Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

news

Julian Alaphilippe's stunning new rainbow stripe Tarmac SL7; Sadiq Khan responds to our bunny hop claim using VAR; A63 cycling protester; Prince Louis rides Frog balance bike on third birthday; Simon Yates wins Tour of the Alps + more on the live blog

Take a dive down the live blog with Dan Alexander on this lovely sunny Friday
23 April 2021, 15:36
Anna Van Der Breggen gets a tasty rainbow stripes SL7 as well
23 April 2021, 15:10
Lizard Skin releases Earth Tone DSP tape
Lizard Skin Earth Tone bar tape

Lizard Skin has released these new Earth Tone DSP tapes to add some subtle colour to your ride. These certainly look the business if your riding takes you off-road and down some muddy trails. The earthy tones take Lizard Skin's colour choices to 15, so they believe there is something for everyone. The Earth Tone DSP comes with all the durability and grippy feel of the other DSP colours and is the tape of choice for WorldTour teams Lotto-Soudal and Movistar. Although, to be fair, I doubt they go for chocolate brown or olive green... 

23 April 2021, 14:41
LGBTQ+ cycling group PRiDE OUT responds to British Cycling trans participation consultation
PRiDE OUT logo.PNG

PRiDE OUT, the largest network of LGBTQ+ cyclists in the UK, believes British Cycling's trans policy needs to better "recognise there are human experiences behind the scenes of any consultation." The group emphasised it is vital that trans people are treated with the same dignity and respect as other riders and should be engaged with.

From the feedback it has received so far, PRiDE OUT says there is an overwhelming demand to see more inclusion in cycling. Additionaly, the group called on British Cycling to align with the UCI's guidelines requiring events below National Championship level to "have less stringent eligibility requirements" for any trans person wishing to compete.

"When I came out as trans 6 months ago, I felt an immense weight being lifted off my shoulders," Emily Bridges, a former GB senior academy cyclist, said. "I got so much support and love, but I also got the expected hate, too. This vitriol is currently the norm for every trans person, every day of their life. Anti-trans groups aim to legislate us out of existence, drag us over social media, and spread lies about who we are and what we stand for. They try to ban us from sports based on flawed science and lies."

23 April 2021, 14:26
🚨30 minute warning🚨: Drink at Your Desk Live! with Alex Dowsett

Here's your 30 minute warning to get yourselves over to our YouTube channel or Facebook page at 4pm to catch Drink at Your Desk Live! with Israel Start-Up Nation rider Alex Dowsett. Leave your questions in the chat and, of course, get yourself a nice cold beverage to kick-start the weekend...

23 April 2021, 13:57
Take a look at Julian Alaphilippe's stunning new rainbow stripe Tarmac SL7

What a beauty. Definitely one of the top perks of being world champion...Fresh off his Flèche Wallonne win on Wednesday, Julian Alaphilippe has got his hands on his brand new Specialized Tarmac SL7 with rainbow stipes. Is it the best bike in the peloton?

Julian will debut it at Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday where it could give him the extra edge to claim his first La Doyenne crown. This really is all about that fresh paint job, but for a closer look at his full set up, check out our Bike at Bedtime last month where we went for a deep dive into the world champ's bike...

Julian Alaphilippe rainbow stripe Specialized Tarmac SL7.PNG
Julian Alaphilippe rainbow stripe Specialized Tarmac SL7.PNG

 

23 April 2021, 13:28
Next up for Prince Louis...Because which three-year-old couldn't do with an extra 100 watts to chase those Strava KOMs
23 April 2021, 13:19
Felix Großschartner wins final Tour of the Alps stage as Simon Yates secures overall victory

Bora-hansgrohe's Felix Großschartner attacked solo on the final climb to win stage five of the Tour of the Alps. Nicolas Roche and Alessandro De Marchi also survived from the breakaway until the end to secure second and third.

Team BikeExchange Brit Simon Yates finished comfortably in the pack, securing his overall victory and putting down a statement win ahead of next month's Giro d'Italia. Yates took control of the race with his stage victory on Tuesday and wins the leader's jersey by 58 seconds from yesterday's stage winner Pello Bilbao. Yates' Giro rival, Astana climber Aleksandr Vlasov was third, 1:06 behind.

23 April 2021, 11:07
Voxwomen Big Day Out

The Voxwomen Big Day Out in partnership with dhb aims to enable women to enjoy the sports they love by bringing like-minded people together for one big day of celebrating cycling. Taking place on Sunday 13 June and based at the New Park Manor Hotel, the event includes a Q&A session, a group ride in the New Forest at a social cafe ride pace and some breakout group chats afterwards. What's more, there are 30 free places for lucky winners of the ballot. dhb has also designed a jersey from their Moda collection that attendees will get along with plenty of other products and goodies.

