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Since it’s a brand-new year on the live blog (Rick Astley didn’t sing ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ just after midnight on the BBC for nothing), I thought I’d wipe the slate clean and make a fresh start by focusing on some different kinds of cycling-related stories – a post-Christmas clean-up, if you will, of all the doom and gloom and social media outrage that populated the 2023 blog.
Ah, I see…
Well, scratch that idea – because, I regret to inform you, the government and police are at it again when it comes to shifting the onus for road safety onto vulnerable road users. And cyclists on social media aren’t one bit happy about it.
Plus ça change, and all that.
The Department for Infrastructure and PSNI are reminding everyone of our shared responsibility in 2024 to safeguard our own safety and that of others, however we choose to travel on the roads. More at: https://t.co/sjymGEplGW@NIRoadPolicingpic.twitter.com/wPRuXLXnuy
— Department for Infrastructure (@deptinfra) January 1, 2024
Yesterday, just nine hours into the New Year, Northern Ireland’s Department for Infrastructure – making a rapid live blog debut this year after a spectacularly farcical 2023– issued a reminder to “everyone of our shared responsibility in 2024 to safeguard our own safety and that of others, however we choose to travel on the roads”.
The latest call for shared responsibility on the roads comes after the PSNI released its provisional, and sobering, road safety figures for 2023, which revealed that 69 people died on Northern Ireland’s roads last year, up from 55 and 50 in 2022 and 2021 respectively.
Perhaps most shockingly, of those 69 killed in road traffic collisions, more than half were vulnerable road users – two cyclists, 19 pedestrians, and 13 motorcyclists.
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And what did the Department for Infrastructure’s permanent secretary Dr Denis McMahon have to say about this alarmingly high death toll for vulnerable road users?
“If you are a driver help protect more vulnerable road users by slowing down and paying attention. If you are walking please always be aware of your surroundings and if walking at night please ensure you can be seen. And if you are a cyclist or motorcyclist, please ensure you put your safety first,” he said in a statement.
“By each and every road user taking personal responsibility, we are likely to see a reduction in the number of people being killed or seriously injured.
“As we start a new year, please resolve to help prevent collisions and save lives by slowing down and paying attention.”
As anyone familiar with the live blog in 2023 will predict, that particular sentiment – and the accompanying post calling for “shared responsibility” didn’t go down too well with cyclists on social media.
Shared responsibility means putting equal onus/blame on vulnerable road users who get killed, rather than putting the onus on those doing the killing. When are you going to adopt the hierarchy of road users? pic.twitter.com/gbOK3KPBzk
— Stormont Cyclist (@StormontCyclist) January 1, 2024
“Shared responsibility is a cop out,” Holywood Cyclist said in response to the DfI’s post. “How many people do pedestrians or cyclists kill or seriously injure in a year? There is only one danger on the roads and it is time the powers that be here did something about it rather than just asking nicely. Two lives ruined per day isn’t enough to drive change?”
“Shared responsibility means putting equal onus/blame on vulnerable road users who get killed, rather than putting the onus on those doing the killing. When are you going to adopt the hierarchy of road users?” asked Stormont Cyclist, noting Northern Ireland’s (predictably) lackadaisical approach to adopting measures now commonplace in other parts of the UK.
“STOP VICTIM BLAMING” was OB Cycler’s all-caps response, while others pointed out ways the Department for Infrastructure could take their share of the responsibility for road safety.
“How about you build the infrastructure to keep cyclists and pedestrians safe? The domination of the car has to end,” Dom Bryan wrote.
“Oh yes, reminding people. A sure-fire way to improve road safety. 71 dead last year even with your reminders. Maybe it’s time to try something different, you know, like infrastructure. Who is best placed to fix that, I wonder,” pondered Peter.
Meanwhile, Aaron added: “Give us an online portal to upload footage of dangerous and illegal driving already... falling years behind other police forces!”
Now that would be a fresh start we could all get behind…
Ah, 1 January – when resolutions are made, alcohol is sworn off (at least for a while), futile training regimes are implemented (and swiftly discarded), and professional cycling teams and riders inundate social media with image after image of their sparkling new kit and equipment.
