Innehållsförteckning för April 3, 2025 från Cycling Weekly

It took just 10 race days this year for Lorena Wiebes to clinch the seven victories she needed to hit 100 career wins. The SD Worx-Protime rider reached her century at Ghent-Wevelgem on Sunday with a dominant sprint, having already won at the Classic Brugge-De Panne just days before. Speaking after the milestone win, Wiebes said: “I am very happy. You always want to win and every time it works out, it’s fantastic. Lotte [Kopecky] was superimportant; she could do whatever she wanted on the climbs.” It is certainly helpful that the 26-year-old can rely on the world champion as her lead-out, as happened at San Remo Women, and it meant SD Worx controlled the racing perfectly at Ghent-Wevelgem, setting up the big win for Wiebes. “We chose to do…

Cycling is full of tech and fads - some drive real progress in both pro racing and everyday riding, while others are just an impractical waste of time and money. So, I understand why some people hesitate to adopt the latest and greatest. But what I don’t understand is the continued resistance to certain tech that has proven its worth over years of use; in this case, tubeless tyres. I’ve been running tubeless on the road since 2017; many other riders have adopted it too. So why are some still holding out? I get that not everyone cares about the rolling resistance gains or the comfort improvements, but seriously, who actually enjoys puncturing? Since switching, I’ve probably punctured fewer than four times. Compare that to the old days of group…

Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) The Slovenian’s record at the Tour of Flanders: two attempts - fourth and first. He could have won on his first go had he not managed to finish off the podium in what seemed to be a two-up sprint between him and Mathieu van der Poel. Yet to win a Monument this year, he’ll be hungry for this one. CW rating ★★★★★ Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) The queen of Flanders, it is hard to look past the world champion in the women’s race. She might not have won last year, but she has been imperious pretty much everywhere else. Deals with the weight of a nation expertly, and knows these roads incredibly well. CW rating ★★★★★ Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) On the cusp of…

US brand Enve took over supply duties for the TotalEnergies team in 2024, the first time the frameset had been ridden at such a level. A year later, it’s still turning heads. Geoffrey Soupe’s Melee is designed to handle a range of races, from Cobbled Classics to Grand Tour stages. Its versatility is achieved via a profile that straddles the varying demands that some teams tackle with two or even three different race bikes. Its tube shapes are aerodynamically enhanced, and there’s plenty of stiffness but you also get dropped stays for added compliance as well as clearance for tyres as wide as 35mm; here Soupe is using Continental Grand Prix 5000 S TR rubber. Having a choice of wheels also helps the bike to adapt to different parcours. While…

Alex Beldon (Muc-Off SRCT STORCK) drew first blood in the National Under-23 Road Series with a sprint victory at the end of the PB Performance Road Race in Leicestershire on Sunday. Beldon held off his four breakaway companions in the sprint, with Sam Nisbet (Reflex Nopinz) second and Alex Franks (Raptor Factory Racing) third. In-form Will Lowden (Cambridge University CC) broke the course record for a second consecutive year on his way to victory at the CC Sudbury Mad March hilly 22-mile time trial in Suffolk on Sunday. His time of 45.19 gave him victory on the day by more than six and a half minutes, and was good enough to lower his 2024 mark despite coming to a standstill due to a lorry turning right on the course. Meanwhile,…

Alex Pickering has borrowed a few component ideas from the gravel world to kit out his Cervélo road bike, including Elite Drive G45 gravel wheels for their 24mm internal rim width and Enve’s SES 35/40 flared handlebar, which he says helps with getting aero. Groupset is a Shimano Di2 Ultegra/105 mix. “It’s a really good, stiff race bike and the paintjob is one of the best factory ones I’ve seen,” Alex says. Want us to feature your race bike? Send a pic and information to cycling@futurenet.com…

