Sunday, April 28, 2024

Ed Hood Needs Our Help – Please Support This GoFundMe Page

I write this post with a heavy heart, and to humbly ask for your help to support our dear friend and beloved colleague Ed Hood. Ed suffered a devastating stroke in February of this year, and faces an uncertain future.

Women's Racing

Press Releases

Kate Richardson takes all four Rás na mBan classifications for Alba DRT

Kate Richardson dominated in Ireland last weekend with the 20-year-old winning the Individual General Classification, Points General Classification, Queen of the Hills Classification and Best Young Rider Classification in an astonishing performance over five days and six stages in County Kilkenny.

Jo Patterson – Ladies’ National 100 Mile Time Trial Record Breaker

Lusia Steele – Position Three in Scotland’s Games Team Sprint Squad

Neah Evans – “I do like the Individual Pursuit, it’s a very honest race – albeit horrible!”

Stories

Stories

Barry Hoban, Britain’s Only Gent-Wevelgem Winner

It’s Gent–Wevelgem 1974, you’ve made it over the savage Kemmel climb twice with the lead group and survived hanging on the back of an Eddy Merckx (Belgium and Molteni) and Roger De Vlaeminck (Belgium and Brooklyn) driven purge on the run-in; there are 17 guys left, so maybe you would settle for a top ten? Not if your name is Barry Hoban (Britain and GAN-Mercier) and you feel that the ‘overdrive’ is in your legs.

‘Brothers In Arms’ – Famous Siblings Of The Peloton

Graham Robson’s 1975 Kermis Watching Holiday

Club Spotlight: Caithness CC (powered by Alasdair Washington)

Interviews

Mario Chiesa – Top Road Star of the 90’s

As a ‘road captain’ in the 80's and 90's Mario Chiesa helped guide riders like Marco Pantani, Urs Zimmermann and Claudio Chiappucci to some big victories. More recently he’s been behind the steering wheel of nine top teams. Thanks to Lucio Belli, we caught up with Mario to get his story. 

Phil Gaimon – the Worst Retirement Ever!

Phil Gaimon had a full career before hanging up his WorldTour wheels, but since then he has hardly stopped for breath. As an ex-pro bike rider he fills his time book writing, social media and… riding his bike.

Nico Mattan – “When you win on your home territory, it’s very special”

In 2005, Nico Mattan grabbed victory in one of the most controversial editions of Gent – Wevelgem ever held. The newspapers ran and ran with it but Sean Kelly saw “no problems” with the result.

Dan Lloyd – “I loved riding the cobbled Classics”

WorldTour professional rider turned race commentator and GCN-Eurosport presenter, Dan Lloyd has been in the bike game for some time and has a few stories to tell. We caught up with Dan to hear how it all happened.

Eric Van Lancker – the Israël DS who was a Classics Winner in the 80’s and 90’s

When we think of ‘Men of the Classics’ of the late 80’s and early 90’s names like Sean Kelly, Moreno Argentin, the late Claude Criquielion, Adrie van der Poel and Gianni Bugno come to mind. A name we perhaps overlook is that of Belgium’s Eric Van Lancker, despite the fact that he won four World Cup races and was a fixture on the world’s most successful team of the day – Peter Post’s mighty Panasonic armada.

Douglas Ryder – Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team Boss

We’ve heard it so many times; the team loses the sponsor and folds – ‘we’re taking a year to regroup but will be back the following season,’ they say. Sadly, it very rarely comes to pass. But Douglas Ryder is made of stern stuff.

Bas Tietema – “Continental level is not our final destination”

There are many ways to become a professional cyclist, but Dutchman Bas Tietema must be unique in his path; come up through the ranks, start a YouTube channel, get a contract with a Belgian Conti team, then start your own team. We had to find out more.

Kathy Gilchrist – Scottish Cycling President on her First Year, and Beyond

It was December 2021 when we first had a word with Kathy Gilchrist, not long after she was elected President on a ticket of "giving back and making a difference", so we thought it would be a good time to hear how her first year in the job has gone, what's changed, and with Scotland hosting "the biggest cycling event ever" in late summer, what this year is going to bring.

Sean Flynn – Making his World Tour Debut with DSM

After a strong season with the Swiss Racing Academy, Edinburgh’s Sean Flynn will be joining his countryman Oscar Onley at the Dutch World Team DSM, riding alongside big name riders like Romain Bardet and John Degenkolb.

Zak Coleman – Playing the Team Game with VolkerWessels

VeloVeritas soothsayer and mentor has been on to me for a while; ‘you should be speaking to that Zak Coleman laddie, he’s on the VolkerWessels team in The Netherlands, that’s a top team and he’s the only non-Dutch boy on it! They ride a lot of the UCI European Tour races, the likes of the Baloise Belgian Tour.’

