News

When the VN.com powers granted me my very own Friday morning column, I thought,“Oh great, opposite O’Grady’s Foaming Rant,” and visions danced through myhead of mouse cursors tracking past my by-line and over to the webletters@7dogs.com link to write in about masters racing, erectile dysfunction and George W. Bush (all topics that I promise will never be broached here).But then I decided, toiling in oblivion might not be such a bad deal. I can work on my lifelong goal of becoming ESPN.com’s next Sports Guy, though I don’t think I could watch enough “Saved by the Bell” to qualify for that gig.

“What have I ever done to make you treat me so disrespectfully?”– Don CorleoneYou've got to feel sympathy for Gerard Bisceglia. I mean, think about it. Being hired as CEO of USA Cycling must have been like being handed the keys to that nifty little bike shop downtown, only to find out that the previous owner was a crackhead, deep in debt to the local motorcycle gang, and the scooter trash had been running a meth' lab-slash-whorehouse out of the joint. You walk nervously through the ruined door, sagging on its hinges, hear broken glass crunching under foot, see bullet holes

The father of American randonneurs, Jim Konski, died of natural causeson December 17 at James Square Health & Rehabilitation Centre in Syracuse,New York. He was 85.The origins of Konski’s interest in randonnées, the highly popularEuropean form of competitive bike touring, was his friendship with Britishcycling journalist J.B. Wadley in the early 1970s. Wadley was one of thefirst Brits to ride (and write about) Paris-Brest-Paris, which was a probike race from 1891 to 1951. It was revived as a randonnée in 1961and has become that discipline’s Tour de France.Konski not only founded The

Notes from the road

Friday's foaming rant: Blood is bad for business

Dear Bob Mionske;I've always been annoyed at the thinly-veiled favoritism that exists in determining the use rights for off-road public land. In my area, horse-riders and hikers get access to almost all trails and many of the prime trails are restricted for their use only. As a regular mountain bike rider, I feel like I'm a second-class citizen. Various arguments are presented to justify these policies. For example, the head ranger at a local state park talks about the damage to sensitive habitat due to mountain bike use and the potential for accidents due to careless behavior. At

Ever since Stephane Girard decided he missed his native France too much, and left his post as USA Cycling’s mountain bike coach back in 2000, the national governing body had been promising to hire a replacement. But like many promises USAC has made over the years, this one didn’t come true — until now. On January 13, two-plus years after Girard left, USA Cycling announced that 26-year-old Matt Cramer had been hired as the organization’s new mountain bike development director. The new job will have two primary duties: developing young American mountain biking talent, and more importantly at

Colombia Selle-Italia Manager :Gianni Savio1 Munoz, Hernan Dario COL 2 Gonzalez, Fredy COL 3 Garcia, John Fredy COL 4 Marin, Ruber COL 5 Mesa, Huberlino COL 6 Khalilov, Mykhaylo VEN 7 Rujano, Jose' VEN Lampre Manager: Maurizio Piovani 11 Missaglia, Gabriele ITA 12 Sciandri, Maximillian GBR 14 Bertogliati, Rubens SVI 15 Righi, Daniele ITA 16 Pinotti, Marco ITA 17 Pagliarini, Luciano BRA 18 Serpellini, Marco ITA Domina Vacanze-Elitron-Rdz Manager : Enrico Paolini 21 Gonzalez Capilla, Santos ESP 22 Martin Perdiguero, Miguel ESP 23 Lobato Elvira, Ruben ESP 24 Cardellini, Lorenzo ITA 25

Legally Speaking - with Bob Mionske

Matt Cramer

Where the links come from

More from Italy and the Front Range of Colorado

A lot of the important work is still done by hand.

