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Councillor pictured celebrating after popular bike lane is ripped up; HIGNFY shares Highway Code news with a cyclists dig; LEJOG record; Liam Gallagher celebrates GB's morning glory; G needs a break; Carapaz's gold Pinarello + more on the live blog

Dan Alexander's here for your final live blog of the week and we're going out how we started - celebrating a GB gold medal...

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30 July 2021, 16:09
Just a joke or another unnecessary cyclist-bashing dig? Have I Got News For You weighs in on Highway Code changes by having a pop at those on two wheels

What do we make of this then? The replies and comments are a bit spicy, but in fairness, many hit back at HIGNFY...

Alexander Wooldridge Smith, for example, said: "All jokes aside many motorists think they have right of way over cyclists in all situations. I predict more death by car from drivers who never read the highway code again after they pass their test."

Richard Skidmore smacked down the 'us vs them' mentality: "Crappy drivers make crappy cyclists, crappy cyclists make crappy drivers. They think they own the road and the rules are optional for them regardless of which mode of transport they are currently using."

It's Friday, I get it, you just want to grab a can and have a laugh, enough of this serious stuff...Allow Kevin Follit to provide that (typos included free of charge): "All car driver's have had to pass a test, therefore are all highly skilled at what they do, they also pay for the privilege of using the UK'S perfect ,well maintained,pot hole free roads.as for cyclist's: well,i rest my case"

10/10. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off for a pint with Kevin to find out where these perfect pothole-free roads are...Happy weekend!

30 July 2021, 15:45
How many Tour de France yellow jerseys will 29-year-old Pog own?
Pogacar, Vingegaard and Carapaz on 2021 Tour de France Stage 17 (picture credit A.S.O./Pauline Ballet)

We asked you lot to look into those handy crystal balls and tell us how many Tour de France yellow jerseys Tadej Pogacar will have by the time his bumper new six-year contract with UAE Team Emirates ends in 2027...27 per cent say four, 26 per cent say five, 12 per cent say three, 10 per cent say two and 12 per cent of you went for the big one...Seven or eight...Check back in 2027 to see if you were right...

Live blog poll result 30/7/2021
30 July 2021, 14:07
Cycling Mikey and Co react to Cllr Steve Radford proudly celebrating his Olympic bike lane-bashing gold medal

It's always good to keep it classy, even when you win. Even when your win is removing infrastructure helping your constituents travel safely by bike. Steve Radford missed that memo. He must have been out parading ripped out wands at that point. If there's one lighter side to this it might be a relieved Ed Davey, leader of the Lib Dems, avoiding getting caught in the crossfire, meant for the Liberal Party involved here. Poor Ed was taking a social media kicking from one user who soon realised he had the wrong liberals...

Here's some more of the reaction going around...

30 July 2021, 13:49
Geraint Thomas weighing up contract offers ahead of Ineos Grenadiers exit
Geraint Thomas (via GCN/Eurosport)

Geraint Thomas says he will listen to any team interested in his services for 2022. The Welshman's current deal with Ineos Grenadiers expires at the end of the season and is unlikely to be extended.

Having won the 2018 Tour de France, Thomas has struggled to repeat the highs of his greatest achievement on the road, crashing out of last year's Giro d'Italia and struggling with crash-induced injuries at this year's Tour. 12th in the Olympic Games TT capped off a disappointing summer for the 35-year-old, who says he is looking forward to taking a short break from the sport.

"It’s just been tough, especially mentally. People like to stick in the knife in a bit when things aren’t quite going your way, but you just need to stay positive and try and keep going. It’s been tough but I’m looking forward to getting away from the cycling world now," he said.

"I have a few offers but I’m just waiting to speak to one other person. We’ll try and get that resolved quickly because it’s starting to play on your mind, you just want to get that sorted, but we’ll see. I’m just open to listen to everyone. Once we’ve got everything on the table, we’ll go from there."

