by Anna Magrath | Jul 10, 2013
The folks at Momondo have provided Cycling Shorts with a series of five useful infographics on European city bike schemes. The staff at Momndo put it together in their spare time. So a big thank you goes out the them.
When going on a city break, the best way to explore a city is by bike. You’re plans can be more flexible, it allows to truly experience the city, you can go at your own pace and discover places and streets that one would not see when taking the boring old tours buses. Government sponsored bike schemes make it really easy to do.
With the Tour de France in full flow you may be planning to hop over for the final stage in Paris so why not do some sightseeing by bike.
The second city in the series is:
Paris
Paris is a culturally rich city with great architecture, fashion, parks and the famous ‘choix de vivre’. The iconic final stage of le Tour passes in front of the Arc de Triomphe. It seems as if the Parisians have more time to relax and enjoy their life, the lovely street cafes are always filled with tres chic locals. Take a ride by the Seine, stop at the Louvre and continue your ride to the cartier du Montmartre and discover little hidden streets and passages.
To view the London Guide click here.
To view the Berlin Guide click here.
To view the Amsterdam Guide click here.
by Jack Holroyde | Jul 9, 2013
The Man with the Hammer by Rocco Malatesta
I may get taken as a masochist, but I welcome the visit from the man with the hammer at 5am.
He’s like the strict teacher that everyone in the school fears, but when you get to his class, you realise that he just doesn’t fuck around, he wants to help you better yourself and is usually kind, thoughtful and respectful – and punishment is fair and justified.
‘The Man’s’ lesson is the point at which we learn that self will can, and will, fail us.
We’re taught in life to fight, to overcome obstacles, to tread on toes and to steamroller problems.
You’re strong, we’re told. But you can be better. Push harder. Just do it.
We’re then given a million problems that one can only ‘defeat’ with the advertised product and as a result, we become weak, burdened by problems that are not ours, pain that does not exist.
We incorporate this into our daily lives and strive to overcome these problems every day. Bigger house, more pointless shit to put in it. Magazines, Trainers, even children. The latest habitat coffee table, hand crafted in India from the armpit hair of a dolphin.
However, the simple reality is that these behaviours are little more than our self will desperately trying to stamp itself on the world.
After 60km of riding a bike, these thoughts of madness generally fade. The body is undertaking too much to bother wasting energy thinking. This is a good thing.
However, we are still living our entire lives powered by ‘ourselves’. But when ‘the Man’ comes for us, that all changes.
I remember the first time I met him like it was yesterday. It was the first London to Brighton I did at Ditchling beacon and I got off my bike and cried like a child.
I couldn’t go on. What I didn’t know what that this ‘Beware Horses’ sign marked the end of the climb, but I was so buried in self pity that I couldn’t look up and see the crest of the hill.
The man taught me something that day – that self will can and must be torn down and replaced by something that has power.
Through the medium of my bicycle I set about reinventing my life, being the person I wanted to be, not the person I was told to be.
The Man showed me my God.
I hope that he will show you yours.
When he comes, *if he comes*, welcome him with open arms.
Jack
Dunwich Dynamo takes place this year on July 13th 2013
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To purchase ‘The Man with the Hammer’ by Rocco Malatesta click here.
by Anna Magrath | Jul 8, 2013
The folks at Momondo have provided Cycling Shorts with a series of five useful infographics on European city bike schemes. The staff at Momndo put it together in their spare time. So a big thank you goes out the them.
When going on a city break, the best way to explore a city is by bike. You’re plans can be more flexible, it allows to truly experience the city, you can go at your own pace and discover places and streets that one would not see when taking the boring old tours buses. Government sponsored bike schemes make it really easy to do.
The first city in the series is:
London
London with its parks and the river Thames offers the perfect scenery for a bike ride. It’s not just about the great music and fashion scene, the city has so much to offer. A lot of the museums have free admission, great street markets and the place oozes history from the grand buildings and royal history that is woven into the fabric of the city. The tube can be very crowded so the bike offers a welcoming alternative to visit all the hidden corners in the city.
To view the Paris Guide click here.
To view the Berlin Guide click here.
To view the Amsterdam Guide click here.
by Anna Magrath | Jul 8, 2013
As the riders have a well earned day off after a tough week and the two gruelling days in the Pyrenees we take a look at some interesting figures compiled by our partners at RoadCyclingUK.
Team Sky’s Geraint Thomas fractured his hip on the first stage of the 2013 Tour de France but has refused to quit.
Such displays of courage are the norm for professional cycling, despite the unimaginable challenge of racing for three weeks.
Do the stars of other sports have it easy by comparison, and reap greater rewards?
When Andy Murray stepped on to Centre Court at Wimbledon, he was playing for a £1.6m pay cheque. If Chris Froome wins the Tour de France, he will collect €450,000.
Thomas tweeted recently on the £23,000 prize money given to players who exit Wimbledon after the first round, joking that his girlfriend should attend the local tennis court.
We compare the prize money offered to the riders of the Tour de France and the players at Wimbledon, it’s certainly an eye opener.
by Anna Magrath | Jul 6, 2013
The latest in our infographic series lists from our friends at RoadCyclingUK, the greatest champions of cycling’s greatest race, from the five-time winners to those who bagged a brace.
by Anna Magrath | Jul 4, 2013
The Tour de France has a long and colourful history dating back to the first race in 1903.
The 2013 race is the 100th edition of La Grande Boucle and, by the time the peloton reaches Paris on Sunday July 21, the Tour will have covered 383,053km in total.
That’s just one of the facts plucked from the latest infographic: the history of the Tour de France in numbers, created for Cycling Shorts by RoadCyclingUK.
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