Manuel Cardoso Takes Stage 4 at Catalunya 2011

After looking very strong so far in this year?s 91st running of the Volta a Catalunya ? he finished third in Tuesday?s 2nd stage – Team RadioShack?s Manuel Cardoso (POR) won Thursday?s 4th stage besting the field to the line in a bunch sprint in the town of El Vendrell, Spain. The 195 kilometer [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/manuel-cardoso-takes-stage-4-at-catalunya-2011/

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Laurier Avenue Cycling Lane

Cycling safety has been in the news lately. One cycling-related trial has just finished, another is about to start, and the province?s Chief Coroner has announced a province-wide inquiry into cycling safety. The City of Ottawa opened its first downtown cycling lane this year on Laurier Avenue. The city has needed this for a long [...]

Source: http://cycleseven.org/laurier-avenue-cycling-lane

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Shack Sets Powerful Roster for The Tour of Switzerland

The 9-day long, 75th edition of the Tour de Suisse starts on Saturday, June 11th, and as usual, it promises to be a real shoot out, with many of the sports elite stars making their annual pilgrimage to the land of private banking, precise time pieces and great chocolate as the traditional tune up for [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/shack-sets-powerful-roster-for-the-tour-of-switzerland/

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Ben Hermans, Top 12 at Brabant Arrow

Team RadioShack?s Ben Hermans (BEL) showed excellent form in Wednesday?s 51st edition of De Brabantse Pijl, one of the Flanders Classics, which kicked off in Leuven, Belgium and finished in Overijse some 201 kilometers (124 miles) away. He missed a move by the eventual winner Philippe Gilbert?s Omega-Lotto team when they pulled hard [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/ben-hermans-top-12-at-brabant-arrow/

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A Double Dare

In a little town in Northern Romania, two boys laughed as they wheeled up and down the street. I'm sure they would have been pedaling bikes if they'd had them. They didn't. But they had a wheelbarrow. It had a metal wheel that squeaked so loud you'd swear a 700-pound hamster was exercising in its cage. They took turns pushing each other around. The smaller boy had quite a difficult time pushing his larger friend up the hill, which only made them laugh harder.

No doubt the ride would have been smoother if their wheelbarrow was equipped with a shock and a top-of-the-line long distance touring tire. No blisters on their hands if they had custom gel gloves. And they could have mapped their progress up and down the street if they had a GPS-enhanced wheelbarrow-ometer. They didn't.

Their smiles challenge me. Okay Mr. Traveler, can you have as much fun as we do?

We are assaulted with so many choices and upgrade options. How can you proceed until you get the ultimate touring bike? The best digital camera? The lightest tent? The perfect panniers or tricked-out trailer?

Sometimes it's good to be reminded that you are way ahead if you simply have a bike.

Go out and pedal with as much joy as two boys sharing a wheelbarrow. I double dare you.

Photo: Romania -- 1996 by Willie Weir

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SIGHTS AND SOUNDS appears on Friday afternoons. Willie Weir is a columnist for Adventure Cyclist magazine. His latest book Travels with Willie: Adventure Cyclist will inspire you to hit the road and just might change the way you approach bicycle travel. He lives in Seattle with his wife Kat. You can read about their local adventures and life without a car at http://YellowTentAdventures.com/.

Source: http://blog.adventurecycling.org/2011/10/double-dare.html

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Tour de France?Without Lance

A few years ago the Tour de France experienced a time of transition. For seven years Lance Armstrong stood on the podium wearing the yellow jersey. When he announced his retirement we all new things would change. Americans loved being represented by such a dominant champion. The years between his retirement and comeback were interesting. We [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/tour-de-france-without-lance/

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