Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Let's get down to business.

Welcome back.


When last we met I was preparing myself mentally and physically for the 26th Inaugural BSNYC Gran Fondo, sponsored by [lucrative promotional opportunities available, just imagine your company name here], which took place way back on the 17th.  Well, I'm pleased to announce that the ride was a smashing success, by which I mean I had an enjoyable bike ride and drank beer afterwards.  As for the other participants, I don't know if they enjoyed it, but nobody said "That sucked!" and then kicked me in the "pants yabbies" so as far as I'm concerned that's as good as a rave review.

Alas, if you were expecting a detailed ride report prepare to be disappointed--though if you've been reading this blog for any length of time you should be accustomed to disappointment.  See, the point of the ride was not to generate Internet content for my crappy bike blog; rather, it was to enjoy the riding of bicycles in the company of other people who enjoy the riding of bicycles, and therefore I did not spend my precious cycling time pointing my smartphone at stuff.  Therefore, you'll just have to make do with this enigmatically blurry photo taken by commenter "VSK:"


I should also point out that the guy in the lime green helme(n)t was riding some old upright three-speed (?) something that weighed a gazillion pounds and he completed THE WHOLE RIDE.  That's 50-ish miles of hilly mixed terrain.

So think about that next time you're shopping for a crabon douchecycle.

In other words, some New York Times columnist who refers to himself in the third person wrote some stupid piece about how he wants taxi drivers to be more "hyperaggressive:"


This week, we depart from the usual letter-and-reply format for a column about taxis. The Haggler writes as a fan. He likes the hyperaggressive way yellow taxis deal with traffic. It’s as if they take it personally. Not long ago, a taxi driver picked up the Haggler at La Guardia and put on a show. Every time he encountered congestion, he rethought his route and gunned it, working like a jazz musician on amphetamines, improvising in a groove.

“But Haggler, that sounds dangerous!” you say. “If you’ve got a problem with cellphones, how can you countenance Vin Diesel driving?”

Fair point. You see, the Haggler wants drivers off phones precisely so they can drive like Vin Diesel. (Or at least the Vin Diesel we see in those “Fast and Furious” movies.) This is impossible, or insane, when talking on the phone.

Um, firstly, does "the Haggler" realize that Vin Diesel's co-star in those movies died in a fiery wreck?


("Awesome!"--The Haggler)

Secondly, on THE VERY DAY the Times published this forced bit of irreverence, John F. Nash Jr. (otherwise known as the "A Beautiful Mind" guy) died when the driver of his taxi lost control on the way to the airport:



Dr. Nash and his wife, Alicia, 82, were in a taxi on the New Jersey Turnpike in Monroe Township around 4:30 p.m. when the driver lost control while veering from the left lane to the right and hit a guardrail and another car, Sgt. Gregory Williams of the New Jersey State Police said.

The Bike Snob really hopes the Haggler feels like a fucking idiot, though the Bike Snob suspects the Haggler has his head too far up the Haggler's Ass to realize how stupid he sounds.  Nevertheless, he Bike Snob still thinks "The Haggler" should change his pen name to "The Wanker," and that if the Haggler wants to ratchet up the thrill factor on his next ride to LaGuardia he should feel free to divest himself of his seatbelt.

Putz.

Speaking of danger, around the time I took leave of this blog the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ever-so-casually equated not wearing bicycle helme(n)ts with smoking, texting while driving, and not wearing a seatbelt:
Hey assholes: the "D" stands for "Disease," not discouragement.  Riding a bicycle is HEALTHY, regardless of whether or not you wear a foam hat.  This is why you're supposed to stop spouting bullshit helme(n)t efficacy statistics:


Two federal government agencies will withdraw their longstanding claims that bicycle helmets reduce the risk of a head injury by 85%. The decision comes in response to a petition the Washington Area Bicyclists Association (WABA) filed under the federal Data Quality Act.

Yes, leave it to an American government agency (or an Australian one) to come up with the idea that not wearing a foam hat while riding a bicycle is as unhealthy as smoking.  Smoking!  You know, the highly addictive thing where you suck carcinogens into your lungs all day long.

This is why we're one of the most obese countries on the planet, and why within 10 years parents will be forcing their children to wear helments while watching TV.

