Sometimes watching cycling gives me the proverbial chills up the spine. Other times I feel like I'm watching a greased manatee trying to climb a flight of steps.I realize that what is poetry in motion for some people is idiocy in motion for others. And I understand that this differs from person to person. So instead of saying "this is beautiful and that is stupid," I'll simply say there are some things I get, and some things I just don't. Here are some examples, thanks to the dubious miracle of youtube:
Something I Get:
The drama and excitement of crashes in the heat of road-racing competition.
Something I Don't:
Crashing intentionally at a big, smelly block party.
Something I Get:
The fluidity, power, and speed of a well-drilled team pursuit.
Something I Don't:
The fatuous pointlessness of fixed-gear skidding.
Something I Get:
The fluid transitions, grace, and intensity of cyclocross.
Something I Don't:
The leisurely, awkward transitions of triathlons.
10 comments:
haha still with the skidding... yeesh! pointless maybe but fun at the same time. its a good feeling laying down a nice solid arc'd drift around a corner at high speed. probably just as much fun for me as running a pace lane is for you!.
nice set of links...
I can not recall the last time I heard The Damned!
To be fair, you're comparing professional cyclocross transitions to a very amature triathlon transition. I've seen first-time sprint triathalon folks move faster.
That said, I'm not knocking the fluidity of the cyclocross folks, it's a beautiful thing.
Derek,
Good point, of course. I hope I am never accused of being fair. Lobsided juxtaposition--the oldest trick in the book...
--BSNYC
y'know what I get - the simple beauty and practicality of mechanical shifting systems.
what I don't get - electronic shifting systems. Aside from fulfilling my desire to cover my bike in zip-ties, add extra weight to my waterbottle cages and weaken a formerly 100% reliable system I'm not sure what the gain would be. oh wait, I do see - I could spend a ton of money on something stupid and needless so that I can be as 'cutting edge' as a guy currently placed 134th in the TdF. Cool. Maybe I'll just go get matching frame-pads for all my bikes instead.
All I know is the girl in pink on the tall bike has some skillz. Punks on 20" bikes couldn't get over those mattresses.
bike kill looked like fun.
Something I Get: The joy of a well-crafted, humorous blog post poking gentle fun at the foibles of bicyclists and the bicycle industry.
Something I Don't: The pointless fatuity of modifying "pointlessness" with "fatuous."
Placid Casual,
Ha! Well, what can I say? I get not paid by the word...
--BSNYC
I consider myself a rather open minded individual, but excitement of a skidding competition is really lost on me. Like NASCAR, it leaves me confused as to why people watch...
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