The humble bidon cage, you’ll find at least one on every road bike, silently executing its duty or patiently waiting to be called into action. In this article, I provide an overview of the many varieties of cages available.

More teams to be announced soon, IG-Sigma Sport and Raleigh travelling from Europe.

The ill-publicized end of the world championship and National Racing Calendar winning Colavita-Forno d'Asolo team may have broken up one of the sport's most successful women's programs, but its director Rachel Heal and some of their top North American riders will remain together in 2012 under the Optum-Kelly Benefit Strategies banner. Holcomb, Kirchmann, Sanders and Small form core of new team.

Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Barracuda) will start his season at the Tour of Qatar next week but the American is firmly focused on the classics again. But with a new lead out train at his disposal in 2012, the sprinter will be looking to win on a number of fronts.

At a special session of the UN Human Rights Council, it was revealed by Navanethem Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, that actions over the past 24 months by Pat McQuaid and the UCI Management Committee are being investigated for violations of the UN Charter of Human Rights.

The 2011 Etoile de Bessèges runs from February 2-6.  Coverage is limited, it is not live on TV, even in France.  But there is live radio coverage.

BMC's Thor Hushovd and Philippe Gilbert, Team Sky's Mark Cavendish and Lotto Belisol's Andre Greipel are among a strong field of confirmed starters for the Tour of Qatar beginning on Sunday.

Home riders seeks to send out a message from new Olympic velodrome.

"The Unknown Tour de France" opens in a cemetery in northern France. The last resting place of the man who won the first (and - briefly - the second) edition of the Tour de France. Maurice Garin.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships (Results),
2012 Subaru Cycling Australian Track Championship (Results),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
More...

"A day with Garmin-Barracuda was followed by two days with the BMC team. Both teams have their ways of doing things, but both are professionals. The most notable thing I noticed was the how much more interest there was in the BMC team compared to last year. The difference a Tour win can make and signing two of the biggest names from the Classics."

Along with hoping for a strong performance in the Tour de France this summer, Christrian Vande Velde (Garmin Barracuda) is targeting the Olympics. The London Games come days after the Tour finishes in Paris and Vande Velde, a participant in Beijing four year ago, realises that London will be his final Olympic opportunity.

“I think he has got unlimited potential as regards how far he can go.”

Niels Albert won the World Cyclo-cross Championship on his own and does not need to share his bonus from the national federation with his Belgian teammates, his manager Christophe Roodhooft has told Het Laatste Nieuws. The national coach and federation vehemently disagree with this conclusion.

Robbie looking sharp in his new GreenEDGE kit.

Fabian Wegmann (Garmin-Barracuda) has found a new home after a year with Leopard Trek. The 31-year-old German had only moved once in his career before signing with the Luxembourg outfit but at the end of 2011 his services were considered surplus to requirements as Bruyneel and his management team moved in and remodelled the team.

Gore have issued a worldwide recall of some of their Ride On brake cables. The affected models are from the Low Friction and Professional lines and are designed to work with Campagnolo levers.

Tattoo-like graphics on the blacked-out paint scheme, plus the nontraditional frame design, nudge this bike into the realm of edgy fashion accessory.

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

After teasing it in late summer 2010, then showing it at Interbike that year and in a more final form factor last year, the Keo Power pedals and associated transmitters developed in partnership with Polar are finally ready to show how much power you’re layin’ down.

Tucked away in Insjön, Sweden, is a little company called Experimental Prototype that’s making the kind of things that we love to geek out about. Things like a 63g custom ratio 11-23 road bike cassette with eight of ten cogs made from carbon fiber!

The Daily Distraction.

I was taken aback last week when I heard about a field of pro racers coming to a halt during the opening stage of Argentina’s Tour de San Luis. It wasn’t because they had to stop for a train rumbling through a rail crossing; no, they stopped to seek shelter from a storm, one of heavy rain and hail.

Motorists think bicyclists are encroaching on their turf. They mutter nonsense about “road tax.” They’re just dying to speed around us so they can sit at the next stoplight a few seconds longer.

If there's a revolution going on at Team BMC, you wouldn't know it from talking to Jim Ochowicz. "I don’t really look at this year as any different," he says from his team camp in Valencia, Spain, as the team boards the bus for another mild winter workout.

"I have some Vittoria tubulars I had had glued on about a year ago. The edge of the front wheel tire on half of one side is coming a little unglued. Should I re-glue for the upcoming season? I paid a lot for these Open Corsa Evo tires. Will it damage them plying them off and re-gluing?"

Garmin's Edge 800 still sits at the top of the GPS cycle computer heap but given the pace at which technology is progressing, we wouldn't bet against its successor, the Edge 900, to be launched later this year. Whether it's called the Garmin Edge 900 or the Edge 800S or the 800 EVO remains to be seen.

“My reaction to this can be summed up very simply. Unlike Mr Verbruggen and Mr McQuaid, I do not accept donations from Lance Armstrong, so I am not really in a position to defend this. Hell will freeze over before I issue either of those gentlemen an apology for anything.” - Paul Kimmage  VeloNation

The much anticipated prices for EPS: better be sitting down…

Insanity. Chaos.  A sea of people. Beer. Frites. Color. Sand. Elbows. The Cyclocross World Championships were all that and more.  That’s what happens when you pack 53,000 people in  a small area, with lots of beer tents and cross racing in West Flanders, Belgium.   You think you’re prepared after attending World Cup races in Belgium and even the World Championships in Germany, but Koksijde took it to a whole other level – for the racers and for the media.

BikeRadar verdict: 3 out of 5 stars. "The Foil 20 is ballistic and only held back by its wheels. On faster hoops it would be perfect for attacking short and middle-distance races."

If you've been riding for more than 5 minutes you'll have seen the popularity of the 'eggbeater' pedal grow in leaps and bounds.

As an avid mountain biker and commuter I am a firm proponent of helmets. Unfortunately, the majority of casual cyclists don’t seem to share my preoccupation with safety. This folding helmet designed by French design studio Agency 360 is intended to increase the appeal of helmets to urban riders.

Along with hoping for a strong performance in the Tour de France this summer, Christrian Vande Velde (Garmin Barracuda) is targeting the Olympics. The London Games come days after the Tour finishes in Paris and Vande Velde, a participant in Beijing four year ago, realises that London will be his final Olympic opportunity.

Alberto Contador will return to Europe on Tuesday with a second place overall, two mountain-top stage wins and the King of the Mountains title in the recently completed Tour of San Luis stage race in Argentina in his suitcase.

Training camp time of year is probably the busiest time of year around this area. Astana, RadioShack, BMC, Quick-Step, Euskaltel-Euskadi, GreenEdge, Cofidis, Vacansoleil and many other smaller teams converge in this part of the Spanish coast for hard training in the mountains.

Tour contender will ride Challenge Mallorca and Tour of Oman.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships (Results),
2012 Subaru Cycling Australian Track Championship (Results),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
More...

Hushovd has new plans this Spring, Columbia Coldeportes team camp report, and a AG2R man is down...

Building on their basic electrolyte replacement formula, GU Brew, their new Roctane Ultra Endurance Energy Drink adds some of the performance ingredients found in their Roctane gel varieties.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "The titanium Sumo tunes out certain frequencies of vibration to give a subtle feel that cross-country riders will love."

There are certain things that we do as we get older that aren’t necessarily cool or exciting.  Grownup stuff, like telling people who aren’t your mom where you’re going riding and when you expect to be back.  Like packing enough water and food for a ride.  Like keeping your insurance current.  Road ID fall squarely into that category.  As important as carrying a some form of ID, if things go horribly wrong most identification doesn’t really doesn’t contain all of the information that emergency responders want- or need.

Jurgen Roelandts is targeting a return to action at Tirreno-Adriatico after breaking his neck at the Tour Down Under.

Mat & Nick flew by the new Wing building at Silverstone…

Alain Gallopin, former directeur sportif with CSC and now with RadioShack-Nissan, has outlined team rosters for the 2012 Giro d'Italia and Tour de France and given his personal opinion regarding two rival squads for this year's Tour, Saxo Bank and his own RadioShack. The Danish team managed by Bjarne Riis, for whom he worked from 2004 to 2007, has multiple Grand Tour winner Alberto Contador in its ranks, but with both Andy and Fränk Schleck on Johan Bruyneel's squad, Gallopin said that the Belgian had the better tactical instincts.

Project 1t4i has leapt to the defence of its star sprinter Marcel Kittel. Last night the 23-year-old was linked to a doping investigation by the German television show Sportschau, and team manager Iwan Spekenbrink confirmed to Cyclingnews that the rider had visited Andreas Franke, the doctor at the centre of the investigation.

"January in Utah would normally lend itself to stories of great backcountry skiing, snowboarding, and cross-country skiing. This year has been dry and mild, with a relative lack of snow, and the riding has been a lot better than the snow sports. Since we did finally get snow a week ago, the avalanche danger has been through the roof. It has been better to try out the snow biking."

Niels Albert led a Belgian domination of the 2012 Cyclocross World Championships, but for company Colnago, the win represented a return for Italy to the top step of the Worlds podium and showed that their signing of the 2009 World Champion was a smart move and major coup.

“My reaction to this can be summed up very simply. Unlike Mr Verbruggen and Mr McQuaid, I do not accept donations from Lance Armstrong, so I am not really in a position to defend this. Hell will freeze over before I issue either of those gentlemen an apology for anything.” - Paul Kimmage  VeloNation

Energy bars have improved in a big way since they first became a jersey-pocket staple. Here's how to choose the right one for your ride.

Slipstream Sports, the company holding behind the Garmin-Barracuda team has announced a new co-sponsor for their development team. Formerly known as Team Chipotle, the squad will be titled as Team Chipotle-First Solar. The team will make their season debut at the Valley of the Sun race in Phoenix, Arizona in February and plan on running an international race program.

Elia Viviani (Liquigas-Cannondale) broke the Omega Pharma-Quick Step/Saxo Bank monopoly on stage wins at the Tour de San Luis on Saturday, blazing to victory in the bunch gallop at the conclusion to stage six. One of Viviani's five teammates at the event is American Ted King, one of a handful of North Americans racing in South America's biggest stage race. King was ecstatic post-race at his Italian teammate's win, the ProTour squad's first of 2012.

The Daily Distraction.

One of the quirks of following pro cycling is a passing knowledge of medical vocabulary. Words like quadriceps or lactic acid are obvious. But worryingly the discerning fan can build up a formidable lexicon of haematology, although knowing the vocabulary is quite distinct from knowing the subject.

"Last week we discussed the Men of the Hour—a rather easy-to-compile list of the men we all expect to be at forefront of the sport in 2012. But while the sport’s Men of the Hour might be easier to identify, a list of Up-and-Comers is certainly more interesting to make as it allows for more prognosticating. After all, it’s always fun to go out on a limb—especially if you turn out to be right."

Long wait continues for final verdict.

"We mark so many years we hit one of those personal milestones. Thank God for friends. While I let my birthday slip quietly by last month, a friend is celebrating his 50th birthday. As is true with the gift of cycling, he doesn’t look it."

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

"Since we have published a post about “The Dangers of Narrow Tires,” it is only fair that we look at the other side of the coin. What are the disadvantages (or even dangers?) of wider tires? I can think of a few."

Price range topper made in Italy and launched on Ugo de Rosa's birthday...

Some subtle lessons that all cyclists and drivers need to know.

Take two for Thor Hushovd. For Garmin-Cervélo, read BMC. For the second time in as many seasons, the Norwegian is a new arrival at an all-star classics squad, as he continues his quest to land victory in one of sport’s monuments.

Home team takes top seven positions.

Former champion says he’s unsure right now about his future in cross.

2012 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships LIVE January 28-29, Koksijde, Belgium. Sunday: Women: 11:00am CET  (5:00am U.S. Eastern). Sunday: Men Elite: 3:00pm CET  (9:00am U.S. Eastern).

Van den Brand and Cant fight it out for silver. Katherine Compton 5th. 

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships (Results),
2012 Subaru Cycling Australian Track Championship (Results),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
More...

The guys at Capo Cycling continue to present some of the best looking in-line kits around, and the Dorato steps up quality and design at mid-range prices. Here’s a look at the Dorato thermal jacket, short sleeved jersey, bib shorts, leg warmers, Piemonte Wind gloves & booties, and Euro wool socks.

Will Davide Rebellin be the next fallen star to sign with Team Christinas Watches-Onfone? The Danish media reports that there might be interest on both sides for having the Italian join the Continental-ranked team.

