Vuelta 2019: Stage 2 – Quintana wins stage, Roche romps into red
After a full-on, salty-startin’, race-shakin’ Stage One team time trial, the second stage of Vuelta 2019 kept it siesta-inducing until … Continue reading
Vuelta 2019: Stage 1 – Astana sparkle while Jumbo Visma have a nightmare
Crikey! Just as I was thinking the most notable feature of La Vuelta’s opening team time trial was the salt-bedecked … Continue reading
VeloVoices Podcast 144: Salmon plushies, bonkers transfers and Benidorm here we come!
Kathi, Midge and Euan look back at the past couple of weeks of racing, thumb through the August transfers and preview the … Continue reading
Tour de France 2019 : A to Z (part 2) from Nuts to Zeut Alors!
The Tour de France alphabet madness continues with Nuts to Zeut Alors!
Tour de France 2019 : A to Z (part 1) from Against the Clock to Mothers & Marriages
The best Tour de France in years? You’re darn tooting right it was. Here’s our alphabetical take on all the … Continue reading
Tour Tweets of the Week: We’ll always have Paris
There were laughs, there were tears, there was cheering, there were kisses. It was the last week of the 2019 … Continue reading
VeloVoices Podcast 143: Come at me with panache, none of your slow grinding
Kathi, Luke, Midge and Euan look back at the 2019 Tour de France with the help of the mystical VeloVoices bidon.
- Which team causes Midge to wax lyrical (when she can stop laughing!)
- Which team uses a Magic 8 Ball to work out their tactics?
- Which team is Luke in a bad mood with?
- And which team does Kathi refuse to even discuss?
This podcast does feature some extended sequences of laughter which may cause listeners of a grouchy nature some unpleasantness.
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Tour de France 2019: Stage 21 – Ewan Takes A Hat Trick, Bernal Brings Home Yellow
Phew. The 2019 Tour de France has concluded, and what a race it has been! It has been a roller coaster of excitement, tears, and everything else in between. It has been the best Tour de France edition that many of us have ever witnessed.
As in customary, the race concluded in Paris with a sprint on the Champs-Élysées. In what has long been considered the World Championship for sprinters, Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal) was the final rider to raise his hands in victory at this year’s race. It marks three stage wins for the Tour debutant. The general classification remained unchanged as the peloton coasted along drinking champagne in a congratulatory mood. 22-year-old Egan Bernal (INEOS) has made history as the youngest rider to take home yellow in a century and the first Colombian to win the overall.
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Tour de France 2019: Stage 20 – Nibali takes the stage; Bernal takes the Tour
In a shortened Stage 20 of the 2019 Tour de France, it was as if the whole preceding three weeks had been a dream, a beautiful dream. For today, it was business as usual with the longed-for attackity finale reverting to the hard tempo riding on the yellow jersey group that fans have had to suffer through for the previous six Tours. Once Julian Alaphilippe well and truly cracked on the climb, it felt like the riders were just going through the motions. Vincenzo Nibali‘s solo win atop the HC Val Thorens saved the Italian’s July and there was a frisson of excitement when he nearly ran out of steam in the final kilometre with a metronomic peloton on the chase, but was the only memorable thing about this stage was that … nothing really happened?
Videos
Davide Formolo (Cannondale-Garmin) delivered for the team at this year’s Giro d’Italia with a popular solo win on stage four. Called up only a fortnight before the start, he hadn’t specifically trained for the race, which leaves us wondering whether he might have bettered his overall 31st place if he’d targetted this race. Keeping the pink glow going, he looks back at his first Grand Tour.
Created in 1993 to enable amateur cyclists to personally experience a stage of each year’s Tour de France, L’Etape de Tour is THE cyclosportive. This year’s event takes place on Sunday 19th July over 142km from Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne to La Toussuire.
All places are taken for this year’s Etape (unless you get a place with a tour operator or through a charity). Places go fast as soon as registration opens so if you want to get a jump on proceedings for next year, take a minute to register with ASO Challenges. Registration details are here. Also, follow l’Etape on Twitter and Facebook for news all year round.
Links: Official website
Images
To many of us, the Grubers’ work really epitomises the Belgian Cobbled Classics. If you haven’t seen their gallery for Cannondale-Garmin, go now!
http://slipstreamsports.com/2015/03/30/gallery-gent-wevelgem-gruber-images/
“We’ve tried to go down roads and go through places that are far more interesting than the number of watts we’re putting out and the speed we’re averaging.” Gus Morton
The Australian cycling site, Cycling Tips, just goes from strength to strength in my book. Up on the site now is Thereabouts, a 45-minute documentary made with Gus and Lachlan Morton about their experience riding from Port Macquarie to Uluru – riding over 2,000km in just 12 days. Why did they do it? To reconnect with the reasons why they started riding in the first place. Click here to read more about their story.
Read about it, watch it, get inspired by it.
Asides
All of the history and excitement of the world’s most famous one-day bicycle race in one coffee-table book. Paris-Roubaix: A Journey Through Hell is an essential read for anyone interested in this spectacular race.
Want your own kit or need something special for your cycling club? Contact G4 who provide a custom service!
http://www.calameo.com/read/003111411e32746b42755
Links
It was a stage of action and drama at Tour Down Under. The GC leaders battled for bonus seconds. A first WorldTour victory went to Jasper Philipsen after Caleb Ewan was relegated for head butting. Race leader Patrick Bevin was involved in a crash and had to chase to get back with the peloton.
Quotes
“Riders like me and Cancellara don’t think about the points, just the win.”
Vincenzo Nibali bemoans the lack of fierce joy in the riders of the peloton, many of whom he believes play it safe and ride just for points, not the win.
Read his straight-talking interview on Velonews.
When asked what animal he would like to be, Bernie Eisel answered ‘My cat. She has the best life you can imagine!’
I happen to know that there are a whole lotta ladies out there who would kill to be Bernie’s cat. I’ll leave that there …
The face a million women love (Image: Team Sky)
Here is Team Sky’s 20 Questions to the Ladies Favourite