Dear Editors,Totally agree with Brad Libby. This sport seems to get more and more expensive. By the time my daughter may want to race, the fees will be $100 for a licenseLet's not hit people that are starting with high fees. Let’s find another way of getting the money.Pros could possibly work it into their budget when they make a proposal to a sponsor. The promoter could do the same. I know it's a lot of work to promote a bike race, but just pencil it into the budget: Free registration to all beginners.(See Brad Libby’s letter, “Give it up for the sport you love”)We've got to

Former Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich has finally made it official and signed a three-year contract with Germany's Team Coast. The 29-year-old Ullrich reached an agreement with the team earlier this month after negotiations with the Danish CSC team – headed by his former Telekom teammate Bjarne Riis -- broke down. Ullrich is earning less money with Coast - a reported annual salary of two million euros a year - than he did with the giant Telekom team. But Ullrich’s relationship with Telekom came unraveled after a troubled year in 2002, which saw him undergo two knee surgeries, face

Quick Step’s Kevin Hulsmans and Spanish rider David Arroyo of ONCE-Eroski will miss next week's Tour Down Under after training crashes on Wednesday. Organizers of the Australian tour said Hulsmans, 24, was hit from behind by a car in the center of Adelaide near the end of a four-hour training ride. He will fly home Thursday for surgery after scans identified a fracture of the left femur, just below his hip joint, team doctor Toon Cruyt said. Quick-Step manager Luca Guercilena said it was too late to fly in another rider from Europe and the team, which includes defending Tour Down Under

Ullrich joined Coast along with former Telekom director Rudy Pevenage and training partner Tobias Steinhauser

Super light; Super pricey

Ending months of speculation, two-time U.S. professional road champion Fred Rodriguez signed with the Italian Division I Sidermec team, joining tour rider Stefano Garzelli and fellow classics rider Gianluca Bartolami. “The economy of cycling is so low right now, “ said Rodriguez, who had been with out a team since his contract with Domo-Farm Frites had expired. “Everyone is so behind in their sponsorship schedules that I had to wait until everything settled down and Sidermec had the position for me.” Rodriguez joins Bortolami as one of the team’s main classics leaders. “With the experience

Investigators in the northern Italian city of Pordenone reported Tuesday that preliminary autopsy results indicate that cyclist Denis Zanette died of natural causes last Friday. The 32-year-old Zanette, who collapsed during a visit to his dentist’s office, apparently died of a previously undetected heart ailment, prosecutor Antonella Dragotto reported. "A cardiac pathology can be hereditary, but can be difficult to diagnose without detailed clinical testing (and can be) aggravated by a bronchial infection,” Dragotto said. She added the full results of testing would not be known for around

Four-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong said Monday he would continue working with controversial Italian doctor Michele Ferrari. The 31-year-old Texan told Le Figaro newspaper in an interview he worked on a daily basis with his full-time coach Chris Carmichael but had a periodic but limited six-year collaboration with Ferrari. "I am not ashamed of it, quite the contrary," he said. "There has never been the slightest ambiguity between us. I have never suspected him of anything, and until I have proof to the contrary I will continue to be fully confident in him. "What counts for me

Gerard Bisceglia continued his USA Cycling Reunion Tour on January 11 by meeting with a group of American Cycling Association executive-committee members, employees and licensees in Denver. After once again conceding the missteps of the previous administration, the CEO of USA Cycling made his pitch for the 2000-plus-member ACA – formerly the Bicycle Racing Association of Colorado - to rejoin the national governing body, which it left in 1999. Flanked by USAC marketing vice president Sean Petty, Bisceglia said the new USA Cycling “is not a Politburo that pretends to develop five-year plans

U.S. Postal’s Floyd Landis suffered a broken hip in a bike accident Saturday. In a press release issued Monday, the team reported that Landis suffered a complete oblique fracture of the right femoral neck when he went down hard on his bike returning from a workout at his local gym near his home in Murrieta, California on Saturday afternoon. Landis underwent 90 minutes of surgery at Inland Valley Medical Center in nearby Wildomar Saturday evening and had three titanium screws placed in his hip. "I was about 20 minutes from home and returning from the gym," said Landis. "I was riding down