Callum Macleod – 2023? A Pro Contract else I start University

It was our mentor, Viktor who pointed out to us that Englishman, Callum Macleod had spent season 2022 with the Dutch ABLOC CT squad and that his contract is renewed for season 2023; of the 19 riders on the squad 16 are Dutch, there’s a Latvian, a Finn - and Callum.

Martin Pyne – National ’25’ Champion in 1981

Martin Pyne has ridden somewhere around 2,000 races, of those he’s won 820 ‘open’ and 51 ‘club’ events, He broke Sean Yates' 10 mile TT record and held the 30 mile TT record for a decade, and he was British 25 Mile Time Trial Champion in 1981, relegating ‘super tester,’ Ian Cammish to second place. 

Harrison Wood – Taking the ‘Old Way’ to Cofidis

For 2023 Harrison Wood, the 22 years-old from Devon will be part of the much improved Cofidis équipe. We find out more about how he secured his contract.

Mikey Mottram – Looking Back at the Gravel Worlds

We catch up with Mikey Mottram, who has been a top UK rider on the road and track, about his ride in the inaugural UCI Gravel World Championship.

Toby Perry – a Series of Unfortunate Events (with a happy ending)

It was back at the start of last year we last spoke to Englishman, Toby Perry and when we saw he’d ridden the inaugural Gravel Worlds – an aspect of the sport which has piqued our interest – we thought we’d best have another word with the man.

Nuggets

The VV View: 2023 Top Ten Young Guns, the Men to Watch

We've been watching the up-and-coming riders and have chosen our ‘Top Ten Young Guns’ for 2023. Our rider choices for 2022 included some top performers so let’s look at the ‘Men to Watch’ in 2023.

The VV View: How Did the New Talent in 2022 Fare?

Here at VeloVeritas we keep our eyes on the new talent coming through the peloton and this time last year we picked eleven men to watch in 2022. So, let's see how they got on.

The VV View: Half a Century – How Did That Happen?

Recently someone posted some Scottish race results from 1973 on social media; and there I was in some 25 mile time trial on the Kippen Flats course at Stirling. Then it struck me, 1973 – 50 years ago, that’s half a century. How did that happen?

The VV View: Riders of the Year 2022

Yes, we know, it’s been done to death but nonetheless here – in no order of merit, with no apologies for any omissions, these are MY choices – we bring you Riders of the Year 2022.

The VV View: Ten Trends in Twenty Two

We list our top ten trends that we picked up on in 2022 and ponder which ones are set to continue into 2023 and beyond.

The VV View: Our Changing Timeline

Changes; ‘time may change me; but I can’t trace time,’ said the late, great David Bowie, most take it to mean that whilst you can run your finger back along the timeline of your life, you can’t change anything along there. I take myself as an example; now I have an ‘e’ Gravel Bike, disc brakes, 1 x transmission. 

The VV View: Wee Tom, Mullet Bikes and Podcasts

‘The Tour is the Tour,’ for sure, But for me the Giro is the most beautiful; oh to be in the Bella Italia, great weather, a crisp pink Gazzetta dello Sport and perfect cappuccino every morning. Plus, we discover mullet bikes, Drone Hopper socks, and wonder if Wee Tom is doing too much?

The VV View: How aero is my front light?

Ed gets it all off his chest in our latest Rant; do we really need aero front lights? What difference does a tricked out 'pain cave' make? Some clever innovations that aren't April fools, and should Tomeke take over from Patrick at QuickStep?

17 Years of VeloVeritas

Martin Williamson Photography

Race Reviews

Scottish Hill Climb Championship 2022; Louis Moore and Sharon Bird Take the Honours

Vanelli-Project Go's Louis Moore, the newly crowned student champion, won the Scottish Hill Climb Championship on a long and difficult Glen Quaich course, the first 5k of the narrow strip of tarmac which connects Kenmore to Amulree in the Southern Highlands.

Tour de Trossachs 2022 – Chris Smart Victorious Again

Blue skies, mild with not too much of a breeze – a perfect day for VeloVeritas’ favourite race, the 2022 Tour de Trossachs, ably promoted by Vanelli Project Go and won by Chris Smart (GTR – Return to Life p/b Streamline)

Roadside at the Tour of Britain 2022; Stage Two

Originally we hadn’t planned to go down to The Scottish Borders to see Stage Two of the Tour of Britain 2022 – but the sun came out, we made a few time calculations and as I said of yesterday; ‘it’s not every day you get the chance to see some of the world’s best bike riders on home soil.’ One of life’s simple pleasures is surely sitting on the grass verge in the sunshine, waiting on a bike race coming up the hill.

