Innehållsförteckning för November 14, 2019 från Cycling Weekly

The day I started serious training (Jan 1, 1996) I started my training diary — logging in a notebook every mile, minute, average speed, resting HR and a few thoughts on each ride I did. I’ve still got those diaries somewhere. This was in the days before GPS devices and Strava, when a simple Cateye computer did the job perfectly well. What I should do now is go back and add up all those years of cycling and take a guess at my total — but whatever it is, it would be put to shame by Russ Mantle. I’m sure all of you will have seen last week’s news on 82-year-old Russ as he rode (and logged) his millionth mile. A mind-boggling distance. We went to interview him on this…

It was 1.30am on Sunday morning when Mark Stewart arrived in Glasgow to ride the World Cup omnium that afternoon. By the time he arrived in Glasgow he had “gone past the point of being tired” so he took some time to get to sleep. It wasn’t ideal preparation but a few hours later he’d be on the podium receiving a silver medal having put in a hugely impressive performance. “The strength in depth of our squad is so good that you know if you’re going to race, you’re taking someone else’s spot, so you better perform,” said Stewart. He was sat on his sofa in Manchester watching the men’s Madison when the call came. The previous few days he’d racked up three hours in the rain on a mountain…

When I used to work on the phones in the family bed shop there was a courier I would often call to try and get customers an estimated time for their delivery. The first time I called, I got put on hold and I loved it. Their hold music was ‘The Chain’ by Fleetwood Mac. Six months into following through on the inane task of calling up to get the delivery schedule, surely something that could instead be published online, and my love of the song ‘The Chain’ began to falter. It was a sad day. That was seven years ago and, thankfully, the conditioning has now faded and I can crank up the whole Rumours album as blissfully as the next person. You can assume, however, that after such…

On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate your last race? Probably a two [team pursuit at the Glasgow World Cup where the USA didn’t make it to the first round]. We didn’t race very well in Minsk, that was a tough, tough race. And we didn’t have the results needed to go to the Olympic Games bar a small act of God here [in Glasgow]. I’ll fully admit we had some technical errors, but it’s hard to line up knowing we’re not going to improve six seconds in a week, which is what we needed to qualify. So I could go super-deep, maybe we get seventh, go through two rounds, it still doesn’t get us in the Olympic Games. And I have stuff to do on Friday. It’s…

Froome under the knife… again Chris Froome has undergone an operation to remove metalwork from his hip and elbow as he continues his recovery from his season-scuppering Critérium du Dauphiné crash. Posting on social media from his hospital bed, Froome said: “Less some hardware from my hip and elbow, feeling groggy but all went perfectly” before using hashtags to reiterate his 2020 goals — a record-equalling fifth Tour de France title and the Olympic road race at the Tokyo Games. Rain stops play Riders in the Peak District have seen a section of their well-loved Abney Road climb washed away in the recent flooding that has beset the Midlands and north of England. Some places saw a month’s rain in 24 hours on Thursday and Friday. The climb is 7km…

A month ago I was bought a cyclo-cross bike in preparation for the winter season. After I had excitedly unpacked it, the box was left in the middle of the room. Our pet rabbits found the giant box in the middle of their play zone and claimed it as their own. ‘N’ bikes is never enough, so last week I managed to persuade my mum to buy me a frame for next year’s road season. With two big cardboard boxes lying around, me and my sister decided to make Rabbit Central, a multi-storey rabbit playhouse. Who knows, with more bikes it could expand? Izzy Mayes, email…

One person Brian Edrupt credits as having a major impact on the increased interest in RRA attempts is Michael Broadwith, either through his 2018 End-to-End record — “he suffered horrendously with neck trouble and I think that probably got more publicity,” says Edrupt — or through his use of social media to promote the attempts of other riders. “The strong selling point of the RRA is its unrivalled rich history,” says Broadwith. “But the organisation is notoriously shy about promoting itself. Actually it is a very good fit with social media, because through that medium you can get key information directly to those people who are interested. People can also engage in the attempts through ‘dot-watching’, photos, Twitter info and graphs. “My aim has been to try and spread knowledge…

A brand best known for its motorcycle helmets has just landed in the UK via Bristol-based distributor Saddleback. This isn’t HJC’s first entry into the cycling market, though, as the brand currently provides lids for the Lotto-Soudal team. We have the Furion 2.0, which HJC suggests is a semi-aero helmet but to us looks like a fully aero road model with very little in the way of vents. A total of five can be seen from the front, with two high on the sides and a smattering at the back to help aid cooling, with HJC claiming it used Ventury Dynamics to maximise ventilation. HJC says this helmet will keep you cool while saving you “seven per cent during your ride compared to the competition”. It also suggests there is…

