Thursday 31 December 2015

2016 Men's World Tour bikes


As well as kit, the off-season also normally brings changes in the carbon wonders that will be carrying the convicts of the road over cobbles, mountain passes and in respect to Strade Bianche, the gravel. However, at least at men's World Tour level, it seems that we have a status quo in relation to companies. There are some changes in wheel and groupset provision- some of it official, others with blacked out logos depending on rider preference and sponsors but let's look at the most visible tech- the actual bike frames.



http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/home

Astana will be on Specialized with the Tarmac being the basic workhouse, the Roubaix for (obviously enough) the cobbled classics, the Venge VIAS for the sprinters and the Shiv on TT duties. Groupsets will be provided by Campagnolo, which befits a team with such a strong Italian influence.     


Etixx-Quickstep and Tinkoff will also be on the same Specialized steeds except they will both be running Shimano Di-2. 





https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/


Katusha and Movistar will both be sticking with Canyon. The default model for both will be the Ultimate CF SLX and the Endurance CF SL will tackle the rougher stuff. The Aeroad CF SLX will carry the fast guys and the Speedmax CF SLX will be used in TTs. The main difference will be Movistar hosting Campag while Katusha will be running the SRAM Red ETap, which while not available to us mere mortals until March/April of 2016, is already garnering rave reviews as the first truly wireless electronic set-up as reviewed here by GCN's Simon Richardson.






http://www.scott-sports.com/uk/en/sports/bike


30 years on from their first mountain bike and 27 since their aerobars helped Lemond overcome Fignon, Scott will be continuing their presence in the pro-peloton under IAM and Orica GreenEdge. The Addict (dubiously named if the history of our sport is taken into consideration) will be doing the bulk of the work, with the Solace supporting the bigger framed endurance guys. The Foil will be at the forefront of the sprint trains and the Plasma will be at the sharp end of the race-of-truth. Shimano Dura-Ace Di-2 is the groupset of choice for both teams as well.





http://www.focus-bikes.com/

Ag2r-la Mondiale will be sticking with Focus for the next year. The Izalco Max will be the standard chariot and the Cayo for the more endurance focussed (no pun intended). The Izalco Chrono Max will deal with timetrails while the team don't have an aero bike in the service course. Ag2r will also be running SRAM Etap.




http://www.bmc-switzerland.com/int-en/
WORLD EXCLUSIVE-not only can I reveal that BMC's kit will be made up of red and black blocks but they will also be riding bikes produced by...BMC!
The Teammachine SLR01 will be standard issue and the Teammachine TMR01 will be for those with more aerodynamic needs. On a similar theme the TT bike for the World Champions will be the Timemachine TM01 and GVA et al will be tackling the cobbled classics on the Granfondo GF01. Di-2 will be standard through all models.






http://www.cannondale.com/en/Great%20Britain

Due to signings such as Pierre Rolland and departures of riders like Dan Martin, Cannondale may be a new look team but it will, like the rest of the World Tour, be sticking with its old providers (and primary sponsor). The SuperSix EVO and Synapse will be most commonly seen, while the Slice will be the TT bike. Again Di-2 is the groupset at the heart of the bikes.




http://www.cervelo.com/en/

Mark Cavendish has made no secret about his preferences for Specialized, so how will he feel about switching to Cervélo as part of Dimension Data for 2016? The S5 will be the sprinter's aero weapon with the R5 and C5 forming the major transportation for the vanguard (the C5 being the endurance model). Timetrials will be carried out atop the P5. Hopefully the Rotor Uno/ Shimano Di-2 composite groupset will not give Cav the same early season problems he had in 2015.


http://www.lapierre-bikes.co.uk/


FDJ continues to be the most French of the French teams sticking with a French manufacturer in the form of LaPierre. The Xelius SL will be carrying Thibault Pinot and the weight of French expectations this year while the Pulsium will be used by those hoping to emulate Marc Madiot's cobbled classics successes. The fast guys will pilot the Aircode SL and the Aerostorm will form the basis of time trial efforts. Shimano maintain their dominance among groupsets with their Di-2 again being front and centre.


