Since it’s my first live blog shift in over a week (it’s great to be back…), I thought I’d start the morning by flicking through the latest questionable cycling – or, to be more exact, anti-cycling – takes filling up the pages of this week’s local newspapers.
And over in Swindon, a collision between a motorist and a cyclist on a busy major roundabout, which left the rider with a broken leg, has rather inevitably prompted the driver to contact the Advertiser… to complain about the police’s “shocking” failure to prosecute the cyclist for damaging her car.
You couldn’t make it up.
According to the driver, the collision happened on the Wiltshire town’s Gablecross roundabout on 9 January, when she claims the cyclist hit the side of her vehicle.
Gablecross junction, Swindon (Swindon Borough Council)
“I heard the most horrendous noise and felt a bang on the passenger side of my car and I was horrified at the time,” she told the Swindon Advertiser.
“I was breathalysed and it showed nothing, but the police didn’t take a statement off of me at all and purely went from the dash cam footage.
“It is disgusting as the cyclist was riding illegally with no lights on at all.”
Wiltshire Police, who did not take action against either party, also confirmed that the 19-year-old cyclist involved in the crash suffered a serious leg injury.
Not that our caring, conscientious motorist noticed too much, telling the Advertiser that she had to fork out £700 to pay for the damage to her car, in order to protect her insurance policy’s no claims bonus.
Money that could have been spent, clearly, on a few games of anti-cycling bingo.
“I want awareness to be put out there that this sort of thing can occur,” she added.
“I’m concerned that the people who use bikes for work don’t spend money on protective clothing and lights. He wasn’t even wearing a helmet, dark clothing, it is reckless.
“I’m upset and I’m more wary of driving now and it’s something that could have been totally avoided.
“The police response is absolutely shocking and no prosecution has happened, and instead, I’ve had to fork out for my own car’s insurance. I have found the whole experience harrowing.”
Imagine, just imagine, how the person with the broken leg must feel…
On the subject of this morning’s local newspaper botherer:
Meanwhile, road.cc reader HoldingOn made an astute observation concerning the driver’s criticism of the injured cyclist for not wearing a helmet:
Good point.
And no, I’m not acknowledging the Star Wars references in the comments, no matter what day it is…
We asked for your experiences taking bikes on trains, and you duly delivered (albeit without much storage space on the journey).
Here are some of your thoughts on taking bikes on trains in the UK:
Yes. Just go onto National Rail Enquiries and look up how much train fares cost. Plenty of horror stories there, unless you're lucky and find a good deal. And that's even before trying to get the bike on a train. Good luck tandems, trikes, other types of cycles or group travel...
— steve abraham 💙 (@steve_abraham74) May 4, 2023
Awavey was one of our more positive readers, concluding that “Greater Anglia is always pretty good, only know a few times when reserved spaces meant friends had to wait for the next train. I've still not tried with any of the new trains so don't know what they're like yet, (or seen any cyclists on board them either) though I suspect the Dunwich Dynamo riders would disagree.”
Avanti is always great IMO. You can book your cycle reservation at the same time as your ticket in the app and it's secure cycle storage in the guard carriage and a dedicated reserved seat for cyclists even on fully booked trains 👍
— Sam 🚴🌱🍻Ⓥ (@SustainablySam) May 4, 2023
Global Nomad said they “occasionally had to use trains to return into London after mechanicals out in the countryside – never had a problem when out of rush hour. Buy ticket, take bike on local train.
“Only problem was when the trains were cancelled and the replacement bus service refused to let me on the bus. Ended up struggling to another station on a different line.”
99% no issues. Though once couldn't get off at my station because the train was too long for the platform, doors in the carriage with the bike storage didn't open, my bike was too wide to go through doors to the next carriage. Long story short, got home very late after much faff.
— Just Another Cyclist (@justacwab) May 4, 2023
Secret_squirrel, meanwhile, reckoned editor Jack’s attempt to store his bike was a “bit naff”.
They continued: “Absolutely no problem getting that bike hung properly. Are they a bit crap and sub-optimal, absolutely, but not for someone whose fit enough to ride a decent graveller. Those tyres are narrow enough to fit as well. Just laziness IMO.”
