Sunday 28 October 2012

Shame about Sean

I was particularly saddened to hear of Sean Yates departure from Team Sky. It was always on the cards given his long association with Lance, Bruyneel and a career that coincided with the early EPO years. However he was so often the lone Brit in the Peleton, and the kind of rider I admired. Strong time trialist, a tough guy whose job it was to ride on the front of the bunch and dish it out.
There is a wonderful photograph of him on a grey wet day, rain jacket on, tongue sticking out leading the peleton.
He was also somebody who came from the grass roots of British cycling in the years before there was lottery funded support for young riders. He continued to race TT's here and was a presence on the scene.
If the sport is going to sort itself out there can be little room for sentiment. It is a sad moment all the same.

Costa - Standing up for Goliath


Over the weekend there has been a lot in the news about what the Observer dubbed the ‘David and Goliath fight’ between the traders of Totnes and Costa Coffee. The traders of Totnes have succeeded in their campaign to keep Costa out.

This story has been portrayed as something out of an Ealing Comedy or a Bill Forsyth film. The little people making a stand against the inhuman corporate machine. Sorry I am not going to swallow this brew.

In this narrative Costa are portrayed as some kind of Barista manned death star.  This is hardly fair. They are (in my opinion) the third best of the big chains and have brought half decent coffee to locations that previously only offered cups of warm dust.

What it looks like from where I stand is a group of politically connected local coffee shops and their suppliers mobilising against legitimate competition. Why if the residents of Totnes so much prefer their independent coffee shops would they have anything to do with the corporate new kid on the block? Surely the customers would stay away, Costa would lose money and ultimately move on?

While some of the articles have suggested there are already enough coffee shops in Totnes, the site Costa acquired must have had planning permission for this use. If not the Council could have simply excluded them by refusing to approve the change of use.

My assumption is that the real fear is that the broad based appeal of Costa is something that the residents of Totnes would in practice rather like. This would eat into the profits of all these independents that the people apparently love, and those who supply them.

Independent providers do bring diversity and nobody will starve because of Costa’s choice to skip Totnes. However I cannot get the warm glow from this that some have found. A business that would have provided employment, a legitimate competition to the existing traders and people might have liked has been excluded. Hooray!

Monday 22 October 2012

TV Reality

Lying on my nest this evening I had the misfortune of spending time in the company of 'Cowboy Builders' on Channel 5. Now, I have every sympathy for anyone who has been the victim of a dodgy tradesman, and in this case the offending artisan deserved all he got. However the journey I found repellent.
Bad builders are not exciting enough it appears. The presenters set about creating a monstrous narrative that a bad extension was destroying the victims' family.
'So how old is your daughter?'
'nine'
'So she has spent two years in this chaos.'
'sniff'
Now sorry. whatever this bad builder had done, it was not destroying the resiliently cheerful girl's childhood. But the presenters were clearly desperate to batter some tears out of the parents and mined away at this angle until they got the result they wanted. Noxious stuff.
My previous foray had landed me 10 minutes in the company of something called (i think) Emergency Bikes. A programme so mundane that a Police Officer stopping a man without a tax disk was worthy of air time. We can all rest safely in our beds in the knowledge.
Accept it. We need a revolution. Surely the cultural climate is barren enough for something wonderful to happen next.

Whatever Happened to all the Heroes?

The wretched fallout from the collapse of Armstrong's empire continues with the news that he has been stripped of his seven Tour titles. Predictable and depressing. Our sports greatest event does not have a past anymore. Well not in this century anyway. My guess is that in the end we will just accept Lance's victories in the context of their time.
Right now there is a massive hole where heroes should be. Where heroes once were. Until we learned they were not really heroes at all.

Thursday 18 October 2012

My Livestrong dilemma

As  the world of Lance turns to dust I am left with a small personal eyewear dilemma. I love my Livestrong Oakley Flackjackets, but can I wear them now with the same pride? There must be thousands of us with Livestrong cycle kit crises right now? Help.
Yes supporting the cancer community is still as valid a cause today as it was two weeks ago, but the Livestrong brand was about something beyond being a cancer charity.