Omega Pharma-Quick Step couldn't have asked for a better scripted finale to the Tour de San Luis as Tom Boonen won the final stage in a downhill sprint with a top speed near 80km/h. The Belgian ProTour squad also won the opening two stages with sprint wins by Francesco Chicchi, who served as Boonen's final lead-out man today, and Levi Leipheimer claimed the stage 4 time trial.

Sunday's Tour de San Luis Stage 7 departs San Luis at 2:43pm local (12:43pm U.S. Eastern, 18:43 CET) and is expected at the finish at San Luis at around 6:30pm local (4:30pm U.S. Eastern, 22:30 CET). Tour de San Luis live video streaming is possible; we had it last year and for this year's Stage 1, Stage 5 and Stage 6 finish and for the Stage 4 TT but not for Stages 2 and 3. Apparently it is not scheduled but depending on timing, television may cut in for the finish. Note that live radio streaming will be available throughout the stage.

“My reaction to this can be summed up very simply. Unlike Mr Verbruggen and Mr McQuaid, I do not accept donations from Lance Armstrong, so I am not really in a position to defend this. Hell will freeze over before I issue either of those gentlemen an apology for anything.” - Paul Kimmage  VeloNation

"Don’t worry, Sunday evening’s collection of short pieces is family and workplace safe. But you’ll find two stories where speaking out can land you in trouble, even prison. And if you enjoyed the Tinker, Tailor, Cyclist, Spy piece, there’s an appetiser for an upcoming story."

The American all-rounder penned a three-year deal with the Swiss owned team and told Cyclingnews that the length of the contract was a key reason for choosing BMC over a number of other interested parties that had offered only two-year sanctuary.

Dumoulin wins in France...

The Grand Prix Cycliste la Marseillaise, the traditional road season opener in Europe, is today.  Coverage is limited, it is not live on TV, even in France.

The Daily Distraction.

Governing body had pledged last May to sue him.

German sprinter Marcel Kittel (Team 1t4i) is said to be amongst those athletes who are suspected of black light treated blood transfusions. A young rider from the Continental ranked Thüringer Energie Team is also said to be involved.

Welcome to the BMC Winter LoveFest. It’s late January, months from Flanders and Roubaix and six months until the Tour de France and everybody is full of admiration, respect and love.

Cyclists are always competitive. You would think that about 100 days of racing per year would be plenty to show one’s strength and determination, but it’s not enough for the typical cyclist, we even have it in our few months without races. The closer the season is getting the more evidently this shows.

Luckily enough, my Ritchey Breakaway Ti/Carbon road frameset tester arrived just in time for my trip last weekend to see family in Las Vegas, Nevada. I know it's only been one trip so far, but I'm already declaring this a game changer.

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

2012 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships LIVE January 28-29, Koksijde, Belgium. Sunday: Women: 11:00am CET  (5:00am U.S. Eastern). Sunday: Men Elite: 3:00pm CET  (9:00am U.S. Eastern).

Elia Viviani (Liquigas-Cannondale) prevailed in the field sprint finale to stage 6 of the Tour de San Luis with a burst of speed as scorching as the temperature. The Italian made up for a flat tire which ruined his chances in stage 2 as he outkicked Juan Jose Haedo (Saxo Bank), runner-up on stage 1, and Andrea Guardini (Farnese Vini) to claim Liquigas-Cannondale's first victory of 2012.

Saturday's Tour de San Luis Stage 6 departs Lujan at 11:59am local (9:59am U.S. Eastern, 15:59 CET) and is expected at the finish at Quines at around 5:00pm local (3:00pm U.S. Eastern, 21:00 CET). Note that live radio streaming will be available throughout the stage.

“Mathieu is suffering from a fractured pelvis on the left side. This fracture doesn’t affect the hip joint but only the iliac wing,” Eric Bouvat, the team’s medical officer said.

Despite carrying over 3 extra kilos, the Spaniard has won two mountain states in the Tour de San Luis, sometimes called Alberto’s First And Last Sayge Race of 2011.

In an exciting finale that saw thrown elbows, last minute bobbles and a sprint to the line, reigning champion Lars van der Haar retained his crown against Belgian rider Wietse Bosmans.

2012 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships January 28-29, Koksijde, Belgium. Saturday: Men Juniors: 11:00am CET (5:00am U.S. Eastern). Saturday: Men U23: 3:00pm CET (9:00am U.S. Eastern).

Bart Wellens' heart and other problems were caused by tooth root abscesses, according to a Belgian newspaper. Doping or a viral infection, which had also been mentioned as probably causes, are therefore eliminated, the newspaper said.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships (Results),
2012 Subaru Cycling Australian Track Championship (Results),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
More...

After several months of uncertainty about her team setup, the 2010 world time trial champion Emma Pooley has spoken of her relief at moving to the AA Drink-Leontien.nl setup for 2012 and also being able to remain with the same equipment supplier she has used in recent seasons.

USA Cycling announced the start of the Lance Armstrong Junior Series and the Alison Dunlap Junior Series. Both race series kick off this weekend and are designed to promote racing for junior cyclists in the US.

American veteran to back Evans, Gilbert and Hushovd in 2012.

American searching for 2008 form and no bad luck.

Jelly Belly sprinter preparing for 2012 season by racing the boards.

"After three nights, the racing was anything but decided. The same theme would continue all the way until the final, sixth, evening. Bremen's racing was a barn-burner in 2012, so let's go back and see how it shook out."

Former HTC Highroad women’s squad wants big start to the year.

Oxymoronically, the most famous underwhelming victory in a Grand Tour was probably the 1956 Tour de France won by Roger Walkowiak. In much the same way that Oscar Perieiro won the 2006 Tour, the Frenchman of Polish origin got into a breakaway in an early stage which finished a massive 18 minutes ahead of the peloton.

The two-time reigning World Cyclocross Champion goes for a third title on Sunday. But what happens after that?

The Daily Distraction.

"It seems unfair to apply the anti-doping rules used for professionals to a bunch of older riders whose lives include more than just racing."

"The show will be on WJCU 88.7 FM live (in Cleveland) at 5:30 (that’s Easter Standard Time). You can live stream the show or wait until 6:00 and then download the podcast. We had a great time talking and I’m hoping that unless you meet me in person it’ll be the first and last time you hear my voice (why is it we hate the sound of our own voice?)."

"For most French citizens, cycling is not a sport but a means of transport.The French government has just presented its “cycling plan” and I learned that on average a French citizen rides 87km a year, compared to 800-1,000km for the Netherlands and Denmark, probably the most cycle-friendly places in the world, transport wise. Just 4.7% of the population uses a bike on a regular basis."

“...to be honest with you, I think they [the ex-riders of the Garmin-Cervélo women’s team] are satisfied with it, I certainly hope they are satisfied with it. We really busted ourselves to make [sure] that the athletes are taken care of, that their contracts were honored, and that they were going to be on a team that is one of the best in the world.”  - Jonathan Vaughters  VeloNation

Katie Compton talks Nationals, Worlds, her season so far and what’s to come for this eight-time National Champion.

Despite concerns that the BMC Racing Team may have too many leaders for its own good, Thor Hushovd has confirmed the Tour de France will be all about Cadel Evans. At the end of last season the team added some serious reinforcements to its roster by signing Hushovd and Philippe Gilbert, the latter off the back of his most successful season. It also brought in powerful time trial riders such as Tejay van Garderen, Marco Pinotti and Steve Cummings, among others.

Deal includes maker of People's Car supporting People for Bikes initiative.

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

Two and a half years ago, SpiderTech's Lucas Euser was struck by a car while out training on his bike, shattering his knee. This past November, he made a goal to regain his strength lost due to the injury. To accomplish this Euser spent some time in the gym.

"As the lead mechanic of one of the most successful World Cup downhill mountain bike teams, the Santa Cruz Syndicate, Doug Hatfield is an incredibly accomplished mechanic. He’s wrenched for world champions in both cross country and downhill racing while traveling all over the world. How does a normal guy go from being a mechanic at the LBS to working on some of the most lust worthy bicycles in the industry?"

CyclingNews: Merger in the future for Cofidis?

The coming year may bring another merger of cycling's top teams, as Cofidis general manager Eric Boyer seeks to improve the situation of his team by combining with a larger outfit. In an interview with La Voix Du Nord, Boyer said a merger would be a practical solution to the team's relatively small budget and inability to attract top riders to regain its place in the WorldTour.

2012 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships January 28-29, Koksijde, Belgium. Saturday: Men Juniors: 11:00am CET (5:00am U.S. Eastern). Saturday: Men U23: 3:00pm CET (9:00am U.S. Eastern).

Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank) has won his second stage at this year's Tour de San Luis but American Levi Leipheimer still leads.

Friday's Tour de San Luis Stage 5 departs La Toma at 12:32pm local (10:32am U.S. Eastern, 16:32 CET) and is expected at the finish at Merlo (Mirador del Sol) at around 4:45pm local (2:45pm U.S. Eastern, 20:45 CET).

Czech star looking to make it three world titles in a row in Koksijde.

"Wow. The video feed doesn’t do justice to the brutality of theCyclocross World Championships course in Koksijde can be under certain conditions."

Fans turning up on a whim will find themselves turned away.

This weekend Zdeněk Štybar (Omega Pharma-Quick-Step) is hoping to complete a hat trick, going for three world championship cyclo-cross titles in as many years, and he'll be doing so on a bike that he's only been racing for a month.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

BikeRadar verdict: 3.5 out of 5 stars. "Long, strong and easy to adjust. Just make sure you can find a saddle that you like."

Tour de France winner Cadel Evans and his teammates will be using Gates belt-drive bikes this season — not in competition, but around town at least.

"Spotted by an eagle-eye’d reader on Andre Meganck’s Twitter/Yfrog photo stream (photo credit to him) is this little pic of Alberto Contador taking the win at the first mountain stage of the Tour de San Luis while rocking some prototype 2013 Specialized S-Works road shoes."

The two-time reigning World Cyclocross Champion goes for a third title on Sunday. But what happens after that?

To support cycling at all levels I suggest that it is time for cycling to think about solidarity payments. As in soccer this payment could be a percentage of the salary that any new team is willing to pay the rider which will then be distributed to all the previous clubs and teams that the rider rode for between the ages of 12 and say 25.

American rider enjoying buildup to new season, will make decision about future later in year.

Former TDF champ says winning both green and yellow jerseys could be an impossible task.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "The racer’s choice, although the ride is definitely firm."

Michael Wallace (WallyGPX) uses streets of Baltimore as his canvas with impressive results.

"Cyclingnews caught up with British rider David Millar earlier in the week at the Garmin-Barracuda training camp in Spain. Millar reveals that he is in much better shape physically and mentally than this time last year, when numerous factors led to early season disruption, and lists his main early season targets."

iPhone fitness app developer Abvio Inc. will demonstrate, for the first time ever, some of the new features planned for the next major update of Runmeter, Cyclemeter and Walkmeter version 7.0 at Macworld | iWorld 2012. Due out later this quarter, v7.0 will include a completely updated stopwatch that will display far more information than any other fitness app in the iTunes store.

Cervélo to provide bikes to Dutch superteam.

Earlier this week, Specialized sent out some pics of Stybar’s custom painted pink Crux cyclocross bike and many media took the bait. This is one of four matching custom painted bikes he was provided with, actually. Being that we don’t really cover racing so much as what’s being raced on, our inquiries led to some good discussions about why he wasn’t racing the Crux Disc model.

The Daily Distraction.

CyclingNews: Merger in the future for Cofidis?

The coming year may bring another merger of cycling's top teams, as Cofidis general manager Eric Boyer seeks to improve the situation of his team by combining with a larger outfit. In an interview with La Voix Du Nord, Boyer said a merger would be a practical solution to the team's relatively small budget and inability to attract top riders to regain its place in the WorldTour.

"We wrap up our annual advice feature with advice from the pros..."

FFC criticises actions of Ligue Nationale de Cyclisme.

"There’s a history of pissed-off companies withholding ad dollars, not just in the bike industry, but any industry you look at. If you never see an ad from Campagnolo, Shimano or SRAM, this series would probably be why. Most bike companies aren’t wild about reviews that don’t spit-shine their every effort. So I’ll try not to be surprised if none of them ever advertise with me."

"Last week at the Tour Down Under, Slovenian sprinter Boruz Bozic took some time out before a post-race massage to chat with Blazin' Saddles. A sweltering day on the road saw a sick Bozic struggle to keep up with the peloton, the new Astana rider finishing the undulating stage to Stirling more than 13 minutes down on solo winner Will Clarke of Tasmania."

