RedKitePrayer: In Hincapie, as in most American clothing brands, I wear medium bibs and a small jersey. Of late, Hincapie bib inseams and jerseys have been cut shorter than they used to. This is a good thing. It’s one thing to have George Hincapie personally test all the clothing. It’s quite another to use him as the fit model.

TwistedSpoke: Finally, somebody steps up. Things have been rough of late for the Electronic Gizmo-Car-Bike squad. Andy Schleck is out of the Tour de France with a cracked pelvis and brother Franks is just too worn out from the Giro, Tour of Luxembourg and Suisse. Frank has refused the captain’s role for Le grand Shindig and nobody else seemed to want the role.

PodiumCafe: Only 4 days now until the opening prologue on this year's Le Grande Boucle and the last rosters are being finalized and the final preparations for the race are being made. After the 3 years of domination by Andy Schleck, last year brought a breath of fresh aid in the competition with Pierre Rolland (Europcar) squeaking it out over Rein Taaramae (Cofidis).

CyclingNews: Eight out of the ten national road race championships in the IG Pro Cycling Index took place over a busy weekend of cycling. With all the results from Europe now in, there have been some interesting movements in the Index.

Vuelta a Colombia - June 12-24 (Stages & results),
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...

Chloe Hosking: "For the last few years June has been a lonely month for me. The tours replace one day races and, for the most part, the racing migrates from the north of Europe a little further south."

Peloton: 4,388 feet of climbing in 38.6 miles. It may not be the Alps but the Walloon region of Belgium is not lacking in the climb department, you just get your elevation in small chunks with endless 1 and 2k climbs. There are no flat roads.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "For stiffness, strength and speed, the aero Gavias are a great option."

road.cc: Wiggo, Cav et al's new tool for the tour gets even better Carbon.

BikeRadar: The most important qualities to look for in a pair of new cycling sunglasses are the clarity of vision the lenses provide and the protection they afford. Hazards such as grit, insects and overhanging branches can seriously damage your eyes when you’re hurtling along at 25mph or more, and even rain can really sting your eyeballs.

road.cc: Bontrager has released details of several new products including aerodynamic road bars, a new helmet, and an extended wheel range.

Tour de France Coverage News...

InnerRing: Each stage is analyzed, each jersey is explained and once more information is available there will be full list of riders and other content that’ll be updated every day so you can dip in and out during the next few weeks.

CyclingNews: France has a fine young generation of sprinters coming up, as became clear last Sunday at the national championship road race in Saint-Amand-les-Eaux. FDJ-Big Mat dominated the race, first by working hard to take it to a bunch sprint finish and then by delivering its two best sprinters, Arnaud Démare and 21 year old Nacer Bouhanni, to a one-two placing.

Pedal: The first edition of the race will take place from 17th to 21st October 2012. This new event will close this year’s UCI WorldTour calendar.

VeloNews: Most bikes skew towards either stiff efficiency or comfort. For most cyclists, the ideal bike is one that does both. This is exactly what the four bikes we tested here purport to do.

VeloNation: Anomalies date from year’s prior to rider joining blue-fuchsia team.

Bicycling: American team is on a roll—and its ambitions for the Tour show how much it’s changed.

BicycleRetailer: Big Cat Human Powered Vehicles is working with the Consumer Products Safety Commission to recall about 170 Catbike recumbent bikes.

CyclingNews: Johnny Hoogerland is going to court against Euro Media, who auto driver forced him off the road and into a barbed wire fence during stage 9 of last year's Tour de France. The media company has apparently shown little interest in negotiating a settlement with the Vacansoleil-DCM rider, and today is the deadline for filing a suit.

CyclingNews: While all eyes are on the 2012 Olympic Games in London, the women's peloton is getting ready to tackle the most prestigious stage race on its calendar: the women's Giro d'Italia, or Giro Donne.

CyclingNews: Fränk Schleck has warned not to expect too much of him in the Tour de France, saying he is no longer at his peak and will not be amongst the top riders.  The absence of his brother Andy is a loss not only to him but to their team RadioShack-Nissan as well, he said.

CyclingIQ: Hong Kong’s presence in elite cycling has been most keenly felt through the exploits of its favorite sporting son, Wong Kam Po. Following two decades of regional dominance, Wong’s career is winding down and mainland China is receiving all the attention in global pro cycling circles. Fortunately, Hong Kong has the economic capacity and agility to respond.

Bicycling: What to look for from this year's Stateside contingent.

BikeRadar verdict: 4.5 out of 5 stars. "Competitors should be worried by this versatile, rapid trail package."

road.cc: Comfort, style and even a fair bit of speed. An excellent all-round women's sportive bike.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Structured, stiff and secure, the Prismas are great race shoes."

VeloNews: Italian cyclist Riccardo Riccò is to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in a bid to have his 12-year doping ban overturned, CAS announced on Tuesday.

VeloNews: Two-time winner of the Tour de France, Alberto Contador, currently suspended, is conspicuously absent from the 99th edition of the Tour, which starts Saturday Liege, Belgium. “The absent are always wrong,” said Tour director Christian Prudhomme. “Once the Tour has begun, you stop thinking about it.”

Tom Danielson: With his second consecutive podium in the Amgen Tour of California and seventh overall at the Tour de Suisse, Tom Danielson is on the rise after an early season derailed by a hard crash at the Tour de Langkawi.

VeloNation: “It is a medical thing - the rest is for her to tell.”

InnerRing: It looks like the perfect picture for a cycling team. A smiling rider stands tall on the podium, dressed in yellow with the team logos in evidence as the girls hold their pose for the cameras. Even his sunglasses are perched just right on the team-issue baseball cap. But there’s something wrong with the picture.

CyclingNews: RadioShack-Nissan has decided to stop Jakob Fuglsang from racing in any further WorldTour races this year. This will prevent him from winning any UCI points, which could help his team in 2013 – a team which will not be RadioShack-Nissan.

CyclingIQ: Unfortunately for the UCI, its President Pat McQuaid’s personality and strong opinions have previously resulted in soundbites that may not best represent the global view within the UCI. One has to wonder what McQuaid’s colleagues will think of his latest interview with Bloomberg, which runs the gamut from breakaway leagues to conflicts of interest.

CycleSport: "Lionel Birnie has been described as a cross between Charlie Brooker and Eeyore – the sort of person who thinks the glass is half empty, but only because he’s just spilled some of it on his trousers."

Cyclismas: As the Tour completed its first week of racing, the peloton completed the 412 kilometre stage four haul from Brest to Les Sables d’Olonne, sixteen and a half hours of saddle time. The peloton again finished together, Ottavio Bottecchia (Automoto) finished two places behind Théophile Beeckman (Griffon) but still retained the yellow jersey,

CyclingNews: British track star Victoria Pendleton has given the strongest indication yet that she will quit professional cycling after the London 2012 Olympic Games later this summer.

CycleSport: The Tour de France is about much more than the cycling. The event shows off the best the country has to offer – the countryside, the châteaux and, of course, its food and wine.

Bicycling: The new bike has adjustable travel from 70mm to 120mm and will come in 26-inch and 29er versions.

BikeRadar: Radioshack-Nissan-Trek will race this year's Tour de France on the latest generation of Trek's flagship Madone road platform. The new Madone 7-Series borrows aero shaping from the Speed Concept to save a claimed 25 watts at 40km/h, it's supposedly more comfortable than before, and the lightest variant now weighs a startlingly feathery 750g for a 56cm frame.