Welcome to Daily News, your roundup of news items from across the world of cycling. Your usual DN writer Dane Cash is in Spain, where today he is conducting an extensive investigation on the superiority of jamón ibérico, so the rest of the EC staff will keep you informed on all things bike racing, tech, industry, culture, advocacy, and more.
Here is what has been making the headlines this week …
Friday, October 4, 2024
- Plugge calls for radios at worlds
- Sidi’s Tenacia is a new shoe for retro events
- UCI announces 2025 mountain bike calendar
- Tire brand Veloflex stops
- Quick Hits
Plugge: There should be “No compromise on safety” at Worlds
Visma-Lease a Bike manager Richard Plugge called on the UCI to finally allow for the use of race radios at the Road World Championships, telling Het Nieuwsblad that the sport has progressed on safety overall but the no-radios rule at Worlds takes the sport “back in time” to a less-safe era.
At WorldTour races, he said, innovations are readily introduced, but “at the World Cycling Championships we suddenly go back in time 20, 30 years. We ride without earbuds, no one knows who is riding where.” Obliquely referencing the tragic death of Swiss junior racer Muriel Furrer, Plugge noted that with race radios, “you can inform people about dangerous points, because you can inform people if something has happened. Other riders can report to the team leader that someone has fallen. It is a form of communication and in emergency situations you always want to be able to communicate. You shouldn’t take that away.” [Het Nieuwsblad]
Sidi’s new shoes for old (style) races
Sidi and Eroica have announced the launch of the Tenacia shoe, a “new” shoe inspired by the heritage and style of 1970s cycling. Designed specifically for the Eroici, the Tenacia shoe recalls an iconic design and is said to combine vintage aesthetics with modern craftsmanship, featuring a flat sole suitable for toe clip pedals, and “high-quality microfiber materials that ensure both style and durability.”
Laces and embroidered logos complete the period-specific look. The Tenacia shoe is now available through Sidi’s website and at the CASA Eroica store in Chianti during the Eroica event, but at €189, all that style doesn’t come cheap. [Sidi]
2025 UCI mountain bike calendar unveiled
The UCI this week revealed full calendars for the 2025 slate of its Mountain Bike World Series (formerly World Cup). The series will feature 10 stops for cross-country racing, starting with a double round in Araxa, Brazil the first two weekends of April and finishing with the traditional October race at Mont-Sainte-Anne (this year’s MSA round starts today). [UCI]
Veloflex closes its doors
High-end tire brand Veloflex, the one-time tubular of choice for Team Sky, has announced its impending closure due to “difficult market conditions” that have significantly impacted the company in recent years. An industry source indicated to Escape Collective that Veloflex had been seeking a buyer in recent months but with none forthcoming production has already halted, and all remaining inventory has been sold. Veloflex announced the news in an email to customers.
Quick Hits
Gazzetta dello Sport‘s Ciro Sconamiglio reports that Q36.5 is the latest team potentially interested in signing Tom Pidcock, who is under contract with Ineos Grenadiers through 2026 … Elena Cecchini has renewed for another season with SD Worx-Protime … World Road Champion Tadej Pogačar unveiled his new rainbow jersey on Friday ahead of this weekend’s Giro dell’Emilia …
Thursday, October 3, 2024
- Hunt goes wide for fast gravel
- Grace Brown to lead The Cyclists’ Alliance
- Enve launches Hex gravel tire
- Cavendish gets knighted
- Strava introduces AI tool
- Quick Hits: the latest signings and moves
Hunt launches 40 Limitless Gravel Aero wide wheels
By this time next year gravel bikes will be monster trucks if current trends continue. Hunt’s newest gravel wheel, the 40 Limitless Gravel Aero, joins the wide-rubber movement that’s sweeping the nation with a new set of hoops with slightly different front and rear wheel specs: 40/41 mm deep front and rear with internal widths of 27/26 mm, aero-optimized around a 40-45 mm tire. If that last part sounds familiar, that’s because it’s very similar to Zipp’s aero claims for its 303 XPLR wheels. Careful readers will note that the Zipp is 54 mm deep and has a 32 mm internal width.