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

Ceramic bearings are rightly considered luxury items on a bike, given that they're usually several times the cost of standard steel ones. But these titanium jockey wheels from British company Ultimate Ceramic Bearings do have a practical aspect too.

It's the annual Core Bike tradefest for us on Tuesday but there's no letup in the shiny kit news this week...

Grupetto Italia have unveiled three new bikes for 2012; two carbon models in the Mottarone SL (from £2,500) and the Mergozzo CL (from £1,550), and the steel CS Maggiore (from £1,350). The bikes are available to view at their showroom in Amersham, Buckinghamshire and via their website, and offer a free fitting service with all purchases.

“As Tour winner I could have signed a contract worth millions for several years. We demand more than 5.6 million euro.”  - Michael Rasmussen VeloNation

"How does the Shiv frame handle in a road situation and if there had been any modifications to the frame to make it more road-like."

Levi Leipheimer (USA) Omega Pharma-QuickStep) blazed to the fastest time in the stage 4 individual time trial on Thursday in the Tour de San Luis. His performance was fast enough to move him into the lead of the race's general classification.

Thursday's Tour de San Luis Stage 4, a 19.5km Individual Time Trial at San Luis, gets underway with the departure of the first rider at 3:11pm local (1:11pm U.S. Eastern, 19:11 CET).  Race leader Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank) is scheduled to depart last at 6:07pm local (4:07pm U.S. Eastern, 22:07 CET). Llive radio streaming will be available throughout the stage.

Cycling has many holy grails. The Tourmalet, Alpe d’Huez, Ventoux, Stelvio, Gavia, Koppenberg, Arenberg to mention a few. I know this probably could be viewed upon as a bit early, but there is something going to happen in Belgium soon that is worth mentioning – the Kermesse season.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the second most exciting week of the cyclocross season*, World Championships time! Yes, it is time to crown new world champions and give them lovely white skinsuits they can get muddy all next year! Get excited!"

Americans Zach McDonald (Rapha-Focus) and Cody Kaiser (Cal Giant) will be looking for solid top ten finishes. McDonald put an impressive top five performance in the Elite National Championship race in Madison, only one day after running away with the U23 National Title.

There’s one more race on the schedule to close out USA Cyclocross National Champion Jeremy Powers (Rapha-Focus) most successful season ever, and it’s the big one, the World Championships this weekend on the tough sandy course in Koksijde. The race is held on the same course where he finished 31st at last November’s World Cup.

Despite multiple wins, countless podium finishes and even a National Championship title, Dylan McNicholas has flown surprisingly under the radar this season.

Given the warm reception received by Shimano's XTR Shadow Plus rear mech, which uses a clutch mechanism to reduce chain movement, could it be that SRAM are working on something similar?

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

Stefan Schumacher confirmed to the press at the Tour de San Luis today that he has filed an injunction in Argentine courts against former Gerolsteiner teammate and current Omega Pharma Quickstep rider Levi Leipheimer for violation of a court-ordered personality rights infringement settlement that dates back to 2006.

Similar to the WorldTour rankings that determine automatic consideration for the top teams toward the next season's first division, the rankings for the Continental Tours are calculated by the points obtained by the riders on 2012 teams in the previous season.

Names Contador and Nibali as biggest GC rivals.

Organiser Leo van Vliet closes the gap between the Keutenberg and Cauberg.

The Spanish economy is set to shrink this year, continuing the funk it has been in since 2009. Unemployment is over 20% and climbing. Set against it’s no wonder that several races are under threat in Spain.

The Belgian team will support its captains in the cyclo-cross world championship race on Sunday, whether they like it or not. The Belgain Cycling Federation has said it expects its riders to obey their orders or face the consequences.

BikeRadar verdict: 3.5 out of 5 stars. "If you can see past the spelling and formatting errors, Obree offers motivated cyclists plenty of food for thought in this unique manual."

They're in London shooting The Divine Miss P now, and her bikes obviously...

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

It has an entirely new “Ultralight Carbon” sole with a new airflow system to ventilate your feet. It’s designed for all types of pedals but comes with a Speedplay-specific adapter that’ll keep the stack height super low when using those pedals. The upper is entirely seamless and has no overlapping materials, which should make it pretty comfy and eliminate hot spots. It has both ventilation windows and perforations to help it breathe.

The Col d’Eze time trial, for many years a nailbiting finale to Paris-Nice, is set to make a reappearance in the 2012 edition, according to French sources today.

"I stumbled upon this concept bike that has been underneath the company’s creative director, Robert Egger. It’s the Shiv module re-purposed as a road bike and the Big S is saying it’s a one-off."

The cyclo-cross season's big finale is just around the corner, and while fans just can't wait until Sunday's main events - the elite women's and men's UCI Cyclo-cross world championships in Koksijde - the riders themselves are trying to contain the excitement, nervousness and stress. What is US champion Katie Compton's method for handling the pressure? Angry Birds.

The Daily Distraction.

Last year saw the Tour of Beijing run for the first time. A unique race, one major difference was they way it was organised and promoted. To summarise the UCI, cycling’s governing body, set up a corporate venture called Global Cycling Promotions (GCP) to run the race.

Home searched, investigators trying to determine if illegal products were used.

Cyclists are innovators, constantly hunting for an edge. Over the last half-century, we've tried thousands of methods to become stronger, faster, and smarter on a bike—many of which have been discarded through the years. These have endured.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Accurate, surefooted, high-speed carbon hardtail that’s surprisingly comfortable and affordable."

Thor Hushovd is looking to climb back on the podium at Paris-Roubaix, specifically on to the top step. The Norwegian is counting on veteran BMC teammate George Hincapie to help him win the "Hell of the North”.

“As Tour winner I could have signed a contract worth millions for several years. We demand more than 5.6 million euro.”  - Michael Rasmussen VeloNation

BikeRadar verdict: 3 out of 5 stars. "Quirky looks and armchair comfort, but on the heavy side."

Seven UCI ProTeams and seven ProContinental squads.

Thomas Dekker strides across the lobby of the Gran Hotel Sol y Mar like a new man. It’s almost an unrecognisable contrast to when Cyclingnews visited him at his home in Belgium on the eve of the Tour de France in 2010.

With the road season making its early start in Australia and Argentina, you could be forgiven for thinking that the winter disciplines are winding down - hardly. This weekend, the Cross World Championships are set to dominate headlines, and through it all, the Six Day train keeps on chugging.

"After being abandoned at six months old to being in a home with heating, doctors and everything, it is a big change," he said.

With 2011 ending on a high note thanks to second overall in the USA Pro Cycling Challenge, Christian Vande Velde has got his confidence back and has a fully-renewed motivation for the sport.

Alberto Contador won his first race of the year in the mountain stage of the Tour de San Luis in Argentina.

PodiumCafe: San Luis Stage 3 Preview+LIVE (ISH) With Climbing!...

Wednesday's Tour de San Luis Stage 3 departs Estancia Grande at 1:57pm local (11:57am U.S. Eastern, 17:57 CET) and is expected at the finish at Mirador del Potrero at around 6:15pm local (4:15pm U.S. Eastern, 22:15 CET).  Tour de San Luis live video streaming is questionable; we had it last year and for this year's Stage 1 finish but not for Stage 2. Note that live radio streaming will be available throughout the stage.

2012 edition to be the most expensive ever in the name of tourism; much the of sum already recovered through sponsorship and ticket sales.

"The TDU is finished, and I’m back at headquarters after a whirlwind trip Down Under. The Santos Tour Down Under produced some good stories and some eyerolling dreck, culminating with a Valverde “stage victory.” We’ve got rumours that the Jonathan Vaughters-led Slipstream Sports is or is not or is something involved with AA Drink, and don’t get me started on the Emma Pooley business, yet. Onward, brave readers, onward."

"On the back foot, I was struggling and riding with what felt like the parking brake on. Through hike-a-bike and granny gear climbs, bush whacking, gravel and cow-print downhill trails, nothing would permanently and with concise closure keep that five-second gap from opening back up. I eventually attributed this to (duh!) bad legs but more importantly, I was the anvil, not the hammer, in this situation."

Swedish rider showing determination to return to racing.

While Jake Keough (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) may very well have been the Tour de San Luis's revelation of stage 2 - finishing third in the field sprint finale behind Omega Pharma-Quick Step teammates Francesco Chicchi and Tom Boonen - just four hours prior to the 24-year-old American's stunning result he and teammate Jay Thomson told Cyclingnews about the eventful finale to Monday's opening stage.

Green light for large crowds on crucial Box Hill area of circuit.

Oscar Pujol is still living the life of a professional rider. Each morning he dresses in his race kit, swings his leg over his bike and goes out training for several hours, just like every other professional at January training camps. The only problem is that Pujol is trapped in a time-warp, still wearing his 2011 Omega Pharma team kit, but without a professional contract for 2012, and with time running out.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

The surprising new shifting solution that blends the old and new is now available.

Tips that will save you time and money—and prolong the life of your bike.

The season has barely begun but already Chicchi has two straight wins down in Argentina at the Tour de San Luis. That is exactly two more than his entire 2011 campaign — he’d practically forgotten how to spray the champagne.

The Col d’Eze time trial, for many years a nailbiting finale to Paris-Nice, is set to make a reappearance in the 2012 edition, according to French sources today.

"I stumbled upon this concept bike that has been underneath the company’s creative director, Robert Egger. It’s the Shiv module re-purposed as a road bike and the Big S is saying it’s a one-off."

The cyclo-cross season's big finale is just around the corner, and while fans just can't wait until Sunday's main events - the elite women's and men's UCI Cyclo-cross world championships in Koksijde - the riders themselves are trying to contain the excitement, nervousness and stress. What is US champion Katie Compton's method for handling the pressure? Angry Birds.

If you were a cyclist in the late 1980s and ran across the early Gripshift units you can be forgiven for having concluded that SRAM would never make anything you’d willingly purchase. The shifters were wonky and bulky, and had to be positioned in a relatively inconvenient position.

Sidi began trading in 1960, that’s the first HQ in the photo above. It made hiking boots but within a decade moved into production of cycling shoes. Similarly Gaerne also makes cycling shoes, motorcycle boots and hiking and hunting boots. It too is based in Maser, in fact just a few hundred metres away from Sidi’s factory.

"I’ve met quite a few Neo-Pro’s and aspiring amateurs in my time, but I’ve never interviewed one as keen as Vacansoleil-DCM’s new signing for 2012: Bert-Jan Lindeman."

Look and Polar are finally ready to ship the world’s first pedal-based power meter, the Look KeO Power. As the name suggests, the system is based around a Look KeO pedal, combining data from 16 pedal-axle strain gauges and an externally mounted Polar P5 accelerometer and sensor setup to calculate power. The system will cost $2,200.

"Belgian firm Lazer caught our attention at last year's Interbike trade show with their innovative Magneto Eyewear System, which dispenses with the arms of normal riding glasses and instead uses two magnets fitted to your helmet straps to secure them in place. Now here's the only helmet that's currently compatible with it, the 2012 Lazer Helium."

Very good indoor trainer for riders looking to invest in a long-term static solution.

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

Team finalises new terms with star GC riders.

Look has found much success in their new Flag Series of bikes. Japan is currently the top seller, followed by Canada and France. Both Brazil and America flags are selling well too.

The Daily Distraction.

No proof provided over Liège-Bastogne-Liège claims.

“As Tour winner I could have signed a contract worth millions for several years. We demand more than 5.6 million euro.”  - Michael Rasmussen VeloNation

The Belgian national team riders had better ride for the Belgian national team (and not a trade teammate), or else they will be sent to their room, or have their beer taken away, or something.

This view of Marianne Vos is becoming familiar to her competitors since she returned to cross in November. Photo: Dan Seaton.

Czech racer Katerina Nash has had a busy season. She started with a win at CrossVegas, and spent much of the season racing on American soil, following the path of the USGPs, securing the overall title in that series, then taking the win both days at Cycle-Smart International. She’s also been dominant in Europe, taking the win in her home country’s Tabor World Cup.

Three teams apiece for the two big nations in windy desert race.

Upstart GreenEdge Cycling made its presence felt in the professional peloton this past weekend at the Tour Down Under. Although he never won a stage, Simon Gerrans delivered the overall victory to the rookie outfit on home soil. The victory gave GreenEdge the first World Tour win of the season and ensured that the hype surrounding the newest darlings of the peloton would continue.

This week over 200 mechanics assembled at an airport hotel in Atlanta, Georgia. Conference rooms smelled of hydraulic fluid and cutting oil. The mechanics had paid airfare, hotel and tuition to attend Park Tool’s ninth Tech Summit.

