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size matters (apparently)

mrs washingmachinepost works in the nursery at the local primary school, providing the benefit of almost 25 years childminding experience. over the past few years, she has learned that bureaucracy is alive and well and living in the corners of the local and national education departments. based solely on the daily moans about meetings (nobody, but nobody holds more meetings than primary school staff), about courses to teach new procedures, and more paperwork than you would think could be fitted inside a single school building, i do wonder if logic has departed. if the kids over the past ten years made it through nursery unscathed, what changed?

i was a primary school child of the 1960s, surviving quite happily in a class of 45 pupils from primary one until primary seven. each year had but a single teacher, with no classroom assistants; contemporary problems such as autism, adhd, aspergers and dyslexia quite probably existed, but seemed not to impede on monday to friday teaching. and, as far as i can recall, caused little to no impediment to learning. we were sent out to play on a tarmac playground without hint nor sight of a health and safety risk assessment, and those who followed me into secondary school where life was a tad more grown-up, but similar in other intents, appear to have emerged as (relatively) responsible adults.

nursery and primary school provide a window into contemporary society. f.w. lancaster's 1970 prophesy of the 'paperless society' has proved to be well wide of the mark, with probably more real and virtual paperwork today than at any point in history. and where once it was possible to phone the precursor of the customer service department to register a product or service complaint, nowadays everything is automated, effectively ensuring that fewer and fewer of us are able to communicate any concerns we might have, always assuming a phone number can be found in the first place. and you can be sure that any changes engendered by the ultility companies, banks, or government departments have been effected to make life easier for them and not for us.

the halcyon days of yore, when the row of road bikes (or ten-speed racers, to which they were affectionately referred) sitting in mr benzie's bike shop, sported 43/53 double chainsets and a five-speed freewheel that topped out at 20 teeth, could be had with 170, 172.5 or 175mm crank arms, the selection depending on the manufacturer. but for the young apprentices who had yet to read richard's bicycle book, colour was far more important than crank arm length. i'm sure many of us recall the one friend who always cycled his dad's bike which was several sizes too large, yet was rarely, if ever, seen as a barrier to cycling.

granted, none of my school friends became professional or even amateur cyclists, and to be honest, very few, if any, still ride bicycles to this day. maybe i just grew up more better? but, combining the apparently myriad ignorances embraced by our schooldays and a lack of any propriety when time came to choose and ride a bicycle, most of us seem to have turned out alright, a fact that i'm sure is true for the majority, in the uk at least.

but it transpires that, though blame can hardly be apportioned to the great unwashed (that would be you and i), everything, if not be enacted incorrectly, was apparently not correct either. at least, not as far as education departments and component manufacturers are concerned. otherwise, why would sram have just released an enhanced smattering of differently lengthed crank arms? added to their red range of crank augmentation, it is now possible to choose from 150, 155, 160, 165, 167.5, 170, 172.5, and 175 mm crank arms, compatible with the power and non-power axs spiders.

presumably working on the principle that more is better, this latest release has, if nothing else, dramatically increased the complexity of choice for the modern-day apprentice. meaning that, admittedly over the course of six and a half decades, we've gone from not caring about chainsets, to requiring a smartphone app to choose one.

how did we ever make it this far?

thursday 15 january 2026

gone south

though it's probably a bit tired by this time, but in april 2015, i reviewed an endura equipe classics s/s jersey with armwarmers. and were it possible to convery a sense of national pride through black and yellow pixels, the opening paragraphs of this review provided possibly the only opportunity i can recall. the jersey was livingston-based endura's response to castelli's unintentionally famous gabba jacket, the success of which several cycling apparel providers were keen to emulate. inside the jersey/jacket was a small inclusive label proclaiming, "if you think the spring classics are bad, try scotland."

this more or less played lip service to my long-held contention that 'hebrideans are the flandrians of the west', fearlessly braving galeforce winds and horizontal rain at the first opportunity. except when we don't. so far as i know, this particular slogan, entirely contradictory to the message propounded by scotland's tourist industry, only ever appeared on this particular garment, something i considered to be a lost opportunity. this may have preceded a subsequent slogan published on the corporate website that claimed, "we'll still be riding bikes when it's no longer cool."

granted, the latter has no specific association with scotland, but it seems worthy of mention nonetheless.