23 April 2021, 10:44
A63 cycling protester campaigns for newt sanctuary
A63 protester.PNG

The Hull Daily Mail reports this man has been campaigning to save a newt sanctuary by riding up and down the A63. According to a Facebook group raising awareness of the issue, a group of landlords hope to develop an area that will mean "any sign of the existence of the great crested newt will be obliterated."

A passerby said the man was "causing vehicles to slow down and pull out causing congestion" and had "been seen around Hull over the past few days." Another report claims the man's sign was knocked off by a bus driver in a crash.

"It broke off his sign and he stood in front of our bus near Hull Royal holding up all the traffic," a person on the bus at the time said. "He even called himself an ambulance - wasting vital NHS time. We were sat on the bus a good 40 minutes before a police officer and bus operator arrived and moved him out the way. Charges should be pressed against him and his reckless actions."

23 April 2021, 09:58
Mayor of London hits back at our claim he Khan't bunny hop...and he's got VAR proof

That's us told...Was there a clear and obvious error? The Mayor of London thought so, and he roped in the help of the VAR at Stockley Park for proof. After all, you can't argue with the lines...

The referee has been called over to the monitor. He is going to take another look. "Yep, just rewind that bit there for me." What is he going to give? He is running back onto the pitch, blows his whistle, makes the VAR sign and points to the spot. He has given it, it is a bunny hop after all...

Tony's not convinced...

23 April 2021, 09:13
Prince Louis pictured riding Frog bike to nursery

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have celebrated Louis' third birthday by releasing a photo of him riding a Frog Tadpole Balance Bike to his first day of nursery. William and Kate were said to be "delighted" to share the photo, as must be Frog Bikes too...

Frog's co-owner last week claimed Brexit had cost them £250,000 in the first two months of 2021. Perhaps some royal publicity will help bump up sales...

Now we wait for the 'why isn't he wearing a helmet?' reaction...

23 April 2021, 08:47
Chris Froome "slowly improving" and content with making the Tour of the Alps breakaway on stage four

Chris Froome in a breakaway is a rare sight for cycling fans. For all the hours we have seen him sat patiently at the end of a Sky train in the mountains, we have rarely seen him up the road. After yesterday's stage, Froome said he was happy with how his condition is improving ahead of his main goal, the Tour de France, in July.

"I think this was the first time I have been in a breakaway since the Giro d’Italia of 2018," he said. "I really enjoyed being up there today, testing the legs a bit. Especially as the break went away on a quite hard section after a bunch of attacks.

"It was a shame that we never got much of a gap, but it was still a good experience to be up there again. I can feel that the condition is slowly improving and I’m pretty happy with how the legs are feeling."

Simon Yates, who Froome took the maglia rosa from after that long-range attack at the 2018 Giro, has one more day and a 58 second advantage to defend his race lead in the Alps. Stage five takes in five mountains before another downhill finish.

23 April 2021, 07:49
Sadiq Khan't bunny hop reporter's bike

Don't mind me starting the petition to add a bunny hopping challenge to all future election campaigns. Sadiq Khan did not want to be undone by his Tory rival Shaun Bailey, who took Evening Standard reporter Ross Lydall's bike for a spin earlier in the day...Did Khan get off the ground? I am sure someone will leave a comment telling us we should probably give him the benefit of the doubt considering the respective campaigns of the two London mayoral favourites...

Despite yesterday claiming to be a keen cyclist, Bailey has pledged to rip out unwanted cycle lanes and LTNs within the first 100 days of his administration and he even suggested compensating taxi drivers over the High Court Streetspace ruling... 

His Labour rival has backed building more cycling infrastructure and rocked up to his vaccination appointment in a Rapha tee. On the cycling front, that looks like it is 1-0 Khan.

Dan joined road.cc in 2020, and spent most of his first year (hopefully) keeping you entertained on the live blog. At the start of 2022 he took on the role of news editor. Before joining road.cc, Dan wrote about various sports, including football and boxing for the Daily Express, and covered the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for The Non-League Paper. Part of the generation inspired by the 2012 Olympics, Dan has been 'enjoying' life on two wheels ever since and spends his weekends making bonk-induced trips to the petrol stations of the south of England.

Add new comment

45 comments

Avatar
ktache | 2 years ago
0 likes

If you have the good fortune to own a Nintendo Switch, for a few days more you can download and play for free, Descenders, a downhill race action game.

It seems after a few plays to be nothing on Lonely Mountains Downhill, which is just joyful, but you have to pay for that.

I can say that I will probably not be paying for Descenders.

