In this article VeloViewer Founder and Director Ben, highlights how tech solutions are used in professional cycling and how they can be applied to improve rider safety.
VeloViewer Stance on Safety
Explorer Tile Tales – Fuelled by Sausage Rolls
After tales of chocolate being exchanged for access to tiles, it seems VeloViewer adventures are fuelled by food – and this extends much further than a traditional cafe ride! In our latest tale British rider Peter Draper, a retired Professor of Nursing, shares how VeloViewer tile hunting has renewed his passion for cycling and increased his love of sausage rolls.
For our followers outside of the UK who haven’t had the pleasure of trying a sausage roll this is what you’re missing: a piece of sausage meat wrapped in pastry and baked.
Explorer Tile Tales – keep the faith
Discover how British explorer tile hunter and Vicar Graeme kept the faith to secure precious VeloViewer Explorer Tiles by using the currency of chocolate and the powers from above!
Over to Graeme…..
Effects of the 2024 Strava Segment Declutter in VeloViewer
On 26th September 2024, Strava announced “Segment Updates: Verified Segments, Decluttering and Leaderboard FAQ’s“. The goals are to remove duplicated as well as messy (bad GPS data) segments, tidy up the leaderboards (removing dodgy times) and to introduce “verified” segments. The result should be tidier segment lists for your Strava activities. Some of you will remember that in Jan 2021 almost all Zwift Virtual Ride segments were deleted (apart from Zwift-Insider’s segments used in the ZI leaderboard in VeloViewer ) which was a welcome relief to my API rate limits, given how many segments there used to be!
Tour of Britain – an inside view
When the Tour of Britain came to VeloViewer’s home town last week our Office Manager Rachel was on the scene in Sheffield to report on the event, and joined the Central Escort Group (CEG) for the race.
Here Rachel gives us the inside view on her experience….
Is it only a week since we welcomed the men’s Tour of Britain to South Yorkshire for Stage 3?
I had the absolute thrill of being invited to ride in the Central Escort Group (CEG) lead police car. It was an exciting opportunity to experience the race safety and security operations up close and personal, and in particular how the police use the VeloViewer WorldTour package to support their endeavours. West Yorkshire Police coordinates the CEG and is led by Sergeant Duncan Street. It is comprised of a lead and end of race car, CEG motorcyclists, plus is joined on race days by a group of National Escort Group (NEG) motorcyclists.
La Vuelta – All Eyes on Stage 20
Stage 20 looks like a stand-out stage in this year’s La Vuelta. It’s not only the penultimate day of racing but also the Queen stage of this Grand Tour featuring the toughest mountain riding.
From Villarcayo to Picon Blanco riders will face 172km with seven categorised climbs where the battle for GC and KoM points will make for an eventful day of riding, and captivating watching.
Men’s Tour of Britain comes to Sheffield
We have been eagerly awaiting the Men’s Tour of Britain having had a brilliant day out in Wrexham at the Women’s Tour of Britain back in June. With Remco Evenepoel, Julian Alaphilippe and Tom Pidcock all confirmed, it is set to be a fantastic event.
We were excited to learn early on in the race development that there would be a Stage in VeloViewer’s hometown of Sheffield, and it has been fun working with Rod Ellingworth (Race Director), Andy Hawes (Route Director) and their team over the last few months as they planned, recon’d and refined the routes.
Explorer tile hunting
Our favourite emails to receive are from VeloViewer subscribers with tales of their explorer tile hunting. We’re always shocked at the lengths people go to, but also inspired by adventure seekers who find new ways to claim a tile, along with the buzz it gives them!
We were contacted recently by British Columbian Anna Bonga who shared details of her and her husband’s mountain biking adventure with the sole focus of collecting tiles. The journey involved riding, climbing and bushwhacking through prickly bushes and alongside downed trees, whilst also carrying ice axes just in case the soil gave way and they needed to pull themselves back up the slope! Continue reading
Lidl-Trek’s take on the Tour de France Femmes
With the third edition of the Tour de France (TDF) Femmes almost complete, at VeloViewer throughout the Tour we have been working with teams to ensure they have the data they need to maximise preparation, race tactics and safety.
For Lidl-Trek’s Assistant DS at the Tour, and Head Director of the women’s team, Ina-Yoko Teutenberg, the VeloViewer WorldTour App plays an integral role in the team and individual rider preparation, as well as on race day. Ina gave us an insight into the run up to this year’s Tour.
How does the platform assist you in your role as a DS?
This is my 3rd year using VeloViewer with Lidl-Trek and we use it for each of the WorldTour races. It helps to provide a good overview of the races and prep for them when they’re far from home, as we have the detail of each stage to help plan and visualise the route.
Annemiek van Vleuten TDF Femmes Insights
VeloViewer has had a long-term working partnership with the legendary cyclist Annemiek van Vleuten, and, as the winner of the TDF Femmes 2022, she is the perfect rider to give us a perspective on how teams and riders will use VeloViewer in this year’s race.