Month: March 2014
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Alejandro Valverde is always worth beating
Alejandro Valverde hasn’t won any really big races since he returned from his doping ban at the start of 2012. Instead, standing on a lower step of the podium, he serves as a badge of quality for whoever’s above him. He always rides well, in all sorts of different races, but he doesn’t win. In…
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Try and learn Michal Kwiatkowski’s name
It’s not an easy one, but he’s a rider of growing importance so you might as well make the effort. I know, no-one likes effort, but sometimes it’s unavoidable. At least it’s only hearing sounds in your mind’s ear and not actual physical effort, like having to go to the cash machine or something like…
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Cycling up the Swiss Hill cobbled climb near Alderley Edge
In the spirit of research, I cycled up Swiss Hill today to get an idea of what it must be like to tackle the cobbled Flemish bergs seen in the Tour of Flanders and many of the other Belgian classics. It absolutely wasn’t that I couldn’t follow the route I’d been planning on doing, found…
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Belgians fail to take second place in Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne
Kuurne Brussels-Kuurne, first to eighth, by nationality: Belgian Dutch Belgian Belgian Belgian Belgian Belgian Belgian The number one Belgian was Tom Boonen, who might actually be a strong contender for that title in a broader sense. How it panned out The second cobbled classic was meant to finish with a bunch sprint. All the previews…
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Ian Stannard has the power
What? Are you saying that victory in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad doesn’t justify a He-Man reference? Well, maybe you’re right. Or maybe you’re wrong. British riders in the cobbled classics For all that Britain is suddenly a Grand Tour powerhouse, the nation hasn’t had anything like the same success in one-day classics. This is somewhat surprising…