Liverpool Echo - A Cyclist's Life

Floyd Landis tells tales on Lance armstrong on day one of Tour de France

2010-07-03T09:03:23Z

Give it a rest Floyd.
The embittered banned cyclist has come up with fresh allegations against Lance Armstrong.
Among the usual drug stuff is the fact Lance was once at a party with strippers - whooah.
A male pro-cyclist at a party with strippers - stop the press.
Just imagine that and Floyd also thinks there may have been people in the room taking cocaine. Brilliant, a party where some people were taking cocaine - who'd have thought?
Oh and Lance once drove them all quite fast through a town on a night out.
He also goes on about missing bikes - difficult to believe Lance would be scraping around for cash to fund illegal steroid use by selling off team bikes but there you go.
I think the point is, get the book deal done FLoyd and we can all read it then but it just seems too bitter to do all this on day one of the Tour.
You seem like a madman with a really big axe to grind.

Anyway here's a link to the whole story here.

Bradley Wiggins and Team Sky going for podium finish at Tour de France

2010-07-02T21:36:34Z

This article is the reason why I'm putting £25 on Bradley Wiggins to finish on the podium.
Just look at the attention to detail - move faster through warmer air etc

Bradley Wiggins was in confident mood on the eve of his first Tour de France as a genuine victory hopeful today.
The 8.9-kilometre prologue in Rotterdam which marks the start of the 97th Tour takes place tomorrow, with Wiggins ready for three weeks in which he may yet prove he is the greatest cyclist Britain has ever produced.
"I am streets ahead of where I was this time last year," said Wiggins, who was a surprise fourth in 2009.

]]> "We've had success on the track for the last eight to 10 years and this is the culmination really of that success.
"To be at the Tour de France (with a British team) just shows how far we've come."
The 30-year-old equalled Robert Millar's 1984 best finish by a Briton 11 months ago and is seeking a position on the Tour podium in Paris on July 25. The three-time Olympic champion and the eight other members of Team Sky's Tour squad - including Britons Geraint Thomas and Steve Cummings - previewed the prologue course this morning.
But rather than in previous Tours, where the prologue has been Wiggins' target, he is now bidding for overall glory.
Thomas is looking forward to his second Tour and believes the prologue course is well-suited to him and Wiggins.
Thomas told Press Association Sport: "It's going to be special and I just can't wait to get going.
"The prologue course is pretty flat.
"I think it will be a fast circuit.
"There's only one corner you have to watch out for - I'm looking forward to it."
Wiggins will be one of the leading contenders to don the maillot jaune with victory tomorrow, with world and Olympic time-trial champion Fabian Cancellara the favourite.
Asked whether Wiggins could be in the yellow jersey for Sunday's opening road stage, Thomas added: "Definitely. We're all going out there, going to give it our best and just smash it and we'll see what happens."
Wiggins will be the second Team Sky rider to take to the course, with the majority of his general classification rivals waiting to start as the final rider for their respective teams.
Sky team principal Dave Brailsford, whose philosophy of marginal gains has helped deliver unprecedented success to Britain's track team, provided a simple explanation for the tactical ploy - there could be rain tomorrow evening.
He told Press Association Sport: "It's based on the weather conditions, potentially.
"It's based on wanting to ride in as hot conditions as possible.
"We know that hotter air is faster than cooler air, so we'd prefer to ride in the heat than the cold.
"If you ride at eight o'clock, you're not going to get back to the hotel until half past nine, you're not going to eat until 10 o'clock - that's not the best preparation for the following day.
"If you ride at four o'clock, you're back at the hotel for six o'clock.
"You might have to go for a presentation if you're fortunate enough to be on the podium but you've started your recovery process for the next day."

Tour de France riders on Twitter (and other cycling types)

2010-07-02T18:58:52Z

I've compiled a list of all the Tour de France tweets here from all the top folk.

]]> Here we are

Cavendish to win Green Jersey in Tour de France

2010-07-02T08:28:53Z

I'm not betting on it because the odds are rubbish and I think I may have a gambling problem waiting in the wings to bite me later in life but here's why Cavendish will win the Green Jersey.

1) Thor Hushovd is not the man he was last year - a broken collarbone recently means he might find those cobbles hard work.

