After a personally disappointing season, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot has said she wants to re-find "joy" back on the bike.

In a lengthy Instagram post shared at the weekend with pictures of her wedding to Dylan van Baarle, the former Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift champion spoke about her 2026 and ending her season early.

The 34-year-old did not race after pulling out of the Tour before stage eight in August, while she was over 10 minutes behind the race lead. Despite second at the Tour of the Flanders and third at Paris-Roubaix Femmes, 35th at the Vuelta Femenina and a DNS at the Tour did not reach her heady goals.

"I was so over focus[ed] on winning Tour again that I lost the joy of the everyday life," the Frenchwoman explained. "It was all about being and doing more to be the best.

"Strangely I faced some down times in my career before, where I felt sad and lost, but I never really experienced the fact to do everything so good and to ended up with nothing. And I think it’s one of the reason of my "non-understanding" state of the last few months."

Ferrand-Prévot had immediate success returning to full-time road racing in 2025, winning Roubaix and then the Tour in a triumphant year, after another golden season in 2024 saw her win mountain bike gold at the Paris Olympics. However, with 2026 proving trickier, a reset was required.

"My never-ending off-season was so needed," she continued. "It will be a long way to find a [decent] level again, as I’m fully unshaped. But the most important for now is to find back the joy to be on the bike."

Her off-season has also not been easy, with her then fiancée Van Baarle crashing days before their wedding.

"I remembered being happy when winning the Olympics, Tour, or Roubaix, but this feeling of getting married to Dylan with the presence of the most important people in my life was another level of joy, happiness and fulfilment," Ferrand-Prévot added, signing off as Pauline van Baarle.

"Experiencing this feeling of being so happy while not sacrificing everything or being extreme was something I never experienced before. On that last sentence, I will take note for the future. Again, MERCI for the support over my difficult 2026 season. I’m sure I will come back stronger."

Last month, my brother-in-law was knocked off his bike and seriously injured. As a regular commuter, this shocked me, and almost put me off riding again.

However, I know what the data says: cycling is statistically a safe activity; the benefits of regular cycling far outweigh any risks.

I decided to put my energy into working towards positive change. I got myself a helmet camera and began reporting incidents to the police.

Cyclists who record their rides aren't always popular. YouTuber Cycling Mikey – real name Mike van Erp – described himself as "marmite" to Cycling Weekly, but his reason for reporting is simple: "I just like to think that with the power of one I’m trying to change a little bit of road safety," he told The Guardian in 2022.

Before beginning my new short film endeavour, I wanted to be sure that my reporting would be useful, productive, and would have a positive impact, so I spoke to police, campaigners, and regular reporters, to collect their tips.

1) Your recording, and reporting, has a positive impact

Senior Policy Officer at the London Cycling Campaign, Tom Bogdanowicz, told me: "We strongly support camera reporting, which helps deter close passing by drivers, phone use while driving and other offences."

Operation Snap – Op Snap for short – is a UK police initiative which allows the public to upload and report footage of driving offences. Each UK force has its own process.

West Midlands Police uploads a report of its submissions and resulting action each month, and Bogdanowicz told me, "The West Midlands police are the gold standard when it comes to promoting and enforcing on public-supplied camera footage – and their results are hard to argue.

"[Their] approach shows that a supportive force, clear instructions to reporters and efficient follow-up leads to more enforcement and deterrence – and that means fewer people killed or injured on our roads."

2) You need to capture the incident, the registration number; and duration matters

West Midlands Police provided clear criteria for useful uploads; "it needs to be footage showing the incident, and where the Vehicle Registration Number of the vehicle involved is identifiable. The footage should include the entire incident and, wherever possible, one minute before and after the offence. The footage should not be any longer than 10 minutes in duration."

While working on this article, I reported a close pass to Dorset Police via its Operation Snap website. I found that Dorset Police says you must upload "at least two minutes of unedited footage, both before and after the reported incident," to have a chance of prosecution.

3) Equipment makes all the difference

Danny Brothwell is the chair of Bike Worcester, he’s personally made 800 submissions to Operation Snap. Bike Worcester received funding from the West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner to buy 16 Drift Ghost XL cameras for cyclists. Brothwell values their incident-saving feature: "If someone close-passes you, you press the button, and it saves to the card 10 seconds before and 10 seconds afterwards." He says it "really minimises review time and editing time."

Brothwell recommends good image quality, especially for riding in the dark, along with long battery life and an easy-to-operate setup. His own camera can struggle on unlit stretches of his commute. Crucially, riders must check their own force's footage requirements: Brothwell's short saved clips would not meet Dorset Police's stated two-minute-before-and-after requirement.

For cyclists considering helmet-mounted rather than handlebar-mounted cameras, the same practical test applies: can the footage clearly show the incident and identify the vehicle?

Cycling Weekly has a guide to the best helmet and bike cameras here, the DJI Osmo Nano taking the award for best overall. Cameras that mount on the rear of the bike are useful too, and Garmin's Varia Rearview 820 won in that department.

Key advice is to look for cameras that offer a 'Loop Recording' setting, that will passively record as you ride, constantly overwriting until you select 'archive', eg in the event of an incident. You want the 'archive' button to be instinctive, and one-press so you can use it correctly when adrenaline is high.

4) Keep the original footage

You should keep the original footage safe until the prosecution is complete.

Brothwell says he keeps the footage as Operation Snap requests. "The three times I've been to court, they've all been 12 months after the event – almost to the day," he recalls. He stores the files on a hard drive. His experience is a useful warning not to assume that six months is always long enough: follow the relevant force's instructions and preserve the original while a case remains live.

6) Pause before posting on social media

Don’t share footage on social media if you want to prosecute.

Dorset Police explicitly state you should take down any social media footage before reporting the incident. West Midlands Police also state, "it is very important that you do not post footage elsewhere prior to and while any action is being taken by the police or courts."

Brothwell avoids publishing footage that he has submitted to the police. "I think it's sensible," he says, because sharing it "may impact any proceedings." He has published some clips when writing about his experiences at magistrates' court, but he keeps live cases off social media.

7) Your statement is core to the report

Brothwell admits his early submissions sometimes contained little more than the words "close pass." After police feedback, he changed his approach: "They gave me some feedback in one of the meetings to say, 'Look, if this does go to court, that's not good enough. Can you do a proper statement?'"

He now uses a fuller statement template, adapting it to the incident and estimating the passing distance. He has given evidence in magistrates' court three times, where he says prosecutors and defendants questioned him and the footage was played repeatedly. The written account should therefore explain what happened rather than leaving the video to speak for itself.

4) Be aware that prosecution rates will vary, but your reporting always has value

West Midlands Police stated, "we take everything on a case-by-case basis, and we’d encourage people to submit footage if they believe an offence has been committed so that it can be properly assessed."

Brothwell says most of his submissions involved close passes, but he has also reported red-light offences, occasional mobile-phone use and vehicles obstructing crossings or school zigzags; he cautions that not every Highway Code contravention is necessarily suitable for an Operation Snap report.

Brothwell describes Operation Snap as a "postcode lottery", arguing that forces differ in how they handle reports and communicate outcomes. He is working on his own, yet to be published, research comparing forces.

However, his overall aim is not punishment: "I've got no interest in people getting fined. I just want people to acknowledge that driving isn't good enough. They need to chill out, slow down, and share the road appropriately." That's a goal all road users can share.

Italian journeyman cyclist Mattia De Marchi, stormed into the orange leader's jersey on stage 1 of the 2026 Gravel Burn stage race in South Africa. The former road racing professional, riding his second Gravel Burn, made a telling move with 5km to go, sneaking away with a well-timed attack to clinch the stage by 13 seconds.

De Marchi said his early sensations weren't good, but as the stage unfolded and his body warmed up, he found his rhythm.

“The feeling wasn’t there at the beginning. Because I knew the route from last year, I knew it would be important to get a gap before the big climb. On the climb I still wasn’t feeling great, but from there I started to feel better and better."

"At 5 kilometres to go, I decided to push and the guys behind me just stopped; at 1 kilometre to go, I pushed harder and I won. A nice start, huh!"

Unfortunately, his lead was short-lived as an untimely rear-wheel puncture and a smashed rear wheel on stage 2 scuppered his GC aspirations, costing him 40 minutes. While disappointing, the affable De Marchi stayed hopeful and turned to stage hunting for the remaining six stages.

De Marchi switched from Basso to Wilier in early 2026 after joining elite gravel team ‘The Grip’, which also includes Eddy Le Huitouze, a U23 French rider who moved to off-road racing after a stint with Groupama-FDJ on the WorldTour, and Belgian Jordy Bouts. The team’s disruptive ethos is characterised by an eye-catching kit and an even bolder bike livery, the result of which, according to the team, is "preserving the culture, aesthetics, and storytelling of gravel."

While the Italian’s Gravel Burn campaign didn’t play out as he had hoped, his bike caused its fair share of rubbernecking throughout the week’s racing. De Marchi rides a Wilier Rave SLR ID2 outfitted in the V14 The Grip Élite Gravel Team livery – this magenta/purple matte paint design can now be specced as an optional extra at checkout, yours for £400/€400.

As a SRAM-sponsored athlete, the Rave is built around a Red XPLR AXS groupset, complete with a X-Sync Aero 48T chainring and 10-46T cassette. He also runs Time XPro 12 SL road pedals and a Hammerhead Karoo 2 – yep, you guessed it, the cycling computer was named after this very region.

The bike rolls on a pair of carbon-spoked Miche Graff Pro wheels, pictured here sans decals – replacements for the wheels he broke on stage 2. His mechanics have pushed the tyre clearance boundaries to the maximum here with 2.2in Pirelli Cinturato Gravel RM tyres; Wilier officially recommends a maximum tyre width of up to 2.0in (52mm). De Marchi is using the stock Wilier integrated F-Bar with 110mm stem and 39cm bar (40cm flare), wrapped in Prologo bar tape.

An interesting addition is the brace of wireless blips under the bar for easy access to the gears when riding on the tops.

The balance of the build includes Elite Leggero carbon bottle cages with elastic bands to ensure bottles aren't ejected, an Apidura top-tube bag and a Prologo Scratch NDR PAS saddle.

Tech spec

• Frameset: Rave D2, carbon monocoque
• Fork: Rave D2, carbon monocoque
• Cockpit: Wilier integrated F-Bar
• Seatpost: Wilier Filanta carbon custom
• Groupset: SRAM Red XPLR AXS
• Wheelset: Miche Graff Pro
• Tyres: 2.2in Pirelli Cinturato Gravel RM
• Saddle: Prologo Scratch NDR PAS

Tadej Pogačar has said that he is "happy to be alive or standing" after his serious crash at the Vuelta a España resulted in three broken verterbrae.

The five-time Tour de France winner revealed in an interview with Jacob Whitehead for The Athletic that it wasn't until returning to Slovenia and going to hospital that the full extent of his injuries was revealed. Separately, over the weekend, the former world champion said there was a "big chance" that his season would be structured around the UAE Tour, then the Classics, and then the Tour de France.

Pogačar crashed during stage eight of this year's Vuelta, which left him with multiple serious injuries, including a fractured collarbone, a vertebra injury and concussion.

“There’s actually a funny story,” told The Athletic, in an interview published on Saturday. "Two weeks ago, I was in Slovenia and I went to do another CT scan. I knew I had a C7 fracture, but then we saw I had two more broken vertebrae, the T1 and T2.

"At that moment, I was happy I didn’t do the European Championships, which had been my initial goal. When I saw I had three broken vertebrae? I’m just happy to be alive, actually, or just to be standing."

The 28-year-old has since returned to the bike, after a careful rehabilitation. "I don’t have discomfort anymore," Pogačar said. "I have to be careful not to crash on the bike, or do some heavy lifting with my left arm or with my neck. But I can do basically everything normal now."

However, it was a tough time coming back. "For the first two weeks, I was really mentally not OK," he explained. "I was really down. I was not a fun person to be around. I don’t think Urška [Žigart, his fiancée and fellow pro cyclist] was happy to see me around the house, because I was just, like, depressed. You know, just not feeling anything.

"When I started to get on the home trainer, to go to physio every day, then I started to feel better — also in the head. But it was a day-to-day fight."

In a separate interview, during a virtual community ride on MyWhoosh at the weekend, Pogačar further detailed his plans for 2027, which he had already said would be focused around the Tour, World Championships and Vuelta.

He said: "There's a big chance I come back to Classics for sure, and also UAE Tour, and obviously Tour de France. There's no hiding in this, I think, so we will see."

Great Britain topped the medal table at the UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships last week for the first time since 2023.

The squad collected 27 medals at the event in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, including eight golds, 12 silvers and seven bronzes. The next best nation was Australia, with 21 medals, of which seven were gold.

Four-time Paralympic cycling champion Kadeena Cox helped lead Britain’s gold rush, returning to the top step – twice – at the World Championships after a two-year rainbow drought.

Not only did the 35-year-old win the kilometre time trial and sprint events in the C4 classification, she also set world records in both barely a day apart: 1:09.545 in the kilo on Friday, and 11.409 seconds in her flying 200m qualifier for the sprint on Saturday morning.

“15 hours… 2 WR,” Cox wrote on Instagram. “The last time I had 24 hours this crazy was Tokyo 2021 [when she won two gold medals – ed.]. And honestly I did not see it coming because I’ve been so under the weather and not feeling like myself.

“I came here to claim the flying 200m WR and I’m buzzing to have also broken the kilo world record.”

Tandem glory

Three new rainbow jerseys went the way of tandem pair James Ball and Aaron Pope, who only joined forces two months ago, but on their Worlds debut, scooped gold medals in the kilo, sprint and mixed team sprint alongside Lizzi Jordan and Anna Whitworth-Hay.

“A crazy eight weeks together,” Ball, a now 10-time world champion, toasted on Instagram.

The treble was made even more impressive by the fact that Pope, a former kilo national champion, only took up tandem piloting this year. In his first major event, he helped guide the now-retired Neil Fachie to two golds for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.

Paralympic champions Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl earned their sixth track world title together, this time in the tandem sprint.

Five-star Graham

No British rider took home more silverware from the Netherlands last week than Fin Graham, who signed his name on five medals: one gold, two silvers and two bronzes.

The 24-year-old from the Highlands found himself up against stiff competition in the C3 classification, forced to watch New Zealand’s Devon Briggs win three gold medals before him.

On the final day of competition, though, Graham finally got the better of Briggs, attacking with three laps to go in the scratch race to win his first track world title since 2023. “What an amazing way to end the year,” he said.

There was also a maiden rainbow jersey for 27-year-old Rebecca Newark in the C5 kilo. A former cricketer, Newark only came across to para-cycling four years ago, and was competing on what proved to be a memorable Track Worlds debut.

All the GB medallists

Gold

Men’s C3 scratch race – Fin Graham
Men’s tandem 1km TT – James Ball and Aaron Pope
Men’s tandem sprint – James Ball and Aaron Pope
Mixed tandem team sprint – Lizzi Jordan, Anna Whitworth-Hay, James Ball and Aaron Pope
Women’s C4 1km TT – Kadeena Cox
Women’s C4 sprint – Kadeena Cox
Women’s C5 1km TT – Rebecca Newark
Women’s tandem sprint – Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl

Silver

Men’s C3 elimination – Fin Graham
Men’s C4 1km TT – Jody Cundy
Men’s C4 elimination – Archie Atkinson
Men’s C4 scratch – Archie Atkinson
Men’s tandem IP – Morgan Fice-Noyes and Chris Latham
Women’s C2 elimination – Millie Cass
Women’s C2 scratch – Millie Cass
Women’s C2 sprint – Elisabeth Simpson
Women’s C5 scratch – Morgan Newberry
Women’s tandem 1km TT – Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl
Women’s tandem IP – Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl
C1-5 mixed team sprint – Kadeena Cox, Fin Graham and Jody Cundy

Bronze

Men’s C3 1km TT – Fin Graham
Men’s C3 scratch – Jacob Smith
Men’s C3 sprint – Fin Graham
Men’s C4 sprint – Archie Atkinson
Women’s C5 scratch – Crystal Lane-Wright
Women’s tandem 1km TT – Lizzi Jordan and Anna Whitworth-Hay
Women’s tandem sprint – Lizzi Jordan and Anna Whitworth-Hay

The Big Ride Challenge is all about inspiring people to ride their bikes. At the start of the year we ask people to set themselves one of the four mileage targets from 500 to 5,000 miles. Below is a list of everyone who has contacted us and sent proof* of their 2026 mileage. When you reach your target, email us on cycling@futurenet.com and we'll add you to the list below.

There is still two months to go until the end of the year, and plenty of riding waiting to be done. Each year lots of people complete their challenge on December 31. Some might say that's leaving it late, we say it's perfect timing!

You can join the Big Ride Challenge at any time during the year; all previously ridden miles from January 1st count toward the total.

*Proof of a mileage is a screengrab of a your chosen ride logging site (Strava, Garmin, etc), or a picture of a filled out 2026 CW mileage chart

The Mini - 2026 finishers

The Midi - 2026 finishers

Andrew Killington
Justin Payne
Martin Wray

The Maxi - 2026 finishers

Brent Baga - Completed on August 7
Graham Nix - Completed on August 18
John McCabe
Alex Latimer
Matthew Wallace

CW5000 - 2026 finishers

Giles Cudmore - Completed on March 29
Michael Padwick - Completed on May 9
Robert Dalzell - Completed on May 25
Dave Cox - Completed on June 21
Costin Murray - Completed on July 26
Leslie Reissner - Completed on August 11
Katherine White - Completed on August 19
Bryn Thomas - Completed on August 25
Mark Swanson - Completed on August 29, seventh year running
Andy Hopper - Completed on September 28
Gordon Reid - Completed on September 28
Andrew Baylis - Complete on October 12, sixth year running
David Oakes - Completed on October 13, seventh year running
Ian Long - Completed on October 16
Ian Miller - Completed on October 18
Ian Smith - Completed on October 18, seventh year running
Nigel Hale - Completed on October 26
Peter Thompson - Completed on October 30
Alex Graham - Completed the CW5000 seven years running
Chris Ronan
Mark Gilbert
Kev Palmer
Jeannette Burgoyne
Robert Moody
Darryn Mitchell
Andy Cartlidge
Hugh Mulligan
Oliver Dyson
Martin Power
Mary Boothroyd - Completed the CW5000 seven years running
Gary Boothroyd - Completed the CW5000 seven years running
Tim Banks
Myatt Geoffrey
Rory Leiper
Colin Whitehouse - Completed the CW5000 fours years running
Rob Phillips
Chris Baird
Ivan Dawes
Piers Newson-Smith

Previous years......

• 2025 Finishers List
• 2024 Finishers List
• 2023 Finishers List
• 2022 Finishers List
• 2021 Finishers List
• 2020 Finishers List

As I write this, Tadej Pogačar’s odds to win next year's Tour de France stand at 1/4. The sobering thing about that is it looks about right. It’s not the shortest-ever odds for a Tour win. But that was Pogačar too, ahead of the 2025 race.

The 2026 odds were similarly short, but had drifted out a fraction after the Giro d'Italia, where Jonas Vingegaard looked like Pogačar normally looks at the Tour. But I suspect that Vingegaard only looks like Pogačar when the actual Pogačar isn’t available for direct comparison.

For some reason, this overwhelming domination seems to be getting people down. “It’s going to be so predictable,” they say. Or, “It is wrong that every time I see his cheerful little face I want bad things to happen to him?” (A random sample from two of my friends, one of whom is a pro bike rider.)

If that’s the way you feel, I have a few suggestions that may help.

It’s worth contemplating for a moment just how good Pogačar is. Pro riders are very good at what they do. Cycling is a demanding, dangerous, random sport. Everyone, absolutely everyone, who makes any sort of a career as pro is talented, deeply committed, and very lucky. If you’ve ever tried to go toe-to-toe with a WorldTour rider, you’ll know how good they are.

And Pogačar can do to them what they can do to us. He can make them feel just as defeated, inadequate, and disappointed. There’s something pleasingly democratic about that.

It would also, I think, be fair to say that before a lot of Tours, perhaps even most Tours, we’ve heard the same story. There is often an overwhelming favourite because the Tour has always had eras of repeat winners. And at least Pogačar is a slightly interesting favourite.

He puts his reputation and his safety on the line at the classics. He rides with the panache that we all said we wanted – he attacks wildly early, or he falls off and bounces up again to win with a bloodied jersey.

He even has cute little tufts of hair sticking through his helmet vents. If you’d been offered the chance to design your ideal Tour winner during the Sky winning-by-numbers era, you’d have designed Pog. But now we have him? Bit boring, isn’t it?

If you think a Pogačar Tour lacks edge-of-seat moments, let me take you back even further than Sky, to the first Tours I watched in the 1990s, when Miguel Indurain crushed the little people in the (long, long) time trials and simply rode tempo up the climbs. Other than Chris Boardman’s win in the prologue, you could use tapes of the 1994 Tour as a general anaesthetic.

Most important of all, the thing about cycling as a spectator experience is contrast. It’s not pure excitement. It’s not scripted to be entertainment from flag to line. For the most part we’ve resisted the temptation to dick about with the rules to create artificial drama.

So, remember that someday Pogačar will fail. I don’t necessarily mean that as something to celebrate, per se. But when it comes, look at it this way; it’s as if every time he wins and you go, “Uh. Same old,” you ratchet a little more tension into a spring.

When one day someone rides away and leaves him gasping on an Alpine pass, all of that pent-up energy will come tumbling out. For years afterwards we’ll ask each other, “Where were you when Pogačar finally cracked?” It will define the 2020s. (Or maybe the 2030s. Or 2040s.)

And anyway, if the overwhelming favourite wasn’t Pogačar, it would be Jonas Vingegaard, and we’d be saying all the same things about him. There’s always a favourite, it’s always going to be boring, right up to the day it suddenly isn’t.

Tom Armstrong and Tom Martin, who finished the 2026 season by taking first and second place respectively in the National Road Series, share more than just a first name. They both ride for Wheelbase CabTech Castelli and, aside from a small amount of prize money, neither of them earns a penny from their endeavours on the road, despite having spent years riding at an elite level.

I've spoken to 32-year-old Armstrong, who also won this year's Rapha Super-League, several times this season, interviewing him for Cycling Weekly after he graced the podium at Britain's biggest domestic races. Each time, we have had to arrange the call around his work breaks. After a typical Sunday night travelling back from a race - often hundreds of miles from his Yorkshire home - on Monday morning he's back at work in JE James, in Barnsley, the bike shop where he earns a crust.

Twenty-seven-year-old Martin, meanwhile, juggles 18 hours of training per week (on average, plus gym sessions), and multiple long journeys up and down the country from his Cumbria base to compete in races, with shiftwork as a mechanical fitter in a shipyard. To be clear, neither Tom is complaining.

They both very obviously love their team, and like others in their position, they are extremely passionate about cycling. But I wonder how many people - including cycling fans - are aware of just how tough it is for top riders who compete outside the sparkle of the Tour de France and WorldTour sphere.

Expenses are high and pickings are extremely lean for even the very best domestic riders. Life for top amateurs seems especially hard in Britain, where there are no longer any men's Continental teams through which they can aspire to step up to the next level and start getting paid.

Worse still, any prospect of joining a European squad has been complicated - or altogether banjaxed - by Brexit, which has restricted freedom of movement. British riders are now bound by the strict 90-in-180-day Schengen limit - a bureaucratic hurdle that few small foreign teams can afford to negotiate.

As a result, Armstrong and Martin are in a strange position in a sport that has defined the trajectory of their lives since they were teenagers. Having just proven that they are the top two British road riders racing on the domestic circuit, their next best move is to throw themselves into the gravel season over the winter, and hope to pick up a few sponsors who might help cover their costs for 2027.