http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/ 
No prizes for guessing who the bike provider for Giant-Alpecin is. John Degenkolb will probably be making use of the Propel Advanced SL as he seeks to cement his sprinters position following Kittel's departure and the Defy Advanced to defend his Paris-Roubaix title. Otherwise the TCR Advanced will do the donkey work while it is quite apparent what role the Trinity Advanced Pro TT will fulfil. Again Dura-Ace Di-2 will be the groupset.







http://www.merida-bikes.com/en_gb



So will Ulissi. Olivera or Plaza feature in the 2016 Merida ads or with it be Modolo again? The 2015 adverts made use of Lampre-Merida stage wins and with 3 Giro, 2 Vuelta and 1 Tour victories to choose from, next season's will be spoilt for choice (although with Olivera now moving to Movistar it is a safe bet he won't feature). The Scultura Team will form the backbone while the Reacto Team-E will do service for the sprinters. The Ride Team-E will be found near the back of the classics peloton while the Warp TT Team-E will be de rigueur alongside skinsuits and teardrop shaped helmets. As the only Italian team in the World Tour (despite for tax purposes being registered in Switzerland), it seems sacrilegious that they use Shimano as opposed to Campagnolo.






https://www.ridley-bikes.com/be/nl

So will Griepel be throwing his Noah Fast over the line first on the Champs Elysees for a second year running? Will Adam Hansen pedal his Helium SL through another 3 consecutive Grand Tours? Will Jens Debusschere finish higher than 9th this year in Paris-Roubaix on the Fenix SL? Lotto-Soudal had a pretty good 2015, all on Ridley bikes. With the Dean Fast (that's another bike not a person) shoring up time trail efforts and a strong roster mixing experience and exciting up-and-comers, if the tean build on this 2016 could be a year of pleasant surprises especially in the classics. The team are one of the few using Campagnolo both in the form of groupset components and wheels.




http://www.bianchi.com/uk/home/home.aspx

LottoNl-Jumbo may not have had the results in 2015 to justify riding a bike called the Specialissima; in fact the name of the endurance model- the Infinito- may be more descriptive of a team that waited until May before getting their first win (whic came in the Tour of Yorkshire). The aero model in the form of the Oltre XR.2 is still on my dream list (the best looking paintjob in my view was the Vacansoleil-DMC Oltre from 2012) and the TT bike will be the Aquila CV. Again with all of this italian heritage, it seems a shame to kit it out with Shimano.





http://www.pinarello.com/en


Sky continue their partnership with Pinarello, and with 3 Tour de France GC victories in 4 years why would they not? The F8 is basic team issue while the K8-S, which was debuted at the 2015 Paris-Roubaix, with its suspension system is pulled out when the road is less tarmac and more baby-head sized blocks of stone. The Bolide will see more action this year than it has in the past few due to an increase in TT stages particulalry in the Grand Boucle and the Rio Olympics.



http://www.trekbikes.com/gb/en_GB
Trek-Segafredo will again be the team that will most please anagram fans. The Emonda will be the go-to for most riders on the team while Jasper Stuyven will hope to replicate his Vuelta stage victory on the Madone. The Domane will probably be under Spartacus as he undertakes what will probably be one of his last classics campaigns while he will be throwing his leg over the Speed Concept, to try and show Martin, Dumoulin and Dennis that he shouldn't be discounted yet. We could question why Trek didn't go for "Nomade" as their TT name but maybe they have an even lighter bike in the pipeline....






Monday 28 December 2015

Team Kit 2016- Most of the rest...

