One day one photo - 3

photo by UCI

Quite a few interesting results came through over the weekend from the world of cycle racing: Fabio Aru won the Vuelta a Espana. He has probably got nearer than anyone else this year to doing a grand tour double after having finished in second place at the Giro d'Italia in May. Edvald Boasson-Hagen won the Tour of Britain, making him the first person to win the stage race twice in its modern era. La Vuelta became the second of the grand tours to stage a women-only race on the final day of the competition. Yesterday's race held on the windswept roads of Madrid was won by Ale Cipollini rider, Shelley Olds. It was great to see all of these events on TV. Another American made history across the Atlantic, though this piece of history has gone somewhat under the radar though. A new Women's World Hour Record was set over the weekend by the Molly Shaffer Van Houweling at the velodrome in Aguascalientes, Mexico.

Ever since Jens Voigt reignited the competition by breaking the hour record almost a year ago to the day, the quest has rolled on in earnest amongst the male gladiators of cycle sport. Things have been a lot quieter on the women's front however, with no one apart from Dame Sarah Storey attempting to break Leontien van Moorsel's 12-year old record. I rember that Saturday afternoon in February in a crowded velodrome at Lee Valley, London, watching in hope as Sarah battled her way around the track only to fall short of the 46.065km hour record by two laps. Meanwhile, in Mexico Van Houweling was beavering away in the background making her bid for perfect-hour glory by breaking the US Women's hour record.

The 42-year old law professor from the University of California, Berkeley, eventually broke the world hour record in July when she clocked 46.088km. However, this record could not stand as she had not been registered onto the biological passport programme for long enough for her time to qualify. But on Saturday night, all the stars were aligned for Molly Shaffer Van Houweling to put her day job behind her, take to the boards again - and clock 46.273km. Boom! Now I think that's worth writing about!

I don't imagine this will get the column inches that Bradley Wiggins had when he broke the record, but I do hope a few more people shout about it. I also hope that more women step forward - maybe Dame Sarah Storey will make another attempt, or maybe world time trial champion Lisa Brennauer will try it or even other home girls like Joanna Rowsell or Katie Archibald. It would be good to see the women's hour record chased with the same zeal as on the men's side.


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One day one photo - 2

This is an artist's impression of a junction I pass through on my cycle ride to work. It is Kennington Oval. Note Kennington Park is on the right and part of the city is in the distance with the Shard London Bridge just about in view. This is just an artist's impression so there are a few inaccuracies, for instance the Shard should be the tallest building in the photo! Also, you wouldn't ever see that section of road so empty during the day!

One thing that is correct though is the green and blue cycle path on the left-hand side of the picture. This path is in place, though I must say I haven't paid attention to the colour! In fact, when cycling from Brixton towards the city the cycle path starts further back than is shown in this drawing. At the busier section of the junction the path goes up onto a kerb and riders are separated from motorised traffic. It was quite a pleasant surprise to see this on the first day this new road layout was opened. The path then cuts across traffic where cyclists have right of way, and then they turn right to join this dual coloured cycle lane. I take the left-hand branch of the lane to head towards Lambeth North and Waterloo, while alot of other cyclists take the right-hand lane to go towards Elephant & Castle.

I think this is a good system. The only thing is the traffic lights (which are specifically for cyclists) at the end are a bit confusing. The way you approach it you see the Elephant & Castle lights first, which are green but in fact the ones I need to follow are other lights which don't come into view until when I am much nearer to the junction, and at that time, they are red! So it is easy to make a mistake and end up accidentally overshooting the lights - or in the vice versa scenario, stopping when it is not necessary!

 Also, right now this is the only section that is ready for cyclists. Once you round the corner you are faced with another mess of roadworks and you are back to squeezing past buses and cars. The same applies for the lane next to Kennington Park as you travel from London homewards. Currently various parts of central London are a mish-mash of roadworks as workers install the improved Cycle Superhighway. It's a bit of a pain for cyclists and motorists alike, but I live in the hope that once they are all fully in place cycling around London will be alot more pleasurable, and safer.

