Egad. Picked the wrong steed for the deed in yesterday’s winds. Here’s a Handy Household Hint: Leave the Steelman with the deep-dish Cane Creek Crono Cross wheels in the garage on blustery Wednesday afternoons. I didn’t and damn’ near got blown off the road, and what a road — the Academy Boulevard overpass atop I-25, between the AFA’s south gate and Kelly Johnson Boulevard. Hijo, madre.
But at least I wasn’t having to read or write any Big Tex or Albuterol Clenbutador stories. Jesus, what an orgy of hot air. Management informs me that the coverage was a hit with the readership, drawing more eyeballs than a girl fight between Lady Gaga and Oprah. But still, damn.
Today the wind is up once again and my inner fat bastard is telling me to take the day off. Never happen, porky. If nothing else I’ll go roll around in Palmer Park for a while, try to dodge the worst of it and sweat a little gravy.
Mad Blog Media 
One can’t deny that everyone who makes money related to cycling owes L____ a debt of gratitude. But he makes it soooooo haaaaarrrrrrddd. There is so much smiling and nose-holding around this guy.
I hope everyone related to VN, especially the Rantster, gets a big check this month from management. Somehow I doubt it.
Yep. Doping amongst the rich and famous cycling idols is good for web hits.
I went on to the Velonews website earlier today. I threw up a little bit in my mouth, there was so much TCWSNBN ass kissing going on, I could practically taste it.
I got so tired of it…I got out my trusty LeMond Poprad (with fenders, natch!) and went for a bike ride! Almost 60 degrees and sunny – until that mighty wind that’s been blowing OG around showed up anyway. The last 10 kms home were a horrible slog into biting wind. For us that’s the end of a brief respite from winter — 4 inches of snow should be arriving on Sunday. I wonder if that will be enough to cover the bare ground now showing all over the nicely groomed XC ski trails? Oh well, next week we’ll be heading west to Moab for (we hope anyway) a week of road and MTB riding in the sun and on DRY roads!
When in doubt, head for the hills. The wind got ridiculous by the time I hit the door running, so I decided to stay afoot, logging 45 minutes in Palmer Park, where the trails are in their usual state, a tad squishy in spots and dusty dry in others. Got sandblasted good a couple of times, but I’d still rather run in the wind than ride in it. For starters, you don’t fall nearly as far if you get blown over.
For me, I will not buy Trek, Nike, Michelob, or that bottle of energy sump’n sump’n he sells. Nor do I go into my local RadioShack. And it’s time for a new helmet which will not be Giro. Too many other good products out there. Oh, and nothing black and yellow, regardless of who makes it or how much money it raises.
Yup, I’ve been off Trek for years (never did much care for the Burkes). Ditto all them other enablers. And the only plastic bracelets in these parts are jet black and read “LIVEWRONG” and ‘HARDEN THE FUCK UP.”
Have you checked out the Lazer helmets? I’m seeing a lot of those on pro noggins lately. I crave one myself, but VN put in an order without telling me, so I missed the cheap seat on that particular boat.
Hate to tell you this, Patrick, but when they quit telling you about the pro deals, it’s a hint that you might want to freshen up the ol’ resume.
Oh, and when you’re writing up your list of references, “Antichrist” is one word.
I’m thinking the Bell Volt or Sweep, in white, ’cause it gets a little warm here in the PetroMetro.
I’m with you, Jeff, you said it! In fact, I’ve stopped watching the Discovery Channel, got rid of my Oakleys, and I’ve even quit using the US Postal Service!
I’ll disagree on the black and yellow. Recall that the original Fat Guys jersey is black and yellow, and I’ve still got two of them.
OFG jersey doesn’t count. It came first.
Patrick, I’m thinking that we desperately need yellow and black “Live Fat” jerseys.
Oh, and I’m sportin’ the red and black Mad Dog Media these days. In dog years, I’m dead.
How about yellow “DopeStrong” jerseys? Complete with fictional names of drug companies. Or would that bring out the lawyers?
Speaking of which, can you still get the “Old Guys Who Get Fat In Winter Racing Team” jerseys? I checked Velo Gear, but it looks like in their pursuit of more profit they gladly sacrificed their sense of humor. Maybe Patrick has a basement full of them waiting for his next yard sale?
I thought that a while ago O’G was mumbling about a small company doing a run of the things. Anything come of that?
Houston is such a HUGE cancer community. The goliath of all cancer facilities, M.D. Anderson, is here. (Of course, I think we all know why Houston has such an enormous medical center, but I promised my city councilman I’d stop using the words Houston and benzene in the same screed.) I see more black and yellow LIVESTRONG kits than you can imagine. Wednesday, I was riding in Memorial Park and saw a guy in full L____ regalia: Trek carbon frame, LIVESTRONG helmet/jersey/bibs/socks. Oh, and that yellow cockring.
I’ve lost two family members to cancer in the last seven years. I have a third who’s successfully fought it (so far). God Bless them. One read L____’s first book for inspiration. I never said a word about how L____ left Kristin less than a year after the twins were born. Everyone in my family wore the yellow thingy. Everyone but me. I sent checks directly to the charities of my choice, and LIVESTRONG wasn’t one of them.