"Winning the National Road Series is just, as they say, for the love of the game," says Armstrong. "I wouldn't say I'm better off for having won it.

"This year I had help from Vetta with wheels, and Styrkr came onboard with nutrition," he continues. "But we're not talking about thousands of pounds in my bank account - it's some gels and wheels. It alleviates that pressure, but then you've got the fuel and hotel costs. And then you're still trying to run a house at the same time. It's difficult."

Both riders showed promise as juniors and attempted to go pro. "My first professional race was the Ronde van Limburg [in 2014], when I was 18," Armstrong tells me. "It was also Mathieu van der Poel's first race [as a senior]. I just wanted to get around, but VDP went and won it."

"It was a bit of a kick in the teeth. I was supposed to go into the Vacansoleil under-23 team, but that folded before the season even started. I joined a club team in Belgium for a season, and then I went and rode for T. Palm and Electro Hiper Europa, a Spanish Continental team."

When Electro Hiper folded, Armstrong returned to the UK and rejoined the team where he began cycling as a 15-year-old, Wheelbase CabTech Castelli - one of the strongest teams in the country, but not one with current ambitions to achieve Continental status. And there he remains - competing against, and often beating, Olympians and professionals to win races and take national titles "for the love of the game".

One such Olympian is Ollie Wood, who previously raced for the country's last-standing Continental team, Cornwall-based St Piran, which collapsed in 2024. "It's very challenging, unless you get picked up by a development team when you're younger," Wood says. "I'm obviously very fortunate that I receive National Lottery funding, because if it wasn't for that, I'd have stopped riding my bike when my brother did, back when the Canyon SunGod team folded [in 2023]."

Being on a strong, ambitious team is essential for any rider wanting to progress to the pro ranks, Wood explains: "If you don't get in the right teams doing the right races, then it's pretty tricky. Ten years ago you could race for a British Continental team, going to France and Belgium and getting exposure to races there. But now you've got guys who are having to uproot and move abroad to try and chase the dream."

This description echoes Martin's experience. In 2020, he took a sabbatical from work and went to Europe with Zappi Racing, a period he describes as "awful" - not least because it was during Covid. After that, he had a more positive period with a Spanish team. "I was hoping to progress to a Continental team in France," he says, "but it never happened. You get inside, and get promised stuff, and it doesn't happen, and teams fail... Basically, I ran out of money, so I had to come back to Britain to work."

Armstrong and Martin were unfortunate in that, just as their professional cycling careers could have taken off, Covid hit. Arguably, the pandemic not only hastened the demise of Britain's men's Continental teams, it also altered the dynamic of the sport. "All cycling changed when we came out of lockdown," says Armstrong. "Every level got faster and more intense. The WorldTour teams started inviting in younger riders. There has been a huge cash injection at the top and a mentality change. It got more ruthless."

For a talented British rider in today's climate, unless they get spotted early and brought into a youth development squad that actually survives in the opaque financial landscape of professional cycling, they can easily find themselves approaching their mid-20s with a narrowing range of options in the sport.

"Those years, when you're 25 or 26, and you're still in your prime as an athlete - or perhaps still maturing - you get stuck in this limbo space," explains Armstrong. "There's maybe a couple of teams out there in Europe that are willing to chuck you a couple of hundred euros and put you up in a barn for eight months of the year to go and race... Increasingly, teams are looking for younger riders. So you're in this sort of no-man's land [where] it's not about being not good enough, it's about not being young enough."

Armstrong fears that this is not only a problem for riders in their mid-20s missing the proverbial boat, but could mean too much pressure being placed on younger riders too. "You could end up with a generation losing the love of the sport because they're thrown straight into a high-pressure environment," he says. "When I was a kid, the first thing you learned was how to enjoy going for a ride with your mates or the club - it was very much a club environment."

Tim Shoreman is another Wheelbase CabTech Castelli rider who competes on the track for Great Britain. He gets some support through the National Lottery programme for his track riding, but has to self-fund logistics around his road-racing efforts. Living in Aberdeen, that's an expensive process.

He has to pick his races carefully, inevitably missing some National Series events. "I accepted quite a long time ago that I probably wasn't going to make it professionally on the road, so I'm kind of doing it just because I enjoy it," he says. "Is the funding sufficient to see me through the whole year? Not really. It's enough to survive, but I'm living with my parents... It's not ideal."

Like Armstrong, Shoreman describes being overtaken by changes in the recruitment system. "When Tom [Martin] and I were juniors, it was expected that you'd go through the under-23s and then look to become professional or get opportunities as you got older. But the system sort of leapfrogged us. Suddenly development teams were signing 18-year-olds, and we were in that middle bit. It pivoted very quickly. Before Covid, we were too young, and now suddenly we're too old."

Besides the lack of Continental teams, Britain's road racing scene also lacks quality races. With the calendar virtually devoid of top-tier UCI events beyond the men's and women's Tours of Britain, it's a discouraging drought. "It would be so nice to have something like the Rás in Britain," says Martin, referring to the Rás Tailteann, an eight-stage international road race held annually in Ireland, in which he finished second this year, and Shoreman won a stage.

One possible solution would be to enable riders like Armstrong and Martin to race the Tour of Britain Men, which is currently open only to World Tour and Continental teams, plus a national squad from British Cycling, which includes Wood. "Wheelbase is the top team domestically, with Tom [Armstrong] and myself sitting one and two in the National Road Series, and it would be nice if we got the opportunity to race for the national team at the Tour of Britain," says Martin.

Armstrong agrees, and suggests that Tour of Britain selection could be proposed as an incentive. "It would definitely make a more competitive road series, because if you were offering a spot to the winner on the national team for the Tour of Britain, I'm sure a lot of people would come back and race all the National Series races."

For now, like many road riders, the two Toms will see what opportunities come their way during the gravel season, although Armstrong predicts that that scene is on the cusp of a change too. "Next year, with the introduction of points [in gravel events] counting towards UCI road rankings, I think you'll see a lot of the World Tour teams that are hunting around for points at the end of the year doing a lot of gravel, and that will potentially change things. It's part of an evolving sport."

Assuming a change in fortunes doesn't come about by way of gravel, will next year see him back competing on the road? "I haven't thought that far ahead yet," he admits. "More of the same probably... unless some big contract appears. And it's probably not going to happen at 32, is it?"

Finding the best indoor smart trainer can feel overwhelming with so many options in a crowded market. There are plenty of smart trainers available, with leading brands like Garmin, Wahoo, and Justo all to consider. Most are very similar in specs and build, so it often comes down to budget.

Get the Garmin Tacx Flux 2 Smart Trainer for just $499.99.

Garmin recently launched the Tacx Nēra smart trainer, which comes with an impressive spec sheet and a huge $999 price tag to match. That's a massive investment for anyone, but if you're after one of Garmin's top-rated trainers, then you can get the Garmin Tacx Flux 2 Smart Trainer for just $499.99, which is a massive 29% off the usual $700 price.

I enjoy using my smart trainer to mix up my workouts with virtual rides and structured training plans. The Garmin Tacx Flux is compatible with the best indoor training apps, such as Zwift and ROUVY. Garmin also offers the Tacx Training app, which is free to use, with a wide variety of workout types.

Key features that make the Tacx Flux one of the best smart indoor trainers include its smooth and silent performance, designed to keep vibration and noise levels to the absolute minimum. It offers a superbly realistic ride feel, with up to 16% incline simulation, and can handle the most explosive sprints, up to 2,000 watts.

At this price, it really is one of the best smart trainer deals we've seen for a long time.

Elsewhere, if you want to invest the savings made on the Flux 2 into your indoor setup, then one of the best indoor fans is the way to go. Things can get very hot and sweaty riding indoors, and a quality fan is a great buy to keep things feeling cooler.

The Shark FlexBreeze HydroGo Portable Misting Fan is 17% off, down to $124.95. The Shark is an ultra-powerful portable fan that mists and cools anywhere. For indoor cycling, especially if you're short on space, it offers targeted, evaporative cooling without the footprint of an industrial floor blower.

It also has a built-in rechargeable battery that lets you place the fan precisely where you need it, on a desk or a dedicated bike trainer table, without the need to be running extension cords across the floor.

These indoor cycling deals are US-based, but below you'll find the best Garmin Tacx trainer deals across the range. They'll also show deals located in your location and currency.

The Cyclists’ Alliance (TCA), an independent union that represents the women’s peloton, has called for full live coverage of the biggest women’s races on the calendar.

The union published its ninth annual survey report today, listing broadcast visibility as one of its top priorities, alongside better race safety and financial security for lower-tier riders.

According to TCA’s survey of 127 riders, including 118 road riders from across the women’s Continental, ProTour and WorldTour tiers, 49% want greater visibility for races. This number grows to 60% when responses are limited to WorldTour riders only.

TCA singled out the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, Paris-Roubaix Femmes and the women’s Tour of Flanders as “pinnacle” races that should have start-to-finish television coverage, and called on their organisers and host broadcasters to commit to full broadcasts.

This spring, only the final third of Paris-Roubaix Femmes was broadcast live, a decision TCA described at the time as a “massive affront to women’s cycling”. Three of the nine stages of August’s Tour de France Femmes were granted full broadcasts.

There have, however, been positive signs; Tour de France Femmes race director Marion Rousse told Cycling Weekly there would be a “real discussion” about full coverage in the future, while the Santos Tour Down Under, the calendar’s opening WorldTour stage event, has committed to full coverage of the women’s race in 2027.

“Fans are asking to see the whole race, and the 2027 Santos Tour Down Under proves it can be done,” said Lexi Brown, TCA’s board director. “Full start-to-finish coverage should no longer be the exception in women’s cycling, particularly at the sport’s biggest tentpole events.”

TCA’s ninth annual rider survey received responses from 42 Women’s WorldTour riders, a number the union acknowledges is a “small base”.

The largest group of respondents were third-tier Continental riders, 52 of whom filled out the survey. Their biggest concern was financial instability; 75% of Continental-level respondents said they receive no salary from their team and 79% are on one-year contracts. The UCI does not mandate a minimum salary for Continental riders.

WorldTour respondents named race safety as their top priority. This includes concerns regarding road conditions and course design.

“Unfortunately in road cycling, danger will always be a part of the equation,” said FDJ United-Suez rider Ally Wollaston, who is also part of TCA's rider council.

“Rider safety can never be guaranteed, but it can be prioritised. The reality is, neglecting road safety is not just gambling with the riders’ careers, it’s gambling with their lives.

“If we want longevity in the sport, road safety needs to be a non-negotiable priority at every race.”

The full 43-page 2026 Annual Rider Survey can be found on TCA's website.

Ed Laverack won his second British National Hill Climb Championship on Sunday after finally beating his nemesis, Andrew Feather, on Porlock Toll Road. The Welshman climbed the course 1.2 seconds quicker than the quadruple national champion. Although junior boys champion Erza Bateman was marginally faster, Laverack's blistering 14:32.1 over 6.6km at a 5.5% average gradient ended his seven-year search for a second title.

The success came from a near-perfect race run-up, three wins out of four open hill climbs, a longer-than-usual course that suited his exceptional sustained power, and a tricked-out Scott Addict RC Ultimate.

The Swiss brand says this is its lightest production road bike. Laverack got his down to 5.9kg by swapping in some boutique and more budget carbon parts.

Mark James photographed the bike as a jubilant Laverack celebrated his victory, so let's go through the details.

At a claimed 640g for a size medium frame and 270g for the fork, the Addict RC Ultimate is one of the lightest framesets ever made, thanks to Scott's use of its highest-end HMX-SL carbon. The chrome finish on Laverack's bike looks stunning, too.

These Brink wheels are something special. Harry MacFarlane rode a 770g set of Brink rim-brake tubulars to win the nationals on Bank Road last year. Although these Velix-Evo 2.0 are heavier at approximately 865g for the pair, that's still mighty impressive for 37mm deep rims with aerodynamic instead of the very lightest carbon spokes. Brink has minimised weight by stringing only 20 of them on each rim, which is itself made from a monocoque of T1100 high-modulus carbon fibre. Laverack's choice of these over the shallower, lighter 24mm depth shows his desire to reduce both weight and drag. Yours for about £2,340.

The dimensions of the hooked rim are progressive for such a light wheelset: it measures 23mm internally and 30mm externally, meaning this 700x28c width tyre is on the narrow side. Set up tubeless as it is here, the Vittoria Corsa Pro Speed is one of the fastest-rolling tyres available.

This Gemini Rigel 1x chainring is an exotic piece of bike tech designed for weight-weenie hill-climb builds. With a core made from carbon and teeth cut from 7075-T6 alloy, it weighs a mere 92g or half as much as a SRAM Red aero single chainring. But at about £113, it's much cheaper.

Laverack went for the 42T version on SRAM Force cranks with a single-sided Quarq power meter. This is a slightly lighter way to measure watts than with a double-sided power meter. He hasn't forgotten about drivetrain efficiency, as the chain is waxed.

Instead of classic Shimano SPD-SL pedals, Laverack clipped into these SPD-SL-compatible Rock Bros pedals. Claimed to weigh 180g with 52g cleats, they're a good deal lighter (roughly 70g) than Dura-Ace pedals and cleats combined.

Here's another look at that gorgeous Chrome Silver colourway (minus the bottle cages, of course).

Little bar tape is seen at hill climbs. A true weight-weenie would have chopped the drops, but Laverack's sponsor Scott wouldn't have been too happy with him.

Laverack's tight gearing consisted of the aforementioned 42T chainring and this 10-26T SRAM Red AXS cassette, the smallest in the range. Machined from a single piece of steel in SRAM's X-Dome construction, it weighs only 175g. Given Laverack was travelling at an average speed of 27kph, he wouldn't have needed a larger sprocket.

Removing the front derailleur and mount saves several hundred grams and is a tad more aerodynamic. A mechanic has plugged the hole to stop water ingress.

Despite aerodynamics being a concern on the final headwind section of the climb, Laverack has raised the front end with a full stack of spacers. It looks like about 40mm here. He may have found this height balances aerodynamics with power production.

Because front and rear lights are obligatory in hill climbs, there's a tiny one looped around the integrated cockpit tops.

Jody Cundy’s 20-year unbeaten streak in the kilometre time trial at the UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships ended on Thursday with a valiant silver medal.

The Briton lost out by 2.2 seconds in the C4 classification of the event to Australia’s Korey Boddington, who won with a time of 1:02.672.

Cundy, now 48 years old, won his first kilo world title in 2006. With no World Championships held in 2008, 2010, 2013 and 2021, he went two decades undefeated and earned 16 consecutive gold medals in the event.

“Well after 20 years, and 16 back to back titles in the 1km time trial, finally somebody has beaten me to the rainbow jersey,” Cundy wrote on Instagram.

He also commended Boddington on an “awesome ride”, and called him a “deserved champion”.

Cundy qualified second on Thursday afternoon, 1.7 seconds adrift of Boddington, and wrote on social media that he would need a “minor miracle” to continue his unbeaten run.

While Boddington went on to hold the same pace in the final, the Briton went half a second slower, but managed to claim silver by eight hundredths of a second.

Speaking to the BBC before this week's championships in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, Cundy said he was “no spring chicken any more”.

“I’m getting older and the competitors are getting younger. It’s going to be very hard to keep that unbeaten run,” the six-time Paralympic cycling champion said. “As much as I would love to do it, the people I have to race this year… I’m in trouble.”

Boddington, the man who ended up toppling Cundy, is 17 years his junior, and the reigning Paralympic champion in the event.

Replying to Cundy’s Instagram post, Boddington said: “Huge respect for you and everything you’ve done for the sport. I’m still scared of what you can do on a bike so bring it on.”

A former swimmer, Cundy competed in his first Paralympics in 1996, and went on to win three gold medals in the pool before turning to cycling in 2006.

He competes in the C4 classification with a prosthetic leg, having had his right foot amputated when he was three due to a birth deformity.

Although he is no longer the kilo world champion, he continues to hold the C4 world record of 1:01.466, set in Aguascalientes, Mexico in 2014.

This week’s UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships run until Sunday afternoon.

Bahrain Victorious have ended their partnership with Bianchi "with immediate effect" after just one year, and will ride Factor Bikes from 2027, the team announced this week.

In a press release on Thursday, the WorldTour squad said that the contract was terminated mutually, before revealing on Friday that they would be sponsored by Factor "to push the boundaries of what is possible in professional cycling".

It means Bianchi are without a WorldTour team for next season, while Factor return to cycling's highest stage; they previously partnered with Israel-Premier Tech until the end of 2025. This season, they also had partnerships with Modern Adventure Pro Cycling, Human Powered Health and Ma Petite Enterprise.

"It has been a pleasure to work with the riders and staff of Bahrain Victorious and to support the team at the highest level of professional cycling," Tony Grimaldi, the interim CEO of Bianchi said in a statement. "We thank everyone involved for their commitment and professionalism, and wish the team every success in its next chapter."

A Bahrain Victorious spokesperson added: "We have valued Bianchi’s support and the passion for cycling its people brought to the team. As we look ahead to our next chapter, we thank everyone at Bianchi for their dedication and wish the company every success for the future.”

Bahrain Victorious will now be riding the Factor One and the Ostro VAM on the road, and the Hanzō in time trials.

Rob Gitelis, founder of Factor Bikes, said that it was fitting that his brand would be back on the WorldTour in the year the Tour de France begins in Britain, as it is also where his company was founded.

"At Factor, we have always believed that racing at the pinnacle of the sport is fundamental to who we are," he continued. "It’s where our ideas are challenged, where our engineering is tested, and where we continue to push ourselves forward. Bahrain Victorious shares our ambition and our belief that performance comes from challenging what is possible.

Milan Eržen, Bahrain Victorious's managing director said: "We see this partnership as much more than supplying bikes to a professional team. It’s an opportunity to work together, to innovate, and to compete against the very best. We are incredibly excited about what we can achieve together from 2027.

"We have found a fantastic partner in Factor, a brand that shares our performance ethos and our ambition to be the best. Factor is continuously innovating on the bike, with a huge focus on performance, which will enable our riders to have one of the best setups in the peloton."

If you’re suffering under the misapprehension that your bike isn’t fit to tackle the untamed gravel of the Home Counties without the latest 1x13 electronic groupset, complete with dinnerplate-esque 10t/46t cassette, this Viking expedition bike is the antidote. Turns out, all you need for the very worst terrain is iron-clad resolve, legs of steel and one fixed gear.

This impressive expedition bike was built for Bernard Heath, an equally remarkable adventurer, who, together with Rough-Stuff Fellowship (RSF) members Dick Phillips, Raymond Bottomley, and Ron Bartle, made the first unsupported two-wheeled crossing of Iceland's interior in 1958.

They cycled identical Viking steel fixies uniquely adapted for the task; the most obvious modification being the girder-like rack brace that’s brazed directly to the seat tube.

“You could jump on that rack, it’s so strong,” says current owner Richard Hoddinott of vintage specialists The Velo Pages. “The whole bike is incredibly beefy. The front dropouts are clearly quite agricultural but built for punishment.

Similarly, the bottom bracket features a modified tandem shell for increased strength. The bikes had to be tough; they carried everything, including a rubber dinghy for river crossings.”

The adaptations were a wise precaution. The four RSF riders, all in their twenties, were taking on the Sprengisandur (roughly translated: ‘ride a horse to death’), an ancient 260-mile pass that lies between three central Icelandic ice caps.

If the lava fields were daunting – a seemingly endless rotation of boulders, scree slopes and knee-deep, soft grit – the numerous, broad, icy river crossings were downright hazardous.

Reading their expedition notes, it’s remarkable how rudimentary much of their kit was. The defining adjective is ‘stout’ – stout rope, stout cycling shoes and, of course, stout bikes. Bernard Heath went on to found the Mountain Bothies Association – a legacy for which every walker, climber, and bikepacker remains in his debt.

Two-time Tour de France stage winner Dylan Teuns has announced his retirement from professional cycling after failing to find a team for 2027.

The 34-year-old Belgian spent the last two seasons with Cofidis, and previously rode for Israel-Premier Tech, Bahrain Victorious and BMC Racing Team.

He confirmed his retirement on social media on Thursday, writing: “I look back with immense pride and gratitude on a career in which I was able to fulfil my absolute childhood dreams.”

At the same time, Teuns gave an interview to Belgian publication Het Nieuwsblad, in which he explained he wanted to continue racing for another two years, but was unable to find a contract.

“I had known for months that I was in a difficult situation,” he said. “My spring didn't turn out the way I had hoped. As a result, I ended up in a contract situation I had never experienced before.”

“The Tour had already started, and I hadn't signed anywhere yet. That caused extra stress. Almost every team repeated the same mantra: 'We need to rejuvenate'. Eventually, I held intensive talks with three WorldTeams and two ProTeams.”

Unfortunately, he added, those talks “came to nothing”. His hopes then lay in negotiations he was having with WorldTour team Lotto-Intermarché, but he found out last week that they did not have a place for him.

“The conclusion was that I wouldn't be happier by choosing a smaller team,” Teuns said.

“I really wanted to continue for another two years with a WorldTour or WorldTour-worthy team that performs. I felt I still have the potential for it. The responsibility of being a team leader wasn’t a must. I was perfectly happy to act as a lead-out man for a puncheur or contribute to the team in the Classics with a free role.”

Teuns’s 12-year pro career brought him 14 victories, including stages at the Tour de France on the Planche des Belles Filles in 2019 and in Le Grand-Bornand in 2021, a stage of the Critérium du Dauphine in 2019, and a Classic in La Flèche Wallonne in 2022.

His last victory came on stage one of the Tour de Romandie in 2022, then riding for Bahrain Victorious. He did not ride a Grand Tour in 2026.

He wrote on Instagram on Thursday: “To all the fans, teammates, and staff members who have backed me all these years along the road and in front of the screen: thank you!

“But a special thanks goes out to my parents, close friends, and girlfriend for having my back during the highs and the lows.

“Without you all, this dream would have never become reality. It is time for a new chapter, but the love for the bike remains forever.”

The Ribble Ultra-Road is the Lancashire-based company’s newest entrant to the endurance bike segment, combining an aero-optimised frame with a comfortable, less racy riding position – a bike for the people, if you will.

Ribble reckons a large portion of the cycling demographic rides the wrong bikes and adopts fits more akin to professional road racers. As a result, the Ribble Ultra-Road’s more upright riding position offers an all-round platform for long-distance epics but can also handle fast group rides, crit races and adventures in the mountains, too.

Despite its endurance focus, the ‘Ultra’ moniker places it among the Ultra-Race, Ultra-Aero, and Ultra-Grit, making it the brand’s flagship performance endurance bike. This idea, however, is nothing new: the Canyon Endurace, Cannondale Synapse, Pinarello X Series, and Specialized Roubaix follow the same blueprint, but Ribble has added more value and made it more accessible.

Design details

With a blueprint inspired by the Ribble Ultra-Race, the Ultra-Road utilises the very same aerodynamic learnings and carbon-fibre layup. This comprises Toray M46 and T1000-grade carbon fibre, presented in a tidy, aero-informed design package, and employed exclusively for its low weight and propensity to minimise road buzz and vibration. The aero-look carbon seatpost has been included for its fatigue-resisting properties.

While it’s a beautiful-looking bike, its silhouette is generic and follows the now-standard dropped seatstay configuration used across the industry. The wide-set fork and profiling along the head and downtube, however, add some semblance of individuality, with shaping and aero bottle-cage integration borrowed from the Ultra Race.

