the title of the “worst person in history” in bonkers Twitter poll
Now this checks all road.cc live blog boxes: Third-party reporting, Jeremy Vine, CyclingMikey… Adolf Hitler?
Nah, scratch that. To be fair, I saw Jeremy Vine’s tweet last night and thought no way this is making to the live blog, it’s way too silly (and horrifying) to write anything about, but on second thoughts…
This is getting silly now pic.twitter.com/7gJYBeLnl1
— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) March 6, 2024
Yep, CyclingMikey, or Mike van Erp, whose only “crime” is filming and reporting drivers who break laws and endanger other people’s lives, is apparently worse (and that too, by some margin) than a fascist dictator who committed one of the worst atrocities in human history… I can’t believe I’m having to write this, what sort of world do we live in anymore!
Mikey has also shared his thoughts about the whole situation on social media, writing: “No way!!! FWIW I think this is a sign of how afraid drivers are of being caught by a camera cyclist. There are lots of us out there, and many people reporting far more bad drivers than me. No reaction without traction.”
He added: “The really telling thing is that both my parents were prisoners in Japanese concentration camps in Java and Sumatra in WWII.”
No way!!! FWIW I think this is a sign of how afraid drivers are of being caught by a camera cyclist. There are lots of us out there, and many people reporting far more bad drivers than me. No reaction without traction. pic.twitter.com/iJ6nSSsBsd
— CyclingMikey the Unspeakable (@MikeyCycling) March 7, 2024
And it’s not like a few dozen people voted in the poll and skewed the results. The poll, published by @HonesttMatty with three Union Jacks next to his name and the words “Peace not war” in his bio, was voted in by almost 13,000 people (or bots, you never know these days). So, more than 6,500 people voted that CyclingMikey is worse than Hitler. Got you…
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Latest Comments
Very pleasant to read such a positive article. A rare treat here.
Regardless of whether such a test would be workable, Carera's remarks are stupid and naive. Of course there might be doping. That spectre will never go away. Some of Pogaçar's performances are just insane, they beggar belief. Is he doping? I don't think so. Can I be 100% sure? Of course not.
I'm predominantly a roadie, and I might be wrong so please don't shoot me down, but I think the article is as much about innovation and creativity in the bike industry (plus the debate about, if it ain't broke, stop trying to fix it!). I'm sure innovations in road have crossed to MTB but in recent decades a lot of innovations in MTB appear to have made there way to Road - disc brakes, tubeless tyres, groupset & derailleur designs including bigger cassette ratios etc. - which again I appreciate there's plenty of road purists out there who don't want disc brakes or tubeless tyres, but love them or hate them, these features are now the standard when you buy a road bike. Cheers, Andy
Caravaggio let you use his picture? If not then be careful as from what I’ve heard he’s got quite a temper.
How dare you road.cc. Now I'm back to "0 days without seeing a MTB" and my Friday evening biscuit is a total write-off.
Amazing value for 30 bucks. Add a few stars there rockafella
How much of Halfrauds profits are due to them charging 15% commission on the cycle to work scheme they somehow have tied up so many companies to? Profiting off local bike shops and making more off sales than the IBD does, all because some clueless person in HR doesn't care what cycle scheme they choose, and employees get charged more too.
I'm currently sat next to a bike - but I'm not riding it, not is it on the road. Nor in Surrey. Remove me!
@MaxiMinimalist I see you retain your strange obsession with the claim that the only way Decathlon, a global entity with €16.8 billion revenues for whom the cycle team is an essential primary promotional tool for their kit and bikes, will be able to keep Seixas with a sugar daddy cheque from the owner of their co-title sponsor. Why is this? Incidentally Seixas is not winning the next Tour in any case unless Jonas and Tadej both crash out, so the question is unlikely to arise.
@ChrisA Just for info it's Bishops Cleeve. I think the bus lane bit is about the section along Lansdown Road going out of Cheltenham towards Gloucester. This "cycle lane" has been in place for many years. The surface is bumpy due to tree roots and eroded surfaces, cyclists are expected to give way at junctions and it goes past many driveways so you have to be alert at all times. There are bus lanes alongside some of this section and, yes, I still use the bus lanes and the road where the bus lanes run out. This section is not green like the rest of the path and when the green runs out getting through Cheltenham and onto the Gloucester section is hit and miss to say the least. The new green section from Bishops Cleeve to just north of Cheltenham town center is indeed well used and is much appreciated despite the lack of any cyclist priority at beg buttons. Cyclists do have priority at side roads, as in the picture, and motorists seem to be getting the idea. I don't know if it has anything to do with the OpSnap reports I sent in on the occasions I had to brake to avoid a collision when it was newly opened, but things are definiteley improving.
40 thoughts on “CyclingMikey loses out to Hitler for the title of the “worst person in history” in bonkers Twitter poll; The great helmet saga continues as Giro and Visma hit back at UCI; Evenepoel calls head sock ban “laughable”; Strava for dogs + more on the live blog”
What is a “head sock”? Did I
What is a “head sock”? Did I miss something?
brooksby wrote:
It’s a sort of snood affair.
think of it as a foot
think of it as a foot balaclava.
It’s a tight fitting buff
It’s a tight fitting buff type thing, part of the helmet to smooth out any aero losses from the straps.
ROOTminus1 wrote:
Ah, OK. Thanks
There are some clearer
There are some clearer pictures here: https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-1-july-2022-294047
If it was a separate ‘snood’
If it was a separate ‘snood’ could they ban that? One gets mighty cold ears during TTs!
I’m far from an expert, but
I’m far from an expert, but my understanding is that a separate snood would be permitted as an item of clothing, provided it does not “modify the morphology of the rider” and that its purpose is “exclusively that of clothing or protection”.
