I’ve been away for a week, enjoying time without the internet (recent articles were typed ahead of my departure and published automatically).
If the time off work felt like a long spell, I come back and of course little has changed in the world of cycling. There’s no news on the Novitzky investigation, although some are getting cagey. Similarly, no progress on the Contador case. Meanwhile the UCI President once again gets put on the defensive and resorts to “firing back“. It’s not easy dealing with Landis but calm rebuttal just isn’t Pat McQuaid’s strong point.
At the same time, we have more rider signings for Pegasus and Team Luxembourg but if some riders are trumpeted, there’s no news on the sponsors. Of course the mystery leads to intrigue which leads to more publicity but there comes a point where you wonder if things are too enigmatic, that a lack of news implies something is still missing. It’s a point the Pavé guys have been wondering about.
Not that all these big things get fixed in a week, it’s more that there’s a news cycle that goes round and round, we discuss the details but resolution on the major issues rarely seems to come. This isn’t a complaint, more an observation. After all The Inner Ring often picks over these small details and for me at least, they matter. It’s like a soap opera with a familiar cast involved in a range of story lines.
But one small change has happened though: Cycle Sport Magazine. A few weeks back I was contacted by the editorial staff at the London-based magazine for some thoughts on the 2010 season… and you can see the replies for yourself in the current issue, where my thoughts on the season rank alongside others. It might be vain but yes it is satisfying to see my words in print on a news stand. That said after a short break, The Inner Ring should start spinning again on the internet.