however, in a saturated velocipedinal apparel market, being scottish arguably provided endura with a usp - unique selling point, less than subtly proclaiming that lousy weather was an integral part of their dna. the reality didn't entirely back that up, but in the period when endura sponsored their own british-based continental cycle team, i think that the product range gained not only an enhanced reputation, but thankfully distanced some of their less convincing garments. endura began life in the early 1990s by jim mcfarlane, at the time, recently returned from australia, originally to offer the great unwashed with a cycle helmet, endura had a lengthy head start on the likes of rapha, le col, velobici and several others which formed part of the british cycle clothing revolution. disappointingly, jim and business partner, pam barclay, arguably failed to to take advantage.

in march 2018, jim and pam sold the company to pentland brands, owners of jd sports, berghaus and speedo, with mcfarlane stating at the time, "pentland stands out as an exceptional home for endura, placing it within a family of world class brands under the umbrella of a family owned company that is long-term in its outlook and aligned with our culture and values."

the reality is that, though originally remaining as company directors, both mcfarlane and barclay resigned as company directors in 2024, midway through the company suffering substantial financial losses, as did many other cycling apparel providers. then pentland brands closed the bespoke admin and manufacturing premises in livingston, meaning the end of their long-standing and highly reputable custom clothing business, moving the admin operations to a fourth floor office in george street, edinburgh. pentland brands has now decided to close the scottish operations entirely and move what's left of the brand to london.

according to pentland brands ceo, chirag patel, despite making the majority of the scottish staff redundant, "endura is returning to growth after a challenging period for the cycling category. these changes are about investing in the long-term success of our brands." unfortunately, endura suffered a £14 million loss in 2024 and a further £5 million in 2025. its net assets also dropped from £16.5 million in 2022, to a somewhat devastating £1.8 million in 2025, clearly undermining mr patel's optimism.

whether the company will utlimately survibe as a separate entity following the move, is open to conjecture, especially now that the number of original employees equates to less than the fingers on your right hand. somehow, a clothing label espousing, "if you think the spring classics are bad, try london." does not have the same credibility. or, in fact, any credibility at all.

that, however, hasn't stopped the company from continuing to trade on its no longer scottish heritage. attempting to demonstrate that they are still in touch with their roots, under the heading 'winter sorted', sits the caption "gear up for dreich days and dark trails." sheep in wolf's clothing?

aye, y'can

tuesday 13 january 2026

really? (part 32)

this past weekend saw the majority of european countries hold their national cyclocross championships. the elite events were held on sunday, though the netherlands had their elite women race over a snowy course on saturday. as you would perhaps expect, belgium and the netherlands offered comprehensive video coverage, even if only broadcast on youtube, but sporting a brace of commentators in each case, accompanied by multiple camera angles and, in the case of the dutch, some very effective drone footage. however, at this time of year, cyclocross in both countries, rivals that of soccer, evidence for which could be seen by the substantial number of spectators at the trackside, despite the apparently very cold conditions.

in britain, things are very, very different.

i hold british cycling silver membership and have done for several decades, predominantly to take advantage of the available legal assistance (which, to date, i have not required) and the third-party insurance. another potential benefit of which i have thankfully not required to take advantage. i have no intention of entering any competitive events, so, in effect, my annual subscription of £52 could be viewed as an unnecessary expense, though i confess i have never investigated the independent cost of third party insurance to learn if that might be a tad more economic.

british cycling is the national body responsible for overseeing competitive events taking place in the uk, therefore, the uk national cyclocross championships, at south shields over the weekend, were run under their auspices. if cyclocross is a niche sport within a niche sport even in its european heartlands, it shouldn't take too much imagination to recognise that british cyclocross is only a few stages above none-existent. however, succeeding particularly well in the european professional trophy events, is current national champion, scotsman, cameron mason, who successfully defended the jersey in yesterday's championship race in south shields.

but, while both the belgian and dutch championships were available free to air on youtube, british cycling were charging an admittedly very cheap £2.99 to watch the british championships, an amount that could surely have been waived for fully paid up members of the club. let's face it, considering the number of years that i, and doubtless thousands of others, have contributed to the bc coffers without actually requiring anything tangible in return, allowing those with a membership number the ability to sign in to watch mason take the win, would surely not have been outwith the realms of possibility?