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2) He's by far the fastest in a flat out sprint - he beat Hushovd comprehensively last year in all the sprints. Ignore the barrier incident where he may or may not have blocked Hushovd's path.

3) Last year Hushovd won due to consistency - he played it right tactically and finished in the top five at practically every sprint - this is something that Cavendish will definitely be focussing on this year.

4) Heinrich Haussler is a superb rider and a big cog in the Cervelo team and he won't be there this year - Thor will miss him in the bunch sprints. It's rather unfortunate that it was actually Mark Cavendish who kind of crashed into him.

5) A lot of flat finishes at the start of this year's Tour play right into Cavendish's hands so he can build up a nice little points lead which the others will find difficult to claw back as the sprint finishes go up into the mountains.

6) Tyler Farrar is just not as fast as Mark Cavendish and that's kind of the point in sprinting.

7) Ignore all the dental problems, family problems, personal problems, crashing into Heinrich Haussler and ruling him out of the Tour. He is still fast as a whippet when he wants to be as proven at the Tour de Romandie. That kind of devastating speed is nature not nurture - you can't lose that in a month or two because of a bad toothache.

8) He's got a great team who know exactly what they're doing in the bunch sprints.

9) Did I mention he's fast
8) He's convinced he can win it and really that's half the battle.

Fabian Cancellara wins Tour de France prologue

2010-07-01T22:28:42Z

Let's hope he does.
In a moment of late-night madness I seem to have changed my betting strategy.
I've now used £50 of my own money to place a bet with Paddy Power at odds of 4/7 that Cancellara will win the prologue.
This gave me a free £50 bet to place on Contador to be the outright winner.

Surely Cancellara will win unless he gets a puncture, falls in a canal, gets lost or something drastic breaks on his bike.
Surely Contador will win the GC - what can go wrong in a few thousand miles of racing across France.

I also placed a £2 bet on Bradley WIggins to come first with Lance Armstrong to come in second with Paddy Power. This is just in case the Shlecks, Contador, Menchov, Evans or anyone else are involved in an accident that rules them all out.

To be honest, that little feature of outright positions on Paddy Power's website is great fun, it may never happen but for the time being I can dream of blowing £400 on a couple of carbon water bottle cages.

PS - I hope I haven't developed a gambling problem, I seem to be actively seeking bets as opposed to just doing it for a bit of fun now

Bradley Wiggins makes the podium his goal in Tour de France

2010-07-01T14:42:37Z

Nice little story here about Bradley's intentions for the podium - come on my man - I've got money riding on this.

Bradley Wiggins could be wearing the yellow jersey by the end of Saturday's opening day of the 97th Tour de France.
However, the 30-year-old Londoner will gauge his success at the end of the 21st day of racing in Paris, with the podium his target.