The Ultra Road comes in three colourways, slate grey metallic (pictured here), damson metallic, and iridescent white metallic, each of which looks appreciably posh and neutral (custom colours are also available but at an extra cost). The Ribble wordmark on the downtube and fork is finished in a brushed aluminium-look treatment, complementing the grey metallic paint of our test bike quite superbly.

Despite the aerodynamic credentials, the Ultra-Road adopts a shorter reach and higher stack than traditional race bikes for improved comfort and a less cramped riding position. According to Ribble, the idea lets the rider “sustain an aerodynamic position and maximum power for longer, along with improved feel and handling”.

Tyre clearance is pegged at 38mm – ample for this segment but drops to 32mm if you opt to pair the bike with mudguards.

Specifications

Specification-wise, the Ultra-Road is available with a host of electronic groupsets from Shimano and SRAM. Our test bike arrived with a SRAM Force AXS groupset, complete with a power meter, 48/35T, 10-36T chainset, and 170mm cranks. There's a lot of carbon-fibre components on offer, including the Ribble integrated bar and stem, and seatpost.

It also has a neat-looking downtube storage compartment (compatible with the Ribble Rift Tool Wrap) and a UDH dropout, ensuring compatibility with all current and upcoming groupsets. Mavic Cosmic S 42mm wrapped in 32mm Vittoria Corsa Next tyres and a Selle Italia SLR Advan Superflow saddle round out the build.

Our test bike weighed 8.04 kg, spot on with the claimed 8kg and in line with endurance-themed rivals with similar specifications.

Performance

Ribble has made sure not to segregate riders with the Ultra-Road and has designed it to cover an impressive spread of riders' heights, starting at 4’11 for the XXS to 6'4" for the XL model. This has been achieved by keeping the angles fairly consistent across the geometry chart.

It’s a very impressive bike overall, difficult to fault and easy to praise. It feels surefooted in the corners and agile when changing direction. Straight-line speed is good, too, with the Ultra-Road reacting well to pedalling inputs and out-the-saddle accelerations, allowing it to get up to speed quickly. While aerodynamics are impossible to quantify without a wind tunnel, it doesn’t particularly feel like an endurance bike. It feels very comfortable, but it still conveys a strong sense of speed, and the position isn't as upright as you’d expect.

At 8kg, it’s neither light nor heavy, but I do feel the industry places too much emphasis on system weight. Unless you’re traversing double-digit gradients for long periods, you’re never at a disadvantage, especially in the UK, where shorter, punchier terrain is the order of the day. As a result, it’s light enough to dispatch the ups without much bother and weightier enough to ensure you sail down the other side at speed.

The handling is neutral and confidence-inspiring, letting the rider trust the front end on turn-in and enabling the bike to flow through corners with no twitchiness or vagueness from the handlebars or underpinnings. The Mavic Cosmic wheels, shod with 32mm Vittoria Corsa Next, were surprisingly good. Mavic is not a common OEM rolling-stock option these days, but the wheels did the job. If anything, upgrading the tyres to something lighter and more supple would do wonders for the tactile communication and maybe even improve grip and rolling resistance.

That said, the tyre configuration performed decently throughout the test and also helped soften road buzz and vibration thanks to lower tyre pressure. You can boost comfort even more with wider tyres, but this will also increase weight by a smidgeon.

Value

The endurance segment is a tricky space to navigate, with options at both ends of the spectrum. Ribble, however, has made a concerted effort to balance value with performance, and the Ultra-Road echoes this with a formidable range boasting builds to suit a variety of price points. There’s even a £2,599/$3,480 Shimano 105 option for those who still prefer the tactile and deliberate shift action of mechanical actuation.

While the range-topping Zipp-wheeled models are far from the priciest in the segment, they top out at £6,999/$8,700 and £6,499/$8,100 for SRAM Red AXS and Shimano Dura-Ace Di2, respectively (both models are cheaper with Mavic Cosmic wheels); the £4,599/$6,400 Force AXS build is a more appealing option, as is the £4,199/$5,500 Ultegra Di2 version.

You’ll also need to consider its closest competitors from Specialized and Cannondale, the £6,999/$8,499 Roubaix SL8 Pro and £6,995/$7,499 Synapse Carbon 2 SmartSense, neither of which can match the homegrown British theme and impressive pricing.

Scoring breakdown

Tech spec

• Price: £4,599/$6,400
• Brand: Ribble
• Frame: Ribble T1000 and M46 carbon-fibre construction 
• Fork: Ribble T1000 and M46 carbon-fibre construction 
• Weight: 8.04kg (small)
• Sizes: XXS, XS, S, M, L, XL
• Levers: SRAM Force AXS
• Brakes: SRAM Force AXS
• Rear derailleur: SRAM Force AXS
• Front derailleur: SRAM Force AXS
• Crankset: SRAM Force 48/35T
• Cassette: SRAM Force AXS 10-36T
• Chain: SRAM Force
• Wheels: Mavic Cosmic S 42mm
• Tyres: Vittoria Corsa Next tyres 32mm
• Bar/stem: Ribble integrated bar and stem
• Seatpost: Ribble Comfort-Flex Carbon
• Saddle: Selle Italia SLR Advan Superflow

Paul Seixas has called for better standards of race organisation following the death of Finlay Tarling at this year's Volta a Portugal.

Speaking to Canal+’s ‘Clique’ show this week, the Decathlon CMA CGM rider made clear that riders being struck by cars “shouldn’t happen” in bike races.

Nineteen-year-old Tarling died on 14 August after he collided with a non-race vehicle that had been driven onto the course at the Volta a Portugal. A police investigation is ongoing into the incident.

“Honestly, it’s terrible,” Seixas said. “I raced with him, and it really affected me.

“We end up saying to ourselves, ‘That’s yet another cyclist who’s lost their life in a race this year’. I think it’s really affected everyone, all the cyclists. Sometimes there really are concerns about how races are organised. The organisers are doing their best, but sometimes there need to be better standards.”

The Frenchman was part of a five-minute protest about safety held ahead of this year’s Il Lombardia, a race he went on to win.

In tandem with the protest, riders including Tom Pidcock (Pinarello Q36.5) and Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) shared a joint statement on social media calling on the UCI and race organisers to “take accountability and act” against cars on courses. “We will not stand for this any longer,” they wrote.

Seixas told Canal+: “What happened [to Tarling] is extremely serious. Families are affected. It’s serious that this is happening in races, professional ones like that one, and riders are losing their lives. It’s frightening.

“There have been some very serious crashes throughout history, but really, riders dying like that after colliding with a car during a race, this shouldn’t happen.”

Last month, British rider Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) called for the creation of an independent safety body in cycling, telling BBC Sport it was "disgraceful" that “nothing has changed” following Tarling’s death.

The UCI launched a safety body in 2023 named ‘SafeR’, which claims to be independent, despite being funded by the governing body, race organisers, riders and teams. The UCI called in September for safety tracking systems to be put in place across all professional road races “as quickly as possible”.

Still, there have continued to be incidents involving cars on courses since Tarling's death. These include: a rider swerving to dodge a car during a time trial at the German race Sauerlandrundfarht; a delivery van entering the race route behind the breakaway at the Coppa Bernocchi; and an SUV on the course at the Eneco Tour, four days after the Il Lombardia protest.

Race organisers highlight the difficulty of policing hundreds of kilometres of public roads. “It’s totally impossible,” Kiko García, technical director of the Vuelta a España and managing director of the International Association of Cycling Race Organisers (AIOCC), recently told Cycling Weekly.

“In a 200km race, depending on the region, sometimes you have more than 300, 400, 500 different small roads [coming off the course],” García added.

“But believe me, the first priority of every single organiser in the world is safety… This is something super urgent to fix.”

Based on direct feedback from its community of virtual cycling enthusiasts, Zwift has rolled out two new major features: Zwift Coach and Zwift Video. Both are part of an upgraded membership tier called Zwift Plus, available for £26.99/$29.99/€29.99 per month. The current standard membership option remains unchanged at £17.99/$19.99/€19.99 per month.

Cycling Weekly was invited to Moab, Utah, for a launch event to learn more about these new offerings and compare real roads with their new virtual counterparts on Zwift Video. Unseasonably wet, windy weather, however, made outdoor riding untenable, and flooding constrained the planned itinerary. As a result, I got to experience the rather absurd scenario of flying several hundred miles just to go for a Zwift ride.

Sampling the new Zwift Plus features and asking questions of the Zwift team was a worthwhile experience. The first part of the new rollout is Zwift Coach, a coaching tool that builds a unique, adaptable plan for each user based on riding experience, fitness goals, desired plan length, and desired weekly activity time. It adapts to changes and inputs, including weaving in non-Zwift activities like outdoor group rides and cross-training, and provides a progress report and analysis after each workout. Once you enroll, each day’s focus appears front and center in the Zwift Companion app, making it easy to integrate into your workouts.

Zwift says its coaching tools are based on a mathematical model, which utilises established training science blended with Zwift’s vast data archive comprising 65 million rides worth of data. Once a user’s inputs are provided, the software builds a structured plan that builds towards a fitness target, or larger goal, up to 6 months away or as short as just two weeks. Zwift makes it clear that the software isn't AI-based; however, it uses AI to generate messages for users.

I plan to share a more thorough review of Zwift Coach once I’ve had more time to test it.

The other major component of the Zwift Plus rollout is called Zwift Video. It introduces real-world riding routes, filmed on location in high definition, and integrates Zwift gameplay features into these backdrops. The initial launch includes 21 new routes from around the world for a total of 385km of new, rideable Zwift roads.

Highlights include rides in places like the French Alps, Mallorca, Tenerife, South Africa's Western Cape, the Lofoten Islands of Norway, Arches National Park in Southern Utah (where I attended the launch event), and the Scottish Highlands, where the Bond movie Skyfall was filmed.

These initial routes offer a mix of flat and hilly options and include mixed-surface rides, which have different rolling-resistance characteristics and work well with some of the best smart trainers on the market. Filming for Zwift Video took place over multiple seasons, so users can expect riding conditions to change over time.

I had the opportunity to test several Zwift Video routes and am happy to report that the gamified components integrate impressively. For experienced Zwifters, it will feel familiar: sprints, KOMs, segments, and the like appear overlaid on the video as usual, with a few subtle tweaks to avoid compromising the scenery. Occasional vehicle traffic is interesting but doesn’t affect riders.

The graphics are impressive, and Zwift captures the feeling of interacting with the landscape rather than simply watching a video backdrop slide by. As I understand it, portions of the map download to a user’s computer and continuously buffer as you ride to avoid lag; the beginning of the route is always available, making laps on each course seamless.

At the event, I prioritised riding the nearby routes (Colorado and Utah) as these are familiar roads and at the time we still hoped to have the opportunity to ride them while in the area. The weather, however, did not cooperate.

Back at home, equipped with test software, I had the chance to explore more of the new routes and visit some unfamiliar terrain. Apparently, creating new routes via video is faster in Zwift than building them from scratch, so we can expect more new routes in the near future. It will be interesting to see how Zwift expands this new format going forward.

While Zwift Video is quite similar to what Rouvy offers (a former competitor that Zwift acquired in April of this year), Zwift employees stressed that the two products and organizations are distinct and will remain so. The two products have no current overlap in routes, and Zwift Video integrates typical Zwift gameplay features into the rides, with a focus on the riding community. According to Zwift, the way the filming was done and the design of the software in use means Zwift and Rouvy have no cross-compatibility whatsoever.

As Zwift has never previously offered tiered pricing, this is a notable change. A coaching tool leverages Zwift’s vast data repository and brings an affordable option to many riders who may not have previously considered working with a coach. For riders familiar with the platform and who already have a reliable indoor setup, this feature alone will be popular.

Bundling Video and Coach together gives current Zwifters more options for what seems like a reasonable upcharge. Current Zwift subscribers will be offered a short-term, free trial upgrade to Zwift Plus. If you're happy with your current membership and its features and aren't interested in making the change, carry on as you were; no tears necessary.

Indoor cycling is a fantastic way to stay fit when the weather turns grim, but you will need a few key pieces of kit to get started. In this guide, I'll break down what you actually need, from the best smart trainers to comfort upgrades - across a range of budgets

The real draw of indoor training is that, once set up, it’s a remarkably 'faff-free' pursuit suited to riders of all levels. For newcomers, it offers a safe environment to isolate skills like clipping in and out or riding out of the saddle without worrying about traffic or the dreaded red-light topple.

For experienced riders, it eliminates variables. Taking wind, rain, and junctions out of the equation provides clean, repeatable data to build form for spring. It's also an incredible time-saver: a structured 30-minute high-intensity cycling workout can deliver serious training adaptations from the comfort of your spare room or garage.

Smart Trainers

A smart trainer is the centrepiece of any indoor setup, but choosing between mount types, footprint, and app connectivity can feel daunting.

Trainers fall into two main categories:

Wheel-on trainers clamp your rear wheel against a roller. They remain the most wallet-friendly and best budget smart trainer options, though you will generally need a hard-wearing dedicated trainer tyre to avoid shredding your fast road tyres.

Direct-drive trainers require removing the rear wheel to mount the trainer directly to your frame. Direct-drive offers far greater power accuracy, smoother resistance changes, and zero tyre slip. That precision makes using the best indoor training apps, such as Zwift or Rouvy, significantly more immersive, turning what used to be dull turbo sessions into engaging, structured workouts.

Cooling & Clothing

Keeping cool and managing your body temperature is the single biggest hack to level up your indoor riding. Some coaches argue that hot, sweaty indoor sessions can mimic the physiological stress of altitude training, but to hit your target numbers on hard efforts, you need to stay cool.

Outdoors, forward momentum creates a constant breeze that evaporates sweat instantly. Indoors, with little to no natural airflow, heat builds up rapidly. As your core temperature climbs, your body diverts blood away from working muscles to the skin to dump heat, sending your heart rate soaring for the same wattage.

That is why investing in dedicated indoor training fans and some of the best indoor cycling clothing makes such a massive difference. Technical clothing wicks sweat away from your skin, while airflow evaporates it. It won’t feel like riding in a walk-in freezer, but keeping your temperature under control will make hard sessions far more comfortable and your workouts far more effective.

You don't need an entirely new wardrobe to start; your lightweight summer cycling kit or breathable gym wear will do the job. If you have hot-weather jerseys or mesh baselayers, these will work perfectly to get you started.

Indoor training shoes

The same logic applies to footwear: your standard and best road shoes are fine, but adding some of the best indoor cycling shoes could be worth adding to your arsenal.

These dedicated shoes focus heavily on mesh ventilation and open soles to prevent hot feet in a static riding position. Many also feature recessed cleats or softer walking pads to protect indoor floorboards from scuffs.

Level up your setup

If you have the space, it could be worth considering one of the best smart bikes. Bikes like the Zwift Ride Frame utilise a standard Smart trainer, meaning you no longer need to bring your bike indoors. It's always set up and ready to ride.

If you like CW's Steve Shrubshall and struggle to stay up in the winter, why not level up your skills and try riding rollers? The best bike rollers don't just train your legs; they force you to balance in a small space, ideal for breaking down the skill of riding on narrow trails, roads or even a peloton.

Indoor training often involves high-intensity efforts that can take a toll on your bike, kit, and even your home. So beyond the basics- a trainer, fan, and kit- a few practical accessories can protect your home and bike from corrosive sweat while streamlining your setup.

Here are a few key extras worth considering to round out your ultimate at-home training area:

Until this summer, Alice Lethbridge could count on one hand the number of times she rode outdoors in the previous 18 months, and still have two fingers left over.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to ride her bike on the roads – quite the opposite, actually – her body just wouldn’t let her.

The 41-year-old, a former 100-mile and 12-hour British time trial record holder, was competing in the East Cleveland Classic in spring 2024 when she showed the first symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome, a condition that compresses the arteries between her ribs and collarbone, and left her with numb hands and nausea.

“I just couldn’t be in the bunch,” she tells Cycling Weekly. “It was making me feel very dizzy turning my head outside... I started to feel like maybe I was going to vomit.”

Later that summer, her hands got so worryingly cold she decided to see a doctor. The diagnosis took almost a year, but the realisation she had to stop riding outdoors was immediate. Lethbridge turned instead to her indoor trainer, and, in the face of adversity, spun her way into her “fittest ever” shape.

“I could ride on a trainer because you don’t have to turn your head to look over your shoulder,” she explains.

“I kept thinking it was going to be short term, then the treatment just kept getting delayed, so I said to myself, ‘Why don’t you just focus on indoor racing for now?’ I guess I flipped it: I prioritised indoor racing, and then saw if the outdoor racing could happen.”

Fortunately, Lethbridge, a biology teacher by trade, was no stranger to racing indoors. She joined Zwift in the lockdown of 2020, and within two years, made her debut for Great Britain at the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships.

Dogged by the symptoms of her condition, she began training up to 20 hours a week during the school holidays, or 10-12 in term time. Often she'd wake up at 5am to complete a turbo session before work.

“Last summer, I would say, I was at my fittest ever, which was incredibly frustrating to be stuck indoors and not be able to race outdoors with it,” she says.

“I switched to become a bit smarter with the training, and look for different ways to keep endurance decent without doing the traditional long weekend rides.”

For Lethbridge, that included higher intensity intervals, and joining group rides on Zwift and MyWhoosh with the FemmeCycle Collab community she helped expand. “I needed to find something that acted as a substitute for being with a team outside,” she says. “That’s what has kept me really motivated throughout all this time being stuck indoors.”

The racing, too, proved a huge success. Thanks to her consistency, Lethbridge was able to raise enough prize money on MyWhoosh to put towards physio treatment for her condition, something she now describes as “a massively welcome bonus”.

As for longer-term treatment, however, that's still up in the air. Lethbridge was able to return to outdoor riding this summer thanks to a round of botox injections that paralysed the affected muscles. “Unfortunately it’s worn off now, so I’m back indoors,” she says.

The doctors have suggested trying a second round of injections, something they have never prescribed before. If it all goes to plan, Lethbridge is hopeful she’ll be back on the roads for longer, enjoying the breeze, the sun, and the outdoor racing with which she first fell in love. “But I’ll still use the indoor training because it’s just so much more efficient around work,” she says.

Lethbridge's advice to anyone struggling to find the motivation to ride indoors is simple: join a team. “Not being around club mates regularly or racing team-mates is the biggest challenge for me,” she says.

“If you’ve signed up and said, ‘Yeah I’m going to race with the team in this event,’ it’s the same as telling your friends, ‘I’m going to turn up for the ride outside’.

In fact, she adds, “It’s even easier than racing outdoors – you just click a link and you’re in.”

Brazilian virtual racer Gabriela Guerra has signed her first professional road contract aged 32.

The two-time UCI Cycling Esports World Championships silver medallist will join French women’s ProTeam Cofidis for two years from 2027.

The move marks the latest twist in a life the Brazilian’s new team likened to “a TV series, a soap opera”; Guerra has gone from skateboarder, to honey business owner, to indoor racer and now pro road cyclist.

“I’m very curious and really excited about joining Cofidis,” she said in a team press release. “I want to find out whether I can transfer my strengths from e-cycling to the road.”

After moving to Germany when she was 10, Guerra started skateboarding as a teenager, and documented her progress on her YouTube channel.

Years later, she began using that same channel to show off her e-racing, having discovered Zwift through a Google search in the winter of 2021, when she was running her own Brazilian honey business.

Virtual racing soon became a solid income stream – Cycling Weekly reported this January that Guerra was making six figures from competing on the MyWhoosh platform, often starting events in the early hours of the morning.

It was only last year that the Brazilian decided to take her cycling talent onto the road. In September, two months before she won her second Esports Worlds silver medal, she joined the German Continental team Wheel Divas, and committed to racing more lower-level road events in 2026.

Her outdoor palmarès for the season counts two wins: a German national race and the Mirabelle Classic, a French one-day event where she competed against ProTeams, including her now team-mates at Cofidis.

“The few races I took part in towards the end of the season gave me confidence and caught Cofidis’s attention,” Guerra said.

Looking forward to her first year as a road pro, she added: “It’s a challenge I’m really keen to take on. I don’t have any particular apprehensions, just a huge amount of enthusiasm.

“I can’t wait to start the season, give my very best, help the team and discover the very highest level of road racing. It’s going to be a fantastic challenge.”

Guerra is not the first rider to sign a pro road contract following success on indoor racing platforms. UAE Team Emirates-XRG's Jay Vine and Canyon-SRAM's Neve Bradbury earned their first pro contracts by winning the Zwift Academy in 2020. Both have gone on to win Grand Tour stages.

Some racers optimise their bikes to the hilt for the British National Hill Climb Championships, cutting every surplus gram from the frame and components for courses that generally reward the lowest possible watts per kilo.

This year's venue, Porlock Toll Road, was a little different. The Alpine-style Somerset ascent averages 5.5% for 6.6km (4.1mi), so it put less emphasis on weight and more on aerodynamics than usual. A strong headwind in the closing kilometres even encouraged some riders to ride time trial bikes, aero bikes and deep-section wheels, as you can see in our bike tech gallery.

But often, the best climbers don't seem to worry much about their bikes. Instead, they let their legs and lungs do the work, just like Ezra Bateman did. The 16-year-old from Scarborough won the junior boys' title and recorded the day's fastest time of 14:31:08, fractions of a second quicker than senior men's champion Ed Laverack and runner-up Andrew Feather.

This result followed a season of spectacular hill climbing results for the Decathlon CMA CGM U19 rider. He came within seconds of beating now double national champion Laverack on Snake Pass and matched 2021 champion Tom Bell's course record on Prospect Hill. During his road season, he competed at prestigious races such as Liège-Bastogne-Liège.

Cycling Weekly's photographer was on the ground in Porlock to photograph Bateman's team-issue Van Rysel RCR-R Pro.

The RCR-R Pro is currently Van Rysel's lightweight climbing bike, although we expect it will soon be replaced by the more aerodynamic-looking prototype Paul Seixas raced at the Tour de France.

Bateman's dad Jon told us this SRAM Force AXS build weighs 6.9kg. Not bad for a pretty-much stock bike, minus the bottle cages.

Bateman didn't switch to a single chainring, as many competitors did, to save weight and receive a small aero bonus. Instead, he chose pro-size 54/41T SRAM Force chainrings with an integrated power meter. In a post-race interview with Monument HQ, he refused to disclose his power data, presumably following team orders.

At the back he's running what is probably a 10-33T cassette, and might have needed that largest sprocket if he stayed in the huge 54T big ring.

This wheel and tyre combo is also stock. The 50mm-deep Swiss Side Hadron rims would have reduced drag at his 27km/h average speed – the wheels were paired with Continental GP5000 S TR rubber. Had the course not been wet and strewn with storm debris, it might have been tempting to ride the GP5000 TT TRs, but Bateman didn't need their lower rolling resistance.

Two riders have been disqualified from the British National Hill-Climb Championships after they were found to have breached regulations for changing their teams more than once in a year, it was announced on Wednesday.

Dan Evans and Giles Drake, who finished seventh and 10th in the open category, both raced for the ASSOS UK Race Team, alongside the winner, Ed Laverack, but Evans and Drake have now been stripped from the record. Laverack is still open national champion, after setting the fastest senior time on Porlock Toll Road, Somerset on Sunday.

The men's team prize, originally awarded to the ASSOS trio, has now been awarded to Schils-Doltcini RT, with Paddy Clark, Eugene Cross and Carl Jolly. The prize is calculated on cumulative time of the best three riders from one squad.

Fastest on the day was 16-year-old Ezra Bateman (Decathlon CMA CGM Juniors), who beat Laverack by 0.2 seconds, but was not awarded the senior win as he was racing in the junior category. Illi Gardner (Cardiff Ajax CC) won the women’s event, while Mabli Phillips (Shibden CC) claimed the junior women’s hill climb title.

