Toscana 2013

A World Champion on the track, a formidable talent on the road and all backed up with an impressive pedigree.

Taylor is definitely on the rise!

And Patrick Sercu, 68 today.

A Track Cyclist ‘par excellence’. Sercu is the record holder for the number of Six-Day victories, winning 88 events out of 223 starts.

Several of these wins were with his good friend and cycling great Eddy Merckx. 

Also strong on the road, he won the Green Jersey at the 1974 Tour de France. He is now competition director of the Six Days of Ghent.

Happy birthday gentlemen!

In 1986, LeMond became the first American and the first non-European cyclist to win the Tour de France.

A controversial figure for many, especially when it comes to Le Dopage!

However you may feel about him, he is a very important part of the history of this sport and is responsible for some of the most iconic stories and images connected to the Tour de France.

Major wins

Grand Tours

Tour de France

General Classification

(1986, 1989, 1990)

Young Rider Classification

(1984)

Combination Classification

(1985, 1986)

5 individual stages

Giro d’Italia

1 individual stage

Stage Races

Critérium du Dauphiné (1983)

Coors Classic (1981, 1985)

Tour DuPont (1992)

Single-Day Races and Classics

UCI World Road Race Champion (1983, 1989)

Hopefully enjoying his recent retirement, see previous post. Good on yer Robbie!

Happy birthday!

One of the most prominent French riders of his generation and now a National Hero thanks to his exploits in the Tour, this plucky Frenchman is always a pleasure to watch! Mainly because of his attacking riding style and a good old fashioned do or die attitude.

His amazing facial expressions and crazy tongue action also make for some entertaining viewing!

God bless you Tommy.

Major wins

Grand Tours

Tour de France

2 Stages

Stage Races

Étoile de Bessèges (2009)

Four Days of Dunkirk (2011)

Tour de Luxembourg (2003)

Single-Day Races and Classics

 National Road Race Champion (2004, 2010)

Brabantse Pijl (2012)

GP Plouay (2007)

Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec (2010)

Paris-Bourges (2006)

And Andreas Klöden, 37 today.

One time henchman of Der Kaiser and one of the most private men in the Peloton.

What’s Eating Andreas Klöden?

The elusive rider determined to stay out of the limelight.

Germany’s most successful active rider is also its most elusive and reclusive. Just how, after Klöden’s decade and a half in the pro peloton, did it come to this?

When Andreas Klöden calls time on his career at the end of this year or next, he will most likely never have won a major tour, but in one respect he may have succeeded where all of his illustrious former teammates and contemporaries failed.

For seven years Lance Armstrong out-rode Jan Ullrich. Alberto Contador eventually raced away from Armstrong. Yet none of that trio ever scored a victory as emphatic and definitive as Klöden’s over an even more obdurate opponent. No, Klöden never beat Armstrong, he spent a career playing second fiddle to Ullrich, and he was Contador’s underling. But – and it’s a big one – he has comprehensively trounced, possibly seen off for good, the media.

“Ah, you ask for an interview with Klöden but it’s not so easy,” says the RadioShack-Nissan press chief Philippe Maertens, proving that euphemisms…

Read the full story on CyclingNews.com

Major wins

 National Road Race Champion (2004)
Paris–Nice (2000)
Vuelta al País Vasco (2000, 2011)
Tirrenno-Adriatico (2007)
Tour de Romandie (2008)
1 TTT Stage Tour de France

Happy birthday gentlemen!

A hulk of a rider with enormous power. It’s little wonder that he won Paris Roubaix, his favourite race, three times in a row!

Also synonymous with the pursuit of the Hour Record, and some controversial/suspect training methods! On the 19th January 1984, in Mexico City, Moser broke the famed 1972 time of Eddy Merckx, after long physical preparation. He rode 50.808 km’s on a radical and high-tech aerodynamic bike (which used aero bars and full disc wheels), which was far more advanced than the conventional track bike which The Cannibal used in 1972.

Major wins

Giro d’Italia (1984)
World Road Cycling Champion (1977)
Milan – San Remo (1984)
Paris–Roubaix (1978, 1979, 1980)
Giro di Lombardia (1975, 1978)
La Flèche Wallonne (1977)
Paris–Tours (1974)
Tirreno–Adriatico (1980, 1981)
Gent–Wevelgem (1979)
Züri-Metzgete (1977)

Happy Birthday!

With another beautiful illustration. The perfect choice to advertise a new vintage bike event in the homeland of Serse and Fausto Coppi.

La Matica 2012

All details for this unique event can be found at lamitica.

Some more Guasco gems…

THE greatest cyclist of all time and one of the coolest dude’s on the planet!

He was and will always remain, The Boss!!!

Major Wins

Grand Tours

Tour de France

General Classification (1969, 1970,1971, 1972, 1974)

Points Classification (1969, 1971, 1972)

Mountain Classification (1969, 1970)

Combativity award (1969, 1970, 1974,1975)

Combination Classification (1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974)

34 Individual Stages (1969–1975)

Giro d’Italia

General Classification (1968, 1970,1972, 1973, 1974)

Points Classification (1968, 1973)

Mountain Classification (1968)

24 Individual Stages (1968–1974)

Vuelta a España

General Classification (1973)

Points Classification (1973)

Combination Classification (1973)

6 Individual Stages

Stage Races

Paris–Nice

General classification (1969, 1970, 1971)

Tour de Suisse

General classification (1974)

Single-Day Races and Classics

Road Race World Championships (1967, 1971, 1974)

Belgian National Road Race Championship(1970)

Milan – San Remo (1966, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1976)

Ronde van Vlaanderen (1969, 1975)

Paris–Roubaix (1968, 1970, 1973)

Liège–Bastogne–Liège (1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975)

Giro di Lombardia (1971, 1972)

Super Prestige Pernod International (1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975)

LEGEND!!!

And Sven Nys, 36 today.

Considered as one of the greatest cyclo-cross racers ever by his peers and prominent figures of the cyclo-cross world; he is the leading man in cyclo-cross in the 21st century.

Known as ‘The General’ or ‘The Cannibal from Baal’ he is indeed, a beast!!!

Major wins

UCI Cyclo-Cross World Cup

Overall standings

(2000, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009)

46 individual races

Cyclo-cross Superprestige

Overall standings

(1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006,2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012)

55 individual races

GvA Trophy

Overall standings

(2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009,2010, 2011)

42 individual races

 Cyclo-Cross World Champion

(2005)

 National Cyclo-Cross Champion

(2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012)

 National Mountainbike Champion

(2005)

Happy birthday gentlemen!!!

Dario Pegoretti recently held a “Tornemo Indrio” (back to the roots) workshop. Over 4 days he would teach some very lucky people how to build bike frames with the traditional Italian technique. Andrew Denham of The Bicycle Academy was one of them! His original post on road.cc can be found here.

Tornemo Indrio – A sneaky peak

What a lovely little film. It looks like it was a wonderful experience, how I wish I could have been there!

More info and DVD pre-order here