Cycling

Ah, the conjoined stupidity of social media and youthful naivety, where kids today think EVERYTHING should be shared even if it’s a crime they just committed. As this article details, a young driver clipped a cyclist with her mirror, sending him off the road, into the trees, suffering minor injuries…but…but…instead of stopping and making sure he wasn’t DEAD or anything, she instead decides to tweet it out to the world and even justifies the act by saying cyclists don’t pay the road tax, so it doesn’t matter. Other cyclists disagreed with her and retweeted her to the Norwich UK police, who contacted her via Twitter and suggested she turn herself in. As it stands, the police are now in contact with both the cyclist and the driver and the matter is being pursued. In another twist of the plot, the cyclist didn’t initially report the hit and run because he didn’t want his girlfriend thinking it was unsafe for him to be on the roads, which although isn’t as nefarious as the crime committed by the driver, certainly doesn’t do much for the rest of us in holding drivers accountable for their actions. Regardless, the advent of social media sure has brought us into a new world, where both oversharing and undersharing have become quite problematic. In this case, at least, justice will hopefully be served by the new form of communication. Happy Friday. Via Jalopnik

Three passes removed after heavy snow but it's still a summit finish... for now read more

Danilo Di Luca (Fantini-SelleItalia) has been provisonally suspended for an out of competition for EPO discovered in an out of competition control. TheUCI Statement:"This morning the UCI advised Italian rider Danilo Di Luca that he is provisionally suspended. The decision to provisionally suspend this rider was made in response to a report from the WADA accredited laboratory in Köln indicating an Adverse Analytical Finding of EPO in a urine sample collected from him in an out of competition test on 29 April 2013.The provisional suspension of Mr. Danilo Di Luca remains in force until a hearing panel convened by the Italian Cycling Federation determines whether he has committed an anti-doping rule violation under Article 21 of the UCI Anti-Doping Rules.Mr. Danilo Di Luca has the right to request and attend the analysis of his B sample.Under the World Anti-Doping Code and the UCI Anti-Doping Rules, the UCI is unable to provide any additional information at this time." He was also suspended following a positive doping test (CERA) during the 2009 Giro d'Italia and returned to racing in 2011. Follow on Twitter: ITALIANCYCJOURN or receive an email when new content is added using the "Follow by Email" button on the right side column. With more than 2,900 stories in this blog the custom search feature (right column) works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button underneath the search button. Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.

Danilo Di Luca finished second in the 2009 Giro before being stripped of his result because of a doping violation. Photo: Graham Watson | www.grahamwatson.comPONTE DI LEGNO, Italy (AFP) — Italian cyclist Danilo Di Luca (Vini Fantini-Selle Italia), currently competing at the 96th Giro d’Italia, has been “provisionally suspended” after testing positive for EPO in an out-of-competition test before the race. Di Luca, who has already served a ban for failing a doping test at the Giro and has been embroiled in other doping affairs, tested positive for the banned blood booster at the end of April. The UCI, cycling’s international governing body, said it had “provisionally suspended” the rider, who risks a heavy sanction if found guilty. “The decision to provisionally suspend this rider was made in response to a report from the WADA accredited laboratory in Cologne indicating an Adverse Analytical Finding of EPO in a urine sample collected from him in an out-of-competition test on 29 April 2013,” the UCI said. “The provisional suspension of Mr. Danilo Di Luca remains in force until a hearing panel convened by the Italian Cycling Federation determines whether he has committed an anti-doping rule violation under Article 21 of the UCI Anti-Doping Rules.” Di Luca was without a contract at the start of the season but managed to sign for the second division team Vini Fantini, which was assured a place in the three-week race. Despite having only two days of racing in his legs, the 37-year-old Di Luca was called to the team in time for the May 4 start in Naples. Although he has failed to win a stage or challenge in the GC, Di Luca has often been seen on the attack. Di Luca finished 10th in Thursday’s uphill time trial behind stage winner and overall race leader Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), who now has a 4:02 over his closest rival, Australian Cadel Evans (BMC Racing), with two stages to race. The Italian is 26th, 33:33 behind Nibali. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, whose parent company RCS owns and organizes the race, Di Luca tested positive for EPO during a test at his home on April 29. Di Luca, who won the 2007 Giro, has a doping past. He returned two positive doping tests from samples taken during the 2009 edition of the race, which he finished as runner-up behind Russian Denis Menchov. Di Luca denied doping at that time but finally confessed and earned a more lenient sanction. Instead of a two-year ban, he was suspended for 15 months. Di Luca also had abnormal results from test samples at the 2007 Giro. That prompted a prosecutor to demand a two-year ban, but the cyclist was cleared at the 11th hour by the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) due to a lack of evidence. Friday’s 19th stage, the first of two consecutive days in the mountains, was canceled by organizers because of heavy snow on a revised route.

