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Velo Birmingham 2017.jpgNo repeat of Vélo Birmingham this year - but event will return in spring 2019 and on a new route
Vélo Birmingham, which saw 15,000 cyclists take to the roads of the West Midlands and neighbouring counties last September, will not return this year with organisers saying that the next edition will take place in spring 2019 on a new route.
The inaugural edition of the event, which claims to be the second biggest closed road sportive in the UK after the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100, was well supported on the day by tens of thousands of people living on the route.
Covering 100 miles, the sportive, which started and finished in Birmingham, also took in roads in Worcestershire and Staffordshire.
However, a small number of opponents of the event including local business owners on the proposed route forced organisers CSM Active to change the planned course several times.
On the day itself there were reports of oil being deliberately spilt on the road as well as tacks spread to cause riders to puncture.
> Vélo Birmingham saboteurs fail to spoil day for riders and locals
By moving the event to the spring, organisers say that participants will benefit from more hours of daylight.
They also promise that “an exciting new route under development will provide the capacity and infrastructure needed to enable the event to fulfil its long-term potential as one of the UK’s biggest participation events.”
Leader of Birmingham City Council, Councillor Ian Ward, commented: “We’re excited to welcome Vélo Birmingham back to the City in the Spring of 2019. The 2017 event was a huge success for Birmingham and is an important part of the City’s cycling strategy.
“The benefits of major events are well known and our cycling strategy is clear - we want to get the Midlands cycling and we plan for Vélo Birmingham to become a key legacy project as we build towards the 2022 Commonwealth Games.”
CSM Active’s chairman, Jon Ridgeon, said: “Whilst the inaugural Vélo Birmingham was a huge success, it was clear to us that some changes would be necessary if the event was to reach its long-term potential.
“Together with our partners Birmingham City Council, we are determined to ensure that this wonderful event continues to develop and evolve, becoming not just bigger and better but also more inclusive and appealing to as wide an audience as possible.”
He added: “The move from September to the Spring along with the new route will provide us with a fantastic, sustainable long-term platform from which to grow in years to come and we can’t wait to return with an even more spectacular event in 2019.”
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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24 comments
Sorry, before the spelling police come out in force "there" should be their!
Too late! You're knicked, Sonny
Do you think we will see Velo Birmingham in 2019......................with this year there will be no event it seems to me the whingers have won! Strange that one day out of 365 can cause such a disagreeable attitude. Surely there were more people out enjoying the event on the roadside than there were whingers! Do there views count for nothing? What is the local attitude toward Velo South?
They're doing it down south this year: https://www.velosouth.com
Perhaps they might alternate the ride each year.
I did like the idea of the velo last year, though the cost put me off. Last year it followed most of my commute route and I would really love to fly through it without any traffic. After all how else am I going to get my strava segments that a reliant on traffic lights being in your favour!
But as another has commented last year, the notifcation to people near by the route was not great and that needs addressing. But ho-hum, could be a laugh, if correctly priced.
you might not notice but considering we are at 40% helmet wearing rate in the UK (if not more) and serious injuries have gone up despite more segregated in London at least and cycling levels have stayed static risk homeostasis is very much at play.
Pro cycling, since mandation and despite the helmets, despite better brakes, better tyres, better handling bikes, despite better on course medi care, more marshals on corners and warnings of stuff, more barriers etc etc there have been more deaths and certainly a shit ton more crashes than there was pre helmet mandation.
These are outcomes replicated the world over (in many different activities/workplaces) when a so called safety aid is put in place (instead of modifying other things) and that safety aid isn't anywhere near good enough to prevent the very injuries it's led people to beleive it does and any actual safety benefit is overcome simply because people take greater risk wearing than not wearing and thus are involved in more incidents and often involving a greater force/speed.
As I said, this risk taking has most definitely increased in spades from all avenues, children and sporting cyclists are the two groups to be more greatly (negatively) effected by wearing, this is very noticeable in sportive type rides and has being mentioned ad nauseum about how a significant number of these types behave
I've not noticed any increased risks due to helmet wearing. Most cyclists know that if you come off it's going to hurt. Head injuries are a lot rarer so I don't see this affecting them.
There was this study - https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/jan/24/bike-helmet-appetite-dan...
that showed helmet wearers took more risks - but this was in the virtual world. As I've said the real world hurts.
I've also not noticed any increase in crashes for me and my pals and we all date back to pre helmets.
Riding standards are a bit crap nowadays but I think that's down to people not joining clubs but doing the MAMIL thing alone and not learning how to ride properly.
Is this a double-blind controlled study, meta-analysis or merely a useless anecdote?
Whose riding standards? How many? Where? Oh, another anecdote.
Meanwhile you may (or may not) be interested in Dr Ian Walker's research - yes proper academic research, not your tales - showing that drivers tend to pass closer when overtaking cyclists wearing helmets than those who are bare-headed. While it isn't the only factor it is more reliable than your tales. And if you don't understand the term 'risk compensation' then try searching for it on that there internet thing.
