YouTube ranter rips into cyclists during bizarre cancel bike lanes video; Reaction to TfL road safety shocker; Dan Bigham "seven watts" off Hour Record; DnB by bike: Cop edition; BMX skills; Not Black Friday; But cyclists + more on the live blog

You may have seen our latest story about the Dorset bike lane causing a stir amongst motorists for being "too wide". Former BBC radio presenter turned YouTube ranter and Katie Hopkins support act, (tickets still available for the Blackpool shows if you really want to give your family a Christmas to forget) Alex Belfield, also saw the news and took a break from spouting about just about every other issue in Britain to give his self-proclaimed 'Voice of Reason'...

> Row over Dorset cycle lane that drivers claim is “too wide”

Strap yourselves in for this one...during his three-and-a-half minute video, Belfield says, "I have come to the conclusion as there are now roads that are basically for cyclists, with one little lane for cars in the middle, it is simply too dangerous now for cyclists and e-scooterists. We must ban them for their own safety.

In the rest of the rant which Laurence Fox might have been proud of, Belfield came to the questionable conclusion that, "To save the planet and them it is best that they go."

Apparently cyclists' "Supercilious nature is out of control, they're now demanding that we rip up roads and put in 10ft f****** cycle lanes...who signed this off? We've lost our minds. The cycle lanes are now bigger than the road lanes. You've got two wheels. We are this big with our diesels. We need more room or you're going to be in danger."

All a bit ridiculous until you realise Belfield's channel has 350,000 subscribers...

One quick edit and Tom Flood made this alternative to 'See their side'...an improvement? Tom commented on the original ad saying it had missed the point completely, "Once again we are asking the prey to be empathetic towards their predator."

"I am 100% behind finding commonalities and working to reach across the aisle to move forward, but this constant framing of a shared responsibility is a key part of the problem and what we've already been doing for far too long. 

"If the goal is to save lives then there might be some uncomfortable moments for the driver (who takes the lives) but hopefully there can be alliances. But far too often the actual goal is to avoid making the driver uncomfortable which of course compromises the saving lives part."

And here we are...

Quick edit. pic.twitter.com/IjwaWpCmOy

— Tom Flood (@tomflood1) November 26, 2021

Even the Blackpool police got involved (on bikes of course!) although they didn't seem too happy...

Skip to 11:50 if you want to see that particular interaction...but Dom Whiting gave us the lowdown of how it went...

Policeman: CONTROL YOUR CROWD

Dom Whiting: SORRY WHAT?!

A tactical right turn and a cheeky turn of pace left 'PC turn it down' back at the rear of the peloton...

A complete failure of perspective from @tfl and @VCCP https://t.co/i5glWjdmcO

— Cycle Advocacy Network - South East England (@CANSEEngland) November 25, 2021

As promised it's time for some of your thoughts on TfL's road safety disasterpiece...and there were more than a few to choose from. Let's start here...

Like a teacher telling a bully and their victim to “stop fighting”

— that's Bumpo money (@angryaboutbikes) November 25, 2021

Over on Facebook, Kevin Blackburn commented: "One (the driver) has a little fright, the other (cyclist) is nearly killed - how is this equivalent?"

George Charalambides said: "What the ad-maker fails to understand, is the difference between a cyclist’s natural fight or flight response caused by the huge amounts of adrenaline released when they’re about to be hit by a 1.5 tonne car, vs the nuisance anger of a protected car driver. We all know that most drivers are not concerned about the well being of cyclists as they perceive them as obstacles to their path, just like other vehicles, not as vulnerable fellow citizens, around which extra care is warranted." Agree?

joe9090 had a go at summarising..."Hey shouty cyclists, stop shouting at us drivers, don't you see we are sorry we didn't see you? There was sun and shit and I was trying to drink my Costa while quickly checking Whatsapp! Have a heart you bastards!"

> Transport for London slammed for “victim-blaming” road safety ad (+ video)

Quiff commented: "I agree that this video deliberately obfuscates the incident itself to focus on how the protagonists deal with the aftermath. That's all well and good, but in order to have a meaningful impact on road safety, we can't just be nicer to each other after near misses, we need to 'see their side' in order to avoid incidents arising in the first place. E.g. by thinking 'if I was that cyclist, how much space would I want to be given'. However, there is still the false equivalence point, and this looks uncomfortably out of step with the upcoming Highway Code changes to introduce a hierarchy of responsibility."   

Not all the replies were completely against the message however...

MattieKempy said: "Hmmm. A bit of both. Shouting at a driver who has just nearly killed you is an entirely understandable reaction, but I've had the most profitable conversations with almost-killers when I've been calm, polite and dispassionate. So I see both sides of the coin."

We've closed for Black Friday as we're not comfortable with what it represents, instead, we're going on a bike ride for coffee and cake. #BoycottBlackFriday #BlackFriday #islabikes pic.twitter.com/pnpn180Wbn

— Islabikes (@Islabikes) November 26, 2021

If you do want all the Black Friday materialism head over to our special live blog dedicated to finding you the best deals...

British Hour Record holder Dan Bigham is committed to giving the world record another shot next year, and he told Cycling Weekly he is only seven watts off breaking it. Bigham's first attempt wouldn't have counted, even if he'd surpassed Victor Campenaerts' distance, as he rides for Continental team Ribble-Weldtite and is therefore not automatically in the the UCI testing pool.

> Dan Bigham breaks Sir Bradley Wiggins' British Hour Record

However, using the success in Switzerland, Bigham has attracted new sponsors and is keen to give the outright distance a crack in 2022. "I’m not naïve enough to think that I’m better than Filippo Ganna, so whenever he says he’s going for it, that’s my deadline for my own attempt," Bigham told Cycling Weekly.

"In power terms, I only need seven extra watts. I can put seven watts more in, or save seven watts with better drag, improved aerodynamics and efficiency. Or I could do three-and-a-half watts each. How I split those seven watts doesn’t matter. I have an idea where I can make those gains, but it’s not easy.

"I have a few things that I couldn’t access or couldn’t do in the last time frame. A bit more training, six to nine months of progression, a few little tweaks here and there, and I’ll get closer to it."

The road.cc Podcast is back for another episode...

On the dozenth episode... why was cycling and walking not even on the main agenda at COP26? Carlton Reid talks to Simon about the recent UN climate summit.

You can listen here if you need a distraction to get you through Friday...

That’s more like it #denbigh pic.twitter.com/Lp6D3VvxHN

— Geraint Thomas (@GeraintThomas86) November 26, 2021

Is G back home in Wales or still in Monaco? Hard to say from the clear blue skies and inviting seaside vistas. The hashtag suggests Wales, but with views like that you could quite easily be pootling along the French Riviera. On Wednesday he was still in Monaco, sharing pics of a pastry-filled cafe stop with Michael Valgren, Wout Poels and Luke Rowe. We're assuming that was Monaco...maybe he's taken the lads to the homeland for some winter miles?

> Geraint Thomas has bike stolen on coffee stop – but gets it back later the same day

Get your votes in...Wales or Monaco?