]]> Wiggins, who is among the favourites for Saturday's 8.9-kilometre prologue in Rotterdam, will lead Team Sky's nine-man squad in what is poised to be yet another intriguing Tour, his first as a general classification contender from the start.
Lance Armstrong will seek his eighth maillot jaune in his final Tour, Alberto Contador will be favourite for a third yellow jersey in four years and Cadel Evans will aim to better his two runner-up finishes, while Mark Cavendish, Tyler Farrar and Thor Hushovd will be out to claim the green jersey.
There is always also the possibility of the scourge of doping - either chemically or mechanically - rearing its ugly head yet again.
Wiggins, though, is focused on one thing and believes wearing the yellow jersey atop the Tour podium by the Champs Elysees would be the pinnacle of his career - a greater achievement than any of his three Olympic titles.
Wiggins said: "It would surpass it by quite a lot, for me at the moment.
"It would be a bigger achievement in cycling terms.
"Even the fourth place last year would probably rank higher than some of the Olympic golds.
"Right now with the way everything's gone form-wise, I couldn't be in a better position.
"I'm quite relaxed at the moment and I'm going out there to do the best I can do.
"Without bad luck and everything I think I'll get the result I want."
As well as Contador, Armstrong, Evans, 2008 winner Carlos Sastre, the 2009 runner-up Andy Schleck and Frank Schleck, Wiggins sees Giro d'Italia champion Ivan Basso and Alexandre Vinokourov - both of whom have served doping bans - as rivals.
Wiggins added: "Contador's still the strong favourite - he has to be after the season he's had - but no-one's unbeatable.
"Lance is coming into form at just the right time.
"It's going to be interesting, that's for sure.
"It is a hard race but if it's going to be hard for me, you can guarantee it's going to be hard for everyone else.
"We'll just take it day by day and see what happens."
As to whether Wiggins is feeling the pressure of entering the Tour as a possible winner come July 25, he is showing few of the signs.
"It's not life and death, it's just sport," he said.
"I enjoy it, I'm excited, I've put this process together and I've got to this point - I've got nothing to lose."
He also has all the necessary support from a team led by Dave Brailsford, the British Cycling performance director whose philosophy of process before outcome and marginal gains has delivered remarkable success for Britain's track team.
Brailsford, in his role as Sky team principal, is continually sending his number one rider text messages, while British Cycling's feted sport psychiatrist Dr Steve Peters last week flew to Wiggins' Girona base to ease any anxieties he may have.
Wiggins will continue to speak to Dr Peters on a daily basis throughout the Tour, but appears not to be lacking in confidence, having on three occasions won Olympic titles.
He said: "There's nothing that compares to the pressure or the mental strain of being in the gate with 50 seconds to go in an Olympic final.
"So in that sense the Tour de France is a doddle in the mental aspect - but the physical demands are huge."
Wiggins is one of three Britons in Team Sky's nine-man squad, alongside Steve Cummings and Geraint Thomas.
Michael Barry, Juan Antonio Flecha, Simon Gerrans, Edvald Boasson Hagen, Thomas Lofkvist and Serge Pauwels complete the line-up.
There are eight Britons in the 2010 race, with Cavendish (HTC-Columbia) targeting the green jersey for the points classification champion.
David Millar (Team Garmin-Transitions) - the fourth and most recent Briton to wear the yellow jersey - may also have personal ambitions, while Cervelo Test Team duo Daniel Lloyd and Jeremy Hunt and Charly Wegelius (Omega Pharma Lotto) will play integral team roles.

Lance Armstrong reveals secret weapon in Tour de France

2010-07-01T14:15:55Z

Lance has been lacking form recently but maybe their new signing could give him that extra cog.
The 85-year-old cycling veteran is a relative unknown in the sport but he's been riding his bike to the local shops for bread, cheese and sometimes milk for a good 40 years.
"We decided to bring Eric into the team, mostly because of that basket on his bike - we all thought we could keep drinks and little cakes in it on those long rides uphill," said an excited Lance.
"He's also a real party guy so even if Alberto does beat me up the hills, at least Eric will be there with a joke and a pint of real ale," Lance said.
"And he makes me look like a youngster," Lance quipped.
Later in the day Journalists caught up with Eric at his Monaco hotel where Radioshack have been provided him with a warm blanket to keep his knees warm.
"I never thought I'd be fit for the Tour because of my hip replacement but it's pretty good now and I can get up and down stairs," said an elated Eric earlier.
"Mind you, I've been riding that bike longer than Lance has been born so I might just get to show him a thing or two on those cobbles," a cocky Eric said.
"The wife's not going to be happy though, we were supposed to be going down to see the grandkids in London in July," said Eric.

Betting on the Tour de France - Nicholas Roche for a top ten finishce

2010-07-01T10:40:04Z

Am I optimistic?
Well I've put £10 on Nicholas Roche for a top ten finish with William Hill at odds of 16-1.
But this qualifies me for three free bets of £10 each.
Only problem is if you read the small print I only get my three free bets when my original bet is settled.
And then I have to make three separate bets on different sporting events.
Whoops.
This means I will have to dip my toe into the water of gambling on stuff I don't really have a clue about.
Oh well, come on Nicholas.
On the matter of Nicholas Roche, I reckon he could have placed higher last year were it not for team orders and he also seems to be going pretty well this year so let's see, that's why it's called gambling because I haven't really got a clue

Procycling magazine - a review

2010-07-01T10:14:09Z

Just subscribed to Procycling after buying a couple of copies and realising it's only £10 a quarter at the moment, which saves you about 40% off the cover price.
Anyway it's blooming marvellous, a great mixture of superb photography, wonderful classic design, interesting interviews with the top bods, news and all that dream bike stuff you can never afford but like to drool at anyway.
I genuinely have no affiliation at all with Procycling but very impressed - it actually makes me want to go out for a bike ride and lose a bit of weight so I can look as good in cycling shorts as Mark Cavendish.

