Rasmussen and Hembo team up First there was the cryptic press release yesterday. We got news that Michael Rasmussen’s biggest fan Christina Hembo has bought an entire Continental team for him. Hembo runs a watch company and is a long-time backer of Rasmussen, now she’s increased her sponsorship from one man to an entire team … Read more
In recent days it’s been reported that the major race organisers and the UCI are close to a formal agreement over the team selection process for their races. It means the top-18 teams will get automatic invitations to ride the big races, indeed under the UCI rules they will be obliged to participate. I wrote … Read more
Here’s Tyler Farrar’s 2011 ride, courtesy of Velonews. Now I don’t mean this in too serious a way, I’ve not turned into The Bike Snob, it’s more a small observation. But this looks like the ride of a weekend warrior with an active eBay account, not the steed of a top sprinter. First up the … Read more
It’s Christmas Day today in Belgium, known locally as Sinterklaas. You might already think the country is quirky at times. Today’s celebrations probably confirm this. Blacking up all over Belgium and Holland Why? Well the Belgian Father Christmas, Saint Claus (aka Santa Claus) has a sidekick. Who is called Zwarte Piet or Black Peter. And … Read more
I read on the Italian Cycling Journal that Cannondale is auctioning off its aluminium manufacturing tools from its factory in Bedford, Pennsylvania. As the Journal rightly comments, it marks the end of an era. Once the height of modernity 20 years ago practically every frame was steel. The likes of Vitus and Alan made “alloy” … Read more
Earlier this week I wrote some thoughts on Jonathan Vaughters’ interview with cyclingnews.com. Now I’d like to return to a second topic from the interview, namely his time with French team Credit Agricole: “It [Crédit Agricole] was a team where everyone kinda showed up, did their job and went home. I mean, the communication between … Read more
We might think of Paris-Roubaix or an mountain stage of the Giro as being one of the toughest moments of the year but actually right now is one of the trickiest times of the season. Why? Several teams are meeting up and it’s the first get-together for the riders that will form a team in … Read more
The UCI is apparently holding a training course for directeur sportifs. I can’t help feel that trying to teach men in their 40s how to do their job is going to be a very difficult task. Can you imagine Johan Bruyneel or Patrick Lefevere to learn new tricks? But this isn’t a small scheme, it’s … Read more
I’m going to take a quick look at Anthony Tan’s interview with Jonathan Vaughters. “JV” is now running Garmin-Cervélo, a squad that has gone from a small curiosity into one of the biggest outfits in the sport. Postcard from the past The team is known for its firm anti-doping stance, one of the few squads … Read more
The Spanish economy is in deep trouble, suffering from the fallout of a burst housing bubble and chronic unemployment. There are worries for the country’s banks and also its regions. Economists fret the Kingdom could need financial assistance from its peers within the Euro-zone or indeed from the IMF. Whatever happens, money is tight. Note … Read more