Just wait until we're all wearing airbag helments--never mind that they sometimes go off at inconvenient moments:
A video posted by abc3d (@abc3d_) on
There are still seven months left in the year, but I'm confident that even as we're ringing in the New Year this will still be the greatest thing I've seen in 2015.

Nevertheless, the simple fact is you can always make a buck by frightening people.  Consider this Kickstarter pitch I recently received, in which they simply fabricate the number of annual bike fatalities in the United States:

Hi There!

My name is Lizzy Schofding and I am reaching out to you on behalf of an amazing company called Thousand.  Thousand launched it's first product on Kickstarter on Tuesday, reached its goal in under 9 hours and has since more than doubled it.

Thousand is a design driven lifestyle brand with one mission:  to make a bike helmet that you'd actually want to wear.  With over 1,000 bike fatalities in the U.S. every year, the market is in desperate need of a new kind of helmet.  Thousand's take on the helmet features the following innovations, which make it completely unique:
Innovative Technology- Our secret PopLock (patent pending) is the most convenient and secure way to lock up your helmet to your bike
Commitment to Sustainability-  Helmets are an old industry with limited people and planet friendly options-and we want to change that. We're the only helmet brand focused on sustainable sourcing and materials.
Thoughtful Design- Focused on intuitive, clean design, Thousand is protective, above all and made for the urban explorer.
Take a look at Thousand's Kickstarter page here.  I would love to connect you with the brand's founder for a more in-depth conversation if you are up for it!

As it happens, the number that number is closer to 700, which I happen to know because I read it in Time magazine recently.  So I pointed this out to her and this was her reply:

Apologies - you are completely right, that should have read roughly 1,000 bike fatalities in the U.S. every year. My mistake.

Roughly!?!  So a pile of 300 dead bodies is a fucking rounding error?

It was around this time that she stopped replying to my emails.

Anyway, let's look at the project, which has raised ROUGHLY $120,000 so far:



The narrator begins by explaining her objection to helments:


"I've always hated the sci-fi and bulky design, and they're a pain to lug around."

Really, is she crazy?  I have a road bike helme(n)t.  It is not especially bulky, it's fairly comfortable, and it weighs about as much as a handful of pubes.

Therefore, I can only conclude from the quote above that she was riding around in one of these:


I admit, that is rather bulky and sci-fi.

Anyway, after riding around looking like one of George Lucas's brainfarts, she gave up:


"So even though I knew they could save my life, I never wore one."

See, to me this should be the end of the story.  If you hate wearing a helment so much then don't wear one and shut up about it.  Sadly, this isn't how things work anymore.  Instead, we have Kickstarter, where people describe themselves like this:


"A design-driven lifestyle brand with one mission: to reinvent the bicycle helmet."

I don't know about you, but when I hear "design-driven" the first thing I think of is safety.

Anyway, to this end, she hunts far and wide for someone to implement her vision:


(What, no driving helment?!?  ROUGHLY 30,000 Americans die in cars every year!)

And she eventually finds some wanker in Idaho who looks like he's rubbing a hamburger for luck:


"The styling is being stripped out of it and that in itself becomes a style."

Oh save it.


"And I'm enjoying the challenge of dialing back the styling and getting more into just what the shape is actually doing in front of you."

Come on.  I'll tell you what it's doing: It's being a fucking helment--and not a particularly original-looking one either.  Though you wouldn't know that by the way she's looking at it:


("I am in your thrall, oh mighty helment!")

Oh, but that's not all.  It also has a hole in it so you can lock it onto your bike:


Maybe it's just because I'm a New Yorker, but I don't leave anything I'm going to wear on my body outside unattended for any length of time--though if you're not afraid of a head full of dog piss or semen then go right ahead.  Still, why the hole?  Is it that hard to just lock it up through the straps?

And speaking of straps, it's worth noting that she drove all over America and designed a helment completely from scratch only to render it completely ineffective by wearing it wrong:


I mean come on, it's a helment, not a sunbonnet:


There's no way that's staying on her head.

But, you know, it looks "good" so that's all that matters.

Safety first!

109 comments:

Enzkreis said...

First

Name said...

Second!!

babble on said...

Wooot! Good to see you again, snobbers.

