Innehållsförteckning för August 16, 2018 från Cycling Weekly

Entries are still open for our Club of the Year award — but not for much longer. If you think your club could be in with a chance of winning, please do nominate them through the entry page on our website. We’re looking for exceptional clubs who make a difference to cycling in their local area and the prize for the winners from award sponsor Santini is pretty special. The Italian company knows something about making kits for clubs — it’s how they started back in 1965. The company’s founder Pietro, and his two sisters, were making clothing for other firms but received constant requests from his cycling friends to make kit for their clubs. In ‘65 he made the leap, and never looked back. The Bergamo-based company now provides…

While it’s disappointing that the women’s Olympic road race course isn’t as spectacular, on paper at least, as the men’s, it’s important to remember the factors that have gone into the decision. The first is the UCI. The sport’s governing body mandates that the women’s Olympic road race should be no longer than 160km — the men’s maximum is 280km. As the course is currently laid out, it’s not possible to include either of the two loops with the mountain climbs of the men’s race and still be within the distance regulations. That’s because most of the race is spent getting from the start in Musashinonomori Park to the finish at the Fuji International Speedway. There’s no rule on where the race starts and finishes. But typically the decisions on…

I sleep better in hotel rooms than at home. And my home is nice. My family runs a chain of bed shops called Archers Sleepcentre — there’s no apostrophe before the s (but please do write to my dad about it: he enjoys this). I tell you this to brag about it: I get the pick of the shop for any bed I have ever owned. I sleep on a pillowy throne, a cradle made of clouds, a mattress no amount of peas could stop a princess enjoying. But it doesn’t matter. Nothing settles me down more than the unfamiliarity of a hotel room, and the presence of another person, who I probably know quite well, but who I am unfamiliar with enough to ensure I observe the social niceties.…

You stayed in France? Last season was my first time here and I made a lot of mistakes, but I started really progressing in the last two months. My DS said I had gone up another level and I love the team’s attitude of going into every race to win. How’s your French? I understand nearly everything. I feel much more part of the team now. You’ve had a successful year… I started well and then have done all the Coupe de France races, big stage races and have one win, a few podiums and lots of top fives and 10s. Have the team been pleased? Yes, but they also expect a lot. I remember getting second earlier in the season and they told me I made a big mistake…

Cav to ride Tour of Norway Mark Cavendish is set to ride the Norwegian stage race, which starts today, four days after he was due to start the European Championship road race. After pulling out of that race on medical advice, the Manxman said: “Given what’s been a challenging few months, I’ve been advised that the best thing is for me to withdraw from Sunday’s race.” Jan Ullrich arrested over ‘prostitute assault’ Jan Ullrich has been arrested for allegedly assaulting a prostitute in a Frankfurt hotel. Police stated that the 1997 Tour winner was under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time of the alleged assault, during which he argued with an “escort lady”. According to police, Ullrich “physically attacked and injured her” and “strangled” her “until her…

For the last 20 years I have visited the Tour and have always lauded it to my non-cycling friends as the greatest sporting event in the world. No more! The behaviour of some of the French fans towards Team Sky this year has totally disgusted me. I believe this is due to the French media describing them as “a two-headed snake” and other negative headlines, including: “They are killing the game!” One of the culprits is ex-pro Bernard Hinault. He said that riders should go on strike if Froomey rode, and also that he had seen parents giving salbutamol to children who didn’t need it, as they follow the behaviour of celebrities! The hatred directed towards Team Sky and Froome has nothing to do with salbutamol. I remember seeing him…

▪ Conditioning is the only firm pre-requisite ▪ The attrition rate for most races is between 30-50 per cent and it’s usually knees and Achilles tendons that cause the problems. If you can stay on the bike then you can finish. Consistency in training is more valuable than putting in massive miles. ▪ If you want to be quick it’s all about TITS (Time In The Saddle). It is not about riding faster, it’s about stopping faster. Set your computer to display paused time and make it your goal to keep it to a minimum, stopping only when you have multiple things to do. ▪ Do not go chasing the hurt. It will find you soon enough. You should not be exploring your limits during the first few days of…