Wednesday's revelation came after a review was requested, the organising body, Cycling Time Trials (CTT), said in a statement.

A post on CTT's website reads: "A full write up of the RTTC National Hill Climb Championship Outcomes has been delayed due to some administrative issues which have arisen due to a breach of CTT Regulations. The riders involved have now been informed that following a breach of Regulation 8, which prohibits changing clubs/teams more than once in a calendar year, that they have been disqualified.

"This means that team ASSOS UK Race Team have been disqualified and are not the team champions for the RTTC National Hill Climb. As a result, team Schils-Doltcini RT are the [men's] team champions for the RTTC National Hill Climb.

"It is appreciated that this news will come as a surprise but the Regulations of CTT exist to protect the integrity of the sport of time trialing and a thorough review of the circumstances has been carried out following a request."

In a story on Instagram, Evans revealed the email that had been sent to him regarding his disqualification, under which he commented: "Oh well, was good while it lasted."

The email documented how Evans had changed teams from ASSOS to Black Cat CC in February, before changing back to ASSOS in September. Meanwhile, Drake changed teams from Wheelbase Cabtech Castelli to Port Sunlight Wheelers in July, before changing to ASSOS in October.

The pair were also asked to return their medals to the CTT. The email concludes: "I appreciate you will find this very disappointing but the regulations exist for the good governance and management of time trialing in the UK."

A car driver who left his vehicle and violently threw a cyclist to the ground after an altercation in Edinburgh two years ago, a "violent and unprovoked attack" that resulted the bike rider sustaining a fractured skull and bleed on the brain, has avoided a prison sentence.

Disturbing footage of Joseph Hedley, 39, grabbing 34-year-old cyclist Iain Brow by the throat and physically assaulting him in Edinburgh's Cowgate area on 20 September 2024 was widely shared on social media, resulting in a police appeal and a public outcry. This eventually led to Hedley turning himself in.

In an earlier hearing – during which Hedley admitted assaulting the victim to his severe injury, permanent impairment and to the danger of his life – Edinburgh Sheriff Court was told that Brown lost consciousness in the immediate aftermath of the attack, and he had to be rushed to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

During this week's hearing, as reported on the BBC and elsewhere, Fiscal Depute Peter Finnon explained that the cyclist had suffered serious injuries – including an acute bleed on the brain, a traumatic brain injury and a fractured skull – and that the medics who attended the scene and treated him described his injuries to be "very much to the potential of danger to Mr Brown's life".

Speaking to STV journalists after the hearing, Hedley claimed to be sorry for actions, but then shrugged his shoulders and said: “He was blocking my way so I had to move him.” He subsequently added: “I didn’t leave him for dead. He was kicking off."

“You broke his skull and drove away,” the reporter says, to which Hedley simply replied: “Yeah but that doesn’t matter.”

The defendant's lawyer, Calum Turner, said Hedley had "not intended" to inflict serious injury on the cyclist, and that he had not driven since the incident. It was claimed that Brown had shouted at the and shone a bike light into the car, causing Hedley's partner, who was in the passenger seat, to suffer a "seizure".

When handing down the sentence, Sheriff Fergus Thomson told the defendant he had inflicted "significant injuries", and explained that he was avoiding a custodial sentence "by the narrowest of margins".

Instead Hedley received a two-year supervision order, and he will also be tagged and given a 12-month overnight home curfew, meaning he can't leave his place of residence between 7pm and 7am for the next year.

Faith Currie, Procurator Fiscal for Edinburgh, Lothian and Borders, said: "This was a violent, sustained and unprovoked assault on an innocent member of the public who suffered serious injuries.

"The actions of Joseph Hedley were horrific and shocking and could easily have had more devastating consequences."

Scottish rider Kate Richardson will form part of the inaugural Lidl-Trek Future Racing Women squad, it was announced on Wednesday.

Along with nine other promising young riders from eight nations, the 24-year-old will be part of the new development team, which mirrors the existing men's version.

Richardson, who rode for British UCI Continental team Handsling Alba Development Road Team in 2026, is a former British national circuit champion, and is a reigning European champion in the team pursuit on the track.

This year, she won the Tour of the Reservoir on the road, part of British Cycling's National Road Series, while last year she won the Tour de Feminin in Czechia. She previously rode for Lifeplus Wahoo and Hess.

Frank Schleck, the women's team manager at Lidl-Trek, said: "Our aim is to give young riders the time, support and opportunities they need to develop. The step up to the WorldTour is becoming more demanding, so we want to create a clear pathway where riders can learn, make mistakes and grow without the immediate pressure to deliver results.

"Now is the right time because women's cycling is growing, and our investment needs to extend beyond the WorldTour team. We also have a responsibility to help develop the next generation."

The nine others are Chantal Pegolo and Matilda Rossignoli, of Italy, Austrians Tabea Huys and Liv Wenzel, Ane Zubeldia of Spain, Dane Olympia Norris-Mortensen, Messane Bräutigam of Germany, and Americans Katherine Sarkisov and Ella Sabo.

Previously, Lidl-Trek had integrated development riders in with its Women's WorldTour team, with Ava and Isabella Holmgren the most high-profile of these; the latter had a standout season, finishing eighth overall at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. British riders Harry Hudson and Seb Grindley were both part of the men's Future Racing squad this season.

"When selecting the riders, we looked beyond the results. Potential, attitude, a willingness to learn and what each rider could bring to the group were all important. We also want to support riders across different disciplines, because there is more than one route to becoming a successful road rider," Schleck added.

"The goal is to prepare them for the demands of professional cycling, both on and off the bike. Winning is part of that learning process, but success will also mean seeing riders gain confidence, take responsibility and eventually earn their place in the WorldTour."

Lidl-Trek's Women's WorldTour team have signed four riders for 2027 so far, including former Tour winner Kasia Niewiadoma.

Watch: Steve's first time on the rollers

The good thing about being young – apart from the obvious fact that you aren’t old – is that falling off your bicycle is but a minor inconvenience. You hit the deck, bounce straight back up and, with grazed knees and a solitary tear trickling down your cheek, happily remount your BMX or Grifter and resume your quest to catch the bad guys – all in one fluid and seamless motion.

Not so when you’re old.

When you fall off your bike in later life, you don’t bounce; you become one with the Earth’s surface, as though attempting to fossilise yourself in whichever patch of substrate has had the misfortune to break your fall.

Over the past two years, I’ve embedded myself in a variety of different surfaces – grass, mud, dirt, tarmac, gravel – with troubling regularity. I’m now on first-name terms with the triage team at my local A&E and, as pleasant as they invariably are, I have a strong desire to never see them again. I’m sure the feeling is mutual.

So why am I finding it increasingly difficult to stay rubber-side down? I put it down to a combination of ego and age. If the people on YouTube can rumble down technical descents with silky-smooth precision, surely I can, too. And as far as age goes, perhaps I’m actually unlearning how to ride a bicycle. My balance, it seems, isn’t what it used to be.

Tired of my perpetual moaning, my friend and colleague at Cycling Weekly, Dan Baines, suggested that, rather than spending the winter welded to my turbo trainer, a set of rollers might go some way towards improving my bike-handling ability.

Unlike modern turbo trainers, whose weight sees them stuck limpet-like to the floor, demanding little more from the rider than pedal strokes, rollers are a completely different proposition. You need to use body weight and momentum to keep the bike balanced, while smooth, fluid pedalling – souplesse, to use the French cycling term – and a consistent cadence are paramount to avoid a violent collision with the floor.

So, I decided to take his advice and have a go.

Getting started

Having procured a set of Quick Motion rollers from the good people at Elite, I was genuinely taken aback by the sheer simplicity of this piece of apparatus. It looked, to be frank, downright medieval. Try as I might, I couldn’t quite picture myself happily pedalling away on what was essentially a raised frame comprising little else than three bright red rotating cylinders .

“Any more surprises?” I asked Dan, gesturing towards the rollers. “You’re not going to bring out a dunking stool for the warm-down or anything?”

Dan, having started cycling sometime in the late 1800s, is something of an authority on rollers and had a few tips to help get me started.

Top tips for riding on rollers

• Always have a bail-out option. A wall to lean against, a step to put your foot on – anything that prevents an embarrassing meeting with the floor.
• Keep your cadence up. A faster cadence helps promote stability.
• Look ahead, not down. Don’t panic if your front wheel starts veering from side to side. Above all, resist the temptation to stare at it.
• Try to relax.

Try to relax, he says. At this stage, I was so convinced I was about to meet the triage team for our quarterly catch-up that relax wasn’t a word in my current repertoire.

Regardless, after measuring the bike’s wheelbase and adjusting the roller frame accordingly, I enlisted the help of a neighbouring wall and a step, unceremoniously swung a leg over the bike and prepared to pedal. Or at least, I would have done, had the tension not been so great that I instinctively grabbed the front brake and promptly fell against the wall in a state of confusion.

This did not feel natural.

“Relax,” Dan reiterated.

From one minute, to phoning home...

The aim of this first session was to ride unassisted for a minute. “If you can achieve that,” Dan told me, “you’ve more or less mastered the basics. Then you’ve got a winter of fine-tuning your balance, pedalling fluidity and souplesse ahead of you.”

And so here I was, essentially learning to ride a bike all over again, with my de facto father, Dan, nervously tracking my progress.

It was a little like being a child again, attempting those first few metres on two wheels without on your own. The moment you glance over your shoulder to discover that Mum or Dad has let go and you’ve been riding under your own steam for the past few metres – before inevitably falling off due to the sheer excitement of it all.

That was how I felt when I finally found my rhythm. A genuine sense of accomplishment. This was something beyond anything I’d ever experienced on a turbo trainer: a far more involved, far more visceral way to ride a bike indoors.

A minute passed, then two, then three. Soon I was shifting into the big ring and even throwing in a sprint.. I was getting thirsty. Muscle memory kicked in and reaching down for my water bottle I once again found myself splayed against the wall before beginning a slow and squeaky descent toward the floor.

Erratic movements and rollers aren’t the happiest of bedfellows. But stolen bidon sips slowly morphed into hearty glugs and my confidence returned. I even managed to make a phone call to my better half, who admittedly thought I was in the throes of some sort of psychotic episode.

A rare success, then. An afternoon on the rollers had proved a lot more productive and far less painful than anticipated and I’ve now added an extra tool to my arsenal for training this winter.

Granted, I still need to learn how to ride in a pair of cycling shoes. I have a way to go before I feel confident riding intervals, but, that represents an opportunity. After one session, I've got the basic skills in my toolkit to progress.

Will it keep me from darkening the doors of A&E? That remains to be seen. But I’ve been reminded that there's more to indoor training than chasing watts and watching numbers on a screen. It's worth stepping back, stripping things down to the absolute basics and relearning a skill you thought you'd mastered decades ago. I'll be back for another session next week. I'll also be keeping that wall handy.

If you’re shopping for the best road or gravel wheels this Autumn, Hunt Bike Wheels has an interesting proposition. Hunt’s Black Friday Price Promise means that if you buy any Hunt wheelset in October and the price drops within 60 days, Hunt will refund the difference.

This offer lets you secure a road or gravel wheelset now for the best of autumn riding, with zero risk of missing out if a better Black Friday or Cyber Monday deal appears.

Shop the best Hunt Bikes Wheels

To claim, buy your wheels and complete the 60 Day Ride & Return form on Hunt's Rider Support Portal. If that wheelset is discounted within 60 days of your purchase, Hunt will refund the difference between what you paid and the lower price. Full terms and conditions are available on the Hunt Wheels website.

So, check out my curated list of Hunt's best offerings and grab the last of the good weather on a brand new set of wheels, well ahead of most Black Friday bike deals.

Best Hunt Road Wheels

Best Hunt Gravel Wheels

Our expert testers have put most Hunt wheels to the test and consistently rated them highly. Many have also earned Editors' Choice awards.

Hunt has arguably improved its range by advancing aerodynamic engineering, introducing recyclable materials, and refining front- and rear-specific designs for better durability and compliance.

Above, I've highlighted some of the best Hunt road-and-gravel wheels. If you want a deep dive on any of these, search Cycling Weekly for the set you have in mind to read in-depth testing and opinions from our expert testers.

If your indoor training journey began this side of the indoor cycling cyber revolution, consider yourself extremely lucky. Nothing less than 'revolution' can do justice to the change from the old ways to the new. From counting bricks on the garage wall to connecting in real-time with thousand-strong cyber-pelotons made up of many nationalities, in onscreen worlds offering every watts, leaderboards, segment PRs and a dinosaur around every other corner. Forget boredom – this is pretty much sensory overload.

One thing though - if your adventures in indoor training began post-2015, you did miss out on the character building experience that means anyone who's swung a leg over a noisy, standalone old-school trainer gets to feel nothing but gratitude every time they fire up Zwift, MyWhoosh, or Rouvy.

My indoor training experience actually began outdoors, on a set of Tacx rollers. At that point they were pretty much the most widely available indoor training device, owned by a lot of club cyclists. Aged 18, and a relative newbie to road cycling as a hobby, this was such a novel idea, being able to complete a ride while not actually going anywhere. I'd rigged them up so I could steady myself on the window ledge as I mounted up, which seemed to work pretty well. The training effect was limited, the boredom mitigated by the fact that if I'd drifted off for more than a few seconds, a faceplant onto the concrete was likely to be the result. The experience was also enlivened considerably by the fact that whenever I went to steady myself on the brick ledge I got an electric shock from the static build-up.

Needless to say, when my mate Neil became the proud owner of a brand spanking new indoor trainer, I was probably more excited than he was to try it out.

Rewind to the very early Nineties, and there we both were in his garage, admiring it as if we'd stumbled across a trove of Babylonian treasure. Of the two of us, Neil always led the way when it came to new cycling tech (and often on the bike too). He had a cycle-computer first. And an alloy-framed bike, and now he had an indoor trainer. We took it in turns to spend a few exhilarating minutes each, riding as hard as we could, before swapping back over to let the other one rejoin the fun.

My indoor riding journey had begun.

It didn't last long. My rollers got bruléed in a car fire and I never felt compelled to replace them. Meanwhile, and to the surprise of no one reading this, the novelty of Neil's turbo trainer wore off for both of us, just as quickly as it had appeared. There ensued a hiatus of seven years or so during which college, cheap student union booze and bands confined training – and any thoughts of doing so indoors – to 'bubbling under' status.

And then I started working at Cycling Weekly.

Training, and racing was soon back on the agenda, and paying for coaching from a pre-Doctor Hutch era Michael Hutchinson quickly followed that. A predilection for outlandish interval sessions in his coaching plans, as well as his own apparent imperviousness to pain and boredom during sessions of up to several hours on the trainer was impelling and inspiring in turns. And so it was, almost inevitably, that I found myself in Cycling Weekly's old workshop, during lunch hours, or after work, on a noisy old trainer, cracking out 2 x 15min of 10/20sec on-off intervals – or whatever other deliciousness the doc had in store that week.

Nothing good comes easy, so they say – and believe me, the fitness gains that came from these sessions was won hard in the old-school. This was 2002. Music streaming and podcasts were not a thing, let alone Zwift and the like. You stared at the wall, three feet in front of you, and as for audio accompaniment well, that would be the laboured whoosh-and-whine of a trainer that had all the natural fluidity of a first-timer in the Cooper's Hill Cheese Roll.

Even back then, if you were lucky you did at least have a few numbers to watch to keep your brain from imploding while all this was going on. The trainer I used displayed time, and watts – although the latter was likely no more accurate than pulling a number out of the air and multiplying it by your gran's most recent shopping bill. A crude cable pull controlled resistance.

And that was about the way things remained for the next decade or so, albeit with minor improvements in trainer ride feel, and the introduction of MP3 players and the ipod, both of which could prove useful in an indoor training scenario, and helped keep sweat away from your Sony Discman.

The last trainer I had before going Zwift featured fluid resistance and a gel roller for 'realistic road feel and quiet operation'. In reality my family had to turn the TV up even if I was using it out in the garage. While annoying for them, they could at least seek solace in the idea that I was fighting off deep physical discomfort and mental anguish with strategies that included counting all the slats in the garage door, or inspecting every brick in turn.

Which brings us, inevitably, to the advent of Zwift. It had been around for a few years before I came to it. Although working in cycling media I well remember the excitement that it had caused in the office when it was launched. The excitement, and the novelty, was reminiscent of the scene in Neil's garage all those years ago, as we crowded round to see videos of 'in-game' action.

Thanks to the wonders of Strava, I can reveal that my first ride in the virtual world took place on Sunday 9 September 2018 and was called 'That so-called Zwift'. It took me up Fox Hill in London and back. I obviously thought it was OK, because after three weeks of all-indoor riding I ended up performing an FTP test – and even that didn't seem to put me off.

Those early days hardly turned me into the kind of Zwift-banger who puts in 20 hours a week on the platform, but it's always been there. And it's served different purposes – protection from the weather of course, but also a super-accessible way to race and, after a particularly unpleasant dalliance with sciatica, a useful rehabilitation tool. New courses and worlds keep things interesting, as does the community feel – one of the platform's key strengths, I would say.

I've tried other platforms too. I loved the IRL scenery and the video-realistic elements of Rouvy, while RGT and its Magic Roads were a fun concept but didn't really deliver in reality, at least for me.

Whichever platform, though, the best smart trainers and virtual platforms are a total paradigm shift from the old school. These days those 10/20second interval sessions would still be just as physically hard – although thankfully I have limited call for them these days – but all the numbers, the colours, the other riders and, yes, the dinosaurs of online riding are distracting enough to make things significantly less soul-crushing.

As an old-school old git who would happily waffle on about the good old days of steel frames and polished groupsets ad infinitum given the chance, I have nothing but respect for you if you're still doing it the old-fashioned way, labouring away on a dumb trainer, counting the bricks on the wall. There's an easier, funner way though, and I'd highly recommend a little potter into the virtual cycling world to see what you're missing.

One word of warning though – once you've seen it, you're never going back.

I rarely stick with a tyre for long, and almost never use them long enough to wear them out, which is par for the course for someone in my position. However, something about the Hutchinson Touareg HardSkin kept me interested over the last couple of years.

I found it to be a fit-and-forget tyre in its HardSkin casing; you can run it at super-low pressures and really push it into corners; there is always some grip, even when it is clogged with mud; and it is incredibly durable, arguably one of the best gravel bike tyres. It had one major flaw, though: it was incredibly slow.

So, has Hutchinson revitalised this great tyre by giving it a ‘racy’ upgrade? Or has it lost its identity amid the bicycle industry's unrelenting pursuit of 'speed'?

Design details

The Touareg Race shares much of its DNA with the Hutchinson Caracal Race I tested last year, and is also made in France. It uses the well-proven SwiftEasy casing, which is considerably more supple and reduces rolling resistance. Alongside the brand's Mach Tread 3.0 rubber, Hutchinson claims that the changes have increased the Touareg's efficiency by 35%.

That's a hefty number, even when compared to a tyre as slow as the Touareg. A quick fact-check on BicycleRollingResistance.com makes this abundantly clear: The HardSkin costs you nearly 30 watts in the 40mm version, let alone the 45mm I ran. According to BRR, that number is now just 16 watts for the 40mm, which is only 2 watts slower than the Caracal Race, a considerably less knobby tyre.

Available in 40, 45 and 50mm, my 45mm test set weighed 554g/1.2lbs, which is surprisingly 30 grams lighter than the Caracal Race 45mm. The Touareg Race is also offered with Hutchinson’s GridSkin casing. This added protection, found on the brand's road tyres, is said to offer increased ‘bead-to-bead’ protection, at the cost of around 30-40 g per tyre.

Performance

Hutchinson typically makes easy-to-fit tyres, as was the case here. You can thumb them on, and they still feel reassuringly sturdy and well-fitted.

Inflation was just as easy, and I did it with just a floor pump. I found I had to hold the tyre flat at the valve to force the casing against the rim wall, and I needed an additional 4-5 pumps to get it going. This isn’t unusual, and a good reminder to replace my rim tape and valves.

Once inflated to 40psi/2.7 bar, my calipers measured the tyres at 47mm on 25mm internal hookless rims.

As expected, the Touareg Race is considerably faster than the HardSkin version. However, the biggest gains come on fine, hardpack gravel surfaces, where it overlaps considerably with the Caracal Race. Where I'd hoped to see improvement was on much chunkier, looser surfaces. While it is faster than its predecessor, it just doesn’t feel as spritely as the Caracal despite sharing much of the same DNA.

Despite the HardSkin version being a tyre I ran pretty low, I’d settled on the high 30s, around 37/38 psi for the Caracal, which struck a nice balance between speed, grip, and suppleness – and where I decided to start with the Touareg. Like its sibling, I didn’t find the Touareg's sweet spot until I dropped well below 35, closer to 30psi.

Dropping pressure, as expected, increased compliance and, thankfully, speed on looser surfaces. It's always a tread I felt I could really rail, mainly because I knew the HardSkin version wouldn’t fold or puncture; this feeling thankfully returned at lower pressures. It's clear the Touareg just needs to deform more, which I always put down to the HardSkin's tough casing, but it's more about how the tread interacts with the casing.

It's those micro-knobbles that make me believe the Touareg is much more of an intermediate tyre than Hutchinson markets it as, and its crossover with the Caracal is only really in the ‘Race’ branding. I have always believed the Touareg to be a great wet- and mud-tyre. Because the knobs are so small, they rarely pick up much, but what they do pick up clears very quickly, meaning there is always ‘some’ grip.

It's when you point the Touareg uphill and bank it hard into corners that the difference between the two becomes more like night and day, especially on the slimy chalk we have in abundance here on the South Downs , located in South East England. The Touareg rarely lets go, turning hard efforts and big loads into excellent forward momentum regardless of how hard you push it.

During my testing for the Caracal, I got a big tyre slash on a long, hard-packed gravel fire-road section; I put it down to bad luck.

Just as I was penning my thoughts on the Touareg, it happened again. Fairly tame trail, admittedly, with some flint around, but totally flat, fast, and well-trodden, the kind of trail and road you might see in a gravel race. Massive gash in the tyre. So, that's two tyres written off in under 1,000km.

In the past, Hutchinson has offered almost too much durability at the expense of speed; with the Race tyres, they seem to have gone too far the other way. While they do offer the newer Grid Skin version, given I have had maybe one puncture in the last 5 years or more, and two on similar tyres in quick succession, I have to pin it on Hutchinson.

Value

Of course, the Touareg is now much faster; while the Caracal is still the faster, more spritely tyre, the Touareg is more consistent and, in my opinion, still one of the best all-round gravel tyres. It also thankfully retains its ability to be pushed hard and ridden more like a mountain-bike tyre than a gravel one.

My big takeaway comes from Hutchinson marketing, which says, “The Touareg Race is the cornerstone of the 'Ultimate Combo', when paired with a Caracal Race at the rear.” Tyre mismatching is very common in mountain biking, and I discussed it briefly in my Caracal review after getting that near-ride-ending puncture.

That was more about optimising protection versus speed, but my time on the Caracal and now the Touareg Race is really starting to make me think, and something I’m going to dedicate some time to testing over the winter.

Cost-wise, Hutchinson continues to undercut its competitors and the big players in the market by maintaining its £55/€60 price point across its Race-branded tyres. US pricing is unconfirmed at the time of writing, but direct currency conversions suggest it will remain a bargain across the pond, if you can get hold of some.

However, a tyre is only good value if it's durable and can outlast or last as long as the more expensive options. Unfortunately, Hutchinson's Race format tyre doesn't seem to be cutting the mustard. I was ready to give the Touareg a 4.5-star rating, but I had to reduce it for this reason.