Unknown said...

15. Leftists tend to hate anything that has an image of being strong, good and successful. They hate America, they hate Western civilization, they hate white males, they hate rationality. The reasons that leftists give for hating the West, etc. clearly do not correspond with their real motives. They SAY they hate the West because it is warlike, imperialistic, sexist, ethnocentric and so forth, but where these same faults appear in socialist countries or in primitive cultures, the leftist finds excuses for them, or at best he GRUDGINGLY admits that they exist; whereas he ENTHUSIASTICALLY points out (and often greatly exaggerates) these faults where they appear in Western civilization. Thus it is clear that these faults are not the leftist’s real motive for hating America and the West. He hates America and the West because they are strong and successful.

Mike O. said...

Welcome back.

Jasper said...

Early doors

Jim Joe Mehico said...

welcome back. I was going through withdrawls. Had to go back in time and read 2007 posts last week.

Anonymous said...

Top Tenner! You missed this over at CitSB while you were away...https://pvcycling.wordpress.com/2015/05/21/youthful-crotches-and-shaved-cats-balls/

babble on said...

So we sat beside the seawall a week or so ago, and counted how many people were actually wearing healments in this city with a mandatory healment law. The result? The numbers hovered above and below 50%. And not a single person died.

Lol! And I'm sorry, but how do you do such an indepth study of healments, and come away not knowing how to strap one to your bean?! It always surprises me how many people wear them like that. #rendereduseless

Why. Bother.

Anonymous said...

I'm leaving my comment in that helmnent.

JLRB said...

...you dreamed of your ticket out ....

(My captcha included wild turkey and coke @w.t.f)

Anonymous said...

Welcome back. Did you know haiku broke out here while you were gone? Not quite a bad as ebola, but still...

dop said...

OMG...that's me in the grey jersey (it was once blue) that can be seen just to the right of the lime green helment!! I('m on the internets!!!

leroy said...

Lizzy Schofding?

No way can that be a real name.

Nope not buying it no matter how gullible my dog says I am.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations dop for Internet stardom!
Welcome back, Snob.

P. Bateman said...

i like the way you snuck mr. bibshorts into the hsbc ad. nice bit of design work.

wait a second...is this now a design-driven lifestyle blog?

i like it anyway.

James said...

Welcome back.
That Thousand bike helmet looks a lot like a US military tactical helmet. Ironic as it sometimes feels like I am entering a war zone when I go out to ride.

JLRB said...

...we tease him a lot 'cause we've got him on the spot ...

1. I need new tires for road bike commuting - been using gatorskins - suggestions?

2. I need a foreign language phrase to yell as a warning to pedestrians who are stepping into the bike path - suggestions?

leroy said...

My dog informs me that "vegan leather" is the new "rich Corinthian leather."

But he still won't chew on anything stored within canine leg-lifting height on an NYC street.

babble on said...

JLRB - it really doesn't get any better than Gatorskins for commuting.

PotbellyJoe said...

Welcome back Wildcat.

Glad to hear the Fondon't was a no yabbies-smashing success. Maybe one day I will be able to attend.

I was 5 miles from 200 miles of riding over the Memorial Day weekend. I wanted to get back on the saddle and go the 5.1 miles I needed. The other side of me wanted nothing to do with my bike at that point.

I instead had some pineapple concoction that had cinnamon tequila in it and laid in my pool while waiting for the charcoals to be ready.

I feel like the people most worried about helmets are also the least likely to be seen on a bike. The CDC had to get that tweet out before the new restriction stepped in and ruined their fear-mongering.

Bryan said...

Welcome back!

My only comments are on the helmet gal. 1) she is pretty darn cute 2) what in the fuck is vegan leather? Did I hear that correctly? 3) Looks pretty hot (as in sweaty) with no real vents. 4) I would wear the storm trooper helment. 5) It looks like a WWII army helmet. I'd just wear one of those and I would have equal protection against anyone who tried to shoot me in the head

Anonymous said...

Well, the author's own perfectly plugged passella tg are cheaper, and with a folding bead.

Bryan said...

JLRB - I like Panaracers. I have been using Ribmos, and I think Snob uses Paselas, if I remember correctly. Anyway, I refuse to pay the cost of gatorskins (I heard they aren't very good for wet conditions, though that is all hearsay) or Schwalbe Marathons.