One day One photo - 1

It's that time of the year again when I do the one day, one photo series. Summer has gone and all we have to look forward to are colder, greyer and shorter days. But in order to preserve the mood before SAD sets in I like to think fun, happy, thoughts. So today I will start with one of my favourite places.....The Goyt Valley.


My days in Macclesfield are finally over. I have checked out of my flat and am now fully fledged back in London. But I couldn't leave without having one last spin along some of the most beautiful lanes in England. My route started in Macclesfield and for those who know it I was very quickly on that well-known twisty climb, the Cat-and-Fiddle. Once at the summit I dropped down to Derbyshire Bridge and meandered along the Upper River Goyt to the Errwood and Fernlee reservoirs. One of the most beautiful views at this time of year is the purple patchwork carpet on the side of the hills from all that lovely heather. At this time of year it glows the carpet glows in the sun. This road drops down steadily without it being one of those screechingly steep descents. Furthermore there is hardly any traffic, so you can really appreciate the full beauty of the area. By jove, I felt wonderfully spoiled! Sadly, my camera just couldn't do the scenery justice so I didn't take any photo! The photo above is from another part of the Goyt valley (approaching from Long Hill), with the Errwood reservoir in the distance. If you want to know what I am raving about I would recommend going there on any sunny day in September and you will see what I mean. For your interest, my ride continued in equally scenic areas but with hard work in equal measure! I tackled The Street, Pym's Chair, Jenkin Chapel and Saltersford all one after the other before dropping down Blaze Hill to Bollington and back home. I had a good fill of The Goyt Valley and the Cheshire lanes for a while! Looking forward to returning there before long.


Ride London!

I am back in London full time. I have actually been back since April but I have only recently got round to posting about it. I still have some settling in to do as I am steadily bringing a number of my goods back from Macclesfield.

I will miss being up in Cheshire, close to the Peak District and country life - as well as the chance to ride around the Manchester velodrome.

But I have to say I am glad to be in London. It is my favourite city in the world! I lived in Milan for a while, and in Paris for some time before then. Even though I have great memories of both of those places, there's nothing more satisfying than being in the place that you call home - a place that feels close to your heart, and a place that you can feel proud of - and I have to say that's how I feel about London!

So, now I'm back in London I can commute by bike to get to my place of work in Farringdon. It's not too far from Crystal Palace - I could do the ride in about 40 minutes, but I tend to take my time and avoid working up a sweat, and enjoy the views so it takes me nearer to 50 minutes. Being able to ride my bike over the river and enjoy views of St Paul's Cathedral, Tate Modern and the South Bank as I roll over Blackfriars Bridge, makes me feel lucky.

I also enjoy zooming down to Trafalgar Square, up the Mall and over to Hyde Park if I am doing something over there after work.

At rush hour during the summer it is like riding as part of a big organised ride, or a "critical mass" event. When waiting at the traffic lights There can easily be more than 20-30 cyclists all bunched into the box in front of the motorists. It's great and there's definitely a feeling of "safety in numbers."

People talk of there being friction between motorists and cyclists around London, but certainly at these times it doesn't seem so bad. There appears to be a better understanding between the two parties.

I like to think that all the work being done to raise the profile of cycling in London is making a difference. With the current roadworks taking place to build a new improved "cycle superhighway" and the recent directive from Transport for London to ban lorries from London which aren't installed with cycle safety measures I can see a definite improve in cycling compared with 5 years ago.

The recent Ride London event was also a great poster for cycling in the capital. Not only were there road races and cyclosportives for the seriously fit cyclists, but there was also a FreeCycle event for all the family - from kids on balance bikes to professional racers wanting a quick spin on the closed roads around Central London. Even my little 5-year old niece had a go!

It is true that London is still a long way to being like Amsterdam when it comes to cycle infrastructure and commuter cycling culture, but I think we are taking a step in the right direction.

