CyclingNews: Both Katusha and Movistar are sending their big guns to the Amstel Gold Race, the first major race of the Ardennes Classics. Joaquim Rodriguez, Oscar Freire, and Alejandro Valverde will all look to emulate last year's winner Philippe Gilbert.

VeloNews: Like many races across crisis-plagued Spain, the Vuelta a Castilla y León is reducing its number of race days in a bid to weather the tough economic conditions hitting the sport. Vuelta a España champ Juan Jose Cobo will be among the riders taking the start in northern Spain on Friday.

VeloNation: World time trial champion loses consciousness and suffers fractured cheekbone.

Two big names with different agendas will line up for the 66th Tour de Romandie later this month in Switzerland. Race organizers confirmed Thursday that defending Tour de France champion Cadel Evans (BMC Racing) and world champion Mark Cavendish (Sky) will be among the field for the six-day race, April 24-29.

Amstel Gold Race - April 15 (Start list),
De Brabantse Pijl - April 11 (Results),
Vuelta a Castilla y Leon - April 13-15 (Stages),
MTB World Cup Cross Country #2 April 13-15 (Races),
Paris - Roubaix - April 8 (Results),
Giro d'Italia - May 5-27 (Stages),
Amgen Tour of California - May 13-20 (Stages),
Tour de France - June 30 - July 22 (Stages),
2012 Olympic Games - July 28 - August 12 (Races),
Vuelta a España - August 18 - September 9 (Stages),
More...

PodiumCafe: The Swiss stage race starts in 12 days: April 24 to 29th. 695 kilometres with 8,793 metres of climbing - which roughly equals sea-level to the peak of Mont Everest.

RBAction: The UCI teams are coming for "America's Toughest Stage Race."

CyclingIQ: Consumers of cycling may have noticed an increase in ride-focused content across cycling media in recent years. Product-based pages are still just as popular, but promotion of mass-participation road cycling events seems to be popping up everywhere. Organizers of such events understand that the group ride is a central pillar of road cycling culture.

7900 mechanical shifters require more input to shift. Over the cobbles, many riders were experiencing accidental shifts. The Di2 shifters are too sensitive for some riders. Others had no issue. It may be the way different riders hold the lever or an issue for larger-handed riders.

BikeRadar: From final bike tweaks to vehicles that are brought in specially for this unique challenge, the race convoy at Paris-Roubaix resembles no other.

BikeRumor: Bob Parlee started off building boats, including high end carbon fiber racing boats. During 24 years of doing that full time, he tinkered with some bicycle design work on the side. Unable to sell those designs to others, he gave the shipyard the heave-ho to pursue other businesses, including bikes. He also had a 30 acre oyster farm, but a blight that hit the northeast killed his million-plus oysters just before harvest. He called it quits on that and focused 100% on custom carbon fiber bicycles.

CyclingNews: According to reports in La Gazzetta Dello Sport, Dr Jose Ibarguren Taus, one of five physicians working this year's Omega Pharma-QuickStep team- has been summoned to an Italian hearing this July to answer questions over his alleged involvement in the Mantova doping scandal.

BicycleRetailer: Icon is asking for the court to find each of the defendants liable and to award damages to compensate Icon for loss of income. Icon is requesting a jury trial in all the cases.

VeloNation: Argentine sprinter avoids a crash with 8km to go to take his first win of 2012 for under pressure Saxo Bank.

InnerRing: A rider punctures in a race. They’re forced to stop and to stand by the side of the road, often holding up a wheel in the air with a forlorn look on their face. You’ve probably seen it on TV many times, maybe you’ve experienced it too.

Today's Quote.

"Paul Shewen was in his Kampala office and ready to answer our questions before he jetted off to cover Paris-Roubaix for NBC Sports. As always, Paul had lots to say, and - as usual - it was all very interesting and insightful."

road.cc: Owen Rogers witnesses a legendary ride at first hand and waxes lyrical about a truly great event.

BikeRadar: Custom builders Seven Cycles are predicting the rise of the 650b wheel, saying that Nino Schurter’s recent World Cup victory has proven its worth and the only thing now holding it back is the lack of compatible forks, rims and tires.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "A stem at race day weight but with trail hound strength."

Bicycling: A trio of fast and featherweight bicycles—one small, one big, one bold.

BikeRumor: Claimed frame weight is a hair over 1,000g, and Intense offers a paint-matched carbon rigid fork that they say lets you build a complete bike right at 18lbs.

BikeRadar verdict: 3.5 out of 5 stars. "Not cheap, but every bit the tenaciously unshakeable all-round road warrior you’d hope."

 

CyclingNews: For the first time since Lance Armstrong appeared a Wheaties box in 1999, the Post brand breakfast cereal has a cycling-themed box, thanks to USA Cycling. Appearing on the front cover of upcoming Grape-Nuts boxes is a small image of US Pro champion Matthew Busche, and on the back is Dotsie Bausch of the women's team pursuit squad and the elite men's sprint finish of the 2011 UCI world championships.

VeloNews: Philippe Gilbert was the hot favorite to win Amstel Gold Race at this point last year. Today he fails to make CQ Ranking’s top 300 riders for 2012. Bookmakers give him 12-to-1 odds of winning, based largely on his wins in the last two editions.

Dave Moulton: Gary Lanoue (above) from Rehoboth, MA died on Monday when, it appears, his carbon front fork failed.

CyclingWeekly: Favorites for the Ardennes Classics, Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Nissan) and Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) crashed in the Brabantse Pijl yesterday.

VeloNation: Corti predicts better results after Duarte’s fourth place finish.

Pedal: "I fractured the radial head of my left elbow which required surgery and a plate. I also had a small fracture on the greater trochanter of my femur. The fracture on my femur kept me off the bike for four weeks as it had to heal properly before I could put any weight on it."

PodiumCafe: I'm about to start a mini-series of speculation about which of the women cyclists we might see racing at the Olympic Games in London, because for some riders, the racing over the next months will be as much about vying for places in their national teams as it is about the race they're in.

CXMagazine: "I feel that we will be seeing more disc brakes popping up on cyclocross bikes in the upcoming seasons. While I’m somewhat split on the idea of disc brakes on cyclocross bikes, there’s no way one can overlook the advantages offered and the disadvantages presented with the technology."

Bicycling: Five climbing secrets that will have you soaring in 30 days.