Searching for the new star The Tour de l’Avenir starts on Sunday. Literally the “Tour of the Future”, this is a week-long stage race organised by ASO, the Tour de France organisers. It is for those aged 23 or younger and will see 120 riders from 20 different teams taking part. Last year’s race was … Read more
I can’t be arsed to fly to all the way to Australia just to work for Mark Cavendish, especially as the longest one day race in the world isn’t good prep for the Commonwealth Games 4,000 pursuit That’s what Geraint Thomas didn’t say. The talented Welsh rider has his eye on success in the upcoming … Read more
French wine… or Belgian beer for Jonathan Vaughters? Ask most people in the sport and they can only see Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck dominate the Tour de France for the next few years. Maybe others will share the podium with them but as things stand, the yellow jersey looks locked down. Now such assumptions … Read more
Laurent Fignon is on the front page of all the French newspapers I saw in my local tabac today. L’Equipe calls him “Un Mec à Part“, or a “different kind of guy”. I can’t add to all the anecdotes and quotes. As ever, The Inner Ring is about taking a different angle on things. So … Read more
Very sad news today that Laurent Fignon has died, aged 50. I’m sometimes uncomfortable with the sentimentalism that appears when someone who we didn’t know dies. People eulogise but can’t claim to know the person, this can undermine their nice words. Yet without knowing the man, I wouldn’t be writing this blog if it wasn’t … Read more
It’s hot in the Vuelta. Many riders are reporting temperatures well above 40°C (104°F), that’s because the tarmac heats up which in turn warms the air. Oscar Freire reported 49°C. As you’d imagine, riders need to drink a lot. Spanish sports website AS says some teams emptied three ice boxes of 80 bottles each, meaning … Read more
Was the nocturnal Seville team time trial an innovation? Not really, the 1967 Tour de France featured a nocturnal prologue with the course lit by gas lanterns. That year’s Tour de France became more famous for the death of Tommy Simpson on Mont Ventoux but it was the first time in the Tour de France … Read more
Particle accelerator Brownian motion is the term used to describe random motion of particles suspended in a fluid. For example, introduce a drop of dye into a glass of water and the colour will spread in a different way each time as the molecules “dance” through the water in a random way. For me, the … Read more
The Pegasus Racing project has been on the radar of Aussie cycling fans for some time but now the pace seems to be picking up, with registration papers being submitted to the UCI with the aim of getting ProTour status. It’s great news for the sport in terms of a new team, especially since it’s … Read more
Wiggo Jackpot I already wrote that Jonathan Vaughter’s crafty sale of Bradley Wiggins to Sky was a master stroke. Faced with a team desperate for success and flush with cash, Vaughters sold Wiggo at the top of the market. A pity Wiggins never lived up to the expectations attached after his excellent ride in the … Read more