PotbellyJoe said...

JLRB:

I'll echo the Gatorskins Hardshells for commuting. I have tried the new(er) Michelin Service Course yadda yaddas and the Gators ar ebetter hands down.

I was reasonably impressed with the Bontrager AW3s, but for the price, the Gators still win out.

As for a phrase. I do the German thing, "Arschgeige" is great to yell. It literally means Ass Violin, but it is used how we use 'dickhead.'

Pronounced Arsch-Guy-ga.

Anonymous said...

magnetic buckle?? It's like wearing nothing at all (as it flies off your head)

Anonymous said...

There is already a large selection of much better looking and even more douchy equestrian helments for roughly $50 bucks.....

crosspalms said...

Welcome back! And thanks for the airbag video. Priceless.

grog said...

I fall down a lot, so I'll wear a healment. Last Friday I fell into a patch of poison ivy. Joy.

K-Bo said...

My favorite irreverent hipster comedy blog is back!

janinedm said...

I hate living near the GWB sometimes. I had some fred (who went so far as to pull out one of his earbuds since HE WAS WEARING HEADPHONES IN BOTH EARS) tell me that I needed a helmet...as I rode a Workcycle for the love of god. These freds got me feeling like Shirley Manson. I'm only happy when it rains.

JB said...

I love Chesterfield couches, but I don't know if I've ever actually sat on one.

Them legs is made for looking and riding said...

Spent your week off over at Babbleville staring at her legs. Very nice week; I would have said pleasurable, but then I'd be giving away my psychology towards her.

BamaPhred said...

Hail Lord Helment!

I wonder if this is going to be funded as fast as the Bike Nutz.

I like Gatorskins.

I'm going to catch some 4 Seasons Gatorskins in 32MM on sale and try those.

But I hate flats, and Gatorskins have been pretty good at deflecting flats so far.

Congrats on being an internet star, dop.

Anonymous said...

"I fall down a lot, so I'll wear a healment

No one is saying you can't or shouldn't wear a helmet if you want to.

In general, styrofoam "helmets" can eliminate or reduce the severity of injury from minor blows to the head, like by falling down. The have minimal or no effect in a major blow to the head, like those caused by getting hit by a car. Look at a motorcycle helmet to see what is required to prevent/reduce severity of an accident involve a car.

Most serious bicycle injures (including most fatal injuries) are cause by the cyclist getting hit by a car.

Cat Scratch Fever said...

Grog@12:26 PM : After disentangling yourself from the poison ivy I hope you didn't scratch your balls.

bk jimmy said...

Not only was the ride slighlty-less-"sub" epic than the first one, but I met a real-live commenter. Hi VSK!

I have to admit, previously I suspected you might be a robot.

ken e. said...

great, it's gonna be the welcome back kotter theme song from here on in. cue the metal.

82medici said...

Hey Jim Joe Mehico (way back at 11:18)

That is over 400 posts per day (if you only read Mon-Fri)! Did you have nothing better to do?

Grump said...

Helments have their place. If you ride hard (and get put away wet) It might be wise to wear one when you do the above.
If you don't know what you are doing, it might be wise to wear one.
If you ride a Bianchi Pista, it might be wise to wear one.

Otherwise, keep your eyes and ears open.



Anonymous said...

@leroy, how bout "su taco es mi banyo". Works for me every time.

McFly said...

Shouldn't that be two frederal government agencies?

babble on said...

Grump - That's me! I ride hard and get put away wet all the time! And of course, I also fall down a lot...

Not like some of the famous internet commenters round here. Nice bum, DOP. Where're yeah from?

It's Bike to Work week round these parts, and I have been twisting a few friends' arms to take up the challenge, with varying degrees of success. I gave them a ticket to ride, but I've the distinct feeling that I've missed something...

Anonymous said...

Commuter tires... I've been converting to any tires with reflective sidewalls. Also thicker rubber during the glass+rain season. I'm willing to give up some light weight for fewer flats.