The 40 Limitless Gravel Aero weighs a claimed 612 g front and 781 g rear for the carbon-spoke version, which Hunt says is 200 grams lighter than the existing 42 Limitless wheelset (which has a 24.5 mm internal width). The tubeless straight side (hookless) sidewall is 4.5mm wide to help ward off pinch flats and rim damage, and the rear hub features a 48-tooth double ratchet freehub mechanism for 7.5° of engagement (Shimano HG, SRAM XD/XDR and Campagnolo N3W/Ekar are offered). It comes in two configurations: with carbon spokes (US$2,279) and an option with stainless steel spokes that drops the price to US$1,849 and is 103 g heavier for the set. What’s not limitless is availability; Hunt says initial stock will be “extremely limited” with the wheels available now for pre-order and planned shipment in late November. [Hunt Wheels]
Grace Brown just keeps on winning (elections)
Fresh off her World Time Trial Championships victory, Grace Brown is keeping the momentum up as she finishes out her final season on the WorldTour. Her latest victory: women’s professional racing union The Cyclists’ Alliance announced Brown has been elected to succeed Iris Slappendel as TCA’s president.
Slappendel is one of TCA’s founders, and spoke highly of her soon-to-be successor, saying in a press release announcing the move, “It is emotional to step down from the role of president, but our selection process and transition has been highly considered to ensure we set Grace up for success in her new role.” TCA will also get an entirely new rider board, with announcements to come for those replacing Audrey Cordon-Ragot, Amanda Spratt, Marcella Toldi and Christine Majerus.
Enve puts a hex on tires
ENVE has introduced a new gravel tire, the Hex, available in 40 mm and 44 mm widths and designed for all-around performance in dry, hardpack and mixed conditions. The tire has a low-profile, hexagonal “cat tongue” tread pattern, which ENVE claims flexes and adapts to surfaces to enhance traction. The taller side knobs and de-coupled tread blocks should improve cornering grip and durability.
Other key features of the Hex include a chafer strip at the tire bead for enhanced pinch-flat protection and a sub-tread barrier for added puncture protection. The Kevlar bead is optimised for use with hookless rims. The tire weighs in at 430 grams (40 mm) and 450 grams (44 mm), and is priced at $75 USD a pop. Sorry black sidewall enthusiasts, the Hex only comes in tan. [Enve]
That’s “Sir Mark Cavendish” to you
Fresh off his might-not-retire-yet news, all-time Tour de France stage wins leader Mark Cavendish was made a Knight Commander of the British Empire on Wednesday at a ceremony at Windsor Castle. After receiving the honor from Prince William, Cavendish again confirmed he will not race another Tour de France but said he still has races yet this year, and cracked that one of his children thinks that “I’m going to be walking about in armour.” [The Guardian]
Strava unveils AI powered tools
Strava announced that it will be offering an AI training data feature called Athlete Intelligence as a public beta for subscribers. In short, the tool aims to translate complex workout data into personalised, easily digestible insights into training and performance metrics and milestones. Matt Salazar, Strava’s Chief Product Officer, said, “by distilling it to be more conversational, the goal of this feature is to help users better understand their performance.” In practice, this could mean for example explaining what training impact staying in a certain zone has.
The beta has been rolled out now and is available globally in 14 languages. Strava says it plans continuous updates to the feature going forward. Unlike the recently announced Quick Edit feature, users can opt out of Athlete Intelligence. [Strava]
Quick Hits
Having worked as a VIP host for Visma-Lease a Bike following his forced retirement from racing, Nathan van Hooydonck now has a new role in the team’s commercial department … Harm Vanhoucke will sign with Q36.5 and, reports Wielerflits, that’s a direct result of turmoil at Lotto Dstny, which is losing Dstny as a co-sponsor and still doesn’t have its 2025 budget set … Tadej Pogačar will wear his rainbow jersey for the first time in competition at Saturday’s Giro dell’Emilia … Movistar has signed 25-year-old Eritrean Natnael Tesfatsion … SD Worx-Protime will add Geerike Schreurs for 2025 and Mikayla Harvey on a two-year deal.