However, Dnnnnn replied: “Pretty sure you couldn't hang that bike on the new(ish) GWR or LNER Hitachi trains. The rims are far too deep for the silly hooks.
“There's also the issue of expecting smaller and less strong people to lift relatively heavy and cumbersome objects off the ground and manoeuvre them in tight spaces. I regularly encounter people who struggle with this, not helped by LNER (not GWR) leaving of the two doors to the compartment locked.”
Plus a couple of times someone has got on having booked a bike space only to find the bike locker full of luggage, and the attitude of the guard is that it's first come first served, booking or no booking the suitcases were there first.
— Stew Elliott (@StewCElliott) May 4, 2023
And finally, David9694 added: “It's easiest if you can stick to commuter/ local type trains. Problems arise these days because on long distance/express trains, like on the GWR main line, the guard's van has disappeared and not been replaced.
“No issue on GWR local trains (Portsmouth-Cardiff) or South West or Southern. In practice, there is no-one around to give you a hard time.”
What’s this? A road safety campaign by a pro cyclist focusing on driver behaviour and without one mention of helmets or lights?
Tadej Pogačar, take note…
Vos got an armchair ride to the finish as the GC favourites battled each other and chased down Dygert for her!
2 wins in 2 days for Marianne Vos and Jumbo-Visma's 3rd win in 4 days#LaVueltaFemeninapic.twitter.com/y6xlBbw49X
— Mathew Mitchell (@MatMitchell30) May 4, 2023
Cycling, as Gary Lineker never said, is a simple game. 150 riders take on a grippy, complicated 133km in the middle of a week-long stage race, the best in the world launch attack after attack in the closing kilometres, and in the end, Marianne Vos wins.
The greatest cyclist who’s ever lived wrote yet another line in her illustrious, and now weighty, tome, this afternoon in Guadalajara, easily following the pace on the series of climbs that defined the fourth stage of this year’s Vuelta Femenina, before keeping a low profile as the likes of Demi Vollering, Liane Lippert, and Chloe Dygert launched attacks on the fast run-in.
Vos, wearing the red jersey, then timed her sprint to perfection to comfortably beat Emma Norsgaard and Marlen Reusser for her second stage in a row, extending her lead over Dygert to 25 seconds in the process.
𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐡 be with you 🌃✨@marianne_vos seals her second stage win at La Vuelta Femenina!@JumboVismaWomen | #LaVueltaFemeninapic.twitter.com/BrT0QGT8xd
— Eurosport (@eurosport) May 4, 2023
With the first summit finish of the Vuelta coming at the 4.6km, 7.2 percent average Mirador de Penas Llanas tomorrow, the Jumbo-Visma star may be set to finally relinquish her iron grip on the red jersey.
But then again, this is Marianne Vos we’re talking about…
The organisers of the Bay Crits, the cycling season’s annual curtain raiser (sit down, Paris-Nice purists), have called time on the 34-year-old races, citing the financial and logistical issues affecting events all over the world as the reasons behind their demise.
The Bay Crits, based in Geelong, took place right at the start of January, marking the start of an Australian summer of elite racing that also includes the national championships, the Tour Down Under, and the Cadel Evans Great Ocean road race.
The races have boasted an impressive list of winners, including Caleb Ewan, Robbie McEwen, and Chloe Hosking, and were won in 2023 by Brenton Jones and Ruby Roseman-Gannon.
Zac Williams/ZWP/SWpix.com
However, those races will prove the last for an event founded in 1989, according to a statement issued by organisers John Trevorrow and Karin Jones.
“It is with a heavy heart we are announcing the famous ‘Bay Crits’ have taken their last pedal stroke, with event organisers making the tough call that the much-loved event will not be continuing into 2024,” the organisers said.
“For the best part of 30 years, and despite some very trying times, we have collectively found a way to make this wonderful event happen, an event cherished by riders, fans, and stakeholders alike and one that has enjoyed a significant place in the Australian cycling calendar.
“The financial and logistics issues we have absorbed now over an extended period of time have become simply too prohibitive to continue, with a significant increase in costs again this year. The packed January cycling calendar has also impacted on the event with it regularly having to start on New Year’s Day. This has made it challenging for many riders and fans, especially those coming from interstate, to participate.
