I have short hair. I like getting up in the morning knowing that my hair looks exactly the same as when I went to bed. I don't bother with hair 'products for men', I'd rather save the cash and buy another pair of classically outmoded cowboy boots, (they will return, trust me). I also recycle my newspapers, and these two facts came together on Sunday to provide me with a nugget of understanding in an otherwise bewildering world. I cut my own hair with an electric clipper. I do this in front of a mirror and over a section of the newspapers that I then recycle. For some reason, the August 23rd edition of the Saturday Times hadn't yet gone out, or at least the Body and Soul section hadn't, and whilst buzzing my 9mm long hair back to 3mm, (there's an OCD there somewhere), I spotted an article about how our 'cramped little island is stressing us out'. It went on to discuss the emotional and mental effects of living with almost 1200 people in each square mile of the green and pleasant.
'Psychologists point out that people have two basic space requirements: personal space and territorial space. When these two are infringed, stress levels rocket.'
One can imagine then, how stressed your average London commuter should be. What I found so fluffy, yet narrow minded about the solutions the article went on to suggest, was that they generally didn't take the person out of the situation and place them in a new, improved situation. Here's one:
'I advise clients to imagine they are in, say, a blue egg on the Tube. The egg-shell is flexible and doesn't break so if they are touched or their personal space is invaded, they are still protected'. Suzy Dittmar, Hale Clinic.
WHAAAT!! Whilst I'm all for mind over matter, there is a more beneficial alternative. Get out of the Tube. There are a number of ways to do that but the one with the most benefits, obviously, is to get on a bike. London is about 25 miles across, a 12 mile commute, (the average commuting distance is 8 miles), by bike, by an average person, takes less than an hour and that hour has more health benefits, both mental and physical, than 20-25 minutes on a Tube, by any stretch of a blue egg!
So, there's your choice stressed out Londoners; pay someone probably more than the price of a lightweight commuting bike, to be told to get back into the Tube with a blue egg, or get a bike that provides freedom from all that in the first place. Go by bike!
My nugget of understanding? Perceived convenience has a very high price.
Things have changed in the capital. Since 2000, cycling has increased by 91%, a pretty big figure and despite it starting from a very small base, it shouldn’t be dismissed, as some critics may, as an increase of 91% of nothing remaining, effectively, nothing.
I’ve just spent the best part of an hour London watching. While having breakfast in a small café at around 7.45am, I was disappointed by the number of cyclists. ‘Get there early,’ I was told, ‘because they all disappear come 9am.’ Well, here I am, wondering if he meant 8am, not 9. Then, at 8.04am precisely, a small train of cyclists come past; all different bikes, clothing and gender. Brill! It’s started. And so it continued until about 8.35am, with the height of activity at around 8.20am.
So I watched, in amazement really, as hundreds of cyclists made their way through the capital. I have to admit, I was a little nostalgic for a moment; I was a cycle courier here in 1992, my origins in the bike trade. Reality soon kicked in though as I began to appreciate two inalienable truths-
1. Cyclists who jump red lights are the same people who would decry such actions were they in a car.
2. Most car drivers have no idea of the impact of their driving on other road users.
To explain:
I fully expected a number of cyclists to jump the lights; to my shame, I did the same when I was a courier and that was in a time when there was a greater chance of ending up under the wheels of a car or van, when cycle awareness was non-existant. What I didn’t expect were the type of people, (and yes, this is a generalisation), that jumped lights. Courier wanabees? Check. Respectable looking businessmen in suits? Um, check. Middle aged women? Eer, check, again. So, there is no one group more guilty of this than any other. Cyclists jump red lights, but only a minority and they earn the scorn of other cyclists.
Pedestrians, however, are without doubt far more guilty of jumping lights and as it is such common practise, there is no pressure on them to change their ways. In fact, one cyclist who, on a green light, continued to cycle through a crowd of pedestrians crossing against their red light, received a torrent of abuse even though he was going slowly, was obviously a competent cyclist and was pinging his bell from a few yards out. Come on pedestrians, play fair.