So in a flurry a few days before Christmas, we suddenly discovered what the peloton by and large will look like come the Tour Down Under. Some of this was unintentional with the UCI revealing the Dimension Data, Cannondale and AG2R La Mondiale jerseys ahead of their official launches, thereby reducing the media impact of the 3 team presentations (edited note- in retrospect maybe only 2 were impinged due to Dimension Data's handling of the situation). However maybe that is more the fault of the teams- surely it would make more sense for the launches to happen earlier in the off-season allowing replica kits to be available for Christmas? My wife really struggled trying to come up with present ideas for me this year and being able to buy Etixx-Quickstep or Dimension Data jerseys would have made life much easier for her (for anyone who is interested she settled for getting me a lovely, non-cycling related jacket!). I'm sure she isn't the only loved one who would have benefited this way and maybe one of the smaller changes that teams need to think about as the struggle to make the sport more sustainable. TV rights etc may be part of the big picture but maybe they should think about developments that they have more control over and build on those (its a wonder no team has thought about concentrating on doing the small stuff well-we could call it something like "gains that are marginal.."!).



















I call shenanigans! Dimension Data rolled out in this jersey (below) at some early season Australian rides, giving the impression that the UCI had gotten it wrong with the image above:



Then at the Tour Down Under presentation removed black jackets based on the black design  to reveal:

Chapeau! to Dimension Data on an elaborate double bluff! 



As for the actual designs-obviously the biggest departure is the loss of stripes and MTN from Dimension Data and increased white. AG2R go with well-it-kind-of-is-broken-and-has-been-for-a-long-time-but-we-still-won't-fix-it by changing the brown on the left shoulder with blue. To be fair their jersey has never really been the issue-it is when they combine it with the brown shorts that the cycling world sighs. Would keeping the maillot design and switching to the blue bibs be such a bad idea? Cannondale join other teams in reversing the trend for more black on kit by upping the green, while still keeping the argyle. I feel that the Garmin kit is still one of the classics-so much so I wear the hoodie to this very day (well maybe not this very day today since I now have that lovely coat my wife bought me..) and I find it very hard to decide whether or not I actually like the Cannondale jersey. Would I buy it if it popped up on a Sport Pursuit sale for example?I don't think I would. That isn't to say it is a bad design-it just lacks something I can't put my finger on. (I am also aware that this is in danger of turning into a fashion blog so I will avoid that temptation and cut off the inevitable bores who start quoting The Rules. ) When we are out on our bikes, we wear kit. What is wrong with wearing kit that pays tribute to those who hammer over the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix, suffer up the Galibier or bust themselves in small races that don't even have their own Twitter feed, never mind TV coverage, all for our entertainment? I will return to this topic in a future post.



 So after last year's little disagreement with the UCI over their initial design IAM seems a bit less controversial this time around. There was a fear when pics of the 2016 jersey surfaced that more white shorts could be going transparent in the rain (trust me-I have seen this happening to riders ahead of me in the group and there is no greater incentive to take longer turns on the front). However when we eventually got to see full shots it turns out they are sticking with last year's bibs with extra colour blocks. Again a jersey that should make it easier to spot IAM in the bunch.



Plus ça change

 Some teams are sticking with the tried and tested with just slight variations this season. Movistar have more or less stayed the same except for a white patch on the back pockets.





Lotto NL- Jumbo also went for the adding more white to an existing design option:


And as for all-white- FDJ have stuck with the same kit which I feel is a shame since I really loved the blue 2014 one. Let's hope the World Tour soigneurs buy shares in washing powder before the season starts.

Astana, Tinkoff, Trek (now Trek-Segafredo), Lotto-Soudal and Lampre-Merida will also make the game of guessing what year race photos were taken that bit more difficult  by more or less sticking with what they have been using this year. There are a few detailing changes but generally, apart from some different sponsors names, their teams will look very familar in 2016.

We are still waiting for Giant Alpecin, Orica GreenEdge and BMC (though with the latter I am going to stick my neck out and guess it will be a red and black blocky number).

