4w ago

UCI to trial maximum gearing rule — but will it really make racing safer?

road.cc

7 comments

Why not just limit the distance that knobheads can approach the streets?
I'm not a pro racer but I'd assume that reducing/preventing the number of people standing on the tracks will significantly reduce the number of injured cyclists/racers.
- Have you ever been to the Tour de France? It's totally impossible - they are racing 200-300km every day. People are showing up randomly everywhere, ten- or hundredthousand coming from every direction. They are kind of clearing the way by pushing through all team cars and the advertising convoi before the riders. But if somebody decides to stand in the way, there is nothing to prevent that
  
  I actually thought of a better plan than my previous comment:
  Whoever decides to enter the streets/track area during an active race is fined proportional to the number of competitors with the money going into the competitor's medical fees/health insurance, next event's prize pool, local charity/nonprofit organization.
  Easy to track:
  Cameras everywhere by spectators, I'd imagine it's impossible to escape perception at an event like this.
  Easy to enforce:
  most if not all spectators would probably agree with the idea.
  good luck fending off a classaction lawsuit from the competitors, event hosters, and maybe even some spectators for ruining the event.
Of course it won't. The uci's arbitrary rules have always been bullshit.
- Gawd, I hate the UCI. The UCI's fuckery holds back bicycling and innovation. Once in a while, the rules make sense for safety, e.g. aerobars banned for mass starts. But the rest of the time, they're just pissing in the well.
- I have no interest in racing or anything UCI-related. But those rules are shaping bicycle design and stuff that is banned by the UCI will vanish from the market or be extremely expensive as it is totally niche. I would like to have some aero-attachements on my bike, but since they are banned, they are simply not available.
  And let's be clear: At a certain level money can buy you victory. Show up with an expensive, state-of-the-art bike at your local race and you will have an advantage. You still need to produce the watts, but if the UCI really wants fairness, they need to standardize on a road bike for everyone with the same components and stats.
  
  That's what I don't get.
  There are racing sports that are about the technology, then the constructors are a main component of the sport (like in F1), or the gear is standardized (at least to a point where there's no meaningful difference).

7 comments