(My) definitive guide to betting on the Tour de France 2010

2010-07-01T09:31:58Z

It's on.
And it all looks rather exciting but how can you make a profit out of a sporting event?
Easily (I accept no liability for this statement).
Thanks to not being a regular gambler, I'm taking advantage of the free bet offers on a multitude of websites.
So first up is Paddy Power.

]]> Now they're offering a simple free £50 bet for any £50 bet you make.
So I've put £50 on Alberto Contador to win at pretty poor odds so I get £78 back including my stake.
Everyone seems convinced he is going to waltz away with the title so this is as safe as it gets (hopefully).
What this does is enable me to put on a slightly more risky bet of Bradley WIggins for a podium finish with the free £50 bet. Now if he takes a podium finish I take £250, which is nice.
Next up is Bwin, little more complicated this one as you have to deposit £30 into a betting account to quality for £30 worth of free bets. You also have to make five bets with that £60 in your account.
So I've played this pretty conservatively I think and gone for
General Classification (Who will finish in the top 3?) Cadel Evans (AUS/BMC) ? £6.00 at 7/2

Tour de France 2010 - General Classification (Head-to-Head (Overall classification) L. Armstrong/B. Wiggins) Bradley Wiggins (GBR/Sky) £5.00 at 6/5

Tour de France 2010 - General Classification (Head-to-Head (Overall classification) D. Menchov/C. Sastre) Denis Menchov (RUS/Rabobank) £5.00 ay 9/20

Tour de France 2010 - Specials (How many stages will Mark Cavendish (GBR/Columbia) win?) Over 4,5 £5.00 at 17/10

Tour de France 2010 - Specials (How many stages will Fabian Cancellara (SUI/Saxo Bank) win?) Over 0,5 £10.00 at 1/2

Tour de France 2010 - Prologue (Prologue - Winning Margin) 2 seconds or more £15.00 at 4/25

I've gone for Bradley WIggins to beat Lance just because I think Lance is struggling a little - he's not been having the best of times on that bike in the last few months and part of me thinks he'd rather be out jogging with Matthew McConnaughey.

And Cavendish to win the sprints despite him being a bit annoying

And there is no way Cancellara will not walk away with at least one time trail win under his belt.

Poor Carlos has had a bit of bad luck recently and Menchov should be strong as an ox after missing out on the Giro.

So far, only £65 of my own money is at risk but my potential takings look pretty good if everything goes my way - please Bradley Wiggins - make me a rich man.

Lance Armstrong to race Tour of Flanders

2010-04-02T12:30:02Z

A stomach bug is not ideal preparation for a major one-day classic but Lance is going to race in the Tour of Flanders.
He's not going to win it but more importantly I'll be intrigued to see if he's anywhere near the front.
Just not sure whether he will actually want to push himself too hard - we'll see but I'm sensing he'll make it through thanks to some supportive team work

See the full article here

Most viewed bike and cycling videos on you tube

2010-04-02T10:18:17Z

I was bored and just did some random searches on You Tube under the terms bike rage, cycling, bike, bike crashes with the search option at most view counts and here are my findings:

As a disclaimer can I say the fact that most of these are bike crashes is more an indictment on society rather than me. It just so happens if you type the word cycling into You Tube the most viewed videos are all bike crashes

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The man chased the cyclist, ran him over and the cyclist ended up stuck on the bonnet of the car. The man then drove for a few miles before the cyclist got off the bonnet.
The man was later arrested

Cheshire Cat Sportive 2010 - a review

2010-03-29T21:26:16Z

I'd signed up to do 100 miles.
I didn't complete 100 miles
What I did do was 67 miles (or to be more specific 69 miles according to my speedo - I was furious - for a finely tuned athlete like myself that extra 2 miles was too much, my eating and pedaling strategies were just not geared up to it. I'd wolfed all my jelly babies by mile 65 and so was left with nothing apart from a banana, which isn't as nice as jelly babies. Anyway enough said, the Cheshire Cat organisers will be hearing from my lawyers about this terrible injustice.)
I ended up doing the 67 miles because at mile 52 I was faced with the choice of turning left to cycle for another 48 miles or going straight on and cycling another 15 miles.
By this stage neither option held much enjoyment so 15 it was.
Can I just say that giving you the choice to cycle a shorter distance at that stage relies too heavily on willpower. It's like giving Vanessa Feltz chocolate to look after - she's going to eat it.

