Wednesday’s Flèche Wallonne race is always good to watch thanks to the fearsome Muur de Huy, a leg busting climb that ‘only’ averages 9.3% but has sections well above 20%, meaning any rhythm is near-impossible. The riders climb this three times. There’s even a quasi-religious symbolism as the riders pass seven chapels on the road. … Read more
Not so rampant now As I’ve written on here before, Belgium has two regions and some are keen to see a wedge driven into the country so it splits in half. Only a separatist cycling fan might want to rethink their plans for a moment. I’m being flippant but note that the only Belgian classic … Read more
Those images of cols packed with spectators for the Tour de France doesn’t necessarily mean the entire French nation is interested in cycling. Paris-Roubaix got some decent audience figures but today the Amstel Gold is on but you can’t watch it on French TV, unless you have the specialist satellite/cable channel Eurosport. 18 channels, nothing … Read more
Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano has succeeded where the UCI and the Court for Arbitration Sport have so far failed, namely to block Alejandro Valverde from racing. Whilst many drove up from Spain and Italy, Valverde has stayed put. Spinning in the rigging, there was f&*k all else to do But the best story so far is … Read more
The RoadsToday’s race is one of the most manic competitions of the year. Whilst the Tour of Flanders has its bergs and Paris-Roubaix has the pavé, the Amstel has… street furniture. A collection of traffic calming measures, from sleeping policemen to chicane filter points to curb extensions to traffic islands, footage from this race should … Read more
Some races make you want to visit a place and the Tour of Turkey is one such event. Blue seas, sunny roads, it looks nice for a training holiday, although I’m not sure what the cycling is like. I watched the final of Saturday’s stage and it’s no holiday for the riders. Here’s the obligatory … Read more
Many riders have surnames that are also nouns. I apologise if this ruins your TV viewing, those once exotic Euro names can actually prove a bit dull but here are some of the peloton’s names translated into English: Davide Malacarne = Davide Badmeat Giovanni Visconti = Giovanni Viscounts Jonas Ljungblad = Jonas Heatherleaf Karsten Kroon … Read more
This is part of a series of podcast reviews, you’ll find more reviews with the links below. Cyclocosm The Cyclocosm blog is a good read and some especially amusing graphic design, for example the Paris-Roubaix bingo card. But there’s also a video podcast which combines an audio recording from the blogger with visual prompts such … Read more
I wrote this earlier in the week but realised some readers might find it ‘inconvenient’ to read at work. So here’s something for the weekend… For better or worse, we tend to forget most adverts. Now the worst can be so bad they get talked about, the free publicity generated here can be worthwhile, viral … Read more
See the article below for an idea sent in by a reader. Several others have been in touch with suggestions and I’m really happy to hear from readers with comments, suggestions, criticism and more. Note the email address on the top right of the page, plus you can use Twitter to keep up, I use … Read more