but, to add insult to injury, the race was also broadcast via a youtube livestream, by simon howlett, the coeliac cyclist. granted the footage was via a hand-held camera effectively from a single viewpoint opposite the pits, with commentary by the aforementioned mr howlett. i joined the party around one lap from the end, having been otherwise occupied earlier in the afternoon. cameron mason had just passed the camera, quite some distance in the lead, when a female voice could be heard saying "are you mr howlett?". at that point, the audio cut out, followed a few moments later by a blank screen.

gleaned from the chat column adjacent to the video feed, the supposition was that a representative from british cycling had effectively issued a personal 'cease and desist' order to end his live coverage. there was some conjecture that so doing would not stand up in court, considering that the race was a public event. whether british cycling had any legal right to curtail mr howlett's ability to livestream the event seems open to doubt. but in public relations terms, it may have been - to mix my sporting metaphors - a bit of an own goal.

is it not possible that many viewers may have been completely unaware of the british cycling official live coverage (i certainly knew nothing about it. perhaps if i'd read my e-mail messages from british cycling, i'd have been made fully aware; my bad). but as far as i can see, the worst that could have resulted from mr howlett's admittedly very rudimentary coverage, would have been more cyclocross acolytes. and had those new adherents thought it a wizard wheeze to participate, would not british cycling have gained new members?

competitive cycling in the uk is minimal at best, both in terms of participation and spectating, the dearth of which has often been laid squarely at the door of british cycling, possibly with good reason. a national body for any sport or activity is, by default, responsible for growing that sport or activity. surely if someone gives of their own free time to help, they ought not to look a gift horse in the mouth? i'm aware that there are bureaucratic strictures to be navigated, for both legal and moral reasons, and i'm sure that i may be guilty of speaking out of turn. but nonetheless, i still think it would have been in the interests of british cycling to have allowed bona-fide members of the organisation to access the youtube livestream without incurring the additional £2.99. and to leave mr howlett alone

i have never denied being a cheapskate.

monday 12 january 2026

demonstrative

currently, a group of 19 monks from the huong dao vipassana bhavana center in fort worth, texas are undertaking a walk of almost 4000km to promote peace, compassion, and nonviolence. the walk began on october 25 last year and has been heading to the end point of washington dc, passing through the states of louisiana, mississippi, alabama and georgia, amongst others. the monks expect to arrive in washington by february. this walk has been well documented on social media, including several videos shown on google's youtube platform, where one lengthy post shows the support and respect they have received from police forces in each state, extending to accompanying the walking monks with police vehicles and motorcycle outriders to keep them safe as they walk at a meditative pace.

each evening, at day's end, the monks stop for the night, often welcomed into churches and community halls, prior to which they have held prayers, attended by an impressive number of locals who have braved the cold to attend and offer support. in an online interview, the head monk, bhikkhu pannakara, made it clear that this was not a walk to publicise the buddhist religion, nor was it an attempt to proselytise to those they meet along the way. the sole mission was to promote peace, a fact recognised by many of those interviewed by national broadcasters for the daily news. judging by the approbation from individuals and those in authority, their ministrations may be having the desired effect on a local basis at least, and i believe we can only hope there is a lasting effect, particularly on one principal resident of washington dc.

however, similar to the intent of the monks, neither have i any great wish to proselytise or preach on their behalf the values of their particular form of religion. however, despite frequently advising friends and colleagues that any malfeasances or illnesses from which they are suffering are likely the result of a lack of cycling, nor am i intent on creating an island of cyclists (like that would ever happen), simply because of the personal comfort and joy it has bestowed on me. i'd like to think that a similar 'code of conduct' is adhered to by the rest of the velocipedinal community.

that would be you.

though i may be very guilty of judging those who travel unbelievably short journeys by car, even so far as to highlight that judgment in their presence, i have attempted to do so through the medium of humour, despite the sincerity of the message. that. however, relates more to fear for their overall state of health and mind, accompanied by a desire to hope that good people will see the errors of their own ways in the light of climate change. each stupidly short journey may only contribute a mere smattering to greenhouse gases, but it's surely the principle that's at stake? and if all those tiny travelogues are combined over the course of a year, is it any wonder that weather patterns, even in the hebrides, are starting to become more extreme?