Tech specs

• Price: £55
• Size: 700 x 45mm
• Weight: 554g/2.1oz (on my scales)
• TPI: 127
• Compound: Mach Tread 3.0
• Sidewall: Tan, Black

Cleaner, greener, more prosperous – that seems to have been the rallying cry trumpeted from supporters of the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street in central London, which came into place on Monday.

But at the same time as diverting the noise and the fumes of heavy traffic, the project has also cut off a major active transport route, with cyclists among those who are no longer allowed to use the famous shopping thoroughfare.

Mainstream media spent much of Monday highlighting this with reports of bike riders ignoring the new pedestrians-only designation.

Charity London Cycling Campaign said in a statement that it was wholly supportive of low-traffic streets for the West End, but new cycle routes needed to be provided in tandem.

"LCC is supportive of the new pedestrianised Oxford Street," the charity said. "We welcome the move to reclaim West End space from motor vehicles and make the nation’s iconic high street far better. And it shouldn’t stop here, making the whole of the West end low traffic should be the ultimate goal.

"However, this issue brings to light the fact that Westminster Council have not acted quickly enough to bring in high-quality parallel cycle routes. Traffic counts show that thousands of people had been cycling along Oxford Street daily, and those riders need safe alternative routes urgently."

LCC also has a form on its website allowing supporters to send a message directly to Westminster Council to ask for new cycling routes to be installed, allowing riders to circumnavigate the newly pedestrianised street.

While parts of the street are still open to vehicles, a key kilometre-long stretch between Great Portland Street and Orchard Street is now pedestrian-only. Delivery and service vehicles will still be able to use the stretch between midnight and 7am, but mobility scooters are the only other wheeled vehicle to be able to use it.

Oxford Street's pedestrianisation plans have long been talked about and has had false starts before, but after a supportive consultation last year, this time they have gone through. What follows now will be new seats, planting and the installation of public squares that could be used as event spaces.

What are your plans for 2028? I know we are yet to cross the rubicon into 2027 yet, but where do you think you’ll be? What do you want to be doing? Are you happy in your current job? Do you think you could be doing something better in the year after next?

These are all big questions, individually existential, for which I would hope most of you don’t have all the answers to yet. If you do, congratulations on being more neurotypical than me, or at least scarily organised. These are the kind of questions that are currently being asked of the crown prince of cycling, the great hope of France, the growing phenomenon that is Paul Seixas.

At just 20, the young man is currently being asked to decide onthe direction of travel for his career. The devilishly simple question is this: should he stay at Decathlon CMA CGM, the team that has brought him to this point, or should he seek great riches elsewhere? Stick or twist? The elsewhere could be UAE Team Emirates-XRG, Visma-Lease a Bike, Netcompany-Ineos and more.

Seixas is, of course, a rider who has won Flèche Wallonne, Itzulia Basque Country and Il Lombardia, and finished fourth at his debut Tour de France, all in his second season as a pro. However, he is also a second-year pro, someone still working it out, someone barely out of his teenage years with a complexion to match; a man who cannot yet grow a moustache is being asked to make a totemic decision.

At the Frenchman’s age, I was still in my third year of university, studying history, with barely a thought about something as vulgar as my future career. I probably wanted to be a journalist, that’s about as far as it got. It’s no wonder that the man himself has had enough of the debate over what happens next.

"It's going to become increasingly oppressive," he told French radio station RMC’s 'SuperMoscato Show'. "I can't just decide at the last minute, either.

"But perhaps I'll start the [2027] season without making any announcement – I don't know yet. I think there will come a point where I'll want to be free of this."

"Up until now and ever since the start of my career, I’ve spent my time chasing after contracts,” he continued. “Every time I put in a good performance, people would tell me, 'You need to sign a new deal.'

"But when I signed my current contract two years ago, I promised myself I wouldn’t rush into signing the next one. Because, honestly, I’m fed up with it."

A professional bike rider’s career is short and full of risk, so it makes sense for them to maximise their earnings wherever possible. It might be that Seixas is never as in demand as he is right now again, never so able to leverage his position. Right now, he’s the most promising rider in the world, so it’s unsurprising that he’s paralysed by choice.

However, it doesn’t need to be this difficult. I think he should stay at Decathlon CMA CGM. I understand I am in the privileged position of an armchair observer, but to stick rather than twist would not be an abdication of opportunity. The team has been through a revolution in the last couple of years, from the plucky brown shorts of AG2R to the super-team they are now, not all of which is down to Seixas.

Decathlon have proved adept at changing to suit their superstar, with ever-improving technology from their partners, Van Rysel in particular. They have signed riders to match their ambition. They might have lost Felix Gall, but in Laurens De Plus, Pavel Sivakov and Ben O’Connor, the team has world-class support for their 20-year-old leader. They have also offered a competitive package to keep him, a record deal, should reporting be believed.

Seixas knows the team, has been successful there, and can continue to be the star. There is more risk with moving. Should he leave for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, he will be at the best team, but also vying with Tadej Pogačar and Isaac del Toro for the limelight. A move to Netcompany-Ineos might see him as an outright leader, and potentially better paid, but the British squad are past their super-team era, and whether they can get back there is unknown. There are other suitors, all of which would mean upheaval. At 20, stability and a familiar environment should be compelling.

This might all just be selfish thinking from me. I think it’s more fun for the stars of the sport to be spread out across an array of teams than to have all the best talent stacked up in one place. I like the French hope being at a French squad, and the idea of this project being allowed to develop. We know Seixas is good, but we still don’t know how he will develop or how this story will end. I just hope he stays at Decathlon CMA CGM.

This piece is part of The Leadout, the offering of newsletters from Cycling Weekly and Cyclingnews. To get this in your inbox, subscribe here.

If you want to get in touch with Adam, email adam.becket@futurenet.com.

Since its inception, cyclocross has been defined by the fact that, no matter how you look at it, a ‘cross bike is rarely the perfect option for whatever course a promoter has dreamt up. And part of that is the restriction on tyre width.

Since 2010, restrictions for cyclocross have capped tyres at 33mm wide, in part as a response to disc brake technology coming into the sport. Today, by gravel and even road standards, 33mm is laughably narrow, and that has arguably turned cyclocross from a ‘run what you brung’ participant sport into one that requires a much more specialised setup.

So, why is CX still limited to 33mm tyres? After all, disciplines such as gravel are pushing the tyre-width envelope to unprecedented standards. Tradition plays a part, but even a few millimeters could have major repercussions for the industry. We spoke to tyre makers, bike builders, promoters, and athletes, and looked at the current rules in place to figure out who would want the change, who wants to stick with the old standards, and, if you’re someone who wants to race, where you’re allowed to run wider tyres.

A brief history of the 33mm rule

“The initial tyre size rule started back in the nineties when top pros would show up to races with a ‘truckload’ of tubular wheels, with tyres ranging from 25mm to 34mm glued up and ready to race,” recalls framebuilder and former pro rider Chris McGovern. The UCI eventually limited the tyre width in order to make the sport more egalitarian – after all, this was a sport that began in the farmfields of Belgium as a fun off-season event, and there have been width rules ever since.

In 2010, when disc brakes were introduced to the sport, the UCI decided to cap tyre width at 33mm, down from 35mm, to reduce the amount of equipment that racers needed to own in order to be competitive – because disc brake bikes could allow for a huge range of tyre widths, going narrower allowed those who still wanted to race on cantilever brakes (those of us who said ‘disc brakes were just a passing fad’) to stay competitive.

The irony is that 16 years later, that rule designed to make the sport more accessible and inexpensive may be holding it hostage. The idea may have worked back in CX’s heyday when cantilever brakes were the norm and disc brakes were a rarity, but today, with almost every bike running a disc brake setup, a normal set of gravel wheels is too wide to accommodate the thinner tyre for cyclocross. So, is it time for the UCI to loosen the restrictions, or would that lead ‘cross down the slippery slope of turning into gravel or MTB racing and disappearing altogether?

It's worth noting that the restriction does not apply in all races; in the UK and US, the rules are often (but, not always) loosened for amateur fields. Some events will allow any bike – including mountain bikes – check with the organiser before you head to compete.

The case for tradition

The pro racers who’ve been in cyclocross for a long time are torn: “To be honest, I'm not 100 percent sure how I feel about it!” admits retired American racer Ellen Noble, who took silver in the U23 World Championships in 2017.

“I think my initial instinct is that cyclocross is, at its core, about riding the wrong tool for the job... If we start widening tyres, we may next discover that a little suspension in the front helps people go faster, and so on. Fortunately, there is so much pedaling in CX that I don't ever see us just riding straight-up mountain bikes, but I think the parameters are nice because they keep the sport relatively simple and true to its roots. Part of what makes CX, CX, is that you're rarely riding the ideal setup for any given section.”

In fact, hunting down the gear and the search for the perfect tyre tread in 33mm is arguably part of what cyclocross is all about: The sometimes excessive obsession with gear. (Just head to any start line and ask “what tyre pressure are you running?”)

“Having a max tyre size at 33mm is actually a defining part of the sport,” says McGovern. Getting that size tyre with whatever tread to do what you need it to do is a skill. A skill that is a big part of the sport's definition. Pro baseball players can’t use aluminum bats; that would change baseball.”

Longtime pro cyclocrosser/gravel/road racer Tobin Ortenblad was a top U23 cyclocross racer during CX’s American peak, and he still loves the sport. “It’s hard to beat a 33mm tubular on a good course,” he says. “I also think there is a bit of magic to riding 33s fast. They’re twitchy and quite sketchy, but that’s kind of the glory of cyclocross.”

Similarly, pro cyclocrosser and creator of CX Fever Maghalie Rochette loves cyclocross more than anything – and because of that, she’s a bit of a gear traditionalist. “I don't necessarily think that wider tyres would make our sport better,” she says. “Depending on the condition, you don't have more grip necessarily with a wider tyre. If your tyre is narrower, you cut through the mud better, and you have a better grip in that way. You can rip corners really fast on the grass. So I actually like the 33s.”

“I think that at the top end of the sport, the tyre size is one of those limiting factors that forces riders to go slower or to take turns differently,” says Connor Gregory, promoter for Christie Cross in Toronto. “Big tyres are a bit of a cheat code. You can buy speed in every other type of racing, whereas in cross, having that tyre limitation means that your 10-year-old cross bike is still quite relevant and still pretty much the same as the current technology.”

In that way, “Cyclocross has become kind of immune to the technology progression and the upgrade culture that cycling is so set on,” Gregory adds.

But is that a good thing?

The case for going wider

“I think we are more than due for an update to the tyre width regulations for UCI events,” says Bill Schieken, founder of CX Hairs and promoter for DCCX and Pan-American Cyclocross Championships. He sees the participant numbers drop hugely during the races that have the tyre width requirements, and believes that the rules are keeping the elite fields in particular smaller than they would be otherwise.

Despite loving the 33s personally, Ortenblad agrees. “I can’t say for sure if I think tyre width keeps people from racing CX, but I definitely think that a 33mm tyre feels a bit archaic seeing as I ride 32mm tyre on my road bike now,” he says. “I do constantly think a 35 or 38mm tyre option would be good for cross. I think bumping the max size number a bit would be good for the sport. Obviously, we don’t need people out there on massive gravel tyres, but I think the racing would be a bit faster and maybe more fun on a slightly bigger tyre.”

In North America in particular, cyclocross has long been a participant sport – and that’s why USA Cycling and various Canadian provincial governing bodies have loosened tyre-width rules for amateur categories to increase participation. If you currently own a gravel bike, you may be able to fit 33mm tyres on the wide rims that are standard with modern gravel bikes – but because tyre width is measured by how the tyre stretches onto the rim, not what’s written on the sidewall, these wheels still may not pass the UCI’s tyre width test. So, USA Cycling allows for up to 38mm tyres for most non-pro categories, and Ontario Cycling takes it a step further by allowing wider widths even in elite categories of the provincial race series, though for National Championships, they warn that tyres will be measured to the UCI standard.

In the UK, British Cycling applies the 33mm rule to Elite, Under 23 and Junior races at both the National Trophy and Championship level but, as in the US and Canada, some local leagues allow for the running of wider tyres – checking the rules before you head to a race remains prudent.

At the pro level, the 33mm width wasn’t a problem ten years ago. Today, it challenges the very racers the rule was meant to protect: privateers and elites on a tight budget. If an elite racer has a gravel bike, they still will likely need a new wheelset in order to race cyclocross, despite the bikes and tyres being nearly identical. Widen the tyre restrictions, and you potentially widen the pool of athletes showing up to races because gravel teams and gravel privateers could more easily hop into a nearby UCI race with the equipment they already own.

“Cyclocross is just waiting for everyone to realize that their gravel bike is capable of doing cyclocross,” says Gregory. But while the gravel bike may work well in a local race, the tyre is unlikely to conform to UCI standards. “We shouldn’t have a tyre width rule for amateur categories, and really, I don’t think the pros would go much wider anyway. I can’t imagine Mathieu van der Poel racing a 45mm tyre – maybe a 38mm though.”

Rochette agrees. “The way I see it is that everyone has a gravel bike now, and that means everyone can do a cyclocross race – if they’re allowed to. I would love to see people using their gravel bikes to do cyclocross, so at least amateurs should be able to use wider tyres. That way it breaks one barrier for people trying the sport.”

“I don’t see anything wrong with going as wide as 40mm or whatever that limit may be,” Schieken adds. “Is this any different than the UCI being so reluctant to allow disc brakes, an innovation that has done nothing but make racing more exciting at the top level? Bring in the wide tyre. The racers will quickly figure out if wider is better or where the sweet spot lies.”

Would a wider tyre change the sport?

In a word, maybe. But there’s a reason that top riders still sometimes opt for even narrower tyres, says Challenge Tires founder Alex Brauns. They may be less supple or grippy, but they’re faster. (Asked who would win: Van der Poel on a 33mm tyre versus Wout Van Aert on a 40mm tyre, Brauns says Van der Poel would annihilate Van Aert because the “40mm tyre would create too much drag and be slower.”)

There is an important tech distinction to make when it comes to understanding tyre width and tyre choice, and that’s the tubular versus tubeless or clincher difference. “Tubulars at 33mm are not affected by rim width, so volume remains consistent,” says Brauns. “Clinchers and tubeless tyres, however, are impacted: As rims get wider, tyre volume decreases, reducing traction and rolling efficiency – clear disadvantages in off-road riding. With rims now reaching 25mm internal width and beyond, the system is compromised.”

Because of this, Brauns says, tubular tyres are still the best bet for cyclocross riders at the higher levels of competition. He says that as far as rules and regulations go, disqualifications at the start line have occurred due to a clincher tyre measuring too wide because of the rim, and he’d like to see clarifications to the current rules, given the rising popularity of tubeless-ready tyres. No one wants racers who’ve paid and registered to race to be turned away at the start line because of an avoidable measurement error.

McGovern believes wider width allowance would be the death knell for tubular tyres as we know them. “Even now, tubulars are almost dead and getting a low-pressure, low-volume tubeless tyre to work like a tubular is very difficult,” he says. “Increasing the max width would make it much easier to set up, I think. But that would change the essence of the sport. ‘Cross doesn't need to go gravel.”

While it may be a changeup for tyre manufacturers if the rules changed, it wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, Schieken says. “Maybe it will make it more palatable for more tyremakers to offer a varied line of cyclocross treads again,” he says.

And Ortenblad makes the most valid point about industry standards: “It seems like gravel only took off because the industry wanted to sell something they didn’t already own… so maybe if we bump tyre sizes up, the tyre industry will at least make some profit on cross again as everyone buys new tyres.”

The British National Hill-Climb Championships is usually awash with rim brakes, tubulars, lightweight components, and sketchy weight-weenie modifications, but the 2026 edition forced a rethink of the 'lighter is better' maxim. Sunday's race pitted 464 riders against the storm-battered and sinuous Porlock Toll Road on the Somerset coast.

Although the 5.5% average gradient of the 6.6km (4.1mi) ascent was shallower than recent championship courses, the pure climbers still edged out the time-trialists as Welsh former champions Illi Gardner and Ed Laverack won the women's and open titles.

Sixteen-year-old Decathlon–CMA CGM Juniors rider Erza Bateman set the day's fastest time of 14:31 to win the junior open category, while Mabli Phillips became the junior women's champion in 19:36.

A headwind in the exposed final couple of kilometres of the steady climb drew more attention to aerodynamics than usual. For example, all-round race bikes and even aero bikes were more common this year than in previous editions, where steeper gradients have encouraged contestants to strip back rim–brake bikes to the bare minimum.

Rowan Baker led the aero charge, finishing third in the open category on a Cervelo S5 and wearing a time-trial helmet. The narrow course was strewn with storm debris until hill-climbing stalwart Geoff Ware swept the surface with his tractor the day before the race, but the heightened puncture risk seemed to make ultra-fast and fragile tyres a less popular choice on the day.

The only equipment regulations of the organiser, Cycling Time Trials, are that a bike must have working front and rear brakes (or just a front if fixed gear) and lights, and that the rider wears a helmet. The UCI's 6.8kg minimum weight limit doesn't apply to the UK hill-climbing scene, leading to weight-reducing hacks and bodges that can produce sub-5kg builds.

Equally, hill-climbing's accessibility means you can race on your unmodified road bike – an unfussy setup hasn't stopped Everesting World Record Holder Gardner from winning four national hill-climbing titles and nabbing QOMs from the WorldTour's best climbers.

Cycling Weekly had photographer Mark James on the climb just outside Minehead to capture the action and bike tech. Scroll through the gallery below to see the best bits.

Massive time-trial helmets

It wasn't too long ago that some hill climbers raced without helmets - they became mandatory for the 2022 season, although Tom Bell wore won to win up Winnat's Pass in 2021. Since then it's made sense to wear the lightest helmet possible, but Sunday's climb turned that thinking on its head. Several racers sacrificed a few hundred grams for the potential aero benefit of an oversize time trial helmet.

Rowan Baker, a road racer for domestic team Jakroo Handsling Racing, wore the Specialized S-Works TT 5, the time-trial helmet worn by the likes of Demi Vollering and Remco Evenepoel, while averaging an incredible 463 watts for 15 minutes.

The TT lid appears to have formely belonged to Trinity Racing, the British under-23 development through which stars such as Tom Pidcock and Ben Healy progressed to the elite ranks.

Andy Nichols (Team Lifting Gear Products) wore a first generation Giro Aerohead time-trial helmet aboard his rim-brake Orbea Orca with mid-section wheels, a decidely more aero set-up than he usually opts for.

Here's another S-Works TT 5. Off the bike, it must've been good at keeping out the wind and rain.

Jude 'The Buzzard' Taylor (PB Performance) dusted off a Kask Bambino time-trial helmet, originally released in 2012 for Team Sky. Its shape is much rounder than more modern interations of the helmet, which have longer tails.

This is the POC Procen Air, a time-trial-inspired road helmet that was legal in UCI road races until this season. At 355g, it's slightly heavier than the 350g S-Works TT 5, but still lighter than all-out TT lids, making it a good balance between weight and aerodynamics.

Time-trial bikes

Time trial bikes are legal in hill climbs provided you enter the time trial bike category. This 360 Cycling rider went all in on aero with a Specialized Shiv. It's one of the lightest TT bikes and the mid-depth DT Swiss rims will have reduced the weight further.

Deep wheels

This Specialized Tarmac S-Works SL8 is one of the most striking aero builds seen on the day.

Up front there's a extremely deep rim from Scribe. Excuse the dark lighting, but this looks to be the 100mm deep front wheel of the Tempus Ultra TT wheelset. It's wrapped in a very fast, but puncture-prone Vittoria Corsa Pro Speed time-trial tyre, a bold choice given the road surface conditions.

This looks to be the matching Tempus Ultra TT disc wheel out back. Because the strongest winds were head-on and average speeds were relatively low, this probably didn't cause any handling issues, but it must've been heavy.

This build wouldn't be complete without a huge aero chainring. Although this dinner plate from Pass Quest is narrow-wide, the owner didn't take any chances with chain retention and also fitted a chain catcher. A Quarq D-Zero power meter is bolted to the SRAM Red cranks.

The Deda Alanera integrated bar/stem is long and low to further cut drag.

Aero and all-rounder bikes

This is another shot of Baker's Cervelo S5, the brand's aero road bike. For a typical hill climb, the lighter R5 climbing bike would win out, but this choice chimes with Baker's aero overall focus. Under the influence of the UCI weight limit, Visma-Lease a bike often races the S5 in the mountains weighing close to 7kg, so it's clearly still fast uphill. It rolled on carbon-spoked wheels from Alta Via, a component company that supports his road racing team. I reckon these are 55mm deep.

Gabe Dellar (RideRevolution Coaching CT) won eight of his nine hill climbs before the nationals, favouring his specialist hill climb bike (a rim-brake Focus Izalco Max) for the steeper courses and his road race bike (this Pinarello Dogma F) for the longer, shallower climbs, such as Porlock. It seemed to work, as he came 4th in the open category.

On the Italian brand's do-it-all race bike, he fitted a single chainring to save weight by omitting the inner ring and front derailleur. The aero overshoes and long aero socks are an indicative juxtaposition.

Four-time national hill climb champ Andrew Feather made getting more aero to meet the demands of the Porlock Toll Road a key focus of his season. As told to Road.cc, he switched from a 5.5kg SWI climbing bike to the Specialized Tarmac SL8 lightweight all-rounder and lowered his front end by 5cm by sizing down from a 54cm to 52cm frame and removing spacers.

Under guidance from Dr Xavier Disley's Aerocoach, he also reduced frontal area by lengthening reach with a 130cm stem and narrowing handlebar width by 10cm to 32cm. He even improved the aerodynamics of his signature out-of-the-saddle climbing by placing his hands in the drops. He also switched to the deeper 5am Limitless wheelset from his sponsor Hunt. Finishing a second behind open-category winner Ed Laverack was the reward for his work.

I believe this is the Canyon Aeroad of Solihull CC rider Oliver Tandy. He too has a lighter hill climb bike at his disposal, but favoured a lower-drag option.

Weight-saving tricks

It wouldn't be a hill climb nationals without weight-weenie mods, and even Baker couldn't resist racing without bar tape. This could also be marginally more aerodynamic. His SRAM Red AXS groupset is wireless, so this electrical tape isn't holding cables in place. He may use it to rest his wrists in the aero-hoods position.

Cane Creek eeBrakes are the lightest rim brakes you can buy, at just 85 g per caliper, albeit at a high price, spawning various knock-offs. These appear to be the genuine El Asesino version, though fitted to another SuperSix Evo.

SRAM Red 22 cranks, a small single chainring and Favero Pro RS-2 power meter pedals (one of the lightest and most accurate ways to record watts) are a classic hill climbing combo.

These are on a rim-brake Cannondale SuperSix Evo, one of the most popular hill climbing frames on account of its low weight and high availability in the second-hand market.

More proof rim brakes aren't dead, in hill climbs at least. These Dura-Ace R9000 calipers are still very light.

A Winnie the Pooh sticker on a lightweight carbon stem epitomises the quirkiness of hill climbing.

Due to sponsor commitments and the desire to access the latest technology, top hill climbers tend to ride disc brakes these days. Illi Gardner has won several of her women's national titles on discs, but it wasn't until Andrew Feather's 2023 win on the Struggle that a men's champion ditched rim brakes. This is 2026 men's champion Ed Laverack on an Addict RC Ultimate from his new bike sponsor Scott.

Scott says the top-spec SRAM Red AXS build is its lightest ever production race bike. This tier down, with Force AXS, will probably still be nudging 6kg, especially set up 1x.

The Welshman has removed the bottle cages, but not the bolts.

And removed the front derailleur mount and filled in the fitting.

