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He’s just Peter: Sagan goes topless (and blonde) as Ken for Barbie-themed cha-cha-cha – and survives another week on Let’s Dance; “People on bikes are really just pedestrians”: James May on “extremist” traffic controls for cyclists + more on the live blog

Happy St Patrick’s Day everyone! And to celebrate, your resident Irish live blogger Ryan has kindly given up his day off to keep you up to speed with all the latest cycling news and views. And the occasional Sean Kelly tribute, of course
09:05
Peter Sagan dancing as Ken in Barbie-themed cha-cha on 2025 Let's Dance
He’s just Peter… Sagan goes topless (and blonde) as Ken for Barbie-themed cha-cha-cha – and survives another week on Let’s Dance, as fans say: “I don’t care how he dances, but I’m really entertained”

What was your stand-out pro cycling moment from the weekend? Was it Matteo Jorgenson’s dominant, inch-perfect ride at Paris-Nice, which secured the American his second consecutive overall triumph at the Race to the Sun?

Or was it Elisa Balsamo’s canny, powerful sprint – and career hat-trick – at the Trofeo Alfredo Binda? Or 18-year-old Cat Ferguson’s hugely impressive third place on her WorldTour debut at the Italian classic? Or the flying Juan Ayuso’s dismantling of his Tirreno–Adriatico rivals?

Well, you’re all wrong. Because the real highlight of that bumper weekend of cycling actually came late last night, courtesy of Slovakian light entertainment TV.

Yes, that’s right. On week three of Slovakia’s version of Strictly, Let’s Dance, former Flanders and Roubaix winner Peter Sagan channelled his inner Ryan Gosling by discarding his top, plonking on a blonde wig, and spraying on an impressive set of abs (at least I’m pretty sure they’re sprayed on) to dance a potentially career-defining Barbie-themed cha-cha-cha… as the Ken doll himself:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Nový Čas (@novycas)

Now that’s what I call a proper world champion.

The legs could have been straighter in places, allowing for more hip action, mind you – but still, who had ‘Peter Sagan dancing as Ken from Barbie’ on their 2025 cycling bingo card?

And it’s fair to say, after a shaky opening jive, the seven-times Tour de France green jersey winner has really grown into the celebrity dancing competition.

Last week, Sagan and his pro partner Eliška Lenčešová scored a highly respectable 26 out of 40 for their waltz to Nat King Cole’s Unforgettable.

And for Movie Week (which explains the Barbie theme, in case you’ve never seen Strictly before), his topless cha-cha earned him a 24, even garnering him Len Goodman-approved sevens from two of the judges.

Peter Sagan dancing as Ken in Barbie-themed cha-cha on 2025 Let's Dance

> “My dancing idol is Patrick Swayze”: Peter Sagan signs up for Strictly Slovakia – but how have other pro cyclists who swapped their bikes for the ballroom fared?

And what’s more, the three-time rainbow jersey winner’s performances have been ‘Kenough’ to see him sail safely through to week four’s tissue-laden ‘dedication’ segment of the competition, which will see Sagan dedicate his dance to someone very important to him. I’m assuming it’ll be Oleg Tinkov, but who knows?

Plus, I think it’s safe to say the Slovakian public are loving every minute of Sagan’s ‘journey’ on Let’s Dance… which may have something to do with his lack of clothing (they did the same with poor Nico Roche on the Irish version of Dancing with the Stars, too. Can someone please throw these retired pro cyclists a t-shirt?).

Peter Sagan dancing as Ken in Barbie-themed cha-cha on 2025 Let's Dance

“I’m gonna eat it. He’s on fire. I always look forward to his performance. I don’t care how he dances, but I’m really entertained,” wrote Janka on Instagram. Alright, calm down…

“Well, Peter was extreme! I will watch this dance every night now, wish I had such a Ken at home,” added Kristina.

I sense a theme emerging.

However, Mayo noted: “Peter must be missing his bike, I can’t imagine him enjoying playing Ken.”

“But he did! And a lot!” replied a very enthusiastic Monika.

Peter Sagan dancing as Ken in Barbie-themed cha-cha on 2025 Let's Dance

Alright everyone, altogether now – ‘He’s just Peter, anywhere else he’d be a leader…’

10:22
James May Orbea.png
“You don’t need vehicle levels of traffic control for bicycles. People on bicycles are really just pedestrians”: Cyclists say James May “gets it” after former Top Gear presenter criticises “slightly extremist” cycling traffic lights

Cyclists have concluded that James May “gets it”, after the former Top Gear presenter criticised “vehicle levels of traffic control for bicycles” in a recent interview with the London Cycling Campaign.