it is a challenge about which few, if any of us, can do anything meaningful. protest vocally amongst friends and colleagues and you are likely to become a social pariah very quickly, realising that, while many pay lip service to the notion of climate change, that's for someone else to deal with, but certainly not them. and for those who may agree with your/my assertion that driving ridiculously short distances could just as easily be covered on foot or by bicycle, there's usually a get out of jail free card to be played, as they invent the special circumstances that prevent them from doing so (though they can fully see why that should apply to others).

but there's no need to to feel completely powerless in the face of such naive insurrection. if you think of yourself as a cyclist - and there are many hundreds on this island who class me as such - then i feel the best way to pass on the message, if only subliminally, is to ride your bicycle. ride it in all weathers, though be a tad more circumspect if the weather might imperil your safety. ride to work; ride to school; ride to the shops; ride to debbie's on a saturday for a soya latte and a double egg roll. be courteous, even if through gritted teeth. i like to believe i have an excellent relationship with the island's car, bus and truck drivers, where i am not at all put out by having to stop, even in circumstances where the motorist really ought to have done so first. and wherever possible, if being followed round a blind corner, if the way ahead is clear, i will wave them through if safe to do so. all is done without expectation.

i doubt any of us are possessed of the compassion and mindfulness demonstrated by the monks walking to washington, but everything begins with small steps.

sunday 11 january 2026

power to the people

based on no research whatsoever, i'm going to surmise that the great majority of recreational cyclists do not follow a specific training programme or, indeed, any programme whatsoever. i am willing to be proved wrong on this, but knowing the members of the velo club who are young and fit enough to participate in organised sporting activities that might involve a smidgeon of cycling (okay, one of the chaps used to undertake one or two triathlons each year), i'm still inclined to stick to my first proposal. additionally, we are fortunate to be joined most years by visiting cyclists, very, very few of whom consider themselves to be amongst even the slowest of elite riders. i appreciate that the above is hardly a conclusive sample, but i'm sure that, if your own 'research' indicates a similar demographic, there is confidence to be found in just such a supposition.

that, of course, does not take into account those who easily fit into the category just described, yet hold out forlorn hopes and aspirations of being seen as one or two levels above the norm. i do know of one regular velocipedinal visitor to islay whom we all hope not to come across heading in the same direction as are we, because, to invoke a regularly heard phrase, he'd be likely to 'rip our legs off', were we foolish enough to attempt to keep up. but even he seems to follow the advice of il campionissimo and just 'ride his bike' to achieve the terminal velocity that leaves us grovelling in his wake.

from breathless conversations with the fine fellow over the years, i have yet to hear him disseminate any type of formal training programme to keep him at the cutting edge of pelotonic intent. nor has he ever mentioned participation in any form of competitive cycling. the guy just seems to be, for the time being, disarmingly fast on a bicycle.

but despite the possible agreement amongst ourselves that the competitive edge is one that we have not formally sought, our bicycles are still to be seen featuring bar-mounted devices that provide the very information required were the above to be an untruth. even i, with my pathological aversion to both training and competition, currently have an ageing garmin device affixed to the handlebars providing details such as my average speed, current speed, gradient, calories burned and duration of ride, none of which are, to be honest, of any use whatsoever. none of the above are retained at ride's end, nor is any of the data uploaded to training software or, heaven forbid, strava.

i'm sure you would agree that this is very much in keeping with my complete lack of ambition.

i'm aware that several of my colleagues are also similarly equipped in the field of data recording, and do actually upload the results to one or more online repositories. but a bit like the scenario recounted in yesterday's monologue regarding possession of workshop tools, possessing those acquired ride details and knowing what to do with them are two completely separate instances. for instance, my garmin device is capable of displaying and recording heart-rate information via a chest strap (which i do not possess). should i, however, acquire such an accessory and proceed to record its output, i'm disarmingly happy to confess that i would have no real idea how to assess the results. if i find that i ride well below my estimated upper heart-rate limit, or even alarmingly close, i have no idea which of the two needs to be improved, if indeed, it would need to be altered at all. and since i believe myself to be amongst a majority who do not intend to compete, what would be the point?