Two years ago, Blackburn launched the Switch, earning excellent reviews. Now it has launched the Big Switch, adding an 8mm Allen key and a chain breaker to the original Switch. The chain breaker handle also has 0, 1, and 2-size spoke wrenches. There’s a disc pad spreader and a Presta valve-core tool remover too. The Switch Wrap, launched at the same time, has the same tools as the Big Switch, but comes in a mini tool roll with pockets to hold tools, a CO2 inflator, tyre levers, and cash. The fold-out design locates the tools under the saddle for easy access, so you do not have to unpack and spread the contents of your seatpack across the verge if you need to make a roadside adjustment or repair. If you…

Top cycling coach and former national TT champ Matt Bottrill (mattbottrillperformancecoaching.com) gives his advice on returning to cycling after a long break When coaching someone who is coming back from a break, Bottrill endeavours to capitalise on a number of potential benefits: “The rider has prior experience, meaning they already have bike handling skills. Depending how long they have been out of the sport, methods of training may have changed considerably. Riders generally come back into the sport very motivated, and because they have not had years of battering their bodies, they get fit quite quickly. Restarting allows muscle growth, weight loss and an increase in hormone levels and better sleep.” Bottrill’s three golden rules for making a successful comeback: ▪ Build back steadily — don’t rush or be impatient.…

The two-day Paris-Eindhoven challenge can be broken down into manageable blocks. My training plan incorporates strength and nutritional goals to improve climbing efficiency and speed by upping Kev’s power-to-weight ratio. Early in the week is a short, high-cadence recovery ride which promotes recovery and leg speed and sets up Kev for the week ahead. It’s important he has fresh legs for the hard sessions. One is a slow-cadence hill repeat set, ideal for building leg strength. The low cadence demands a greater force output, forcing leg muscles to work harder using fast-twitch, anaerobic type II fibres. In the long-term, this will benefit climbing efficiency and pace. The purpose of back-to-back rides is to accrue a cumulative fatigue effect. A ‘ride low’ nutritional strategy, with low carb intake, also promotes fat-burning.…

Cycling Weekly: If a cyclist had just moved to the area looking for a club to join, why choose Ripcor? TR: I think Ripcor is an outstanding cycle club if you are looking to join a club that doesn’t take itself or cycling too seriously. If you want to join a great group of friends who love to ride a bike, but also like to eat cake, chips and oysters (occasionally) we are the club for you. CW: I’ve heard the club aren’t averse to the occasional one-day epic? TR: The Juan Day Wonder was a madcap idea where six Ripcor riders decided to fly to Majorca, do a 70-mile ride to include the climb of the infamous Sa Calobra, have dinner by the sea and fly back. In itself…

ROAD RACING SATURDAY, AUGUST 11 Pedal Power Road Race (West Calder, West Lothian): E, 1, 2, 3: 1. Jonathan Fowles (Team Chronomaster) 80 miles in 3:17.35; 2. P. Trodden (The Racers) at st; 3. J. Archibald (Ribble Cycling) +0.24; 4. A. Quinn (Dooleys Cycles) +1.06; 5. W. Corbett (Ribble Cycling) +2.02; 6. C. Sleath (MTS-Rapid Engineering NE) +2.08; 7. R. Jones (Ribble Cycling) +2.16; 8. M. Ford (Java Partizan Pro Cycling Team) +2.16; 9. N. Scott (Deeside Thistle CC) +2.16; 10. J. Jobber (Java Partizan Pro Cycling) +2.27. EMC Road Race (Kirkley Cycles, Northumberland): 3, 4: 1. John Bowman (Muckle CC) 50 miles in 1:55.00; 2. J. Morris (unattached); 3. Ross Walton (GS Metro); 4 W. Beech (MI Racing Academy); 5. S. Robinson (Fietsen Tempo); 6. M. Foster (Blaydon CC);…