Groenendaal wins in the Netherlands

Jan Ullrich is poised to sign a three-year contract early next week with the German Coast team, his manager Wolfgang Strohband said Saturday. Strohband said that the 1997 Tour de France champion should be officially presented by the team in Essen on Wednesday, January 15. "Now I'm going to get together with Jan and Rudy Pevenage and we'll meet Coast at the beginning of the week," said Strohband. "Some details have still to be worked out." Belgian Pevenage, the sporting director of the Telekom team for eight years, recently left the German squad to join former team leader

Fassa Bortolo’s Denis Zanette died after suffering an apparent heart attack at his dentist’s office in the northern Italian city of Pordenone in on Friday. Zanette, who had become a father for the first time shortly after the start of the Giro in May, collapsed suddenly and lost consciousness at his dentist’s office. He was declared dead soon after emergency medical personal brought him to Pordenone’s main hospital. Medical officials said preliminary reports indicated that the 32-year-old cyclist had died of massive heart failure. Investigating magistrate Antonella Dragotto immediately

Friday’s foaming rant: Juniors and masters and vans, o my!

He may have talent, but David Millar’s team thinks he hasn’t been living up to it. The top British rider in the European peloton has been told by his French Cofidis team to ramp up his effort this year and start living up to the potential that some believe might one day even win him the Tour de France. Cofidis manager Alain Deloeuil, speaking at the launch of the 2003 squad in Paris on Friday, said he wants Millar, who won a stage in last year's Tour de France to "start working harder". "David was a bit compromised last year because he was ill at the start of the season, but this

Everyone’s crazy except you and me, and I’ve been wondering about you lately.- AnonymousThe VeloNews.com letters column has been stuffed like a Florida ballot box of late with informed opinions about masters and juniors, rednecks and yuppies, and SUVs. Pretty much everyone agrees that one or another of these things sucks like a Hoover upright crosswired to a black hole, especially those SUVs. And it's true, the land-schooner commanders - soccer moms, George C. Scott-as-George S. Patton wanna-bes, and bondage aficionados with sweaty dreams of perpetual confinement in steel and leather

The UCI has released its list of 30 Division I road teams for the 2003season, taking the first major step in the process of determining whichsquads will participating in this year's major World Cup and three majortours. The 10 top-ranked teams among the Division I squads are automaticallyqualified for World Cup races and the season’s three major tours: The Girod’Italia, the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.The UCI's "Top Club"ibanesto.com (Sp)Cofidis (F)Team Coast (G)CSC (Dk)Fassa Bortolo (I)Gerolsteiner (G)Lotto-Domo (B)ONCE (Sp)Rabobank (Nl)U.S. Postal (USA) Other teams (Tour

It’s about as far away from a mountain bike race as you can get, but when the two-time reigning world cross-country champ decides to show up at Malaysia’s Tour de Langkawi it’s news. Roland Green has committed to ride in the 10-day road stage race in Malaysia as part of Canada’s national team. Joining the Trek-Volkswagen pro will be fellow mountain bikers Seamus McGrath and Peter Wedge, plus roadies Gord Fraser, Cory Lange and Alexandre Lavallee. And while it will surely be an uphill battle against a solid slate of Euro pros, you have to count Green as at least a dark horse candidate for

Greetings Mr. Mionske,I am a professional triathlete here in the U.S. I am Brazilian and moved here about two years ago and at first I stayed here as a tourist. Now I am a student in Florida. I am planning on applying for the p-1 visa. Can I do that by myself? If not, how much will lawyers usually charge for this service? F.B.Florida Dear F.B,The answer to your inquiry is located in section 214.2(p), C.F.R. A P-1 visa status applies to aliens who wish to stay in the U.S. temporarily "to perform at [a] specific athletic competition as an athlete, individually or as a team, at an

