One journey ends, and another begins…or does it? As the hourglass sands of life slowly trickle down, you come to appreciate every passing year shares much in common with a long bicycle ride. The mere passing of time ensures the journey is always, ultimately, a linear one. But it is rarely a straight line. Rather … More One journey ends, another begins…
parasite [par-uh-sahyt] noun 1. an organism that lives on or in an organism of another species, known as the host, from the body of which it obtains nutriment. 2. a person who receives support, advantage, or the like, from another or others without giving any useful or proper return, as one who lives on the hospitality of others. Straight up let me just say I am not against drafting (aka ‘wheel sucking’) per se. I’ve written about it before (https://carbonaddiction.net/2014/02/09/whinge-whinge-whinge/) and I know it works. I know it’s part of our sport. And I know it’s a tactically shrewd and highly expedient way … More Parasites of the peloton
Rule #29 clearly states: No European Posterior Man-Satchels: Saddle bags have no place on a road bike, and are only acceptable on mountain bikes in extreme cases. I’ve always liked this rule for its ability to preserve the visual integrity of the bicycle. After all who wants to see a saddle bag swinging in the breeze … More Saddled with a dilemma
Haven’t had a really good vent in a while. But this has been simmering for a long time, so here goes. The topic relates not just to cycling, but 21st Century life in general. Plenty are sure to disagree with me, no doubt vehemently in some cases. That’s your prerogative. Just as this is mine. … More The blame game
There’s no need for a group diagnosis. We already know we’re addicted to cycling. Yet as I type this, having woken this morning to yet another social media avalanche from friends currently pedalling their way across the most famous towns, bergs and cols in European cycling, it occurred to me there’s something we’re perhaps becoming … More Why cyclists love sign language
The post, below, is not about Alberto’s bike…merely inspired by the extraordinary sequence of events it triggered. In the past 36 hours, many have been openly wondering why the whole Contador ‘broken bike’ saga took off so explosively during Monday’s Stage 10 and, stoked by evermore articles and photos on social media, still won’t go away. … More The truth is out there, isn’t it?
We all know stage winners at the Tour de France receive a cuddly lion. But ASO certainly don’t have a mortgage on unique prizes. Here’s just a small selection, inspired by Team Sky’s Peter Kennaugh who won the Tour of Austria overnight – and received a giant salami for his troubles. Know of any others? … More Not all race trophies are created equal
AN OPEN LETTER TO MR BRIAN COOKSON OBE, UCI PRESIDENT Dear Mr Cookson, As you know, the 101st edition of the greatest event in our sport starts today in Yorkshire. It signals three spectacular weeks of drama and nail-biting excitement which the entire world will be watching, except perhaps for 198 million Brazillians who will be … More Please Brian, save out sport
It would appear the cyclist haters have really outdone themselves this time. Last Saturday afternoon in Sydney a group of about 30 humble cyclists, including yours truly, made their way to the criterium circuit at the Dunc Gray (Olympic) velodrome complex in Sydney’s south west for a round of club criteriums. On the very first … More Pain in the glass
The below ad and subsequent shit storm appeared on Facebook this week, posted by one of Australia’s finest domestic sprinters of the past decade and former National Criterium Champion, Anthony Giacoppo. The moment I saw it I knew there’d be more trouble than Dutch Corner during prohibition. And indeed there was. For whilst there are … More To wear or not to wear
Carbon Addiction 