It seems that teams came to the same conclusion many of us did this year- too much black in kits was making identification difficult. However now there is going to be a surfeit of white blocks so those overhead shots could still prove difficult to decipher.


Tuesday 22 December 2015

Team Kit 2016- Canyon-SRAM


After the dispiriting news that. despite winning their fourth consecutive TTT World Championships in Richmond, the Velocio-SRAM team would be wound up at the end of the 2015 season seemed to be going against the grain as women's cycling gradually increases its profile and popularity. However a new team, sponsored by Canyon bikes and SRAM emerged with a roster made up of Tiffany Cromwell, Hannah Barnes, Lisa Brennauer,  Elena Cecchini,Trixi Worrack, Mieke Kroger, Alexis Ryan, Barbara Guarischi and Alena Amialiusik.

And with every new team comes new kit, which has been developed and produced by Rapha.


The jersey seems to stand-out without being too in-your-face- a hard thing to achieve but done well in this case by every hedge-fund manager's favourite brand (yes-I know it is obvious but by law every article mentioning Rapha has to have some sort of reference like that). The scheme is colourful yet muted and could, given time, be a classic. Simon Richardson from GCN has already stated he is disappointed Rapha haven't produced a version for men and, while it would take a certain brio to carry it off, would certainly make a change from the wall-to-wall Sky jerseys that seem to make up a large proportion of sportive pelotons these days. A team loaded with talent like Canyon-SRAM deserves a kit to reflect this, and teamed with the paintjob on the bikes seen in the photo above, will surely add some class to the Women's World Tour for 2016.

Lisa Brennauer in the new kit.

Saturday 19 December 2015

Bike - (Sky channel 464)

It is just before midnight, the Saturday before Christmas and I am sitting here in semi-rural Mid-Ulster, while Ugo de Rosa is on my television talking about the days of Merckx and Motta. In a few minutes a programme about cycling and surfing in New Zealand will replace the founder of the de Rosa brand and an hour after that, coverage of a four stage MTB race will fill my screen. This has been a revelation since my late night viewing in the (road) off season normally focuses on episodes of Family Guy repeated for the 90th time that month and BBC Four documentaries but an accidental discovery at work has changed things.

I happened to be on the Cycling Weekly website watching a video on the calories in various types of alcohol for an initiative I am doing as part of my job (it is a minor talent I have managing to shoehorn cycling in everywhere!) when I spotted a link to another story about a cycling channel being launched. Not expecting much, I clicked into the story, assuming you would have to pay extra for whatever they were offering. I made a quick note-  "464" - on the back of my hand and got back to doing what I was being paid to do.

When I got home I was pleasantly surprised to see the channel "Bike" was there and broadcasting. Now I have an embarrassing thing to admit. I really detest Murdoch, his media outlets and the power he exerts in this world but Sky was the only option we had for TV and Internet when we moved into our house (note the semi-rural description at the start) so I have to hold my nose until a better option comes along- but I digress.

I first checked to see if this was actually 24 hour programming- even my favourite channel BBC4 only starts at 7pm and it has a wider scope than any cycling specific offering. But yes-any time day or night, flick on to 464 and there will be someone on two wheels in some manner or other. Of course it is all well and good putting our programming on a constant basis- but is any of it worth watching?

It is early days but it seems that all manner of velocists are catered for. "Cycling with Filippa" for example is based on a Swedish TV presenter who lives in Italy following cyclo-tourist trails and stopping off at various museums, factories etc. The bike in this regard is more a conveyance than the star, but I must say I am now better informed as to the processes behind how Italians make pipe organs for churches and cathedrals. It is kind of Wish You Were Here without an orange glow emanating from the presenter. However other shows have included ex-pros taking on some iconic climbs, documentaries from bike manufacturers such as North Shore, coverage of the Race Around Ireland and more. There are also the cheaply shot MTB shows which seem more made for You Tube than TV viewing- the ones where the same jumps and sections are shown from about twenty different angles, quick cuts and some inoffensive faux-metal music in the background- basically giving credence to Frank Lloyd Wright's "chewing gum for the eyes" comment. Yeah, some of the skills are impressive but this format is now so common it is almost a parody of itself- at least the likes of Danny MacAskill and ,previously, Martyn Ashton try to move it on a bit.

