Bike racing is a hard sport. A normal season will include its share of crashes, weather conditions that go from snow to sidewinds to searing heat, on road surfaces that include everything from cobbles to melting tarmac. All this whilst you gasp for air and your legs can burn with pain or are stunned numb … Read more
He’s the guy with the moustache, the tache-tastic Magnum PI of the peloton. But what if he had no facial hair, would you have heard of him? Maybe not. What I’m trying to say is that simply by growing a moustache, he’s getting loads of free publicity. He even has a sideline in T-shirts. Only … Read more
A robot in disguise? Cervélo’s Theo Bos won the opening stage of the Vuelta Castille y Leon. Whilst the sprint wasn’t the biggest – Graeme Brown was the only big name rider in top-10 – it’s still a solid result, all the more since the stage to Burgos had a second category climb on the … Read more
As part of the series on the 1980s, here are five items related to fashion during this decade. Riders had their styles before the 1980s: a slick haircut there, some meaty sideburns there. But cycling didn’t mix with fashion. Shorts and shoes were black after all. But all this changed in the 1980s… 1. Sunglasses … Read more
Will riders skip the Worlds or will they hop to Melbourne? I’d hate to be a national coach this year. With the Worlds taking place in Australia in October, every rider (and his wife) wants to take part, since they can get a free business class ticket out there… and back. Your phone will be … Read more
The English bicycle manufacturers were highly conscious of the publicity value of a victory in the longest road race ever held. For that reason they left no stone unturned to give riders who were using their bicycles every advantage. Sound familiar? Is this a quote about Team Sky’s “marginal gains” methods, searching for every advantage … Read more
My colleague @edwardpickering once said we were in for 5 years of Cancellara winning every TT, Contador every Tour and Cav every sprint… Lionel Birnie, Twitter That’s an interesting comment posted by two of Cycle Sport and Cycling Weekly’s most knowledgeable writers. And it’s true at first glance that we could see three riders carve … Read more
So the wintry part of the cycling season comes to an end. We now swap the cobbles, mud and dust for smooth roads and more climbing. The Ardennes classics are coming and riders are now right in the crucial period for the Giro build up. Time for the inner chainring. A quick look back on … Read more
Cancellara’s winning move yesterday took some guts, he was going clear a long way from the finish line, with a headwind too. But did he attack? Yes, but in a very clever way. He used the “sneak attack”. I’ve not won many races in my time but when you want to attack, think twice. “Attack” … Read more
Cycling is popular in Europe but more so in some places than others. Here are the key heartlands of the sport. 1. BelgiumNo country in the world takes cycling so seriously. This doesn’t mean that all 10 million Belgians love cycling, just as all Canadians don’t follow Ice Hockey and all Japanese aren’t into Sumo. … Read more