Carrying on that proud annual tradition yesterday were the Ineos Grenadiers and their time trialling supremo Filippo Ganna, who posted a litany of training camp photos to Instagram, ostensibly to show off the British team’s new kit sponsor (Gobik) and the ever-so-slightly modified colour scheme of its jerseys and Pinarellos.
But, hiding in plain sight, was a far more interesting revelation than Ineos’ change from red to slightly more orangey red tones.
Every photo uploaded by Ganna showed the Italian superstar and a handful of his teammates wearing what appears to be a brand-new, and very interesting, aero road lid from Kask.
The helmet, a likely replacement for the six-year-old Kask Utopia, features a shell which covers the top of the rider’s ears – a sort of halfway house between the non-existent ear coverage favoured by traditional road helmet designs and the maximal approach of pure time trial lids.
Clik here to view.
With helmets increasingly blurring the line between road and TT in recent years, the as-yet-unconfirmed new design from Kask appears to be pushing the boundaries of aerodynamic gain hunting in road races even further – in what could be a watt-saving coup for those of us with, ahem, wind-catching ears.
And there we were thinking January kit launches were boring and useless…
A real classic of the ‘Flooded Bike Route’ genre here, courtesy of Bath’s Two Tunnels greenway, where the Bear Flat entrance to the shorter tunnel is looking decidedly wet this afternoon:
Deep enough now for my Labrador to swim in this morning! About 60cm at the deepest point I would think. I was able to get through with just walking boots before Christmas!
@bathnes@Sustranspic.twitter.com/HXMyEhti7w— Alan Yeodal (@AlanYeodal) January 2, 2024
To be honest, I’m not sure even Van der Poel or Van Aert would fancy that. Maybe Adam Peaty?
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> Best handlebar tape for cycling 2024 — get some cost-effective comfort and grip by choosing quality bar tape
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In promising news for unnecessary capital letters everywhere, and about a month after their Specialized bikes were first spotted adorned with SRAM groupsets, Bora-Hansgrohe has confirmed that the American component manufacturer will become the squad’s “drivetrain partner” for the coming season.
Starting with this month’s Tour Down Under, Bora-Hansgrohe’s riders will race using SRAM’s Red eTap AXS groupsets, along with Hammerhead head units, ending the German team’s longstanding relationship with Shimano.
Following today’s announcement, four men’s WorldTour teams are now using SRAM componentry, including Bora, Movistar, Lidl-Trek, and Visma-Lease a Bike.
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“For me, the partnership with SRAM also means a very personal return to the company,” Bora team boss Ralph Denk said in a statement. “In the ‘90s, SRAM gave me the opportunity to take the very first steps in my professional career.
“Back then I experienced SRAM as an innovation-driven company with a strong hands-on mentality. Now we’re looking ahead to our partnership with SRAM and after our initial talks, I can already confirm that the mentality and motivation from back then are still there!”
“I’m super excited to ride on SRAM next year!” the squad’s GC threat Jai Hindley added. “I was already able to test the Red AXS groupset and I’m really happy with it. Particularly the possibility of using a single chainring set-up for some races or stages can be very beneficial in my opinion.”
Hmmm… 2024 – the year of 1x?
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After his mud bath at the GP Sven Nys yesterday, Cannock-born Lewis Askey will be pleased with his local council’s decision to install new cycling and walking routes in the area, which will be added as part of the £9m worth of road improvements to the A34 in Staffordshire.
The work, including repairs, is due to start today in Stafford and Cannock, with streetlights to be replaced and drainage works undertaken between Weeping Cross and Queensville, the BBC reports.
David Williams, Staffordshire County Council’s member responsible for roads, said the project – the majority of the work for which will take place in the spring – will result in “considerable improvements” to the A34.
So HNY followers. What am I working on first this year. Let me see…..🤔 pic.twitter.com/8iMc0f12VF
— The Campag Kid (@TheCampagKid) January 2, 2024
Now that’s what I call cycling art. Surely the Campag Kid would loan me it for a while when it’s finished?