Overall the channel package does have a touch of the homemade about it-some of the dubbing (especially in the already mentioned "Cycling With Filippa") brings up memories of how 1990s cult Channel 4 show Eurotrash used to do it. But it kind of feels good not to be so polished- more a Conti team than World Tour in terms of production and the simple fact is we now have bikes on screen. Not just the few weeks in the summer where ITV shows "The Cycle Show" but any time we want. Will Bike be showing races live- especially those like Tro Bro Leon that don't get the coverage of other races? I don't know but would love to see that happening-it could help it really establish itself as the go to spot for cyclists, and the advertisers would then follow- Rapha already have a number of adverts running on the channel- will we soon be seeing Nibali and Basso cooking up Sidi shoes or having that music from the Tour d' Azerbaidjan running through our heads for the rest of the day?

Martyn Ashton Rehab Fund

I have spent many a late night missing my planned bedtime by many hours getting pulled into a never-ending game of follow the link on YouTube. I have some perennial favourites- Roche on La Plagne in 1987, Keisse on stage 7 of the 2012 Tour of Turkey (with added Carlton Kirby exuberance), Cav and Renshaw on the Champs Elysees in 2009 ... that always stir up emotions in me but the one that really stands out, and one I am openly prepared to admit led to leaky eyes was this one with Martyn Ashton.


(On a side note- what sort of gabshites are the 62 who disliked this video?! No wonder Cameron and Trump can get support in a world like this!)

Martyn is not only a legend of the MTB world but his attitude and commitment since his accident have been astounding. However, even with a National Health Service, he needs additional help to further his rehab and he decided that he had to sell a Colnago C59 used by him, Danny MacAskill and Chris Akrigg in the legendary Road Bike Party 2 video. This was the video that Martyn was in the middle of making when he was injured during a demo at Silverstone and the bike is almost iconic such was the popularity of the movie. However many people thought Martyn should get to keep his bike as an incentive to work towards getting better, and instead suggested he set up a GoFund Me page. Within a couple of hours of being established, the target was well and truly smashed but that is no reason to stop. So if you can , click on Martyn's GoFund Me link and put a few shillings his way. He contributed so much to the bike scene, so this is a good opportunity to show him what he means.

Saturday 12 December 2015

Bye bye Tinkov?

According to an interview with Cyclingnews, many cycling supporters Twitter feeds may contain a lot less controversial content as the UCI's biggest fan has indicated he wants to sell his team after the 2016 season. While it is not unknown for Oleg Tinkov to throw all his toys (and blankets, bottles and anything else) out of his pram before a volte-face and continuing as if nothing happened, there appears to be a bit more substance this time. 

He again brings up the fact that the world of pro-cycling is not changing quickly enough for him which really gets to the heart of the issue. Tinkov is a business man and he obviously thought he would be the person to bring about a wholesale revolution in how the sport runs to make it a profitable endeavour. However the existing model, where teams are run primarily by people who love the sport and use its promotional opportunities to promote their main businesses as opposed to making money solely from participation has proved harder to shift than Tinkov first thought.

When I first saw the Cyclingnews report my first thoughts were "don't let the door hit you on the arse on the way out" and I stand by that. People will argue that any injection of money and a chance to make cycling more sustainable should be welcomed. However Tinkov is not, and will not be a solution. His old fashioned view that his workers are simply assets to be exploited might have worked OK in running his credit card or brewery businesses, but in a sport like cycling where it is both the mental and physical sides that need nurturing, it can be, and was counterproductive. I am not saying that Tinkov would support and encourage doping, but it is easy to see how a similar mindset could possibly provide under-pressure and under-performing riders with the motivation to go beyond paniagua of their own volition. Obviously a billionaire getting even richer off the labours of people to whom he wants to pay as little as possible  is how the world currently works but that doesn't mean it needs to be encouraged. 