Tried 28mm Michelin City Tires fall 2013.
Thick tread - no flats, heavy, was the best winter season ever,
BUT - the sidewall gave out after 6 months on the rear (!!).
Did I overinflate it? 90+ psi instead of max=87, once or twice?
Maybe, but after that, no more Michelins.
(check the comments online. I'm not the only one.)

Choices with reflective sidewalls and thicker tread are better than ever, with several under $30.
Serfas? Vittoria? Giant branded?

3G said...

Ahhh...irreverence! How I've missed you!

Welcome back Snobby!

Gideon said...

Gran Fondon't was great!!!! Kinda makes me want to ride in groups more. Is that a good thing?

Vernal Magina said...

yee-haw.

TC said...

If you want to wear a helmet on the subway on the way to work knock yourself out. But if you fall in front of a moving train it will probably be as effective as it would be getting hit on your bike by a 3,000lb steel projectile moving at 50mph. Safe heads-up riding is probably much more effective at preventing accidents and injuries than wearing a helmet. That being said, in certain instances it makes sense (e.g. when you're drunk, if you were born without a skull, etc) but that should be up to the individual and shouldn't be mandatory.

TC said...

I just put a pair of 32mm panracer t-serve protex on my commuter. So far so good. I usually go with gatorskins but wanted to try something different. Only about 100 miles on them so far, but they ride nicely and have performed well on all surfaces and a $39 each they are not too expensive.

Epstein's Mother said...

Juan can't be here today because he has a cold.

Anonymous said...

vsk said ...

I've been mentioned!! And had my blurry work published on the innernets!
Blur being the product of unexpected wheel deviation whilst chewing on everyone's dust.
I got to meet some real live commenters too! However it has all faded to mush as I am old (I'm as old as I feel... actually like 106 after my Fondon't droppage!).

If I ever learn how to spell Flicker or FlickHer or whatever, I'll put a couple of pix up. I had better ones when people were stopped (and I was able to catch up!).


Crazy Helment Lady:
Looks like she made some guy shave the brim off a Bern and drill a hole in one side.
Easy business model really.

Flat Fix:
My friend recommends Mr. Tuffy tire liners. I keep forgetting to try them at my local LBS.

vsk

dnk said...

Snob, masterful analysis of the (roughly?!) Thousand helment design/art product.

Welcome back. Horshack was getting whinny in your absence.

dnk said...

P.S. Congrats vsk on the launch of your photography career!

wishiwasmerckx said...

It's creepy that Epstein and Horshak are both dead already.

Anonymous said...

It's even creepier that Barbarino isn't dead yet.

africansingle said...

I want one of those VC helments. Ho Chi Minh chic. Just needs a Zippo stuck on the outside

bad boy of the north said...

welcome back to your second home......no riding today.waiting for wifey to do her jury duty.....i know....i said , duty.

Anonymous said...

Hanoi Jane was modeling them back in the day!

F. "B.B." Washington said...

Hi there.

Pathetic Old Cyclist said...

I've been experimenting with a new way to get killed. It's a lot like bikecycling. It's called 'kayaking'. The play ground is different, but the rules are the same...You get the smallest vehicle available, and throw it in the bay. Then, huge vehicles, some as big as my house, many driven by drunks, pass by as close as possible. We can even argue about wearing a PFD instead of arguing about helments.

There's no blog, yet. I might start one called 'Yak Swab"

Dick Cabesa said...

Hello, gentlemen.

recumbent conspiracy theorist said...

The Recumbent Conspiracy Theorist is glad you're back.

Maz said...

Thousand: the bike helmet for people that don't ride bikes.

Anonymous said...

"There are many helments, but this one is mine…"

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/99/Full_Metal_Jacket_poster.jpg

You know what's an actual life saver? Dual-pivot brakes.

Anonymous said...

I'd rather see Lizzy Schoding model a pair of equestrian pants than that horse-y helment.

balls™ said...

Hey, you know that exploding helmet thing? Really, that almost never happens to me. Let's try again in about an hour. It won't happen again. Hey, where are you going?

Olle Nilsson said...

Crowdfunding - because finding real investors to fund your crappy product is hard.

Anonymous said...

JLRB —

1. I ran Gatorskins for a while and thought they were great. Now I’m running Schwalbe Marathons and I like them even better.

2. “Wossamattu Yu?!” is a good Transylvanian exclamation.

