Hive Weekly Cycling News - 20 April 2023
It’s been another big week in cycling. There is a lot happening and teams are putting in there final preparations to get ready for the 2023 Giro d'Italia which is only a couple of weeks away and is the first grand tour of the year. We mentioned two weeks ago that the Zaaf Women’s Cycling team from Spain was having difficulty paying its riders and staff, but UCI has allowed it’s riders to seek other teams if they wish, and will most likely mean some of the big names will be heading to new teams ready for the Giro.
The main news this week will most likely be coming from the Amstel Gold Race in the Netherlands for both the mens and womens. There is still some controversy from the Paris-Roubaix though with tubeless tyre technology being blamed for a large number of the crashes. We have the details below, but before you read the details, you might also want to read the article posted in the Cycling community this week from @mrprofessor as he provides his experience with the tyre technology of the past nine months.
Link to tubeless tyre experience post: https://hive.blog/hive-177745/@mrprofessor/cycling-tubeless-vs-tubes-a-nine-months-experience
There is lots of good stories, so keep reading and I didn’t think I would be writing about Arnold Schwarzenegger in these articles, but here you go.
Silvia Persico Wins The Brabanste Pijl In The Rain
Italian rider Silvia Persico for UAE Team ADQ won her first race of the year in the 2023 edition of the women’s Branbanste Pijl. A race spanning over 141km in Belgium. There were plenty of attacks through out the day, which helped reduce the main bunch to a smaller size. The race finishes with an uphill climb, which saw SD Worx rider Demi Vollering attach first in the final stages, but it ended up being too early, which allowed Persico to comeback and take the win from Vollering. Liane Lippert of Team Movistar was not far behind to take third place. The SD Worx team have been winning almost everything this year, so it was interesting to see them not come away with this victory after being in striking position for most of the race.
[Image Courtesy Of Getty Images]
Arnold Schwarzenegger Helps Fellow Cyclists And Repairs Neighbourhood Pothole
The former California Governor and movie star, Arnold Schwarzenegger, grew tired of waiting around for the City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation to come and repair a pot hole in his neighbourhood in Pacific Palisades. So he took things into his own hands and decided to fill up the pot hole himself.
The 75 year old announced on twitter when he took things into his own hands, filling up the large pothole himself and helping out his fellow cyclists and commuters:
"After the whole neighbourhood has been upset about this giant pothole that’s been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks, I went out with my team and fixed it."
He also wrote on Twitter.
"I always say, let’s not complain, let’s do something about it. Here you go."
He also posted an accompanying video where he states he had been waiting on the pothole to be filled up for three weeks. It has actually come to hand that the hole was actually a service trench that relates to active, permitted work being performed at the location by SoCal Gas, who expects the work to be completed by the end of May. I guess someone should have actually replied to Mr Schwarzenegger, when he made his original complaint.
Crashes In The Paris-Roubaix Sparks Debate Over Tubeless Tyre Safety
The Paris-Roubaix is known for its crashes and it is probably one of the main reasons why it is such a popular race. The cobbled stone streets usually cause a lot of issues for rides but with almost 100% of riders taking on the race this year using tubeless, it was seen to cause extra issues. Both Vincenzo Nibble and Luke Rowe have spoken out about the tyre technology, with riders seeing their tyres come of their bike rims completely when they loose tyre pressure due to a puncture on the cobbled stone streets.
Luke Rowe has shared his theories that teams are not using a liner in the tubeless tyres which does weigh a little more and could slow the riders down, it does add an extra piece of safety when the tyre punctures. Rowe believes this is a big cause of the crashes in the Roubaix.
Vincenzo Nibali has been quoted as saying, “Tubeless will never be as safe as tubulars. Make sure you know it!. In a race like Paris-Roubaix, tubulars are still the safest choice because if you puncture, the tyre doesn’t come off. And so you reduce the risk of crashing”
Tadej Pogačar Dominates To Win The Amstel Gold Race in Netherlands
It is getting to be a familiar story this year with Tadej Pogačar being able to break away from the field in the Amstel Gold Race to grab another important win for UAE Team Emirates.
On Sunday, April 16, Amstel Gold Race returned for a 57th edition for men race, which was founded in 1966, with the Amstel Gold Race the only Classic in the Netherlands. Tadej Pogačar of UAE Team Emirates was able to power to a solo victory with 29km left in the race, after he dropped Tom Pidcock of Ineos Grenadiers and Ben Healy of EF Education-EasyPost
The top three riders were part of a 16 man break with 90km to go in the race. Pogačar was able to split the group with 36km left in the race with only Pidcock and Healy the only riders to follow him when he made the break. Pogačar then broke away from Pidcock and Healy with 29km left in the race to claim a dominant solo win.
To add some extra drama to the end of the race, Pogačar was accused of drafting off the lead organisation car in his win in the race with a complaint lodged. The Amstel Gold Race directory was quick to try and shut the drama down advising the lead car gave no advantage to Pogačar during his race win.
[Image Courtesy Getty Images]
Demi Vollering Wins 2023 Amstel Gold Race Ladies Edition
Another big with for Team SD Worx as Demi Vollering finally made first place in the Amstel Gold Race for the Ladies Edition of 2023. Vollering came in at seventh place in 2019 and was the runner up in 2021 and 2022, but 2023 was going to be her yeah with her first win over the 155km race.
The race started with a number of attacks early on in the race, but none of them seemed to take shape with the main group bring each of the break aways back. Demi Vollering had the best timing for the day as she timed her attack with only 2km to go in the race. Her break was a complete surprise with no-one following and left none of the riders able to catch her before she rode to victory. SD Worx teammate Lotte Kopecky was able to hold onto second place with Shirin van Anrooij of Trek-Segafredo taking the third spot.
Garmin Has Released The Latest Versions Of Their 540 and 840 Cycling Computers
Probably one of the most popular cycling computers out there, Garmin has just released its new and updated 540 and 840 cycling computers almost a year after the 1040 had its major update. Garmin has given two of its best selling cycling computers a big upgrade which includes solar charging, improved positioning and maps, personalised coaching, real-time stamina readings and climb pro ascent planner. Both were launched about four years ago and the new versions include small and rugged packaging, with the solar models providing 32 hours of battery life, with a predicted 60 hours of battery life when it is in battery saver mode.
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About The Author
I am a DevOps Engineer, Endurance Athlete, Biomechanics Student and Author. We can all achieve amazing things, it's just a matter of trying, I want to change the world, one run at a time.
I really like your Cycling neww initiative!
In the meanwhile Pogacar already won another race with an impressive jump on the wall of Huy.
That climb is still on my bucket list by the way way.
And Vollering is in great shape too!
Upvoted by the Cycling Community
Yeah Vollering is in really good shape. I have not seen her do the longer stage races so am looking forward to seeing her in the Giro. And Pogaca will be difficult to beat as well.
These posts are helping me with my regular writing and knowledge of cycling, which in my sport, I need to improve by bike leg a lot. !LUV
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Yooo thanks for mentioning me. I think teams need to rethink their bicycles for races like Paris-Roubaix; they are working on the limit of weight/strength. Are they running 25 or 28 tires? Wider wheels are definitely safer to run tubeless.
No problem. It was good timing and a good post in the cycling community...thanks for sharing. It will be interesting to see how future races go and hopefully it will be coming safer for the riders.