Although Syncros wheels are a stock option and very light depending on the model, Ed opted for something even lighter and used the Brisk Velix-Evo 2 wheels, which are claimed to weigh around 865g for the pair. The hooked wheels feature a 37mm depth and an aerodynamic spoke profile.

Junior men's champion Erza Bateman, who was also the fastest overall, seems to have made few changes to his team-issued Van Rysel RCR-R Pro. With legs as good as his, he didn't need to.

He left on the 2x crankset, and probably did need the big ring at the speed he was travelling.

Notes on Gabe Dellar's stem highlighting the climbing efforts needed for various scenarios, including an effort marker for the last 5 minutes.

I'm guessing this is Kieran Wynne-Cattanach's rim-brake Giant TCR featuring mismatched wheels. At the front, there's what looks like a deep-section HED rim, dwarfing the shallower rear rim, strung with lightweight polymer spokes.

Ah, the Cotswolds. This enchanting region in south-west and south-central England – spanning five counties, but centred on Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire – is the picture of quintessential English countryside. The pretty villages with their honey-hued stone cottages attract visitors from across the globe. You’ll see them wandering the winding lanes, wondering at the manicured perfection. But we’re not here to marvel at rustic 17th-century architecture; we’re here to sample what lies beneath the beautiful facade. Yes, we’re here to punish our legs on the vicious climbs formed by the Jurassic limestone that is the bedrock of this open-air theme park of English country living.

Beneath the serene beauty lies a landscape of bemusing ascents, from short, sharp gradients to rolling hills – a mixture to punish even the fittest legs. We have plotted two routes to tick off 10 of the best climbs, while taking in plenty more that lie between them. Both routes are packed with elevation, horrendous gradients and, of course, stunning scenery. Starting and finishing in Cheltenham, the shorter ride loops north, while the longer one heads south. Carb up, clip in, and brace yourselves!

More from this series: Read about the best climbs in North Wales.

LONGER ROUTE: ‘W’ STANDS FOR WICKED

Distance: 123km (76.4 miles) Elevation: 2,233m (7,326ft)

Heading south from Cheltenham, this route allows you the luxury of 10 sedate kilometres skirting the outskirts of Gloucester before snaking up the first climb of the day, Painswick Road. A real slog of an ascent, it takes you past Coppers Hill through Upton Wood. Descending the narrow slopes of Portway, all that hard-fought elevation is lost in an instant. After another brief period on the flat, you arrive in the village of Haresfield, where the tranquillity is shattered. From here, all hell awaits your legs.

Up next is Haresfield Beacon, a long climb with a few wicked little ramps along the way. Continuing south after dropping down the quiet back roads to avoid Stroud, you cross the Stroudwater Navigation and head onto Frocester Hill. Boasting, without doubt, some of the best views in the area – it’s worth cautiously glancing back over your shoulder as you climb – Frocester Hill is set on a steady-ish and manageable gradient. The road that follows could not be more different in character. Turning left in Uley, you plunge into a gully, then exit via the twisting, narrow and permanently dirty, steep slopes of Owlpen Hill. This gnarly, lurking ramp, which lies hidden in the woods, just gets worse as it rises up to the final 25% ramp through a deep canyon of soil banks. By the time you reach the top, you’ll be breathing out of your ears.

There’s no rest, though, as from here the route resembles the upturned teeth of a saw blade, ramping up and down relentlessly and without pause for a solid 50km. Dropping into Dursley, you arrive at the base of The Broadway, a short, 20% ramp that propels you from the centre of the small town through Cockshoot Wood over 764 lung-busting metres. A brief recovery is afforded as you loop back into Dursley – an excellent place for a pit stop, should you need it – and, once refreshed, it’s time to head back north in the direction of Stroud for a date with the wonderfully scenic, perfectly formed Bear Hill. Next up comes The W – no prizes for guessing which letter it resembles. Caution is advised here, as this is a busy road. Watch out for traffic if you’re chasing the KOM.

The quick succession of hard climbs is by now weighing heavily on your legs, and there are still a couple more killers to come. After a brief rest as you cross Aston Down and the River Frome, your penultimate foe is the climb of Oakridge Lynch, up through the village of the same name. Will this be the gallows for your legs, or will you have enough in the tank for the finale? There is no choice from here but to ride through the centre of Stroud – where, with 25km to go, you could take the opportunity to refill your bottles or grab some more carbs.

Next up is the monstrous Knapp Lane, after which you turn off the B4070 and twist up through the Elliott Nature Reserve on the narrowest of roads of the day, with some horrible stretches of blue 20% gradient. Reward awaits – once at the top, it’s job done, climbing-wise. Now you can sit back, relax in the scenery and complete the loop as you return along the top of the ridge via Birdlip and Leckhampton into Cheltenham.

More from this series: Read about the best climbs in the North Pennines.

SHORTER ROUTE: GAMBLE ON BUSHCOMBE

Distance: 98km (60.9 miles) Elevation: 1,667m (5,469ft)

Heading north from our base in Cheltenham, this ride makes a beeline for Bishop’s Cleeve and almost straight onto the toughest climb of the day. But as a warm-up before you hit the 30% ramps of Bushcombe Lane, we’ve thrown in the 25% slopes of Gambles Lane. From here, you drop straight back into town to ready yourself for the perils that await. Bushcombe Lane ramps up and up until it reaches the magical 30% around its 90° left-hand bend. If you make it around, you’ll make it to the top.

From the summit, the route heads north through Winchcombe and Broadway, allowing you some 20km to recover from the early shock. Next up is Saintbury Hill immediately followed by Dover’s Hill – both famous hill-climb courses. After those, it’s time for a pit stop at the wonderful village of Chipping Campden. Composure regained, the route climbs gradually up Broadway Hill, then continues south via Taddington, Didbrook and Hailes to reach the base of Salter’s Lane. From here, it’s a meander south through Brockhampton, Syreford and Whittington, before arriving back into the outskirts of Cheltenham. Aggs Hill provides one final evil challenge.

More from this series: Read about the best climbs in the North York Moors.

Key travel info

Where to stay
Cheltenham is the base for both rides, as it’s central to our routes, and has excellent transport links, as well as a multitude of accommodation and eating options.

Accommodation
Cheltenham is a large town with several central hotels. If you prefer something quieter, there is a plethora of B&Bs and smaller lodgings available on the outskirts. Airbnb and booking.com should have you covered.

Food and drink
From takeaways to fine dining to well-known franchises and even the famous Ivy restaurant, Cheltenham has it all. As ever, check the local listings and book ahead to avoid disappointment.

What else to see and do
The Cotswolds are home to some of the most famous villages and towns in the world. Check out Bourton-on-the-Water, famous for the River Windrush, which flows through its centre. There is also Castle Combe, known for its honey-coloured houses, and Stow-on-the-Wold, with its market square and antique shops. And don’t forget Bibury, often listed as the most beautiful village in England.

10 best climbs in the Cotswolds

1. THE BROADWAY
Segment: strava.com/segments/19437098
KOM: Adrian Whitwell, 2.17
QOM: Illi Gardner, 3.58
Length: 764m
Elevation: 113m
Average gradient: 14%
Max gradient: 20%
This vicious little road takes you out of Dursley up through Cockshoot Wood to the plateau at the summit. It will have you rapidly clicking down through the gears – and it hits 20% in places.

2. OWLPEN HILL
Segment: strava.com/segments/19437088
KOM: Andrew Feather, 4.16
QOM: Illi Gardner, 5.59
Length: 1,466m
Elevation: 131m
Average gradient: 8%
Max gradient: 25%
Owlpen Hill is well hidden in the dirty, twisting farm roads east of Uley but you’ll know you’ve found it when you see the fear-inducing one-in-four sign.

3. FROCESTER HILL
Segment: strava.com/segments/16290476
KOM: Ed Laverack, 7.19
QOM: Nicole Coates, 9.47
Length: 3,102m
Elevation: 191m
Average gradient: 6%
Max gradient: 11%
A sumptuous, sweeping road set on a gradient that’s just enough to test the legs but without really punishing them. There are stunning views out over your right shoulder almost all the way up.

4. THE W
Segment: strava.com/segments/18210334
KOM: Andrew Feather, 3.11
QOM: Illi Gardner, 4.13
Length: 1,198m
Elevation: 115m
Average gradient: 9%
Max gradient: 13%
The W is so named because its rapid succession of four hairpins form the letter W. This road is a riot to ride while imagining you’re beating Pogačar up a grand Alpine pass.

5. BEAR HILL
Segment: strava.com/segments/668739
KOM: Andrew Feather, 3.54
QOM: Illi Gardner, 5.42
Length: 1,344m
Elevation: 135m
Average gradient: 9%
Max gradient: 18%
Bear Hill is a peach of a road, a near perfect climb on the southern edge of Stroud. Set at the base of a grass-walled amphitheatre, it curves its way to the Black Bear pub at the summit.

6. HARESFIELD BEACON
Segment: strava.com/segments/6913771
KOM: Andrew Feather, 6.19
QOM: Illi Gardner, 8.21
Length: 2,260m
Elevation: 193m
Average gradient: 8%
Max gradient: 18%
With stretches of 20%, this long climb ebbs and flows as it drags you out of the village of Haresfield and onto the top of the ridge. After a mini recovery, it ramps up again into a final nasty kicker.

7. KNAPP LANE
Segment: strava.com/segments/29138696
KOM: Andrew Feather, 7.31
QOM: Illi Gardner, 10.16
Length: 2,485m
Elevation: 180m
Average gradient: 7%
Max gradient: 21%
A rollercoaster of a climb that hits you with surprise after surprise as it snakes westward through idyllic Cotswold crossing cattle grids and heads up some brutally steep slopes.

8. DOVER’S HILL
Segment: strava.com/segments/8459161
KOM: Andrew Feather, 4.43
QOM: Izzy Rodriguez, 6.00
Length: 1,733m
Elevation: 139m
Average gradient: 10%
Max gradient: 14%
This famous hill-climb has been the venue for numerous National Championships. Its double-digit average gradient pushes you hard all the way to the summit.

9. SALTER’S LANE
Segment: strava.com/segments/3844695
KOM: Beast Mode Barbie, 6.39
QOM: Naomi de Pennington, 9.08
Length: 2,294m
Elevation: 188m
Average gradient: 8%
Max gradient: 14%
This Peak District-like climb starts ordinarily enough, but once free of the early tree cover, crosses open grassland on a neat narrow strip of tarmac on a steady 10% slope.

10. BUSHCOMBE LANE
Segment: strava.com/segments/16290484
KOM: Dave Roper, 4.50
QOM: Illi Gardner, 5.41
Length: 1,332m
Elevation: 156m
Average gradient: 12%
Max gradient: 30%
No trip to the Cotswolds is complete without a visit to Bushcombe Lane. This 10/10 killer touches 30% towards the top and will have you begging for mercy around its final left-hand bend.

This article was first published in the 23 April 2026 print edition of Cycling Weekly magazine – available to buy on the newsstand every Thursday (UK only) while digital versions are available on Apple News and Readly. Subscriptions through Magazine's Direct.

From my position in the very front row of the theatre, I got the full 4DX experience during the performance of Cadel: Lungs on Legs I saw at the weekend. Watching actor Connor Delves conjure himself into the character of Cadel Evans and recreate the Australian’s long and bumpy ride to victory in the 2011 Tour de France is a very visceral adventure.

I didn’t move out of my seat, but by the end of the hour-long one-man show, I was absolutely knackered. And slightly splattered in water squirted from Delves’ bidons, via his face. I can only imagine how the actor felt. And smelt.

Actually, I don’t have to imagine that second part, because like a proper cycling groupie I waited with other theatre goers to meet Delves and see the bikes afterwards – and, to be fair, considering he’d just done over 27km on rollers, under stage lights, and was sporting a real race-worn Tour de France yellow jersey that is steeped in 15-year-old sweat and can’t be washed, he wasn’t too smelly.

It must be all the clean living. Because, when I interviewed him for Cycling Weekly magazine (see this week’s edition, out on Thursday), Delves told me he had to give up drinking, follow a healthy diet and adhere to a very strict exercise regime to get in shape for the show, which he also wrote, and has been touring around the world for last two years.

The performance takes you right into Evans’s life, from his childhood and time as a mountain biking prodigy, through his journey into road racing, via a stint at the Australian Institute of Sport, where he discovered he has massive lung capacity, much more than 99.9999% of the rest of us. (Hence his nickname, Lungs on Legs.)

Much of the show is set in the tense post-Armstrong era, just after Floyd Landis admitted to doping offences and a shadow was hanging heavy over the sport, but it’s an uplifting story of tenacity and talent overcoming adversity. In a few short scenes, Delves takes you through Evans’ time at Lotto, a period marked by frustration, injury, near-wins, crashes, devastating technicals and toxic team shenanigans, to his 2009 Road Racing World Championship victory and the tragic loss of his coach Aldo Sassi.

The play follows ‘Unlucky Evans’ to the point where he takes a risk and joins the newly formed BMC team in 2010, a year when the rookie squad rode the Tour de France on a wildcard invitation, and the Australian got to wear the yellow jersey for the first time.

At BMC he was teamed with super-experienced domestique George Hincapie, a pairing that turned out to be a complete game changer. The show culminates by taking you through the key moments of the 2011 Tour, the photo finish with Alberto Contador on stage four in Mur-de-Bretagne, the battle to stay in contention with Andy and Frank Schleck on Alpe d’Huez, and the incredible time trial on the penultimate stage, when Cadel finally sealed his win.

It’s a lot. And Delves delivers the whole thing on his own (with the assistance of one excellent stagehand), reenacting various scenes while riding a series of bikes that Evans used during the race. And he properly rides them – the sweat is not a stage stunt (the actor posts his Strava stats after each show).

The live action is augmented by new and archive video footage playing in the background, complete with contemporaneous commentary from Phil Liggett, who collaborated in the making of show, as did Evans himself, and BMC. (The bikes and other gear from the 2011 Tour – some of which is on display in the foyer – has all been loaned to Delves by BMC and Evans.)

Delves was 15 years old when Evans won the Tour, living in his parent’s bike shop in Perth, Western Australia. “Cadel changed my life as a kid,” he told me. “He was this shining light for Australia.”

I too was living in Australia in 2011, and I spent three exhausting weeks in July of that year watching the Tour unfold in the middle of the night on SBS. As you can probably imagine, it was a fair-dinkum crikey big deal for everyone in the country at the time, so this whole play is a goosebump-inducing ride along memory lane for me.

But even if you can barely remember Evans, if you’re passionate about cycling and the Tour de France, watching this play is an extraordinarily absorbing way to spend an unforgettable hour. Just be aware that, if you sit on the front row, the absorbingness of the experience will likely be literal as well as metaphorical.

Cadel: Lungs on Legs is playing at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith, London, until 15 November. Read the Q&A with Delves in this week's Cycling Weekly.

Illi Gardner rose to the occasion at this year's National Hill-Climb championships, winning her fourth title on Porlock Toll Road in Somerset on Sunday.

The men’s race was won by Welshmen Ed Laverack (Assos UK Race Team), but the fastest time of the day was set by 16-year-old Ezra Bateman (Decathlon CMA CGM Juniors) who finished in 14:31, beating Laverack by 0.2 seconds, but he was awarded the junior title, rather than the senior version.

There was no such controversy in the Women’s race, with Gardner, who wears the colours of Cardiff Ajax CC, stopping the clock atop the 6.6km-long climb on to the shoulders of Exmoor at 17:33, beating second-placed Maria Holdcroft (Cowley Road Condors CC) by 40 seconds.

There was some confusion over third place, however, after it was initially given to Rebekah Hendrickse (EMC Cycling), who was then listed as disqualified in the provisional results (seeming for failing to sign on properly), with the last podium spot going to Karolina Zydelyte (Dulwich Paragon CC).

Gardner, who successfully defended her Everesting World Championship title earlier this month, said the weather conditions were awful, but the long course suited her. “On the day I kind of freaked out a bit, and didn't handle it very well,” she told Cycling Weekly afterwards. “But in training I’ve been forcing myself to go out and do efforts when it's not so nice outside, and I think that helps a lot.”

“It's always difficult when it's quite chilly as well. Obviously aerodynamics are important, but it feels horrible to be wearing just a jersey and shorts when it's 10 degrees.”

The 27-year-old admits that her training was a bit up-and-down. “I didn't do a huge amount of hill climbs in the lead up, unfortunately,” she told us, although she did have a solid excuse. “I was hoping to do more, but I did the Everesting World Championships about four weeks ago, so that was obviously a lot longer. It's a 14-hour event, and I was kind of focussed on training for that for a while.”

Neither did she stick to her game plan on the day, but it all worked out well in the end. “I was hoping to pace the effort and leave a bit more energy for that upper section, because, I'd heard people were facing pretty horrific headwinds,” Illi explained. “But I got a bit excited and ended up doing the opposite, and setting out way too hard, and then I was really slogging it into the wind at the top.”

The fastest man at the British National Hill-Climbing Championships was not awarded the overall win due to being a junior rider.

Nationals took place on Porlock Toll Road in Somerset on Sunday, with the fastest time of the day set by 16-year-old Ezra Bateman, but the rider from Scarborough didn’t appear atop the Open podium.

Bateman, who will turn 17 next week, stopped the clock at the top of the 6.6km-long hill climb after 14 minutes and 31 seconds, registering a time that was 0.2 seconds faster than that of Ed Laverack (Assos UK Race Team), who was crowned the winner of the open category for the second time in his career.

Riding in the familiar colours of Decathlon CMA CGM Juniors, Bateman was the last of the juniors to set off on Sunday, when climbers had to contend with extremely gusty conditions as they scaled the steep flanks of Exmoor’s tallest hill, amid the aftermath of Storm Boelo.

Up out of the saddle for much of the long course (6.6km with an average gradient of 5.5%), he caught and passed numerous other riders enroute to victory and beat his nearest rival in the junior category by almost half a minute. However, the second-placed junior, Oliver Swinburn (Velo Club Lincoln), finished in a very impressive time of 14:58, making his the fourth fastest ride of the whole day.

But Neither Bateman nor Swinburn will appear in the Open results, because the senior and junior races are separate events, despite being ridden concurrently, a situation that has caused a flurry of comments on social media.

Bateman took the decision with a degree maturity that shines through in performances on the bike, and when asked by The British Continental whether he should have been awarded the Open championship title, he said: “To be honest, no, because it’s a different category. Even if I set the fastest time, the two categories are different.”

"Ezra Bateman's achievement in recording the fastest time of the day, and becoming Junior Open National Hill Climb Champion, at just 16 years old was exceptional and highlights the exciting young talent coming through our sport," Tim Smith, the new Chair of the CTT, told Cycling Weekly.

"Equally, congratulations to Ed Laverack on becoming Senior Open National Hill Climb Champion for the second time, a fantastic achievement in an incredibly competitive field.

"Age categories have long been an important part of CTT's history and heritage, providing opportunities for riders of all ages to compete, gain recognition and achieve success at national level. They are part of what makes time trialling such an inclusive and accessible sport.

Addressing the question of why Bateman wasn't awarded the overall title, Smith said: “It's all run as one event, but within that event there are different categories and different National Championships. So we have the junior National Championships, the open National Championships, the women's National Championships and the junior women's National Championships.

“Those are the titles we award. And when you enter, the system allocates you to a category based on your gender and your and your age. That's why Ezra was put into the junior category.”

“These things will happen, when you have someone who is clearly as extremely talented as he [Bateman] is,” Smith continued. “I know it was discussed in previous years for the hill climb, when it was thought Harry Hudson might win it. But that didn't happen in the end.

“We have had similar scenarios. even earlier this year, with Leon Adkins, when he won the junior closed circuit at the Road Bike Champs. He won the junior, but his time was good enough that it would have given him third place in the overall as well. He was given junior national champion as opposed to the third in the overall.”

With his 17th birthday falling next week, will have to wait until 2028 to see Bateman race in the Open ranks, but clearly a powerful force is coming.

In the other categories, Illi Gardner (Cardiff Ajax CC) won the women’s event, while Mabli Phillips (Shibden CC) claimed the junior women’s hill climb title. Full reports to come. Christopher Scott was crowned Para Champion, and Geoff Pickin the 2026 Handcycle Champion.

With the winter weather rolling in, temperatures dropping, and rain finally hitting after a summer of near drought, it’s the time of year when many riders start heading indoors.

But should you keep session duration the same, or can you drop the volume, especially when it comes to the traditional weekend 'long ride'?

What to do about the long rides

Winter training often means base endurance rides, 'winter miles equal summer smiles' is still an approach used by a lot of riders.

But, a four hour ride, for example, is a tough ask indoors.

In terms of physiology, some people suggest that one hour indoors equals 90 minutes outdoors. I’ve seen enough training files and analysed enough Training Stress Scores (TSS) to know that this is simply not true.

It’s true that, when outdoors there is more coasting; indoors you’re always pedalling. However, indoors you can keep the pace very consistent and controlled, hence why riders like Uno-X Mobility’s Jonas Abrahamsen spend so much of their low intensity, high volume riding time indoors.

Indoors, there are no spikes in pace, or surges into tempo up climbs. The session can be a truly consistent Zone 2 ride, resulting in a reduced total training stress based purely on the numbers.

On the flipside, indoor riding involves no windchill; without a good fan or ventilation, you can inadvertently be doing heat training each session, which adds extra physiological stress and strain.

Then, there’s the psychological element. The fact is, four hours of steady riding indoors, even with a series to binge, can be a bit mind-numbing. Some riders can manage this fine for long periods of time; others can’t stand it.

I have managed two-month periods at a time solidly on the turbo, where I’ve done rides over four hours. It’s done wonders for my fitness and reduced the time spent cleaning bikes – but it has hit me mentally after that period and impacted motivation badly.

Tips for successful long, indoor rides

• Find a good series to binge, podcasts, or audiobooks, even language audio lessons.
• Break the session into segments, even if high and low blocks within the Z2 region.
• Have a call with some friends, turn it into a form of social ride.
• Use it as a chance to get better at holding an aero position, maybe 5min on 5min off and progress.
• Try some different indoor training apps, there are a lot out there and all have a different flavour. One might not be your cup of tea but another could be.

Comfort is also a consideration. Often, indoors, the pressure through the saddle is consistent throughout and there are limited opportunities to ride out of the saddle comfortably. For a four hour session, combined with more heat and sweat, this can be bad for saddle health and saddle sores.

With all those factors considered, what should riders actually do?

I tend to have two recommendations, pending the character of the athlete.

If they are happy still getting some good volume in, I suggest reducing the volume by around a quarter; a four-hour ride becomes three. Alternatively, they can split the ride into two, two-hour sessions, this can be more mentally managable.

For the riders whose indoor limit is two hours total, I would suggest they ride one hour in zone 2, before including three 15-minute tempo efforts, with 5-minute recoveries; this will generate more stress but limit the time spent significantly above the first lactate threshold.

Long ride replacement options

• Reduce volume by 25%: swap 4-hours to 3-hours; swap 3-hours for 2hrs15mins; swap 2-hours for 90minutes
• Split the ride up: ride 2x2hour rides to replace a 4-hour ride; 2x1.5 hours to replace a 3-hour ride; ride 2x1hour to replace a 2-hour ride
• Up the intensity: Ride 1hour @ Z1, followed by 3x15minute tempo, 5minute easy

Shorter duration, high intensity sessions

What about shorter outdoor rides, brought indoors?

These are easier to suggest alternatives to, for the most part, any effort sessions I prescribe to riders are often easily able to be condensed down into a 1-hour session. Even if the efforts are spread over a 2-hour ride, normally, this is out of necessity to find appropriate stretches of road to conduct efforts and get a proper warm up and cool down in.

