Innehållsförteckning för June 22, 2023 från Cycling Weekly

Mathieu van der Poel showed the sparkling form he’ll be bringing to the Tour de France next month with a dominant victory at the Belgium Tour. Having taken the leader’s jersey with fourth place in the stage-three time trial, the Alpecin-Deceuninck leader stamped his authority on proceedings by taking off solo from the front of the race on the hilly fourth stage. The Dutchman went solo with 36km to go and swiftly built a lead of 30 seconds. Attacks from behind in the race’s closing stages failed to bring him back, and his eventual winning margin on the day was 16 seconds. Van der Poel then just had to ride in with the bunch on the race’s final sprint day to seal a general classification victory by 40 seconds over…

The 2023 Tour of Britain will conclude atop the steeply pitched Caerphilly Mountain in South Wales, the race organiser has revealed. The climb, which returns to the race after a decade-long absence, will be tackled twice in the finale of stage eight, and will crown this year’s winner on 10 September. Although only 1.3km in length, the legsapping Caerphilly Mountain is pitched at an average gradient of 10.1%, with ramps in excess of 20%. It last featured in the Tour of Britain in 2013, when a 22-year-old Sam Bennett, then riding for An Post-Chain Reaction, claimed the stage win and what was the first victory of his professional career. Mick Bennett, Tour of Britain race director, said: “Stage eight is going to be challenging for these amazing riders, feature a…

It’s midsummer and for most of us in the UK the sun will rise at around 4.45am and not set until around 9.20pm – more than 16 hours of daylight. And there’s a very good chance that most of those hours will be warm and dry. In other words, now is the perfect time for ticking off your longest ride of the year. Whether to explore new roads and scenery, challenge your limits, or just for a sense of accomplishment and adventure, there is something very special about pulling an all-dayer. Right from the moment you decide to do it, heading into the unknown, both in terms of distance and physical endurance, is incredibly exciting. Of course, this bigger-than-usual ride requires some careful planning and preparation – and that’s the…

Veins are a type of blood vessel that form a vital component of the circulatory system. They play a crucial role in the circulation of blood, ensuring the efficient return of deoxygenated blood to the heart and facilitating the continuous functioning of the body’s organs and tissues. Cyclists often have more prominent leg veins, but how can you tell the difference between a healthy vein and one that may require treatment? Varicose veins are enlarged and swollen veins that occur in the legs and feet, affecting 20% of the UK population. Varicose veins form when the valves within the veins do not function properly. These valves are responsible for preventing the backward flow of blood, aiding in the upward movement of blood towards the heart. When the valves become weak…

Yorkshire road racing star Dave Rayner poses for an atmospheric shot on home turf with his Raleigh Banana bike – a rider and a machine that would both go on to become UK cycling icons. Following a successful domestic career with teams such as Raleigh Banana, Rayner signed for the Dutch Buckler team in 1991 and went on to ride many of Europe’s biggest races. He died tragically after being assaulted on a night out in Bradford in 1994. The Rayner Foundation was founded in his memory and has gone on to help hundreds of aspiring young riders achieve dreams of a career on the Continent. Rayner’s bike is made from Reynolds 753 tubing and features a Campagnolo Record groupset, including Delta brakes and a corn-cob block for a proper…

Stage 1 //Saturday, 1 July Bilbao > Bilbao //182km //Rolling From the start in Bilbao – a historic, industrial city that frequently hosts the Vuelta a España and Itzulia Basque Country – the peloton heads north deeper into Basque country and the Bay of Biscay via Santurtzi, the hometown of Ineos Grenadiers’s Omar Fraile. On their journey east along the coast, they will climb out of San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, a striking island fortress that featured in the TV series Game of Thrones. The final 60 kilometres sees four climbs, three categorised, with each one progressively harder. Côte de Pike tops out just 7.5km from the line, and then the final kilometre in Bilbao ramps skywards too. What to expect The parcours means a wide variety of riders are in with…

The world of cycling reacted with horror and sadness to the tragic death of Gino Mäder following a high-speed crash at the Tour de Suisse last week. The 26-year-old Bahrain Victorious rider crashed into a ravine descending the Albula Pass on stage five, and died after being airlifted to hospital. His death has sent shockwaves reverberating through the sport, and messages of condolence and sympathy flooded through on social media. Bahrain Victorious managing director Milan Erzen said that Mäder was an “inspiration”, and that the team will race in his honour. “His talent, dedication, and enthusiasm were an inspiration to us all,” Erzen said. “Not only was he an extremely talented cyclist, but a great person off the bike. We extend our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones,…