Wednesday, October 2, 2024
- Cav continues with Astana, but in what role?
- Latvia protests lack of penalty for Van der Poel
- Wayback machine: the first bike race ever shown on ESPN
- Quick Hits – Blick investigates Furrer crash, Merckx says he’s still better, Taco … Wednesday
Cavendish extends with Astana, role unclear
Mark Cavendish will remain with Astana Qazaqstan in 2025, reports Wielerflits, but in what capacity is currently not known. Mark Renshaw doesn’t expect Cavendish to continue as a rider, even though the 39-year-old has not stopped training. Other options include working with his former teammate as support staff for the team’s sprint train (Caleb Ewan is rumoured to be potentially be arriving soon) or another role – apparently favoured by team boss Alexandre Vinokourov – as an ambassador, similar to Alejandro Valverde’s continued involvement with Movistar.
Latvia publicly protests lack of DSQ for Van der Poel
The Latvian national cycling federation published an open letter to the UCI criticizing the decision not to disqualify World Championships bronze medalist Mathieu van der Poel for riding on the sidewalk to pass other racers. We have more on the story here, although it’s unclear if the Latvian federation has lodged a formal protest in addition to its public statement.
Remastered racing footage shows ESPN’s first-ever cycling broadcast
When ESPN launched in September 1979, the fledgling cable sports network was hungry for affordable events to broadcast. Just two months later, it showed its first-ever bike race, the International Indoor Cycling Classic, on a temporary velodrome built inside the Denver Coliseum. Now, remastered footage of that 45-year-old event has brought it back to life on YouTube. The video is a Wayback Machine that namechecks a few standouts of the era: Red Zinger/Coors Classic director Michael Aisner commentates, while two of the Stetina brothers (Dale and Joel), Roger Young and Danny van Haute also appear. Come for the ’70s fashion, stay for the interview with a baby-faced, freshly minted Junior World Road Champion named Greg LeMond (5:00 mark).
Quick Hits
Swiss newspaper Blick continues to investigate Muriel Furrer’s fatal crash at the Junior Women’s World Championships last Thursday, saying in its latest report that other riders may have been around her near the time of her fall … Eddy Merckx is having second thoughts after saying that “it is obvious that he is now above me,” in reference to Tadej Pogačar’s dominant World Championship ride. Speaking to Relevo, Merckx said Pogačar “is still not superior to me,” noting that Pogačar has three Tour de France wins (so far) to Merckx’s five, and races in a different era with more specialization and fewer race days … Dutch racer Taco van der Hoorn (Intermarché-Wanty) only returned to racing in August after 15 months spent battling post-concussion syndrome, but passed another milestone with his first post-recovery win, in Wednesday’s Betcity Elfstedenrace … Ellen van Dijk extends for one year with Lidl-Trek … Decathlon-Ag2r La Mondiale goes on a shopping spree, picking up Stefan Bisseger (EF Education-EasyPost), Callum Scotson (Jayco-AlUla), Tord Gudmestad (Uno-X Mobility) and Johannes Staune-Mittet (Visma-Lease a Bike).
Tuesday, October 1, 2024
- ELB to UAE ASAP
- NICA expands Down Under
- Ridley’s Astr RS goes wide
- Giant and Bosch e-bike announcements
- Quick Hits
Elisa Longo-Borghini’s move to UAE is the latest big move in women’s racing
Off the back of one of her most successful seasons in her 12-year (and counting) pro career, Elisa Longo-Borghini will join the UAE Team ADQ outfit on a three-year deal starting in 2025. Longo-Borghini, who won the Tour of Flanders and the overall at the Giro d’Italia Women, will add some significant firepower to UAE’s roster – one that’s currently in flux with several of its current top riders without confirmed contracts past this season.