Wednesday 17 October 2012

Booker Result

I recently heard some curious thoughts on literary prizes from an author who has been both the judge and recipient of major prizes. Her view was that judging often comes down to a straight scrap between two books and that normally the less interesting one wins.
What would this model mean for the  2012 Booker?
Bring Up the Bodies is a sequel and focuses on a very popular period for historical fiction. Umbrella is almost deliberatly challenging to read, with a focus on mental health in a far less romantic setting.
For me these would be the two books fighting it out. My guess is that of the other four writers, three would have been happy just to be on the list.
Is it fair to tag Mantel's as the less interesting book? I would say no, but it is the less interesting winner. As part of a trilogy Bring up the Bodies stands on the shoulders of Wolf Hall. If Wolf Hall had made the shorlist before and not won then this would not be an issue for me. However, if a book is going to be given this massive leg up I would prefer, and it would be more interesting for it to go to different voice. Especially when that voice is Will Self.

Why would there be a bias toward 'less interesting?' My informant's view was that judges subliminally want to pick something that will suit WH Smith and the big retailers. Something that will work well being promoted on the check-out at Tesco. On this count I would suggest that Bring up the Bodies would out gun any of the other candidates. But why would this matter? I don't know but the only conclusion I could reach it that the bigger the splash made my this years winner, the bigger the prestigue of the award next time.

So my guess is that while this years shortlist was exciting, challenging and diverse there was only ever going to be one winner.

Tuesday 16 October 2012

Booking

Great to have seen the readings from the Booker shortlist hopefuls tonight up at the Royal Festival Hall. Six engaging and very different books. Will Self, with some support from Hilary Mantel voiced the view that as  writers ( well them at least)  don't have an audience or market in mind when they are creating their work.
While this is maybe why they are able to produce the work they do, I would suggest that there are plenty of people in publishing thinking exactly 'who is the market of this, who will buy.' It also struck me as really odd that these 6 books are in a fight to the death for what is a fantastic prize. They are so different how can one say X is better than Y without introducing some fairly random criteria. If writing is not a competitive sport what place can this kind of competition have? However Bookers power and interest levels suggest we want to see books ranked and we can agrue over the bodies.
It will be interesting to see who gets the nod tomorrow night.

Thursday 11 October 2012

Sick of the truth

I admit it, today I am sick of the truth. That does not mean we should not hear it. With the USADA report now published all cycling fans worst suspicions have been confirmed. t am surprised that I am shocked but I am. Not by the scale of the doping, we had already got wind of that. No, it is  the details. The spirit crushing cynicism of it all. Old and should be wiser heads pressuring the young to join in, within a sport where riders believed (even if it turns out not to be true) that Lance Armstong and his kind could buy the UCI. As Lance famously once said 'Its not about the bike.' No Lance it wasn't.
US Postal and Lance weren't the only ones at it of course, it just seems they were the best.
I resent the way that Armstrong used his charitable work as a human shield against the truth. Used his lawyers to batter those with a suspicion and used his influence to end careers of those who displeased him. The bare faced lying. The presence of a culture so rotten it could take hugely talented, brave young athletes and well turn them into what they have become.
If this bit of truth is to have a long term value it needs to be the start of a genuine top to bottom truth and reconciliation process. Not just the athletes and coaches, but the those who run the sport.
Tonight I have an image in my mind of somebody busy re-editing Tour De France DVD's to find shots of some guy who finished  in the top 20 and is now the winner. Hey, good news for the French, Moncoutie won after all! Hurrah

Wednesday 10 October 2012

You can retire but you can't hide

Today that the sins of the past seem to be careering back into view. The scale of Jimmy Savile's crimes and the willingness of those around him to, at best, turn the other way is staggering. At the same time, just about every North American cyclist who pinned on a number at the Tour De France in the Armstong era has fessed up to doping. Lance hasn't actually fessed up, but he is not fighting it either.

Well better late then never eh.

Just a thought on changing value and attitudes. The  80's film Gregory's Girl, starring John Gordon Sinclair and Clare Grogan was a gentle comedy about a gawky boy, who falls in love with a girl that plays football.

If I recall correctly, (Please correct me if I am wrong, it is a long time since I have seen the film) Gregory ends up getting the other girl while Dorothy the footaballer, well she is last seen heading towards the showers with her slightly sleazy PE teacher. It probably explains something about why girls did not come forward in the 70's and 80's. It was an era when randy PE teachers and naughty scoutmasters were seen as harmless figures of fun.

Saturday 6 October 2012

Enough Now - What John Terry Said

I am not hypersensitive, and enjoy swearing as much as anyone. However... We all know what John Terry said to Anton Ferdinand. Or if we don't we are somebody sufficiently protected from the whole ugly business that our ingnorance is probably a blessing. Therefore, can newspapers please stop repeating, gratuitously those three words.
The Guardian today managed to over three articles repeat is half a dozen times, throwing Ashley Cole's tweet a few times for good measure. It may be factual but it does little to enhance our understanding of what went on and what should happen.
Is it something of a taboo breaking thrill for jounalists (most who I suspect are male and white), to be able to wallow in this?