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The future of the Tour O The Borders, the popular Peeblesshire-based closed road sportive, suddenly appears a whole lot brighter after a recent council survey revealed that local residents and businesses were “overwhelmingly” in support of the event continuing – just months after the 2024 edition was cancelled when the local authority received complaints from a group of unhappy residents.
In June, we reported that the route of September’s Tour O The Borders was redesigned to by-pass an area where a small group of locals have campaigned against the road closures which form a key part of the event’s appeal.
That long-term opposition then caused the sportive’s very future to be thrown into uncertainty, with organisers Hillside Outside claiming that the Scottish Borders Council ruled that the current route cannot be staged on closed roads in 2024, following a consultation with Ettrick and Yarrow Community Council.
A subsequent statement from the council, which claimed that it was not responsible for halting the event, was described by the organisers as “utterly ridiculous” and “disingenuous”, with Hillside Outside arguing the local authority’s claim that the decision to bring an end to the decade-old sportive was “entirely avoidable” does not provide “an accurate reflection of what has been happening over the past few months, and demonstrates an unwillingness to accept responsibility”.
Since June’s very public debate over the sportive’s future, Scottish Borders Council launched a post-event evaluation survey to gauge the opinions of local residents and business in Peebles, Innerleithen, and the Ettrick and Yarrow valley areas.
Of the 597 respondents, three-quarters said they were in favour of the event, believing that it has a positive impact on the Borders.
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(Credit: Ian Linton)
“Although we’ve not had any detail or discussion with SBC yet, this sounds like very good news,” Tour O The Borders organiser Neil Dalgleish told the Border Telegraph following the survey’s results.
“Obviously we’re now very hopeful that there’s some kind of future for Tour O The Borders as a closed road event, but we need to be clear we have definitely not been given a green light at this stage.
“We’re looking forward to discussing next steps with SBC to find out what the road map for progress from here will look like. We’d like to see the event move forward while taking consideration of all views within the communities affected by it.”
He added: “It’s great to see such overwhelming support for the Tour and hopefully this will help finally settle the debate.
“Given how much the event has done to put the Borders on the map as a top road cycling destination and the number of new and repeat visitors to the area associated with the event, this response is what we were hoping for.
“It’s worth bearing in mind that our own survey on this attracted 1,400 positive responses, so the available data certainly feels robust now, but we’ll always be respectful of all the parties involved.”
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(Credit: Richard Turley)
Following the positive response from locals, the Scottish Borders Council says it will now work with Hillside Outside to ensure the event can continue on closed roads.
Councillor Scott Hamilton, executive member for business and community development, said: “This survey was specifically targeted at those residents and businesses most likely to be impacted by the Tour O The Borders closed road event in 2023 and I am pleased that so many took the time to complete it.
“We will continue to engage with the event organisers to support the continuation of the event on closed roads and encourage continued proactive engagement with those communities along the route as part of the event planning process.
“As with any event which results in road closures, it is important that the positive impacts, including on our local economy, are balanced against any disruption this causes to communities.”
Bus operator Stagecoach has investigated and responded to an allegation an employee driving one of its vehicles in Hull must have been “under the influence of alcohol or drugs” when they “nearly wiped out” a cyclist, who then boarded the bus and made a “citizen’s arrest” following the incident.
Officers from Humberside Police attended the scene on Monday 18 December following a report from a member of the public of “suspected drink driving”, but no offences were deemed to have been committed.
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Read more: > Stagecoach bus company reports no offence committed after cyclist made “citizen’s arrest” on driver over alleged close pass which “nearly wiped him out”
Ehhh, Polti-Kometa, what in the name of underwhelming nostalgia is this? A bland, mostly white kit with mere hints of colour (red shorts notwithstanding)?
Where’s all the yellow? And green flashes and animal print? And mad 1990s styling?
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Come on, Bertie and Birillo, there’s still time – give the people what they want!
I remember changing nappies like this. Whole pack of wipes. pic.twitter.com/j5K5iWpqFu
— Simon Warren (@100Climbs) January 2, 2024
I’m sure MVDP is glad his dad’s still there to help him as well…
How did you spend the seemingly never-ending, chocolate and TV-laden vacuum between Christmas and New Year?
