Innehållsförteckning för August 1, 2024 från Cycling Weekly

Olympic fever hit the Richardson household last weekend as my seven-year-old wanted to watch some of the first events of the Games. This meant I had a bona fide excuse for watching as much sport as I wanted. Outside of cycling I don’t watch a lot of sport, but the Olympics is different. I still have clear memories of the LA ’84 and Seoul ’88 Games. These were formative moments for me as I fell in love with sport, and I love the idea of my children creating the memories that will instil a love of sport in them. We started with the three-metre synchronised diving. “Who are they?” My daughter asked. “That’s the Chinese team. I think they’re favourites,” I say. “Wow! That was good! How do they win.” Er,…

It wasn’t until her team-mates started talking about buying houses that Ella Maclean-Howell began to feel like the baby of Team GB’s Olympic cycling squad. Only 19-years-old, the cross-country mountain biker is the youngest member of the team, and made her Games debut on Sunday, when she finished 23rd at Elancourt Hill. GB’s other representative, Evie Richards, finished a very credible fifth. “It was very, very hard,” she told Cycling Weekly afterwards, “but such an incredible experience. A first Olympic Games at 19. I’m just overwhelmed.” Brought up in South Wales, a childhood friend of former junior world champion Zoe Bäckstedt, Maclean-Howell was inspired to take up cycling after the London Games in 2012. “As an eight-year-old, the Olympics seem so far away,” she said. “The athletes are just idols…

Yes Adam Becket news editor, Cycling Weekly If you tune into the road races at the Olympics this weekend, you might be in for a bit of a shock. Rather than the 170-plus peloton we’re used to, just 90-or-so riders will line up in the men’s and women’s events in Paris. This is a reduction from 2021, when there were almost 130 riders lined up in Tokyo, and could have a massive impact on the races, with less control, more chaos. I’m all for it, with team tactics almost thrown out the window – there can be no repeat of 2012 and GB trying to set the race up for Mark Cavendish. The biggest squads have just four riders, which means nations have to send their strongest riders, rather than…

Triple charity challenge I thought I’d bring your attention to the challenge my 10 and eight-year-olds have set themselves: cycling Mont Ventoux, Alpe D’Huez and the Col du Tourmalet in a year. Last August they rode up Ventoux. We took a picnic and stopped for ice creams. We didn’t realise how big an achievement it was for a seven-year-old to complete the ride until we googled it. On the back of that, Tobias (10) and James (now eight) took on Alpe D’Huez in May. We posted a video on X which Luke Rowe retweeted – it got 25,000 views in 24hrs! In July they will ride the Tourmalet to complete the challenge; they are raising money for charity Llamau. Matthew Drayton Ed - Llamau is a Welsh charity working with…

As the sun sets, the pints rise. It’s been a hot, sweaty day cycling around the beautiful Romney Marsh in Kent, and now it’s time for a beer in a village pub where thirsty riders like me feel they have earned a lager, IPA or pale ale. The pub garden reverberates with chatter about the highlights from the day’s riding, and the ales act as both refreshment and a social lubricant, oiling the chain of cyclists’ storytelling. This scene, timeless and synonymous with British summers, is for many of us a treasured part of our cycling year, when pubs and pints become a regular fixture of our weekend rides. It’s time to take a step back and consider how beer and cycling, two very different cultures, became interwoven. In pub…

Rating Engo specialises in realtime, heads-up display (HUD) sports sunglasses. The Engo 2s connect to cycling computers (although not Wahoo or Hammerhead), smartwatches, Samsung smartphones and iPhones via Bluetooth, displaying data in your eyeline. Despite the technology, they weigh just 40g (claimed 41g) with the large shield, or 36g (standard), and are available in white, black or stealth. The glasses were easy to charge and set up. Linking to Strava was tricky, but may be less so if pairing to a head unit or smartwatch. Using the ActiveLook app, it’s possible to customise which metrics are displayed, as well as adjust the HUD positioning – where in your field of view it appears. A gesture control unit means you can change the display screen with a simple swipe. On the…

Each month we set our riders two challenges. As it’s summer holiday time, a run to the coast is always fun, and we can’t ignore the Olympics. This month we’re asking you to… • CW MINI 1. Ride to a body of water 2. Find and ride a new road • CW Midi 1. Ride to the coast 2. Ride the 274km distance of the men’s or women’s (156km) Olympic RR in one week • CW MAXI 1. Ride to the coast 2. Ride the 274km distance of the men’s or women’s (156km) Olympic RR in one week • CW5000 1. Ride to the coast 2. Ride the 274km distance of the men’s or women’s (156km) Olympic RR in one week Sign up to the challenge at www.cyclingweekly.com/bigridechallenge…

you’ll be aware that the team radio messages that they play on the TV coverage are a very partial picture of events. For a start, they’re released with a substantial delay so usually what you get amounts to a crackly direction to unleash a tactic that you were able to watch misfiring in real time two villages ago. They’re normally repetitive: “Get to the front. Why aren’t you at the front? Everyone else is at the front.” You don’t even hear most of them, so you end up with a skewed impression of what goes on. Bike racing is in fact much less interesting than the already very dull sample of radio messages makes it appear. The other 85% of messages, the ones you don’t hear and should be grateful…

This feels very much like something I’d have done. The Transcontinental race started last week from Roubaix, with the finish in Istanbul. If you’re not familiar with the race, it’s an unsupported, find your own route race. Victor Bosoni, 22, was an early, and surprise front-runner, up with the leaders as they tore through Belgium and Germany, heading towards the Slovenian border. That was, until he realised he’d left his wallet and passport at a petrol station 270km previously. He had to go back and get them. A 540km round trip that included the Brenner pass. Twice.…