Unlike one of his shouty former colleagues, May – a lifelong cyclist who appeared on road.cc’s Drink at Your Desk series in May 2022 – has emerged as an unexpected voice of reason in the cycling culture wars of recent years.

In 2020, he urged the then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson to “bomb us with bicycles”, pointing out that the £80 billion budget for the HS2 railway line would be enough to buy “every adult in Britain a carbon-frame bike”.

And in January 2023, the man known as Captain Slow during his Top Gear days voiced his support for introducing 20mph speed limits in urban and residential areas, which he believes is “plenty fast enough”.

May also argued that a “change in attitude”, rather than new signage or infrastructure, is key to ending road sectarianism, and last year spoke out against what he described as “nonsense” measures to strictly regulate cyclists.

James May builds a bike (YouTube)

> James May: “I can’t stand road sectarianism – it’s all b*llocks”

And speaking to the London Cycling Campaign for the latest edition of their London Cyclist magazine, the ‘James May and the Dull Men’ host continued this theme by arguing that cycling traffic lights are “slightly extremist”.

Asked what he dislikes about bicycle infrastructure, May told the campaign: “You don’t need vehicle levels of traffic control for bicycles. People on bicycles are really just pedestrians. A bicycle is just an elaborate bit of footwear.

“As long as people cycle in a sympathetic way, and pedestrians are still at the top of the hierarchy – the world belongs to people, not machines – then it ought to work.”

He continued: “For example, there’s a bicycle traffic light near me at Turnham Green in Chiswick. But really it should just be a ‘give way’ sign and we should allow for the wit of humanity.

“Not every action needs to be controlled. I find it slightly extremist.”

James May after charity cycle (James May, Twitter)

> James May forced to complete charity cycle in car after “busting wrist” in bike crash – and drives into bollard

“James May gets it,” Travis Nelson, the cyclist known on social media for riding around London with his pet cat Sigrid, posted in response to the former Top Gear presenter’s comments.

“Drivers need lights because they’re selfish and consistently drive dangerously, use their phones, kill people etc. Cyclists look out for others and cycle sympathetically, so lights are not needed.”

“Must say that while he always struck me as rational and very smart, I still didn’t expect to see such absolute sense coming from him due to his years on Top Gear (and long-term exposure to Jeremy Clarkson). This raises my hopes for humanity slightly,” added another Twitter user.

However, not everyone was rushing to agree with Captain Slow.

“Bicycles can travel in excess of 80 km/h. They are NOT equivalent to pedestrians,” said Peter Mills, presumably referring to cyclists riding down sweeping mountain descents, and not on city streets.

Either that, or he’s been reading the Daily Telegraph too much…

12:52
Giant profits plummet by 60% as inventory woes and heavy discounting bite – but bike brand confident of “recovery” in 2025

In the latest reminder of the challenging times facing the bike industry in the years since the pandemic, Giant has posted its financial results for 2024 and announced that profits were slashed by almost two-thirds last year, as heavy discounting and inventory challenges hit the business.

2025 Giant Trinity

Read more: > Giant profits plummet by 60 per cent as inventory woes and heavy discounting bite, but bike brand confident of “recovery” in 2025

12:29
Bike paths, Arkansas style

Check this out for a way to liven up your daily commute, courtesy of Bentonville, Arkansas:

“You can either ride on the road, a paved trail, a mountain trail, or a pump track with rocky ramps for launching in the air,” Larry Fleury, an Arkansas-based photographer, posted alongside footage of the city’s adrenaline-fuelled bike path.

“If I had trails like this when I was a teenager biking to school, I might have been more excited for that commute. I think this is just the coolest thing.”

To be honest, knowing my mountain biking skills (or lack of), I reckon I’d just stick to that lovely flat section…

11:46
Bristol cyclists most likely to experience bike theft in UK, new study finds – as councillors call for more secure bike hangars to be installed amid “unprecedented demand”

A higher proportion of cyclists in Bristol experience bike theft than anywhere else in the UK, a new study has found.

According to research carried out recently by Novuna Personal Finance, the total cost of bike theft across the UK equates to £2.4bn, with 70 per cent of cyclists having their bike stolen at least once.

