Following the many controversies surrounding the 2012 ticketing system, cycling fans always had the consolation of being able to watch the road race.
A prime spectating spot traditionally is Box Hill, a National Trust-owned area of special scientific interest in the North Downs, just outside London. It is the toughest part of the course due to its relatively brief but intense climbs, and this is where riders will not only be moving slowly enough to properly gawp at, but also where potential gold medal-winning breakaways could be hatched. This all sounds great until it was announced that you wont be to able to watch here for free.
Organisers will charge up to £15 for 30,000 tickets for prime vantage points at Box Hill and up to £15 for 3,500 for the start and finish area of the time trial at Hampton Court Palace, having said admission would be free.
Up close and personal with the world's best
To many, this might seem perfectly fair. After all, those attending mountain biking events had to pay out anything up to £45, while tickets at the BMX track went up to £125. If you were one of the few to get track cycling tickets, top prices were £325. Others were not so happy, especially when you compare it to the 12 million-plus spectators a year can bag any prime spot for free at the Tour de France course.
Personally, we’re very disappointed. Cycling is undergoing something of a sustained boom in Britain. For the first time in decades, the UK has both men’s and women’s road teams with realistic chances of medals. It’s one thing for a young fan to watch the peleton swoosh elegantly past at speed, but being up close as they grind up a hilly course could get them hooked for life.
A scheme has been launched to reward people for walking and cycling in London, in a bid to reduce congestion and pollution and boost fitness in the capital.
Under the new programme, people can download a mobile app to collect points for journeys they make by bike or on foot, which can be redeemed against offers and discounts from a range of companies including Marks & Spencer.
It is hoped the “re:route” scheme will also make it easier for people to find alternative ways of crossing London during the Olympics, when public transport is expected to be very busy.
More than 100 short journeys on the Tube are thought to be faster on foot.
Under the scheme, users can enter their journey into re:route and see the different options, before being rewarded with five Recyclebank points on arriving at their destination if they have walked or cycled.
The app will tell people how many calories they have burnt on their journey and the amount of carbon dioxide they have saved by switching to green transport methods, to try to encourage more sustainable lifestyles by Londoners.
It also allows people to check the number of bikes at Barclays Cycle Hire docking stations, see what the weather is like and save regular journeys, making it easy for people who commute by bike or walking to rack up points every working day.
Another great cause that we at HardnutZ are extremely happy to have helped with in a very small way.
Patrick putting in the hours of practice
On the 13th July Patrick Jubb is attempting to be the first person to travel 1000 miles from John O’Groats on a purpose built Longboard using a spring paddle. He is taking on this amazing feat to raise money for The Psychiatry Research Trust, a great cause.
When we heard what he was doing we were more than happy to offer him one of our chrome skate helmets for his astonishing journey. Since then he has got his hands on a very special cloth Blue Peter badge which has prize of place on the back of his chrome HardnutZ skate helmet. We have had word since then that his helmet unfortunately has been called into action while he’s been practicing but the helmet did its job well luckily.
Special Blue Peter Badge
This really is a great cause and an incredibly tough challenge. He will need all the support he can get to help him through it. You can follow his progress through his practice and the challenge itself on his website www.bigpush2012.com. If you want to support Patrick on this brilliant cause you can sponsor him on his official donation page at www.justgiving.com/bigpush2012.
Central London was overrun by 10,000 cyclists on Saturday the 28th April, as the biggest bike protest ever seen in the capital took to the streets.
The mayoral candidates Brian Paddick and Jenny Jones, as well as Simon Hughes, the Lib Dem deputy leader, joined the ride from Hyde Park to Blackfriars. The protest called on the candidates in next week’s local and mayoral elections to make concrete pledges to make the streets safer for cyclists.
In London, despite the steady rain, cyclists of all shapes and sizes – old and young, male and female, lycra-clad and fancy-dressed – took over Piccadilly, Trafalgar Square, Parliament Square and Victoria Embankment, chanting for safer streets.
The London Organising Committee for the Olympics Games (Locog) has made what seems to be a strange announcement this week. They have ruled that the sights and sounds of the Olympic Games can not be uploaded to social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
This decision will include events that are available to non-ticket holders too like the marathon and cycle races. This has obviously been met by some negative comments from people who are looking forward to watching the Games and also bemusement as to how this will be enforced.
It has also emerged that traders and pub landlords who are not Olympic sponsors will be banned from using logos, slogans and words associated with London 2012.
