New year's resolutions, great and small

Despite this photo, 2007 wasn't an Oscar winning year for cycling (Denis Doyle/Getty Images)

I'm not one for making new year's resolutions, although I do like to start the year with some objectives in mind. 

This winter my training will be with the goal of riding the Fred Whitton ride in the Lakes in May and the Marmotte sportive in France in July, both events that I've talked about doing for a while and which I've been given an extra spur to take on as they feature in a supplement of 50 rides to do before you die that will be bagged with the February issue of Procycling on sale later this month.

It's a bit presumptuous maybe, but some new year's resolutions for the sport seem more appropriate, given the ongoing strife affecting cycling, so in 2008 let's hope the powers that be can resolve to give us the following:

- A season without a major doping scandal. This may be too much to hope for, but given that so many of the top teams are loudly trumpeting the programmes they have established to monitor riders this should be achievable.

- An undisputed winner of the Tour de France. After Landis/Pereiro Rasmussen/Contador farces of the last couple of years, let's focus 100% on the racing over what looks an intriguing route.

- For the grand tour organisers, the UCI and all other warring parties to patch up their differences once and for all. They've all got strong arguments to back up their lack of desire for compromise, but the sport is done no service by most of its leading events being absent from the ProTour or a similar series.

- A major name has a crack at Ondrej Sosenka's hour record. Come on, Fabian, you know you want to…

On a more personal note, I'd like to see Procycling continue to go from strength to strength. We've had a great response to the Greg LeMond issue that is on sale now, and we're already looking at theming future editions in a similar way. To make sure you don't miss these or any other issues, check out our worldwide January sales subs offers at www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk

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