The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), in association with the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), shocked the world this morning by announcing the launch of a new Formula 1 Cycling Series for bicycle racing, set to begin in 2024. The announcement was made during a press conference in Aigle, Switzerland, where UCI President David Lappartient revealed that Lance Armstrong had been named as the Series Race Director.
Winter can be kind of rough for cyclists sometimes, at least for those who don’t have a winter sport that gets them outside. Winter can also be a good season for a little downtime, to either recover from the year’s efforts, or to take your mind off the mind-numbing chore of riding a trainer indoors. As a fan of cycling as a sport, along with its history, I am constantly seeking out new books to read, and I know that others may do the same. As such, I am pleased to present the 2019 version of A Cyclist’s Winter Reading List.
Burke “T-Bird” Swindlehurst’s Crusher in the Tushar will be joining the Life Time family of events starting in 2020, alongside notable endurance events such as the Leadville Trail 100 MTB and Emporia’s Dirty Kanza. Swindlehurst will remain at the helm as Crusher’s Event Director, but will now have the added resources and wealth of experience that the Life Time team brings.
A gallery of my favorite images from the 2019 Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah
More than 600 riders descended on Utah’s Tushar Mountains for the ninth annual Crusher in the Tushar gravel race. 69 miles and 10,500 feet of climbing later, it was professional mountain bikers Alex Grant (Gear Rush) and Evelyn Dong (Pivot-Stan’s No Tubes) who crossed the finish line first ahead of their respective Pro/Open fields that were particularly stacked this year with notable road cycling talent.
On June 28, 1969, a young Belgian cyclist, dressed in the white and red colors of the Faema squad and wearing dossard #51, took his place on the start-line of the 56th Tour de France; his first appearance. He almost didn’t start, however, and who knows what his career would have looked like had he not.
Prologue.
The clock ticks.
Visions of heroes.
Le favori porte le dossard numéro cinquante-et-un, comme Merckx a fait en 1969.
2019 marked a number of milestones for the Tour de France. It is the 30th anniversary of Greg LeMond’s 58-second defeat of Laurent Fignon. t is also the 50th anniversary of Eddy Merckx’s first of five Tour de France victories in 1969. 2019 also marks the 100th anniversary of the introduction of the maillot jaune, the yellow jersey worn to signify the leader of the race, and that is a story in itself.
A gallery of my favorite images from the 2019 Crusher in the Tushar, held every year in Beaver, Utah
Cycling is a team sport; races may be won by individuals, but those individuals generally would not be successful without the support of a good team behind them, a team not only of riders but of support personnel as well, from the Directeurs Sportif, to the mechanics and soigneurs.