Point 2, above, is a simple one. Car drivers are under the assumption it would seem, that their back wheels follow the same course as the front. Wrong! The number of cyclists that had to avoid being hit by cars, as they pulled out from Torrington Place and onto Tottenham Court Road, was astonishing. As the back end of the car drew closer to the barriers as the car turned, the cyclists were forced to slow or even stop in order to avoid being hurt. And, it must be said, not one of these cyclists hurled abuse at the car driver. Nice. So, what do I take away from all this? That there is more work to be done in London than merely increasing cycle facilities. Transport in the Capital has to be a holistic solution, encompassing all modes, for any transport policy to work. Boris, if you’re listening, I’m here to help, as are so many other cycling bodies and user groups. It just takes a little trip around the streets to see where things could so easily improve.
In case you hadn't heard, Tim Don, Trek sponsored National Triathlon Champion, has qualified and been selected for the Beijing Olympics. Nice one Tim. As this is Trek and that is the IOC, Tim gets not one but two Olympic bikes, A and B. Or B and A. As they're identical, he could ride either and not notice the difference.
Having built them up, Colin, who runs the Tech Services department in Trek UK, felt compelled to weigh the colourful beasts. 14lbs. With a spec of SRAM Red, Bontrager Race XXX Lite components and wheels, he can feel secure in the knowledge that the light weight of the bike owes nothing to flimsy, 'race only' exotica; these parts are off the shelf units that any keen cyclist can step into a shop and purchase. Which means they're built to last.
Poor old bike B gets shipped to China in a box with a container load of other athletes equipment, while bike A gets VIP treatment, being taken out by Tim himself. Hopefully, providing Tim is feeling generous after the Games, you can see bike A at the Cycle Show in Earl's court in October.
My colleague Rich and I are up for a century tomorrow - we're training for the Dragon Ride, the thing is, what constitutes a century in the UK today?
Are we up for the full 100 miles? or will a mere 62 miles (100 km) do? We could do a 100 furlongs but it would be only 12 odd miles.
Hey ho we'll set off at 11 o'clock and see how far we get, my training needs are a lot less than Richards, he's signed up for numerous 24 hour mountain bike endurance races as part of the 69er Collective, the Dragon ride and not forgetting the the Etape du Tourand the Megavalanchein the same week!
By the way he needs some geeing up to succeed at all the rides he's committed to - if you sponsor him he'll have to finish every one and obviously MacMillan Cancer is a truly worthy cause.
This is kinda 'The Folding Stuff' pt. 2, but really it covers something that has a wider relevance than me poking fun at an old folding bike. As I said in the earlier post, there is a story to go with the bike which started me thinking about how these stories imbue an item with more value than the mere cost of the item itself. Intrinsic v. historical value. In the video below, you get a sense of what I mean- the shop guy is looking at what the bits that make up the bike may bring in dollars, while Chad, the bike's owner reacts in a way that shows it's true value. It happens frequently in cycling, you've probably experienced it yourself. You have an old mountain bike or road bike that took you faithfully through some tough rides or happened to be a companion in hard times. The collection of metal tubes, bearings, tyres etc, take on more value because of what both you and the bike have experienced together. If you come to sell that bike, it comes as a surprise how little someone else is willing to pay for your memories, but that's not what they're buying- they're buying the tubes and wheels and the bike has yet to take on the stories from that rider; the slate's wiped clean, ready to start again. Enjoy the video, poke fun at the odd bike but know that we all have similar stories and that someone else will return the favour.
It takes an open mind to work as a product manager for a bicycle company. New ideas can come from anywhere, so everywhere is a good place to look. This doesn't preclude the product managers from having a favourite piece of inspiration though, and on this trip to Madison to talk web sites with the US team, I came cheek to saddle with the Hybrid bike product manager's.
The bike has a pretty cool story to go with it as it belonged to Chad's uncle, bought for him by his wife so he could put in his Porsche to use when he got to where he was going. On one occasion, the bike took it's owner to see Mr. Gorbachev speak when he was over here. Chad inherited the bike after his uncle died, and has remained an inspiration to him since.
I was a little disappointed as Chad took first a Soho 4 then a 7.9FX out of the car for himself and Brian, (Euro Marketing guy), then the Bridgestone folder for me. But as the ride around the town of Madison unfolded (sorry, couldn't resist), I began to appreciate the 12" wheeled wonder. Sure it was heavy, had the frame stiffness of a wet noodle and comfort a long way down the list of priorities, but it was fun. It could take kerb hops, keep up with the other bikes on the downhills, (although potholes were interesting), and was obviously a talking point for almost everyone we passed.
