Fix simple things before any revolution

Vaughters Rhone alone
Once upon a time, in a land far away, there was a sport where everyone worked together...

Maybe sometimes you look at your bike and think about getting a new part, some wheels or even another frame. The allure of something new and better can be hard to resist. But the only way to be sure it’s worth the upgrade is to do your homework, investigate the new product and then weigh up the benefits against the costs.

Cycling is looking a bit tarnished now. The hubs need servicing, the wheels don’t run true and the whole frame is looking outdated. But as much as we might want something shiny and new, we don’t know what the replacement is or how things might turn out.

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How come the Dutch are so good at riding in crosswinds?

I found the video thanks to my online nemesis, BIGRINGRING.COM. If you’re watching the classics this year and see the race get blown apart by a crosswind, you are likely to find plenty of Dutchmen in the front group. Holland isn’t particularly windy but it is exposed. With an extensive coastline and above all, a … Read more

Race radios and the Tour de France: data from 365 stages

Race radio

You are probably getting rightly bored by the race radio debate. After all Milan-Sanremo was so exciting that it rightly put politics, protest and scandal in the shade. And by now you probably know by now that the radio is being used as a Trojan Horse where protesting teams are trying to push back the UCI in order to have more say over the sport. But bear with me…

Forgotten amongst all the debate, noise, protest and press releases is the fundamental premise of evidence. Nobody seems to have put forward any data to suggest the addition or removal of race radios makes any difference to safety or results. I’ve yet to see data, only anecdote. Until now.

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Yoann Offredo

Offredo Nieuwsblad

Seventh in Milan-Sanremo, Yoann Offredo is looking like the real deal for a French classics rider. It wasn’t a fluke, you simply can’t appear at the front of the race on the Poggio by accident. He was the first rider to jump on Tom Boonen’s wheel in Het Nieuwsblad a few weeks ago, making the front group then too.

Last year he was third in the GP Plouay, behind Matt Goss and Tyler Farrar and before that I’d tipped him this time last year as one to watch. Now 24 years old, he’s been a pro with FDJ since 2008. His first flash was in Milan-Sanremo last year when he attacked in the late stages of the race, riding solo and only getting caught on the Poggio. He’s from just outside Paris and a big rider at 1.90m tall, although only 67kg.

The Frenchman has proved strong and has a predilection for hard races with long distances and bad weather. In fact he’s known for his hard training sessions, often doing more than 200km at a time in a bid to get himself ready for the big races.

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French TV execs ask UCI for the impossible

Bilalian
Daniel Bilalian, director of sports at France Télévisions

Amidst the recent chatty and rambling letter sent by UCI President Pat McQuaid to riders was a reference to the influence of television:

I was convened to a meeting with the biggest producer of television images of cycling, France Television, and was told by senior executives clearly that if radios were retained in cycling and used as they were being used that the coverage of cycling on television would be reduced.

It’s no secret that TV is crucial to the sport. Hours of airtime are what bring in sponsors and in turn the spectacle presented to TV viewers has to be worthy of their attention. Absolute viewing figures are crucial, ie how many millions tune in, but also “share of the audience” metrics, ie of those watching TV at any one time, how many are watching the bike race. Riders might complain about lengthy transfers in some races, especially the Giro, but the mouthwatering stages only exist because the race convoy skips the duller parts of the Italian topograhpy. In short, TV is king.

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Lexicon of cycling terms

Vive le tour

Cycling borrows many words from European languages, especially French, Italian and Dutch. Here’s a list of the most commonly used ones. Some are so widespread that English speakers use them but others might appear when you’re watching a race on TV, perhaps an on-screen caption. Whilst I’ve put the translations below, you might want to look up the English meanings if you don’t know your yellow jersey from your pink jersey etc. The list isn’t exhaustive so please email in any additions or leave a comment below.

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Four year bans: prevention or exclusion?

Vino wins
Banned for four years, Vino would only come back in August 2011

I’d in favour of the UCI exploring the idea of four year bans. But I’m not sure if it will help clean up the sport that much. Instead, perhaps it just removes some of the cheats from circulation for longer?

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If the UCI can’t mediate, someone else has to

UCI President Pat McQuaid opened the meeting… …He then informed the CCP members of the reason for the absence of Messrs Jonathan Vaughters and Gianni Bugno, who had been formally invited to choose between participating in the meeting and standing by the AIGCP and CPA in their threat to launch boycotts and strikes against the proposed ban on the use of earpieces during races.

You might think this is from George Orwell’s 1984, a confusing text from Franz Kafka or maybe the notes from of a Soviet Praesidium, as presented by spy novelist John Le Carré. Alas the text above is no fiction but a real statement issued today by the UCI.

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The Beijing boycott

UCI sign contract
Anyone know a good Sino-Swiss contract lawyer?

With the dispute over race radios rumbling on, there’s talk of a boycott of the Tour of Beijng. a five-day stage race scheduled for October. If you haven’t heard of this race, don’t worry since it’s a new one but nevertheless it’s on the UCI’s World Tour calendar. A surprising addition given it’s never been held before.

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Milan-Sanremo: worth the hype

On paper if I described a seven hour race where nothing happens until the last 10 minutes, you might not get excited. If I described a race that his very flat and often won by the sprinters, then again you might not be excited. But there’s something special about Milan-Sanremo.

Alimetria

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