Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Facts of Life

Fact of Life #1: Sometimes you just can’t ride.

It could be an injury or even worse, the theft of your ride. Illness can be a cause, as can be vile weather. Sometimes family responsibilities come up, no excuses there, family always comes first. (Keep your legs crossed next time.) Then there is the one ugly truth that can’t be avoided, most of us have to earn a living.

Yes, even though I have a flexible schedule, I live in a part of the country where there is almost always good weather, and yet I can’t ride this weekend. There is an arts show this weekend and my wife and I have a double booth. All of my day light hours will be spent hawking my wares. Hold up on the pity, there is a chance I will sell a few items and be able to buy new bike parts. There also will be a free drink or two during the preview party.

Fact of Life #2: Things Fall Apart

I sent my treasured 30 year old Phil Wood Flip Flop wheel to Phil to be overhauled. It came back looking wonderful. I rode out to a section of road called “The Beach”, (a nasty stretch of road I’ll write about later) when my drive side bearing popped out. Oh my, no more pedaling today! I sent the wheel back to Phil, their bad not mine, and it came back looking swell again. I thought I’d air the tire up and go for a spin. The rim wouldn’t hold a bead and I took a good look. Big ass ding in the rim. There goes a vintage Rigida rim into the dustbin. (If you are under 45, Rigida made some great rims before you were born.) UPS came by to pick up the box, they wanted the whole wheel. My wife has my unquestioned loyalty from now until judgment day. She wouldn’t let them have it. Phil Wood says rebuild the wheel, they’ll pay. I still think they are good people.

Fact of Life #3: Someone’s Always Watching

Last Saturday’s club ride was a fiasco. No one could ride behind the person in front of him. They attacked into the wind. Not really, they just road hard off the front till they popped. They rode behind the guy in front of them, to the right, to the left, in between wheels. They over lapped, they passed on the right, the left. Language was a problem, no one spoke bike. Advice was given and ignored. Worst of all? There was a very good rider who will soon be moving to the valley watching the whole meltdown. What makes him so good? He had the decency to be amused. Thanks Major Dave, it was truly an joy to ride with you. Let’s do it many more times.

Friday, November 10, 2006

"Slings and Arrows"

The horrible disrespect and antagonism from my fellow cyclists has wounded me deeply. Kris and I rode over to the Sunday ride at the BK. I was going on the Co-Motion, fillet brazed steel, Campy 10, and he shows up on the Redline single speed. (Actually I thought he was fixed but he is a SNEAKY little devil and had a freewheel.) We rode back to my place and I switched to the fixed gear, Bianchi Stelvio, 42/14. I usually ride a 42/17 but my good wheel is in the shop. The taunts in the parking lot were merciless. “Be careful out there on that thing.” It was even worse when we got to the park and all of the Domingoistas were slurping Gatorade and gumming cookies. “You look good on that thing.”

It’s not a thing for chrissake! It’s a bicycle!

This time of year there are countless articles on winter training and some of them even mention the tried and true old school methods. Riding a fixed gear used to be just about the only off season regime. Track or road the fixed gear requires you to pedal all the way around the crank and pedal ALL of the time. Not only does it smooth out your pedal stroke but it keeps you from being lazy. Yes, even if your tongue is hanging out and you coughed up your remaining good lung 5 miles back, you could still work a little harder. A rider on a freewheeled bike will coast 15% to 20% of the time.

There are some things to keep in mind. Stopping should be planned out. Posting over bumps requires pedaling as does bunny hopping. If you think you know how to bunny hop, try it on a fixed. If you forget and try to coast you have a 700 CM flywheel that tries to buck you off the bike. (Ask Mike Padgett about the physics.) Don’t let this scare you off, after all, what’s wrong with having bike handling skills and planning a few moves ahead?

Many people think I am funny looking. I have heard that ever since I passed that “beautiful baby” age. I can suffer your slings and arrows but please, be kind to the ride. Mustache bars and a lack of neon may seem odd to you, but my fixed gear is a bike just like any other. Get one for yourself and I’ll show you just how much fun a noble ride can be.
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