Nicely made, good looking and hardy name decals for that pro look.

Eyewear is a new string to the bow of Swiss cycle clothing brand Assos and due to their inexperience in the field, they brought on board no fewer than nine specialist companies – including lens makers Carl Zeiss – to help develop the Zegho range.

A fast, carbon-framed, fender-happy crosser from Trek.

SportRecon is a new event management site that allows promoters to not only upload video and photos of the course, but take advantage of integrated social media features and automatically generated registrant info.

"When I started researching the history of René Herse more than a decade ago, I never thought I would end up buying the company!"

Hailed as one of the biggest breakthroughs of 2011, Shimano’s Shadow Plus rear derailleur technology has gained quite a few fans since it’s inception. With so many people (including us) touting the benefits of the new wonder derailleur, it should come as no surprise that Sram may want to create something similar of their own.

Retirement thoughts on hold after USA Pro Cycling Challenge turns things around.

Tom Boonen makes it an Omega Pharma-Quick Step one-two as weather improves.

Tuesday's Tour de San Luis Stage 2 departs Fraga at 3:03pm local (1:03pm U.S. Eastern, 19:03 CET) and is expected at the finish at Juana Koslay at around 6:30pm local (4:30pm U.S. Eastern, 22:30 CET).  Tour de San Luis live streaming should be available for the last 30-45 minutes but perhaps only with a finish line camera; thus expect sprint finish and podium.

Simon Gerrans won the Tour Down Under on Sunday thanks to some careful calculations and a strong Willunga performance. He explained that he knew the race could come down to a close fight, which is why he concerned himself with placing highly every day.

"All hail FSA. Since it doesn't make a full drivetrain, it's an under-considered brand. But no other company is so dedicated to making flawlessly designed and executed, yet affordable, components."

Gabby has battled with a lung infection for the past week, which saw her as a non-starter for the last World Cup in Hoogerheide. The infection has taken a toll on her breathing, leaving her without the form needed to represent Great Britain and Renner Custom – Raleigh.

Although it may yet be cut short by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank) got his 2012 season underway at the Tour de San Luis on Monday. Like many European riders, Contador travelled to Argentina in search of some warm weather miles, but was instead greeted by torrential rain and plummeting temperatures on the opening stage.

Race organiser ASO has announced the list of teams invited to the Tour of Oman, between February 14th and 19th. Unsurprisingly, the list comprises the same sixteen names that are to attend the neighbouring Tour of Qatar – also run by ASO – a few days before. Included are the same eleven first division ProTeams, along with three Professional Continental and two Continental teams, representing the best of the Asian Tour.

Alejandro Valverde won Stage Five of the Tour Down Under last week finishing first across the line at the top of Willunga Hill, just ahead of Simon Gerrans. Contrary to what Phil Liggett would have you believe, this was not the Spaniard’s first race in two years. He actually rode until May of 2010 but his ‘two-year’ suspension was back dated to January 2010. Consequently, it was his first race in 19 months.

Tour Down Under organisers want to make another major change to the course next year as the Adelaide race becomes less of a sprinter's domain.

More than four months after a crash in the Vuelta a España put a premature end to Tom Boonen's 2011 season, the 31-year-old Belgian returned to racing in fine fashion at the Tour de San Luis's opening stage, playing a key role in the race finale for stage winner and teammate Francesco Chicchi.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

For the past few years, any time we get all hot and bothered over the shiny new parts at a SRAM product launch, tradeshow booth or demo, we’ve been doing so thanks to the hard work and preparation of Benny Cruickshank.

"Here's part three of the series following British cross-country mountain bike racer Oli Beckingsale's rehabilitation from the broken leg he suffered on the circuit last season."

"The hard training we do on the bike is only the stress that we impose, and is only half of the training equation. To maximize our ability to tolerate and recover from that hard training, recovery and nutrition are important tools. One path to improving nutrition can be via supplements, and First Endurance targets top-end performance with their OptygenHP."

One of the nicer iPhone apps gets some useful additions.

The world championships of cyclocross, which kick off on Saturday, will return to Belgium for the first time since 2007. And with reports of some 40,000 tickets to the two-day event in the coastal town of Koksijde already sold, the country seems to be living up to its reputation for rabid cyclocross fandom.

The Patrick UCI Cyclocross World Cup concluded in Hoogerheide, the Netherlands. Kevin Pauwels (Sunweb-Revor) defended his overall lead on a muddy course with style by grabbing his fourth win in the series.

Training camps are often more about logistics and team building than anything else, where riders and staff get issued their clothing and measured for bikes and maybe do a survival course or other team-building exercises.

"Andy White from fyxomatosis sent in this beautifully restored 1989 Eddy Merckx Team 7-Eleven with one of his signature stories to go along with it."

“As Tour winner I could have signed a contract worth millions for several years. We demand more than 5.6 million euro.”  - Michael Rasmussen VeloNation

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

After struggling near the foot of the WorldTour rankings for much of last season, Omega Pharma-Quick Step begins 2012 with a significantly bolstered line-up. While Tom Boonen will again lead Patrick Lefevere’s squad at the classics, the team has made a significant investment in stage racing talent, snapping up Levi Leipheimer, Peter Velits and Tony Martin.

The overlooked and underrated tightening tool belongs on every home mechanic's tool rack.

"The best solution to make a Campy drivetrain work well is to use all Campy parts. In other words, get new freehub bodies for his wheels and use a Campy cogset and chain to go with his Campy cranks, derailleurs and shifters."

"This news round-up is a compilation of stories that have caught our eye in recent days but haven't been covered on BikeRadar. From the latest product news to details of routes and events, we’ll be bringing you short snippets of information in one handy article."

Well pricey, but well worth it.

The rapidly growing number of frame copycats was a much discussed topic at last December’s Taichung Bike Week. In particular carbon frame makers are faced with more and more patent infringements and outright copies. To fight such unlawful competition the European Union published a report on the existing legal protection in the EU member states against “parasitic copying”.

How is this helmet not everywhere?

BikeRadar verdict:4 out of 5 stars. "This is the saddle that gets mentioned most consistently in dispatches from our regular riders and testers as the one to choose for their everyday trail needs."

The most famous stretch of cobbles in Paris-Roubaix is in danger of being dropped from the 2012 edition of the race, with poor conditions making it a greater risk than usual to the riders.

The Daily Distraction.

The United States overall has great disparities between bicycling and walking mode share, safety, and funding. Twelve percent of trips are by bicycle or foot, yet bicyclists and pedestrians make up 14% of traffic fatalities and receive just 1.6% of federal transportation dollars.

20% unemployment. Massive cutbacks in public funding. A looming credit downgrade. There’s no question that “La Crisis” marks a major threat to the fortunes of the Spanish peloton. But if recent history is any indication, the increasing internationalization of cycling will force a near-total collapse of the Spanish peloton in the next few years, if the nation can’t take the management of its doping cases more seriously.

"I instinctively jumped away on my own at the foot of the 2-mile climb to the finish. No one came with me, but I dared not turn to see if there were chasers. I was running scared. And then, suddenly, I saw a small crowd at the top shouting and clapping. They were cheering me on. I crossed the line with an arm in the air and, as soon as I stopped, I collapsed to the grass at the edge of the road, exhausted and exhilarated. I’d won my first victory."

Michael Rasmussen, who is currently racing the Tour de San Luis with his team Christina Watches, still has a legal procedure with his former employer Rabobank pending. The Dane, who was pulled from the 2007 Tour de France while wearing the yellow jersey, and subsequently sacked by his Rabobank team for having lied about his whereabouts prior to the race, is currently waiting for the verdict of a lawsuit brought before a Dutch court.

Ed Beamon has been running professional cycling teams since 1993; his 20th year in the management sees him accepting perhaps his biggest challenge yet; to build the Far East, and Asia’s first Pro Continental team – Champion Systems - into a successful player on the UCi Asian, European and North American Tours.

The cyclocross worlds is all about the Sunday, when the elite men and women line up to astound with their power and mind-boggling skill.

The Retroshift is a modified Tektro brake lever for drop bars that fits a Shimano friction shifter on the top front. Clement says this gives the rider quick, precise shifting even in foul conditions, making it perfect for cyclocross and touring bikes where more expensive integrated brake/shift levers might get gunked up too easily.

It's just a place in the queue, really; they're not asking for money yet.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Smooth-running and nearly maintenance-free stealth machine for urban environments."

Saturday, February 4th, 2012 marks the official start of the collegiate road racing season with the UCSD sponsored Boulevard Road Race presented by DAR.fm.

The 2012 (E)Bike of the Year Contest, this year for the 25th time organized by the Dutch industry association Rai Vereniging, has been won by Cannondale and Koga. The Cannondale E-series is honored with the Electric Bike of the Year Award while the Koga World Traveller29 wins the Bike of the Year Award.

Mondraker and the Austrian Race Team MS Racing owned by RedBull athlete Markus Stöckl have joined forces for 2012 to form the MS Mondraker Team, a UCI elite mountain bike team. The newly structured downhill team takes over from the previous Mondraker Factory Team after previous star and team leader Fabien Barel retired at the end of 2011.

17 year old Logan Owen is certainly a contender for a Worlds podium,  and we’ll be looking at him as a favorite for 2013 when Worlds moves to Louisville.

Monday's Tour de San Luis Stage 1 departs San Luis at 1:00pm local (11:00am U.S. Eastern, 17:00 CET) and is expected at the finish at Villa Mercedes at around 5:30pm local (3:30pm U.S. Eastern, 21:30 CET).

UC San Diego’s Boulevard Road Race in San Diego County is as close as you can get to an official kick-off to the Southern California race season. The UCSD Cycling Team is one of twenty-four schools that compete in the Western Collegiate Cycling Conference (WCCC). (Image by Mark Johnson ironstring.com.)

Czech's fans want to see more than just black, yellow and red at Belgium’s home race.

While the 2012 National Championships are over, many racers throughout the country have fitness and motivation to extend the cyclocross season to mimic the European racing. In Bakersfield, California, two days of racing wrapped up the season for both North and Southern California racers. Day one saw the finale of the Southern California Prestige Series. Stay tuned for Sunday’s report on the Nor Cal vs. So Cal battle.

The 29-year-old says he and his Lotto-Belisol team could not have had a better Adelaide campaign picking up the Down Under Classic, three stage wins and himself a stint in the leader’s jersey.

Acquiring the right DNA makes all the difference but it turns out the maternal inheritance from the X chromosome makes a greater difference. In plain English, your mother determines your athletic talent more than your father.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Tour de San Luis (All stages),
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #8 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

The last World Cup round of the 2011-2012 cyclo-cross season again proved a success for Dutch ace Lars van der Haar (Rabobank-Giant Off-road Team) in the U23 men's category. One and a half minutes after he won the race, three champions rolled across the finish together in 11th through 13th places. Italian champion Elia Silvestri blasted ahead of US champion Zach McDonald (Rapha-Focus) and Belgian champion Wietse Bosmans (BKCP-Powerplus). One week ahead of the world championships, McDonald showed that he's ready for a good ride in Koksijde, Belgium.

"The sound of gunfire and bike chains blazed through the suburbs of Adelaide Sunday as Team Sky and Team GreenEDGE began a messy turf war for control of the Commonwealth in the streets of the city upon the completion of the Tour Down Under."

Saturday, February 4th, 2012 marks the official start of the collegiate road racing season with the UCSD sponsored Boulevard Road Race presented by DAR.fm.

Vuelta a Castilla y León race director José Luis López Cerrón has revealed that this year's race will be cut from five days to three due to a significant reduction in its budget. Speaking at the Tour de San Luis in Argentina, López Cerrón said that the final details of this year's schedule and route have yet to be confirmed with the race's principal backers, but explained that the three days are likely to focus on the cities of Salamanca, Ávila and Segovia.

The Omega Pharma/Quick-Step Cycling Team has officially announced the squad that will participate in the Tour de San Luis in Argentina, scheduled from January 23rd to the 29th, 2012. The team arrived in Argentina on a flight from Paris last night. Levi Leipheimer, who was training on the roads of his hometown, joined the team from the US.

Says he’s still over racing weight after putting on 7.5 kilos after Tour de France.

French rider Damien Monier, who was hit by a car during training on Saturday, is in stable condition at the hospital of Clermont-Ferrand. Monier, who won a stage at the 2010 Giro d'Italia, suffered several facial fractures to his jaw and nose as well as a fracture to the base of the skull. Fortunately, there was no bleeding inside the skull, and the break did not affect the cervical vertebrae.