however, aside from a bar-mounted gps device being more or less de rigeur these days, i am led to believe that the kansas-based company has implemented garmin pay on some of its more recent offerings, perhaps providing some justification for ownership of just such a digital device. and for the purposes of washingmachinepost reviews sometime in the past, i have made use of the garmin's ant+ communication protocol to match it with a power meter, the output of which could subsequently be viewed on its liquid crystal display. and while it would be naive to conclude that my own lack of savvy in the heart-rate stakes is representative of the majority, i tend to think that comprehension of power meter output, for most of us, is just beyond the pale.

learning that your average power output is, for example, 230 watts is one thing; knowing what to do with it is another altogether. is that figure representative of my peer group? should it be better? if so, how do i achieve that? a qualified coach would know and be able to provide a tailored training programme to reach the desired result, along with the necessary workload from the hapless incumbent. but to what end and at what cost? if you've no intention of competing, or undertaking strenuous rides purely for the bragging rights, why bother?

you might well wonder what all my fuss is about, but that's possibly based on the regime of old, where cyclists such as ourselves were not in possession of a bona-fide power meter. and though i'd like to think that regime remains in power (sorry), there is evidence to the contrary. midst an article announcing that cycle product distributors extra uk had signed a distribution deal for the uk and ireland with poland's inpeak power meters, the manufacturer claimed, "that power meters aren't just for the pros, [...] they are just as useful for amateurs trying to maximise their training." it's a sentiment with which i'd be inclined to disagree, purely on the basis of the complete lack of evidence presented above. once again, this seems like a case of 'if it's good enough for the pros, it's good enough for you'. it's why folks are being asked to purchase world tour bicycles retailing at £15,000, despite the knowledge that a bicycle costing a fifth of that price would be more than adequate for the majority. however, while most would know just what to do with a £15,000 bike, i'm still willing to suggest that few would have a clue what to do with the numbers generated by a £400 power meter.

the power of suggestion meets the suggestion of power.

saturday 10 january 2026

tooled up

bicycle technology, by and large, if not exactly simple, is predominantly logical; a healthy dose of pragmatism can usually figure things out in advance of applying, quite possibly, the wrong tool for the job. and the resilience of sturdily-built componentry bears the hallmarks of surviving such inappropriate action. many will recall the days of cup-and-cone bottom brackets, where the non-drive side lockring could be removed and replaced with a favourite screwdriver and a hammer. the more elderly amongst us will recall levering a tyre from steel wheel rims with the handle of a dessert spoon. and up until i destroyed a lightweight alloy headset attempting to fit it with a block of woond and the same hammer that once removed bottom bracket lockrings, i was immune to the needs of the proper tool for the job.

however, the sense of self-determination when maintaining one's bicycle by such rudimentary means was guaranteed not to last; there was always going to be a moment of enlightenment in the shape of a a campagnolo twelve-speed chain. however, i would hate to give the impression that i'd survived up until the advent of twelve-speed before i thought about acquiring the proper tools for the job; that is very far from the truth. but after attempting to fit a new campag chain using a park-tool workshop chain tool during which the guide pin snapped off before the rivet made it into the side-plate, almost, but not quite, justified the subsequent purchase of the appropriate, eye-wateringly expensive, campagnolo work of art.

the mere seconds it took to satisfy the manufacturer's requirements with said tool, proved the efficacy of doing what i should have done in the first place.

however, owning the correct workshop tool is less than half the battle; knowing how to use it is decidedly of greater necessity. in my experience, many reputedly workshop quality tools arrive either without any instructions for use, or manuals that are obscure at best. and anyone who ever owned a copy of barnett's bicycle manual will have long ago learned the definition of 'pedantry' as applicable to the theoretical norm. but what happens when you have the correct tool, but the task at hand doesn't exactly match the situation for which it was designed? where the form of the component differs slightly from the ideal.

just over a year ago, the press-fit bearings in my specialized crux were loudly proclaiming their need for replacement. aside from a round-the-houses approach to finding the correct replacement bearings, there came the not altogether inviting need to figure out how to remove the old and fit the new. as it transpires, hitting them hard from the inside with a hammer and punch succeeded in timely removal, surprisingly without damaging the surfaces into which the bearings had to be press-fitted. however, a quick search on youtube found a suitable video demonstrating the type of tool designed to make the job of replacement, the equivalent of a hot knife through butter.

though it does seem possible nowadays to post instructional videos with less than suitable qualifications for so doing, thankfully there has been one fellow with both the personality and technical ability to create professional videos that not only demonstrated the efficacy of the tools portrayed, but the 'correct' means of application.