Avatar
ktache | 2 years ago
2 likes

Peter Walker in the (hate filled) Guardian's bike blog on LTNs

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2021/apr/23/opponents-...

Do other newspapers have a Bike Blog?  Often with contributors from this parish.

Avatar
Dicklexic | 2 years ago
1 like

Glad to see that Spesh have actually got the World Champ Rainbow colours correct on Alaphilippe's new bike. Far better looking than the previous effort.

Avatar
brooksby | 2 years ago
6 likes

Quote:

...causing vehicles to slow down and pull out ...

Erm - isn't that just called "overtaking"...? 

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism replied to brooksby | 2 years ago
5 likes

Also,

Quote:

Another report claims the man's sign was knocked off by a bus driver in a crash.

"It broke off his sign and he stood in front of our bus near Hull Royal holding up all the traffic," a person on the bus at the time said. "He even called himself an ambulance - wasting vital NHS time.

So the person on the bus thinks bus drivers should just carry on if involved in an accident on the road?

Avatar
IanMK replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 2 years ago
2 likes

When I was a kid (in the 70s) we use to go up to the West End and just hang out. Don't actually remember why but I think we were a nusance. Anyway, a number of my friends were hit by black cabs (both as peds and cyclists) no serious injuries or damage.  The Taxi driver always insisted that he take them to A&E - I think it was to ensure no concussion etc.. and obviously to reduce the liability. The question is why the Bus driver didn't call for an ambulance (why's that not standard procedure) and wait until they were sure he was alright.

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism replied to IanMK | 2 years ago
2 likes

The original article states the witness as saying the cyclist's sign collided with the bus and broke the sign. 

Quote:

One man said he was on a bus that knocked the biker's sign off: "I was on the bus yesterday that he crashed into.

"It broke off his sign and he stood in front of our bus near Hull Royal holding up all the traffic.

Now the above does change the incident quite significantly to how Road CC listed it. Whether that is them following the Reporting Code or just badly reported from both sides but as the witness is quite hostile anyway the actual sequence of events will have to be guessed at. Still a road accident needs some details swap. 

Avatar
MattieKempy replied to brooksby | 2 years ago
3 likes

brooksby wrote:

Quote:

...causing vehicles to slow down and pull out ...

Erm - isn't that just called "overtaking"...? 

You've ridden a bike, haven't you? Slow down and pull out? To most drivers, that's not overtaking!!

Avatar
the little onion | 2 years ago
11 likes

I'm a proper republican who has no time for hereditary privilege, or the weird brown-nosing in England with regards the Windsors.

But it isn't it nice to see someone get to nursery on a bike? Now, could we normalise children cycling to nursery and school, by building the infrastructure necessary to make it safe. One of my most heartening cycling moments was visiting Munich, and seeing the masses of bikes locked up outside of the kindergartens.

Avatar
brooksby replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
9 likes

I don't believe that not having a Queen would make any difference to my day-to-day life at all (I was more bummed out when Jim Steinman died than Prince Philip).

We already have a prime minister we don't like or trust, so I don't think anything would particularly change...

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism replied to brooksby | 2 years ago
3 likes

Quote:

We already have a prime minister we don't like or trust, so I don't think anything would particularly change...

Well we might not have an unelected head of state in our political systems as I'm sure that was one of the arguments for leaving the EU.

But it would be nice to know the job she does, the wages she gets from the tax payer to do it, an whether it can be done cheaper with a Presidency rather then heriditary system. 

Avatar
PRSboy replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
18 likes

Nigel Garrage wrote:

If you can think of anyone who would do a better job and be a better role model as head of state than the Queen do let me know.

Chris Boardman smiley

Avatar
Captain Badger replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
6 likes

Nigel Garrage wrote:

If you can think of anyone who would do a better job and be a better role model as head of state than the Queen do let me know.

If you can define what her practical role actually is, we might be able to start. Many other countries manage without one. We even managed to do without one for a while, but we had to do with an unelected head of state inst.... oh wait....

As it happens I have nothing really against Maj but she's not got long, and who is going to replace her? Whether she does a "good" job or not is academic, cos no one in the country gets a say. Not even you Nige....

 

Avatar
the little onion replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
9 likes

Nigel Garrage wrote:

If you can think of anyone who would do a better job and be a better role model as head of state than the Queen do let me know.

 

Well, didn't the selection panel do well when they offered her the job. Really top job of picking through the many, many candidates. I'm sure she nailed the interview. 

Now, tell me the merits of her kids...... one is weird, one is thick and useless, one should be in prison for a VERY long time. Princess Anne seems OK though.

