Welcome – Still talking cycling and a bit about life
Epping Forest is a Mecca for London cyclists and an area where access to the ‘people’s forest’ is seen as a birth-right. Well, it is now, but only after a fight. At the end of the 19th Century Epping Forest like other common lands, forests or heaths was in danger of being swallowed by London’s… Continue Reading
There are some cycle road races (rad rennen) that I look forward to on the road race calendar. (this page was updated on June 15) What all have in common is a touch of the ‘Roubaixesque’ about them, each event features non-tarmac sections and for me this offers races that cannot be called routine. There are… Continue Reading
Off-Piste Cycling (this page was updated on June 15) Listed below are races that I look forward to on the road race calendar of which some are well known and others not so much. What all have in common is a touch of the ‘Roubaixesque’ about them, each event features non-tarmac sections and for me… Continue Reading
Murals have a long history of presenting a narrative, a sentiment, a joke or simply a nice artwork. They are the embodiment of art in a public space. Thomas Hart Benton and Diego Rivera reflected the narratives of US and Mexican history respectively along with many others by creating epic art works that few people… Continue Reading
I came to London in the late eighties and soon found myself involved in local politics including housing issues, and I enjoyed some great times with anarchists who sometimes weren’t really sure why I would talk about cycles, not political cycles but the pedal version. It was in 1994 when I and a group of… Continue Reading
Post World War Two the London County Council commissioned Peter Laszlo Peri to create art as part of a desire to enrich the public realm; “as emblems of civic renewal and social progress” (Heritage Calling). Three of Peri’s works are within a short walk of my home in Vauxhall, London. Peri was a Hungarian born… Continue Reading
Herne Hill Velodrome is a bright jewel in London’s heritage and it is a rare survivor of not only the 19th century boom or bust approach to sport it, but also a past Olympic venue (1948). Built in 1891 Herne Hill Velodrome situated in south London became Britain’s premier cycle track, drawing huge crowds, and… Continue Reading
‘If you can race at Palace you can race anywhere’ – I was told that when I first got involved in cycle sport in London. Crystal Palace is a park in the south London borough of Bromley which was once the home of the Crystal Palace, the star of the Great Exhibition held during 1851… Continue Reading
The River Thames towpath gravel cycle ride from Putney to Hampton court is just under 26 kilometres long and can be completed in a hour and a bit (plus the time taken to get to Putney or Hampton Court) making it a convenient London ride for when time poor. I often combine it with the… Continue Reading
The 2012 Olympic Games cycle road races featured nine ascents of the Zig Zag road, better known as Box Hill, for the men and two for the women. It was intended that this North Downs climb would smash the race apart. Sadly, for the British team working for Mark Cavendish and despite setting the pace… Continue Reading
London has many lost rivers, all now almost unseen except for a few glimpses through drains, culverts or pipes. In Vauxhall the Effra is no longer the partly navigable river it once was and now is buried deep underground covered by roads and buildings. An outlet pipe into the River Thames is our only visible… Continue Reading
Germany has a strong cycle race scene covering the same territory as the UK with the addition of a good following for cycle football and artistic cycling. For us in the UK the idea that something is a ‘hobby’ is a bit like being told that something is ‘nice’, such words can be construed as… Continue Reading
The North Downs are a long line of green high ground to the south of London. The Downs have become a place of pilgrimage for cyclists on and off road and here you can find sunken roads, great views plus killer climbs – not a place for the pious rather a place for any cycling… Continue Reading
In April 2018 I travelled back in time to the now defunct German internal grenze (border) at the Wurmberg Mountain. In the mid-eighties I had stood on the west side of the Grenze half way up the Wurmberg Mountain in the Harz, a region of mountains rich in folklore set in central Germany. Above my… Continue Reading
Paris Roubaix is a race that attracts me because it goes ‘off-piste’. In the present era media giant SKY Television has built its global reach upon football, the sport was the lynchpin of the SKY satellite TV business model and it revolutionised how football and sport in general is financed. Cycle sport also had a… Continue Reading
I was on a training camp in Italy and a fellow guest spoke up loudly that the almost five minute ride out from our sea front hotel to the country roads was far too long. Laughed? We would have but our breath was further taken from us by a follow up comment – ‘it’s a… Continue Reading
Belgium one cycling nation – Kassein or Pavé? / Belgien ist eine Nation von Radfahrern – Kassein oder Pavé? The picture above is of World and Olympic Champion Nicole Cooke riding the Muur de Huy during La Fleche Walonne Classic Name a famous Belgian ‘Plastic Bertrand’ I replied – ‘nah, someone famous, name me a famous Belgian’? My… Continue Reading
I have spent time in Berlin and other German towns and cities over the years, and I have a huge regret. I must admit to feeling a bit silly, but here it is: I regret not watching the Viktoriapark cyclo cross race held in Berlin. My image of Berlin was built on cold war film… Continue Reading
Results and video links to UCI rated cyclo cross races unless otherwise stated. The big issue being geo-restrictions on content. 2016/17 Season – 2015/16 Season February 25 Internationale Sluitingsprijs – February 25 The final international cyclo cross race of the 2017/18 season was the Internationale Sluitingsprijs held at Oostmalle, Belgium. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ3O2yTH1tU Elite Men 1 Mathieu Van Der… Continue Reading
Video and Picture links for the Kinesis UK London and South East 2017/18 Cyclo-Cross League. 2016/17 League – 2015/16 League – London/SE Cross Website Kinesis UK London and South East Cyclo Cross League Rd 1 Round one of the Cyclefit London and South East Cyclo Cross League (and Rd 1 of the Sussex League) held at Stanmer Park… Continue Reading
The Harz Mountains are 2,226 square kilometres of medium sized mountains and forest that seems to have been spit out of the ground of middle Germany. Circling the Harz are the cities of Hannover, Gottingen, Wolfsburg, Leipzig and Magdeburg. Much of the Harz today is a national park and the area is home to a… Continue Reading
Even if abandoned, it must still lead somewhere? I said to myself. Is it a redundant motorway, an abandoned motor racing circuit or maybe an airport? It has shades of each? Now I know At one end of this traffic free concrete road or ‘Betonweg’ are modern and rehabbed housing, a college and public sport… Continue Reading
When so many years ago Good Friday Track Meeting promoter Graham Bristow organised a cyclo cross race at Herne Hill Velodrome in London approximately 25 people turned up for what was quite good fun. Since then cyclo cross has become British Cycling’s largest growing cycle race discipline and this is mirrored across the world including… Continue Reading
When I was young I wasn’t a great reader of books, comics yes and it was only when into my mid-teens did I start devouring literature. Books by Jean Paul Sarte and the like, I chose anything that added a wee bit of intellectual or even Parisian ‘left bank’ sparkle to my life. But even… Continue Reading
The River Thames is 215 miles long and I have been riding my bike along the Putney to Hampton Court section for 20 odd years. The ‘gravel’ Thames path here lines the south bank of the river and has been my regular haunt to play out my ‘Roubaixesque’ fantasies. It’s not a tough ride but it… Continue Reading
