Episode 1
The Grand Départ
Almost a year since the Tour de France 2022 concluded, its dramatised episodic version has landed. As an athletic spectacle we already know what will unfold over the next eight episodes - what I expect this binge to deliver is a caricatured version of the world's biggest bike race: the Tour de France, for want of more appropriate language, on steroids.
The principle limitation of Unchained, you may be aware, is that only certain teams have agreed to participate. It should come as no surprise that two of them belong to a couple of the loudest mouths in the business. Neither EF EducationEasyPost boss Jonathan Vaughters, nor Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl head honcho Patrick Lefevere is the peloton's Mr Popular, but they're solid choices as talking heads. Both have high hopes for the opening weekend. Vaughters is banking on his young TT specialist Stefan Bissegger, who is seen honing his position in a wind tunnel. He has been working towards this opening stage all year, we're told. Might that time have been better spent learning to corner in the rain? As Bissegger tumbles twice on wet road markings. Vaughters ask us to believe this is a rider going up to and over the limit. Lefevere sums up the surprise victory of Yves "I'm just a farmer's son from Belgium" Lampaert with uncharacteristic sentimentality. "It's always more beautiful when it's unexpected," he says. He clearly has a soft spot for Fabio Jakobsen, which is why he has been looking more towards the stage 2 sprint. We could all do without seeing his terrifying 2020 Tour of Poland crash several times more, but this part isn't for you or me, and it's what the 10-second skip button is for. This is for the uninitiated and about building up the fairy-tale finish in the land of Hans Christian Andersen.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der August 2023-Ausgabe von Cycling Plus UK.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der August 2023-Ausgabe von Cycling Plus UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Air Apparent - Pollution hasn't gone away. It's still there in every lungful, even if we can't see it in the air or on the news. But there are reasons to breathe easier, thanks to pioneering projects using cycling 'citizen scientists'. Rob Ainsley took part in one...
The toxic effects of pollution have been known about for years. 'Just two things of which you must beware: Don't drink the water and don't breathe the air!' sang 1960s satirist Tom Lehrer.Over recent decades, though, pollution has dropped down our list of things to worry about, thanks to ominously capitalised concerns such as Climate Change, AI, Global Conflict, Species Collapse, etc. That doesn't, unfortunately, mean the problem has expired. Air quality often exceeds safe limits, with far-reaching and crippling effects on our health.
No limits
Not every adventure needs to be that epic, says bikepacking Scotland founder Markus Stitz
UNBOUND UNLEASHED
Josh Patterson was one of 34 starters for the inaugural edition of Unbound in 2006. Now, with more than 5,000 riders taking part in today's event, he charts the rise of the most important race in gravel
FOREST COMMISSION
Looking for a goal race in 2025 that'll stimulate the synapses and live long in the memory? You'd struggle to do better than ENID CRV in Finland
15 OF THE BEST ADVENTURES
Featuring Yorkshire, the USA, Sri Lanka and more, here are our picks of the world's greatest gravel races and routes
The stuff of dreams
Ned sings the praises of the Paris Olympics road-race course
"I rode 3,000 miles around Britain on a bamboo bike to highlight our climate crisis"
Recordbreaking cyclist and triathlete Kate Strong, 45, took to the road to raise awareness of environmental issues
FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE
We venture into the hidden gem of the glorious Creuse, one of France's least populated regions
STAR TREK
New tube shapes and carbon lay-up makes the eighth generation of Trek's legendary Madone an aero and climbing bike all rolled into one
GOLD RUSH
With conflict around the world, Paris 2024 was a ray of light. Here are our highs of a mighty Olympics
