Innehållsförteckning för June 9, 2022 från Cycling Weekly

There are lots of theories swirling around as to why race entries are down in events up and down the UK this year, as James Shrubsall finds out in our TT focused feature this week on page 30. From the lasting health effects of the pandemic, to broken habits, an increased cost of living, the rise of virtual racing, safety on the road and even local issues such as availability of accommodation. The fact is the domestic scene is going through a sticky patch and no one currently knows whether or not it’s a temporary problem or longer term issue. Cycling isn’t alone as it faces these issues, and the governing bodies would do well to work with other sports and see what they’re doing to get regulars back while…

Two hundred miles of racing around the Flint Hills in Kansas came down to a three-rider sprint in the men’s Unbound race as Dutchman Ivar Silk came out on top, whereas Sofia Gomez Villafañe put in a dominant ride to win the women’s race by almost nine minutes. Unbound, the second of six events in the Life Time Grand Prix series, has become one of the biggest gravel events in the world, with multiple former WorldTour riders finishing in the top 30. All routes start and finish in Emporia, Kansas, using the ‘tyre-shredding’ gravel paths that run through vast prairie lands in the centre of the US. The 200 is the signature race of a weekend that also includes a junior race and 50, 100 and 350-mile events. The winner…

Footwear is key If I had cross or gravel bike shoes I’d have taken them as I could have used them in the evening. As I didn’t I packed some Chuck Taylors, which were really too bulky, find something small if you can. Eschew regular clothes I could have saved weight and space without a T-shirt and halfway round I recalled I had a jacket that would have packed down smaller than my hoodie. Get mapping I only had a mid-range bike computer with a line to follow, when venturing into the woods more detailed mapping is more prized than on road.…

The issue of low turnouts are not confined to time trials, with road racing also suffering. Says Glynn Durrant of the Surrey Cycle Racing League: “Road racing for us is down a bit. I wouldn’t say a lot, but it’s definitely down a bit. I think it’s not just across cycling, I think it’s across all sports – and all countries.” Durrant references his mother–in-law, who works in USA community sports — they are down “by a good half“, he says. He was not the only road race organiser CW spoke to who cited lower entries, and lays the blame at the door of the economy and Covid-19 like many others. A lot of people have it, or have had it, he says, “and of course, they’ve lost a block…

ONE UP Fairlight Strael 3.0 Shimano Ultegra R8100 Di2 12-speed £4,049 The Strael with Shimano’s new Ultegra semi-wireless 12-speed gruppo. Similar spec as the featured bike with options to upgrade the wheels, including Hunt’s Carbon Aero Discs, which will shave a little over 200 grams off the weight. ONE DOWN Fairlight Strael 3.0 frameset £1,399 Given the adaptive qualities of the Strael, starting with the frameset and building it to match your riding makes sense. You could stick an electronic groupset on there with carbon hoops or opt for a more functional build using mechanical shifting and alloy rims.…

Thanks to Supersapiens, continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) for athletes has been a much-discussed topic over recent months – with much excitement around the potential gains it offers. However, there has been robust criticism too. In a blog on his website (veohtu.com), physiologist Dr Thomas Solomon explains that his research on CGM has led him to conclude that, “at present, no evidence supports the notion that knowing your [real-time] glucose levels during exercise will increase your performance”. He goes as far as stating that, “CGM for [non-diabetic] athletes is all hype.” When we put these criticisms to Supersapiens, they responded as follows: “We think that the use of CGM might improve and advance what we already know [about fuelling in sport] and what should be the basis for the first line…

One of the pleasing sidebars at the Giro d’Italia denouement was that Jai Hindley hadn’t seen his parents for two years, until they came to Verona to see him win. If nothing else it saved him the awkward conversation where you call your parents to say you’ve won a bike race, and their first question is how many people were in it. That may, of course, just be my own experience of reconciling bike racing with not-being-an-orphan. The only victory that even slightly impressed my parents was when I won the Brompton World Championships, because it involved beating 899 other competitors. Did I in my account of the race mention that at least six of those riders were dressed as Elvis, one was wearing the cardboard box a fridge had…

REMCO EVENEPOEL (QUICK STEP-ALPHA VINYL) The rider all Belgium pins its hopes on. Evenepoel didn’t have everything go his way after he abandoned his debut Grand Tour, last year’s Giro d’Italia, but since Liège he has barely put a foot wrong. This will be a key test of his progress. CW rating ★★★★ THIBAUT PINOT (GROUPAMA-FDJ) The French fan favourite took his first win in almost three years back in April’s Tour of the Alps. As heartwarming as that victory was, Pinot is yet to show that he can again contest the GC podium at week-long WorldTour stage races. CW rating ★★ GERAINT THOMAS (INEOS GRENADIERS) The 36-year-old Welshman has put himself through the wringer of Ineos’s Tour de France training regimen once again this year, including a recent trip…

