The Tour of Britain has reassured the public and riders that there are “no issues” with stage seven’s route through Gloucestershire after a local councillor this weekend slammed the “dreadful” and “dangerous” potholes on surrounding roads, saying it is “ironic” that the race is visiting when other roads would risk injuring those travelling by bicycle.
While Carlos Rodríguez’s crash at the Tour de France – and his worrying stumble back to his bike – has cast some light on pro cycling’s continuing issues around concussion protocols and its obsession with ‘hardness’, a revealing interview with his fellow up-and-coming Spaniard, Juan Ayuso, has offered a revealing glimpse into another of the sport’s concerning obsessions: weight.
For a sport often decided, especially on its iconic mountain passes, to some degree anyway by the simple calculation of power to weight, it’s no surprise that cycling has long had an unhealthy obsession with the scales.
The enduring image of the skeleton-esque cyclist was exemplified, perhaps, by the sticklike, Tour de France-winning figures of Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome, but stretched back long before the Team Sky marginal gain era (remember Lance Armstrong boasting about pinching his rivals’ waists to see if they’d gained any additional winter weight, or Jan Ullrich’s constant struggle to shed the pounds as the Tour approached? Which he always, somehow, managed to achieve, of course).
And now, one of the so-called ‘new generation’ has revealed how much worrying about food, and the numbers on a scale, can dominate a pro cyclist’s life.
(Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
Speaking to Spanish website Diario del Triatlón, UAE Team Emirates’ exciting prospect Juan Ayuso – who finished third overall as a teenager at last year’s Vuelta a España – explained that he only has “four days in which I can eat anything I want” throughout the entire year.
The 20-year-old, who at 1.84m tall weighs just 63kg at race weight (for comparison, five-time Tour winner Miguel Induráin is just four centimetres taller than Ayuso, but weighed 78kg at his leanest), told the website: “I always have the scales to weigh the food and to weigh myself nearby.
“Now I live in Andorra alone, but when I lived with my parents I started to weigh my food. At the age of 17 in my second year as a junior, that’s when I started working with my nutritionist Gorka. Up until then I was like any other kid, and now it doesn’t cost me anything just to take the food, put the marker on the scale to zero, and eat.
Ayuso, a winner of two stages at this year’s Tour de Suisse, continued: “To reach the top, you have to make great sacrifices, but whoever wants something has to pay the cost. Now, for example, I come home for Christmas and they give me free rein. I eat everything for four days, bloating myself which takes its toll, but that means that when I have to sacrifice myself I don’t care.
“It’s useless to do everything right on the bike, to be in spectacular shape if you don’t take care of your diet afterwards. It’s better to train less and take more care of food and other things. It is a fundamental part and you have to take care of it.
“It is not difficult for me to sacrifice myself foodwise, because I know that I need discipline and I know that it is useless to train four or five hours of training and spoil everything. But it is true there are people who try to make everything perfect but there comes a day when they can’t take it anymore and they spoil everything, because they eat in one day what they have avoided for a whole month.
“Before doing that, you have to indulge yourself and try control it. The permission they gave me at Christmas is enough for me and now I don’t have the need to sin. For example, I ate a good lamb.”
(Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
Of course, the fact that Ayuso appears happy with his monk-like regimen at 20 – and one that he has been living with for three years already – doesn’t mean he can necessarily sustain it long-term, a factor noted by many when assessing the unprecedented success of younger and younger riders in recent years.
One retired rider acutely aware of the sacrifices required to become a pro, Alejandro Valverde, told the site that the strict discipline outlined by Ayuso is “mentally hard to endure for many years” and could potentially lead to burn out for his talented generation of riders.
Let’s just hope that Christmas lamb can help sustain Ayuso throughout the Vuelta…
Cycling Mikey sure gets around these days, doesn’t he?
At the weekend, the live blog season ticket holder was, once again, the star of an in-depth feature in one of the big national newspapers, as the Sunday Times asked, ‘What’s driving Cycling Mikey, Britain’s most hated cyclist?’
That headline… Yeesh.
Setting aside what Jeremy Vine (another live blog stalwart) described as an “iffy headline”, in the article the Times’ Nick Rufford accompanied Mikey on one of his rides seeking out phone using motorists, to ascertain whether he’s a “road safety hero or just a darned nuisance”.
Of course, despite Vine’s praise for the article and its rather balanced approach to its subject, Rufford’s piece is still inevitably peppered with some classic anti-cycling bingo phrases: the writer notes that Van Erp is viewed by some as a “self-righteous snooper”, while he and Vine are described as “helmet-cam warriors”, and those spotted by Mikey using their phones as “victims”.