"We’re less than one week away from the Cyclocross World Championships in Koksijde, Belgium, and we recently talked to USA Cycling National Team Coach and former pro Marc Gullickson about what goes into selecting the squad for Worlds."

"Downhill world champion Danny Hart hasn’t sat on his actual race bike since he whipped into the finishing area in Champery, Switzerland in September. Instead, it’s been flying the Giant flag at expos all around the world since then. The bike Danny had prepared for the UK National Champs is almost identical though, and that’s the one that you see here."

"Fizik’s new line of Kurve saddles are designed to move with the natural movements of your body during pedaling. By using built in sensory receptors and a new type of base material that provides flex and comfort without the use of lots of foam padding, Fizik has created a new standard in saddle comfort for me."

"Here's part three of the series following British cross-country mountain bike racer Oli Beckingsale's rehabilitation from the broken leg he suffered on the circuit last season."

"My cycling buddies and I pledge at least once a month that we will finally buy the tandem bike.  But we never do.  Why don’t we?  Because if we buy the bike, we will in fact be riding tandem.  By all means, tandem riding is a skill and involves complex maneuvering, planning, and coordination, but regardless of the skillfulness, there is still some hidden comedy to riding a tandem bicycle."

The Daily Distraction.

Emma Pooley has called on both the UCI and the women's peloton to do more in a bid to grow women's cycling. The British Olympic champion was speaking after an uncertain period that saw her switch from Garmin-Cervelo to the Dutch squad AA Drink-Leontien.nl.

It's funny because it's true...

Jürgen Roelandts, who fractured a cervical vertebra in a crash of the Tour Down Under stage 1, has said he was eager to take up training again as he returned to his Belgian home with his Lotto-Belisol teammates. Wearing a neck collar, Roelandts told Sporza that he did not feel any pain as long as he held his head in the right position.

"One thing I never saw coming was hydraulic rim brakes. I’m trying to decide if they are a technological advance, or just a Mektronic on the path to disc brake Di2. Or EPS—no allegiances here."

Italian faces hearing on February 3rd.

The team has brought in a sprint coach with a strong track pedigree to help propel them to glory.

"Cabled shifting won't be obsolete, but for the foreseeable future electronic shifting will be the top of the line for Campy and Shimano. It’ll get lighte, smaller, better, cheaper, and more widespread, and eventually all pro teams sponsored by the big two will be on it."  - Andy Shen NYVeloCity

Belgian star can’t wait to get racing almost five months after his Vuelta crash.

The end felt like just another beginning. Cyclocross Nationals has already fired me up for next season.

An emotional speech from Australian cycling legend Robbie McEwen fired up his GreenEDGE team-mates before the final stage of the Santos Tour Down Under.

Following his overall victory in the Santos Tour Down Under, GreenEdge's Simon Gerrans became the first leader of the UCI's WorldTour individual rankings.

In years past, Katie Compton (Giant-Rabobank) has rolled into the World Championships on a string of victories, only to miss out to Marianne Vos (Nederland-Bloeit) at the the biggest race of the year. Vos has flipped the script thus far this year, however, and looks unbeatable going into next weekend’s championships in Koksijde, Belgium.

Greipel beats Renshaw to take final stage.

Saturday, February 4th, 2012 marks the official start of the collegiate road racing season with the UCSD sponsored Boulevard Road Race presented by DAR.fm.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

"Bell is: Beer, Sweaty, Baggies, Tattooed, Daily Driver; Bell is not: Design Center, Sanitized, Spandex, Garage Kept."

The amazing cardboard helmet - remember? - is still coming.

Sunday's (Saturday night U.S.) Tour Down Under Stage 6 departs Adelaide at 1:10pm local (9:40pm U.S. Eastern Saturday, 3:40am CET) and is expected at the finish at Adelaide at around 3:15pm local (11:45pm U.S. Eastern Saturday, 5:45am CET).  Tour Down Under live radio streaming will be available throughout.  Live VIDEO is also expected.

Some of the biggest stars in cycling will be presented for the 6th Tour de San Luis in Argentina today, with Saxo Bank's Alberto Contador, Tom Boonen and Levi Leipheimer of Omega Pharma-Quickstep and Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) amongst the starters for the UCI 2.1 race.

Kevin Pauwels (Sunweb-Revor) won a tactical affair here in Hoogerheide today, retaining his World Cup skinsuit in taking the series finale. Riders covered the fast course eight times, with the lead group swelling at times to more than ten riders. Pauwels, as series leader, finally seized the race, attacking late and opening a gap over last week’s World Cup winner Zdenek Stybar (Quickstep). Until that point, however, the race was truly anyone’s for the taking.

Better than it first seemed for Dutch and French riders, but World championship looks doubtful for both.

Best known for their bombproof and sought-after BMX hubs, Profile Racing has new Road/Cyclocross (R/C) hubs.  Made in the USA, the R/C rear hubs features the same 6 pawl, 68 step ratchet ring as the company’s BMX and mountain hubs- which should make them popular among big and powerful riders.

Women's race:
1. Marianne Vos (duh)
2. Daphne VDB
3. Katerina Nash

2011-2012 Cyclocross season action continues Sunday with UCI Cyclocross World Cup at Hoogerheide, The Netherlands.  This is the final event in this season's UCI World Cup.  There will once again be live streams.  Elite Women: 1:25pm CET (7:25am U.S. Eastern). Elite Men live stream: 2:55pm CET (8:55am U.S. Eastern).

Belgian professional Thomas De Gendt is a hard rider to classify but has the potential to be anything says Vacansoleil-DCM sports director Michel Cornelisse.

The Daily Distraction.

With less than two weeks to go before he is due to appear before the national anti-doping tribunal called by Italian Olympic Committee CONI, it appears that Riccardo Riccò may be attempting to sidestep the process.

Currently in Argentina ahead of the Tour de San Luis, Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank) has hailed Alejandro Valverde’s winning return to the peloton after suspension for his implication in Operacion Puerto.

“The winning mood and the ‘grinta’ is there.”

BikeRadar: Louis Garneau Revo XR3 road shoes review.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "With good fit and good looks an added bonus, the Revo XR3 is truly a shoe for all reasons."

"Cabled shifting won't be obsolete, but for the foreseeable future electronic shifting will be the top of the line for Campy and Shimano. It’ll get lighte, smaller, better, cheaper, and more widespread, and eventually all pro teams sponsored by the big two will be on it."  - Andy Shen NYVeloCity

"I've long entertained the notion of traveling with a bike but with airline fees being what they are (with notable exceptions such as Frontier), and the hassles of lugging a case around, it's usually not practical."

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Raleigh’s RSP Race saddle is a comfortable, value all-rounder."

The Bike Valet by Reclamation Art + Furniture is a simple, minimalist wall mount for indoor bicycle storage.  It supports one bicycle and features two hooks to serenade your helmet and gear.

The future of the Tour Down Under has been safeguarded for at least four more years following the announcement that current title sponsor Santos has decided to extend its backing.

Sunday's (Saturday night U.S.) Tour Down Under Stage 6 departs Adelaide at 1:10pm local (9:40pm U.S. Eastern Saturday, 3:40am CET) and is expected at the finish at Adelaide at around 3:15pm local (11:45pm U.S. Eastern Saturday, 5:45am CET).  Tour Down Under live radio streaming will be available throughout.  Live VIDEO is also expected.

2011-2012 Cyclocross season action continues Sunday with UCI Cyclocross World Cup at Hoogerheide, The Netherlands.  This is the final event in this season's UCI World Cup.  There will once again be live streams. 

"The cyclocross season is within a month of being over. As with the first leaves to adopt a brilliant hue in fall, the end of the World Cup marks the beginning of the end of a season. We approach the zenith of riders' campaigns at the World Championships, and then we slowly fall into to the off season where mud and barriers are replaced by cobbles and climbs that stretch longer than 200m."

Telenet-Fidea rider counters early pressure from non-selected Vanthourenhouts.

Australian champion Simon Gerrans leads the race with one day to go.

Oscar Freire speaks to Dutch news paper De Telegraaf about leaving Rabobank. “I gave the team the most wins of any rider. I had hoped for a little bit more credit,” he says after winning stage 4 in the Tour Down Under for his new team Katusha. He proved that you always have to take Oscarito into account.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

Three times a World road-race gold medallist, Oscar Freire is one of Spain's few Classics specialists. In the late 1990s, Freire was single-handedly responsible for generating interest in one-day racing in Spain, a country which traditionally produced countless stage race specialists.

2010 Giro d'Italia stage winner Damien Monier is in stable condition after being hit by a car while training today. According to AFP, the Cofidis rider is in a hospital in Clermont-Ferrand with fractures to his skull and face.

Mitch Docker is being treated in hospital after suffering serious injuries in a training camp crash with the Australian WorldTour outfit GreenEdge in Fall Creek, Victoria.

Mol has been bestowed with the title of the ‘2012 obscure pro’, an initiative started by the Port Adelaide Cycling Club to help give a rider who perhaps normally doesn’t get as much attention from the crowd his own personal tifosi.

Cyclocross Magazine’s Bart Hazen caught up with Julie Krasniak, the 23-year-old racer for the Rapha-Focus Cyclocross Team.

Kenny van Hummel really wants to see a kangaroo. The Tour Down Under is over half way through but still Kenny's waiting to see that elusive hopping musette marsupial. The Dutch sprinter won't settle for the two tame baby joeys the race organisers bring out at the start of each stage; nor does a sighting of Heinrich Haussler — the German Kangaroo — count.

Lazer's Magneto Eyewear System is immensely intriguing. Riders who don't have any issues with standard eyewear probably won't need to bother but if your heads have ever ached from glasses pinching down on the sides of your noggin, these will be a godsend. BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Slick magnetic attachment system actually works, and they offer lots of adjustment and high quality optics. Fit is only secure enough for road riding though, and they won't work well on narrow faces."

Saturday, February 4th, 2012 marks the official start of the collegiate road racing season with the UCSD sponsored Boulevard Road Race presented by DAR.fm.

The Daily Distraction.

The future of the Tour Down Under has been safeguarded for at least four more years following the announcement that current title sponsor Santos has decided to extend its backing.

"Doctors are increasingly treating below normal testosterone levels with (and Big Pharma is increasingly promoting) testosterone replacement therapy for older men. The therapy is based on research that tends to show that below normal T levels lead to various premature aging symptoms, low energy levels and low sex drive."

The average speed of the peloton has dropped remarkably since 2004. Research by Swiss epidemiologist Thomas Perneger points towards a possible relation with the use of banned substances.

Trek’s race department is heavily tasked. This six-man team must support the company's professional race teams and individual athletes, and use those programs to test new products and make existing products better – because at Trek, they race what they sell, and sell what they’ve raced.

"Cabled shifting won't be obsolete, but for the foreseeable future electronic shifting will be the top of the line for Campy and Shimano. It’ll get lighte, smaller, better, cheaper, and more widespread, and eventually all pro teams sponsored by the big two will be on it."  - Andy Shen NYVeloCity

"Cross-chaining always is harder on a chain, regardless of its length, and, even though you’re using rings in essentially the middle and inner positions, there is still plenty of cross chaining going on."

Format is one of our predicted trends for 2012 - here's your chance to try it out.

Sporza (via GvA) is asking this question today -- can BMC's Philippe Gilbert, slayer of pelotons in the one-day world, win a big stage race?

Menglers did some sifting and sorting on Stage 4 and Willunga Hill should do the rest. Michael Matthews is a sprinter who can climb a bit.

Greipel cracks, Kohler claims race lead once again.

Three times a World road-race gold medallist, Oscar Freire is one of Spain's few Classics specialists. In the late 1990s, Freire was single-handedly responsible for generating interest in one-day racing in Spain, a country which traditionally produced countless stage race specialists.

"I’ve asked for an interview with Mrs Rasheed on six separate occasions this week with no avail. In order to gain a balanced perspective, here are the questions I wanted to ask."

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

Tour Down Under organisers brought in road sweepers after tacks were found on a section of the stage four route. Is is understood the tacks were cleared off the road well before the race came through.

"The UCI regulations book can be a bit of a gem sometimes. This rule is a proposal according to Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad. It involves crashes in the final 3km."

How ironic is this, for the first time in its 16 year old history, the 2012 Le Tour de Langkawi will feature five former overall winners on the start line in Putrajaya on February 24: Tom Danielson (2003), Fredy Gonzalez (2004), Anthony Charteau (2007), Jose Rujano (2010) and Jonathan Monsalve (2011) will try to double up. Only Paolo Lanfranchi (1999, 2001) managed to win LTdL twice so far.

