Finsbury Park to Alexandra Palace gravel cycle ride and a gem in London. In an effort to optimise the sales value of the cluster of luxury high rise towers in Vauxhall and Battersea, rebranded as ‘Nine Elms on the Southbank’, there was much hype about a new linear park to link Vauxhall with Battersea Park… Continue Reading
Latest in: Tours
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Riding out from London and over the North Downs and into the Mole Valley has been part of my staple cycling diet, sadly the last time I rode here was in the late summer of 2017. Today, June 26, 2018 I rode into the valley again. Combining the stresses and strains of the North Downs… Continue Reading
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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Not all cycle races or rides are created equal but some stand out because they are more than just another race or ride. Not only do they offer extra drama (OK, chaos) but also add something different. Click here if you came here via Gö Strade Bianche. I am drawn to races and rides that… Continue Reading
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The 3rd January 2016 saw a heroic cyclo-cross race held when heavy rain fell and high winds lashed Round 12 of the London/SE Cyclo-Cross League at a venue that was created in 2012 on an abandoned section of the A2 road. Route 66 is an iconic highway that once spanned the USA and is probably the most famous road in the… Continue Reading
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Most of the time, we tend to think in the moment without making much reference to our surroundings and how they have been shaped or formed. Nonetheless and despite our indifference – every place has a story to tell, and under our feet (or wheels) is history aplenty. For many years the Velo Club Deal… Continue Reading
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2014 saw the hundredth anniversary of the start of World War One and this caused a rekindling of interest in the long, bloody fighting line that straddled Europe between 1914 to 1917. To mark the occasion the 2014 Tour de France visited many of the major battlefields and stage five began at the Belgian town… Continue Reading
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Homage to the Hell of the North Spring Classic Riding the bi-annual Paris Roubaix Sportive organised by VC Roubaix is a must do event and we cyclists are blessed that we can ride the very routes made famous by the top stars of our sport. The ‘Hell of the North’ Paris Roubaix Sportive follows the… Continue Reading
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‘Brutal’, is all I could utter when asked how it went; what else could I say? A little earlier I had fallen into the arms of a friend in Roubaix Velodrome centre. I felt so weak and there was simply nothing left in my body, but my soul was full, very full. The bi-annual event… Continue Reading
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