Bridge up Fans at the Volta a Catalunya cheer winner Primož Roglič on the final stage in Barcelona, after the Slovenian escaped with over 20km to go, winning the day and clinching overall victory Picture postcard The women’s peloton rides through a picturesque Belgian town on their way to De Panne from Brugge during the Classic Brugge-De Panne last week. Their bright helmets contrast with the older buildings. Flat out The lead group at the E3 Saxo Classic powers on across the plains of Flanders, as a TV helicopter hovers overhead. This part of the route might be flat, but the action happened on the bergs. In the drink Nienke Veenhoven’s Cervélo floats in a dyke after the 21-year-old crashed out of Ghent-Wevelgem last weekend. At least the Dutchwoman didn’t…

Nineteen-year-old Matthew Brennan cemented his status as one of the rising stars of cycling last week, taking two stage wins at the Volta a Catalunya. The teenager from Darlington was not meant to start the race but was brought in for the injured Jonas Vingegaard in Visma-Lease a Bike’s squad. “He may be able to compete for the day’s victory once,” his sports director, Marc Reef, said ahead of the event. “We are not going to put any pressure on him.” Immediately, though, Brennan filled the shoes of the two-time Tour champ, winning spectacularly on the opening stage and earning himself the leader’s jersey. The victory in Sant Feliu de Guíxols brought a WorldTour breakthrough for the teenager, and came after he singlehandedly hunted down a lone attacker, eventually pipping…

On an average day in London, 30 million journeys are made. With more cyclists than motorists now on the road within the ‘square mile’ but public transport still dominating – 1.2bn trips were made on the Underground last year alone – it’s clear that the capital moves in many different ways, with countless different cost, safety and convenience implications. When it comes to getting from A to B, which is the smartest choice? Could cycling actually be a faster, less stressful way to navigate the Big Smoke than squeezing onto a packed Tube? The question came up just recently over a post-work beer with CW’s lensman Richard ‘Butch’ Butcher. As we debated the city’s best mode of transport, Butch casually threw down a challenge: a race across London – me…

Throughout his 17-year professional cycling career, Jani Brajkovič was never truly satisfied. “I had a great ability to put a mask on and pretend to be happy, proud and confident, but I knew I was in big trouble,” the 41-year-old tells CW by video call from his home in Novo Mesto, Slovenia. By 2004, the year he became U23 time trial world champion, a serious problem had set in: he had become addicted to cycling. “I started with no knowledge of cycling, aged 17, and as a junior would ride 1,200km a week with only one day off.” Along with the compulsive training came compulsive control of his eating. “There were parts of my life that I didn’t like and didn’t have control over,” says Brajkovič. “Riding my bike and…

Ekoi describes its new PW8 pedal-shoe system as “a revolutionary concept designed to deliver unmatched performance in terms of efficiency, lightness, aerodynamics and comfort.” The innovation, honed by input from Philippe Gilbert, Nicolas Roche, Claudio Chiappucci and Michele Bartoli, sees the stack height reduced to 8mm, while the 1,500mm² contact surface is more than twice that of many rival pedals for “optimal power transfer” with reduced “dead spots”. Made from a carbon composite body and chromoly axle, claimed weight is 105g. The cleats, offered in 0°-1.5° or 3°-6° of movement, weigh an additional 15g per pair. The pedals are designed in conjunction with the PW8 C12 Pro Full Carbon shoe, which features vertical and lateral cleat adjustment and Michelin rubber studs. These two-part cleats have a unique drilling pattern, meaning…

I f there is one climb with a reputation for wreaking havoc in the Tour of Flanders peloton, it is the fearsome Koppenberg. Its steep, cobbled flank and narrow aperture make for perfect bottleneck territory, and it only takes one rider to spin a rear wheel and dab a foot down to bring half the bunch crunching to a halt behind them. In this image, British icon Paul Sherwen fights against the gradient as others behind him succumb. Restarting on slopes this steep and awkward is very difficult – especially in the higher gears used back in the days when this picture was taken, so the sight of riders trudging to the top was a common one. The Tour of Flanders route has changed significantly over the years – in…

