Video killed the radio star......

For some time now there's been a raging debate over whether the UCI are right in banning radios from pro cycling. I've lost count of the number of articles i've read where riders have either been for or against the ban and the odd one where they can't seem to make their minds up (Dan Martin in this month's Pro Cycling rider diary).
So, what do I think?
I think it's a pathetic attempt for the UCI to try to recapture the "glory" days of years gone past. I think that it's easy for anyone to look back with rose tinted glasses and assume that modern technology has ruined the sport of cycling. I hear it all the time from the elder males in my family when it comes to football. "Footballers were tougher back then" or how great players from the past generation were. I'm sure Pele was an amazing footballer but he wouldn't go the distance in a modern Premiership game. Whenever I hear great things about football from yesteryear, it reminds me of the classic chant from Fantasy Football League, "Old football was shit but not as shit as Andy Cole....."
Was cycling in the past that great? It's easy to remember classic victories from Merckx but we've seen our fair share of exciting races in recent, modern times.
Once again, it just appears that the UCI are stuck in a time warp and refuse to accept the future of cycling and the technology that it brings. I just can't see the advantages of racing without radios. The only thing I see it creating is danger and confusion. If that's what the UCI want to achieve, why don't they release a herd of cows into the peloton at random intervals during a race?
All I think will happen is that the odd breakaway will stay away when the sprint teams misjudge a gap through lack of information or the road book is wrong or the poor domestiques amongst the teams will be forced into visiting the team car more often, in addition to the usual water carrying duties. Are people really naive to think that pro cyclists can't make decisions for themselves? Do we think that riders like Alberto Contador are puppets and can only attack when race directors tell them to?
When I look back to my favourite races in recent years, I can only think of one race where radios were really significant and that was the one beautifully captured in Chasing Legends where Columbia HTC ripped apart the peloton during a windswept stage in the 2009 Tour de France. Did radios ruin the stage? I think they had the opposite effect and spiced up a stalemate of a situation.
It's important to remember that cycling in the past is exactly that, it's in the past. An era when technology may not have been present but widespread doping was. Were races more exciting for those reasons rather than the technological advances that we have become accustomed to?
Is it our fault? As cycling's popularity has increased and coverage is at the best it's been for years, are we the reason that races have become less aggressive? Do we expect too much? Is cycling the victim of it's own success and has TV killed the radio star?

Tour Down Under - Stage 1 Review

With determination and self control, I managed to avoid the lure of the internet and went all day without seeing the result from Stage 1 of the Tour Down Under.
After seeing the highlights, one thing is pretty clear - these early season opening tours are pretty dull. Wow, a sprint point, wow one king of the mountains climb.......
I am so glad that the highlights are only 30 minutes! Anyway, so Matt "From Bros" Goss benefited from Prince Harry leading him out and took the win ahead of Greipel.
I'm still not sure why Cavendish wasn't up there trying for the win but I have a number of theories:

Theory 1
He isn't in fact racing in the Tour Down Under and has merely been named to boost ratings.

Theory 2
Mark Cavendish is in fact Andre Greipel and dresses in a gorilla suit to take obscure race wins in a hope to claim two salaries.

Theory 3
Andre Greipel ate Mark Cavendish.

Theory 4
Mark Cavendish is using the Tour Down Under to raise fitness and get miles in the legs and will not compete any sprints.

Theory 5
Mark Cavendish is so busy getting it on with Page 3 girls that he forgot to race.

Theory 6
Cavs is taking one for the team and letting someone else hog the limelight.

Theory 7 (ties in with 6)
Mind games, pure and simple. "Hey Greipel, you're not even fast enough to beat our number 2"

Theory 8
Lance Armstrong paid Cavendish to lay low so he can capture the headlines in his farewell international tour.

Theory 9
Out of season dental surgery has again dealt Mark a cruel blow and a surgical mistake has meant that he's ended up with a massive set of 36EE boobs. He's now trying desperately to cover them up by cycling anonymously in the pack until corrective surgery or a Page 3 contract comes into play.

Tour Down Under

As I write this, the first stage of the Tour Down Under has already finished and the new racing season is underway. I'm now going to spend the rest of the day frantically avoiding any media outlets that will spill the beans and ruin the result for me. As per usual, i'll probably manage until mid afternoon and then will click onto www.bikeradar.com without thinking and ruin things for myself.
It's kind of hard though when you're addicted to cycling like I am.
And so, to pro cycling and the tour itself......
I saw the Cancer Classic crit race highlights on Sunday (surprise result beautifully ruined by a Facebook update from Team Sky by the way) and don't honestly know what happened to Cavendish and Greipel at the end. Anyone got any idea why they weren't there at the finish? Nice to see Matt Goss get the win though. He's come a long way since his 80's music success in Bros.
The main excitement though has to be about the Mark Cavendish and Andre Greipel showdown. Both are amazing talents in their own right but my money has to go on Cavendish. He's such a talent and it's refreshing to have someone who's so brutally honest all the time. Admittedly, he doesn't always say the right thing all the time but I like the fact that he wears his heart on his sleeve.
The other big news of the TDU is the international retirement of Lance Armstrong. Love him or hate him, I can't help but feel a little sad about his departure. He's raised the profile of the sport as a whole and I hope he can get into a break this week and give the fans a nice send off.