A number of mountains cut due to snow

Due to adverse weather conditions and, in particular, snow on the stage route in its entirety, stage 19 from Ponte di Legno to Val Martello/Martelltal, has been cancelled.Tomorrow's stage 20 has been modified due to the adverse weather: The new route is 210 km as follows, bypassing the planned Passo Costalunga, Passo San Pellegrino and Passo Giau: I think the Giro d'Italia will have to look towards moving back later in the calendar, back to the days when the race started later in May and went into June (even though you can have snow on the Stelvio in July). Follow on Twitter: ITALIANCYCJOURN or receive an email when new content is added using the "Follow by Email" button on the right side column. With more than 2,900 stories in this blog the custom search feature (right column) works best for finding subjects in the blog. There is also a translate button underneath the search button. Stories for the Italian Cycling Journal about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.

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Snow already greeted the peloton earlier in this year's Giro. On Friday, organizers canceled stage 19 due to bad weather in the mountains. Photo: Graham Watson | www.grahamwatson.comMORI, Italy (VN) — Heavy snow across the mountains of northern Italy has forced Giro d’Italia officials to cancel Friday’s 19th stage. Organizers made the decision before 10 a.m. local time, citing adverse weather conditions and snowfall on the roads. Bad weather had already prompted Giro officials to re-route Friday’s course in an attempt to salvage a critical day of racing. On Thursday evening, both the Gavia (2,618 meters) and Stelvio (2,758m) were taken out. In their place were the Passo del Tonale (1,883m) and Passo Castrin (1,706m) in a new 160-kilometer route that pushed east and then north. But everyone woke up Friday morning to discover snow and ice on Tonale, and there were reports of snow on the upper reaches of the finish line at Val Martello (2,059m). Riders across the peloton breathed a sigh of relief. Reaction was near universal that the organizers made the correct call. “Looking at the snow this morning, and the weather forecast, my question was, ‘how could you have possibly have a race?’ To race, to be healthy, and have a good race, to make it safe for everyone; that’s quite impossible. The organizers did the right thing,” said Cadel Evans (BMC Racing). “What can we do? We cannot control the weather.” Instead of racing, riders and staff piled into team buses and cars and drove toward their scheduled hotels for Friday night. Most were planning a light training ride on what turned out to be a third rest day at the Giro. “I’d say the boys are relieved + content w/ the decision that was made. No one wants to deal with conditions like this,” said Julian Dean, an assistant sport director with Orica-GreenEdge, via the team’s Twitter feed. The UCI also supported the move. “The organizers have put the security of riders first and the UCI supports their decision,” UCI president Pat McQuaid said. “The riders have been racing in very difficult conditions this week, but today those conditions are just too extreme.” The weather cancellation will have major implications on the GC battle as the three-week Giro winds down. Friday’s stage was one of two decisive mountaintop finishes that, under normal conditions, would have shaken up the overall standings. Following his stage victory in Thursday’s climbing time trial, race leader Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) has a solid grip on the pink jersey, now 4:02 ahead of Evans. The battle for the podium and some of the other classifications, such as the points and white jerseys, are far from settled. Rigoberto Urán (Sky) is in third, just 10 seconds behind Evans, while Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) is within range of the podium in fourth at 1:12 behind Evans. “Tomorrow is going to be an important day. Because we’re not racing today, it will be an even more important day,” Evans said. “We need to train and recover, and be at a our best for tomorrow.” Following the cancellation, officials altered Saturday’s “queen stage” across the Dolomites. What was supposed to be a five-climb, 203km course tackling five high mountains was reduced to a more modest route. The first three climbs were removed because of snow and bad road conditions, although the final two climbs of the Category 2 Passo Tre Croci and the Cat. 1 Tre Cime di Lavaredo (2,304 meters in elevation) remain in place. The new route measures 210km. There is, however, more inclement weather in Saturday’s forecast. The 96th Giro is scheduled to end Sunday with a flat stage from Riese Pio X to Brescia. Some information from AFP was used in this report.

The Ikon’s tread design was made for the 29er platform. Shallow, closely spaced knobs, a large volume and superb weight add up to a comfy but rocket-fast tyre. It shines as the larger footprint gives it surprising levels of grip for trail riding under most conditions. The only time it trips up is in sections of deep and slippery mud, where it clogs and spins out instead of climbing. If you don’t face that kind of slick clay/deep mud every day, the Ikon will serve you well. It’s particularly well suited to trail centres, and the supple carcass makes it predictable on roots and loose rock. Unless conditions are dry and hard packed you won’t find us strapping one on the front, though, as we prefer something with a little more spike. On the back it ticks all the boxes and gives your whole bike a light and fast feel. We tested the top-of-the-range model with triple compound and reinforced sidewalls – and an appropriate price tag – but you can pick a cheaper version up, and it will still serve you extremely well. This article was originally published in What Mountain Bike magazine, available on Apple Newsstand and Zinio.

2007 Giro winner out of this year's race after positive result for A sample read more