Indoors, you can very efficiently fit the warm up and cool down into a session without disruption from traffic lights, gradient changes, or anything else. The efforts can then also be conducted safely with suitable recoveries in between.

The training stress by bringing the ride indoors, and slightly reducing the volume, may be slightly lower, but you’ll have completed the relevant efforts, and that’s what matters.

Where things become a little different is when we start incorporating efforts after a certain amount of fatigue has built up, a key indicator of performance in elite racing. In these scenarios, I sometimes suggest splitting the rides, or we look to generate more workload by adding tempo or sweetspot intervals earlier into the session before the key efforts to 'soften the legs'.

First, a disclaimer. Cycling is brilliant, it makes everyone happy, it makes me happy, it is the solution to all of life’s problems both for the individual and the community as a whole.

That said and understood, I have an observation to make. Occasionally cycling makes me feel emotions that are just the tiniest bit negative.

I frequently feel guilty that I’m not doing more riding. Especially, I feel bad that I’m not having long-distance adventures. I should be attacking the North Coast 500 record, or bike packing from London to Istanbul, or doing the Transcontinental Race. The world seems full of riders doing these things.

It seems to have become the new normal for ambitious riders, for riders with my abilities, even for riders my age, and I’m out of step with it. I don’t even have the get-out that I don’t want to do these things – I’d love to. Which makes me feel all the more inadequate that I don’t.

I feel guilty too about the fact I don’t ride gravel races. I don’t even own a gravel bike, despite the fact that I can’t remember the last time the marketing departments banded together and tried so hard to make me buy something. I haven’t submitted because there isn’t really anywhere to ride one local to me.

When I make that excuse to gravel evangelists (or “gravangelists” – now you have the word for these people you’ll find lots of chances to use it) they tell me I should be driving to places where there is decent gravel riding – the nearest suggested location is about a four-hour round trip. Should I really be doing that? Wouldn’t that just make me guilty for another reason?

Sometimes the guilt over the fact I’m not living my best cycling life edges into envy that other people are. It’s hard not to look at the great times people are having in various parts of the cycling world and not wish you were there too – catching a ferry on the Trans Alba race, or thundering through gravel in the American Mid-West.

When it comes to fuelling envy, it’s all about social media for me. It’s one thing to read a report on an ultra race; it’s another to see hour-by-hour updates from someone about how their ride is going. Because inevitably it looks great. Even if it’s actually going terribly, by the time it’s on Instagram it’s become a really positive, adventurous sort of terrible. “That looks horrendous,” you think. “God, I wish it was me.”

I even get envious of people doing fairly normal things. A friend recently posted a selfie with a highland cow from a gate on a lane about 10 miles from my house. “Oh, how wish I was doing something like that,” I thought, despite the fact I’d ridden down the self-same lane past the self-same cow less than 24 hours earlier. The only difference was that I hadn’t stopped to make 16 attempts to line up a photo with it.

And here’s the final problem. I don’t really put stuff on social media very often these days, and very rarely about my own riding. So I feel bad about the fact I’m not doing that. And not least because if I was, perhaps other people would be envious of me.

I mean, it would depend on how much everyone else wished they were plodding around the same half-dozen training routes with a cantankerous riding buddy, or riding e-races against a selection of cheats from six continents. But given the things other people do that make me feel bad, there’s a good chance someone somewhere would look at a photo of my mate Bernard blowing on his tea at the café and just clench a little inwardly.

Peter Grandiek toasted his 95th birthday this week by shattering the Hour Record in his 95-99 age category.

The Dutchman, who has lived most of his life in New Zealand, completed more than 91 laps of his home velodrome in Invercargill on Wednesday for a distance of 22.948km. He beat the previous benchmark – 20.151km, set by New Zealander Reg Rye in 2019 – by almost 3km.

“I was expecting to do a little bit more,” Grandiek told Cycling Weekly. “Something went wrong with my seat, because I was sitting far too far forward. I thought I was going to slip off. It’s never happened before, but these things happen sometimes.

“What helped me was that they put the lap recorder on, so I could see how many laps I was getting. The previous record, the guy rode 80 laps. I probably gave a sigh of relief when I got to the 80 laps and still had about 10 minutes to go. That was pretty good. You just concentrate on going forward.”

Grandiek once held the 80-84 record 11 years ago, but was bettered three weeks later by then 81-year-old Briton Walter Fowler.

Asked what motivated him to attempt the Hour Record again in his mid-90s, he said he simply “thought it might be something I might be capable of”.

“I’m twice a week at the velodrome, and I don’t always really push myself. But I seemed to be quite comfortable being able to do over 20[kph], so I thought, ‘Well, why not have a go?’,” he said.

“I talk to people who are probably 40 years younger than me, and they think they’re old, and they say, ‘Oh, I can’t do this. I can’t do that.’ It’s a matter sometimes of mind over matter. You’ve got to challenge yourself.”

In order for his record to be official with the UCI, Grandiek had to undergo anti-doping testing following his effort. He said he drank three large bottles of water “to help things come along”, but found his celebrations thwarted as the process drew on longer than the record itself.

“I got into the doping control room, and it took ages,” he laughed. “They’ve got to have a certain volume [of urine], and it took hours. We finished [the record] just after 7pm, and I didn’t get home until quarter past 10.”

Born and raised in a province north of Amsterdam, Grandiek emigrated to New Zealand on a six-week passenger ship in the early 1950s, when he was 22. He worked on the railways in the South Island, before becoming a house painter and later ran a deer farm.

It was only in 2007, then in his mid-70s, that he took up cycling. “That’s after I finished all my sporting activities, because I played rugby, I was running, ran some half marathons, and that got too hard on the bones,” he said.

When he was 78, he had a sudden heart attack, and had to have triple bypass surgery. Almost two decades on, he says, he continues to do “contrary things to what the cardiologist would tell you – I’ve basically always ignored their advice and did what I wanted to do.”

It’s in that vein that Grandiek plans to keep challenging himself on the bike. Typically he has spent his birthday doing charity rides; his Hour Record was in support of a local hospice, Hospice South.

The benchmark in the next age category, 100-104, is 26.925km, held since 2014 by Frenchman Robert Marchand. Might Grandiek now target that? “You can only do these things if you’re capable,” he said.

“There’s no doubt that as you get older, you slow down. I’ve lost speed compared to 10 years ago. You can’t help that. It’s a natural thing,” he continued.

“As soon as I got off the bike on Wednesday night, people said, ‘What are you going to do next year?’ and I said, ‘I’ll come up with something.’ I’ve done it for the last 10 years.”

Grandiek's 95-99 Hour Record is still subject to ratification by the UCI.

Donations can be made directly to Hospice South via the charity's website.

Netcompany-Ineos did not have a bad season. The British team won 37 times, the most since 2023, on 20 more occasions than their annus horribilis of 2024, and finished eighth in the team rankings. It’s not world-beating form, and there was no Grand Tour win or even podium, but it’s not too far from their average performance in terms of wins since their founding.

It was a solid year, then, with standout moments, even if the Tour de France was a disappointment. Alongside this, their future appears secure, with new title sponsor Netcompany joining from April. So why, then, do things feel a bit off at the British WorldTour team? As has become custom, it is yet another winter of change at Ineos, with at least nine riders joining and at least 10 leaving. Some of those are explainable, like Ben Swift and Bob Jungels retiring, but others feel like huge losses.

The one that stands out is Filippo Ganna, who has been with the team since 2019, taking all 41 of his pro victories in that time. What's more, the Italian is leaving before the end of his contract to join Lidl-Trek. Riders only tend todo that if they're offered more money or are unhappy where they are. Others good riders, including Ben Turner, Laurens De Plus, and Magnus Sheffield, are also moving on.

In their stead, a group of solid, hard-working professionals has been signed, from Michael Valgren to James Shaw, Joe Blackmore and Harold Tejada. Good riders, but not necessarily a giant upgrade on what they already had. It is the joint-record amount of transfer business any iteration of Netcompany-Ineos has ever completed since being established in 2011, and gives the sense of a team in churn, unsettled, not quite knowing what it is.

This is not the first year of transition at the British team; in the last five years, Sir Dave Brailsford has left and rejoined, with the management structure and staffing shifting at the same time, with Rod Ellingworth and John Allert both joining and leaving. Geraint Thomas is in charge of racing now, but there has also been a turnover in sporting directors and technical staff, with Dan Bigham, Steve Cummings and Zak Dempster just three of the key staff-members in the backroom who have left in recent years. Other teams have staff turnover, but seemingly not at the same rate.

More than ever, it feels like the team is having a bit of an identity crisis. There are now just four confirmed British riders at the British team, and a mix of other nationalities, including a notable Spanish bloc.

"There are always riders leaving and going," Oscar Onley, the team's big GC hope, told Cycling Weekly this week, in defence of his team's transfers. "I think it's normal, it's the way the sport is. I think the team are quite clear on what they want to achieve, they want to win Grand Tours again, and they're putting good plans in place to do everything they can to try and achieve that."

However, Ineos do seem better than most at losing talent. A handful of the riders that have left the team in the last five years include Tom Pidcock, Adam Yates, Richard Carapaz, Pavel Sivakov and Ben Tulett, before including this year's exodus. At the end of this year, their highest rider in the UCI rankings is Thymen Arensman, in 44th; their rivals each have a handful of riders above him.

The reason, as ever, is likely money, as other team's budgets have ballooned in recent years, especially UAE Team Emirates-XRG, and despite investment from Netcompany, the squad is no longer the richest in the world. There are also question marks around how the team is run.

While there isn't the same level of doom-and-gloom as at Manchester United, the football club also owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos, there is the same sense of a fallen giant which once ruled the roost, and of a muddled strategy at management level. The cycling team won six Tours de France before being owned by Ratcliffe, and have only won one since. It has not been a dominant force for over seven years.

A brighter future is possible. Onley is still young, won the white jersey at the Vuelta a España this year, and is still developing; in 18-year-old Benjamín Noval, junior world road and time trial champion, they could have the next superstar. There are other elite riders at the team, and they have the potential to win just as many races in 2027 as this year.

However, they still don't have a rider the level of Tadej Pogačar or even of those chasing; Remco Evenepoel chose Red Bull over Ineos while Jonas Vingegaard won't be tempted from Visma Lease a Bike. Neither have they managed to sign 'the next big thing', like Isaac del Toro or Paul Seixas. The rumour is that Netcompany-Ineos are attempting to woo Seixas, the great French hope, but would he want to join a team in almost-constant flux? It isn't a winter of crisis, but it is one of revolution. Whether this leads to progress remains to be seen.

Basso Bikes is not, as you might reasonably think, owned by Ivan Basso (who has his own Aurum bike brand with Alberto Contador); rather, it was started by engineer and cyclist Alcide Basso in Italy in 1977. Today, the brand offers a compact range of Italian-made road, gravel and electric bikes.

The Palta II is its premium gravel bike, available in the UK with Campagnolo Record X, Shimano GRX or GRX Di2 and the SRAM Force XPLR AXS-equipped version that I had on test.

Having just enjoyed a month or two riding Handsling’s A1R0evoG gravel bike with similar spec, I was looking forward to seeing how the Italian bike compared on my home terrain of the Peak District.

Design details

The Palta III (not to be confused with the cheaper Palta) is a nice-looking bike. With deep carbon wheels, full-height seatstays, one-piece handlebar and classy-looking paint job, it looks fast even when just leaning against a wall.

At first glance, the carbon frame looks fairly standard, but on closer inspection, some angular, even triangular, shapes are evident; Basso calls them ‘diamond-shaped’. The seat tube and down tube both have slightly cut-out sections for the wheels, similar to the original Cervelo Aspero, and the top tube widens and flattens towards the head tube. The fork's forward-hunched stance also adds to the Palta’s aggressive aesthetic.

The Palta III’s frame borrows tech and design from Basso’s road bikes, with a reduced frontal area for less drag and increased torsional stiffness around the bottom bracket for better power transfer. The frame isn’t only fast, though; Basso says a size medium weighs just 970g.

The in-frame storage is one of the neatest and most integrated I’ve seen, with a subtle Fidlock magnetic latch fastening the hatch over the internal compartment. If you need to carry more luggage, it has top-tube mounts, down-tube mounts, and even three mounts on the underside of the top tube. It has no fork mounts, but the frame has the most OTT down-tube protector I’ve ever seen: a chunky rubber number made by Vibram, the walking-boot-sole manufacturer.

Tyre clearance is a healthy but not class-leading 50mm, and there is potential to mount a front derailleur, although there are no 2x models available in the UK.

Sizes run from XS to XXL with three colour options: Purple Dust, Galaxy Dream and Carbon Chrome, or beige, green and black to you and me.

Specifications

Bolted onto and into the carbon frame is an array of rather nice components, all very much in keeping with the Palta III’s rapid character.

I’ve used SRAM’s dedicated gravel 1x Force XPLR groupset on a few bikes, and it never fails to impress. The levers are fantastically ergonomic, and with 13 sprockets on the wide 10-46T cassette, the jumps aren’t too bad, especially lower down the range. The frame is UDH-compatible.

At just over 1,500g and under 50mm deep, Miche’s Graff Aero 48 wheels looked the business and promised drag reduction if I ever reached the necessary speed. Talking of which, the Schwalbe G-One R TLR tyres were also aimed at dry trail speed rather than grip in mud. I had no issues with the hookless rims and these tyres, but I have previously had problems with hookless rims at low pressures, so I was a bit wary of them.

Basso offers two handlebar options: a two-piece setup or a one-piece aero design. The test bike had the latter, in an incredibly narrow width – 37cm centre-to-centre and 33cm at the hoods, with not much flare at the drops and a stem 110mm long. This is a standard size, but you could perhaps switch it at the point of purchase.

Comfort comes in the form of an interesting seatpost clamp design, which includes a vulcanised rubber piece down the back of the seatpost as part of the clamp called the '3B Clamp System Gen II'. I was less impressed, though, to see that the two seatpost clamp bolts are tiny 3mm hex bolts and sit right in the line of fire from mud spray from the back wheel. Good luck not rounding those off when they are full of dirt – a strip of gaffer tape over them would be my first modification if it were mine.

The seatpost has a unique shape, deeply concave at the rear (where the 3B Clamp System fits) and round at the front.

Basso says that the stack has been raised and the reach reduced from the previous iteration, and the geometry figures seem to back this up. The 370mm reach and 570mm stack on the size medium are certainly at the shorter/higher end of the scale compared with many gravel bikes, especially speed-orientated ones. The back end is also a bit longer than the norm at 430mm, and the head tube is on the slack side for a gravel bike at 70°.

Performance

Given the Palta III’s set-up and spec, it was handy that my tenure coincided with such a warm, dry summer - the Schwalbe G-One R tyres might not have been so happy in autumn slop - and I enjoyed lots of fast, dusty miles on the bike.

My first thought about the bike was its speed, followed pretty quickly by its stiffness. Coming straight from the super-comfy Handsling A1R0evoG, the Basso’s rigidity stood out. This was more apparent at the front end than the rear, probably not helped by the narrow one-piece bars. Smooth trails were fine, but as the stones got larger, above kiwi fruit-sized perhaps, the ride became less comfortable.

A lot of my ‘gravel’ riding involves plenty of roots, rocks and other trail obstacles arguably better suited to a mountain bike, and here the Basso did struggle to provide as much compliance as I would have liked. I think this comes down to a few things: the 45mm Schwalbe tyres actually only measured 43mm, narrower bars naturally offer less flex than wider ones, and the frame/fork are tuned more for speed than comfort. Even with the tyres running at rim-threatening pressures, many impacts were transmitted through the bike to me.

The 3B Clamp System and long seatpost do work to an extent, but only when seated, and of course rough terrain and techy descents are often tackled standing up.

Interestingly, the test bike was a size Medium, whereas i would usually expect to be a size Large/56. This meant that the stack and bar height was actually pretty good for me (whereas a Large would be too high), but the reach did feel a bit short even with the 110mm stem. This is neither good nor bad, but it is worth being aware that the Palta III does fit slightly differently to some other gravel race bikes.

After 400km+ on the bike, I enjoyed the speed and responsiveness, but I was never tempted to load it up and head off on a multi-day adventure. Instead, it was better suited to shorter bursts, where its directness was acceptable and its stiffness a benefit, especially when climbing. It would have been interesting to try it with some bigger tyres to see how much compliance they added, but I had nothing suitable available.

Value

With the Palta III overlapping with the Handsling A1R0evoG in my garage, and both bikes aimed more at speed than adventure, they made for an interesting comparison.

The long, low Handsling blended pace and compliance well, whereas the Basso leaned more toward outright stiffness despite its more upright fit. With both bikes retailing for around £6,000 in similar spec and weighing just over 8kg, the choice comes down to sizing and ride characteristics.

The price spread for Force XPLR-equipped bikes is wide: the Canyon Grail is £4,799/$5,000, while the Cervelo Aspero-5 is £7,000/$9,000, putting the Italian-made Basso in the mid-pack.

Despite the multiple luggage mounts and Basso’s talk of versatility, the Palta III isn't a bike for long-distance epics carrying all your worldly goods. The ride is too stiff and speed-orientated (and there is barely any room between the hoods for a bar bag). It's better suited to short, fast outings, where you can relish the unfiltered ride.

It is a lovely-looking bike with good components and a brilliant groupset, and a great history behind the brand. If the geometry suits you and you want an outright speed machine, this might be it.

Tech spec

• Price: £5,999/$6,995
• Brand: Basso
• Frame: Palta III carbon
• Fork: Palta III carbon
• Sizes: XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL
• Weight: 8.44kg (actual, medium)
• Groupset: SRAM Force XPLR AXS E1 13-speed
• Crankset: SRAM Force XPLR AXS 40T, 170mm
• Cassette: SRAM Force XPLR 13-speed 10-46T
• Wheels: Miche Graff Aero 48 Tubeless
• Tyres: Schwalbe G-One R TLR Folding 700x45c
• Brakes: SRAM Force AXS hydraulic
• Bar/stem: Fuga Carbon integrated 370mm/110mm
• Seatpost: Basso 15mm layback
• Saddle: Prologo Dimension RS

Netcompany-Ineos rider Oscar Onley expects an increase in time trialling kilometres to be a “main factor” in deciding the 2027 Tour de France.

Next summer’s route, unveiled in a presentation in Paris on Thursday, includes two individual time trials totalling 71km: 33km on stage seven between Blois and Chambord, and 38km on stage 16 around Toulouse. It is the most kilometres of time trials in a single Tour de France since the 2012 edition (96.1km) won by Bradley Wiggins.

“I think the time trials really stand out as a main factor,” Onley told Cycling Weekly in Paris. “Obviously, there are time trials every year in the Tour, but with two long, fairly flat TTs, I think that's something that's going to create different opportunities for riders and, I think, can create different scenarios.”

This July’s Tour opened with a team time trial in Barcelona. It also had a 26km individual time trial on stage 16, won by the discipline's world and Olympic champion, Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe), who went on to finish second overall.

“I think for Remco, he's going to be really happy looking at that,” Onley said of the 2027 route’s time trials, “especially with it being flat as well. He then has a greater advantage over the rest of the GC riders.

“For myself, I'm actually fairly confident because I know how much work the team put into TTs, and the work they've put into my TT set-up this year. I know they've already got plans for me this week to look at the TT set-up again.”

Four-time Tour winner Chris Froome, also speaking at the route presentation on Thursday, echoed Onley’s thoughts. “My first impression is that, of course, there are some really big mountain days, but what stood out was the time trial kilometres,” he told Eurosport.

“I think that’s partly because Tadej [Pogačar] has been so dominant in the mountains, so maybe now bringing more time trial kilometres maybe keeps the GC battle more alive for a bit longer.”

Onley has emerged in Froome’s wake as Britain’s strongest GC contender in recent years. Fourth overall at the Tour in 2025, the 24-year-old was ruled out of leading Netcompany-Ineos at the race this summer due to a shoulder injury. He then recovered to win the young rider’s classification at the Vuelta a España with sixth place.

Asked how his first season with the team has been, he said: “I've really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, I've seen probably more of the medical staff than I'd like to, but the support they've given me throughout the whole year has been something that is really valuable.”

Next year’s Tour will start with three stages across Great Britain, with a Grand Départ in Edinburgh. The opening stage bears particular sentimentality for Onley, whose home in Kelso, in the Scottish Borders, is only around 10km away from the route.

“I know almost the whole stage,” he said. “Other than maybe the last 10km into Carlisle, I've ridden every road there, so I'm really excited for it. These are the roads that I grew up training on.”

One road that stands out is the Côte de Melrose, a 2.2km climb at 6.7%, and the only KOM on stage one. “I've done a lot of efforts up there and it's one of the climbs that I spent a lot of time on when I was younger riding around Kelso,” Onley said.

“I've not really spoken to the team yet, but I am going to have to make a plan around [riding on home roads] because it's easy to kind of get carried away in the moment and it's probably the last thing you want to do on stage one of a Grand Tour. But I also want to take everything in. I'm not going to have this opportunity again in my career. So yeah, I really want to make the most of it.”

Discover all 21 stages of the 2027 Tour de France with our route guide.

Movistar rider Marlen Reusser has called out the uneven naming of the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes as “weird”, suggesting it highlights an inequality between the sexes.

The time trial world champion and former yellow jersey wearer attended the 2027 races' route presentation in Paris on Thursday, where all the stages were unveiled.

Asked afterwards how she found the ceremony, she told the media: “It’s a nice event. What I’m a bit disappointed [by] still is that it’s the Tour de France and the Tour de France Femmes. Where is the Tour de France Hommes? Like, this is weird to me. I don’t understand this.”

In French, 'femmes' translates as women, and 'hommes' as men.

Reusser also said she found the attention given to both races during the presentation to be disproportionate. “We have two nice race directors, but I don’t feel like they’re on the same level. It’s more the men’s director [on stage] that also has next to him the women’s,” she said.

“I think the Tour is doing so great, showing that there is not only men’s sport. We speak a lot about it, but we just should do it more. I wish these little steps to come when we speak about the presentation and the whole thing.”

On stage during the ceremony, women’s race director Marion Rousse praised the fact that both events will enjoy three-day Grand Départs in the same country for the first time next year, something she said was a “good message of equality”.

Rousse later responded to Reusser’s comments, saying it was “not really the case” that the ceremony portrayed the women’s race as less important. “Obviously the men's presentation is going to be longer because there are 21 stages against nine,” she said.

Cycling Weekly asked men’s race director Christian Prudhomme for his response to Reusser's comments about the unequal race names. “The Tour de France is a major race that has been running since 1903. The Tour is the Tour, and we’re absolutely delighted that there’s another race: the Tour de France Femmes,” he said.

“The Tour, in fact, is a single event in two parts. We don’t talk about the men’s Roland Garros and the women’s Roland Garros – we just talk about Roland Garros. For us, the only issue is that we can’t run both events at the same time. It’s impossible. It’s not like a tennis match where you play to the right and then to the left.

“When I launched the [Tour de France Femmes] five years ago with Marion Rousse, I said, ‘Long live the Tour. Long live the Tours.’ I was actually wrong – she’s competitive. I don’t hold it against her – because in fact, it’s the Tour. The strength of this event, the women’s event, is the Tour de France. And the Tour de France Femmes is good for women’s sport. Above all, it’s good for the Tour, full stop.”

The men’s race will begin in Edinburgh on 2 July next year, four weeks before the women’s starts in Leeds on 30 July. Discover all the stages with our route guides.

This weekend, in the middle of the night – at 2am in the blurry bit between Saturday evening night and Sunday morning – Britain will lurch back in time by 60 minutes. This is great news for Sabbath slumberers (extra hour in bed) and early-bird cycle commuters, who might make it to work in some semblance of daylight for the next few weeks, but it does herald the beginning of the dark half of the year.