Roadside at the Tour of Britain 2022; Stage One

It’s not every day you get the chance to see some of the sport’s greatest names just up the road from your home, competing in the Tour of Britain 2022. Fortunately, by the time we got to Union Street it was just drizzling, not cold but grey and understandably not conducive to riders wanting to stand and chat...

British Road Race Championships 2022; Cavendish is Champion Again!

Mark Cavendish was in the break ALL day on this wet, windy, tough, gnarly day - major respect to the man on his second British Championship win on Scottish roads.

British Time Trial Championships 2022; Ethan Hayter keeps it in the family

I’m trying to remember that last time I followed a rider in a Time Trial – Bradley Wiggins through the grubby back streets of Milano in the Giro’s closing time trial, with Martin at the Tour watching Michael Mørkøv blast those 52km to Chartres or that time we followed Charly Wegelius through the glorious vineyards of Champagne? No matter, what a nice way to spend a Thursday afternoon, chasing Zeb Kyffin around the beautiful, sun-drenched parcours beside the Solway Firth at the British Time Trial Championships, won by Ethan Hayter.

British u23 Time Trial Championship 2022; Leo Hayter continues his golden run

Last Thursday, on the roads around Dumfries and along the beautiful Solway Firth Callum Thornley endorsed his potential, taking silver in the British u23 Time Trial Championship, beaten only by 2022 Baby Giro winner, Leo Hayter but leaving riders like Groupama FDJ big hitters Sam Watson and Lewis Askey in his wake.  

Sportsbreak.com Tour Series – Round Two, Galashiels; Wiv SunGod and Pro-Noctis Take the Honours

Criteriums, a man of my acquaintance describes criteriums thus; ‘a bunch of guys turn up, they ride round in circles for an hour, one of ‘em wins then everyone goes home.’ Very true, but a night hanging over the barriers in Galashiels, a nice borders town under the spring sunshine with your amigos whilst catching up with old friends sure beats watching the soap operas.

Ben Swift Retains the British Men’s Road Championship

On a day when we watched hard men like Gran Piemonte winner, Matt Walls and Tro Bro victor, Connor Swift crack before our very eyes it was reigning champion, Ben Swift who extended his tenure in that lovely jersey from 2019 through 2020 and 2021 into at least June 2022.

Tour de Trossachs 2021 goes to Robbie Friel

We missed you last year Tour de Trossachs, so let’s begin with a large ‘thank you’ to Jason Roberts and his team for reviving this great race and organising it so well. Men of the day: Messrs. Friel, Maclean and Creber; Woman of the day: Lynsey Curran.

Tour of the Campsies 2021 Goes to Chris Smart

We liked our jaunt to the Tour of the Campsies last year and feel at home among the rolling countryside and green hills there so we headed west, first of all paying our respects to the Robert Millar mural at the foot of the Crow Road; when you watch Roglič take the Lagos di Covadonga stage in the Vuelta it’s difficult to imagine the wee fella from Glasgow winning that stage – but win it he did.

Random Articles

Interviews

Dan Bigham – Talking Aero; “Ponytails aren’t…”

If you watched Stage One of the Giro on Eurosport or GCN then you’ll have heard that someone had the great idea to recruit British professional rider, Dan Bigham to join the commentary team as a ‘chrono specialist.’ Here at VeloVeritas we thought it would be good to put to Dan all those sad questions that trouble bike obsessives like us.
Garmin Physio Toby Watson

Tour de France 2012 Stage 3 – Another Kicker Finale

Another Kicker Finale ... Stage 3 sees 197 km that begins like a classic “first week sprinters’ stage” of Tours gone by, and finishes like a One Day Classic, with five categorised climbs in the final 33km. It is still not going to be difficult enough to separate the big hitters by anything more than a second or two, but it will be too hard for pure sprinters to be a chance of figuring in the finale.
Interviews

Dan Bigham – Mixing it with the World’s Best in the Track World Cups

We caught up with the man behind the team and the holder of the record for most British titles won in one season – eight – Dan Bigham, after he returned from a successful foray to Canada where round two of the Tissot World Cup took place on the boards of the Milton Velodrome in Ontario where the men in black came away with silver.
Interviews

Joe Wilson – Scottish 12 Hour TT Champion 2006

Joe Wilson (Sandy Wallace Cycles) scored his second consecutive victory in the Scottish 12 hour Championship on the roads around Invergordon on Sunday. His mileage of 276 is the second highest ever ridden in Scotland after his 279 last year which broke Steve Beech's long-standing 275 mile mark.
Race Results