ONE UP Cannondale Topstone Carbon Force eTap AXS £4,799.99 Move up to the flagship Topstone Carbon and the most obvious benefit that the additional £1,300 increase in the price tag gets you is SRAM’s superb Force wireless 12-speed groupset. The top-flight version also includes Cannondale’s adjustable integrated stem and carbon handlebar combo. ONE DOWN Cannondale Topstone Carbon Ultegra RX 2 £2,699.99 The good news is the lower-tier versions of the Topstone all share the same frame and fork as our review model and above. The carbon Hollowgram wheels, however, are replaced with dependable WTB/Formula versions. The chainset is a lower-specced Cannondale version but offers the same great gear ratios. The cassette, saddle and seatpost are all slightly lower-spec models.…

Fatigue can be defined as an overwhelming feeling of exhaustion and a decreased capacity to complete physical and mental work. For anyone taking part in any kind of endurance sport, it is a both a risk and an inevitable consequence of training. In terms of effort, being fatigued means being unable to maintain a given exercise intensity. We are still a long way from complete understanding of the mechanisms of fatigue, which remains a central question to improving human performance. Fatigue is multi-dimensional, with biological, emotional, behavioural and cognitive elements making it a tricky condition to get a grasp on. It’s one word that gets applied in many situations, from that which prevents you from completing the final rep of a particularly hard interval session, to that accrued by the…

Josh is already a competent rider, but he wants to improve his performance and results. His progress in hill-climbs demonstrates that he has good short-burst power but he needs to build on this to get results in crits. Doing more varied interval sessions will replicate crit-type efforts, and some more on-road training will improve his technique and on-bike skills. I’ve reduced his gym work, which, although it can be a useful addition to training, should not impinge on riding time. Learning skills on the open road will benefit Josh significantly. His 10-mile TT time [24min on road bike] is good but he can certainly improve on it by working on technique and pacing. Riding outdoors is key to improving race performance — training in a group will help massively. Getting…

Tour of Quanzhou Bay (November 8-10) Australian Ryan Cavanagh scored his second Asian GC triumph of the season, adding victory in the Chinese race to his success at The Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn’s Cup in Thailand. Cavanagh, 23, rides for St George Continental. Tour de Singkarak (November 2-10) Jesse Ewart (Team Sapura) successfully repeated his 2018 triumph, winning the Indonesian race with a dominating performance from start to finish. The 25-year-old Australian won the race’s opening two stages and in the next seven stages continually placed highly. Tour de Okinawa (November 10) Japanese veteran Nariyuki Masuda won the 210km one-day race for a third time, emulating his wins from 2014 and 2016. The 36-year-old’s 2019 has been one of his finest seasons, and comes six years after he was in…

An email from Robin Coady arrives. It bears intelligence of his “friend” who was riding a very hot event, and had the brilliant idea of lining his helmet in cling film, filling the vent holes with water, and popping it in the freezer overnight. The plan was that the ice would melt over the early stages of the ride, providing a nice, constant stream of chilled water to cool the fevered head. It worked perfectly. But alas, Robin’s “friend” discovered after the race that the expansion of the ice as it froze had destroyed the integrity of the helmet by snapping most of the polystyrene. I still have to say, it was a great idea.…

Cyclo-cross World Cup round 4: Tabor (November 16) There’s been a familiar pattern in the first three elite men’s races of this season’s World Cup: Eli Iserbyt (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) winning, followed by his Belgian compatriot Toon Aerts (Telenet Baloise-Lions) in second. The elite women’s races, however, have been less predictable, with Canadian Maghalie Rochette, Katerina Nash of Czech Republic and the Netherlands’ Annemarie Worst each winning a round. Flandriencross (November 17) Recently crowned European champions Mathieu van der Poel and Yara Kastelijn will take to the start line as favourites in the second round of this season’s DVV Verzekeringen Trofee. Racing heads to Hamme in Flanders, with a course that has seen van der Poel emerge victorious from each of the past three occasions. Annemarie Worst is expected to be…

Each day, mark yourself out of five on the following criteria: Fatigue 1, feeling fresh and ready to go — 5, wanting to stay in bed Muscle soreness 1, barely any noticeable at all — 5, super-sore even to the touch Motivation 1, ready for anything — 5, feeling you’d rather not bother Mood 1, in a very good mood — 5, in a very bad mood Sleep 1, having had a great night’s sleep — 5, feeling you barely slept There is no definitive score that is ‘correct’, although scoring four or five across several areas would be a cause for concern. The key value in this is discovering your own ‘normal’, allowing you to spot and investigate any significant deviations. One caveat to this is that if you…

Australian track sprinter Matthew Glaetzer has bounced back swiftly from a diagnosis of cancer, according to the head of Cycling Australia. Glaetzer revealed at the weekend that he had been diagnosed with thyroid cancer after he went to see the doctor with a stiff neck. He has already had an operation to remove the tumour and was recovering at the weekend. Head of Cycling Australia Simon Jones said that Glaetzer had taken the news of the diagnosis well: “He’s very matter of fact, Matt. He has a strong faith and just gets on with things. The day after he found out, the next day he was in training, he actually PB’d in the gym, and he trained really hard on the days leading up to the surgery. “I think our…