I have to admit, just typing this kind of shit while living in Houston makes me think twice about hitting the send button. I’m pretty sure the chamois sniffers are looking to lynch me (the loving Christians that they are). If I want to continue to live, I can’t wear a DOPESTRONG kit in Houston.
Hey Jeff,
“I’m thinking the Bell Volt or Sweep, in white, ’cause it gets a little warm here in the PetroMetro.”
Just an FYI: Bell Sports owns Giro. You’d be supporting the people who own the people who support HWSNBN. Or something like that. I think I confused myself.
Seriously? How did I miss that?
Please don’t tell me Catlike is part of the same cartel, ’cause you just gave me heartburn.
Easton-Bell-Giro. Damn. Just looked it up. Let me take a look at Lazer.
Yup, all samey same. I will confess to owning both a Giro and a Bell, the latter being a scooter lid that the company was generous enough to lay on me. It’s not yellow and black, nor does it bear the label “ScootStrong.” Meanwhile, look at Rudy Project, too. They seem widely available and affordable. I have one that I wear on warm days (can’t squeeze the sumbitch onto my fat head when wearing a winter cap).
Yeah, Bell bought Giro. Pretty soon ConAgra will buy Bell-Giro, and figure out a way to make expanded polystyrene out of discarded cattle parts. Then you can stop by your LBS and get all the Clenbuterol, steroids, Mad Cow, and protein you need just by wearing your crash hat.
Cool. Then I can take Joe Papp’s number out of my cell phone.
Damn, I wouldn’t be surprised if a helmet made by ConAgra using nothing but cattle dung and corn husks were to work better than a Giro. I had a low speed crash onto shoulder gravel last summer while wearing a Giro and ended up in the ER with a brain hemorrhage. The three and a half year old Giro helmet essentially shattered like porcelain. So if someone’s making one out of discarded cattle parts, I may give it a try.
I sent Bell/Giro an email a while back describing my accident and how poorly the helmet performed. I got back a bunch of CYA lawyer speak. They didn’t even show any interest in seeing the helmet. So I’m done with anything Bell, Giro or Easton.
With my luck I’d get one of those Easton aluminum baseball bats for home defense and find out that it’s the one Bell Sports product that isn’t designed to cause injury.
We’re pretty partial to the Lazer Helium they did for Pippo Pozzato awhile back when he was Italian National Champion. If a cool “tricolore” model is what you want I think QBP still has some of them in stock. I’m still wearing the green-white-red model they made for Paolo Bettini back when he was the “campione” and I like it just fine. I bought my LeMond Poprad (made by Trek) before the BigTex cult got going and we still have (in Italy) a couple of ancient Trek MTB’s. We wouldn’t buy any more for the reasons OG outlined, as well as products made by the other BigTex supporters. But we don’t shop at Wal-Mart for political reasons either — and I bet NONE of these folks give a damn!
Now that I’m boycotting anything Bell Sports, anyone who sponsors HWSNBN, especially anything in the Trek Empire (I’m still pissed at them for buying Bontrager and then getting rid of the Privateer), and, of course, anything Wal-Mart.
I think my bike gear choices are down to Lazer helmets, Jandd panniers, and frames made by that guy down the block who just got a welding torch for Christmas.
I’d like to put in my pre-order for a new FatGuy jersey in 3X, and 10 DopeStrong bracelets!
We still have our 1994 Trek tandem (pre-cult), mainly because I don’t have the heart to get rid of it and because I’ve rebuilt everything except the frame on it. It has so many memories of 17 years of our tandeming on it, too. The new (well, two years ago now) twofer is a Co-Motion Primera. Made in USA by a small independent company. And boy, does that bike ride nice. Whenever there has been a question, I usually get a direct email response from Dwan Shephard within a day or so. He is on the tandem@hobbes list and many of the guys in the factory ride and race their own works.
Thanks for the input regarding helmets, y’all. I, too, buy things because they work well, don’t cost me a fortune, and are sold by good organizations (or at least not egregiously egregious ones). My BS detector is set so high that I often feel like I’m violating my own principles when I buy stuff. And I don’t hold anyone by the same standards. It wouldn’t be reasonable.
Full confession: I’m replacing a five-year-old Giro, and I just purchased a Bell for my eight-year-old daughter. I hope none of their shit seeps into her brain.
I’d agree with the whole “boycotting anything associated with TCWSNBN” thing but Giro helmets are the only ones that fit my noggin’ well enough to actually work.
….and that whole Shitmano thing is sorta hard to ignore when it came standard on the MTB, and it’s what I can afford for the FrankenVentana cross bike.
….as for Oakley…well when I had a pair of the original (circa late 80s) Sweeps which were made out of plasticanium and broke, I swore off the brand altogether. Unless they still make BMX grips AND I cobble a cruiser together for some crazy reason (the idea has been bouncing around inside my Giro sized cranium for awhile), then I might ‘overlook’ that situation since a) TCWSNBN probably never knew of Oakley when they made BMX grips, and b) probably has never ridden a BMX bike in his life.
Sadly, I wish I could boycott JustPooIt but I have no desire to over pay for crap shoes. I guess that means I already do. No loss there.
And I gave up on TrekFisherKleinBontrager back in the 90s when my MTB cracked riding over a railroad crossing. Unfortunately at the time I replaced the frame with another TFKB (it was free) but I would have loved a Bontrager…hint, hint, hint….