“These factors have increased to such an extent that it is completely uneconomic and unrealistic to get to the start line next year.
“It’s been quite a ride, but all good things must come to an end, and today it is the famous ‘Bay Crits’ that have crossed the line for the final time.”
As regular readers of the live blog will know, from September blanket 20mph zones will be introduced in Wales on residential areas and streets busy with pedestrians, and where street lights are fewer than 200 yards apart.
However, Ceredigion, a county in the west of Wales, where the council will be required to conduct a formal consultation on the new arrangements, residents have created a petition to stop one rural hamlet from being subject to the proposed 20mph limit.
Nation Cymru reports that on Tuesday Ceredigion County Council received a petition calling for the 30mph zone to remain in Stag’s Head, between Llangeitho and Tregaron, on safety and pollution grounds.
“We, the undersigned, object to the above proposal on the following grounds: the proposal is not necessary because the roads involved have a very low accident rate, the roads have a very low volume of traffic,” the petition reads.
The angry residents claim that by lowering the speed limit, motorists will be too busy watching the needle on their dashboard to see children, emboldened by the measures, playing in the middle of the road.
I wish I was making this up.
“The proposed 20mph limit is not desirable because: it will greatly increase noise and air pollution as the vehicles will be in a low gear especially ascending the three gradients to Stags Head crossroads; drivers will pay more attention to the finer detail of their speedometers at the expense of paying attention to the road ahead; the very slow pace of vehicles could actually encourage children to play in the road,” it says.
“The 20mph limit proposals across the country are a gross waste of public money which should be spent maintaining the road surfaces properly, keeping road drains clear and clearing debris from the sides of the highway.
“All these are essential to primary road safety but are deliberately ignored by Ceredigion Highways Department in the ongoing negligence.”
And the list of positive Covid cases goes on, as the Dutch team – which heads into the Giro aiming for pink with Primož Roglič – announced at lunchtime their third enforced line-up change of the week, with Jos van Emden making way for Sam Oomen:
🇮🇹 #Giro
Another covid case, another change… Sam Oomen will replace Jos van Emden in the Giro d’Italia. pic.twitter.com/SihyEV5XIq
— Team Jumbo-Visma cycling (@JumboVismaRoad) May 4, 2023
At this rate, if you have nothing else on over the next three weeks, turn up in Italy with your bike and you may just be handed a spot in Jumbo’s Giro team…
🇮🇹 #Giro
🏥 Due to a positive Covid 19 result @maedergino will not be riding the @giroditalia and will be replaced by @YukiyaArashiro
Get well soon gino! pic.twitter.com/RamA8JAV6y
— Team Bahrain Victorious (@BHRVictorious) May 4, 2023
We’re scribbling all over grand tour start lists like it’s 2021 this week, as Bahrain-Victorious’ Swiss hope Gino Mäder became the latest rider to be ruled out of the Giro d’Italia following a positive Covid test.
The 26-year-old, who won a stage of the 2021 Giro before going on to finish fifth at that year’s Vuelta, will be replaced in the Bahrain line-up – headed by GC hopefuls Damiano Caruso and Jack Haig – by Japanese veteran Yukiya Arashiro.
Most likely not going to announce my goals next year. Let‘s see if covid still manages to ruin my hopes then.
For now I‘ll rest and enjoy home.@YukiyaArashiro hope you enjoy the last minute three weeks Italy all inclusive trip.— Gino Mäder (@maedergino) May 4, 2023
Mäder, who finished fifth at Paris-Nice in March, is the fourth rider to fall victim to the Covid curse before the Giro has even started, after home favourite Giulio Ciccone and Jumbo-Visma duo Tobias Foss and Robert Gesink were ruled out after positive tests.
Somebody, quick, wrap Remco and Primož in cotton wool please…
After what must have felt like the longest Wednesday in history for those involved, Wiggle and Chain Reaction’s sites are finally back in action… with controversial rebrands still intact:
It’s alive! It’s alive!