I love my bike wrote:
if it was seperate it would end up underneath the straps, with no aero benefit.
George Galloway has one.
George Galloway has one.
If the Tour de France is
If the Tour de France is decided on who has the most opinions, Remco E will be in yellow at the end of July.
Quote:
Sounds as if they are being a bit over friendly, if anything…
Not in Flemish though. It
Not in Flemish though. It means something like “take the p***”.
And this is from a guy
And this is from a guy wearing a head sock, just because he’s been told it might make him fractionally faster riding on a bike, in which case why doesnt he wear it all the time. Who is really taking the p***?
I mean presumably the answer
I mean presumably the answer to that is that the aero gains might be significant for a short TT but outweighed by weight, ventilation and visibility concerns on a long road stage.
That’s interesting, thanks,
That’s interesting, thanks, because Lefevre used the same phrase about Sam Bennett when they had their contretemps, it does make more sense like that.
But also Tom Pidcock on WvA:
But also Tom Pidcock on WvA: “He’s playing with our balls; he’s taking the piss!” https://road.cc/content/news/hes-playing-our-balls-pidcock-van-aert-294251
It’s just a literal
It’s just a literal translation of a Spanish expression “tocando las pelotas” but which does not convey the real sense of the idiom ie “irritating us, messing us abount, pissing us around”
That London cycle route GIF,
That London cycle route GIF, are the empty parts where the tory councils are?
Miller wrote:
Not necessarily – nothing in Lib Dem run Sutton.
No KOMs for dogs – how about
No KOMs for dogs – how about K9Ms?
The spesh cargo bike is cool!
The spesh cargo bike is cool!
The planet X cargo bike is cool too!
Do I just like cargo bikes?
No shame in it
No shame in it
No shame at all, I am
No shame at all, I am probably not going to land a career as a cargo bike reviewer though haha
“This cargo bike is awesome, look at it go, just a lil guy! 🙂 “
I agree the new Specialized
I agree the new Specialized Porto is cool – if I hadn’t have bought a Vado 5.0 IGH last year, I’d be seriously considering it.
Patrick9-32 wrote:
The Tern GSD is also cool.
I’m so fuckin MANLY I’m going
I’m so fuckin MANLY I’m going to commit acts of violence if SOMEONE STOPS ME looking at social media instead of PAYING ATTENTION to what I am doing because I can’t be alone MY THOUGHTS and I am TERRIFIED of boredom!
Cycling mikey is worse than hitler because he holds me ACCOUNTABLE for my ACTIONS.
“honest” Matty is self libel.
“honest” Matty is self libel. Is this a Taxi driver dummy account?
If CM lost …
If CM lost …
“CyclingMikey loses out to Hitler for the title of the “worst person in history” . “
then wouldn’t he be in second place with Hitler in first?
But then…
“Yep, CyclingMikey, … is apparently worse (and that too, by some margin) than a fascist dictator …”
and
“So, more than 6,500 people voted that CyclingMikey is worse than Hitler.”
Or am I reading this all wrong?
No I read it the same way, as
No I read it the same way, as a for instance if “Man City loses out to Liverpool in the Premier league” everyone would understand Liverpool had won, not Man City.
Alan speaks.
Alan speaks.
Can we conclude that this
Can we conclude that this chap is worse than Putin too?
The thing about the ‘bike
The thing about ‘bike nonce’ I find genuinely funny is that none of them have the slight wit to use ‘pedalphile’ instead.
There was a report that
There was a report that people who use the terms as an insult are in the lower quartile of intelligence, and 6 times more likely to be a paedophile themselves.
Car Delenda Est wrote:
Remember that case a few years back when people started vandalising the house of a paediatrician because they thought it meant paedophile?
brooksby wrote:
Remember that case a few years back when people started vandalising the house of a paediatrician because they thought it meant paedophile?— Car Delenda Est
Doctor driven out of home by vigilantes
23 years ago, but I think people are still as thick. Louder too.
brooksby wrote:
Remember that case a few years back when people started vandalising the house of a paediatrician because they thought it meant paedophile?— Car Delenda Est
As always – the truth may be both less and more than a headline.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4719364.stm
OTOH the “gay people are pedophiles” slur is apparently still alive and well in Edinburgh and the Lothians at least:
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/gay-couple-driven-from-their-edinburgh-home-by-local-youths-9667348.html
https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/crime/drag-queen-gay-greg-claims-homophobic-neighbours-drove-him-out-of-east-lothian-town-2993100
Excellent work by those
Excellent work by those voting, CM most definitely is the worst
The idiot on the CyclingMikey
The idiot on the CyclingMikey twitter thread…
“He looks like he needs his hard drive checking”
CyclingMikey…
“I thought you objected to me providing evidence of drivers using phones? Well that’s exactly what you’ll get, if you check my hard drive”
Would like it that if UCI
Would like it that if UCI keeps granting these recycled aero contraptions, then they need to really give back all the former hour records to Chris Boardman, Graeme Obree and especially Tony Rominger eventho he was probably doped. I mean all this aero research is mechanical doping because we all know aero works only over 50 km/h and with people pushing aero bikes to over 65 on flat roads where that was not possible before with normal bikes. So that means Cycling goes F1 direction. Just throw a bunch of cash at it and you will win. Leaving small budget teams in the wake and having to see their sponsors leave. I am Dutch myself but i really hate how the Dutch manage to kill off all fun for real fans of sports. It happened with skating and short track snd also with F1(Dutch/Belgian driver) and now Visma has killed pro cycling. Please come back to more equal gear and leave the innovation and aero to traithlon and especially the hour record because that was so much fun to watch in the 90’s!!! With even some treasures of bikes that never won it hidden from public eye…