An incident recounted in the article, in which Mikey reports an ambulance driver for using their phone, has also divided opinion on social media, as well as on the road.cc forum (an argument on the forum? Get out of here!).
However, it’s the inclusion of yet another live blog favourite, Mr Loophole himself, Nick Freeman, that has perhaps caused the biggest stir online.
Freeman, a lawyer who specialises in getting phone drivers off the hook, told the Sunday Times that the police appear to be “actively encouraging” activists like Cycling Mikey, arguing that the outcome will be even greater mistrust between cyclists and motorists.
“Using a mobile phone in a car is dangerous and it is right that it’s prohibited. But I don’t think we want to live in a snitch society. I’m not saying the public don’t have a role to play but, really, isn’t that the role of the police?” Freeman asked.
“It’s an industry now and in my view it’s wrong. And there’s no relevant legislation that properly deals with cyclists who cycle dangerously. So the law is all over the place.”
> Mr Loophole applauds police action against "vigilante cyclists" filming law-breaking drivers
Freeman then argued that fixed traffic cameras are more than adequate to pick up law-breaking drivers.
He continued: “The police could say to cyclists, thank you very much for your help but we no longer need it. Please don’t do it.”
A lawyer who earned his nickname by getting law-breaking motorists off the hook on technicalities arguing against members of the public supplying additional evidence of this law breaking? Whatever next?!
“Cycling Mikey does a brilliant job,” wrote one. “But I am not impressed by Nick Freeman saying ‘I don’t think we want to live in a snitch society’; if we don’t report crime, our society will be a criminal free for all. ‘Snitches’ is prison talk and not helpful.”
Nick seems to be on the wrong side of every debate I've seen him in, IMO. It's clickbait PR tactics from him to gain publicity, I think.
— CyclingMikey the Unspeakable (@MikeyCycling) August 20, 2023
Naturally, Van Erp disagreed with good ol’ Nick, arguing that with the dwindling number of traffic police to enforce road laws, camera cyclists are the best hope of deterring drivers.
“My goal is to give people the perception they might be caught,” he said. “It’s the certainty of detection that’s the best deterrent.”
Cycling Mikey, Jeremy Vine, and Mr Loophole all in the one live blog story? Do I win a road.cc medal or something now?
A fan-made video from last month’s Tour de France, which captures the moment Ineos rider Carlos Rodríguez crashed heavily on the descent of the Ballon d’Alsace, taking down Sepp Kuss in the process, has prompted a social media debate this morning concerning cycling’s approach to its concussion protocols.
The harrowing crash, which took place on the first descent of the penultimate stage of this year’s Tour, in the Vosges mountains, saw Rodríguez – who was linked with a move away from the British team this winter, but now appears set to stay – lose control of his front wheel while riding behind the yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard.
The 22-year-old then proceeds to skid along the road, face down, as Vingegaard’s Jumbo-Visma teammate Sepp Kuss attempts and fails to jump over the falling Ineos rider, flying over his handlebars in the process. Pello Bilbao, meanwhile, manages to, somehow, just about avoid riding straight into Rodríguez’ head.
In the clip, we can see a clearly shaken Rodríguez stagger to his feet, stumbling along the road, as riders stream past and teammate Omar Fraile waits with his bike.
As a badly bloodied and bruised Rodríguez continued racing after his fall on the descent, finishing 12th on the day, just 52 seconds behind stage winner Tadej Pogačar, and managing to retain his top five placing on GC, the worrying nature of his reaction to the crash, clearly shown on the fan’s video, has this morning raised questions about how Ineos and the Tour’s medical team responded to the 22-year-old’s physical state during the stage.
(Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
“I don’t understand why the protocol was not activated for when they fall and get up like this. I also don’t understand how long the medical car took to get to him,” one Spanish Twitter user wrote. “It’s a miracle (no other word after watching this) that Carlos Rodríguez didn’t leave his face and all his teeth right there.”
“Where’s the concussion protocol when you need it?” asked David. “Someone staggering like that shouldn’t be put back on a bike.”
“Rodríguez not being able to walk in a straight line but allowed to continue riding,” Fabrizio noted.
> UCI publishes new concussion protocol as other sports face lawsuits from retired athletes
The debate around Rodríguez’ return to action after appearing to show signs of concussion will add further weight to the argument proffered by some that cycling continues to have a “concussion problem”.