Regular guy said...

I like that air bag helmet video. Talk about stylish design: instant Ziggy Stardust hair.

Fredder said...

Perhaps the most compelling reason to wear a helmet when cycling is that it improves sleep. To wit, I mentioned your point of view regarding the wearing of helmets to my 25 year old son, who was visiting (via his grandfathers very lovely vintage 10-speed). Sans helmet. I also mentioned that I make occasional trips in the neighborhood without one. I made the mistake of making these comments within earshot of my wife. The sofa I had to sleep on that night was very uncomfortable.

Fredder said...

Also, I love the air bag video.

wishiwasmerckx said...

Babble, you do know how to whistle, don't you? You just put your lips together and blow...

...according to Lauren Bacall.

K-Bo said...

+1 Schwable Marathons

dop said...

That was sweet of you babs, but I have no butt. I don't understand why my pants stay on, but I suspect it's the belt.

Olle Nilsson said...

Marathons are awesome for commuting. Just need to get rims with eyeletted valve holes cuz I still get flats at the valve stem. Or do I just suck at aligning tubes? Dunno.

Pasellas are way better for Fredly-ish endeavors.

Anonymous said...

Calling all lip readers;

In the exploding helment video, what does the woman who's tapping away at a laptop say to the guy when his head asplodes?

Delightfully, she's smiling from the very first instant and I think the first thing she says is "what was that?", but after that she says something else. I'm hoping it's something about popcorn.

ken e. said...

@bieks,
cloth rim-tape right up cozy to the valve hole? the one that always gets me is the talcum powder in there with the tube... really like to know where it disappears to. thirdly, there's whatever kind of pump you're using, if it's pushing the valve stem around a lot, pffft!
also running a marathon on the back of my CX bike, it weighs almost as much as the rest of the bike.

LEAD TIRE
NOTS UPLE

dop said...

Why does that little skinny girl in the helmet video need 36 spoke wheels triple crossed?

Two Percent said...

I like to put a dollop of curdled milk in my helmet, put it on, and go for a hard ride, this makes me faster because I make good head whey.

Olle Nilsson said...

ken e.- exactly. I'll put up with the harsh ride and weight to have a flat free commute. Fortunately the occasional valve failures generally present themselves before my ride. Going for a rec ride, flats are sometimes a welcome break and I'd rather have a smoother ride.

Olle Nilsson said...

Cows are vegans, pigs, not so much. So the straps are likely cow hide. Unless they're freaks who make their helment straps from human vegans. Sick.

Anonymous said...

So the question remains, is the helmet actually safe? It look like the outer shell sits very close to the skull. Which would leave very little room for EPS foam. You know the part that actually saves your noodle.

I hope she save some of that kickstarter money to fund her legal defense.

David Pearce said...

Dear "he Bike Snob" [Haggler commentary],

Welcome back!

We have missed you! Hope you enjoyed a pleasant time off and thoughtful Memorial Day.

I cannot say I had the same good time. Without your blog, I mostly felt like the mental patient I am, during the last two weeks in August, when my shrink is away in the Hamptons, and I've run out of my meds refills.

But I like that YOU had a good time.

Dave.

Anonymous said...

death defying cab ride

Anonymous said...

I can't believe you are so irresponsible to vilify bike helmets - bike helmets have saved millions of lives, they've saved my life, they've saved my friend's life, in fact I don't know anyone who hasn't been saved by a helmet. That poor dear you mock with her artisinal helmet - if it wasn't for people like her then 100,000s of cyclists would be killed every year - the only reason 100,000s aren't being killed is that most people have the good sense to either not ride death cycles or to ensure they wear the proven protectiveness of a plastic hat whenever they straddle one of those infernal machines.

Anonymous said...

The guy at my LBS recommended Armadillos to replace my Gatorskins, which had lots of small rips in them after only one season of commuting. I think they're made by Specialized, though, so...

Unknown said...

Tyres - London commuters seem to swear by Schwalbe Marathon + . I'm running them on mine over mixed urban terrain with no punctures so far (couple of thousand commuting miles on them). They are tough to get on though, I'm not looking forward to the first puncture where I have to do it by the side of the road. I'm using the 28's on a Sirrus.

