Thrills, Spills, and Grills

The Fourth of July is coming, and you know what that means:

Civil War, baby!

Oh, and also grilling:

This collapsible grill attaches to the handlebars of any bike for easy transport. pic.twitter.com/AvLKeV6uER

— Bicycling Magazine (@BicyclingMag) July 1, 2018

My first thought upon seeing the Knister Grill was that it was a disaster in the making, and that the rider would receive a face full of hot ash on the first section of pavé.  However, I'll be damned if the inventor didn't think of everything:

Plus, it conforms to German safety standards:

I have no idea what German safety standards are, but it sounds impressive.

And who would think to defy this warning?

pic.twitter.com/cYogc1wXas

— chris L (@machinehuman) July 1, 2018

But while it may live up to German safety standards, there's no way it could live up to American eating standards:

Food for 10 people?  On that?!?

That's like a snack for one, at best.

This is how we like to do it:

In other news, Chris Froome, the world's most athletic asthmatic, will get to race in the Tour de France, which is a popular annual stage race:

Although Froome’s sample was reported to contain a concentration of salbutamol in excess of 1000ng/ml, the UCI said it had closed the case based on Wada advice pertaining to permitted use.

“The UCI has considered all the relevant evidence in detail (in consultation with its own experts and experts from Wada),” read the statement. “On 28 June 2018, Wada informed the UCI that it would accept, based on the specific facts of the case, that Mr Froome’s sample results do not constitute an AAF.

“In light of Wada’s unparalleled access to information and authorship of the salbutamol regime, the UCI has decided, based on Wada’s position, to close the proceedings against Mr Froome.

A decision resulting in much wringing of hands:

I think the folks who run the UCI genuinely think cycling fans are this stupid. pic.twitter.com/xwzJA2XCC6

— Peter Flax (@Pflax1) July 2, 2018

Though as far as I'm concerned, in 2018, it's hard to muster up much more than a "whatevs" in response to this news.  Pick any context--cycling, sport in general, the current political climate--and Team Sky's occasional forays outside the margin in pursuit of marginal gains hardly register.  Anyway, going for the Giro-Tour double is basically an admission of guilt anyway, so we might as well just sit back and let him go for it.

It's like playing with kids: they always bend the rules, but it's easier to just let them win than to endure all the whining when you try to call them on it.

Finally, in Brooklyn, fishing is the new fixie, or something:

To test his lures, Mr. Wool uses his bathtub and then goes to the East River, which, he said, has only about a foot of visibility. His favorite spot is a 10-minute bike ride from his apartment. His bike is black, has ape hanger bars, green pedals and a milk crate attached to the back that carries his tackle box and rods. It’s the hipster equivalent of a fishermen’s pickup truck.

As for me, I've bypassed the whole artisanal lure thing and now just go spear fishing in the East River:

It's a zen thing, you wouldn't understand.