This new gizmo works with an iPhone or iPod Touch to measure, guide and motivate the rider, and maximize the benefit of each ride. “The iBike Powerhouse combines three technologies,” John Hamann, CEO of Velocomp, told BikeRadar. “We aren’t just used to riding things, but about tracking and measuring things, and the Powerhouse can do these measurements more precisely.”

It was 'open house' at UK distributors Zyro yesterday in Yorkshire.

Saturday, February 4th, 2012 marks the official start of the collegiate road racing season with the UCSD sponsored Boulevard Road Race presented by DAR.fm.

The past week featured all your usual suspects, delays, and some well-documented argy bargy. Don’t forget the Heart revival.

"The race is far from over and tomorrow’s stage finish on Willunga Hill will change everything, more on this in a minute. Before this I wanted to look around the race and see what’s what, from TV coverage to photofinish “controversy” and the Wouter Mol fan club."

The Tour of Qatar has selected 16 teams of eight riders to compete in its 11th edition from February 5-10, 2012. These dates will signal a return to business for many leading lights of cycling's elite.

Tour de France positive test case to be heard in 18 day’s time.

After a weekend in France, the World Cup season finishes up in the Dutch town of Hoogerheide on the course that hosted the 2009 World Championships. On Sunday, January 22, 249 athletes from 19 different nations will start the race in Hoogerheide. This is the final tune up race for athletes racing in next week’s World Championships in Koksijde, Belgium.

"If the legendary race director Vincenzo Torriani compared the Giro d’Italia to a big banquet made up of a series of tasty dishes (the route) and pleasant dining companions (the riders), in our era, it’s perhaps more fitting to compare the Giro to a big cinematic production. To be successful, a film needs above all a good script (the route), a cast of talented actors (the great champions), good distribution and a good promotional launch."

Former Giro d'Italia winner Denis Menchov returns to his Russian roots for the 2012 season after just a single year with the ill-fated Geox-TMC squad. His move to Katusha means he'll be competing on bikes from German company Canyon instead of his previous Fujis.

Effort levels are rated on a scale from 1-10, which can be especially tough to gauge without the aid of a power meter or heart rate monitor. Fractional ratings are even harder to discern, though. BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Won't make riding indoors fun but will help you make more effective and focused use of your time."

"The folk at Red Peak chained a 'fully loaded' bike to a post in New York City on January 1 2011, and set out to take a photo of it every day until the end of the year to see what happened."

The Daily Distraction.

Sporza (via GvA) is asking this question today -- can BMC's Philippe Gilbert, slayer of pelotons in the one-day world, win a big stage race?

Patrik Sinkewitz is the latest in a long list of riders whose doping cases have taken an extended period of time. The German was suspended after testing positive for human growth hormone (HGH) in February 2010, but his case is still pending before the German sports court.

"At Pavé, I used to begin each season with a team-by-team rundown of what I considered to be the top-20 teams in the sport, highlighting their goals, expectations, and offering my insights as to their prospects for the new season. But since I’m not sure Padraig has the time or the editorial patience for such an effort, I think I’ll take a bit more of a global approach to looking at the teams and riders you can expect to see building the major storylines of the 2012 season."

Tour Down Under organisers on Friday made good on a threat to sanction cyclists for urinating in public, handing fines to a dozen riders for "unseemly behaviour".

Two more riders signed from South American country.

"Cabled shifting won't be obsolete, but for the foreseeable future electronic shifting will be the top of the line for Campy and Shimano. It’ll get lighte, smaller, better, cheaper, and more widespread, and eventually all pro teams sponsored by the big two will be on it."  - Andy Shen NYVeloCity

With two weekends left in the SoCal prestige series presented by SPY Optic, the series headed to the high desert of California for another sunny day of competition. While it was sunny, there were cool desert winds that made for a slight winter chill and tactical racing on the fast dry course.

Every week, we’ll be compiling a round-up of news that's caught our eye over the preceding seven days but hasn't been covered on BikeRadar. From the latest product news to details of routes and events, we’ll be bringing you short snippets of information in one handy article.

BicycleRetailer: Clean Bottle makes case on ABC's Shark Tank.

Clean Bottle will be featured on the season premier of Shark Tank. Clean Bottle owner David Mayer teams up with NBA legend Bill Walton,to impress the panel of judges as he pitches the Clean Bottle.

"For me, November and most of December are rest months. That doesn’t mean that I don’t ride my bike – I use my bike for daily transportation – but there isn’t any “training” on the bike. I worked on my core fitness and went for a few short runs. Taking time off the bike allows my body to recharge, so it can build its fitness again to a peak during the season."

There's a good chance this will be useful for this weekend's ride, plus, race tactics and what to do with little training time...

One need only look at the profile to suspect that Greipel will once again steal the stage.

Stage win and leader’s jersey for German.

The UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup series concludes this weekend in Hoogerheide, on the Netherlands/Belgium border, with awards for the overall being given in all four categories. While the elite women, under 23 men and junior competitions are virtually wrapped up, the margin of elite men's leader Kevin Pauwels (Sunweb-Revor) over Sven Nys (Landbouwkrediet) is too slim to call.

2012 marks Joaquim Rodriguez’s third year with Katusha and the 32-year-old Spaniard is as motivated as ever to win a Spring Classic. Rodriguez discussed why he’d chosen to stay at the Russian team and revealed that he’d had past negotiations with a number of teams, including Garmin.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (All stages),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 10),
More...

French actor Alain Delon encourages Italian Giuseppe Saronni (R) during the 7th stage of the 74th Tour de France cycling race run between Epinal and Troyes, on July 7, 1987.

Buying a 10kg (22lb) mountain bike instead of an 11kg (24.2lb) one will cost you £2.48 per gram saved, according to the Environmental Transport Association. To put that in some sort of perspective, that's over five times more expensive than the price of scrap silver.

Finish looks interesting right? Look closer..! Last 4.8 km..!

After the near demise of the Tour Mediterranean last month, a number of other European Tour races are under threat from the global economic situation. Thanks to problems finding, and holding, sponsors, along with regional government supporters having their budgets squeezed, even some of the biggest of the second-tier races are feeling the pinch, and are in danger of disappearing altogether.

Andre Greipel won his second stage of the 2012 Santos Tour Down Under, his third win of the week including the Down Under Classic – it was the final confirmation, if any was still required, that the Lotto Belisol man is indeed the best sprinter in the peloton at the first WorldTour event of the season.

Tomorrow will be a big day of riding for the spectators on bikes. We head all the way up to Menglers Hill near the finish at Tanunda which will be a great place to watch.

"Cabled shifting won't be obsolete, but for the foreseeable future electronic shifting will be the top of the line for Campy and Shimano. It’ll get lighte, smaller, better, cheaper, and more widespread, and eventually all pro teams sponsored by the big two will be on it."  - Andy Shen NYVeloCity

BikeRadar verdict: 3 out of 5 stars. "Fiddly to set up but worth it if you value lots of float. Not great in mud."

Online video streaming is just starting to blossom in the fitness industry.

A german modder working with carbon fiber created these amazing ultra-light XO trigger clamps and derailleur. Compared to this custom carbon fiber X0 rear derailleur, the standard 10-speed SRAM model looks downright porky at 203g. Even XX pales in comparison at 181g.

The Daily Distraction.

Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke succumbed to injuries Thursday morning that she sustained in a fall Jan. 10 while training in the superpipe at Park City Mountain Resort.

"I’ll let the picture do most of the talking. Look at the star rider of amateur team TEAG Team Köstritzer, the one given the seat in the middle and holding the bike. It’s André Greipel."

In an exclusive interview with Cyclingnews, RadioShack-Nissan directeur sportif Johann Bruyneel has revealed that he sees Andy Schleck as the "logical" choice to lead the team next year, regardless of his relatively young age.

Team Saxo Bank has denied that Stefano Garzelli will join the Danish team. It had been reported earlier this week that the former Giro d'Italia winner would sign with Saxo Bank in the spring.

Ultegra’s derailleur motors are off the shelf items, so both the front and rear derailleurs are significantly bigger than their Dura Ace counterparts.

Canadian company's latest time trial frame goes to the edge of regulations, but UCI confirms it complies with the rules.

Pedaling along country roads warrants a specific set of safety considerations.

Today Wikipedia is going semi-dark (it seems to work after you do the Congressional member lookup function) to highlight its opposition to two pieces of US federal legislation, known as the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA).

Thursday's (Wednesday evening U.S.) Tour Down Under Stage 3 departs Unley at 11:00am local (7:30pm U.S. Eastern Wednesday, 1:30am CET) and is expected at the finish at Victor Harbor at around 2:43pm local (11:13pm U.S. Eastern Wednesday, 5:13am CET).  Tour Down Under live radio streaming should be available throughout.

134+ kilometers of racing from the “cosmopolitan shopping hub” of Unley, through the breath taking countryside of both the McLaren Vale and the picturesque coastal scenes of the Fleurieu Peninsula before finishing in the seaside town of Victor Harbor. The climbing starts right out of the gate.

Kohler takes over race lead thanks to intermediate time bonuses.

On day three of his return to competition after a long suspension, Alejandro Valverde showed that he is near top form with a fourth place finish on the stage to Stirling in the Tour Down Under.

While Belgian national champion Sven Nys (Landbouwkrediet) failed to land on the podium in last Sunday's penultimate World Cup round in Liévin, France, his fourth place finish was good enough to maintain his position atop the latest UCI cyclo-cross standings, released on Tuesday.

Besides Wiggins, he rates Levi Leipheimer (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) and team RadioShack-Nissan's riders as favorites. RadioShack's Andy Schleck and brother Fränk finished second and third, respectively, behind Evans last year.

Johan Musseuw is said to have suffered brain damage in his August 2000 motorcycle accident, leaving him with “frontal syndrome” which causes personality disorders. The Belgian cycling legend discussed the aftermath of the accident in Belgian magazine Humo this week.

Three Belgian teams also get important race invite.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (Start list),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 7),
More...

Wednesday's (Tuesday evening U.S.) Tour Down Under Stage 2 departs Lobethal at 11:00am local (7:30pm U.S. Eastern Monday, 1:30am CET) and is expected at the finish at Stirling at around 2:45pm local (11:15pm U.S. Eastern Monday, 5:15am CET).  Tour Down Under Classic live radio streaming should be available throughout.

WorldTour riders spoke out Wednesday, calling for stricter penalties to be enforced in the coming season on Movistar rider Vladimir Karpets’s free-flowing haircut.

Australian cycling star Stuart O'Grady will not be charged over an alleged assault. O'Grady described the allegations levelled at him by an Adelaide chauffeur as "completely outrageous" and strongly denied attacking the driver.

Sport often celebrates the “little guy” winning and Will Clarke’s win in Stage 2 of the Tour Down Under fits this script. I’m hesitant to label a rider like Clarke “little” because he’s an elite athlete – and tall too. So far his career has been a story of breakaways, in more ways than one.

"There's nothing I love more than seeing a guy like Will Clark have the kahunas to attack in the first two kilometers, stay out there with one other (Martin Martin Kohler), and hold off the pack to take the biggest win of his career. Absolutely amazing!"

VeloNews TDU video with Geraint Thomas: The G (on the) spot...

Australian cycling legend puts Stirling stage under the microscope.

Stefano Garzelli’s Acqua & Sapone team may have failed to land a wildcard invitation to the Giro d’Italia, but the veteran Italian might yet line up at the corsa rosa in May. According to a report in Wednesday’s Gazzetta dello Sport, Garzelli is on the verge of agreeing a switch to Saxo Bank, although his brother and agent has moved swiftly to downplay the rumour.

Frédéric Guesdon's professional cycling career likely ended on the road leading to Clare in South Australia yesterday. The 1997 Paris-Roubaix winner was part of crash in the final kilometre of Tour Down Under stage one. It was the first official race of what he planned to be his final season.

Is this the most aerodynamically advanced bike on the planet? Could be...

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "With minimal tweaking, these would be excellent wheels – they’re good as it is."

A good-value plastic cage that is a tenacious bottle holder.

The Daily Distraction.

Today Wikipedia is going semi-dark (it seems to work after you do the Congressional member lookup function) to highlight its opposition to two pieces of US federal legislation, known as the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA).

Giant Bicycle is working with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to recall about 900 road bikes because their forks can crack. The recall involves all 2012 model year men’s Giant Defy Advanced 0, 1 and 2 model bicycles and the women’s Giant Avail Advanced 0, 1, and 2 model bicycles.