Editors,Given the volume of responses to my letter (see “Mostmasters agree”), I think it would be fair to let me reply. First,I have no political agenda, and I am certainly not one of the "spoiledvets" mentioned in Jay Kidd's reply (see “Biscegliais right”). I spend countless hours mentoring, training, promotingand racing with cyclists of all ages, including a number of juniors.What I get from some of these responses is a general impression thatmasters racers deserve less because some "17-year-old has a real chanceat cycling becoming a big and long lasting part of his/her life," and

Fassa Bortolo’s Michele Bartoli, who crashed during a pre-season training ride in Spain two days ago, has in fact fractured his pelvis, his team announced Thursday. "Michele has suffered a fractured pelvis and needs to relax," team spokesperson Miriam Nordman wrote in an e-mail to media, after confirming the rider's arrival back in Italy. "He will see a specialist tomorrow (Friday) to assess the extent of the damage,” she added. "We cannot say how long he will be out of action until he has seen a doctor. We will know more tomorrow." In his diary notes that appear on his personal

Legally Speaking - with Bob Mionske

Despite a name change, Mario Cipollini’s Acqua e Sapone team will enterthe 2003 season largely intact as it aims to build upon its successes oflast year.Cipollini, who had toyed with the idea of forming a team with formerTour and Giro winner Marco Pantani, will again head a team that includeshis trusty lead-out man Giovanni Lombardi.The team, now sponsored by the Italian resort owner Domina Vacanze,will include most of the same riders as last year, and in similar RobertoCavalli-designed, zebra-patterned racing uniforms. One notable absencefrom the '03 team is American Guido Trenti, who

The U.S. Postal Service team released its 2003 roster on Tuesday, listingan experienced squad of 20 riders headed by LanceArmstrong and Roberto Heras.From the looks of the team for '03, the team appears to be followinga simple "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" philosophy, leavingmuch of the 2002 roster intact. As Armstrong aims for his fifth consecutiveTour de France win this year he has a roster of 17riders with some grand tour experience to chose from."For the first time in a long time, we have been able to retain everyonefrom the Tour de France team and almost everyone from the

Fausto Pinarello shows off his latest creation, the Prince SL

ITM laser-etches warnings, instructions and recommended tightening torques on all of its products

Dario Pegoretti shows off his much in-demand Luigino lugged frameset

In addition to stems and bars, ITM produces steel tubing which is peeled off in flat sheets from these humungous rolls.

Editors,It may have played itself out in letters already, but I wanted to tossout a reply, as a master, and level the field a bit.I can honestly say that for every young rider with an attitude, I havecome in contact with a masters rider with not only a superiority complex,but also the unfortunate ability to make their comments and actions twiceas bad because they have the experience to pour salt in the wound withthe accuracy of a Navy SEAL sniper.I have met more than my share of "I am so above it all,” know-everything,critical-of-anyone, snobbish, nose-in-the-air,

Former world No. 1 cyclist Michele Bartoli could face a long time on the sidelines amid fears he broke his pelvis in a heavy fall while training in Spain his team reported Tuesday. It would be a bitter blow for the 32-year-old Fassa Bortolo rider, who had roared back to form after a series of injuries to win the Amstel Gold Cup race and the Tour of Lombardy last year. "I don't know much about what happened," team spokesperson Miriam Nordeman said Tuesday. "I know he hurt his pelvis and perhaps he has fractured it, but we'll have to wait and see how it is when he returns

Jan Ullrich lost out on a move to the CSC team run by former Telekom teammate Bjarne Riis because he asked for too much money the Dane revealed on Monday. Riis told the BBC Online he felt frustrated at the talks falling through after spending over six months devoted to luring the 29-year-old 1997 Tour de France champion to the team. It is believed CSC offered the four-time Tour de France runner-up and Olympic champion $1.5 million for a one-year contract but were unable to extend it beyond that because of uncertainties over future sponsorship in 2004. Their interest cooled further when

Nijs

Groenendaal: Lost the battle, still winning the war.

