Saturday, December 25, 2010

"Only God can judge . . . ."

Only God can judge him:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/blogs/filippo-pozzato-1/only-god-can-judge-me
Turns out, God doesn't really give a s**t.

The comforting beat of bamboo

Maybe I've been reading too much Bike Snob, but I saw something today that made me cringe. Yehuda Moon’s sponsor, ClankWorks, is the purveyor of bamboo bicycle fenders (that is, fenders made of bamboo and intended to be attached to bicycles, not necessarily fenders for bamboo bicycles, though I'm sure they could be attached to such a bike as well as one made of steel or recycled underpants). Now, in and of itself, the bamboo fender has a sort of appeal, I admit, so I investigated further, despite my misgivings caused by the name of the site: clanking is not a sound you really want to associate with any part of your bike, after all, and the bamboo fender, even if poorly mounted, would likely produce not a clank but more of a gentle thud or thump akin to native girls beating wooden drums during the halftime show at the Aloha Bowl. Unless the fender comes loose entirely. Then you might hear some clanking as it destroys your Campagnolo derailleur.

Upon further investigation, however, I discovered that ClankWorks is a self-described “small cycling boutique” that provides “stylish solutions for the modern and design conscious cyclist.” Well, I suppose I am too old-fashioned and design unconscious to know for sure, but I have always though of boutiques as places that sell perfume and very expensive dresses and shoes that are intended to be uncomfortable. In other words, the antithesis of all things cycling-related. Best of all, however, the physical location of the “boutique” is Pittsburgh, PA. Again, when I think of Pitt, I think Big Ben, Terrible Towels, the ghost of Terry Bradshaw’s hair, and rusting steel mills. What I never thought of, at least not until now, was bamboo. Perhaps the “boutique” should sell cycling cleats made of bamboo, to clip into bamboo pedals. That arrangement could easily be made as uncomfortable as the shoes traditionally sold in boutiques.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Contest!

Logic suggests I should keep this info to myself, thus reducing the field of competition by thousands and thereby increasing my chances of winning. Oh, well: Cycling News is giving away David Millar's bike. Presumably they have David Millar's permission to do this.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/now-online-the-2010-cyclingnews-reader-poll

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Bikes in the snow




The snow near Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, prevented me from doing anything more strenuous than taking a picture of my single-speed 29er this morning. Not being sure I would like riding a single-speed very much, I went for an inexpensive Stout/Southeast from the Jenson website. Or rather, I

knew I would like it, but I didn't know how well I would fare on it here in ridge country. Much to my surprise, it's not that much harder to just stand up and power on up the hills. So now I'm thinking it might be fun to get hold of a single-speed (non-fixie) road bike.

The only changes I've made to the bike are to add a computer and a bottle cage and replace the original saddle post, which did not adjust up quite far enough for me, with a Truvativ. The saddle itself is a WTB knock-off, but it's just as comfortable as the WTB on my Fuji, so no point in changing it.

If only I were as tough as Kenny Mayne, I wouldn't let a little snow stop me. Mayne was featured on ESPN's NFL pre-game show this morning, riding a really cool cruiser bike and wearing a football helmet. Move over, Alberto. You got yourself some competition.