I’ve been waiting to use the above photo for some time. Sent in by a reader some weeks ago, it’s graffiti from last summer’s Tour de France. So when I saw some headlines about Basso aiming to win the Tour de France, I thought the time had come. He had to be joking, right? Only … Read more
Saxo Bank HQ: yours for only €500 million Danish company Saxo Bank isn’t really a bank, it’s an online currency trading platform. And it’s up for sale, according to the Copenhagen Post. It has three principal shareholders, Kim Fournais, Lars Seier Christensen and private equity General Atlantic have appointed investment banks to handle the sale. … Read more
Which van, man? I’ve written before about the inherent conflict of interest between British Cycling, the governing body and Team Sky, the ProTour cycling team. A lot of the Sky staff are actually British Cycling officials, meaning many critical people are part-timers caught between two roles and two paymasters. Here’s Britain’s Guardian on this matter: … Read more
That he which hath no stomach to this fight,Let him depart; his passport shall be madeAnd crowns for convoy put into his purse:We would not die in that man’s company So says Shakespeare’s King Henry V, a declaration that anyone not ready for battle should leave the scene because they are cowards. It’s the first … Read more
More is known about the Loch Ness monster than Team Luxembourg A follow up to the piece about the backers of the Luxembourg team. I got a comment saying I was right about the business biographies of the trio… but wrong about their involvement in the team. If so then it goes without saying I’ll … Read more
Dear Valentino Campagnolo, You run one of the finest companies involved in the world of cycling. Heritage and innovation combine to make some superb products. For me Super Record represents the summit of groupset development. But you have to drop the marketing use of “Campy”. I recognise this term has gained ground amongst American consumers. … Read more
You might have seen the website for the new Luxembourg cycling team but it’s one page and tells you nothing. A beautiful picture of the San Gottardo pass but little else, except a caption saying “Leopard, true racing”. I got wind of the Leopard idea weeks ago but could only drop a hint about this. … Read more
You might have seen the fuss over pro photographer Graham Watson. He’d tagged photos of Greg LeMond on his website with the word “fool”. When asked why he did this by a visitor to the website, he compounded the silly mistake with a dig at LeMond. Here’s the exchange on the website: Just noticed the … Read more
I was talking to a mountain guide over the weekend. He’s been on expeditions to the Himalayas and was saying that as a career it’s hard work. Not just because of hypoxia at 8,000 metres, nor falling ice and rock, not even the primitive living conditions. No, his biggest worry was finding money to fund … Read more
Readership is taking off exponentially at the moment and I just wanted to say thanks for the interest and to point out the way things work. Sorry if this is obvious or self-referential but here goes… The Inner Ring is about opinion, comment and more, the blog here lets me examine issues, often current events … Read more