Most masters agreeDear VeloNews; Kurt Schmal's letter (see "Masters are the heart and soul of this sport" under Friday's letters, below) echoes the feelings of many masters racers. I was unaware of Mr. Bisceglia's comments. If USA Cycling truly wants to grow this sport with the youth of our country (see " Looking ahead: An interview with USA Cycling chief Gerard Bisceglia") they need to spend some of our money that is wasted every year (i.e. world championship efforts) on grass roots programs. The only way we will ever have a solid base of junior riders will be through

USA Cycling announced Friday that it will be sending a full contingent ofqualified riders to the world cyclo-cross championships in Monopoli, Italy,on  February 1-2. The U.S. governing body named its 12 nominations Friday adding to the list of automatic qualifiers  namedlast month.The 20 athletes nominated earned their spots on the world's squad based ontheir UCI cyclo-cross points rankings and their performances at the Shimano-USCFU.S. national cyclo-cross championships in Napa, California on December 14and 15. The U.S. squad is headed by four newly-crowned national cyclo-cross

For as long as bike racing has existed, riders and teams have bent the rules,made secret deals and used questionable tactics to affect the outcome ofraces. Are the rules of cycling more susceptible to infraction than the rulesof other sports? In the current issue of VeloNews our editors seek the answer to that question by talking to the athletes and managers who have walked the sometimes blurry line between fair and foul. In VeloNews’s first issue of the New Year, you’ll read about someof the memorable and bizarre moments of indiscretion that have occurred incycling over the years. Our look

Speculation about Jan Ullrich’s future appears to have ended as German and Danish news services reported Friday that the 1997 Tour de France winner plans to sign a three-year contract within the next two weeks with Coast, the German squad that is a rival to Ullrich's former team, Deutsche Telekom. According to German news and wire reports, Ullrich’s signing and the team’s apparent reinvigorated financial picture will almost certainly guarantee the team a spot among the final round of teams to receive UCI approval for Division I status. Indeed, if Ullrich signs as expected both Coast and

Dear Mr. MionskeI am a professional triathlete and have a question about a company using my picture in an advertisement in a way that implies I endorse the product(which is not true). Do I have any legal rights? I live in California, which is where the advertisement was run and where the company that ran the ad is located.Name withheld by request Dear Tri-guyThe unauthorized use of a performer or celebrity name or image may be a violation of both state and federal copyright law. The tort of “invasion of privacy, false light may have been committed. Your right of publicity may have been

Legally Speaking - with Bob Mionske

I resolve to try and emulate daily in some small way the grace, dignity,humor, good nature, and integrity of two friends sorely missed by many, JohnPavlat and Chris Ethridge. MikeMaverick Sports PromotionsEditors;I resolve to:1) Start slow and ease off.2) Thank the Lord that I can still ride.3) Help those who can’t ride find something to channel their passion.4) Raise as much money as I can for my daughter’s Children’s Hospital.5) Tell my family and friends that “I love them” each day.6) Pray for peace.7) And “kick butt and win a race this year”.Ron Heimburger Tampa, FLEditors,I resolve to do

Long-time bike industry friend John Pavlat took his own life a week ago inSan Francisco. Several readers have written in and offered thoughts on hislife.If you would like to offer your own personal remembrances, photos or anythingelse, please visit www.JohnPavlat.comChristmas 2002 delivered more than a sleigh full of sorrow for many as itbrought the untimely passing of industry veteran John Pavlat. The task ofwriting words to remember a departed friend, words that pay adequate respect,and do justice to a fine man is difficult. A closer friend or member of thefamily would do better.  However,