In Bristol, that figure rises to 82 per cent, meaning the southwest city ‘top’ the charts for the highest percentage of cyclists affected by bike theft, followed by Newcastle (76 per cent) and Edinburgh (74 per cent). Meanwhile, 73 per cent of cyclists in Liverpool and London have fallen victim to bike theft at least once in each city.

> Police force admits bike thefts "unlikely to ever be solved" after spoof sign pokes fun at station's "Bicycle Redistribution Point"

The study also found that 51 per cent of bikes stolen were stored in public places and 30 per cent were stolen in owners’ homes – while 46 per cent of stolen bikes were locked at the time of theft.

And in the same week Bristol topped this unwelcome chart, councillors in the city have called for more secure cycle hangars to be installed in the city, after spaces in 40 new storage facilities were almost completely booked up within an hour and a half of them becoming available.

Bike hangar (Bristol City Council)

> 40 cycle hangars to be installed across Bristol in February... cue the Facebook comments

Last month, the West of England Combined Authority has installed 40 new hangars in areas such as Ashley, Bedminster, Cotham, and Eastville, providing secure spaces for 240 bicycles.

However, the roll-out of the hangars was hampered by both website problems and the “incredible” demand for spaces, which saw 227 of the 240 spots secured in the first 90 minutes – while councillors claimed in a meeting last week that there is “untapped demand” for hangars in other parts of a city deeply affected by bike theft.

“Bishopston is receiving two new bike hangars, however from conversations from residents there is a lot of untapped demand for more,” Green councillor James Crawford told the meeting.

“It’s great to see such incredible demand for these hangars. But there were a lot of suggested sites that were unsuccessful in this round.”

Bike hangar, Bristol

> Scrapped funding puts the future of 1,000 bike hangars in doubt

Ed Plowden, the chair of the transport policy committee, noted that the unprecedented demand for the storage facilities mean that the booking website, run by the West of England authority after it took over from Bristol City Council, struggled to cope with the numbers looking to reserve a space.

“We’ve had a bit of a problem with this. We had a long-standing way of suggesting bike hangars, and WECA insisted on putting in their own way of doing that,” Plowden said.

“Residents across Bristol responded really well to that. We’ll be working with WECA to ensure that when we roll out future phases, they’re based on information that we hold, as well as any new information that we can feed in.”

The Green councillor added that there is currently no timeline for installing new hangars in Bristol, but noted that some could be installed as part of liveable neighbourhood projects in the east and south of the city. However, he said that no decisions will be made until after May’s election for a new West of England mayor.

10:58
Home Office bike rack saga, part two

A couple from Essex who were fined £1,500 by the Home Office — after reporting a migrant who they found hidden in a bike rack on the rear of their motorhome when they got home from a holiday in France — have had their fine cancelled.

Cyclists fined over migrant in bike rack

Read more: > Home Office cancels cyclists’ £1,500 fine over migrant found inside bike rack

11:20
Reassuring bike stands of the week

Hmm… Can’t say those would fill me with too much confidence:

Reassuring.

[image or embed]

— Alison Stenning (@alisonstenning.bsky.social) March 17, 2025 at 8:46 AM

10:03
Monday morning podcast alert!

After obtaining a PhD, lecturing, and hosting a history podcast at Queen’s University Belfast, Ryan joined road.cc in December 2021 and since then has kept the site’s readers and listeners informed and enthralled (well at least occasionally) on news, the live blog, and the road.cc Podcast. After boarding a wrong bus at the world championships and ruining a good pair of jeans at the cyclocross, he now serves as road.cc’s senior news writer. Before his foray into cycling journalism, he wallowed in the equally pitiless world of academia, where he wrote a book about Victorian politics and droned on about cycling and bikes to classes of bored students (while taking every chance he could get to talk about cycling in print or on the radio). He can be found riding his bike very slowly around the narrow, scenic country lanes of Co. Down.

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Secret_squirrel | 28 min ago
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Small plea.  Can we not platform Travis who as well as showing himself to be a bit of knob on multiple occasions, is a fine one to talk about selfishness given he imposes his desire for 15 minutes of fame on his pet?

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stonojnr replied to Secret_squirrel | 57 sec ago
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Not a fan then ?

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brooksby | 1 hour ago
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Quote:

However, not everyone was rushing to agree with Captain Slow.

“Bicycles can travel in excess of 80 km/h. They are NOT equivalent to pedestrians,” said Peter Mills, presumably referring to cyclists riding down sweeping mountain descents, and not on city streets.

Either that, or he’s been reading the Daily Telegraph too much…

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