I have to say I think that's uncalled for (as well as inaccurate*) and not constructive in this context. Are there no forums that would welcome this kind of drivel - Top Gear perhaps or something aimed at Sun readers?
While not being one for crowds, it's obvious to me that a big sportive-type event can provide an experience that solo or group riding or even modest organised events like audax or reliabilities don't provide. Each to their own, I say. There are enough roads to accomodate our varied preferences. And if it gets people out on bikes who would otherwise stay at home or use a car then it's surely a good thing, isn't it?
* plenty of these riders are very competent racers; also, females, many wearing helmets, have been known to participate too.
The main issue of Velo Birmingham is Birmingham - I'd pay the money just to stay away!
We should also be focussing here on the elephant in the room, the endangerment of lives that seems to have had an impact. If i throw oil, glass, tacks, rocks etc. from a bridge over the M6 would that then give me the justification to call for it to be closed to motorised vehicles on Fridays? We could have a lovely TT.
In the rant, you miss an actual good point from BTBS. I like a good Sportive as it gives me and my group a few events to look forward to and enjoy, maybe even a bit of charity work - having said that prices are creeping up so a few GPX route steals may be in the offing. I disagree with his 'plastic hat wearing' comment, don't judge people on the choices you decide to (or not to) make. However, in most Sportives there's the other end of the scale where you will have a club team of about 8. Again, I don't mind them (even if a tad arrogant) but they will fly past the shoulder at 25-30mph. I'd like to think I'm relatively experienced, certainly more so than many sportive riders; their likelihood to collide with some of them is ridiculous.
it's the fact that wearing helmets has greatly increased the risk taking, particularly by the more enthusiastic/sporting rider, this is noted up and down dale at the weekend, in sportives and indeed in the amateur racing scene and pro ranks thus more crashes than ever.
This increased risk taking is seen in sportives aplenty, people doing dangerous stuff because they think they're protected and have that it's a closed road we can ride how the fuck we like attitude (similalrly to being in a race) that is far too common with the plastic hat wearing brigade of the modern day sporting rider.
The change in attitude (negatively) over the last 15 years is astounding and shocking, yes some of it is down to how motorists treat people on bikes but I've being experiencing that since 1986 as a commuter/going out at the weekends, the facts speak for themselves, pastic hat wearers in general are far more agressive/dangerous in their actions (you ony need read.listen to the multiple helmet saved my life BS every week even if you ignore the stats themeselves). Mix that with a hugely differing level of abilities on sportive rides and you have what you described happening to yourself and it's not just the odd incident either.
THAT is why I'm calling closed road sportives as much if not more dangerous and why/who the problem is, I didn't say all BTW, I said some/increasing number.
No repeat of Velo Birmingham this year?? That's not what it says in their email that I received last week. It specifically says ""In the coming weeks we're hoping to announce a brand new 100 mile closed road Velo event whcih will take place in Autumn 2018".
Or maybe they're planning it somewhere other than Birmingham?
Not even thinly veiled hatred and contempt from BTBS; perhaps it is best if you do ride on your own, and maybe don't get behind the wheel of a motorised vehicle.
Probably got dropped in a race or left behind in an organised event and just can't let it go.
Judging by that rant, somebody wanked in his plastic hat once.
Don't suggest he is angry, he doesn't like it if you call him angry.
Oh well. If you'll miss it, take the appropriate kit, and get out to ride the roads for free without 1000s of other cyclists clogging the route.
Why do people insist on making this suggestion as if it is comparable. This is a 'Closed road' event. That means no cars, no traffic lights, service/water/food stations, etc.
No it's not directly comparable, but (as stated) a reminder that you can ride the same roads for free. And yes we know there will be no feed stations for people who can't ride 20 miles without a banana and 2 gels and that they will mix with traffic.
A colleague of mine lives in Womborne. He didn't mind the closure for the last event but was concerned about the confusing and very limited information provided to residents at the last minute. And knowing how busy the roads around there can be, even on a Sunday, I'd suggest spending the money on a train ticket to somewhere with quieter roads and riding those for free instead.
Riding with a fuck ton load of wannabe plastic hat wearing wankers is often worse than doing a ride at the weekend on normal roads WITH motorised traffic.
I've done a fair few audax/brevet populaire and century rides over the years and can't say I've have any hairy moments on the organised events and no more than the odd nobber on my own rides, given the stories that come from pretty much every sportive since they became popular I'm glad I'm excluded frankly.
If you want to race or ride like a cunt, go enter a race or stick to riding on an indoor machine where you cant harm/piss off others. Maybe read up on riding etiquette and your legal responsibilities whilst you're at it.
Wow, what an impressive rant. Are you on medication?
Did you have a point about the topic subject or are you just here to write pointless crap?
Oh, the irony.......
How is it ironic, go on, I made a point regarding the dangerousness of big field sportives compared to the open roads in general and the number of sporting cyclists who make those closed road events far more dangerous. This is a reality for far too many 'sportive' events.
So my post was not 'pointless crap' or ironic, it made a salient point, unlike your witless offering which is very ironic isn't it luv.
What an odd nobber!