I am falser than vows made in wine. William Shakespeare, "As You Like It"New Year’s resolutions usually bring to mind the “Oh, God, I’ll never (insert vice here) again” class of vow taken upon awakening queasily on New Year’s Day under your truck in a friend’s driveway with a fresh cast on one ankle, your pants on backward and your mouth tasting not of sweet midnight kisses, but of feedlot mire, SuperFund sludge and baboon’s ass.OK, so maybe that’s just me. Whatever. These annual trench confessions, if I am making them, are about as reliable as a baby-kissing politician, particularly if the

Dogmobile

Hogmobile

Over December 14-17, the Saturn Men’s Team held a winter cross-training camp, near Winter Park, Colorado, to introduce new team members. Activities included snowshoeing, skate-skiing, and snowmobiling. VeloNews caught up with new Team Saturn member Phil Zajicek as he was loading up digital photos by the fireplace, after a day of snowmobiling. Velo News:Had you ever tired snowmobiling before?Phil Zajicek: Just once before, ten years ago. VN:What’s been the highlight of the camp so far?PZ: I'd have to say our hostess Chris at the Wild Horse Inn has been great. Her cooking has been

With the 2003 road season about to get underway, a number of Division 1 (andpotential Division 1) teams are still scrambling to complete their budgetsand rosters to become officially registered with the UCI. The delays arebeing caused by a number of different problems, headed by the uncertain economicclimate and the escalation in the number of professional riders in recentyears. With more riders available and with fewer sponsorship dollars to goaround, most teams have been cutting costs or signing fewer riders than inpast seasons.Indeed, when the UCI made its announcement of the Division 1

Phil Zajicek will be spending New Year's in an ice igloo

Final deadline looming for Division 1 teams

Jan Ullrich indicated Sunday that he will decide by January 15 if he willsign on with the Danish CSC squad or another team for the 2003 season.Ullrich’s agent Wolfgang Strohband told the Danish news wire service Ritzauthat Ullrich will decide no later than January 15 whether he will be theCSC team, headed by his former Telekom teammate, 1996 Tour de France winnerBjarne Riis.CSC director Alex Pedersen and Riis said Saturday that the team intends toconcentrate its efforts and energy on those already signed rather than tryingto try “at any price” to convince the 1997 Tour winner to join.Ullrich

News briefs: Ullrich ponders; De Clerq wins

After taking his fourth-straight Tour de France win, Lance Armstrong hasearned the title of the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year, beatinglast year’s winner Barry Bonds by 59 points.Armstrong and Bonds were the top two finishers for the second straight year, only this time U.S. Postal team star took top honors. Armstrong received 45 first-place votes and 292 points from sports writers and broadcasters. Bonds had 31 first-place votes and 233 points."Uh-oh, hopefully he's not mad," Armstrong told the AP, referring to Bonds. "It's nice to be recognized."Tiger Woods, who won the

Friday news briefs: Armstrong AP athlete of the year

Dear Mr. Mionske,My bicycle was totaled when it was run over by a truck. I was waiting at a red light on the right shoulder when the truck driver also waiting at the light, began a right on red turn. I saw that the trailer was going to hit me and tried to move out of the way. The wheel hit my front wheel and I jumped off the bike and was able to avoided being hit, but the bike was crushed under the rear wheels of the truck. The trucker’s insurance company offered to pay for the bike and asked me to get an estimate to replace it. My local shop provided me with an estimate for $3500, which is

Although this was not my first trip to Italy, this 12-day whirlwind was certainly the most eye-opening--not just from a tech perspective. My previous Italian experiences were limited to press functions where a manufacturer airlifts in a contingent of journalists, unveils a new product (sometime letting us ride it) and ships us back to the States ASAP. These trips usually end up being sterile slam-bang forays where one hardly spends enough time away from the office to adapt to the time change. While certainly not a summer backpack trip throughout Italy, this trip afforded me the opportunity

Legally Speaking - with Bob Mionske

The Italian connection

The Italian connection

The Italian connection

Look issues stem recall

Look issues stem recall

Technical Q&A with Lennard Zinn - The aerodynamics of drafting

Mario Meggiolan

The pin