Locog says official trademarks are reserved for sponsors and licensees.
The rules mean businesses will be unable to display the Olympic rings, the London 2012 logo or images of the mascots, or even use the words “Olympic”, “Paralympic” or “London 2012″ in advertising material.
HardnutZ try and help out worthwhile causes whenever possibly. We have donated helmets to a few different causes from helping out local clubs to this charity cycle.
The guys doing the Land’s End to John O Groats Challenge needed helmets for this extreme challenge while raising money for brain tumour research and support. We happily stepped in to help by donating 10 hi-vis yellow HardnutZ helmets.
On July 28th 10 cyclists set off from Land’s End, arriving on Leeds 1st August and John O Groats on the 6th August – covering approximately 930 miles.
With the Olympics fast approaching and because cycling has become such a big sport for Britain in particular in recent times it’s great to see so many people out on their bikes. We will be watching all the cycling we can but we are especially interested in the Mountain Biking discipline as it is being held just down the road from us in Southend.
Much like BMX, Mountain Biking is a young sport that has risen to worldwide popularity at an amazing rate. Fast, furious and occasionally downright terrifying, the sport developed in northern California during the 1970s. However, it quickly spread from its low-key beginnings and now has a huge following around the globe, which has only grown since its arrival on the Olympic programme in the 1990s.
A new Mountain Bike course will be provided in Hadleigh Farm, Southend, Essex, with temporary grandstands and facilities to be built in the run-up to the 2012 Games.
The venue was chosen because it fulfils requirements as a technically challenging course. The terrain is hilly with open grass land covered by low shrubbery. The site offers some fantastic gradients for mountain biking and great viewing opportunities for spectators. The course is set against the backdrop of the 700-year-old ruins of Hadleigh Castle.
Hope you enjoy the Olympics and get to see some of the Mountain Biking.
All Seasons Cyclist – Real world products reviews for avid cyclists.
Another great review for one of our HardnutZ helmets. This is a review from an American website and it’s interesting to see that they say they couldn’t find a Hi-Vis helmet in any of the American shops but they loved ours once they searched further a field and found us.
The reviewer says that he uses one of the top helmets on the market which is more expensive than ours and he couldn’t tell the difference between that and ours. It’s brilliant to read such good reviews from people who really know their stuff and he also says that he is also an advocate of hi-vis cycling clothing and loves the design, recommending it to all cyclists.
Snapper Bissell Hazen will go to almost any length to get the perfect shot. He’s put himself in places other wouldn’t dare in search of the best photos. Whether it be under, in front of and even hanging hundreds of feet above his skiing and snowboarding subjects as they speed down the slopes and off jumps.
Ice Jump from below
“Before I was ever a photographer, I was a hardcore skier and climber. I was caught in two avalanches and was fortunate to not get killed and I have had many friends perish or get very badly injured in the mountains from avalanche. When a rider descends a steep slope with fresh snow, the snow moves, and it can move very considerably, to where it can sweep you right off of your feet.”
This is where the biggest danger comes from for him. The positions he puts himself in get these amazing photos means that being caught in an avalanche or falling from a cliff is a real possibility. He said: “I have been a bit scared as I was doing a 180ft rappel and hanging about 100ft above a 50 degree slope and trying to get a unique shot. My backpack with my skis in it was feeling a bit heavy, pulling me backward and I was a little bit concerned about my anchor in the rocks.”
Bissell getting a face full of snow
Hope you enjoy the couple of pictures we’ve got here. They’re truly amazing angles that you won’t see from anyone else but he believes it’s worth it and thankfully that means we get to check out the results.
Another unbelievable escape on the slopes this year thanks to a ski helmet.
A British girl aged nine was on a skiing holiday with her family when she had the accident. She was speeding down a black slope with her family when she lost control and veered off piste. She went through a safety net and into a glass window of a wooden cabin before smashing into the wall on the other side. You can see from the picture below how lucky she was as she was travelling at at least 30mph and had a really bad impact, the doctor who treated her said that the only thing that saved her was her ski helmet – “There are no signs of brain injury. She was very lucky. She had good equipment. Her ski helmet saved her life.”
Accident ... nine-year-old British girl crashed through window of chalet
Tragedy ... doctors said girl's life was only spared because she wore a ski helmet
This is another remarkable story and really emphasises the need for ski helmets on the slopes. She was a very competent skier and simply just lost control which can happen to anyone. Thankfully her parents made sure she had the right equipment for skiing or this story could have been truly awful.