Avatar
IanMK replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
3 likes

I have nothing against the queen per se but I believe in meritocracy a philosophy that is incompatible with a hereditary head of state.

Avatar
Sriracha replied to IanMK | 2 years ago
0 likes
IanMK wrote:

I have nothing against the queen per se but I believe in meritocracy a philosophy that is incompatible with a hereditary head of state.

Well there's a conundrum - if a meritocracy must exclude certain categories then it can't claim to be based on merit.

Avatar
wycombewheeler replied to Sriracha | 2 years ago
0 likes

Sriracha wrote:
IanMK wrote:

I have nothing against the queen per se but I believe in meritocracy a philosophy that is incompatible with a hereditary head of state.

Well there's a conundrum - if a meritocracy must exclude certain categories then it can't claim to be based on merit.

don't think anyone is claiming the descendent of a head of state can't be head of state, only that they shouldn't be head of state just because they are a descendent of a head of state.

However given the performance of the electorate in recent examples, I have difficulty in accepting an elected head of state could be an improvement on the status quo

Avatar
BIRMINGHAMisaDUMP replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
0 likes

I'd do a better job than the Po faced lot of 'em. Oh, but then I wouldn't get the opportunity because that would be meritocracy - anathema to brexthickers. 

Avatar
Daveyraveygravey replied to the little onion | 2 years ago
4 likes

the little onion wrote:

I'm a proper republican who has no time for hereditary privilege, or the weird brown-nosing in England with regards the Windsors.

But it isn't it nice to see someone get to nursery on a bike? Now, could we normalise children cycling to nursery and school, by building the infrastructure necessary to make it safe. One of my most heartening cycling moments was visiting Munich, and seeing the masses of bikes locked up outside of the kindergartens.

 

and...and...and...he isn't wearing a HELMET!!! OMG!

Avatar
BIRMINGHAMisaDUMP replied to the little onion | 2 years ago
1 like

The Frog would have just been pulled from  the back of the Special Branch Range Rover for the photo op. Do you really thing the Royal sprog cycled to nursery? Odd, too, how even as children, they look inbred, grown up and a bit ' nice but dim'. 

Avatar
Sriracha replied to BIRMINGHAMisaDUMP | 2 years ago
1 like

Well you seem pleasant.

Avatar
Sriracha | 2 years ago
0 likes

Frog balance bike: What is the other brake lever for?

PS great to see royal promotion of cycling!

Avatar
the little onion replied to Sriracha | 2 years ago
4 likes

you can stick two brakes on if you want, it's drilled for that. But it's good practice to start kids with a rear brake only - stops them doing the panick-grab and flipping over their handlebars. And as small kids weigh less, they don't really need two brakes.

 

I found the biggest challenge with teaching my kids to cycle was not the pedalling bit, but teachign them to brake safely without panicking and flipping over the handlebars.

 

p.s. frog bikes are ace.

Avatar
Pyro Tim | 2 years ago
0 likes

More poor infra causing accidents
"Crash in Dunyeats Road, Poole | Bournemouth Echo" https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/19250881.crash-dunyeats-road-poole/

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism replied to Pyro Tim | 2 years ago
0 likes

Well no deets but from the pics it looks like the car pulled out onto the shared patj and hit the cyclist who had right of way on the shared path. Not sure if it is you Pyro Tim, but we have had videos on here of the same or similar road where cars should give way to cyclists but they either don't or the bushes/ trees/ furniture makes it very hard to see what is coming. 

Avatar
brooksby replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 2 years ago
0 likes

Is the SUV coming out of a road or out of the drive of a house?

Avatar
Pyro Tim replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 2 years ago
6 likes

Not me, I don't video, but I saw it. It was this road. The design was always going to produce accidents like this. The shared path has priority over junction, from road markings, but the cars won't be able to see to pull out, without creeping. So they don't bother creeping and drive to where the junction used to be, across the path. I rode it once slowly, won't use it again. Was safer before with no cycle infra

Avatar
Sriracha replied to Pyro Tim | 2 years ago
5 likes
Pyro Tim wrote:

Was safer before with no cycle infra

I take your point, except - what infra? Looks like they just painted bike symbols on the pavement, which is not really infrastructure, more an invitation for motorists to harass cyclists for not using the shared path whilst running down those who do (as you intimated).

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism replied to Sriracha | 2 years ago
1 like

They have made the shared path priority for pedestrians and cyclists so whatever cost to move, paint etc. So there is infra, just shit as shown with other videos. 

Avatar
Hirsute replied to Pyro Tim | 2 years ago
3 likes

That looks like the one that garysbikechannel has posted before with a video of going downhill. No one would use it more than once before getting on the road.

Pages

Latest Comments