30 July 2021, 13:20
First glimpse at Richie Carapaz's bling golden frame

Yes...This right here. This is what we've been waiting six days to see on our screens: Richard Carapaz's gold Pinarello frame looking absolutely majestic. Greg Van Avermaet made the most of his five-year reign, rocking up every week with his famous golden helmet. Stop sniggering...

As pleased as we were for Primoz Roglic, we'd have loved to see Filippo Ganna's glorious Pinarello TT machine decked out in Olympic champ's colours, but I guess Richie C's will have to do...

30 July 2021, 11:22
A hero's welcome greets Olympic champion Primoz Roglic on his return to Slovenia

After his cruel Tour de France heartbreak two years running, we're pretty pleased for Primoz... 

30 July 2021, 11:01
Christina Mackenzie breaks Land's End to John O'Groats record

Christina Mackenzie has done it. 51 hours, five minutes and 27 seconds after leaving Land's End, the Stirling Cycling Club rider reached John O'Groats, smashing the 19-year-old record for the fastest female LEJOG. The provisional time is more than an hour-and-a-half faster than Lynne Taylor's record from 2002.

Mackenzie was up on the schedule since the opening 100 miles and extended her advantage as she passed into Scotland yesterday lunchtime. After a short stop for clothes and to warm up after the punishing Highlands section, she pushed on for the flatter final miles this morning, reaching John O'Groats just after 11am. Chapeau.

30 July 2021, 10:42
Don't mind me starting a petition for the BBC to hire G and LG to host a live show during Olympic track cycling events
30 July 2021, 09:52
Councillor pictured celebrating as popular pop-up bike lane is ripped out

The political cock-ups keep coming...On Wednesday, it was Liverpool's climate emergency chief promising his commitment to cycling infrastructure in front of the cycle lane on West Derby Road which was about to be ripped out. And now yesterday, Liberal Party councillor Steve Radford popped up triumphantly holding two of the removed wands aloft like a beaming athlete celebrating Olympic gold...He even had a medal around his neck...

Some have been quick to point out certain inconsistencies with the front page of the Liberal Party website...

Former Liverpool footballer Jamie Carragher, who once got himself into hot water for spitting at another motorist on a similar stretch of the city's road network, welcomed the news of the bike lane's removal and asked for "the same on Stanley Road in Kirkdale".

Others on Twitter asked if Cllr Radford would be so triumphant the next time the road is congested or if a road user is injured on the stretch.

30 July 2021, 09:49
Poll: How many yellow jerseys will Tadej Pogacar have won by the time his new six-year contract expires
 
How many yellow jerseys will Pog have won by 2027?

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Created with Poll Maker

30 July 2021, 09:37
Tadej Pogacar signs 'longest contract in cycling history' as UAE Team Emirates reward 22-year-old for second yellow jersey
2021 Tour de France Luz Ardiden Pogacar ASO:Charly Lopez - 1

Tadej Pogacar: 22 years old, two Tour de France yellow jerseys, six Tour stage wins, 29 pro wins, two Tour de France KOM jerseys, Olympic Games bronze medal, one Monument and now...a bumper six-year contract with UAE Team Emirates. No wonder young Tadej looks so stress-free.

His team and pro cycling reporters are touting this as one of the longest contracts in the history of professional cycling and so far, nobody can think of anyone who got more than six years. It means Pogacar will be 29 by the time he could leave UAE Team Emirates. 

In a team press release, Pogacar said: "I’m really happy to be able to commit my future to the team and stay here for the next years. I feel at home here, it feels like a big family. This team is a really good fit for me and I am fortunate to say that I have not only found colleagues but friends. I’m excited for the years ahead and what they will bring, hopefully more success for me and for the team. I hope we are inspiring lots of kids to ride bikes."

How many yellow jerseys will Pog have by 2027?