Probably not in the same manner as Larry Warbasse, anyway, as the 33-year-old American ditched the Back to the Future marathon for a successful stab at one of the world’s toughest Strava KOMs – the 89.5km Mauna Kea volcano climb in Hawaii.
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Starting at sea level, the Mauna Kea climb tops out at a staggering 4,214m, averaging around 4.7 percent throughout its 90-odd kilometres, and boasting a brutal final 21km at nine percent (that’s tougher than Mont Ventoux) and a 10km, 12 percent dirt section (think the Angliru or Mortirolo, but on gravel), which forced Warbasse to push his bike on occasion.
Despite the odd spot of walking, the Decathlon AG2R rider (yeah, that’ll take a while to get used to) became only the second rider to break the five-hour mark for the monster climb, reaching the top of the volcano in 4.59:04 to beat retired pro and former KOM holder Phil Gaimon by just 15 seconds.
“Sorry Phil,” a tired Larry wrote on Strava after his “ultimate” Strava success. “That was brutal.”
Now, there’s the understatement of the year so far.
Expanding on his epic ride on Instagram, Warbasse said: “I’ve been coming to the Big Island for years, but I never attempted to ride up Mauna Kea, it just seemed too hard. But this trip, I figured it was about time to give it a go…
“Let’s just say it was a bit tougher than I expected. Once you pass 3,000m, you have a 10km gravel section at an average of 12 percent. It’s pretty loose and not entirely rideable without wider tires. At one point I had to walk for a few minutes… and then magically, the gravel turns to pavement again, for the last few km to the summit at 4,200m/13,800ft.
“But there it was even steeper. It was like hitting the last few km of Tre Cime Lavaredo after riding up one of the steepest hills of the Strade Bianche that went on for 10km. But somehow after feeling like I was never going to make it by sunset, I got to the top.
“Can’t say I’m in a rush to do that one again, but a cool way to finish off 2023. And happy to check that KOM off the list.”
Fair play Larry. Now, where’s my last few Celebrations and Roses?
Another heartwarming story to kick off 2024, as the Liberal Democrats have warned that bike theft has been effectively “decriminalised”, as analysis of Home Office data found that nine in 10 cases reported to the police since 2019 had gone unsolved.
Lib Dem home affairs spokesperson Alistair Carmichael described the figures as “shocking” and cause for cyclists to be left “wondering if bike theft has been decriminalised”.
Of all bike thefts reported to the police since 2019, 89 per cent (more than 365,000) have gone unsolved, the analysis of Home Office data showed, pointing to more than eight reported bike thefts an hour and 200 per day going unsolved in England and Wales over the past four years.
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Read more:> Warning that bike theft has been “decriminalised” as stats show 89% of reported cases unsolved
With 2024 now underway, yawning and in desperate need of a coffee, we decided to fetch our crystal balls (enough with the puns already – grow up) from a dust-infested corner of the road.cc office and come up with some almost certainly terrible predictions for the 12 months ahead in cycling, from active travel and tech to the Tour de France and the bike industry…
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> What’s in store for cycling in 2024? road.cc shares some two-wheeled prophecies for the year ahead (which may or may not be completely rubbish)
(If you stumble across this article in December, feel free to have a laugh at how wrong we were. Apart from my brilliantly accurate predictions, of course.)
Like many 22-year-old Brits, Lewis Askey spent his New Year’s Day in a constant state of suffering, while occasionally faceplanting a massive pool of mud…
My new @WilierTriestina definitely rides a lot better than it tastes 🤌 Teeth all still there tho 🦷 pic.twitter.com/sz5iUfsiZU
— Lewis Askey (@LewisAskey) January 2, 2024
But at least Groupama-FDJ’s up-and-comer had a 17th place at the GP Sven Nys to show for it, and not just a raging hangover and vague traces of regret.
> Groupama-FDJ confirms new partnership with Wilier Triestina
That’s one method of thoroughly testing your team’s brand-new bikes, anyway. And I’m sure his skin is flawless this morning – who needs a New Year’s trip to the spa when you have cyclocross?