Ezequiel Mosquera was supposed to be Vacansoleil’s second star signing but the only reason for the Dutch team to be happy is that he hasn’t brought as much bad publicity as Riccardo Riccò. He was suspended after tests showed both he and then team mate David Garcia Da Peña had tested positive for hydroxyethyl starch … Read more
Carbon is everywhere. Can you name another atom that has so many branches of science, knowledge and uses, from carbon chemistry to carbon trading, carbon dating to carbon copies? This atom of six neutrons, six protons and six electrons can be found in the air, in the ground, in the seas and in your body. … Read more
Hip It was great to see an attacking rider win from a breakaway. The move looked doomed but the chase behind didn’t appear too organised. At one point Rabobank were chasing, a sign that they wanted to keep a lid on De Gendt’s advantage but not to bring the race back, since they don’t have … Read more
Many riders are marketable sports stars and like many a celebrity they have their dedicated websites. Some of these aren’t very exciting, often just a repository for images and results. Not to single him out, but Fabian Cancellara’s website isn’t a must read corner of the web. For me it’s the personal tone that interests … Read more
A little reminder to update your bookmarks. Many people are still visiting from http://theinnerring.blogspot.com/ and whilst you get automatically forwarded, you can gain precious seconds by updating your bookmark to https://inrng.com.
The Giro will invite Acqua et Sapone, Androni Giocatelli, Farnese Vini, Colnago-CSF Inox and Geox. It was hard to leave any of these teams out, given the presence of Garzelli, Serpa, Visconti, Modolo and Belleti, Menchov and Sastre respectively. Indeed normally only four wildcards would be announced as the race is capped at 200 riders … Read more
The Swiss voted recently on a referendum for tighter gun controls. They rejected the proposal. The small Alpine state has one of the highest gun ownership rates in the world, a figure especially high for Europe. I can’t help wonder if a ready supply of firearms explains why the UCI is limping. The Swiss-based governing … Read more
I got an email from the guys at Bicycling asking if I’d consider submitting some words for a guest blog. As Bicycling Magazine puts it, “editor Bill Strickland is taking a short break from his blog The Selection to do a little extra work on the print magazine for Bicycling” and they’ve got some other … Read more
Vladi Karpets might have lost his mullet but there are others in the bunch who let their hair down after a race. Here’s a quick look… Daniel Oss has a lot more But, Samson-like, his hair has grown alongside his reputation. It was tidy as a neo-pro, now it’s alive. A rider for the classics, … Read more
we have won more races in 2008, 2009 and 2010 than any other team. Talented young stars and experienced leaders, working together to achieve success on the world stage. Our commitment to teamwork and to the best tools and technology has made us the world leader in victories. 412 wins since 2008 That’s from the … Read more