Saw a beautiful sunrise yesterday. I’d have taken a picture, but I was northbound at 80 mph surrounded by people who were hellbent on maiming and/or killing me, so I kept my attention focused on the task at hand, which was making it safely to Winter Park for day two of the annual VeloNews retreat.
This required me to get up at 4 a.m., which was not pleasant. Picture the monster arising from Dr. Frankenstein’s table, red murder in his freshly undead eyes. During an unpleasant spell in the early Eighties, when I worked for an afternoon daily in Oregon, I had to be on the job at this miserable hour, and I never got used to it.
But at least there was work to be done. Meetings prevent the doing of work. While you’re sitting there around the big table, giving your tonsils a good airing, the work is waiting patiently for you to get back to it. Unlike you, work has plenty of time. Meetings also provide the illusion of democracy when in fact business is dictatorial. Sooner or later someone in authority will tell everyone to shut the fuck up and get back to work. But never soon enough.
To be sure, the occasional nugget of intelligence glistens in the dungheap: stats on what is selling, what is growing dusty on the shelves and who is buying; hints about where The Company will direct money and resources, and where it will withhold same; the sort of news a guy can get electronically these days, without the need for a six-hour round trip via Subaru.
But one thing a guy can’t get electronically is a free lunch and a nifty official VeloNews jacket from Descente. So I’ve got that going for me.
• Extra-credit reading: VeloNews.com has a sister site devoted to mountain biking, Singletrack.com. It’s relatively new, and doesn’t have a related magazine to drive eyeballs its way, so I’m pitching you this link to get your opinions about the site. Gimme your thoughts on VeloNews.com too. Think of it as a meeting that you won’t get paid for, but don’t have to drive to.
Mad Blog Media 
Left side of lower lip pointing down ( so i’ve got that going for me…) AKA Bill Murray….nice!
Re: Comments on VeloNews.com
I don’t check out VeloNews.com that much; I prefer the print edition and mostly hang out on the Forum. But when I DO view it, it’s always got up to date info on whatever is going on and I respect how current the news is. I also find the product links useful. I like Zinn’s tech column and the Pruitt Session videos. Not to inflate your ego, but I wish they’d give you a column on the web site or even in the print edition, much like the I remember in BRAIN. You should at least be worthy of occasional space in the “At The Back” column. I like your curmudgeonly insight/humor and as long as you can tie it in to cycling, I think there’s a real place for it in the VeloNews realm.
I can’t say anything about Singletrack.com because although I’m a mountainbiker too, it doesn’t interest me enough to follow the sport on the web. I glanced at it and thought I was at a meeting. Wake me up when it’s over.
Patrick,
Can’t say that I disagree with you on the meetings. I’d say that you’d be surprised that in public service there would be less democracy and more leadership, but alas the adage of the sh!t swirling ’round the bowl is more appropriate. I don’t know how more than two regularly scheduled meetings can fail to reach ANY decisions, but I have sat through enough to know that current public employees in Cali have become very acquainted with SNAFUs.
As for VeloSchnooz.com.org.net, can’t say that I watch it that much. Okay, can’t say that I’ve checked it more than maybe five times this year. Too busy with Big Tex Love for me to care one sh!t, so I give it the daily pass. Same goes for singletrack.net.org.com.mil.edu…actually it has been years since I checked that site out, so I can’t say that I’d check it out now. Why not just have one portal for ALL cycling? CNN doesn’t exist because all we want is “News”? Oh, wait, never mind….
Patrick,
I believe this is the first time, that I can recall, that you have not given props to the servicemen and veterans on Veteran’s Day. Anything change in your opinions of the troops past & present?
The new site looks a hell of lot cleaner than the old velonews site.