Being new to clipless shoes, I have the feeling that the hard toe cap, which seems to be ubiquitous, is both irrelevant to the functionality of the shoe and detrimental to a good fit. So far in my Googling, this shoe feature is almost always mentioned in conjunction with caveats like “might not be comfortable for beginners” or “better for a narrow foot,” as if professionals have cycling shoeshaped feet after having done thousands of kilometres. I see no mention of a benefit to constraining this part of the foot, which is not used in the cycling motion. Wouldn’t it be better for the toes to be in a natural position? I understand the foot movement needs to be limited in the vertical and lateral directions, but all that control…

Just as a picture paints a thousand words, in the sporting world the numbers often say it all. In snooker, 147; in cricket, a century; in golf, one. Time trialling, more than most branches of cycle sport, is predicated on figures – the key distances are 10, 25; the key times are 50, 20 minutes; and when it comes to pinning on a number, 120 are the coveted digits. If you have that printed on the square piece of flapping plastic safetypinned to your skinsuit, it means you are the fastest rider in a full field – the one to beat. Most riders will never get to wear it, and for the time being at least, the opportunities to do so are dwindling. The current trend for low entries means…

From the introduction of heart rate monitors in the 1980s to the proliferation of power meters during the 1990s and early 2000s, technological breakthroughs have facilitated, if not driven, improvements in training. Just think how motivating and potent virtual training and racing platforms like Zwift have proved, particularly over winter. Toplevel performance continues to advance and that’s thanks, in large part, to the tech that allows us to train more effectively. So what’s the next transformative innovation coming down the track? There are plenty of contenders for the ‘next big thing’: continuous monitors promise to let us keep tabs on everything from glucose to lactate, and there is technology in development to measure your aerodynamic drag as you’re riding. Thanks to this emerging tech, we have more data points than…

Summer’s here, so there’s always a danger that someone will suggest you might like to go for a walk with them. Generally these will be people who don’t know you very well, like your immediate family. I’m afraid walking is going to disappoint you. For a start there is almost no excuse to buy expensive kit. You could spring for a pair of carbon-fibre walking poles, but that’s about it. If you do, be warned that no one else will have anything similar, so you won’t be able to tell them how much better yours are. You can track your walk via a GPS. However, it’s frowned upon to carry the GPS in front of your face, and provide regular updates on your progress, speed, and power. Instead, you will…

LeMond diagnosed with leukaemia Triple Tour de France winner Greg LeMond has revealed he is being treated for a non life-threatening form of leukaemia. In a message on his website he said: “No one ever wants to hear the word cancer but, admittedly, there is great relief to know why I was feeling poorly.” The American had recently been suffering with fatigue, so went for a check-up. Archibald’s angst Following a successful 2021 season with Olympic and world titles added to her palmarès, Katie Archibald wrote on social media last week: “I can’t say I’m loving 2022.” The Scottish track rider, who will lead her nation’s cyclists at the Commonwealth Games this summer, was hit by a driver while out training and injured ligaments in both her ankles. Watson wins…

We asked Dr Alun Williams, a sports genetics researcher at Manchester Metropolitan University Institute of Sport, about the threat of genetic manipulation Gene doping could be the next big hurdle for anti-doping. In theory, gene therapy offers a way of altering an athlete’s DNA to enhance their performance. External genetic materials are delivered into a patient’s cells to activate certain proteins and change targeted characteristics. “There isn’t any evidence of gene doping currently happening in sport,” says Williams, “though it could be. It partly depends how you define gene doping. Altering an athlete’s DNA in a small proportion of cells is one form. Technically it is possible, but to do it effectively and safely, you’d have to have a sophisticated biomedical science team.” What about detectability? “Some gene doping is…

In association with TIME TRIALS SUN, 5 JUNE Southern Counties 50 (East Grinstead, Sussex): Men: 1. Pat Wright (Paceline RT) 1:49.06 2. M. Smith (Crawley Wheelers) 1:49.53 3. P. Tippett (Crawley Wheelers) 2:00.45 4. I. Cheeseman (Worthing Excelsior CC) 2:02.22 5. L. Howells (Dulwich Paragon CC) 2:03.15 6. R. Tully (Elite Cycling) 2:06.00 Maldon and District CC 50 (Althorne, Essex): Men: 1. Paul Turton (Team Vision Racing-Silverhook) 1:53.40 2. A. Turnock (Finsbury Park CC) 1:56.59 3. R. Chaplin (East London Velo) 1:59.26 4. I. Braybrook (Basildon CC) 2:03.41 5. G. Bores (Ford CC) 2:08.16 6. P. Tibbitts (Ford CC) 2:08.56 Women: 1. Louise Robinson (Essex Roads CC) 2:04.52 2. J. Harvey (Southend Wheelers) 2:16.21 3. C. Wyke (CC Sudbury) 3:03.44 Bynea CC 25 (Llandovery, Carmarthenshire): Men: 1. Seb Tremlett (Guernsey…

A message from Alan Foxgrove: Hi Doc – a couple of months ago, at the start of the time trial season, I was checking through my race kit. I put on my skinsuit and helmet and shoes, at which point the doorbell rang. I went to answer it. It was the postwoman, who gave me a long, slightly stunned look up and down, before asking me to sign for a box. She didn’t actually comment on the kit. Last week, she delivered another package. This time I was dressed normally. But she handed it over with the words, “More cosplay supplies!” and walked off giggling. I think I’m going to have to move house.…