Ran Durano pluses all through last summer, bit lighter, easier to put on, reasonable protection. Picked up one puncture total (shard of glass, on a group ride, wasn't the only one to puncture and unfortunately they came back for me 'cause I was hoping I'd get lucky and they'd drop me) again 28's although they tend to come up as 26's. That was on the Synapse. Again, a bit under 2000 miles at a guess. Did the Ride London Surrey 100 on them and passed an awful lot of people who'd punctured thanks to the rain.

Helment girl, I didn't watch the video, but did she go to Skywalker Ranch and just ask George to design her a less sci fi helment?

Anonymous said...

As Chris Hoy once said: "Chris Hoy thinks that the day Chris Hoy refers to Chris Hoy in the third person is the day Chris Hoy disappears up his own arse."

Jobst Brandt said...

"Why does that little skinny girl in the helmet video need 36 spoke wheels triple crossed?"

EVERYONE needs 36 spoke wheels triple crossed. No exceptions

Anonymous said...

”I hope she save some of that kickstarter money to fund her legal defense.”

As long as here stryofoam hat passes the Consumer Product Safety Commission standard, she is safe from law suits in the US. Arguments on what the stryofoam hat wears are safe from are ongoing.

McFly said...

Now I know where I saw Lizzy.

SCIENCE! said...

In the US, cyclists think different tires have more or less puncture resistance.

In Taiwan, cyclist buy thick wall, heavy duty inner tubes to prevent punctures.

Little or no evidence exists that either are correct.

babble on said...

I rode Vittoria Corsa tubulars to a podium finish and my first prime last night... now THAT was a sweet ride. :)

JLRB said...

Thanks for the tire/tyre recommendations - I need to replace tires on two roadies at the moment so I am going with one set of Conti gators and one set of Panaracer something or others.

Although Schwalbe sounds like something Gomer Pyle would say, I will try to remember to give them a spin next time around (as long as my helmet doesn't explode before then).

babble on said...

Lol! WIWM - Blowing is not the issue. Apparently I am an expert at that...

JLRB said...

welcome back

well comeback

well, come back


... and then there is the Cipo version

JLRB said...

leading out the pack

JLRB said...

love the Jobst Brandt comment at 7:51

i Robot said...

No pictures to identify yet

JLRB said...

Century?

JLRB said...

Babs - Did you grab ass when the guy kissed your cheeks on the podio?

(Congrats!)

babble on said...

And backatcha! XX
OMG what was I thinking? I totally gapped. Actually, the guy who hands out our podium prizes is funny as hell, though not necessarily ass grabbing material. And, as our club hosts the World Tuesday Night Championships, I would then have to face him every week after said ass grab. THAT would be awkward, and probably worse for me than for him. I am hoping to spend more time on the podium this year, and I would hate it if it became expected of me...

Now if every week they hired a coupla different hotties I never had to see again, it might be a different story.

babble on said...

OMG, is it possible? Is The Beautiful Game more disgraced than cycling?!?

Anonymous said...

vsk said ...

Well done Ms. Babblicious!

vsk,
Lanterne Rouge!

Anonymous said...

That helmet reminds me of something … http://imgur.com/uhARJKk

David Pearce said...

About the Nash fiasco, it apparently was on their way BACK from the airport, having just returned from Norway, after receiving a math prize which name escapes me right now. The irony is just too thick.

Imagine! Apparently a pre-ordered limousine did't show up, and the older couple, naively trusting, decide to take an anonymous taxi instead. And he turns out to be a cowboy, and a bad one at that.

Meanwhile, I ask stupid morbid questions, like how did crime scene (and I emphasize crime) look compared to Buffon's Needle problem? You know, where Buffon tossed knitting needles over his shoulders and then noted where they crossed the joints between the floorboards, and at what angle. Where did the ejected bodies cross the road marking lines, if they did, and at what angle?!

They did not deserve this kind of demise, and I am sad about it!

Anonymous said...

i thought sure the Snob would have noticed the thousand or 700 helmnet girl's sneekers were untied and acused her of trying to test said helment on the pavement with her skull inside

Anonymous said...

"The Haggler". Wasn't he one of the lower-tier super villians in the Marvel Comics of the late 1980s?

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