ELB’s switch from Lidl-Trek, her home since the start of 2019, is the latest big-name move in what has been a bumper year for transfers in women’s cycling. Lidl-Trek is at the center of the shifts, adding Riejanne Markus and Anna Henderson from Visma-Lease a Bike, Movistar’s Emma Norsgaard, and SD Worx-Protime’s Niamh Fisher-Black. Elsewhere, Juliette Labous (DSM to FDJ) and Marta Lach (FDJ to SD Worx) are on the move, and Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx) and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma) return to the road. One big name not yet announced: Demi Vollering, who is out of contract at SD Worx and said to be switching teams.
NICA is coming to Australia
The National Interscholastic Cycling Association, aka the high school mountain bike league, is going international. The league, which started in 2008 and now claims nearly 25,000 racers in 30 states, will expand this year to Australia with a series of seven “try it out” events starting in November, plus a final eighth race in February.
Eddie Freyer, who runs NICA’s Idaho league in the US, will partner with Mark Eedle, Trek’s Asia-Pacific advocacy manager, to launch the league (in an interview with Flow Mountain Bike, the two underlined that while Trek is a major NICA partner, it is not running the league in Australia). Eedle said NICA Australia will complement the gravity-focused Rocky Trail program and will take care not to overlap calendars. This year’s events are considered a pilot program, with a full launch to follow including NICA coaching. [NICA Australia]
Ridley goes wide with the Astr RS
The speed with which wide tires have taken hold in gravel racing has so far outpaced many bike brands, whose offerings stop just short of the clearance needed to run fat rubber. Ridley’s new Astr and Astr RS bikes, however, are very much on top of the trend as aero-focused gravel race bikes with clearance for 700x52c tires.
The Astr and Astr RS feature aero cues from some of Ridley’s road bikes with aero frame tubes, dropped seatstays, wide fork blades, and a one-piece aero cockpit. The line features a longer wheelbase overall with a rear-wheel cutout to keep chain stay length reasonable and an aggressive position, with stack heights lowered by 1-2 cm from the Kanzo Fast, depending on frame size. Pricing starts at €3,299. [Ridley]
Giant/Liv and Bosch announce new e-bike products
Giant and its female-specific sister brand Liv launched new Defy and Avail Advanced E+ Elite electric road bikes on Tuesday. The new bikes are a significant design upgrade from the Road E+, with a much slimmer down tube enclosing a 400Wh battery and a hub-drive SyncDrive Move Plus motor which delivers up to 30 Nm of torque, which sounds low but Giant claims this is equivalent to 75 Nm of torque from a mid-drive motor. Range is said to be up to 150 km; all models come with SRAM AXS groupsets and have clearance for 38 mm tires. Pricing starts at US$6,500. [Giant]
Bosch’s new Performance Line CX mountain bike motors feature up to 85 Nm of torque and dynamic support that measures pedal input a claimed 1,000 times a second to offer up to 600 watts of power. The motor is .2 lb lighter and is compatible with Bosch’s expanded Powertube battery line. [Bosch]
Quick Hits
Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung found in an investigation that the first helicopter dispatched to the site of Muriel Furrer’s crash at World Championships did not leave for at least an hour after the finish of her race. Investigation into her death is ongoing, and Abby Mickey will have more in Tuesday’s Wheel Talk newsletter … Chinese brand WheelTop announced at Taichung Bike Week that it has acquired a majority position in Spanish component brand Rotor, best known for cranksets, power meters, and oval chainrings … The new Ridley Racing cyclocross team will feature ex-Baloise-Trek Lions rider Joris Nieuwenhuis, Spanish champion Felipe Orts, and Daan Soete (Orts raced as a privateer in 2023-24). The team director is reportedly former World Champion Richard Groenendaal.
