Shell and BC.

Bearbonesnorm · Post by **Bearbonesnorm** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 5:47 pm

I've never had much time for British Cycling. I'll not go into the reasons here but I reckon I've probably even less time now they've announced Shell as their partner for the next 8 years.

Lazarus · Post by **Lazarus** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 6:26 pm

Disappointing and I have e-mailed them - like it will make any difference

CTC will get my money now

https://www.cyclinguk.org/

also got a boner on the front page

fatbikephil · Post by **fatbikephil** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 6:48 pm

Shell trying to 'green' themselves no doubt. Maybe instead they should plant 10 million sitka spruce and build mtb trails round them....
Add Ineos sponsoring BC's pro team and that's the whole of UK pro cycling being funded by the petrochemical industry

woodsmith · Post by **woodsmith** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 6:49 pm

Dave Barter · Post by **Dave Barter** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 7:05 pm

Get on the phone to Zip Firelighters Stu

Bearbonesnorm · Post by **Bearbonesnorm** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 7:06 pm

Get on the phone to Zip Firelighters Stu

riderdown · Post by **riderdown** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 7:23 pm

As a counterpoint, maybe if "green" companies put their hand in their pockets they wouldn't have to dance with the devil, HSBC dropping sponsorship left a massive gap in their budgets, or they should just make more redundancies.......

The more subtle issue is that the Shell deal isn't the top their partnership, that's still looking for a partner (money) and the Shell deal may reduce the number of companies even further who might step up

slarge · Post by **slarge** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 9:19 pm

For me it depends what they do with the sponsorship (in both directions). If BC use it to plough money in then that's good, but if Shell use it to show they're not a bunch of polluting cnuts then that's bad.

The BC AGM is end November- might have to ask a question.....

Bearlegged · Post by **Bearlegged** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 9:53 pm

I reckon you can take Shell using it to show they're not a bunch of polluting cnuts as a nailed-on certainty.

Lazarus · Post by **Lazarus** » Mon Oct 10, 2022 10:02 pm

why else would Shell do it ?[ its called sports washing - see also middle eastern regimes and football team ownership
Shell now forced away from the arts will sports wash using cyclists - look how much we care as we invested 0.00000000001% of our global profits ever to cyclists - how green are we eh
Its just such a terrible , thought doubtlessly lucrative, look.

thenorthwind · Post by **thenorthwind** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 6:31 am

Brian Facer, CEO of British Cycling, said:
“We’re looking forward to working alongside Shell UK over the rest of this decade to widen access to the sport, support our elite riders and help our organisation and sport take important steps towards net zero – things we know our members are incredibly passionate about.

Help moving to net zero... appoint oil company as major sponsor...

Bearbonesnorm · Post by **Bearbonesnorm** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 7:41 am

Should we be surprised - look at the TdF circus. Hardly an ambassador for the green benefits (or any real everyday benefits) of cycling is it?

jameso · Post by **jameso** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 8:36 am

Some BC execs must have been really sold on Shell's PR + efforts in renewable energy - there are some, too little too late though.

If only there'd been the same reaction to Ineos. But they sponsor 'our' riders so there wasn't much of a grumble that I remember?

look at the TdF circus. Hardly an ambassador for the green benefits (or any real everyday benefits) of cycling is it?

No. I read the other day that the organisers of the Tour de France were saying they only produce one sixth to one seventh of the Co2 of the Olympics, like that's a good thing.

The Olympics happens 1x every 4 years. 10-11,000 athletes. 2 weeks. The Tokyo games had no overseas spectators and produced approx 2 million tonnes of CO2 (googled report so may be incorrectly quoted). The TdF happens every year and is ~300,000 tonnes? What I don't know is whether that 1/6th - 1/7th of the CO2 accounts for the frequency of the events ie is for 4x TdFs. If it doesn't the Tour puts out 1.2 million tonnes every 4 years Vs the Olympics 2 million? (seems high which is why I wondered about the frequency).

Either way, I didn't realise the Tour was such a polluter. The Giro and Vuelta may be proportionately similar. But no suprise that with all those cars, transfers, helicopters, team busses etc it's going to be up there with F1 for high-cost entertainment.
It would only improve the race if they went back to point-to-point stages and no transfers, no team car support and they could use electric motorbikes for footage, and drones for overhead shots.

Racing eh. It's a business with a high cost, like most.

jameso · Post by **jameso** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 8:42 am

Get your frame bag patch while he has some left -

https://www.spellingmistakescostlives.c ... on-patches

Bearlegged · Post by **Bearlegged** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 10:01 am

I went for the sticker set.
https://www.spellingmistakescostlives.c ... ticker-set

JohnClimber · Post by **JohnClimber** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 1:49 pm

RIP · Post by **RIP** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 2:03 pm

Anyone as old as Reg will remember this advert with its jaunty little jingle. Ah, the carefree joys of carbon emissions, environmental degradation and rights abuses

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1IdhOXh_g7s

postierich · Post by **postierich** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 2:54 pm

Funny cyclists making themselves feel as though they are making a stand but how many commenting drive cars/vans?

jameso · Post by **jameso** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 3:25 pm

Funny cyclists making themselves feel as though they are making a stand but how many commenting drive cars/vans?

You can be anti big oil and own a van or car, that's not a hypocritical position. If you drive to the shops 1km away in a new Range Rover it might be

Some people have no choice but to own a car, for some it bleeds them dry of spare £ so they can get to and from a basic job so they can heat their home and send even more £ back to those companies, and the reason our society is built around the damn things to this extent is because companies like Shell lobby politics and the media to the extent they do.They might make moves towards green alternatives now but they should have done that 25-30 years ago when they knew a lot of what most of us have realised in more recent years. They repressed that information, shouted down the science and kept on making billions. Make a stand, car owner or not, because those companies are not on our side.

John, I don't get that meme. It looks like it says C-UK turns into BC after taking oil money, it doesn't make sense - or am I being slow?

RIP · Post by **RIP** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 3:39 pm

jameso wrote: ↑Tue Oct 11, 2022 3:25 pm You can be anti big oil and own a van or car, that's not a hypocritical position. If you drive to the shops 1km away in a new Range Rover it might be

That's about the size of it. I'm naive enough to think it's a matter of degree. For example I have a sliding scale: I'll choose bike first, then legs, then train, then bus, then finally motor. As James says, it's the blind "I'll just jump in the SUV to the end of our road to get the newspaper" that gets my goat.

Bearbonesnorm · Post by **Bearbonesnorm** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 4:06 pm

For me it's not simply about 'green' or 'car v bike', it's about choosing to align yourself with a company who's values and practices are somewhat questionable and in many eyes, at odds with the values you (pretend) to uphold. I fully get why some folk would feel betrayed by that but maybe I'm lucky as I never trusted BC to begin with

Bearlegged · Post by **Bearlegged** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 4:07 pm

jameso wrote: ↑Tue Oct 11, 2022 3:25 pm John, I don't get that meme. It looks like it says C-UK turns into BC after taking oil money, it doesn't make sense - or am I being slow?

Top part is CUK being nice and happy.
Bottom L is $Hell talking to (bottom R) BC.

jameso · Post by **jameso** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 4:43 pm

^ it's bad comic strip structure

In Reverse · Post by **In Reverse** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 6:17 pm

jameso wrote: ↑Tue Oct 11, 2022 4:43 pm it's bad comic strip structure

That's the real crime in all this.

whitestone · Post by **whitestone** » Tue Oct 11, 2022 6:40 pm

Even made the news slot on BBC R2 this evening.

Disclosure: I worked at Shell during my placement year when at uni.

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