With the 2012 season under way all the top teams have unveiled their colors. Among these team colors are the national champions jerseys. Just as the world champion wears a jersey with the “rainbow bands”, national champions get their special jerseys.

January might be the busiest time for a big cycling team. With pro cycling beginning in mid-January with the Tour Down Under, the craziness of the cycling season is already winding up. At the same time, there’s the all-important team launch to fit in there somewhere in order to celebrate the sponsors. It’s one last pause for breath before the crazy carousel!

Full-on tourer from one of the founding fathers of the Ti bike industry.

Today's video is a prime example of what happened when brand representatives slipped over their allotted time during our 60 Second Sells video series at last week's London Bike Show.

"No sport is 100 per cent clean - I think 95 per cent of the cyclists are clean. In the normal world, not everybody is clean."  - Eddy Merckx SBS

"It is said that one never forgets how to ride a bike—and for me that was true.  But—what I did forget (or maybe as a kid I never had the feeling) is the heightened sense of connection with people and the everyday things that I encounter on my ride.  No car bubbled around me to separate me from the world."

The Italian word grinta has become so prevalent in cycling journalism that a Dutch-language magazine in Belgium chose Grinta for its title. Translated, it means grit, spunk, bravery, or endurance. And when European sportswriters use the word to describe an underdog’s performance in cycling’s Heroic Era of the early 20th century, they are likely thinking of all four of those nouns.

Wednesday's (Tuesday evening U.S.) Tour Down Under Stage 2 departs Lobethal at 11:00am local (7:30pm U.S. Eastern Monday, 1:30am CET) and is expected at the finish at Stirling at around 2:45pm local (11:15pm U.S. Eastern Monday, 5:15am CET).  Tour Down Under Classic live radio streaming should be available throughout.

Chris Horner (RadioShack-Nissan-Trek) will return to competition at Paris-Nice in March in what will be his first race since crashing out of the 2011 Tour de France.

VeloNews: TDU video with Stuart O’Grady: Working class man.

The riders of WorldTour neophytes GreenEdge were the last to sign on for stage 1 of the Santos Tour Down Under. Following a lead-in that will have seemed an eternity to some, given that the project was nearly two years in the making, the professional peloton's newest outfit was clearly keen to just turn up and get the job done.

Andre Greipel of the Lotto-Belisol team survived a hot and windy day to lead the Santos Tour Down Under after claiming the 149km first stage.

The riders averaged only 32.7km/hr for 149kms into a headwind from Adelaide to the wine region of the Clare Valley. Some guys went through as many as 16 waterbottles throughout the race. Team SKY made up 80 bottles for the team and they ran out.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (Start list),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 7),
More...

"We've seen them at the pre-season shows; here they actually are."

3T jumped into the wheels game with their high end carbon tubular Mercurio wheels in May, then followed with the Accelero’s no-photos-included announcement in June.

There are increasing reports in Spain that the Euskaltel-Euskadi team is set to undergo a major overhaul in the coming months that is likely to result in non-Basque riders appearing in the team’s distinctive orange colours for the first time. The reports also suggest that former team manager Igor González de Galdeano could return to his former position after a year’s sabbatical.

German cycling star Judith Arndt had her first win as a GreenEDGE-AIS rider, taking out round two of the Santos Women's Cup in Adelaide.

The UCI has published the list of women's teams registered for the 2012 season, and the Olympic year has yielded a net gain of seven squads for the coming season.

"Campagnolo wins. There, that’s one of the two acceptable conclusions it would seem most readers will accept as just. I’m willing to bet that for most readers the sentimental favorite, the group of components that if—for any reason, any reason at all—I fail to find Campagnolo’s Super Record group the absolute winner of this little comparison, this subset of readers will feel justified in coming to the conclusion that I simply don’t know what I’m talking about."

"Contador tested positive for clenbuterol 545 days ago. Why is this so long? Here’s a timeline of events. By my reckoning, everyone involved has delayed and maximised the time taken."

"No sport is 100 per cent clean - I think 95 per cent of the cyclists are clean. In the normal world, not everybody is clean."  - Eddy Merckx SBS

CAS delay means Spaniard will line out in Tour de San Luis.

André Greipel from the Lotto-Belisol team may have won the first stage of the Santos Tour Down Under today, but his teammate Jürgen Roelandts has been diagnosed with a fractured vertebra after the race, following a mass crash within the final kilometre of the stage.

After unveiling the full carbon Carbine in July, Intense Cycles has followed up with a lighter weight, shorter travel XC/Trail version called the Carbine SL.

Off The Beaten Path: Inserting a Handlebar into a Stem.

Inserting a handlebar into a classic stem requires a few simple tricks. Grand Bois stems are based on classic stems, and are not equipped with removable faceplates that can make installation easier.

"Dubbed the “most advanced and most aerodynamic triathlon bike,” the P5′s mini-website now has this video and pics, but the link to full specs is forcing us to wait until Wednesday for all the specs. But we can tell quite a bit from the images…"

"We love the tradeshows and press events. They’re a smorgasbord of shiny new bicycle awesomeness. But day after day of lugging cameras, iPads, laptops and more around with nothing more than a few three-quarter-inch Clif Bar samples and 2oz cups of Kinetic Koffee fueling mad dashes across a couple square miles of booths can drain us."

The Daily Distraction.

The Italian word grinta has become so prevalent in cycling journalism that a Dutch-language magazine in Belgium chose Grinta for its title. Translated, it means grit, spunk, bravery, or endurance. And when European sportswriters use the word to describe an underdog’s performance in cycling’s Heroic Era of the early 20th century, they are likely thinking of all four of those nouns.

Bart Wellens (Telenet-Fidea) has spoken of the serious illness that almost cost him his life earlier this month at an emotional press conference, according to Sporza. The 33-year-old former World cyclocross champion especially spoke about the pain caused by innuendo about his condition possibly caused by doping, and the pressure this put on his family while he was still in hospital.

With the cat out of the bag on Magura’s year-long developmental partnership with Cervelo, we’ve got a look at the future of road brakes with their new RT8TT hydraulic brakes and levers.

"Okay, thanks to a few teams, there is some color to be found in the Pro peloton..."

Lezyne’s Alloy Dirt Floor Drive pump is a tool with a purpose. That purpose?  Seating and inflating tubeless mountain bike tires.  As anyone who’s tried to get a reluctant tubeless mountain bike tire to seat using a floor pump knows, that job can require a lot of air in a small amount of time- more than most floor pumps can deliver.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Superbly appointed shoes that offer excellent value for money."

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Otherworldly stiffness and reasonable comfort but cries out for better wheels."

BikeRadar verdict: 3 out of 5 stars. "As light as saddles costing considerably more – worth a look."

Light, quick, and efficient tubeless-ready wheels with some high-quality features.

Andre Greipel of the Lotto-Belisol team survived a hot and windy day to lead the Santos Tour Down Under after claiming the 149km first stage.

Tuesday's (Monday evening U.S.) Tour Down Under Stage 1 departs Prospect at 11:00am local (7:30pm U.S. Eastern Monday, 1:30am CET) and is expected at the finish at Clare at around 2:54pm local (11:24pm U.S. Eastern Monday, 5:24am CET).  Tour Down Under Classic live radio streaming should be available throughout.

CyclingFans will have full coverage of the 2012 Santos Tour Down Under including daily race photography, LIVE coverage options and video clips.

German cycling star Judith Arndt had her first win as a GreenEDGE-AIS rider, taking out round two of the Santos Women's Cup in Adelaide.

Specialized-lululemon’s Ellen van Dijk out to defend Netherlands’ perfect record in the desert race.

The first six wildcard places for the 2012 Tour of Flanders have been announced, with organising body Flanders Classics handing invitations to Farnese Vini-Selle Italia, Project 1t4i, Europcar, Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator, Accent Jobs-Willems Verandas and Landbouwkrediet.

No place for Sven Nys’ teammate as selectors go with the form book.

Anna launched her first performance clothing range last spring, and followed that up with a five-piece autumn/winter line. As a racing cyclist herself, the clothing is designed for women riders who like to ride hard but look cool.

The Central Coast CycloCross Series Finale at Fort Ord went out under mostly cloudy skies and stayed dry; this ended a remarkable season without severe weather conditions on race days. The course was uneven, firm-to-bumpy, consisting mostly of single track and hiking/biking trails and one paved section.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (Start list),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 7),
More...

Five times national TT champion; two stage wins apiece at the Grand Tours of Italy and France; four stage race victories, including Paris-Corrèze, the Tour of Britain and the Eneco Tour; and triumphant in Gent-Wevelgem – at age 21, the same age Eddy Merckx won the semi-Classic – and the Vattenfall Cyclassics.

"I have always found the month of January as a whole really serves to set the tone for what the year might be like. For some, it is the chance to continue the success of the past twelve months. For others, it is a chance at a blank slate, an opportunity to start anew, to forget the struggles of a year gone by."

CAS says panel members continue with work towards decision after parties given chance to challenge them.

CyclingNews: Rihs - I have total confidence that Cadel can win in 2012.

The owner of Cadel Evans's team has "total confidence" that the Australian cycling star can successfully defend his Tour de France title.

What are you doing here? From a moral point of view, do you even deserve to be back in the WorldTour? Why haven’t you admitted to your links with Operación Puerto and collaborating with Dr. Fuentes?

"No sport is 100 per cent clean - I think 95 per cent of the cyclists are clean. In the normal world, not everybody is clean."  - Eddy Merckx SBS

The Mellow Johnny's Classic mountain bike race is back for another year in 2012, but it will be run at a new venue. Held on March 3-4, the cross country race will again be a part of the US Pro XCT as a UCI category 1 event.

"Dubbed the “most advanced and most aerodynamic triathlon bike,” the P5′s mini-website now has this video and pics, but the link to full specs is forcing us to wait until Wednesday for all the specs. But we can tell quite a bit from the images…"

The TravelTrac Fluid Plus Trainer offers affordable convenience – a compact, lightweight trainer with adjustable resistance, that takes a few seconds to set up, and stores easily in a bunch of places.

BikeRadar verdict: 4 out of 5 stars. "Good all-round road wheels but a little weighty."

The increase of sealed bearing use in the bike industry has been a nothing short of a quiet revolution. The weight advantage, smoothness, cost effectiveness, decreased drag and ease of application have been the catalyst for significant leaps in performance and design in the past decade.

China's Guo Shuang won a third gold at the track cycling World Cup in Beijing Sunday, completing a perfect comeback after she was forced out of the competition last year through injury.

The Daily Distraction.

Update on GreenBlunder: Exciting details continue to emerge in the story of Stuart O’Grady’s alleged assault on his chauffeur driver.

“The body or the face?” the loan shark’s muscle asks, a droll query from a guy with a square jaw and a fist like a cinder block. The clear implication is that, no matter the choice, it’s gonna hurt. A good outcome is no longer an option.

The wildcard picks for the Tour de France are a mystery. Nobody seems to know when the decision will be announced – ASO’s press office haven’t replied – and the criteria for an invitation to the world’s biggest bike race are a mystery. Is a French exam involved?

The UCI appealed the Swiss Olympic Committee's decision to close the file on evidence linking Ullrich to the Operacion Puerto doping case. Ullrich retired after being implicated in the 2006 investigation, and was later linked to blood evidence by DNA testing.

"One more season of cyclocross in the books, as they say. My race is done, my muddy clothes are stashed in a plethora of trash bags. (I love that word, plethora). My flight to Denver doesn’t leave for another two and a half hours."

The company is asking retailers to immediately stop sales of the affected products. The company also is advising users to immediatly stop use of any Gore Low Friction brake or Professional brake cables that were installed using the Campagnolo-sized cable head. Cables installed with the Shimano-sized cable head are not affected by the recall.

The new owner paid $400 for this frame; a fair price. If he decides to keep it as is for now, he will now get many years riding out of this bike.

If you're after a road bike at a price that scrapes in under the £1,000 mark then I'd say look no further: it's a very compelling package and great value to boot.

PodiumCafe: A Conversation with Hed's "Repository of Knowledge."

Steve Hed refers to Andy Tetmeyer as Hed's corporate "repository of knowledge." His other titles are "wheelbuilder to the stars" and "lackey."

Aussie race kicks off 2012 UCI WorldTour - and of course our season-long Fantasy Cycling competition.

One week after capturing his first ever US cyclo-cross national championship, Jeremy Powers (Rapha-Focus) lined up for the penultimate cyclo-cross World Cup round in Liévin, France today. The 28-year-old already showed off his brand new team kit through various social media this week, but on Sunday afternoon he planned to honour the jersey in the star-studded field of a World Cup race.

