The Top 5 Features of 2021

Another year has come and gone, and what an action packed one it was for cycling. Here are our top five stories of the year, from the Tour de France to lesser known climbs.

Will Chris Froome Ever Recapture Past Glories or Is the World Tour’s Best-Paid Rider Now Yesterday’s Man?

By Jeremy Whittle | Images by Chris Auld

The Briton may still command the biggest payslip in WorldTour racing, but after his latest lackluster performance in this week’s Volta a Catalunya, many are now publicly asking if he’s an overpaid has-been. That’s a harsh verdict on a multiple grand tour winner, but then as so many riders say, pro racing remains a ‘what have you done for me lately?’ sport.

Solving the Puzzle of the Secret Wheels

By Brad Roe | Images: Chris Auld & James Startt

Most visitors don’t go to family-owned Mexican restaurants in Andorra. While there, few diners would order ceviche in an oversized goblet and even fewer would back that up with a brave order of nachos stacked with local chorizo. But this is how I met Gaëtan Goron. He’s a journalist from Paris who was covering his first Tour de France and found the driver who delivered the Princeton CarbonWorks to Mathieu van der Poel’s mechanic that helped the Dutch star keep the yellow jersey on the stage 5 time trial at the Tour. But that’s not really the story.

5 Unusual Climbs in North America

Words & Images by John Summerson

While a large portion of America’s road cycling community can now identify many of the country’s major paved hill climbs, a sizable number of hills remain hidden and a few are unknown to most, essentially brand new. On these pages are five U.S. climbs that, unless you’re living right next to them, you may not be aware they even exist. I think most will be surprised that solid ascents exist in some of these areas; in fact, one of them did not, at least with pavement, until a few years ago. While several are rated Category 1 for difficulty, several others are not quite to that level. However, each is unique and contains several attributes—from isolated locations to great scenery and almost non-existent traffic.

It’s Time To Stop Calling for Blood at the Tour de France

By Sophie Smith

Our great sport really doesn’t help itself sometimes.

The peloton is battered, bruised and missing some of its biggest names after only the first week of the Tour de France, which has been marred by blame-game industry politics and well-documented crashes. 

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of the 2021 Tour de France

By William Fotheringham

From Pogačar and Cavendish to underperforming teams to crashes, William Fotheringham recaps all the memorable moments of this year’s Tour de France.