a timely reminder: tough guy points

it's that time of year again:

the temperature has dropped, the wind is more likely to blow from the north than the south, and virtually everyone who rides their bike outside is talking about their "epic" bike ride, and about their tough guy points.

well, it WASN'T, and you didn't get any.

please read this post from last winter before you start tossing around terms like "epic." these standards have withstood the test of many seasons, and riders much better than you abide by their requirements.

if it ain't the following, it ain't epic, you got zero points,

so shut up about it.
amen. --the mostly reverend

.....

the face of tough guy points

many riders have been asking me all fall and winter about "tough guy points."

it's a lot like the supreme court's view of obscenity: "i'll know it when i see it."

[former u.s. supreme court justice potter stewart, 1964]

it's like this: you've gotta have several of the following factors:

1--below freezing;

2--windy;

3--long ride [certainly more than 2 hours--that's not even a warm-up];

4--unusually harsh road conditions [soft gravel, muds, ice or such];

5--very brisk pace throughout;

6--you shall NOT use the word "epic" to describe the ride

[penalty: forfeiture of all accumulated points];

7--"precipitation" is a bonus;

8--"someone on the ride vomits or bonks" is a bonus.

. . . . .

bottom line: it's gotta hurt; you've gotta feel it the next day--or no points.

[otherwise they have no redemption value later in the actual season.]