Kevin Pauwels stumble gifts World champion his biggest victory of the year on fast French course; too easy again for Marianne Vos.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (Start list),
UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup #7 (Results),
Rendition Homes-Santos Women's Cup (Results),
Cancer Council Classic (Results),
UCI Masters Cyclo-Cross World Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 7),
More...

Reacquainted with Greg Henderson as his lead-out man, André Greipel (Lotto-Belisol) made light work of his opposition Sunday evening, easily accounting for Edvald Boasson Hagen (Team Sky) and Heinrich Haussler (Garmin-Barracuda) to triumph in the Down Under Classic, a 51-kilometre criterium in Adelaide’s East End.

Sky will have a chance to win the race overall of the Tour Down Under this year with Edvald Boasson Hagen. The race features its first uphill stage finish and stages suited to the Norwegian.

Emma Johansson (Hitec Products Mistral Home) has been hit by a car in training, she has reported via her Twitter page, and has sustained two broken collarbones. The Swedish champion was on the island of Gran Canaria on a pre-season training camp, with husband and team directeur sportif Martin Vestby, when she was struck head on by one car overtaking another.

Rising cycling star Rebecca Werner took full advantage of apparent confusion on the last lap to win the opening round of the Santos Women's Cup.

An ANT+ enabled receiver that mounts to sunglass arms, the Sportiiiis’ most unique feature is a boom that places an array of 7 green, yellow, and red LEDs in the rider’s secondary vision and audible alerts close to the ear.

"No sport is 100 per cent clean - I think 95 per cent of the cyclists are clean. In the normal world, not everybody is clean."  - Eddy Merckx SBS

"How much cooler would helmet cam video be with speed, G-forces, lap map, and lap time shown?  If your answer is “way cooler,” then Optrix’s iPhone mounts and $10 VideoPro app may well be for you."

Great visibility aid-highly recommended for prescription lens wearers.

Either this is a really, really good hack, a really good photoshop job or it’s a straight up leaked image of a future we all know is coming in the form of a Shimano Dura-Ace hydraulic brake lever.

The Daily Distraction.

Aussie race kicks off 2012 UCI WorldTour - and of course our season-long Fantasy Cycling competition.

CyclingFans will have full coverage of the 2012 Santos Tour Down Under including daily race photography, LIVE coverage options and video clips.

Many races begin for a reason, famously the Tour de France started because a newspaper wanted to create an event so impressive that readership would soar. Paris-Roubaix began because some industrialists in Northern France wanted to publicise the velodrome in Roubaix. A more recent addition to the calendar, the Tour Down Under has its genesis in politics, promotion and even a beer boycott was involved.

13-time Tour de France veteran Stuart O'Grady (GreenEdge) has been reported to the police following an alleged altercation between him and a chauffeur. The driver picked him up from a winery on January 10 where he had been a guest speaker at the Tour Down Under dinner, according to a report in the Adelaide Advertiser.

Showing off cheek bones sharp enough to slice sushi, McEwen beamed at the cameras while sporting GreenEDGE’s fetching inaugural kit for their debut season in the WorldTour.

BikeRadar verdict: 3 out of 5 stars. "Simple shape and firm padding work well for long-haul riders."

2011-2012 Cyclocross season action continues Sunday with UCI Cyclocross World Cup at Liévin, France.  There will once again be live streams. Live streaming video: Elite Men: 3:00pm CET (9:00am U.S. Eastern).

CyclingFans will have full coverage of the 2012 Santos Tour Down Under including daily race photography, LIVE coverage options and video clips.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (Start list),
Mars Cycling Australia Road National Championships (All races),
USA Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championships (All races),
New Zealand Road Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 6),
More...

After the whole shakeup and the arrival of Contador I think many of us expected continued GT domination. It seemed likely that Riis would turn the table on the Schlecks and stand victorious in Paris while his former protégées where once again relegated to second place.

"Cyclingnews caught up with Mark Cavendish yesterday at the Team Sky preseason training camp in Mallorca, and the current world champion and holder of the Tour de France green jersey spoke frankly about his career to date, his hopes for 2012 and how his new team has exceeded all his expectations so far."

After its team presentation in Milan this week, the Liquigas Cannondale team made its way to Sardinia, Italy for the squad's second training camp in as many months.

The year is less than two weeks old, and the season has yet to start in earnest, but Jakob Fuglsang is already beginning to have doubts over his future presence in the RadioShack Nissan team.

"The lawyers over at Specialized scored a huge win in court yesterday – at least according to the prepared statement issued by the company, following Friday’s verdict – in that a Santa Clara County jury found that Volagi co-founder, Robert Choi, had breached a contract with his former employer."

Cycling legend Eddy Merckx is confident the sport is "95 per cent clean", but also warned against reading too much into last year's absorbing Tour de France.

The Christmas week has come and gone, National Championships around the world have come and gone, and now we’re into the part of the season where the wheat is really separated from the chaffe, because if you don’t have anything left in the tank at this point, you are in trouble. So where is everyone and what are they up to?

"Many riders have surnames that are also nouns with a range of meanings. I apologize if this ruins your TV viewing, those once exotic Euro names can actually prove more ordinary but here are some more of the peloton’s names translated from their home language into English."

"I just arrived in Louisville last night to 20 degrees and snow!  My goal this year was to avoid a late season winter race, which was one of the reasons I chose not to race Nationals.  Looks like a bad choice.  After getting lost three times (yeah, guys do ask for directions), I finally found the Galt House and checked in for the race."

Day two of the London Bike Show meant more time to stomp the aisles and check out all the new bike and component goodness. With many stands selling to the public – including Madison’s retail area with big discounts – there were plenty of good deals for gear hounds to sniff out. Speaking of gear, here’s a quick round-up from What Mountain Bike’s Matt Skinner of some of the new shiny goodness that was on display.

Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) may have appeared to rein in his sprinting ambitions in the last number of years, but the Belgian believes that he can make an impact in bunch finishes again now that his recovery from injury is complete.

The Daily Distraction.

Newly crowned Australian road champion Simon Gerrans is the Cyclingnews forum users favourite to win the Tour Down Under, beating Team Sky's Edvald Boasson Hagen. The GreenEdge rider had nine votes with Boasson Hagen second with eight votes.

Project 1t4i – formerly known as Skil-Shimano – announced Felt as its bike sponsor back in September but we now have a first look at actual team bikes and livery, along with a more complete look at some of the rest of the equipment the riders will use in 2012 and beyond.

"No sport is 100 per cent clean - I think 95 per cent of the cyclists are clean. In the normal world, not everybody is clean."  - Eddy Merckx SBS

Triple Tour winner Alberto Contador, double Giro champion Ivan Basso and Michele Scarponi are part of a group of riders who have been summoned to testify in the trial relating to Operacion Puerto, where individuals such as the controversial doctor Eufemiano Fuentes could be given prison sentences.

For a brand new team that’s hardly got a ProTour race under its collective belt, GreenEdge has been subjected to a fair about of questioning about their roster composition.

He’s more Australian than most folks from ‘Down Under’ - despite the fact that he’s from Gent in the heart of Flanders - he’s currently writing a history of Australian cycling; he’s the Drapac team’s European Co-ordinator; he’s a photographer at the Gent Six day and he’s PEZ’s biggest asset and chauffeur at Het Nieuwsblad.

The lawsuit brought by Specialized against Volagi is over, and the tiny startup company is obliged to pay Specialized one dollar in damages for breach of employment contract by Volagi co-founder Robert Choi.

Sven van Eyndt of Belgium took the win in the first race of Masters Worlds, in the 30-34 age group. He was followed by US racers Thomas Turner and Andrew Reardon.

The year is less than two weeks old, and the season has yet to start in earnest, but Jakob Fuglsang is already beginning to have doubts over his future presence in the RadioShack Nissan team. The 25-year-old was a member of the Leopard Trek team in 2011, whose roster makes up just under half the roster of the newly merged team, but the influx of race captains, following the sponsors across from last year’s RadioShack team, makes him wonder how often he will get to race for himself.

The Tour Down Under begins in a few days’ time and the last two editions have seen Australian fans adopt an “obscure pro” and give him special encouragement. In 2010 they chose French neo-pro Arthur Vichot and last year it was Angel Madrazo of Movistar. This year Wouter Mol of the Vacansoleil team is the pick.

CyclingNews: Races & Results.
Santos Tour Down Under (Start list),
Mars Cycling Australia Road National Championships (All races),
USA Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championships (All races),
New Zealand Road Championships (All races),
Vuelta Chile (Results stage 6),
More...

The first race of the 2012 season gets underway next week — and it marks the return of fallen hero Alejandro "I didn't do it" Valverde.

Italian sprinter Alessandro Petacchi rates his chances of stage success at next week’s Tour Down Under that his Lampre-ISD team will enter with a two-prong attack.

CyclingFans will have full coverage of the 2012 Santos Tour Down Under including daily race photography, LIVE coverage options and video clips.

"I found Beppu absolutely charming. He was quite excited about riding with a professional team and very determined to be the best. He remains one of the nicest riders in the professional peloton and he is still determined to be the best."

BikeRadar verdict: 3 out of 5 stars. "Good all-round performance from a stylish and featherweight shoe."

The Six Day circus has moved on from Rotterdam to Bremen, but before we turn our eyes to Germany, there's a classic six that needs to play out its final two acts in the Netherlands. With four days down, there's only one thing left to do: the finale.

When Seven Cycles put Maureen Bruno-Roy (MM racing) on their new prototype carbon fiber and titanium cyclo-cross bike, the top tube said ‘Mohoney’ – a play on the name of their Mudhoney 'cross line. The Mohoney has since turned into the Mudhoney Pro, which will be a production bike in 2012.

"We've already covered the rumors about SRAM's pending hydraulic road disc brake setup over the past few weeks but one long-time hydraulic brake company may have been taking advantage of the diversion for its own road development. Magura recently released a teaser video on its Facebook page that admittedly reveals very little in terms of actual detail, but if you let your imagination run even just a little, there's enormous potential for not just a new brakeset but a whole new group."

After a blustering weekend of National Championship races, the World Cup series returns to Liévin, France, on January 15. 213 athletes will compete from 19 different nations at the World Cup in France and the newly crowned national champions will be eager to show their colors.

The roster of elite, U23 and junior athletes that will represent the United States at the 2012 UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Koksijde, Belgium on Jan. 28-29 were announced by USA Cycling today.

I’d be pissed. A list issued by UCI with all 2011 suspensions, sanctions and disqualifications was published on the website. No press release, no nothing. Just a simple PDF in a dark corner of the site.

There are huge changes looming for Euskaltel-Euskadi. They will leave the Basque-only principle and might even hire non-Spaniards. The team has been around since 1994 but from 2013 the ties with the Basque Country, or Euskadi, are cut loose.

Team Liquigas is fighting to stay in cycling as its title sponsor contract expires at year-end. Just as HTC-Highroad did last year, team management hopes to renew its contract or, failing that, to find a replacement sponsor.

Today's Quote

“The International Cycling Union (UCI) condemns the publication this week of information concerning the Alberto Contador hearing before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)...
The case of Alberto Contador is now in the hands of the CAS Panel. The UCI calls upon the sporting community to await the result of the deliberations of the panel with serenity and due respect for the judicial process.”  - UCI Press Release road.cc

The first race of the UCI WorldTour has the potential to be an expensive one for competitors and so teams generally try to keep their equipment to around the 400 kilo mark. Compare that to the 6000 kilograms of equipment that is in most team trucks in Europe and it's obvious that team are travelling light for the first race of the year.

Rain and heavy mud developed into snow and windy conditions.  Originally scheduled as three lap heats, the heavy mud and slippery mud saw riders turning in long lap times, resulting in a change to two grueling laps.

"The off-season is officially over, and we are back at it at the first of two training camps for RadioShack-Nissan-Trek. Camp actually started in Luxembourg with the team presentation to launch us into 2012. It was a great event with really good crowds. It was fun to see all the excitement for the team. I don't know if it was majority Luxembourgers there or a mix of people/countries, but either way, we are going to have a great following and fan support for the next year."

There's more to come but here's a taster of some of the things you'll find down at Excel this weekend.

The 650c Ardennes SL will be a clincher only with CX Ray spokes. Retail will be $1,1oo and claimed weight is 1,406g. HED will offer it with a Powertap rear hub, too. They use the same C2 rim extrusion as their 700c Ardennes rims, they just re-roll it into the smaller size. They’re shown above in front of HED’s standard 700c models.