Guess you could say this was my first race with the big boys. But 1-2-3 field though it may have been, a training race the second week in March is not where anyone’s going to lay down real fireworks. And in my current condition, that’s a good thing. I had figured, with a certain Kephalonian…
To the Inevitable Extinction of Tyrannasaurus Pat
Not that I ever liked Patrick Lefevere, but man, I really don’t like him now. The Quick.Step director is reportedly “encouraging” each member of his 30-man team to sue a Belgian newspaper that that accused him of a generation’s worth of doping. With pupils like Johan Museeuw, Richard Virenque, Frank Vandenbroucke, most would see the…
EU BS and a Peloton at Two Speeds?
I completely don’t understand the European Union. It’s like some bizarre club, founded by a group of people who hate each other, and designed with the intention of allowing each member to screw over every other member at every opportunity. This whole Unitbet thing, which come the Giro, could extend itself to FdJ and Lotto,…
New UCI Dope Plan, More Cartel Fun
I love the fact that the Associated Press has a style guide. It’s kind of like Oprah giving advice on debt management; the author isn’t exactly an expert on the subject. Take this article (please!) – it’s not the misleading statements, gross oversimplifications, or flat-out inaccuracies; it’s the limp-wristed prose that hurts.
Happy News Only Today
Recent news has got me in the mood to sell off everything I own for a one-way ticket to Europe and a pair of brass knuckles, with intentions to make dentists in Paris and Aigle very, very rich. So today, the goal is to only report on stories that make me happy. I’m guessing it’ll…
Cycling Still Run by Morons
Honestly, is there something in the water in Europe? Something that accumulates slowly over time, causing people to become more childish and dimwitted as they age? The UCI/Cartel beef has been settled for what, now; like, 24 hours, and already Grand Tour organizers are talking smack? “We’re not part of the ProTour…the license system is…
ProTour Crisis Averted, Paris-Nice a Go
Cycling is kind of like James Bond in that it has a habit of defusing bombs with exactly 0:07 left on the timer – not at the last second, but perilously close. It’s also like James Bond in that its recurring long-term problems never get properly addressed. Take doping, for example; the fact that Operation…
Forest Park Criterium – March 4th
March = bike racing. Time was, I’d still be skiing this time of year, but time also was Alaska had glaciers, and Kilimanjaro had snow. So a 6:25 wake-up and a 6:45 departure time (I’m out of practice – a theme for the day) later, I’m on the road to Springfield. Unfortunately, I left the…
KBK Coverage and a Jab at Velonews
You know what I haven’t done since I got back? Ripped on Velonews. Allow me to end that hiatus. Sunday’s Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne, first billed on Cyclingnews, didn’t even rate it’s own article at “The Journal of Competitive Cycling”. Strangely enough, this puts my friends in Boulder ahead of ProCycling, which hasn’t even posted an article yet,…
2007 Omloop Het Volk
There’s just no way to replicate the bike racing of Belgium. Roads that wouldn’t pass for sidewalks on this side of the Atlantic, riders hopping medians, cutting onto bike paths; it’s just good stuff. Add to that a thrilling finish with lots of gutsy, late moves and you’ve got the best bike racing anywhere (IMHO).