The Sagan star flickering.

The Peter Sagan star appears to be flickering, judging by his finish in E3 Harelbeke, a race he won a year ago and one that should be easy for a cyclist aiming at the monuments like next week’s Ronde van Vlaanderen.

Team Tinkoff-Saxo’s Sagan followed the attack of Geraint Thomas and Zdenek Stybar on the Oude Kwaremont and raced away with the two, but when they approached the business end of the 215-kilometer race, his lights began to fade.

“It’s shit because in that group of three he should’ve been the fastest,” Tinkoff sports director, Tristan Hoffman told VeloNews.

“He was so disappointed. Then, to make it worse, [the] whole group passes him.”

Valverde wins Volta a Catalunya stage 5.

Alejandro Valverde claimed his second stage win of the Volta a Catalunya, attacking the select group of favorites who had distanced the race leader Bart De Clercq and soloing to the win over the final 3km.

Rigoberto Uran took second on the stage, gaining important time bonuses, while Paolo Tiralongo denied Richie Porte the final bonus in third.

Porte could be consoled by taking over the race lead by five seconds over Domenico Pozzovivo. Alberto Contador is in third overall at seven seconds.

Swift wins stage 2 at Coppi e Bartali.

Torrential rain added to the challenges during Friday's second stage at Coppi e Bartali, but Team Sky's Ben Swift overcame the conditions to take the stage win and seize the overall lead from overnight leader Davide Rebellin.

Swift jumped clear of the bunch on the final ascent of the Ville di Monte Tiffi, infiltrating a three-man breakaway before attacking into the final kilometer and soloing across the line ahead of Matija Kvasina and Francesco Bongiorno.

2014-15 Races & Results.

Volta Ciclista a Catalunya - Mar 23-29 (Stages & Results),

Gent - Wevelgem - Mar 29 (Start List),

Gent - Wevelgem Women - Mar 29 (Start List),

Giro d'Italia 2015 - May 9-31 (Stages),

Tour de France 2015 - July 4-26 (Stages),

Vuelta a España 2015 - Aug 22-Sept 13 (Stages),

UCI Road World Championship 2015 - Sept 20-27 (Stages),

E3 Harelbeke - Mar 27 (Results),

Tour de Taiwan - Mar 21-25 (Results),

Milan San Remo - Mar 22 (Results),

Nokere Koerse - Mar 18 (Results),

Tirreno-Adriatico - Mar 11-17 (Results),

UCI Track World Championships - Feb 18-22 (Results),

UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships - Jan 31-Feb 1 (Results).

More ...

Women’s Gent Wevelgem 2015.

Gent Wevelgem, a race steeped in history but when it comes to women’s cycling the race is the young upstart on the UCI women’s calendar this Sunday.

Over in Cittiglio, Italy riders are contesting one of the oldest races in women’s cycling, Trofeo Alfredo Binda World Cup, which is now entering it’s fourth decade. The two races have clashed on the calendar ever since Gent Wevelgem organisers introduced a women’s race to their programme in 2012.

But the two are learning to coexist and their parcours are suited to very different riders with Gent Wevelgem, like it’s male equivalent being a target for the sprinters.

Racing without Boonen: Etixx-Quick-Step refits classics tactics without star.

There were crowds of fans around the Etixx-Quick-Step bus Friday morning ahead of the start of E3 Harelbeke, but not Tom Boonen-huge crowds.

Without the presence of the Belgian superstar, who is missing the entire spring classics campaign with injury, there is a very different vibe around the team bus of the perennial cobblestone favorites.

With Boonen at the start line, there was a guarantee that Etixx-Quick-Step would be a favorite for victory in any of the northern classics. Without Boonen, the team is tackling the most important two weeks of its season, hoping to see different players step up.

Race Report: Castaic Road Race.

"By mid-march it seemed to be getting late into the road racing season (by California standards anyway), and I was getting a little nervous about how my fitness would stand up in the notoriously hard SoCal racing.

The Redlands Bicycle Classic is my Hincapie Racing Team’s first objective, and I wanted to test the legs and get some speed in before starting a bigger, more important race.

Local races like the Chuck Pontius Omnium are perfect for that. Especially here in California where local talent runs deep."

Volta a Catalunya 2015 Live.

Thursday's Volta a Catalunya Stage 5 departs Alp at 12:15am CET (7:15am U.S. Eastern) and is expected at the finish at Valls at around 4:54pm CET (11:54am U.S. Eastern).

Volta a Catalunya live streaming video is scheduled to get underway by around 3:30pm CET (10:30am U.S. Eastern, 7:30am Pacific).

Volta a Catalunya: van Garderen wins queen stage.

Thomas solos away from Stybar to win E3 Harelbeke.

Geraint Thomas won E3 Harelbeke on Friday after attacking fellow leaders Zdenek Stybar and Peter Sagan with four kilometers to go and soloing across the line of the Belgian cobbled classic.

Stybar held on for second, while Sagan faded in the end and was passed by the chasing peloton.

Matteo Trentin won the sprint for the final podium place.

Cancellara’s classics campaign in doubt after E3 Harelbeke crash.

Fabian Cancellara’s 2015 cobbled classics campaign may have ended before it began in earnest after a crash 39.4 kilometers into E3 Harelbeke on Friday in Belgium. He may have fractured his left wrist.

The Swiss classics champion — a three-time winner of both the Ronde van Vlaanderen (Tour of Flanders) and Paris-Roubaix — crashed on the cobbled Haaghoek sector with around 40 to 50 other riders. He continued for 10km more, but the pain was too much and he abandoned.