Friday 5 October 2012

50 years ago today...

It is 50 years since the Beatles released Love Me Do, and there is an interesting perspective on this from Hunter Davies. He will be part of a celebration in Savile Row today, attending on behalf of Dutch TV.
Davies comments that Beatlemania is much stronger abroad. Outside Britain they are 'more knowledgeable, enthusiastic, less cynical, less blase.' The Beatles were not my generation, and while I have to acknowledge their massive significance this has never approached love. Maybe being British we do just take them for granted.
A couple of months back I was on a work trip to Liverpool. We had found a pub in the centre of town to watch the England game, and after that wondered what we should do. Somebody (not me) suggested going to the Cavern Club (not the original one, just nearby).
On stage there was a local guy banging away at a big acoustic guitar. He had a good but unexceptional voice cracking out Beatles standards. The audience contained few English people, and very few Liverpudlians. So I was about to file away the experience under 'tacky tourist traps (Beatles).'
But after a couple of songs I realised something very odd was taking place. This was not a conventional gig where an artist performs for an audience. The man on stage was more akin to a preacher leading the worship. Because the gaggle of nations present (Spain, Italy, Japan..) in a natural and completely uncynical way had come to share their love for The Beatles music. The ages ranged from those old enough to have conceivably seen the Beatles play, to some who were probably a bit young to be in a bar at 11pm.  People sang along, sang to each other. They knew the words and the songs and were enjoying sharing that. The man on stage was simply conducting this orchestra.
So I think Hunter Davies has got a lot right. Maybe some of the Beatles ongoing relevance is that their music has this huge reach, we are just a bit blase about it.

Thursday 4 October 2012

A L Kennedy in Croydon

The Croydon Waterstones Book Group is a great idea. It is a chance to meet up with some new people who share a fondness for reading and talking about what they have read. Also by linking up with the shop it gives access  to  some of the writers.
Tonight we had the pleasure of meeting A L Kennedy to talk about amongst other things her novel, Day. I was a bit apprehensive as I generally make a point of avoiding meeting artists and heroes. Shuffling up and saying 'I loved your book, album, sculpture, goal against Brighton' has seemed a short route to a  boil my head cringe. My taste in music is partly to blame. My favourite band is The Fall and  avoiding trying to make friends with Mark E Smith has proven as sound policy.
My apprehension about tonight was sharpened because it was a small group, and  I was fortified with only one glass of wine. Denied safety in numbers or drink I felt exposed.
It actually turned out way better than we could of hoped for. A L Kennedy was funny, charming, sharp, every bit the person you would want the writer of Day to be. She had that gift of being able to talk naturally to a group of people she had never met.
In one of the weekend papers they do a questionnaire for celebs that asks who would they invite to their dream dinner party. People cheerily reel off names like Ghandi, Morzart and Les Dawson. I have absolutely no idea who I would invite.
Well I do now. If I could fetch A L Kennedy along it would not matter who else turned up, decent conversation would be assured.

Fairness to Floyd and Tears of a Clown

I suspect Floyd Landis is not in the running for the 'worlds most lovely person award.' There are plenty for cycling dopers, but when Floyd was trying to dodge the bullet he did a few not very nice things. Asking the public to donate to a defence fund when he knew he was guilty anyone? However I find the ruling of a Swiss court against him both depressing and hilarious.

Depressing first. Basically it was a libel case brought by the UCI because of nasty things Floyd said about Pat McQuaid (Current UCI top banana) and Hein Verbruggen (previous top of the bunch). They are a thin skinned bunch the UCI and seem to have a tigerish litigious attitude to anyone who says things they don't like. It would have been nice if they had shown the same vigour  15 years ago in tackling doping. We as lovers of the sport may have been spared seeing hero after hero modelling feet of clay.

The hilarious bit is what Floyd is NOT allowed to say. Remember these are things the court has ruled Floyd must not say;
'The UCI.....accepted  money from Lance Armstrong to conceal a doping case'
The UCI 'are clowns'
The UCI are 'no different to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi.'

I have an image in my mind of Swiss judges weighing the arguments as to whether the UCI were or were not clowns.
'While you do appear to have a large red nose, the lack of creepy face paint and oversize shoes has led me to conclude on balance that you are not in fact a clown.'
I guess the Gaddafi one was easy. He is dead.

Next on the messenger shooting conveyor belt is Paul Kimmage.