Solo victories for Mathieu van der Poel and Mads Pedersen in Cobbled Classics last week marked them out as the favourites for the upcoming Tour of Flanders. Both Van der Poel’s win at the E3 Saxo Classic and Pedersen’s at Ghent-Wevelgem came in the absence of Tadej Pogačar, however. Van der Poel’s race-winning move at E3 went clear on the Oude Kwaremont, in what could be read as a portent for Flanders, where the same climb features. He had followed Pedersen’s attack on the Taaienberg, with the Dane showing his good form at that race too, before going alone 39km from the finish. “ALL IN ALL IT COULD HAVE BEEN A STUPID MOVE, BUT IN THE END IT WASN’T” “On the Kwaremont, I wanted to make the last split,” the…

1 Kwaremont-Paterberg double punch The Oude Kwaremont and Paterberg double punch has become one of the most iconic locations in cycling, with the Tour of Flanders organisers turning the two climbs into an arena. The men do the Kwaremont three times and the Paterberg twice, with the women doing both once. It often provides the launch pad for decisive attacks, and is where many of the VIPs hang out too, hence the repeated passes of the same climbs. 2 Records to fall? Mathieu van der Poel could become the record holder for wins with a fourth victory at De Ronde, rather than tied on three with Johan Museeuw, Fabian Cancellara, Tom Boonen and a few more. The women’s record will also fall if Lotte Kopecky or Elisa Longo Borghini win,…

Risky, but the boy loves competition and loves to race. Jack Miller-Johnstone Not that much of a surprise once he’d done the recce, but good to see it’ll be MVP vs WVA vs Pog. Stephen Howell Not sure how wise this is, but credit to the man – he doesn’t shirk the responsibilities that go with wearing the rainbow jersey. Ian Carr Good lad. He’s born to race. There is a risk of injury of course, but Grand Tours can produce plenty [of crashes] as well, so why not race it. Howard Cobb He coped with the cobbles better than most the last time the Tour went over them. A bad crash can happen on a training ride; the perceived increase in risk is not as bad as people make…

As the name suggests, the Allroad SLs are designed as a robust road or gravel wheel. Mavic remains one of the pioneers of high-end, fully factory-built metal wheels, so I was keen to see if this set could find its place in a marketplace now crowded with budget carbon competitors. Construction Mavic has opted for its own Maxtal aluminium for the Allroad SL. This proprietary alloy is both reasonably lightweight and strong. It’s durable enough for off-road use with a wide rim that will allow use of wide, highvolume tyres. It’s the 22mm deep alloy rims that make the Allroad SLs special. The rim makes use of three different technologies: FORE drilling, which refers to the way the spokes are attached; extensive milling on the upper section of the rim…

For thousands of years road users in the UK and elsewhere had managed to rub along perfectly well. Ox carts, chariots, horses, Roman legions, pedestrians, cyclists and herds of sheep had all successfully avoided killing each other in any substantial number since the invention of getting up and going somewhere. Three short decades after the invention of the car, of course, it was suddenly necessary to publish a book of rules to try to keep the casualty numbers in the low hundreds of thousands rather than the high. The first Highway Code built on practices that had evolved in busy cities like London, where drivers, cyclists and police officers had developed a variety of conventions and hand gestures. The non-obscene gestures were codified, along with beneficial conventions like driving on…

You could likely fill the entire pages of this magazine with the contributions of one W. B. Hurlow, such was his influence on the British framebuilding scene. By the time Hurlow, who went by Bill, arrived at Condor in the mid-1950s, he’d already been in the framebuilding business for almost 20 years; he started as a trainee with F.H. Grubb Cycles at the age of 14, as noted by Peter Underwood on the Classic Lightweights website. From here he moved to Paris Cycles where he designed two sets of lugs that were used by Condor. Likely it was through these that he gained the attention of Monty Young. Already working for Mal Rees, he would split his time between the two marques before heading out under his own name in…