2wheel kid meets Islabikes

I have heard of Islabikes but I have never ridden one. I guess it stands to reason as I am not a child or a small person - which is the target market for this range of bikes. A few local female cycle racers who are 5ft tall (1m 50) ride them and they have given good feedback about them.

When I was offered the chance to test one out I was obviously unable to try it out myself. Instead I found a willing volunteer - my niece.

As she is only just starting out with bike riding she is trying the Cnoc 16. I must say the bike looks pretty cool. We've got it in pink, one of her favourite colours - no surprises there for a little girl!

The first thing I noticed when I lifted the Cnoc 16 out of the box was how light it was. Some children's bikes can be quite heavy. But this was surprisingly light. It would surely be an advantage for the little girl who will have to wheel it around and ride it!

I haven't put the pedals on it yet, as right now we are using it as a pseudo balance bike. Apparently that is the more modern approach to teaching children how to ride a two-wheeler.

And the verdict so far on the Cnoc 16 from my niece? "It's great!" she says.
More updates on how she is getting on will follow.

Shoot Story - Virginia Water

In the latest edition of Cycling Active is my article on a bicycle ride around Virgnia Water and Windsor Great Park.

The photo shoot for this took place almost a year ago - in August, on the day of the Ride London bike festival. As I was also going to be reporting on that event which was taking place in Central London I needed to do this photo shoot quite early in the morning so as to finish early.

I met with Roo, the photographer at around 8pm. It was a lovely sunny morning for this - perfect for a leisure ride around the park. It was also handy to get there early as there were more and more dog walkers turning up - and in those areas the pooch rules the roost! The folks around there turn up with their prestigious purebreds, and they have priority over the paths. This is no place for a cyclist to be hogging the path when people are giving their King Charles Spaniels and their Dalmatians and their Beagles a doggie parade along the catwalk in front of Virginia Water Lake!

It had been a couple of years since I was last at Virginia Water. The last time I was there was about four years ago - this time with a different photographer, and on a longer route. That was a more challenging day for me as I hadn't been feeling very well and the photographer had travelled down from Sheffield to do the work. I hadn't even been able to appreciate the beauty and splendour of Virgina Water Lake and the adjoining Windsor Great Park.

Today was a different matter. I had a real feel-good factor as it was the height of summer. Also, as I was on a leisure bike dressed in civvies everything felt quite leisurely, especially as the ride was just 10 miles. Having said that, the ride wasn't without effort. The ride up to the Copper Statue near the Long Walk was still just as challenging, and I had to push a fair bit. My bike for the day was a Raleigh Cameo Green, which I was testing out. I have to say that even though the bike doesn't have the range of gears on a road bike it still did the trick getting me up the hill and I felt quite comfortable in the saddle.

Also there was a long section around the Savill Building where the path was unsurfaced so it was more like an off-road ride. I was later rewarded by a lovely descent from the Windsor Great Park Village back into Virginia Water. We stopped off at the Village Store and Post Office for a tea stop - a popular stopping point for cyclists. But I have to admit I was more in the mood for an ice cream from one of the many Wall's Vans dispersed around the route.

I would definitely recommend this route - even if you're not on a bike this is a lovely place to hang out. And you don't even need to have a dog!

10 soundbites from.....the Aviva Women's Tour

So the Women's Tour has been and gone. I wasn't able to follow the first edition of the race last year, but I managed to follow the different stages this year. Trying to second guess how the race would unfold each day, and who would be the overall winner was pretty exciting, and there was some exciting racing throughout the week. This has become a great event on the women's pro cycling calendar. I caught up with some of the riders and they were very positive about how their week had been.


Stefan Wyman (Director Sportive, Matrix Pro Cycling): "We had a few goals in the race and to be in the feature break was one of them, and to be on the podium either with a stage or a jersey was the key goal for us, so we did it. Elinor [Barker] is an unsung hero, and it is really difficult to transition from the track to the road so it was nice that she had the best British rider jersey for a time. It wasn’t all Laura [Trott] and it took the pressure off Laura. I think they did really well as a team so they should be really happy."