In any incident where a cyclist gets knocked off their bike by an inattentive, malicious or drunk driver, you can rely on one thing. Wherever they tell the story, or post the helmet-cam footage, experts will gather to tell them what they did wrong, and why, despite any amount of evidence to the contrary, it’s really their fault. I thought it might be helpful to collate this wisdom. To boil it down to basics: you must at all times demonstrate psychological omniscience. “The cyclist shouldn’t have ridden through that gap, it was obvious that…” Concentrate like an expert, and you too will know what everyone around you on the roads is thinking, and at all times. “Of course he’s going to pull out without looking, he’s wearing a hat.” “Of…

DEAR DOC, Several years ago I organised a tour for a few friends along the Lancashire Cycleway. While I was reviewing the route, I noticed that we could take a small detour and do something a little different: cross the river Wyre from Fleetwood to Knott End-on-Sea on a small pedestrian ferry. When we arrived there was no ferry. There wasn’t even a river; the tide was out. I come from Stratford-upon-Avon, where we don’t have a lot of tides to worry about, so I hadn’t even thought about it. The next ferry wasn’t for eight hours. My friends were not pleased. Eventually we took a lengthy detour up river and found a bridge. Malcolm Smith, email…

August 16-19 Ladies Tour of Norway The race begins with the event’s first ever team time trial, the 24.3km test ends with a climb. Marianne Vos won 2017’s edition. August 16-19 Arctic Race of Norway Mark Cavendish’s quest for late-season glory takes him to the Arctic, where he will lead Dimension Data in the four stages. Only stage one, however, looks destined to go the way of the sprinters. Dylan Teuns (BMC Racing) defends his 2017 title. August 16-19 Colorado Classic The second year of the race has attracted a strong international line-up, and Brit Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) will be targeting success in stage two’s savage 15.9km time trial that climbs almost 500m to Vail ski resort. August 17-26 Tour de l’Avenir Unquestionably the biggest race on the U23 calendar:…

The route for the 2020 women’s Olympic road race has come in for criticism from both fans and riders. While the men’s race for the Tokyo games promises excitement and drama, the women’s event skips the key features of Mount Fuji and the Mikuni Pass. The women’s race does cover 2,692 metres of elevation over 137 kilometres, so it would be wrong to say it will be easy. However, comparing the two profiles side-by-side shows a juxtaposition that is hard to ignore. “It will be difficult to control the race, and this will allow for lots of attacking and aggressive riding in the early stages of the races,” said Thomas Rohregger, former Olympic road cyclist and UCI technical advisor, on announcing the route. But women riders have expressed their concerns.…

Mitchelton-Scott sports director Julian Dean was keen to play down expectations of Simon Yates at the Vuelta. The team’s press release announcing that Adam would help him talked of “good progression throughout the whole race” and moving from 15th to eighth in the final week being a success. This is often the case with the squad who, at the Tour, when they re-signed the Yates brothers, were keen to talk about development and progress and emphasise that the team as a whole was evolving. Sat across from them with sports director Matt White doing a lot of the talking, it felt like a paternalistic urge in the team to protect them. But there is a distinct possibility Yates could be one of the favourites for the Spanish Grand Tour. While…

Putting its hopeless Brexit shufflings on the back burner, the British government has been tackling the really important issues — dangerous cycling. Last week the Conservatives tweeted an image of four or five commuters on bikes happily riding down a cycle path with the message: “We’re cracking down on dangerous cycling”. The stupidity of the message was mind-boggling and thankfully they have since taken it down. Clamping down on dangerous cycling is actually part of plans to update road safety laws and, believe it or not, encourage more people to ride. The dangerous cycling bit is the legacy of the tragic death of Kim Briggs. But it’s worth remembering the perpetrator Charlie Alliston was prosecuted and jailed for 18 months. What’s more, to have such a law opens the door…