Of course there is now an open door again for Mr 60% to reappear and buy his team back from Tinkov, which again is not an ideal situation. However a team with Majka and Sagan still in contract until 2017 would be a prime catch so maybe someone could come in and get in before Riis- but who? (As an aside and this is just my own thinking outloud- could Tinkov stepping away provide motivation for Contador to postpone his own planned retirement next year?)

I am not some sort of Luddite and I do recognise the need for the sport to change and develop-however in my humble opinion it is not Tinkov's approach that will do that. Maybe we have to recognise that cycling is not F1 or soccer and that any attempt to capitalise using any of those models is destined to fail. Road racing does not happen in an enclosed venue. Televising it is difficult-I was at an event addressed by Matt Rendell in 2014 and he made the point that you can't really televise a race-instead you are trying to capture many different narratives happening at the same time, each of which will have a different significance for different viewers. Stages take hours, and sometimes the only action can come within the last 4km of almost 200km. It takes commitment, dedication and good organisational ability to be a cycling fan- you don't just turn on the TV at 3pm and turn it off just over 90mins later. All of these are barriers to drawing in more fans and revenue streams. Generally sponsors are having to appeal to a specific demographic- slashing riders wages and calling them names on Twitter is not going to address any of these issues. Like many in his field, Tinkov is a narcissist who thinks the world revolves around them and things should be changed to solely suit their worldview. This latest interview could be simply another temper tantrum, but if Oleg did finally make good on his promise then I feel the sport can only benefit. Yes, it will make the life of some cycling hacks a bit more difficult since using his tweets as the basis for stories filled up copy, but many riders and fans will breathe a sense of relief as the circus moves on- plus the journalists can go back to articles on what colour shorts the World Champion should wear...

Team Kit 2016- Katusha


So Katusha have unveiled their new kit this afternoon. It is quite a departure from the past few years with a simpler design, with the red becoming more dominant. Gone are the silhouette of the Moscow skyline, to be replaced with a new logo. It seems to follow the Lotto-Soudal approach of looking back to the more traditional kits, but with some modern twists.  It seems to fit into the whole rebranding of the team touched on by INRNG here. It should stand out well in the peloton although we will have to wait until we see everyone else's offerings before being sure.

Friday 11 December 2015

Gran Fondo Giro d'Italia Northern Ireland 2016

The next Gran Fondo Giro d'Italia Northern Ireland will take place on Sunday June 5th 2016. It follows this year's event, a legacy of the 2014 Giro Grande Partenza and first three stages being held on the island of Ireland. Those who took part last year have been given the opportunity to register from tonight 11th Dec, 10 days ahead of general registration being open to the full public.

Obviously it is early in relation to the nitty-gritty, but having just signed up myself, it is clear it will still be two parcours- the 58km Strangford Route and the 173km Mournes Route and roads will be totally closed again. Also included this time in the price (early bird £55 for the 58km, £65 for the pleasure of the more painfully vertical option) is a Castelli event jersey. However if you want to dress up as the ultimate fanboy/girl then bibs, gillet, gloves and caps are also available to add to your basket on top of the initial entry fee. These pieces can be bought individually or all together for £180. There really seems to be a major push on getting wallets open further this year but then again, no one is forcing anyone to fork out on the extras.

I am slightly disappointed that they didn't extend the length of the short route which was one of the complaints many people had about last year. 173km is doable on the flat by most people- however these kms  go up a bit more vertically than a man of my stature could manage before the roads open again so that only leaves the 58km route which is fine for those less experienced, but for club run "B" and "C" riders like me it is a bit short to leave any real feeling of satisfaction. If it wasn't for the attraction of closed roads and the other paraphrenilia then I would probably have passed this time. However managing the traffic over two routes is a big enough job without complicating it further with course extensions.




