There’s a fourth grand tour out there, the Tour of Belgium. You might not see it immediately but look at the calendar of racing throughout March and early April. You’ve got so many Belgian races that they almost form one non-stop event. Ok, there’s no yellow jersey so what do I mean? Well if you … Read more
The 1980s were a decade of transition for cycling. The classic form of the sport slowly moved into the modern era of technology, fashion and science. This is the second part of a recurring flashback to this decade. This time, it’s five races that no longer exist. 1. Grand Prix des AmériquesPro racing hit North … Read more
The VeloCast Hosted by two Scots with a sense of humour, it’s more than just pro cycling. They’ll talk about bike kit and industry issues as well as advocacy matters like planning and traffic. But the coverage on the racing scene is good. They don’t get the scoops because they’re not on the ground – … Read more
Our sport has its classic races. Some are more than 100 years old – Liège-Bastogne-Liège was first run in 1892 – and they’ve developed legends and histories that go a long way to make the sport what it is today. Sometimes a new race comes along and the organisers struggle to make it work. They … Read more
McQuaid knows he isn’t engaged in a popularity contest, however. His board and the national federations are behind him. That is enough. The Independent, 28 February 2010 McQuaid said in an email to me late last year he didn’t want to do an interview with me because I’m “not UCI-friendly”. Spoke volumes. Lionel Birnie, Cyclesport … Read more
Visit the websites of Cofidis, Ag2r-La Mondiale, FDJ.com and Bbox-Bouygues Télécom and none of them have links to Facebook or Twitter. Given the whole reason to back a pro cycling team is to get publicity for your brand, why aren’t these teams using all the media available to them? A Twitter account is free after … Read more
I can’t be sure if it hasn’t happened yet but one thing to watch out for this season is the growing presence of street furniture in the Alps and Pyrenees in France. Each time I visit France I’ve always been struck by the landscaped roundabouts that wouldn’t look out of place in the Chelsea Flower … Read more
Look closely at the above image, click on it to zoom in. It was taken from the latest version of the excellent Vélo Magazine. It’s Brad Wiggins in profile during his pro career. Notice anything? Check out the head tube on his bikes, he is going from riding a frame the size of a farm … Read more
Whilst other teams give their riders iPhones and Blackberrys (Sky and Garmin respectively), not to mention Columbia-HTC having their own phones, here’s an interesting anecdote. Cofidis makes its riders buy a fax machine. Riders can email the team coach but a lot of employment-related stuff still comes by fax. Just in case you forgot, the … Read more
From Oman to France, many bike races are about promoting the area to tourists and business alike. Belgian races give images of muddy farm tracks, ugly brick buildings and foul weather. It’s hardly an advert for the county. For what it’s worth, Belgium is a wealthy country, not without its political problems but on average … Read more