calvin jones.

mr jones worked for the park tool company, and was thoughtfully charged with presenting videos that were entirely educational, but simultaneously doubled as promotional tools. the park tool youtube channel features a total of 899 videos, admittedly not all of which feature the irrepressible mr jones. it is somewhat of a search engine lottery to find the very video required, particularly if you happen to be a beginner when it comes to bicycle mechanics, but luckily all the videos are categorised on the park tool website. and though obviously enough, park tool would prefer that you purchase their excellent tools, some procedures can be successfully completed using tools sourced elsewhere.

there's little doubt that quality workshop tools are to be recommended, but if the task under consideration is one that you're unlikely to undertake more than once or twice a year, you might wish to consider your money better spent handing the job over to the local bike shop, or acquiring a less expensive (and possibly lower quality) solution.

working on the principle that all good things must come to an end, that is precisely what is about to occur, for calvin jones has announced his retirement from park tools. "Moving on from Park Tool, there are some educational projects that I would like to be part of," Jones said. "Plus, I am looking forward to focusing more on my riding and figuring out when to use this dropper post."

having begun his cycle-related career as a bicycle mechanic in 1973, he has been team mechanic for usa national teams, a mechanics instructor at the usa olympic training centre, and in a moment of serendipity, chief instructor at barnett's bicycle institute. park tool owner, eric hawkins, said of jones, "(he's) a gifted teacher who can clearly explain even the most complex concepts. Through his writings, videos, and personal interactions, he's helped millions understand how their bike works and how to best keep it working."

as one who has taken advantage of his instructional expertise, i wish him a long and happy retirement.

park tool

friday 9 january 2026

no disruption

with no word of a lie, following my decision to study graphics in the third year of art college, the department principal addressed the assembled students to inform us, amongst other things, that we existed several tiers above the majority of humanity, defined by our artistic abilities. of course, that is complete drivel. though some of the third year multitude were blessed with acute artistic skills (sadly, not including myself), and would go on to provide society with the benefits of their skills, purely from distant recall, i can almost guarantee that none of us understood einstein's theory of relativity, none could repair, or even service an internal combustion engine and there is no way on this earth that we could have flown concorde to new york.

so, even had we possessed the superior abilities conferred upon us by our lecturer, that superiority still required the assistance of others to get us through the live long day.

i know of only one other fellow student that followed a career in the graphic arts, and at a higher level than that practised by yours truly, but neither of us has produced the sort of earth-shattering work that might bring us to the attention of the great unwashed. publications such as eye magazine, regularly feature individuals of the stature to which, i believe, both of us once aspired, reputedly subverting the accepted norm ansd being well remunerated into the bargain.

this has notional relevance to the velocipedinal world, but aimed more at the apparel worn by the sport's professionals than at you or i. it does not, however, appear to apply to the technological developments that have seen, within my lifetime, the wholesale move from knitted woollen jerseys onto which any sponsor names had to be embroidered, to paper-thin synthetic fabrics, wind-tunnel tested to reduce the friction engendered by riding at speed into the surrounding atmosphere. this latter technology includes examples that were subsequently banned by the sport's ruling body.

to be honest, the old wool jerseys would probably have done most of us just fine; it was simply the cheap team replica jerseys of the 1990s that broke everyone. that and the work of several marketing departments. however, i have often wondered how the average contemporary cycle team would have coped with an interminable and often sudden variation in sponsors. embroiderers were essentially cheated out of a promising career path.

however, remaining in the realm of the apparel purveyor, the official word from ef education easy-post that they would now, officially, no longer be clothed by rapha, but by swiss cycling apparel specialist, assos, will not only see a different logo amongst a field of pink, but presumably a different philosophy. the disappearance of rapha from the world tour peloton might be mourned by some, possibly even members of the team, but in the grand scheme of things, it will really make little difference.

under the heading of an article entitled, racing with character, rapha stated, "we created, innovated and transformed the sport for the whole world to see. [...] together, rapha and ef pro cycling rewrote what a world tour team can be ... celebrating seven magnificent seasons of disruption." colourful hyperbole no doubt, but has anything really changed? ef education ended the 2025 season ranked tenth behind the likes of uae emirates, ineos grenadiers and lidl trek. if, as the uci would prefer us to gauge, disruption and the re-writing of what a world tour team can be were geared towards athletic success, then tenth might not be the result expected of the art of disruption.