30 July 2021, 09:24
Alexei Sayle's Cyclogeography

road.cc Oli sold this to me as "quite entertaining if you're a fan of heavy breathing, 1980s, left-wing alternative comedians pootling around Milton Keynes with a Go Pro (ok, quite niche)". Now, if I know you lot, that's up there with Channel 5 broadcasters schooling aggressive drivers with razor-sharp 360-degree footage, as our favourite live blog genre...Enjoy! 

30 July 2021, 08:49
Find yourself a mate who supports you like Kye Whyte supports Bethany Shriever

Fantastic scenes in Tokyo as Kye Whyte wins Britain's first ever Olympic medal in the BMX race, before teammate Bethany Shriever takes gold a short while later...This was Whyte's home club at 2am this morning. You can't tell me that hasn't inspired the next generation.

30 July 2021, 07:54
"BMX racing is blowing my mind": Liam Gallagher captivated by Team GB's BMX morning glory in Tokyo

Was Liam Gallagher up early or up late for the BMX finals this morning? Who knows. One thing we do know, is that he loved it... 

One gold for Bethany Shriever and a silver for Kye Whyte made it a worthwhile watch for the former Oasis frontman. Some might say, in the BMX you've got to roll with it...Bethany did just that for a famous win that'll live forever for all who were up to see it. The GB athletes are almost certainly far too committed for any cigarettes & alcohol celebrations, but whatever they choose. I'm sure LG will be proud... DA x

Dan is the road.cc news editor and joined in 2020 having previously written about nearly every other sport under the sun for the Express, and the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for The Non-League Paper. Dan has been at road.cc for four years and mainly writes news and tech articles as well as the occasional feature. He has hopefully kept you entertained on the live blog too.

Never fast enough to take things on the bike too seriously, when he's not working you'll find him exploring the south of England by two wheels at a leisurely weekend pace, or enjoying his favourite Scottish roads when visiting family. Sometimes he'll even load up the bags and ride up the whole way, he's a bit strange like that.

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74 comments

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hawkinspeter replied to quiff | 3 years ago
3 likes

quiff wrote:

Fair point, but personally I didn't think "we're introducing a revised highway code which prioritises cyclists and will advertise it with a behaviorual campaign" was a bad response (though it looks from the page like that was their second go at responding after the Petitions Committee asked them to have another crack at answering the question). 

To be fair, the tabard petitions generally don't even warrant a response as they don't get the requisite 10,000 signatures. 

The "aggressive drivers" petition was over 19000 the last time I checked. The problem is that they're not addressing the key problem of drivers using aggressive behaviour against cyclists and instead they're talking about road safety (not that I don't like a bit of road safety). It implies that they're happy for motorists to continue to shout obscenities at cyclists for imagined transgressions even though that can have a huge effect on whether people choose to cycle or not.

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brooksby replied to hawkinspeter | 3 years ago
0 likes

hawkinspeter wrote:

quiff wrote:

Fair point, but personally I didn't think "we're introducing a revised highway code which prioritises cyclists and will advertise it with a behaviorual campaign" was a bad response (though it looks from the page like that was their second go at responding after the Petitions Committee asked them to have another crack at answering the question). 

To be fair, the tabard petitions generally don't even warrant a response as they don't get the requisite 10,000 signatures. 

The "aggressive drivers" petition was over 19000 the last time I checked. The problem is that they're not addressing the key problem of drivers using aggressive behaviour against cyclists and instead they're talking about road safety (not that I don't like a bit of road safety). It implies that they're happy for motorists to continue to shout obscenities at cyclists for imagined transgressions even though that can have a huge effect on whether people choose to cycle or not.

The Govts official position is clearly "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me".

Avatar
quiff replied to hawkinspeter | 3 years ago
1 like

hawkinspeter wrote:

The problem is that they're not addressing the key problem of drivers using aggressive behaviour against cyclists... It implies that they're happy for motorists to continue to shout obscenities at cyclists for imagined transgressions...