Former British Cycling doctor Richard Freeman claims he was “bullied” into making a testosterone order for then BC technical director Shane Sutton, in a witness statement read at his tribunal. The British Cycling and Team Sky doctor is accused by the GMC of ordering the banned substance to British Cycling headquarters in 2011, knowing or believing it would be used for an athlete to dope, and then lying to cover up the order. At the time of going to press Sutton had admitted to receiving treatments and prescriptions from Freeman, says GMC lawyer Simon Jackson QC, but these did not include Testogel — nor, he says, was the treatment discussed. He described Sutton as having become “Dr Freeman’s scapegoat to cover up his earlier misconduct”. The hearing into Freeman’s conduct…

Askey’s competitiveness and love of sports comes from his parents: his mum, Michelle, and dad, Paul, are both triathletes, the former having competed in the sport’s Veteran World Championships. He raced cross for the first time at just four years old. When he was nine he had to decide between football and cycling, his parents reasoning that he couldn’t continue to train as much as he did. He still continued to swim and partake in triathlon, though. He reveals: “My idea of a perfect holiday is going somewhere where I can play tennis, badminton, beach volleyball, table tennis, go surfing, bodyboarding or trampolining. I enjoy doing sports and love being part of something.” The mountains excite him. “I fell in love with the Alps the first time I went. I…

Rowley Clifford, UK marketing manager at Wahoo says: “As the global leader in indoor smart trainers, we can assure CW’s readers that Wahoo’s KICKR range is absolutely safe to use with any compatible bike. Our engineers work closely with some of the industry’s biggest brands to ensure that, when mounted correctly and within the relevant weight restrictions, riding on a stationary bike doesn’t pose any risk to your frame. As such, we welcome the move from Canyon to put consumers’ minds at ease by officially approving use of its bikes on turbo trainers.”…

James Bracey, product tester Recently I’ve been finding myself strangely attracted to the lure of long-distance touring. Couple this to an already well-established love of going off-road and the Topstone Carbon became an immediate ‘best fit’ to accommodate both. Together we have already conquered the South Downs Way and an epic, wet and windy unsupported six-day LEJOG among countless shorter rides both on and off-road. The performance and comfort had me smitten from day one.…

Hard-working journalist and father-of-two Josh Morris has been hamstrung in his cycling ambitions by a long commute and childcare obligations, as well as a bout of glandular fever, all of which has held back his racing progress. Now back to health and starting a new job much closer to home, the 32-year-old is looking forward to the prospect of spending more time on the bike and the resulting gains in performance. To that end, coach Ben Wilson has stepped in to help refashion his training schedule. What’s your cycling background? I started cycling just after university. I’d done some running but got shin splints after doing a half marathon. I rode for a club for a few years, then five years ago I thought I’d have a go at racing…

CYCLO-CROSS SAT-SUN, NOVEMBER 9-10 National Trophy Series round four (South of England Showground, Ardingly, West Sussex): Elite Men: 1. Thijs Aerts (Telenet Baloise Lions) 1:07.38; 2. Y. Peeters (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) +0.32; 3. J. Camps (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) +1.15; 4. J. Liessens (Acrog Pauwelssauzen) +1.16; 5. G. Siebens (IKO-Crelan) +1.21; 6. B. Merlier (Creafin-Fristads) +1.28; 7. A. Ferdinance (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) +2.08; 8. J. Vermoote (Acrog-Pauwels Sauzen) +2.16; 9. W. Vervoort (IKO-Crelan) +2.17; 10. I. Field (Neon Velo CT) +3.05. Elite Women: 1. Bethany Crumpton (Tarteletto-Isorex) 41.50; 2. F. James (Hope Factory Racing) +0.29; 3. S. Verhoeven (XALT Cycling) +1.04; 4. S. Thackray (SCOTT Racing) +1.11; 5. F. Turnbull (Slingshot) +1.15; 6. J. Dobbelaere (bnsTechnics Concrete House) +1.43; 7. K. Eedy (Team Empella Cyclo-Cross.com) +2.22; 8. A. Manley (Hargroves-Montezuma’s) +2.55; 9. E. van…

I was out for a ride last week. Just a casual hour or two on what was clearly one of the last glove-free days of the year. I was quite enjoying it, in a simple uncomplicated sense that, had there been any witnesses, would have undermined my reputation as a tortured poet of the open road. I spied a rider ahead. I was gaining quite quickly. I caught and passed him, his humiliation completed with no extra effort required from me, just my usual casual superiority. Within a few hundred yards he was comfortably distanced. About a mile further on, I glanced over my shoulder to see if there was any traffic coming, and got the shock of my life. The guy I’d passed and dropped was sitting right on…