of course, i am being deliberately obtuse; that is most definitely not what rapha intended. however, despite the collaborations with external disruptors when time came to design kit for the likes of the giro d'italia, it seems quite likely that the apparel was judged by the riders purely on its fit and technical performance. and though there will undoubtedly be a difference to be noted in the new assos kit, the riders are unlikely to assess it by different criteria. the first test will be how switzerland deals with the giro swap out kit, but by the time we reach those three weeks in july, riders and fans alike will likely have forgotten about rapha in this context.

because world tour cycling will essentially be just the same as it ever was. tadej will still be winning everything in sight, colnago will still sell truckloads of their bicycles, and we'll still be expected to pay a ludicrous amount of money every month to watch live cycling on the tellybox. perhaps if rapha wish to continue with their self-appointed disruptive streak, they could embark on a streaming service that would prove a great deal cheaper than tnt sports.

ned and david would probably be willing co-conspirators.

thursday 8 january 2026

really?

for those of us in thrall to cyclocross, the festive period was as manna from heaven; twelve races in 16 days (or 24 races, if you count women's and men's events separately). and in a change from the norm, the sole scottish guy (who also happens to be british cyclocross champion) was occasionally to be seen leading the field during brief moments, and often finished well within the top ten.

televised european cyclocross predominantly takes place in belgium and the netherlands, featuring a large proportion of riders from both those countries. there is the occasional foray into france, czechia and spain, but the famous and revered courses, such as zonhoven, koksijde and namur are all to be found just where you'd expect. this season in northern europe has presented very little of the thick, gloopy mud that we all know and love, but there has been sand by the beach load and plenty of snow at the latter part of the festive season, prompting the revival of discussion about why cyclocross ought to be considered for the winter olympics.

the serious stuff commences in early october, gradually introducing the four main trophy series: x2o badkamers trophee, exact series, telenet super-prestige and last, but certainly not least, the uci world cup series. unlike many other sports, the winner of the world cup series is not then hailed as the world champion; that depends on winning a single race in early february, when sponsors are reputedly disregarded in favour of national jerseys. no matter the vicissitudes of season-long competition, from the spectator's point of view, there is much to be admired. for instance, women's races last close to fifty minutes, and the men's as near to an hour as is arithmetically possible.

the final distance is calculated at the end of the second lap of each event, entirely dependent on the day's lap times. co-commentator on tnt sports, former british champion, ian field said he'd never known a cyclocross race to last twelve laps, as happened at dendermonde on 29 december, curated by frozen hard ground and an almost complete absence of mud. the predictable length of senior 'cross races makes for great entertainment; unlike those interminable sprint stages of the tour de france, one hour tends to encourage eyeballs out action from the start.

it is an almost uncontested fact that the profile of cyclocross has been considerably raised by two of its most famous and celebrated sons: mathieu van der poel and wout van aert. both began their careers jumping the planks, before graduating to become stage race royalty. between the two, there is a media-concocted rivalry, with ticket sales dramatically increased when either or both are on the start-line. however, their respective road programmes and seasonal aims have meant that both riders return only briefly each season, appearing at sporadic events and generally appearing to be less than invested in any particular trophy series.

van aert crashed out, meaning his withdrawal with injury from sunday's sand ridden race at zonhoven, an event once again won by mvdp; nine wins from nine starts this year. however, while van aert races 'cross for the enjoyment (and start money), van der poel has his eyes set on winning a record eighth world title at hulst in the netherlands, on 1 february. it does seem a shame for the riders who have chosen 'cross as their profession, raced all season, every season, but are unlikely to ever wear the rainbow bands, assuming van der poel continues to ride in the manner he has demonstrated this season. in the women's series, lucinda brand has been dominant in the absence of fem van empel, the current world champion, but who has barely raced all season and now opted to step back and reconsider her career. nonetheless, it came as something of a surprise to come across a youtube video proclaiming that 'cyclocross has a problem'.