Dame Sarah Storey: "The first four stages were very samey, but the last stage was a lot more interesting. We need to get to a point where we don’t have five bunch sprints. It’s quite exciting potentially for watching, but as riders it’s nice to have another opportunity to put other types of riders up to win a stage. I would have liked to have seen long hilly climbs. They are the races I tend to target. The support we got from the side of the road was absolutely phenomenal, so to the people who supported us, I can’t thank them enough."


Lisa Brennauer (Yellow Jersey): "This is the biggest victory of my career so far. I have really enjoyed the racing here in the UK and it was great to see so many crowds when we were racing."


Melissa Hoskins (Queen of the Mountains): "I came into the QOM competition for a bit of fun and something for the team to do, but then I decided to do everything I could to defend it. It was something unexpected, even for myself. It’s been brilliant racing in England. The crowds have been fantastic.  I was overwhelmed with how many people were so interested in what we are doing. We don’t get that anywhere else in Europe. It’s a nice change to feel important for what you are doing, and inspiring young kids to do cycling."


Helen Wyman: "I have found the week fun, with really safe riding. There’s not been very many crashes. This is fantastic training for the 'cross season. You need to be as fit as you can be to train hard for 'cross. These are just really great base miles."   


Hannah Barnes (Best British Rider/Stage 5 winner): "In America we are one of the biggest teams, but here we are one of the small teams so we wanted to get stuck in and not be afraid to show our face. I’ve been focussing on my climbing this winter and my coach Jenny Gretton has helped me improve a lot this year. I always made sure I was in a good position when going into the bottom of the climb and I was on the right side of the split. In the last stage I just stayed near the front and hoped for it to come down to a sprint. I love following Alexis’s [Ryan] wheel during the race. She’s really nice to follow. I call her the Alexis bubble! The roads are wider in the States. So in terms of positioning you get a bit lazy because you know that in two seconds you can be at the front, whereas here it can take you an hour to get to the front, and less than a minute to drop to the back!"



Rachel Heal (Director Sportive, UnitedHealthcare Procycling): "With Hannah being at home and with the race being local to her she has had a lot of other pressures to deal with so the last couple of days we tried to kind of relax Hannah so she could be able to just focus on bike racing. Hannah has been sprinting really well all week and she had got top 5 a few times so we knew that she was fast enough
to get a win. To put it all together, and to be in the right place and to sprint at the right time, is just fantastic, especially on the last day." 



Sue Barnes (Hannah Barnes's mum): "It was so close, and I didn’t realise Hannah had won until they said so on the tannoy, and I was just jumping up and down. I am very proud of her right now. I work in a stationery shop – Colemans in Arundel. I did a Hannah window in the shop. It’s gone a bit viral on Twitter and the takings have gone up massively this week! I am keeping it there until the end of the National Championships where my other daughter, Alice will be racing too. We all do a bit of cycling but the girls' granddad was a very good time triallist in his day so they must get that from him as well. I have been to all the stages, and Hannah's gran, who is 87,
has been to three of the stages with me. We were at the start, the finish and lots of different parts of he course. It has meant a lot to Hannah to have her family there."


Will Mangar (Race doctor): "I have felt the racing has been faster this year and more flowing and more seamless. There's been a palpable shift in quality and skill level with the ladies' riding this year. It was difficult last year, with the rain. We had so many girls spinning off and there was lots and lots of road rash, This year everyone's been good. What I've noticed is there's less injuries but to be honest, these girls are tough. They are really made of strong stuff and it takes a lot for them to not want to get back on the bike."





Marianne Vos: "The crowd support has been fantastic! It's really cool to see all the schoolkids around and coming out of their schools, supporting, cheering for the riders and cheering for the Tour. You really feel that cycling is really popular in Britain."




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