Lothian Flyers Road Race

Gavin Shirley (Nevis Cycles RT) made the trip to the Scottish Borders today, and went away with the win in the Edinburgh Road Club promotion, the Lothian Flyer Road Race, narrowly edging out two fast Vets, Chris Brown (Stirling BC) and Steve Nutley (Fife Cycling 2000).
Interviews

Harry Tanfield – on his Silver Medal in the Commonwealth Games Times Trial

Scotland’s Mark Stewart may have thwarted Cameron Meyer’s plan to take home a gold medal from the velodrome but the slim Aussie bounced back to take the individual time trial title on a hot day around the testing 37.8 kilometre circuit at Currumbin Beachfront. Taking silver was one of the remarkable brothers, 23 year-old Harry Tanfield, who finished 30 seconds behind the flying Meyer but two seconds ahead of Kiwi rower turned time tester, Hamish Bond.
Interviews

Jacob Hennessy – Mitchelton-BikeExchange is home for season 2018

You ride your first race in March 2015 and by 2017 you’ve won the U23 Gent-Wevelgem. Promising? Yes, that’s what we thought. Jacob Hennessy is only 21 years-old and has left the shelter of the British Cycling plans and programmes for the rough and tumble of the Continental Teams and the UCi Asia Tour. Mitchelton-BikeExchange is his home for season 2018.
Interviews

John Herety – Gearing up for Girvan

John Herety has won a Peace Race stage, French amateur classics, the British pro road champs and was robbed of the GP Pino Cerami-the judges gave it to local hero Rony van Holen-but photos later showed that the Englishman's wheel was first across the line. Now he's passing all that experience on to a new generation through his role as team manager of London squad Rapha-Condor Recycling, who are north of the border to recce the hills, gravel, rain, wind farms and sheep that are-Girvan.
Product Reviews

SRAM – the new kids on the block with their Force Groupset

SRAM Force Groupset; it’s been tried before - trying to grab a slice of that top-end equipment pie from those greedy Campagnolo and Shimano dudes who want to keep gobbling it all up between them. In the 70’s a French union of Stronglight, Simplex and Mafac failed, despite Bernard Thevenet winning two Tours on the kit. Shimano’s Japanese rivals Sugino and Sun Tour tried to get in on the act and despite the neat Sun Tour groupset being ridden by Jan Raas-managed Dutch pro teams in the 80’s, it never made the breakthrough.
Nuggets

The VV View – All Set Up and No Race to Watch

It’s a fair old trek from Manchester to Fife after there was no race to watch, so what else was I going to do as I sat in the passenger seat but RANT! Let’s start with the only topic in town: Corona Virus and me...
Diaries

Trinidad & Tobago – Day Six, Roberto Storms Off at Arima Velodrome

I felt like one of those football reporters at the racing here in Trinidad & Tobago at the Arima Velodrome, who has the copy all neatly spell checked; then the 2-1 down losing side bangs in two in the last 90 seconds. Roberto Chiappa was going to win the sprint final 2-0 against Home Boy, Sellier.
Stories

John Kennedy – Helping Simpson in Le Tour

July 1960, the GB Tour de France team hotel somewhere in France. Britain's white hope for Tour de France glory, the late, great Tom Simpson is discussing the events of the day with team mate, Brian Robinson. Simpson had punctured during the stage and one of his GB team domestiques had brought him back up to the bunch; "I'll tell you what, Brian - that John Kennedy is strong, he was riding like ten men today when we were coming back from that puncture."
Stories

Glasgow Commonwealth Games Tickets

Glasgow Commonwealth Games 2014 today announced a family-friendly Glasgow Commonwealth Games Tickets strategy focused on delivering packed stadia and a ‘Games for Everyone’. The Organising Committee unveiled that access next year to sporting events at one of the world’s greatest multi-sports Games will start from just £15 for adults.
Interviews

James McCallum – on Fatherhood and a New Team

It seems just like yesterday we were asking James McCallum if he’d ever consider turning pro – but that was back in 2006 after his second Commonwealth Games and a bronze medal in the scratch race. The following year he did indeed turn professional for Plowman Craven and since has ridden for Endura, Rapha Condor; and for 2014 he joins new – and much talked about – NFTO.
Cyclo Cross Pro Ian Field

Ian Field: This is a Hard Game

Hey everyone, Ian Field here - it's great to be here on VeloVeritas! Well, after a really good opening race to the season recently it was always going to be difficult to back it up seven days later - and so it proved.
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Here at VeloVeritas we aim to provide our readers with truthful, accurate, unique and informative articles about the sport we love.

Contact us: editor@veloveritas.co.uk

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