And while that definitely doesn’t mean you should let your bike get dusty, it does necessitate some wardrobe and routine changes if you want to keep cycling through winter in comfort and safety.

Have a glow up

First up, if you haven’t already done so, this weekend is the perfect time to locate your bike lights, front and back (plus all the cables and paraphernalia that go with them) and make sure they’re fully charged up, and that the fittings and fixtures on the frame of your bike are all still in good nick (and actually correspond with the lights). If you can, go with a couple of combos. When riding roads in winter, you basically can’t have too many lights and reflectors.

Go up a gear

Bright and reflective clothing is also highly recommended, of course, but the best winter cycling jackets don’t have to make you look like a lollypop lady or road worker, there are plenty of good-looking garments out there with less garish reflective elements that are still highly visible.

Warmth, breathability and waterproofing are obviously key factors to think about as well. Besides an outer jacket that will protect you from the elements and help you be seen, go for some decent thermal underlayers, invest in some good gloves if you haven’t got a pair, and consider a neck tube of some sort.

Your choice of shoes is critical at this time, too – riding in the dark is one thing, but cycling with wet and cold feet will make the experience utterly miserable. Cycling shoes notoriously let toes get cold, partly because of their rigidity, and while donning warm socks and using overshoes will help, you can’t beat a proper pair of winter shoes, with higher cuffs, increased insulation and breathable waterproof membranes all combining to keep you more comfortable.

While we’re at it, you’re not going to be able to keep all this clobber clean and pristine over the winter, but fitting some mudguards to your bike will significantly reduce the amount of filth that gets thrown up on to your clothes and shoes, which means they will last longer and retain their reflective capability better.

Re tyre early

No matter what kind of bike you’re riding, the turning of the seasons can be a good prompt to bust out some new rubber, in this case winter tyres. Riders on gravel bikes will be well aware of the benefit of extra traction during the winter, but when you’re cycling a hybrid commuter or road bike – or an e-bike for that matter – some fresh tread can make a big difference to your confidence on increasingly mucky and slippery road surfaces. In diminishing light staying the right way up is all the more important, too, with other road users’ visibility and reaction times also being impacted by low light.

Puddles and darkness combine to conceal all sorts of puncture threats, on roads and trails, and even the best tyres can only offer so much protection, so be sure to keep new tubes and tools in your biking backpack or frame bags. Or, of course, you could consider going tubeless.

Three thousand more tickets have gone on sale for the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup round in Glasgow this December, after the original allocation of 12,000 sold out.

This is the final tranche of tickets which will be sold for the first World Cup round in Britain since 2014, after an extra 2,000 had already been added on, British Cycling announced on Friday.

Organised by the UCI and organisers Flanders Classics, the UCI Cyclo-Cross World Cup is the marquee series of CX and a winter highlight for cycling fans, with thousands of spectators attending each round to witness riders racing across challenging courses, tackling grass, mud and obstacles.

Most of these take place in CX's heartlands of Belgium and the Netherlands, and Glasgow will be just the second British host of the World Cup after Milton Keynes in 2014. The long absence, plus a wave of interest in elite cycling possibly accelerated by anticipation ahead of the 2027 Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes Grand Départs being hosted in Britain, has meant demand for tickets has exceeded expectations.

Contested across a total of 12 rounds, the 2026–27 CX World Cup kicks off on Friday 27 November in the Czech city of Ostrava, where competitors will race around a former mining site. Round takes place in Tábor, also in the Czech Republic, on Sunday 29 November, and then it's Scotland's turn.

The highly anticipated third round will take place on Sunday 13 December in Kelvingrove Park, a 34-hectare Victorian park in Glasgow’s West End. When the location of the event was first announced, Cameron Mason, the four-time British cyclo-cross champion who hails from the nearby Scottish town of Linlithgow predicted that: “It’s going to be the biggest moment in my career.”

The last few tickets, which cost around £31.50 per adult (with concessions and family rates available) can currently be bought through Ticketmaster, but they are going fast. BC are working on the event with partners Event Scotland, Glasgow Life, and Flanders Classics.

Darren Henry, managing director of British Cycling Ventures, said: "We are pleased to announce the final release of 3,000 tickets, as we look to welcome 15,000 passionate cycling fans to Glasgow. The response to ticket sales reinforces our ambition to build a diverse portfolio of world-class cycling events across multiple disciplines and showcases fans’ appetite for similar events and creating a memorable experience as we continue to look to grow cycling in the UK."

Looking around at the dozen or so fellow riders at a recent cafe stop, I was struck by how similar everyone’s order looked. Almost every cyclist was clutching a bottle of Coke and a pastry or slice of cake, with pockets being restocked with gels before heading back out on the road. On one level, it made perfect sense: quick sugar, easy calories. But it also made me pause. How much fibre were any of us actually getting?

It’s easy to spend several hours on the bike consuming little more than refined carbohydrates. Add in a recovery drink, a quick lunch and whatever’s easiest after a long day of training, and fibre can easily slip down the priority list. And yet fibre plays a vital role in gut health – something cyclists tend to think about only when something in our digestive system goes wrong. For many riders, it’s bloating, cramping, or an unsettled stomach mid-ride that first brings fibre into the conversation.

Are cyclists getting enough?

Even away from the bike, most of us aren’t eating enough fibre. On average, adults in the UK consume around 17g per day, only just above half the recommended 30g. Almost all of us – some 96% – fall short. Add in long rides fuelled largely by low-fibre options – Coke, pastries, gels and bars – and cyclists are particularly susceptible to falling even further behind. Those foods are convenient, easy to digest and deliver quick energy, but they also push fibre out of our diets on training and racing days – it’s unintentional but easily done.

Why are we neglecting fibre while another macronutrient, protein, seems to be the talk of the peloton? It’s a curious contrast. In cycling, protein has become something of an obsession. Riders carefully track intake and add shakes or bars after every ride, even though the data shows that most people already get enough. Fibre, meanwhile, receives far less attention, despite the fact that almost all of us are falling short. Which raises an interesting question: is it time for fibre to become fashionable?

Vital dietary component

Dietary fibre refers to the indigestible parts of plant foods – vegetables, fruits, wholegrains, legumes, nuts and seeds – that pass through the digestive system largely intact. While it doesn’t provide energy like carbohydrates or fat, it plays a vital role in gut health. According to gut health researcher Dr Emily Leeming, author of Fibre Power, fibre is central to maintaining a healthy gut microbiome. “Fibre is your gut microbiome’s preferred fuel source,” she explains. “It feeds gut microbes so they produce short-chain fatty acids. These help support the integrity of the gut lining and can dampen excess inflammation, which may help the gut cope better with the repeated stress that comes with endurance exercise.”

Beyond the gut, fibre supports broader health. Adequate intake is linked to lower cholesterol, improved blood sugar control and greater satiety. Over time, fibre-rich diets are associated with reduced risks of cardiovascular disease and colorectal cancer. The gut-barrier aspect is particularly relevant for cyclists. Long rides, especially in hot conditions, place significant strain on the digestive system owing to dehydration and high sugar intake. Over time, this can contribute to increased gut permeability, often referred to as ‘leaky gut’. A diverse gut microbiome helps reinforce that barrier. When fibre intake is low, that protection can weaken. “If fibre stays low, your gut microbiome can become less resilient,” says Leeming. “Microbial diversity may fall, and fewer short-chain fatty acids are produced. In animal studies, we see microbes start feeding on the mucus layer that protects the gut lining.”

Low fibre intake is often a by-product of fuelling well for performance. High-carbohydrate, easily digestible foods like white bread, pasta, rice, gels and bars dominate training and racing nutrition for good reason: they’re effective, predictable and easily digestible when intensity is high. Over time, though, those race-ready habits can become everyday ones. What works brilliantly on the bike doesn’t necessarily support gut health long term. Just look around the next time a group ride stops at a cafe.

Build fibre gradually

Improving fibre intake doesn’t require dramatic changes, but it does benefit from a bit of planning. For many riders, that simply means gradually adding more fibre-rich foods such as vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds into everyday meals. Recently, the idea of ‘fibre-maxxing’ has begun circulating online, encouraging people to push fibre intake as high as possible. While most people need more fibre, for cyclists the goal is balance rather than extremes. Loading fibre aggressively, particularly close to training or racing, can backfire. A better approach is to build fibre gradually into everyday meals, away from key sessions, while scaling it back temporarily when performance and gut comfort take priority.

Riders often avoid fibre-rich foods before long rides to reduce the chance of digestive discomfort. Eaten close to exercise, such foods can sit in the gut and ferment, increasing the chances of bloating or gas. Exercise itself can make this worse. During hard efforts, blood flow is redirected away from the digestive system and towards working muscles. While this slows nutrient absorption, the mechanical stress of exercise and the irritation of undigested bulk can accelerate transit time, turning simple bloating into an urgent, mid-ride dash for the nearest toilet. Anyone who has set off for a long ride after a bean-heavy meal will probably recognise the feeling.

In multi-day stage races, fibre intake is adjusted rather than removed altogether. Vicky Walshaw, nutrition lead at 29 Inch Academy, Dubai, says tolerance varies widely between riders. “Fibre intake tolerance is often very individual. I often suggest reducing intake 24 to 48 hours before key stages or across a race block to lower gut load while maintaining overall nutrition quality,” she explains. “The aim isn’t to eliminate fibre but to shift toward easier-to-digest carbohydrates so riders can fuel properly without unnecessary gut symptoms.”

In practice, that often means swapping wholegrains for white rice or pasta and moderating vegetable portions. Pre-race dinners are typically simple: white rice or pasta with lean protein, and a small serving of vegetables. Instead of large portions of wholegrain toast for breakfast, Walshaw might suggest white toast with jam, or Rice Krispies. And rather than protein bars, which are often packed with high-FODMAP sweeteners (fermentable carbohydrates that can trigger bloating), riders prone to gut issues may tolerate higher-carb, lower-FODMAP snacks such as oat bars more comfortably.

If you’re not racing back-to-back days, you don’t need so tightly managed an approach, but the same principles apply. Most amateur racers and sportive riders find that easing back on fibre in the 24 hours before an event is enough. That might mean choosing white rice instead of brown, reducing the portion size of vegetables at dinner, or avoiding particularly fibrous foods such as beans the night before. From a gut-health perspective, Leeming offers reassurance. “Lowering fibre for a short while isn’t a problem and can often be helpful before a race. Your gut microbiome and gut lining respond to fibre across days and weeks rather than a single day.”

The goal is to feel comfortable before you ride. Reducing the risk of mid-ride discomfort can remove one source of anxiety before a big event. Walshaw stresses that fibre alone is rarely the sole culprit. “Gut issues are rarely caused by too little or too much fibre alone,” she says. “Factors like travel stress, hydration, fuelling strategy, caffeine use and ultra-processed food intake often play just as big a role.” Her advice is to practise race-week nutrition in training so any fibre adjustments are deliberate rather than reactive.

For some riders, the type of carbohydrate matters as much as fibre itself. “For riders with sensitive guts, temporarily lowering high-FODMAP foods before a race can help reduce bloating and urgency,” Walshaw explains. “The challenge is doing this without compromising carbohydrate intake.” Part of the issue is that FODMAPs can draw water into the intestines and ferment rapidly in the gut, producing gas. During exercise, when digestion is already under strain, that can increase the likelihood of bloating, cramping and gastrointestinal distress. Foods like pasta, pizza, dried fruit, honey snacks or milk-heavy breakfasts can be relatively high in FODMAPs. Lower-fermentable carbohydrate sources, such as white rice, potatoes, oats, sourdough bread, bananas and fruit juices, can help meet carb-loading needs with fewer symptoms. As with fibre, individual tolerance varies and is best tested in training.

Health comes first

The bigger issue lies between the race weeks. “Far more riders under-consume fibre year-round due to poor overall diet quality, not because they’re strategically periodising it,” Walshaw says. “I focus on rebuilding intake gradually through whole foods and meal structure during lower-intensity periods, while keeping race-week adjustments short term.” That broader approach to gut health can pay off on the bike. Looking after gut health across the season can improve how well you tolerate food during rides, as well as recovery and training consistency.

In a sport that talks so much about protein, fibre seems to be the nutrient that too often slips under the radar. Yet a fibre-rich diet away from racing supports gut health, protects the gut lining and may make your digestive system more robust overall. Strategic reductions before races or events, particularly in the final 24 hours, or a few days out if you’re sensitive, can improve comfort without undermining those long-term benefits. Ultimately, it’s about eating well most of the time, and making small adjustments when your cycling demands it.

The insights I’ve gained while writing this feature have reminded me of the importance of fibre, while also putting my mind at rest. Next time I’m making a cafe stop, watching bottles of Coke being cracked open and pastries disappearing in a few quick bites, I’ll probably still join in. After all, those choices have their place, and they help get us through the ride ahead. But it will probably make me think a bit more about getting enough fibre the rest of the week.

This article was first published in the 23 April 2026 print edition of Cycling Weekly magazine – available to buy on the newsstand every Thursday (UK only) while digital versions are available on Apple News and Readly. Subscriptions through Magazine's Direct.

“If you look closely, it’s a Classic every day,” said race director Marion Rousse of the route for next summer’s Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.

All nine stages, from Leeds in Yorkshire to France’s Puy de Dôme, were unveiled in a ceremony inside Paris’s Palais des Congrès on Thursday. Those in attendance wooed at the highlights – stage two’s “mini Liège-Bastogne-Liège” through the Peak District, the following day’s London team time trial, the closing Queen stage’s volcanic finale – and the excitement was justified: this is a route that promises surprise and suspense. And yet, the finale may be a damp squib.

In each of the previous five editions of the Tour de France Femmes, the organisers have built the route around fabled climbs of old. They ticked off the Col du Tourmalet in 2023, Alpe d’Huez in 2024, the Col de la Madeleine in 2025, and this summer, the most mythic of them all, Mont Ventoux.

Next year’s route dodges both the Pyrenees and the Alps, and is designed instead towards a crescendo on the Puy de Dôme, the volcano that towers over Clermont-Ferrand. At 170km with 3,840m elevation, the final stage is perhaps the only true mountain stage of the race. It’s here that the yellow jersey will be decided. It’s also a stage that risks being a flop for the fans.

I was on the Puy de Dôme in 2023 when the men’s race returned to the mound after 35 years. Why had it taken so long? The area is protected as a Unesco World Heritage site. As such, its final four-or-so kilometres, a twisting road barely four metres wide, are closed year-round to cyclists.

When the Tour went back three years ago, it did so on one condition: there would be no fans on the volcano. Journalists and photographers had to apply in advance for a pass to report from the top. I watched the race from the car park 5km from the summit, where security bodies stood firm to turn people back, and guard the nature behind them.

As everyone in the sport will tell you, it’s the fans that make cycling. That stage, won by Michael Woods, was proof of that. With nobody at the road side, it made for an eerie and soulless ascent. I fear it could be similarly underwhelming for the women’s race next August.

“It’s up to the Puy de Dôme department to decide with us,” Rousse said of the fan logistics, “but we’re looking into having people at the finish. We’re talking about between 3,000 and 4,000 spectators at the summit, because it’s our final stage with the podium ceremony at the summit. We also need to preserve this climb.”

Four thousand fans are better than none, but that number pales in comparison to the crowds this race deserves. There may have been 10 times that on Mont Ventoux this summer.

Time trial conundrum

As well as the final six stages, the details of stage three’s team time trial were also announced on Thursday. Rousse's list of landmarks included on the 18km London course made her sound as if she was reading out the place names on a Monopoly board: Downing Street, Big Ben, Tower Bridge, London Bridge, St Paul’s Cathedral, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Hyde Park, and the Mall. It's so central it made a French man sat behind me in Thursday’s ceremony gasp. “Très stylé,” – very cool – he said under his breath.

This team time trial, naturally, comes at the expense of an individual one, which has been dropped from the course for 2027. The decision was made to show off the collective element of the sport (and undoubtedly to keep London’s roads closed for as little time as possible), but it may take some of the sting out of the general classification.

Let’s not forget that this summer’s ITT in Dijon shook up the contenders; it catapulted Marlen Reusser into yellow, ruled Pauline Ferrand-Prévot out of the running, and gave Demi Vollering and Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney something to chase. It ended up being one of the most important stages.

Reusser, present at the route presentation, was understandably disappointed about the omission. “I think it’s missing an individual time trial,” the world champion said. “A team one is cool – it’s my favourite discipline – but it’s very different for making gaps in the general classification.”

As for the other days, there’s a lot for the stage hunters to get excited about. Stage two from Leeds to Sheffield, with seven categorised climbs including Winnats Pass and Snake Pass, is Grand Départ GB managing director Paul Bush’s favourite – “it’s wonderful, isn’t it?” – and could see early GC blows.

Stages five and seven, too, should draw out a fight. The former boasts the Classics-style recipe Rousse likes to cook up, while the latter brings the route’s first uphill finish to La Loge des Gardes.

The big question, though, remains: will we have a similarly close GC fight as this year? Ahead of the final day in Nice, Niewiadoma-Phinney trailed the eventual winner Vollering by just eight seconds. Rousse and her organising team expect tension until the end. But it may be an anticlimax if there are few fans on the Puy to see it.

Six minutes in 2026, four minutes in 2025, six minutes in 2024. The winning margins of Tadej Pogačar at the Tour de France in the past three years do not suggest a close battle, something that the race's organisers long for, to keep an audience gripped through three weeks of racing.

A close battle is not something that happened in this year's race, where UAE Team Emirates-XRG's Slovenian all but sealed the yellow jersey on just stage six, with a dominant performance over the Col du Tourmalet. The route announcement for 2026 was all about "crescendo", with the organisers aiming for a slow build to the Alps at the end of the race; they had the crescendo thrown in their face with a forte performance in the first week.

For 2027, then, it was back to the drawing board. Out are any early forays to the mountains, with the first summit finish on stage nine, and while few would bet against Pogačar on a punchy stage five, for example, he will not be able to have minutes of advantage by the Alps, and potentially not until the Pyrenees, if his rivals play ball. There are only three summit finishes in 21 days, down from five in 2026, amid six days in the mountains. There was little talk of 'the hardest Tour ever'.

In comes two long time trials, on stages seven and 17, which are not-so-subtly designed to tilt the balance of power away from Pogačar, and towards Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, time trial world champion. It also might help great French hope Paul Seixas, third at the World Championships this year. At 71km, t's the most time trialling since 2012 and Bradley Wiggins's triumph. It doesn't take a genius to read that ASO and route supremo Thierry Gouvenou hope to mix things up a bit, or at least not make it so much of a procession.

Speaking to L'Équipe, Tour director Christian Prudhomme did not hide the ambition to throw in a different challenge with the long TTs: "We can tell ourselves that there might be a chance of suspense and a great battle right to the end. Knowing, of course, that Pogačar has been so dominant in recent years, that he has such talent that, whatever the course, he somehow manages to manipulate it."

Manipulate it he will. Pogačar, should he return to the level he was at before crashing out of the Vuelta a España, is still one of the better time triallists in the peloton, and will be able to bend this course to his will. He is still the likely winner, Prudhomme knows this, but the hope is things are just a little bit more competitive.

The first week does not look too dissimilar from 2025, when the race started in Lille, and a series of Classics-style stages followed before the Pyrenees were reached in the second week. Pogačar won two of them, in Rouen and on the Mûr-de-Bretagne. Plumelec on stage five looks ripe for his picking once again, and the 28-year-old does not need high mountains to do his thing.

There might also not be endless mountains, but this is a route full of pitfalls, whether that be tricky climbs, hair-raising descents or the weather, with the win potentially playing a huge role on several stages. Stage 14 in the Massif Central is the kind of day which could blow the race apart, as could stage eight. The TTs, the Alps and Pyrenees will decide the race, but there is more than enough to keep everyone interested over the three weeks.

The aim, though, is for exciting racing, which was certainly true of 2025's opening week, and entertain the kids, with Prudhomme highlighting the TV audience among 15-24 year old's in that L'Équipe interview.

The idea is "having the favourites neck and neck right from the start, before tackling the officially mountainous sections". "The course is designed for spectacular riders," Prudhomme added.

The most spectacular rider remains Tadej Pogačar. There are opportunities for Evenepoel, for Seixas, and don't forget Jonas Vingegaard, but the route of a Grand Tour won't decide the winner. Still, I was excited by the route announcement, and am ready for next July's thrills across France, even if everything points towards a familiar face in yellow. See you in Edinburgh.

Following hot on the heels of Garmin's new voice-controlled Edge 1060 is the new Coros Dura 2 Solar bike computer, which improves on the Dura Solar in both hardware and software.

Most notably, the Dura 2 Solar goes all-in on voice control and moves away from fiddling with your bike computer mid-ride with sweaty or frozen-solid hands while careening downhill.

Staple features like the Dura Solar’s impressive 120+ hours of battery life (with two hours of battery life gained for every hour of sunlight exposure) and easy integration with the Coros app for data uploading and analysis remain with the Dura 2 Solar.

What's new?

Trimming weight seems to be a goal for many brands these days, and Coros is no different. The Dura 2 Solar weighs just under 100 grams, thanks in part to a carbon backplate, and is only 5.7mm thick at the upper bezel. Its predecessor, the Dura Solar, is 102 grams.

Despite dropping 3 grams, the Dura 2 Solar has a larger display. The Dura 2 has a 3.5-inch screen with the solar panel at the bottom, while the Dura Solar has a 2.7-inch display with the solar panel at the top. Both computers’ displays are touchscreens, and Coros says the Dura 2 Solar’s touchscreen stays responsive even with wet or gloved fingers.

Notably, the Dura 2 Solar’s screen has a 38Hz refresh rate, the fastest of any MIP display.

Coros aims to make interacting with the computer easy, giving riders tactile buttons, haptics, a touchscreen, and voice control to navigate the Dura 2 Solar’s features. Haptics and voice control are the two new additions for this product release.

With voice control enabled, riders can skip buttons and the touchscreen and issue commands to switch pages, set reminders, and set ride alerts. Users can also use voice control to leave post-ride training notes that upload to the Coros app. Finally, riders can vocalise map pins or points of interest to be saved to riding maps.

Lastly, the Dura 2 Solar has its own MCP gateway. The MCP gateway lets riders upload data directly to Claude and ChatGPT without a DIY GitHub script. This is particularly interesting because Coros seems to be the first major cycling computer brand to offer a native MCP gateway.

Some open-source MCP connectors exist for Wahoo and Garmin, but neither brand offers an official one. As of May 2026, Garmin had an open feature request for a native MCP gateway. Coros is leading the way in the AI Era by providing an MCP connector out of the box.

The Dura 2 Solar is compatible with a variety of sensors: heart rate monitors, power meters, the best turbo smart trainers, radar, lights, and e-bikes.

Additionally, the Dura 2 Solar supports connectivity with many common data collection and virtual cycling platforms: Zwift, Wahoo, Strava, RideWithGPS, Komoot, TrainingPeaks, TrainerRoad.

The Dura 2 Solar costs $499 and will be available starting November 3, 2026.

Tech spec

• Size: 117 x 58 x 17mm
• Weight: 99g
• Display size: 3.5"
• Display type: SHARP MIP touchscreen
• Display resolution: 336 x 620
• Battery life: 120 hours (without solar charging)
• Data syncing: Bluetooth, WiFi, and ANT+
• Sensors: Barometric altimeter, accelerometer, gyroscope, electronic compass, temperature sensor, microphone, speaker
• Drivetrain support: Shimano, SRAM, Campagnolo (coming end of 2026)