Zwift has released handlebarmounted controllers that will mean you no longer have to awkwardly lean over to your laptop or computer to use the training platform’s in-game controls. The Zwift Play controllers attach to your bars, meaning that you can use your thumbs from the hoods to steer, brake and claim your power-ups. The controllers’ design will be familiar to users of the Xbox and Playstation platforms; Zwift says the goal was for them to be intuitive and recognisable, so it made sense to go for a similar system that many non-bike-based gamers already know and love. Connection is via Bluetooth and Zwift is claiming a battery life of 20 hours for the controllers. CW’s testers’ first impressions were mostly positive about the ergonomics of the controllers and noted that…

The year is 2006, and a young boy by the name of Mathieu van der Poel has decided, aged 11, that playing football is not for him. The boy, who has a mix of Dutch and French heritage, but was born in Belgium, is playing at age-category level for a Dutch team by the name of Willem II. Despite the club producing various stars, from Virgil van Dijk to Frenkie de Jong, van der Poel already has his heart set on another sport: cycling. His father, Adrie, explains: “Football, tennis, athletics. He did almost everything. He was someone who likes to do a lot of sports. He said, ‘I don’t think I’m going to play football. I’m going to be a cyclist.’ I said we had to finish this season,…

Walking into the Rodos Palace hotel in Greece for the first time, I didn’t know what to expect. I’d agreed to come to race a block of UCI races in Rhodes off the back of a handful of Instagram DMs. What followed over the next 10 days was perhaps the most fun I’ve ever had in and around a bike race – a mix between a lads’ holiday and a bike racing team. “Noooo stress,” says Charlie Lacaille for what seems like the 100th time today. It’s the first week of March on the Greek island of Rhodes and SN Vitae Bim Bam Coaching RT are opening their race season at the International Tour of Rhodes. You’d be forgiven for not knowing who SN Vitae Bim Bam Coaching RT are.…

While touring cyclists have long known the advantages of the handlebar bag, it’s the far newer gravel scene that’s primarily responsible for its rebirth. The bar bag is an obvious choice for off-road adventurers and has also allowed gravel riders to eschew the traditional jersey and its rear pockets, boosting its popularity. Some of these gravel-specific designs still resemble the traditional touring bag, with adaptations made to the lid for ease of access. Others adopt elements of a dry bag, where a sleeping bag or down jacket could be easily stored, with the foldable ends of the bag allowing it to morph in size. Smaller versions of both designs was an obvious next step, making them fit more comfortably with modern drop bars, which in turn brought them to the attention of…

At the end of April I took on the Traka, a 360km (224 miles) gravel race around Girona in Spain. This was my longest ever ride by far and I learnt some important lessons along the way… ■ Dry lube was my best friend: Over very long distances in dusty conditions, chain lube wears off and needs replenishing to prevent the loss of precious watts in unnecessary friction. ■ Pack some caffeine pills: I was riding for nearly 18 hours, and inevitably sleepiness was kicking in by the end. With no time to stop for a coffee, caffeine pills were my go-to alternative pick-me-up. ■ Company keeps you merry: Having someone to ride with helped the kilometres tick by, breaking up the silence of my own thoughts. ■ Tantalise the…

Some parts of being a junior bike racer are fairly simple. You need to say things like, “Who’s Bradley Wiggins?” while looking baffled at the mention of the name. (Alternatively, freak people out and get a reputation as a Young Conservative by saying, “SIR Bradley Wiggins actually.”) You need to ask questions like, “Why does your bike only have 11 sprockets?” and, “What are those things that pinch the rim of your wheel when you pull the brake lever? Doesn’t it damage the carbon? Actually, that’s not carbon – what is that? It’s weirdly cold feeling.” There are other things that are, if not easy, at least enjoyable. You’re allowed to have ambitions. If you say you want to win the Tour de France or Paris-Roubaix, people have to take…

JONAS VINGEGAARD Jumbo-Visma | 26 | Den 2023 wins - 9 Three stage races and two wins before the Dauphiné this year, but what that doesn’t tell you is that he was beaten by a flying Tadej Pogačar at Paris-Nice. Vingegaard couldn’t keep up with the Slovenian in France this March, but at the Gran Camiño and Tour of the Basque Country no one could keep up with the Dane as he recorded three stage wins and the overall in both, including a time trial. Vingegaard might be the best climber in the peloton right now, but he’ll need more than that to top the podium this year. TADEJ POGAČAR UAE Emirates | 24 | Slo 2023 wins - 12 Tadej Pogačar wants his Tour title back and raced through…