In December 2020, the UCI published a new concussion protocol– which recommends that riders do not return to competition for at least a week after their symptoms have gone – following a warning from brain charity Headway that cycling is “lagging miles behind other sports” when it comes to dealing with sports-related concussion.
And last year, a study conducted at the University of Northampton found that four out of five competitive cyclists were unaware of the limitations of helmets when it comes to protecting them from concussion.
Earlier this year, Ineos Grenadiers did, however, act swiftly when one of their riders showed signs of concussion, withdrawing Tom Pidcock from the final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico following a nasty crash.
A few days later, the team issued a statement confirming that the Yorkshireman, who was continuously monitored by the team’s doctors after his crash, had been displaying symptoms of mild concussion, resulting in a prescribed period of rest, line with the British squad’s established concussion protocols, that caused him to miss Milan-San Remo and some cobbled classics.
> Why pro cycling needs to ditch its ‘hardness’ obsession
Of course, concussion remains a difficult issue in a sport where riders prepare for months for major targets like the Tour de France, where money, contracts, and UCI points are constantly on the line, and where riders can often be back on their bikes before a member of the medical team – tasked, in these instances, often to save a rider from themselves – can even reach them.
And, if some of the replies to today’s original tweet are anything to go by, it seems that riders remain unfairly burdened by the expectation that they’re the toughest of all athletes, and that they should just get up and get back on their bikes, regardless of how a crash had impacted them. Cycling’s concussion problem, it seems, tends to go hand in hand with its attitude problem, too.
Manchester here, emerging with a serious contender for the coveted ‘Most pointless bike lane in the UK’ award with this cracker:
Well at least they tried, this little tiny bike lane. 😁 pic.twitter.com/aGdTqwMXYN
— PeteDPVlogs (@EriolPlusEV) August 18, 2023
Meanwhile, other parts of Greater Manchester are currently enjoying the fruits of a, shall we say, more modern approach to cycling infrastructure:
On Saturday we toured some of GM's newest walking and cycling infrastructure with @StockportMBC councillors Frizzell, West and @GeoffAbell1 - thanks for coming along! See alt text explaining what we saw along the way👀 pic.twitter.com/zqXByTB5x6
— Walk Ride GM (@WalkRideGM) August 21, 2023
Quality cycle infrastructure:
✅Clear separation between pedestrians, bike riders and motor vehicle drivers
✅Coloured asphalt
✅Wide and straight
✅Priority for bikes crossing side entrances
✅SuDS for drainageWell done Salford. pic.twitter.com/gTinvnJE5N
— Iain Roberts @slowbikeiain [at] urbanists.social (@slowbikeiain) August 20, 2023
The girlfriend of a man who last month admitted killing charity cyclist Tony Parsons before burying the body, is to sue the police for causing her mental distress by allegedly asking her to spy on her boyfriend over a nine-month period to gather more evidence.
Caroline Muirhead provided a key breakthrough in the case, alerting police to the location of the body, and was a key prosecution witness after she left a Red Bull can at the spot where Alexander McKellar admitted to her that he and twin brother Robert had buried Mr Parsons after hitting and killing the charity cyclist while driving home on the A82 late at night in September 2017.
However, Ms Muirhead is now set to sue the police, with officers allegedly pressuring her to continue to spy on the McKellar brothers, who did not know she had contacted the police, in a bid to collect more evidence.
The sad, but slightly confusing, tale of the demise of the longest-running team in the women’s peloton, EF Education-TIBCO-SVB, has taken another twist this morning, with the news that this year’s Paris-Roubaix winner, and lover of Canadian coffee chains, Alison Jackson has secured a contract at the new, and entirely different, EF Education-Cannondale setup.
As we reported at the weekend, the original EF Education team, a WorldTour outfit run by former pro Linda Jackson (and which holds no formal links with the men’s team of the same name, owned by Jonathan Vaughters), is set to fold after losing sponsors TIBCO and Silicon Valley Bank in the wake of much-documented financial crises, while EF Education are also set to jump ship to the new women’s Conti team that will fall under the JV umbrella.
Keeping up?
(Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
Jackson’s signing, reported by cycling’s Fabrizio Romano, Daniel Benson, makes her the second EF Education (Old) rider to be snapped up by EF Education (New), following the capture of highly-rated American climber Veronica Ewers earlier this month.
2017 Tour of Flanders winner Coryn Labecki will also join from Jumbo-Visma, while Irish rider Megan Armitage will make the move from Arkéa–Samsic.
The future of other current EF riders, such as British wonderkid Zoe Bäckstedt, remain unclear.