> Wiggle and Chain Reaction down... days after much-criticised rebrand
Fancy hearing your thoughts read out, perhaps even by my dulcet tones, on an upcoming episode of the road.cc Podcast? Well, here’s your chance…
As part of our planned discussion about an old live blog favourite, the ups and downs of taking your bike on a train (particularly in the UK, but not limited to it), we would love to hear your experiences.
Do you have any horror stories? Or have you always had a great experience? Either way, let us know in the comments, and we may just feature your hot take on the pod.
In the meantime, cast your mind back to editor Jack’s rather mixed experience on a Great Western Railway train back in 2019:
> Taking a bike on a Great Western Railway train: a live blog experience
You know the Giro's just around the corner when images start to appear of passes on the route buried beneath metres of snow https://t.co/Oo2SE4Qo01
— Peter Cossins (@petercossins) May 4, 2023
Is any bike race more synonymous with the snow than the Giro? The Gavia, Hampsten, Kruijswijk – I could go on.
Though, as someone who got caught in a wild thunderstorm in Barcelona at the weekend, I have a degree of sympathy for any riders who prefer the balmier temperatures of the Tour or Vuelta’s showpiece climbs.
Anyway, just two days to go now…
Local elections are taking place in England today. 🗳️Are you pedalling to the polling station? We'd love you to share your photos in the comments to encourage others to choose cycling for local journeys. 📸👇#LocalElection2023#BikesAtPollingStationspic.twitter.com/AaTQHPItAa
— Cycling UK (@WeAreCyclingUK) May 4, 2023
It’s local election day in England, which means one thing in the road.cc offices (no, not a new list of inept, anti-cycling councillors to provide us with an endless supply of news – though that is part of it, I suppose) – it’s time to ride your bike to the polling station!
And quite a few have already been getting in on the Cycle to Vote action, judging by social media this morning:
Don't forget to vote today
Polling stations are located within walking or cycling distance so there's no need to drive #bikesatpollingstationspic.twitter.com/9gyRxl5xHK— Andy (@Lets_getcycling) May 4, 2023
The lovely lady from @coventrycc kept an eye on my Brompton while I went in to vote. Get out and vote people. #bikesatpollingstationspic.twitter.com/xCi6BDVePw
— Tamsin Slater (@tamsin_slater) May 4, 2023
Polling stations are open.#bikesAtPollingStationspic.twitter.com/talGymMaf8
— 📗Matthew Snedker (@MatthewSnedker) May 4, 2023
Done my bit..... #bikesatpollingstations#votebybikepic.twitter.com/pIpJdfii0P
— Mark On A Bike (@MTonaBike) May 4, 2023
Are you riding your bike to the polling station today? Let us know in the comments! And, before you ask, the elections in Northern Ireland aren’t for another two weeks (lagging behind as usual…).
World champion Annemiek van Vleuten hasn’t looked her dazzling best in the rainbow bands this year so far, I think it’s fair to say.
The 40-year-old Dutch superstar, rather staggeringly given her dominance in recent years, is yet to win a bike race in 2023 and, during yesterday’s wind-ravaged third stage of the newly expanded Vuelta Femenina (won by another icon of the sport, Marianne Vos), continued to look decidedly uncomfortable as the peloton split into echelons.
Not that the brutally effective Van Vleuten has ever troubled the style charts even when at her best, of course.
But yesterday’s four (four!) attempts to grab a bottle from the side of the road – which, finally, saw her nearly grind to a halt to secure one before almost immediately weaving into a startled Jayco swanny in the process – were definitely ragged, to say the least, resembling a particularly frustrating game of Sonic or Mario Kart. Yes, someone was playing the Nintendo over the weekend…
💥💥💥✅
Annemiek van Vleuten was having a 𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙚 with these water bottles! 😅@AvVleuten | #LaVueltaFemeninapic.twitter.com/kNTXLoqBJE
— Eurosport (@eurosport) May 3, 2023
But, remember, this is Annemiek van Vleuten. And, despite the awkwardness of her bottle grabbing, the Movistar leader still had the strength to solo back up to the group, during the hectic closing stages of the fastest ever road race in the history of the Women’s WorldTour.
And, as we learned to stunning effect at last year’s Tour de France, never write Van Vleuten off after a few shaky opening days at a stage race…