Monday, September 30, 2024
- Controversy over Dutch women’s team
- Strava segments cleanup on aisle 5
- The World Series wraps up in North America
- Shimano’s UDH rival breaks cover?
Controversy over Dutch women’s team tactics at Worlds
The Road World Championships is wrapped up after a weekend of spectacular performances, none more than Tadej Pogačar’s self-described “stupid” 100 km breakaway, which wowed none other than Eddy Merckx, and Lotte Kopecky’s successful title defense. But a significant amount of attention also focused on the curious performance of the always-powerful Dutch women’s team, in particular Demi Vollering, which went home empty-handed (save for Puck Pieterse’s U23 title) for the first time in a decade.
Vollering, who won time trial silver earlier in the week, was clearly among the strongest riders in the race on one of the strongest teams. But as in years past, the Dutch squad was hamstrung by its own tactics, and Vollering was at the center of the criticism after her late-race efforts to effectively chase down (and then drop) her teammates. Youri Ijnsen was withering in Wielerflits, writing that Vollering was “only about herself.” On his In het Wiel podcast, Thijs Zonneveld said “I find [Vollering’s behavior] absolutely scandalous.” That’s just two examples – criticism was widespread and intense.
It’s far from the first time that the Dutch women’s road team has raced dysfunctionally – both silver medalist Chloe Dygert and Liane Lippert noted that they have a history of not working cohesively at times – but the volume and tone of criticism now seems different (and also highly focused on Vollering). National team coach Loes Gunnewijk was already stepping down after Worlds, but the question is what changes after the latest flop, and how.
Strava cleans up segments and leaderboards
Another day another Strava rollout. Following the release of the Quick Edit feature, the platform has now announced plans to clean up its segments by decluttering and verifying, as well as refining leaderboard accuracy. Strava says the segment declutter will remove some 610,000 duplicate and unused segments to streamline searches, while more popular, starred segments will be added to the “Verified Segments” – something that was introduced to the platform earlier this year.
The platform also says it’s improving the segment auto-flagging system which means that leaderboards could see 33% reduction in inaccurate entries.
Mountain bike season closes out in North America
The Mountain Bike World Series (formerly World Cup) is closing out its final two rounds last weekend and next weekend with stops in North America. Victor Koretzky and Laura Stigger won the XCO rounds at Lake Placid, with Koretzky swapping podium spots with Alan Hatherly from their World Championships showdown. Filippo Colombo led home a trio of Swiss riders in the fight for third, while American Chris Blevins had his best XCO finish since winning the opening round in Mairipora, Brazil.
Racing was also tight and tactical on the women’s side, with Stigger outsprinting Sina Frei on the line for the win and South African privateer Candice Lill nicking Loana Lecomte for third just a few seconds later. American Haley Batten was a late DNS, still fighting off the effects of a crash in the marathon. Koretzky and Frei also took the short-track wins on Saturday. Next week the series finishes up at the hallowed Mont-Sainte-Anne track.
Shimano’s answer to UDH
SRAM’s UDH derailleur standard is rapidly taking over the world, but Open’s revamped UP and UPPER bikes go in “a new direction” in several ways, including what they call an “as yet unannounced” new Shimano rear derailleur standard. Shimano has had patents since 2021 for a direct-mount derailleur standard but has yet to announce any new products.
Quick Hits
Mathieu van der Poel won’t race Il Lombardia, saying he doesn’t know where rumors came from that he would. But he will be at next weekend’s UCI Gravel World Championships … Apparently so will Lotte Kopecky, who has her eye on another rainbow jersey on home soil … North Carolina-based brands Cane Creek, Industry Nine, and Boyd Cycling all announced they are temporarily closed due to effects of flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Helene, which has caused devastating damage to communities across the southern U.S. in its path.
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