Cyclists don't pay 'road tax'! (Except this one slapped with £1,500 bill); CyclingMikey interview; Maxine Peake talks Festive 500 on The One Show; Jan Ullrich rubbishes rehab rumours; Injured Van der Poel ends CX season; Cafe ride + more on the live blog

A Police Service Northern Ireland (PSNI) official has claimed that Belfast's party bikes have no place on the city's streets and are causing a "world of pain" for authorities. The bikes, described as "pubs on wheels", can hold up to 18 people who pedal along while drinking and playing music.

However, a PSNI official expressed concern in an email seen by Belfast Live: "As regards the party bike - that's a whole other world of pain that neither BCC (Belfast City Council) or police have managed to crack either through application of construction and use legislation or on-street drinking bye-laws."

"I honestly don't see any safe place for that contraption, but finding a legal remedy has so far failed."

Belfast City Council has always insisted responsibility falls to the police to enforce by-laws against street drinking.

One cyclist now has the perfect response to any online troll brandishing 'cyclists don't pay road tax' in defence of (usually) very bad driving...because he does pay road tax...well, not really, because the summon from India's Dibiyapur municipality has been scrapped and there is an investigation into why they were served the £1,500 bill...

Suresh Chandra from Sehud owns just a bicycle but was slapped with a notice to stump up Rs 1.5 lakh (roughly £1,500) as a motor vehicle tax between June 2014 and September 2021.

DNA reports the security guard took the note to his neighbours as he and his son could not read the letter, and were surprised to find out it had been issued in the name of his 16-year-old son, Sudhir.

An ARTO official said the notice had been incorrectly issued and that the matter will be thoroughly investigated and action taken against the persons responsible.

And they didn't even need a loophole-specialising lawyer to get them off the charge...

Back on 🔝! @WoutvanAert 🇧🇪 delivers another knockout 🥊 blow as he dominates the field to win the @X2OTrofee in Herentals!

🥇 @WoutvanAert 🇧🇪
🥈 @Tompid 🇬🇧
🥉 @ToAerts 🇧🇪

A preview of the podium at the World Championships 🌈 in Fayetteville? pic.twitter.com/ByfdwXsNxv

— GCN Racing (@GcnRacing) January 5, 2022

Wout van Aert did what Wout van Aert does...winning the cyclo-cross in Herentals this afternoon. BUT the big news, following on from Mathieu van der Poel's announcement that his cross season is over, is that Van Aert has in the last few minutes confirmed he won't be travelling to the US for the World Championships later this month...

No Van der Poel or Van Aert wearing the rainbow bands in 2022-23. Whisper it...but it's looking like as good a chance as ever for Tom Pidcock. The Brit was second behind his Belgian rival this afternoon. 

Van Aert said he wants to prioritise being in top shape for the spring campaign on the road, something the world champs in Fayetteville, North Carolina, would hamper. He also had some kind words for his injured great rival...

🗨️ Wout van Aert: "It's a shame that Mathieu isn't in the races anymore and that he is struggling with an injury. I wish him the best from here. I hope that he will be back soon because cyclocross and the whole cycling world needs riders like Mathieu." pic.twitter.com/DHWE72RhR3

— Cyclocross24.com (@cyclocross24) January 5, 2022

Maxine Peake was on The One Show last night talking about her new BBC drama Rules of the Game...AND more importantly the Rapha Festive 500.

Maxine completed the challenge with seven rides, mainly around the Manchester area and down into Cheshire, averaging 71.46km per activity.

And before she began talking to Alex Jones and Jermaine Jenas about her new show, the actress addressed the important business — riding bikes.

"It can get in the way of your Christmas a little bit," Peake admitted. "You're taking your bike everywhere and constantly checking your Strava to make sure you've made the miles, but it's good because it plateaus off the weight gain."

Anyone else complete the 500?

World champion Mathieu van der Poel will not defend his cyclo-cross world title later this month, Alpecin-Fenix have announced. Van der Poel's winter has been blighted by injury, and following the latest flare up of his back injury, the 26-year-old has decided to prioritise recovery, hopefully in time for the spring Classics.

The news is not particularly unexpected. Yesterday, Van der Poel's father, Adrie, told Sporza that his son would not be competing this week and hinted that the remainder of his cyclo-cross season was in jeopardy.

This morning, in a team press release, Mathieu confirmed the news, "I can't say much about it, it is what it is. Because of that back pain I haven’t been able to reach my desired level since the Tour. I just want that to be in the past.

"The only remedy turns out to be a longer rest period. It would therefore be foolish to interrupt this period again and still try to make it to the World Championships. We all agree on that. Even though it is very bitter – I have participated in the World CX Championships 10 consecutive times – not being able to defend my title in the States is a real downer.

"I'm not worried about the future of my career, but of course it frustrates me now not knowing how long this rest period will last. We’ll only set a date and goals if we can do so in a substantiated manner. Until then, I'll do what I can."