Me with the Trofeo Senza Fine at last years Gran Fondo

There is also the added attraction of bumping into legends of the sport with Stephen Roche and Richie Porte making appearances last year and a whole weekend dedicated to cycling taking place, and it is more or less definite that some high profile people from past or present will be there. It does seem weird writing about next June as I sit here, balancing my laptop on the sofa arm while trying not to dislodge the ornaments on my Christmas tree but this year demonstrated just how quickly that time goes in, and I have my motivation to up the winter miles again already.



Just before the off in the 2015 Gran Fondo NI.

Erik De Vlaeminck 23/03/1945 − 04/12/ 2015)

Last week saw the sad passing of a legend of the sport who, though not as well-known outside cycling circles as his brother Roger, was still a superstar in his own right. Despite Erik De Vlaeminck winning the 1969 Tour of Belgium and a stage in the 1968 Tour de France, a second and a third in Fleche Wallonne, a fourth in Liege-Bastogne and a ninth in Paris-Roubaix, (riding for various incarnations of the Flandria team with his younger brother) he was still more associated with cyclocross-and for good reason. He was World Cyclocross champion on seven occasions (six of these consecutive from 1968-73) and Belgian National Champion four times.

A reputation for hard partying followed him for a period though he was still held in high esteem, being appointed coach of the Belgian National CX squad. De Vlaeminck spent his final years dealing with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and will be firmly remembered as a true Flanderian.

Team Kit 2016- Sky

Click here for the Road.cc story and more images


For the past couple of years, Sky fans have been able to get away with wearing the same jersey such has been the similarities in the kit over that time. Rapha have obviously cottoned (or lycra'd? ) on to this so that the 2016 maillot will be the same but different, particularly with those bands. The blue stripe may be a rollback back to the 2011 Adidas kit which had a bigger block of blue across the chest, and the new white stripe (avoiding the obvious "Seven Nation Army" pun) adding a new layer of visibility which will hopefully help fans and commentators pick out particular riders in case the trend of the ever-increasing number of black-dominated kits continues- (though Sherwin and Liggett will probably still call them by the wrong name).

Nothing to do with the new White Stripe...

Now I know no team kit seems to attract such extremes of opinions- from those who categorise all wearers as overweight, hedge fund managers who have no idea with all the gear, whereas many other British fans tend to equate it with supporting "their boys". Personally I feel Sky are like the Man Utd of cycling (nb this is probably the only soccer reference you will find on this blog). I am not of that school of people who end up quoting Rule 17 in an attempt to appear superior to anyone else on two wheels but I must admit seeing people in Sky kit does bring up a well of assumptions which are more to do with my prejudices than the person wearing it. I will do a wee blog post later in relation to non-pros wearing team kit, but don't want to get sidetracked here.

So overall conclusions- it is Sky and it is Rapha so people will come with preordained opinions. Personally I actually like the alternative Sky kit that is almost totally blue and would have loved to see them switch to it but like it or not, they have managed to create an iconic and easily identifiable image in a relatively short period of time. So get used to the black and blue stripes at a sportive near you for quite some time to come.


Tuesday 8 December 2015

Cyclists prayer…


Our Merckx,
Who art in Belgium,
The Cannibal be thy name,
The Alpe D'Huez come
Thy will be done,
In the peloton and among the poursuivants.
Give us this day our EMX-7
and forgive us our sticky bidons,
as we forgive those who draft behind us,
And lead us not into the bonk,
But deliver us up the Galibier,
For thine is the Giro, the Vuelta and the Tour,
For ever and ever,
Amen.