“Unfortunately Fabian Cancellara has abandoned the race after his crash. We will keep you informed on his situation as soon as possible,” Trek Factory Racing said on its Twitter account of Cancellara, who won the 2009, 2010, and 2013 editions of the race.

A photo from the race showed Cancellara favoring his left wrist after the crash.

From Wales to Flanders: ‘G’ gets his big win at Harelbeke.

Wales seems like a world away from Belgium and the bumpy, cobblestone roads of Flanders.

As a teenager growing up near Cardiff, Geraint Thomas and Sky teammate Ian Stannard used to watch videos of the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Paris-Roubaix belonging to John Barkley, a legend in UK cycling, who would ferry aspiring riders across the Channel to witness the northern classics in person.

Should Riding Without a Helmet Be Illegal?

Wearing a helmet makes sense—but do mandatory helmet laws?

Concealed Carrie women's cycling top packs a secret — a handgun pocket.

At first glance this multi-purpose women's jersey looks ideal for summer cycling with its rear pockets, high collar to keep the sun off and drawstring waist tie to flatter the female figure.

But look a bit closer and there's capacity for an, erm, unusual accessory: a concealed pocket for a handgun.

2015 Gent-Wevelgem LIVE.

Gent-Wevelgem LIVE March 29, Belgium.

Race starts at 11:20am CET (5:20am U.S. Eastern)

Finish at around 5:07pm CET (11:07am U.S. Eastern)

Live video from *1:30pm CET (*7:30am U.S. Eastern, 4:30am Pacific).

Aldag did not have ticket for doomed flight.

Former pro Rolf Aldag confirmed to VeloNews that he did not have a ticket to fly on the doomed Germanwings flight from Barcelona to Dusseldorf, Germany, which crashed in the French Alps on Tuesday, killing all 150 people onboard.

Aldag characterized media reports as “ridiculous” that the technical director at Etixx-Quick Step had a ticket for the flight, but did not board.

“I don’t know where these reports have come from. I never had a ticket for that flight. I never planned to fly from Barcelona,” Aldag told VeloNews. “I was never in Spain this week.”

Scott Mercier: The 'anti-Lance Armstrong' is still cycling's outsider.

Van Garderen, Porte and Contador react to top three finishes at Catalunya.

Daily Distractions.

Video: Strong argument for always wearing a helmet.

Quintana’s cobblestone adventure ends safely with confidence for Tour.

Nairo Quintana will never win Paris-Roubaix, but the Colombian knows if he wants to win the Tour de France, he’ll have to survive a version of the “Hell of the North” this summer.

The spindly climber might have looked out of place at the start line of E3 Harelbeke, surrounded by brawny cobble-bashers, but Friday’s race marked the end of a weeklong experiment of getting a taste of what lies ahead this July in the Tour.

“It was important for Nairo to race on the cobbles here this week,” Movistar sport director José Luis Jaimerena told VeloNews. “It’s one thing to see them, but it’s something else to ride them at race speed. What we want is to avoid surprises.”

Cookson: disk brakes might be allowed in some UCI events later this year.

Recent reports suggested that disk brakes could make their debut by next season but, according to Brian Cookson, the new technology may potentially be in the peloton sooner than that.

The UCI and others have been weighing up the introduction of new braking systems for some time. Increased stopping power over a variety of climatic conditions is one of the big motivations, making braking much more predictable, while other factors such as lessening the risk of tubular tyres rolling is another possible benefit.

Inside the mind of a champion: A chat with Georgia Gould.

What is it that defines a champion? Is it winning the most important events in a given discipline?

Does one major victory constitute a champion, or is this a quality that’s defined by an era of domination? Is the title something that lasts forever?

Why the beers are on Peter Sagan this weekend.

Win or lose at E3 Harelbeke, Peter Sagan and his Tinkoff-Saxo teammates will have the chance toast success on Friday night when the Slovak gets his weight in beer delivered to his hotel.

The slightly odd prize is courtesy of E3 sponsor Kwaremont beer in honor of Sagan’s win in Harelbeke last season, when he beat out Niki Terpstra, Geraint Thomas and Stijn Vandenbergh.

Sagan was told of the news on stage after his team presentation as he sat on a throne made out of beer crates and received a kiss from Miss Belgium, Annelies Törös – Sagan kept his hands to himself this time..

8 Checks to Get Your Bike Ready for the Season (and PBP).

"Whether you are going to ride a brevet with an eye on qualifying for Paris-Brest-Paris, whether you plan to ride a century or race, or whether you just want to enjoy exploring this season, having your bike in good condition is the best way to guarantee success.

If you are confident in your bike, you can enjoy the ride without worrying whether you’ll make it to the finish. Here are 8 things to look at."

Cultural Icon Slams Cyclists’ Sartorial Choices.

"We’ll be the first to admit that cycling-specific clothing like spandex tights and brightly colored jerseys isn't for everyone. But riding a bike in general? That’s just good fashion sense.

But in a recent interview with Elle noted cultural critic, author and one of Vanity Fair’s “best dressed” people Fran Lebowitz told the interviewer that riding a bike will ruin any fashion choice.

She relays this story: "You know when George Plimpton died, someone told me, 'He was so eccentric. He used to ride his bike in a suit and tie!' and it drove me crazy. I said, 'What's eccentric is the bicycle."

2015 Criterium International LIVE.

Sunday's Criterium International Stage 3 departs Porto Vecchio at 11:20am CET (5:20am U.S. Eastern) and is expected at the finish at Col de l’Ospedale at around 4:45pm CET (10:45am U.S. Eastern). 

Criterium International live streaming video is scheduled to get underway at around 3:20pm CET (9:20am U.S. Eastern, 6:20am Pacific).

Ask a Mechanic: Straight pull vs. J-bend spokes.