So I did the 67 miles in 5 hrs 9 mins including 40 mins total stopped at rest areas.
This time isn't great but it's got to be greater than what the majority of the UK could do it in.

On the plus side because I wimped out of the 100 I'm down on the 100 miles results as doing it in 5 hours which puts me up with the racing whippets.

Since this is a blog about cycling rather than me here's the review:

Good points
1 Food still bit weird but better - apple pies, sausage rolls not so good but bananas, hot cross buns and energy drinks better
2 Good spacing of stops means just as you can't be bothered anymore there's a nice little rest stop.
3 No queues for toilets at venue
4 Easier to park (I thought anyway)
5 Nice atmosphere
6 Massage at end of ride
7 Food at end BUT not free despite £35 entrance fee
8 Good signposting
9 Good marshalling
10 Nice route with hills at the start
11 Good venue to set off from - Crewe Alex ground
12 General atmosphere was great with plenty of people to chat to and stuff.

Bad points
1 The food at rest stops still not great - I just don't think pastry is what you need on a long bike ride.
2 I thought the route wasn't quite as scenic as last year although it's difficult to appreciate the scenery when your eyes are stinging with sweat and you feel like crying so maybe this is irrelevant.
3 Big queues at registration - unavoidable I suppose with 2700 people signing in but still annoying.
4 Big queues to set off - see above.
5 That blooming massive Mow Cop hill, which I have yet to get up.
5 Parking better than last year but still had to park a couple of miles away
6 The constant wind in my face from about mile 30

Things i would do differently next year

1 Get there earlier - by the time I was registered and set off it was 10.30, which meant I felt like I was at the back of the pack for the whole ride - I was but that's not the point.
2 Get fitter
3 Lose weight
4 Do the 100 miler
5 Better gearing for Mow Cop (YES it's gear ratios and not ability I say).
6 Get with a group and stick with them
7 Don't take so many water bottles - four in total - one of which I lost and the other I threw away due to general annoyance.
8 Register the day before

Chris Hoy takes tenth Gold at Worlds

2010-03-26T12:21:01Z

It's a formidable achievement and he is a sporting great but it's all a bit boring.
I just can't get into it - it's men on bikes cycling around a wooden circuit; let me break it down for you:
1 The bikes - boring, there's only one speed, no brakes and due to regulations no fancy designs. You'd never hanker after one of them like you do Steve Peat's Santa Cruz or Lance's Trek Madone.
2 The course - well, it's round, it's wood and it kind-of looks the same wherever you are on the thing.
3 The outfits - the British one's alright but you're never going to buy it in the shops and wear it out for a bike ride unless you're looking to be attacked by a bunch of feral youths.
4 The scenery - limited and mainly consisting of the same people once every 45 seconds.
5 The drama - Not many crashes, no sweeping descents, battle for the line lasts about 10 seconds, no jumps, no mud.

I hate to be negative about something we're actually good at but there you go - I think track cycling is boring.

9 Lakes in 9 Hours - Ha - they'll be lucky if I manage it in 9 days

2010-03-26T12:02:53Z

To cut a long story short I've agreed to do the 9 Lakes in 9 Hours Challenge all for charity.
You can view my Just Giving page here.

Although since this is a blog, what's the point in cutting a story short, if I did that then this would simply consist of one sentence.
So, I received an email from Joe Essex about an event involving cycling, walking, canoeing - what fun.
I looked at pictures of people laughing, joking and having a great time.
I emailed back and said 'looks good'.
Time passed and then Joe phoned me asking for a deposit as I was now on the team.
Brilliant so I now I have a month to get in shape to mountain bike for 4 hours, climb a mountain then canoe the length of a large lake.
If I had a month to get out of shape then this would not be a problem - that would be easy.

Anyway must go - I've got to stock up on calories - last thing I need is a calorie shortage come May 1