Quirkiness has it's moments and if all that it achieves is to raise a smile then that's enough, but when it gives inspiration too, it's gold and worth every penny.
I'm feeling particularly smug, you see just as a week long weather front of really terrible wet weather hit south of England myself, wife and a band of bike mad friends boarded a plane to sunny Majorca for a week of nothing better to do than ride our bikes......bliss!
If you have never been on either a training camp or to the Spanish Island of Majorca well i can highly recomend both. I've been a few times now, along with the other 35,000 other cyclist that need to escape the cold winter of northern Europe, believe me it's not just your fitness that gets a boost from the trip it's also the mental boost that riding your summer bike (if you are prepared to risk running the bagage handlers roulette) and letting your bare legs and arms feel the sun again after months of being covered in layers of windstopper and winter lycra gives you.
We stayed as we always do, on the north side of the Island in Port De Polenca, it's nice and quiet in March as the holiday season has yet to started, so thankfully not an England football shirt in sight and the bars with their all day English breakfast and day old copies of 'The Sun' are still closed for the winter. You can also get into the mountains with a great network of quiet back lanes that apart from a few locals, no one uses.
You can mix your rides well, with flat recovery rides to places like Petra for some great expresso and cake, as well as big mountain rides over to places like Soller, which will have you climbing up switch back turns and up great the slogfest which is Puig Major, at 1500 meters it long enough to get you feeling great to pants and back again!
Now it's not just the racing crowd that use the Island, if you have a summer of Sportif rides or maybe you have got yourself a place in the Etape then you could get a great start to season by coming to Majorca, it's tolerant drivers, big climbs and quite roads are a perfect way to get you ready for any cycling goal you have planned and it also works out cheaper than staying at home. At 30 euros per person Dinner (each as much as you can buffet) Bed and Breakfast(buffet again) it's a bargain. http://www.pollensapark.com/pollensahoteles/hotel_park_ing.htm
Contact Pedro the manager for bookings and further information.
Being a sports person can be the most frustrating things of all times.Not only do we put ourselves through immense pain for no reason, but we also get angry and upset at the first instance that we can't torture ourselves.For me I am experiencing this mixed set of emotions at the moment.After a great holiday of skiing, two months down the line I still have this indescribable niggle in my leg.This is hindering all running as the impact brings out the pain.I can walk, cycle, and swim fine...but of course, due to my having secured a spot in the London Marathon, the running has been the worst effected by my clumsiness.Everyday I think “today is the day that the pain will stop”...but alas it is still there reminding me that I am human and injuries are just part of the sporting world.
So, instead of moping in my misery I need to explore this opportunity to work on all other aspects of fitness levels.As I am trying to focus on triathlons this season, now is the time to finally force myself into the pool to work on my swimming which I enjoy the least.I don't know whether I despise swimming due to the fact that I am hopeless in the pool or whether I just don't enjoy the thrill of jumping in a pool when it’s cold and dark outside.Swimming in my past only occurred when I couldn't face the heat of the sun anymore...not an actual form of exercise.But recently I have attempted to embark on this new challenge that has been forced upon me.I have even joined a club in an attempt to motivate and encourage me.This, to my surprise, has actually worked.Although still in the slow lane and practically drowning after the warm-up laps...I feel a sense of accomplishment and most of all, confidence.It is somewhat addicting as I can see the results almost instantaneously.My breathing has eased up and I am not choking on every breath I take.I am a born again swimmer (or just evolutional swimmer).
The other major leg of the triathlon, the one that actually takes up the most time, is the cycling.The weather teased us earlier this year with the sun shining almost everyday, but now it seems back to the dreary winter days.I spent the weekend cleaning the bikes, getting them ready for their next ride...but let’s hope the weather agrees with my plan.Considering I am a warm weather rider, I have taken to in the indoors with spinning classes.These classes are a great way to exhaust and challenge yourself.Every class I walk into I feel like I am a decent cyclist...but every class I stumble out of, I am reminded I have a long way to go.
So, although my training is tainted and my motivation slightly altered I am trying hard to make the best of a bad situation.I think this is some sort of blessing in disguise to force me to other methods of training and challenge me to my fullest potential.I will, however, welcome a run...but until then its back to core training and technique building.
