With the Vuelta in full swing and Team Sky doing an excellent job of controlling the race again I imagine many of you, like me, were wondering just when Sky would use this access and the growing popularity of cycling to cash in? It seems the time is about now (well, the 30th August) when then behind-the-scenes tale of the team aiming to put a British rider on the top of the Tour de France podium will hit the screens of Sky subscribers.
For a long time the back-room scene of professional cycling included a lot of the sort of assistance that hopefully is being drummed out of the sport (even if we now have a Vuelta where riders can return after the shortest 2-year ban ever or can moan about unsporting behaviour after they come back from breaking the rules). Interestingly Jonathan Vaughters (who is still involved in cycling) talked, in the NYT, this month about the pressures that led him to take drugs to perform better.
If the road scene is a bit calculated and precise for you then maybe I can interest you in a bit more behind-the-scenes fare, this time from the Santa Cruz Syndicate DH team.
The Steve Peat Syndicate 2012 - Behind the Scenes from Duncan Philpott on Vimeo.
I guess the whole team structure of some areas of cycling can get a bit dull and I know I want a bit of escapism. For those of you who thought Tenerife was all Playa Las Americas, boozing and sex (oh wait hang on, am I trying to say that’s a bad thing?), there is a different side. In fact I think I’ve just argued that it’s the ideal holiday destination where you can ride all day and party with loose morals all night:
I couldn’t help but also be impressed by this film of the Nine Knights course. It looks, frankly insane and I dream of the day I can just roll out over jumps like that giving a commentary.
As ever, what appears to be a battle between cyclists and drivers is still in the news. There’s been a reaction against Dennis publishing as they lead up to launching a new cycling magazine and either as part of the promotion, or perhaps as a genuine bit of cyclist-hating, they jumped straight into a “look how many cyclists break the law” feature based on Highbury Junction.. Seems to me like everyone should settle down and have a nice gin and tonic from this mobile bar. Although, you can imagine the uproar from the kind of driver that hates seeing anyone having any fun on “their” roads.
All of which talk of fun on the roads leads me to the Vuelta again. The race moved on from the silliness of sprinting to return to the mountains and took a familiar form. There was a break away that resulted in a lone ride from De Gendt, who was reeled back in inevitably in time for the last climb. The attacks came late on and Froome put time into most people except for Rodriguez who took another stage win and slightly extended his lead with the time bonus as well as a few seconds’ lead. The top four finishers included three Spaniards (with Contador and Valverde) and a Brit and demonstrated that Froome really does look to have the potential to chip away at Contador and hopefully get another Grand Tour win for Britain and clean racing.
Let’s see how it all stands after the long weekend. See you back here on 28th August.
A
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