Defending champion @EvenepoelRemco - making his first outing in the Belgian Champion jersey - is ready to lead Soudal Quick-Step at the last Grand Tour of the season - @lavuelta🔥
Photo: @SportplusMpic.twitter.com/a3wpzIbc9I
— Soudal Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team (@soudalquickstep) August 21, 2023
Now, I’m not saying that the squad Soudal-Quick Step have selected to defend Remco Evenepoel’s Vuelta crown is weak as such (though it would have been nice to see Remco’s fellow Belgian boy wonder Ilan Van Wilder in there somewhere), I’m just slightly concerned that we could be in for three long weeks of Jumbo-Visma domination…
(I’m saying all this now, but wait until you see James Knox’s best Sepp Kuss impression in the Pyrenees. It’s going to happen, I can feel it.)
> Want to own Fausto Coppi's custom 1946 Bianchi road bike? This masterpiece is yours for £103,505
Anyone got a spare hundred grand they don’t mind sending to me?
Anyone? Anyone at all…
The F1 star’s favourite hobby – who needs fast cars, eh? – saw him put in another strong showing on the rough roads, this time on the lumpy 100-mile route at the famous SBT GRVL race in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, complete with obligatory post-race thousand-yard stare…
How was your Sunday?
I did 100miles @sbtgrvl. Cramped a lot in the end. Finished 20/1000. Had some fun pushing myself, sometimes beyond the limit, which just gives you new perspectives of life 😊#VB77@canyon_bikes@SRAMroad
📷 @ThomasMaheuxpic.twitter.com/244EpHiuke— Valtteri Bottas (@ValtteriBottas) August 21, 2023
Despite cramping at the end, Bottas completed the course in 5 hours and 17 minutes, averaging just under 19mph.
Please Valtteri, consider switching to cycling. I am sure @LidlTrek could sign you, they are literally signing everyone these days.
— Cycling out of context (@OutOfCycling) August 21, 2023
If he keeps this up, I wouldn’t put it past transfer-hungry Lidl-Trek – the Chelsea of cycling, so it seems this year – ringing up their social media t-shirt manufacturers over the next few weeks…
I don’t know whether it’s down to the Super Worlds filling up the usual post-Tour de France downtime, but how is it already time for the Vuelta a España?
The Spanish Grand Tour kicks off in Barcelona this Saturday (anyone want to send me over to cover it? No? Okay…), and Jumbo-Visma – like the playground bully who keeps coming back for your lunch money even when you’re whimpering in the corner – have named a stunningly strong squad as they aim to secure an unprecedented Giro-Tour-Vuelta triple for a trade team in the modern era:
We've conquered 🇮🇹 and 🇫🇷. Now we want 🇪🇸 as well.
This is our team for @lavuelta. pic.twitter.com/fWRlyJZZvp
— Team Jumbo-Visma cycling (@JumboVismaRoad) August 20, 2023
This year’s Tour winner Jonas Vingegaard, this year’s Giro winner Primož Roglič, climbing super-super-super domestique Sepp Kuss, Wilco Kelderman, Attila Valter, Dylan van Baarle, Jan Tratnik, and good ol’ Robert Gesink – frankly, that’s too strong a line-up if you ask me. It’s almost cheating (not cheating in the ‘your young kid pops a positive’ kind of cheating, but you know what I mean…).
Anyway, UAE Team Emirates have opted for youthful exuberance – and no Pog – in the fight against the Jumbo juggernaut, with João Almeida and wonderkid Jaun Ayuso leading the charge, ably supported in the mountains by Jay Vine and Marky Marc Soler.
#LaVuelta23 Here we come! Here’s our lineup for the final Grand Tour of the year:
🇵🇹 @JooAlmeida98
🇪🇸 @juann_ayuso
🇳🇿 @finnfisherblack
🇨🇴 @sebasmolano_
🇵🇹 @IvOliveira96
🇵🇹 @roliveira57
🇪🇸 @solermarc93
🇦🇺 @JayVine3#UAETeamEmirates#WeAreUAEpic.twitter.com/u5sLt50kan— @UAE-TeamEmirates (@TeamEmiratesUAE) August 21, 2023
Go on, Ayuso, take it to those Jumbo bullies…
If you were out on your bike all weekend, braving the wind, rain, and occasional sunshine, here’s what you may have missed on road.cc:
> Cyclists left baffled as “pointless” new bike route sends them straight towards locked gates
> Bad weather and soaring costs blamed as ‘Boris Bike’ hires fall to lowest level for 10 years
> Want to own Fausto Coppi's custom 1946 Bianchi road bike? This masterpiece is yours for £103,505