Saturday 5 December 2015

Team Kit 2016- Etixx-Quickstep








Etixx-Quickstep's most high profile recruit for 2016 Marcel Kittel took on the Derek Zoolander role (without going all "Blue Steel") by modelling the kit for next season. Inevitably in a sport where change often brings about cries of anguish, the predictable complaints of "It isn't as good as the last one" soon filled the Facebook posts announcing the new arrivals. Since this has been the general response to new kit since time immemorial, it wasn't a surprise. Personally I think the new jersey looks great especially with that darker blue.  While not totally going against the continunal creep of more and more black jerseys into the peloton, it should still stand out.

Now for the shorts-at the risk of sounding like those old farts who don't realise that The Rules are supposed to be tounge in cheek, and instead have them as tatoos, those shorts really would have worked better staying black. Saying that, I have often made statements like that over the previous years, based solely on the photos that accompany each kit release, only for them to work much better than expected when viewed on the road. Also I am aware I really didn't like MTN-Qhubeka's striped efforts at the start of the 2015 season but they did grow on me-although how much of that had to do with the African team's performances is hard to tell. But as for my definitive views on the new kits that will be unveilled between now and January-ask me after the  Spring Classics...

PS While I am aware that Movistar launched their kit earlier than EQS, it is so similar to last year's it didn't really merit a post.


Thursday 3 December 2015

Book review-

The World of Cycling According to G
Geraint Thomas (alongside Tom Fordyce); Published by Quercus (2015)

Do you know those really annoying "lads"? I refer to those youngish fellas who like to talk about how drunk they had been the previous night, making sure they are loud enough to "impress" everyone else, not realising that it comes off as boorish, while the actual thoughts of their involuntary listeners aren't really suitable for a pre-watershed blog. Well, unfortuately that was the tone I picked up from what would have otherwise been an excellent read. Thomas' constant references to getting drunk in the off season and the details of how he and his team mates celebrated do get quite wearing and predictable. When he begins talking about another one of his victories, the immediate reaction of the reader is to brace themselves for yet another "entertaining" story about missing interviews with BBC Breakfast or something due to gettting hammered the night before. Once or twice would probably be OK but the constant repetition tends to reek of self-justification and a need to live up to some label. As someone who works in the alcohol and drug field I can honestly say that there is nothing more boring than other people's stories about how pissed they had been and what "hilarity" ensues.

OK, so I just had to get that off my chest. Am I being too harsh? When I look at all the other cycling (auto)biographies I think not. Cycling is one of the few sports that really lends itself to great and classy writing, and no other book by, or ghostwritten for,  a pro goes this route. Now I am all too aware that many of the heroes of the road were partial to the falling down water even mid-Tour, but they didn't feel the need to make that a central theme of their books. It seems that, despite being well travelled, Thomas falls into the trap of many Brits abroad in that they don't realise their attitude to drinking is viewed by most of the rest of the world as abnormal. Again maybe I'm just reading too much into it...

Otherwise this is a well crafted book with some interesting insights into life both on and off the bike. It is geniunely amusing in places, and Thomas (or Fordyce) has a great eye for the humourous or ironic detail that really highlights what a fantastic but also bloody weird way to make a living cycling is. The descriptions about preparations before some very high profile events both on the track and on the road go some way towards allowing the reader to enter the mind of the pro-rider as he experiences the extremes of emotions. Foe example the story of how he had to rely on a cycling journalist to help him get home after arriving back from Beijing with an Olympic gold medal in his luggage does show what can happen when two worlds- that of cycling's bubble and what we normal mortals could term the real world- bisect.

So, despite my rant at the start, this is still a worthy read. However how much better would it have been if Thomas had been a few years older when he wrote it, away from both the pissed-up lad and Sky influence. There is an underlying feeling that a lot more could have been included but I am sure the lawyers at his employers got a good read through before this hit the presses. So a good book, but I would like to see it revised, rewritten and added to after Thomas retires, probably a decade or so from now.