I ride a titanium J Laverack J.ACK with Aera wheels and integrated fork. Shimano Di2 shifting with 48/32 Absolute Black oval chainrings and 11-34t cassette. Tyres are 28mm Schwalbe Pro-One tubeless. The SON Delux dynamo powers a Supernova E3 Triple 2 front and tail light, with an Igaro D1 giving two USB ports for charging my phone, Wahoo ELEMNT and 10,000 mAh Anker battery pack. A Castelli Idro rain jacket is one of my most important items of clothing along with a PHD down jacket. On the Trans Am conditions vary from -5C to +45C so layers need to be versatile. I wear an ultralight Rapha climbers’ jersey and cargo shorts. Morvélo UV arm screens are tidier than messy sunscreen. Castelli Nanoflex warmers, a Rapha lightweight gilet and Gore waterproof…

As is the way with cycling clubs, the Rough Stuff Fellowship has an annual awards presentation, which takes place at the Easter Meet. But what, you might wonder, does a non-racing club present awards for? Well it turns out the rough stuffers are aspiring media types on the side, and their awards — all named after former RSF top brass — reflect that. The Charlie Chadwick Memorial, for example, is presented for best overall digital photo, while the Arthur Matthews Trophy is given for best rough-stuff related prints. For the scribblers, there’s the Alwyn Taylor Jubilee Trophy, which goes to best article published in the RSF journal, while the Bert Williams Award goes to best sketch. So if you’re a cyclist and fancy yourself as a bit of a Graham…

“We don’t really mention ‘gravel’ when it comes to our bicycles, I don’t think it really conjures up the full capabilities of the bikes or sounds aspirational enough! Our multi-terrain Bokeh bikes are described as ‘Adventure Sport’ bikes — the idea is that they are for continent-crushing rides where you have a destination in mind and you want to get there fast and have some fun along the way. So, my idea of a good adventure bike is something that can perform on a very wide range of terrain and riding surfaces; it should come alive when you hit the tight, twisty rough stuff! The ideal bike is fast, light, comfortable, tough and engaging and can carry you and your bike-packing gear a very long way without beating you up,…

Danny MacAskill, the Scottish trials supremo, has an excellent saying: “If you do something right the first time, it wasn’t hard enough.” Known for pushing the limits of what is possible, MacAskill picks up on a really important point for all cyclists: second chances are a vital element on the road to improvement. Things go wrong. Sometimes we feel defeated. We might even quit completely. It happens even to the most talented. But quitting is not for ever; it holds within it the opportunity for a comeback, a more successful second attempt — and success the second time around can be the sweetest of all. There are many reasons why cyclists quit or take a break. Among young riders, a common reason is heading off to university, for a life…

54.5 MILES 1 Pishill climb You rarely crest an ascent and proclaim it pleasant — but Pishill (despite boasting a name which might suggest otherwise) is actually just that — a pleasant climb, all six miles of it. This is chiefly due to its gentle gradient which creates the sensation that you actually might be a good climber after all. 2 Swooping into Henley One of the fastest stretches of asphalt in Oxfordshire — wind up the wattage from the top of Pishill and drop down into the pretty town of Henley at full tilt. 3 Race for chips and beer A fine Ripcor tradition — after having whet their whistles mid-ride in the Velolife Cafe in Warren Row, Ripcor embarks on a caffeine-fuelled romp back to the Loch Fyne restaurant to…

doctorhutch_cycling@timeinc.com If you’ve come to watching cycle racing in the last 10 years or so, you may not be aware that the hot seats that they make the provisional leaders of a time trial sit in as they watch the rest of the race unfold do not date back to time immemorial. In fact they date back to somewhere in the middle of the last decade. They were invented in an attempt to make time trial coverage more exciting. And what a glorious success they have been. “Shall we have proper split times, virtual overlays and reliable GPS tracking?” someone in an organiser’s planning office might ask. “Nah. Who wants that when we’ve got live coverage of a random Belgian early starter updating his Facebook status?” will come the reply.…