Kiss my asterisk
Riders who dare thumb their noses at pro cycling's strict "code of conduct"

On June 6, French cyclist Julien Bernard was racing the time trials at the Tour de France when he stopped for a moment to kiss his wife and young son. Nothing to write home about except that he got in trouble for it.

The UCI (the International Cycling Union – the governing body for cycling races) fined Bernard $223 for the kisses, and on top of that the Union said, out loud and to the world, that the fine was for “unseemly or inappropriate behavior during the race.” And, get this, “damage to the image of the sport.”

The image of sport, it seems, is to be heartless and cold on the inside so you can be fast and aerodynamic on the outside. Emoting is for losers. Showing affection is for dweebs. Oh, and also your socks have to be a certain height and your helmet needs to be one of five UCI authorized helmets.

Nevertheless, the group of highbrowed men (mostly) took what could easily be a nice moment of humanity and ruined it, all for the sake of an image. 

Bernard’s response though is what brings us together. He offered a backhanded apology on social media and dared the UCI to keep shelling out the fines: “Sorry to UCI Cycling for having damaged the image of the sport,” Bernard wrote on X. “But I am willing to pay (the fine) every day and relive this moment.”

Which, in my opinion, is the correct response. His obvious sarcasm (at least in my mind) gives me wind beneath my wings. I’ve never cared so deeply for a UCI newsworthy moment as I did when I read his social media response. 

It’s not every day that cyclists get to fight for the image of their soft humanness – where they get to publicly show off the love they have for family and friends instead of showing off stats, air sends and bloody scrapes. He redeemed the “image” of the sport by staying true to his human side.

In 2022, ultra bikepacker Lael Wilcox had to fight a similar battle when she earned the FKT (fastest known time) for the Arizona Trail Race 800. An already difficult race, Lael set a new course record by riding 827 miles of technical singletrack through the desert in nine days, eight hours and 23 minutes. She beat the previous record by more than two hours, but then the AZT race director put an asterisk on her FKT. He deemed her record invalid and tarnished her efforts all because Lael’s wife, Rue, was documenting her ride with a camera. The big argument – which I have tried to read and listen to from every angle – was that Rue was providing Lael with tiny droplets of love dopamine, just by being nearby, therefore helping Lael ride faster, longer. They said that Rue was emotionally supporting Lael even though she was hiding in bushes and taking photos, and that Rue provided Lael with enough emotional support to help her break the record by two hours. 

Two hours. The powers that be think that having a loved one hiding nearby can cause a cyclist to ride faster by two hours. 

That’s a lot of hours. Must be a lot of love. We can’t have that.

I’ve heard similar sentiments from other bicycle races: you can’t ride near your friends; and you can’t have a loved one meet you on the course to cheer you on. Two of my own friends just finished racing the Tour Divide, and they had to start the race, and ride the race, apart from each other so they couldn’t provide each other with little emotional dopamines. In fact, any time any of my friends race, I’m almost afraid to send them a supportive text message in fear that I’ll disqualify them. 

This mentality propagates throughout all of cycling and has clearly created an image of every man (or woman) for themself – to each their own. Vying for love and emotional support is weak, and if you receive it, you’re cheating. Showing softness and kindness on the trails is absolutely, out of the question, asking for punishment. You will probably be fined and you will probably get an asterisk. You will be ruining the image. 

This spring, though, Lael (along with Rue, and a bunch of their friends) set out to challenge that image. She is currently attempting to break the Guinness World Record for circumnavigating the world by bicycle, and any keen eye would see that – just like Bernard did to the UCI – Lael is giving a bit of a backhanded “f-you” to the AZT race director. 

She has made her record-attempt message perfectly clear: that she wants to ride around the world with friends. Anyone and everyone is invited to join her, and every day on social media she posts her route so that whoever wants to can ride with her. And they have. Rue has recorded and taken photos of people riding, laughing, sharing stories, sharing pie and waving Lael on toward her next goal. Humanity has center stage; dopamine is the star of the show.

This is a Guinness World Record after all; much friendlier than those guys hypothetically sitting around a hypothetical table making rules about sock lengths and being near family members.

The only World Record stipulation for Lael is that no one can ride in front of her, so she isn’t drafting anyone. However, her friends can be there, her family can be there, she can comfortably emote and get little love dopamine droplets. She can hug people, receive water when she needs it, and she can even take a moment or two to stop and give kisses to her wife, Rue. 

Jennaye Derge is the director of Bike Durango, an organization that advocates and educates about cyclist safety and access issues. To learn more, go to www.bikedurango.org.