though i have not watched the video in its entirety, the gist of its click-bait headline is that the dominance of van der poel and brand is leading to sponsors reconsidering their investment and tv viewers and trackside spectators losing interest. yet, to me at least, this seems very close to codswallop. were it true, spectator numbers would hardly have increased from around 12,000 to over 17,000 purely because mathieu van der poel returned to cyclocross. additionally, the racing taking place in the wake of brand and mvdp is as close as it's ever been. granted, the tv cameras tend to focus mainly on the race leaders, but there is still plenty of opportunity to watch the battles for second, third and down to tenth place.

the video also mentions an encroaching dissatisfaction amongst the sponsors, citing the disappearance of amandine fouquenet's sponsor, arkea b&b. but as any cycling fan worth his or her salt will know, arkea b&b sponsored a road team and had announced their intention to end the team's sponsorship before cyclocross season had even begun. fouquenet's appearance at 'cross events was simply an adjunct to her road career. several of the stalwart 'cross teams actually augmented their sponsorship, while other riders (clauzel and kamp) actually gained a new sponsor for 2026 (ekoi).

i, and very many others, are currently enjoying watching a maginificent cyclocross season, with no visible signs of the problems alluded to by this random video. granted, i am on the sidelines of the sidelines, so perhaps the videographers know far more than do i. but if their allusions are truly correct, and the fans and sponsors are truly rueing the domination of one rider in each gender, then world tour road racing is in even deeper mud than cyclocross.

wednesday 7 january 2026

just don't

monday's guardian newspaper, essentially the first regular version of the new year, in common with several others, carried a lengthy feature previewing the forthcoming highlights of 2026 in tv, music, film, games, stage and art and design. no doubt the sports section has already taken a long, hard look at what may (or may not) take place in arenas, pools, stadia and tracks across the world. as a newspaper editor at a much lower level, i can sympathise with the need to fill pages at a time when few agencies are open or up to speed. publishing effectively unaccountable dissertations, even those that may return to bite them on the posterior, is a relatively sure and inexpensive means of maintaining pagination in the face of declining sales.

the practice takes the form of moveable furniture with chameleon-like tendencies; it is easily applicable to almost any subject you care to mention. in fact, i too have joined the club, writing several hundred words describing environmental actions that may, or may not, have a direct effect on island life, an island, i might add, which is one among six that the scottish government has identified as ripe for net-zero by 2040. there is, of course, the odd conundrum that the selfsame government expects the entire country to reach net-zero a mere five years later.

you will forgive me if i fail to understand.

but in the light of these attempts at fortune-telling, punditry and previewing having transferable skills, applying them to velocipedinal matters has not been overlooked. many a cycling website, online magazine, print publication and youtube video has notoriously indulged, providing the great unwashed with reputedly salient advice on which models of bicycle or componentry are due for an upgrade, or, in the humble opinion of the writer/presenter, really ought to be. i count myself curious, in some examples, as to whether the individual(s) concerned have simply adopted this strategy as a means of stating their professed superiority to those actually charged with the job at hand.

this state of affairs is one that has continuously grown since the late 1980s, and for which i personally blame the advent of the mountain bike and its propensity for perpetual change for its own sake. i originally gained a certain degree of affinity with the road bike due to its apparent steadfastness in the face of variation, but instead of remaining true to its heritage, the fickle road bike sided with the offroad fraternity, ensuring a future subjugated to the whims of the fashion industry. are we really in endless need of new gears, new tooth profiles, slimmer disc calipers, better ventilated rotors and more secret places in which to secrete the cables? not to mention at least one more bottom bracket 'standard'?

actually, we're not, but identifying that particular lack of customer demand elicits no clout whatsoever. even for the professionals, constant upgrades verge on the pointless as one level playing field is succeeded by yet another, arguably increasing the speeds at which that field is reached, but mostly maintaining parity in the process. change is an acknowledged part of everyone's future, but if only for its own sake, then it is somewhat hollow in intent. aside from being the premier event of the cyclists' year, the tour de france has also become the equivalent of a milan fashion show, at which the best of the richest bike sponsors take a widely spectated opportunity to strut their (new) stuff. and considering the millions they are undoubtedly ploughing into the world tour peloton, that is their a.s.o. given right.

but, as the new year begins, and the next twelve months hove into view, i'd like to proffer a smidgeon of advice of my own. just stop it now. don't bother looking for smaller and smaller details to 'improve'. what is currently on offer across the board is just fine (though one might quibble a bit over the prices).

thank you.

tuesday 6 january 2026