i went out riding with my stealth cycling buddy today, as we do most weekends lately, now that dave's moved to the western suburbs. i imagine he's training for the upcoming roller season. unlike last year, however, today our timing was a few hours better; the weather did not deteriorate quite as quickly as it did when the harsh pre-christmas blizzard of '07 found us several miles out of town, and the gruelling ride back in scored us beaucoup "tough guy points." well, we racked up some TG points today, too, but just not as many. were it not for an apparent warren county policy against plowing gravel roads, we might STILL be out there southwest of cumming.
scored my first photographable ice beard of the season. not bad for the last day of autumn. sigh...i took several photos, to get the best one; the one that distills the essence of the ride, and the captures the "me" that went out, and later, returned. i believe that this one, me in my beanie, my armless mannequin sunning atop the buffet, says it best.
i am more than just a radio personality, orphanage director, and spiritual advisor to cyber thousands. yes, i also do a little r&d for a number of cycling concerns. i did a little work in the windchill tunnel today for an unnamed frame builder, who has contracted with me to help develop a better/faster cross/gravel bike bike.
although i am contractually bound NOT to say anything about the nature of my work, as it relates to any specific bike or detail, there are no restrictions with casual use of raw photographs. these two fall within acceptable guidelines. what do YOU see?
3 comments:
ru fucking high? First rule of fight club, you do not talk about fight club...
The first thing I see is the seriously wind tunnel worthy aero treatment where the turbulent air behind the front wheels contacts the down tube. I really like the Zipp-esque dimpling on the aero treatment. That has to be good for at least two seconds a lap, and another tick or two higher on your training graph.
The second, more subtle item is the externally mounted cooling system for the bottom bracket bearings. Everyone knows that heat is the enemy of bearings and lubricants everywhere. Your secret frame builder obviously is more in tune with this than others and has rightly decided that the key to making things last longer and go faster is to keep them cool. It works for Cray super computers, so it should work for bottom brackets as well. Kudos for the extra cooling around the bearings on the pedals.
These are both proof of a resurgence in attention to detail that has been abandoned for far too long in the bike industry. Jan Heine would be proud of the accomplishments. However he would definitely (and rightly) point out that Rene Herse utilized these same techniques in the 40s and 50s, and that the designs being utilized by these modern rapscalliions are nothing more than second rate, soulless copies. He would also call you out for not having metal fenders, some sort of waxed cotton bag hanging off of your seat, and a distinct lack of weasel tails flying from the ends of your handlebars.
Two hours riding around Big Creek for me and four other crazies this afternoon. Good day to be a cyclist in Iowa. Back to my fireplace, glass of scotch and my copy of The Lauterbrunnental Leaflet.
dr mpav--
no rules broken here. all i'm talking about is the regular outdoor riding that i do all the time [and that i DO talk about all the time], and the r&d stuff that i can't talk about but that about which i am somewhat free to show in a limited fashion.
i AIN'T talkin' 'bout anything else, don't ya see? no rules of fight club broken. you shouldn't even have brought it up. no i'm gonna have to kick the shit out of you next time i see you.
you comin' back for national "play god day" the 9th, or "hugging day" the 21st? ;-))
and for you, chris, while i note the worthiness of the scotch and lauterb'l, for me, it was a couple of strawberry margeritas, chips and #17 with chicken at aguilera real, followed by a loooooong nap.
and now, a little after 530 sunday morning, i'm planning when to get out today for more.
you kids have fun!
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