Roglič breaks back Primož Roglič revealed he suffered a lower back fracture in the crash that forced him out of the Tour de France. The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider’s injuries have put his participation in the upcoming Vuelta a España in doubt, with the race beginning on 17 August. Grace Brown on Instagram “When you won Olympic gold but now it’s time to get back to work… Never taking this off” Although there’s the small matter of the road race next Sunday still to come. 288 The number of Strava KOMs Tadej Pogačar took on his triumphant Tour de France performance last month. Of Pogačar’s new trophies, over 50 came on the Plateau de Beille alone. “The ankle doesn’t have much mobility yet. But that’s no problem on the bike. I…

Many beer origin stories sound like they were cobbled together after a few too many pints. Did a German innkeeper really spawn the internationally renowned radler just by adding lemonade to his beer to slake the thirst of a bunch of thirsty riders? Truth or myth, proper radlers are infinitely tastier than the bland shandies such as Bass that were popular in the 1980s. Grapefruit Stiegl Radler, for example, which is only 2%, is really tangy, cloudy and delicious. Germany’s tradition of brewing lower-alcohol beers means the radler was always aimed at a mature, beer-savvy market, and Bitburger’s offering is one for lager connoisseurs. It’s a 50% combination of pilsner (lightly hopped beer) and 50% lemonade, with both flavours battling each other – intense citrus balancing out the bitter hoppiness…

The product of a wind tunnel collaboration between Continental, Swiss Side and DT Swiss, the new Conti Aero 111 front tyre is claimed to be the most aero on the market. It features 48 patented vortex generators in the tread, which help to keep airflow from separating from the wheel’s rim. The tyre is aero-efficient at 30kph as well as 45kph, the brands say, so there are benefits for more average riders, not just racers. Their wind tunnel testing suggests that the Aero 111 is also less twitchy in sidewinds. Better yet, at high wind yaw angles, the tyre actually helps to push you along. Conti also claims low rolling resistance and the aero gains continue even with a worn tyre and with other brands’ wheelsets. The 26mm Aero 111…

Victor Berlemont Trophy Where: Woodcote, Oxfordshire When: 25 August This 112-mile National B is as close to a National A as possible, without being at that level, so good for people to test their legs on a challenging course. The race dates back to 1951, and costs £41 for online entry. Tom Hawkins Road Race Where: Uffculme, Devon When: 25 August This 110km Regional A takes place over nine laps of technical lanes, fast downhills, and a long climb. It’s £36 in advance via the BC website.…

Dressed in plastic ponchos in the tribune on Pont Alexandre III, Anna Henderson’s nearest and dearest turned up in droves to support her on her Olympic debut. There, in the front row under the pouring rain, sat her mum and dad, boyfriend, boyfriend’s family, and the manager of her first cycling team. For Henderson’s boyfriend, Olly Moors, the day had been a “very nerve-wracking” one. “I was more nervous about the conditions, to be honest,” he told CW. I just said: ‘Go out. Stay calm, stay composed, stay relaxed.’ She did that, and it paid off.” In the months leading up to the Games, Moors explained, he and Henderson “never spoke openly” about the possibility of winning a medal. “We’re both quite big believers in letting what will be, be,”…

There are two things I’ve noticed since arriving in Paris, and I can’t stop talking about them to people back home. Number one is how clean the city is. It’s as if those in charge have finally found the bottles under the kitchen sink, and carried out the most monumental of mop-ups, the kind you do when your tenancy runs out on your student house, or when your mum comes to visit. The city looks a lot different to when I lived here a handful of years ago, studying French. Back then, it was commonplace to see a pack of rats mauling a bin bag at the side of the road. Now, there’s Olympics-branded bunting across the streets, and the pavements are so spotless you could eat your croque monsieur…

De Coureur, Leuven, Belgium Its name means cyclist, and this taproom started brewing just before the first lockdown. In fact, its first brew was ready just as hospitality was forced to close. De Coureur specialise in strong imperial stouts and more traditional Belgium staples (sours and saisons). The spacious taproom means De Coureur lives up to its name, offering riders a chance to bring their bikes in and sup beer after a ride in the Flemish countryside. Torrside Taproom, Derbyshire Torrside is renowned for its dark, smoked beers. Thirsty cyclists will adore the fruity but light All of The Klaxons pale ale. Getting to Torrside is a beautiful ride from Manchester or Sheffield and the beer is just as easy on the eye, as the pints look incredible when poured…

• 100.8kph When Tom Pidcock won the 12th stage of the 2022 Tour atop Alpe d’Huez, it came off the back of a descending masterclass on the Galibier. But his fastest speed that day – 101kph, or 63mph – was recorded on the descent of the Croix de Fer. • 90% The percentage of power spent in overcoming air resistance when descending at around 30mph. It’s around half that figure at 10mph. • 227.72kph In 2017, French rider Éric Barone reached this record-breaking speed (over 140mph) when riding downhill on a mtb on the speed snow track at Vars, France. • 72 miles Reportedly the longest uninterrupted downhill on Earth is Peru’s Highway 16 that descends 13,388ft from Conocha to Paramonga.…

Location: Cumbria Website: kendal.cc Story of the jersey The design follows the style of the classic cycle jersey with horizontal stripes and ‘Kendal Cycle Club’ across the chest. The club colours (navy blue, red, white and light blue) take inspiration from the painted lines on the velodrome. The velodrome colours are cote d’azur, black line, red line and blue line, but the kit designers decided that black was too dark and used a white line instead. Using bright colours towards the top of the jersey ensures that club members are visible on the road and are easier to spot in the peloton. Story of the club Kendal CC was established as a cycling club in 2015 so is a relatively new club but has grown rapidly to have over 800…