Rule change

[Killiekevin]

If you could change one rule in pro cycling what would it be?

I think I would lower the number of cyclists per team to maybe 6, less protection for the team leader and would maybe level the playing field a bit and would prevent the bigger teams from dominating with such strength in depth.

 

[rugby bloke]

No teams, each rider has to look after himself ... then we find out who can really rider according to the situation.

 

[winjim]

No support cars. Have a mechanical? Fix it yourself. Think you'll be thirsty? Make sure you carry enough to drink. It's all part of riding a bike, especially in a so called Grand Tour.

 

[steveindenmark]

Each rider has to look after himself.
No Support
Fix it yourself

I think we are talking about the Transcontinental race that starts on Friday. :O)

 

[Dogtrousers]

ASO/Christian Prudholme has been talking about the lowering the number of riders per team for a while.

 

[winjim]

Reading the Team 50p thread makes me think it might be fun to have a series with some sort of spending cap, or everybody riding identical bikes, just to see how much difference it actually made.

 

[Noru]

I'd ban race radio.
I think it would lead to more exciting racing and break-aways by making riders use their own personal experience & wits rather than GC contenders sitting comfortably in the peleton getting constant information about gaps and following orders from their team cars.

 

[Hont]

Not sure about the no teams/fix everything yourself etc. That would just result in the luckiest rider winning not the best.

Not sure it's a rule per se, but I'd change the team structure. Have a franchise system so you don't get teams folding at the whim of owners (I'm looking at you Tinkoff) and maybe a salary cap so that all the best riders don't go to the wealthiest teams.

 

[brommers]

How about a stage of tag/relay in racing, not TT mode. 22 riders, i.e. one from each team, race for 10km then tag and so on. Team bonuses for leading team at each change over. Teams choosing rider order according to course profile - hopefully flat finish for possible sprint.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Salary caps are hard enough to enforce where all of the teams are very similar and in a confined geographical area (eg English Rugby Premier clubs). Trying to enforce salary caps for internationally based teams which all have different funding structures would, I guess, be next to impossible. But I that's just my uninformed opinion.

Didn't they ban radios for one or more stages of the tour a few years ago? Or was that another race? Or have I made it up completely?

 

[Crackle]

I think they should introduce a jousting stage.

 

[guitarpete247]

Fit all bikes with paintball guns. Each team a different colour. Points awarded for most spectators hit. Might make mountain stages safer for riders.

 

[steveindenmark]

The rule where if you have ever been caught doping, you cannot have anything to do with cycling whatsoever.

 

[nickyboy]

How about a stage of tag/relay in racing, not TT mode. 22 riders, i.e. one from each team, race for 10km then tag and so on. Team bonuses for leading team at each change over. Teams choosing rider order according to course profile - hopefully flat finish for possible sprint.

Actually that sounds like a lot of fun and I'd definitely watch that. Do it on an ultra flat stage and then you could try to work out where to put your TT specialists to blow the race apart

Serious suggestion is a salary cap. Sky are very well funded which, combined with their total focus on GC, led to a rather boring Tour. Shouldn't be hard to enforce. You want a World Tour license? OK, EUR15m max total budget for your team, audited accounts

I suspect there will be some serious tinkering with the rules in the near future. If you want a sporting spectacle you need well matched teams

 

[HF2300]

Didn't they ban radios for one or more stages of the tour a few years ago? Or was that another race? Or have I made it up completely?

UCI have been anti radios for ages and banned them in 2011 (for all races below WT & women's WC); there have also been (intermittent and not very successsful) bans on selected TdF stages in the past e.g. 2009. Fat Pat said that the TV people threatened to reduce coverage as allegedly they made the racing less interesting so TV lost audience share. No idea if that's true or not. For this year UCI rowed back rather and allowed them on WT, HC and Cat 1 races.