Damien Monier should never have won today’s stage of the Giro. It was Tristan Valentin’s late withdrawal that saw Monier was drafted in with just three days to go. No matter, Monier said after the stage that he was feeling strong for the third week. Twice a pursuit champion of France, Monier is from Clermont-Ferrand, … Read more
Footon-Servetto don’t get the best of press. The team is the successor to the disgraced Saunier Duval outfit, it has the worst kit in the bunch and its riders seem like pack fodder. Except for one. Fabio Felline. He’s 20 years old and from Turin. The young rider had a very promising amateur career, often … Read more
“You have to consider the year, 2002, there were no accusations against Armstrong” So said UCI President Pat McQuaid the other day, when discussing why the apparent donation from Armstrong was not viewed as controversial or created a conflict of interest. The story keeps changing Only in 2000 the French judicial system was already chasing … Read more
There’s plenty of debate on the internet regarding the donation of money apparently made by Lance Armstrong to the UCI. Every time I read or hear an account of this it seems the sum involved changes and the timing is unknown too. All this would be avoidable if the UCI published its accounts. It already … Read more
Ag2r La Mondiale’s climber is having a very good Giro, confirming the attacking ability he showed in the Tour de Romandie. He’s some background on him… He’s 31 and was born in the French town of Epernay, one of the towns more famous for Champagne production. Today he lives in close to the Belgian border, … Read more
Basso romped up the Zoncolan on Sunday to win with a 1:19 advantage over Cadel Evans. Based on numbers supplied by Aldo Sassi to La Gazetta Dello Sport, Basso is pumping out 395W or 5.68W/kg but analysis by French coach Frédéric Portoleau suggests the figure could be 410W. Measured pain This is still 50W less … Read more
An anonymous visitor left a comment on the article about London’s Rapha café. I was wondering aloud what other clothing companies would do, “imagine what an Assos shop would like (I’m thinking polished concrete and Corbusier furniture)”. Only it turns out Assos have their concept stores and apparently you can stop by for coffee. See … Read more
Spring is now going into summer here in southern France and you notice the differences. One thing is the heat. It can be 30°C in the shade but remember that temperatures are hotter in the sunshine. Above all, the roads are dark lumps of rock and soak up the heat. It’s common for tarmac temperatures … Read more
A great photo courtesy of cyclingnews.com. For some time I’ve always thought Basso looked as if he wasn’t trying, his face was part smile, part gurn. Clearly this was a superficial opinion, he’s not spent the last year on a cycling travel holiday but yesterday’s stage up the dreaded Zoncolan showed a new face. Just … Read more
Cyclismag has picked up on the apparent scoop by Spanish website velofutur.es, where details of the revised UCI Pro Tour appear to have been leaked. Who leaked them and what’s their agenda? That’s for another day. Since my French is better than my Spanish, what follows is derived from cyclismag.com. The TeamsNo more four year … Read more