I don't think we're really disagreeing, but... while I agree that revising the code and educating people about it doesn't directly address drivers who use intimidating behaviour, surely it could help in reducing the number of perceived transgressions that lead some people (wrongly) to behave that way. So, to put it simplistically, rather than run a campaign which says "punishment passes are dangerous and scary and put people off cycling, so please don't do it", I'd prefer a campaign which says "cyclists are entitled to use the road and it's your obligation to pass them safely", i.e. making clear there is no infraction to 'punish' in the first place.      

Avatar
hawkinspeter replied to quiff | 3 years ago
1 like

Why not both? I'm quite happy for there to be a road safety campaign that explicitly states cyclists/scooters rights on the road, but I think there's also a need for a driver anti-aggression campaign.

"Here's Brian. Brian thinks he owns the road and frequently shouts at other drivers and toots his own horn. Look, here he's shouting at cyclists for not using the cycle lane" - camera focusses on totally rubbish cycle lane with maybe a fallen cyclist with loads of glass in their tyres. "Brian's a proper twat which is why his wife is leaving him, but Brian takes out all his anger on the road. Don't be like Brian, share and care."

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quiff replied to hawkinspeter | 3 years ago
1 like

Ok, you've convinced me.

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wycombewheeler replied to bobbinogs | 3 years ago
4 likes

bobbinogs wrote:

My concern with this kind of change, irrespective of its rights and wrongs, is how effective it will be and the timescale.  The vast majority of drivers out there will not have read a version of the HC in the last 20/30/40/50 years so any new changes will take a similar timescale to roll through unless the Gov tackles the thorny question "How do HC updates get taken on board by the people actually driving"?  I would vote for some regulation that forces an HC refresher/online exam at least every 10 years, but I have yet to hear any senior politician mention similar.  So just words, in a doc, with widescale ignorance amongst the masses.

now with photocard licenses needing renewal every 10 years, and online testing of highway code possible this seems like fairly low hanging fruit, unfortunately still too high for those in charge of road safety in this country.

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IanMK replied to wycombewheeler | 3 years ago
1 like

As I think I've said before, watch a video and answer a couple of simple questions to ensure that you were paying some attention. Must be easy to arrange and you'd hope that drivers would understand their responsibility even if they don't do anything about it.

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wycombewheeler replied to IanMK | 3 years ago
1 like

IanMK wrote:

As I think I've said before, watch a video and answer a couple of simple questions to ensure that you were paying some attention. Must be easy to arrange and you'd hope that drivers would understand their responsibility even if they don't do anything about it.

I agree, I think it would be easy peasy lemon squeezy (unlike getting a good trade deal after Brexit) I just don't think it will happen (very much like getting a good trade deal afetr brexit)

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Pyro Tim | 3 years ago
2 likes

Congrats to Kye and Beth. Awesome riders, awesome people. BMX was already riding a wave of increased participation from Covid, and this will be huge.

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brooksby | 3 years ago
1 like

I caught the BMX racing last night.

On the one hand, you just want to laugh: it looks like bears on clown bikes.

And yet you watch it and think how easily it could all go badly wrong.

Very, very skilled to do that.

 

(the other weird thing was watching them going up-and-down so quickly along the track, it almost looked like distortion on my TV...).

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OldRidgeback replied to brooksby | 3 years ago
4 likes

There's bound to be a BMX club near you. Go to a track and give it a try  1

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EddyBerckx replied to OldRidgeback | 3 years ago
1 like

OldRidgeback wrote:

There's bound to be a BMX club near you. Go to a track and give it a try  1

I started off on a bmx in the 80's and every now and then, look into the olympic park bmx taster sessions...but FFS, the bikes seem so small for adults!!!!

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Hirsute replied to brooksby | 3 years ago
0 likes

All the highlights I have seen involve a crash !

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LastBoyScout replied to brooksby | 3 years ago
0 likes

I was interested to note the BMX riders were all using SPDs - I thought BMX was one of the bastions of flat pedals.

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