It is a testament to Gino Mäder that he will be remembered as much for his actions off the bike as on it. A talented rider, a stage winner at the Giro d’Italia and Tour de Suisse in a golden 2021, and also winner of the white jersey at the Vuelta a España that year, the Swiss rider was more than just an excellent athlete. Born in Flawil, Switzerland, in January 1997, Mäder started out playing football, but cycling was in his nature, having been named after Italian cycling legend Gino Bartali. His first major result was fourth at the under-23 World Championships road race in 2018, in an event his compatriot Marc Hirschi won. It was not until his move to Bahrain Victorious in 2021 that results started to…

Despite being in the midst of one of the most successful road seasons of her career to date, Elinor Barker isn’t expecting to be a marked woman on the streets of Redcar and Cleveland at this year’s National Championship road race. The Welshwoman returned to racing late last year after giving birth to her son Nico and has been a consistent presence at the front of races at the highest level in 2023, racking up a top-10 finish at Ghent-Wevelgem and a top-20 at Flechè Wallonne. Barker said: “I think I’m in a nice position where maybe I have a chance at a result, but I’m not going in as a favourite or with any external pressure.” She pointed to Pfeiffer Georgi (DSM) and Anna Henderson (Jumbo-Visma) as the big…

Stopped in a park for an oat bar and had to give half of it to the squirrel that came and sat right next to me on the bench. Dave Jackson Helped a Greek fisherman launch his boat on Lefkas island. Martin Eacott Stopping at a cafe for coffee and cake! That’s the last time I do a club ride! Phil Cummings I’ve returned a lamb to its mother over a fence and I’ve climbed a drystone wall to right an overturned ewe. Stuart Gordon Called and waited for an ambulance for a guy who chopped off his finger by putting it near the wheel while riding. I was more worried about the bike being left alone. Not what I expected from the day’s ride. Simon McCormack Ducked as a…

In February we reported on the launch of a new campaign to encourage cyclists to use daytime running lights – Be Bright Wear A Light. The initiative, backed by riders including two-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar and former world champion Elisa Balsamo, was created by Cofidis rider Rachel Neylan, who told CW that she felt a “real compulsion” to do something about cycling safety after a spate of high-profile incidents. Italian veteran Classics star Davide Rebellin was killed by a lorry in November 2022. Then in February 2023 Spanish neo-pro Estela Domínguez died after being hit during a training ride. “Cities and regional towns are getting busier, every single place where cyclists go, even if it used to be less populated by cars,” said Neylan. “Especially since Covid…

Making your own on-bike nutrition is a cost-effective alternative to shopbought energy products. During lockdown, I let my imagination run wild and created a whole book’s worth of DIY recipes (available in PDF – drop me an email: couzenst@gmail.com). Here are two of my favourite, easy-to-follow recipes: WHITE CHOCOLATE AND PEANUT BUTTER CRISPY BARS ■ 200g puffed rice■ 100g peanut butter■ 150g white chocolate■ 100g marshmallows■ ½ tsp vanilla extract Method: 1) Roughly chop 100g of the white chocolate into small chunks before melting slowly in a bain-marie. Once fully melted, stir through the marshmallows and peanut butter until you have a gooey mixture. 2) Pour in your puffed rice and vanilla extract, using a wooden spoon to combine mixture together. 3) Line a small baking tray with baking parchment before…

TI-Raleigh’s 1980 Tour de France win was the crowning glory for Reynolds 753, the ultimate steel tubeset with its super-thin walls – but as the decade progressed the two British brands started to lose ground to frames from ALAN of Italy and Vitus of France, which used space-age materials such as aluminium and carbon-fibre and, even more futuristically, were glued rather than welded. Raleigh’s answer was to use bonding technology to ‘enhance’ a new range of steel and titanium tubing from Reynolds: “The Dyna-Tech process pioneered by Raleigh’s Special Products Division […] dramatically improves the performance. A high-tech bonding material is combined with performance-enhanced Reynolds steel or titanium tubing, and the heart of the frame assembled using precisely machined aluminium lugs.” Raleigh employed Ian Cammish, the best time triallist of…