Stating Your Preference

As you know, I am a staunch opponent of the phrase "On your left!"  I even wrote a column for Outside about it.  Plus, when the New York Cycling Club naively asked me to speak at their monthly meeting the other day I hijacked the entire event and harangued them at length on the subject of the hated phrase.

Clearly, the complete elimination of "On your left!" from the cycling lexicon has become my white windmill.

Nevertheless, even I must admit that if you cannot occasionally yield then you are destined to crack, and that true strength of character requires you to maintain a state of lateral stiffness and vertical compliance at all times.  Consider this past weekend, when I was riding along the dirt trail I frequent:

It wasn't the above section, and of course the leaves are still on the trees, but you get the idea.

Anyway, this trail runs through various suburban neighborhoods whose neighborhoods take to it in fairly significant numbers on the weekends.  This affords me many opportunities to experiment with my passing technique, and what I generally do is tailor my approach based on the people and the circumstances.  Sometimes a verbal warning is best, other times a little ratcheting of the freewheel works better, and still other times it's best to say nothing at all.  And I'm please to say I've reached a point where I can usually overtake people with smiles and waves all around--most crucially without uttering the hated phrase.

Alas, this was not the case when I encountered an older gentleman walking with some sort of wooden stick or handle across his back and wedged in the crook of his arms.  (There is a distinct subset of suburban walker who must always walk with some sort of stick.)  Assessing the situation, I deemed it best to silently go around him, and did so giving him a wide berth.

"On your left!," he called after me condescendingly.

I stopped and accounted for myself.  I told him that I hate saying on your left, and that when I'm being passed I hate hearing on your left.  I further explained that when you do say "On your left!" often people abruptly turn left right into your path.  I finally pointed out that I'd given him plenty of room, and passed very slowly, and that I always make a point of doing so.

Nevertheless, it was clear he felt deprived of hearing not only a warning of some kind, but specifically those three words.

Hey, some people also like stiletto heels ground into their genitals, so go figure.

In any case, given that there are in fact people who not only want a verbal warning but specifically want to hear "On your left!," I think what needs to happen now is that everybody must wear a t-shirt or jersey emblazoned with their preference on the back.  Mine, for example, would read thusly:

Yours might say something like this:

As for people like the gentleman I upset, I've got something for them too:

Obviously when you're ordering you'll be able to add custom instructions of your choosing.

Problem solved.

Speaking of the scranus, we've seen the new heat-moldable shoes, but meet the new heat-moldable saddle:

When a Reform saddle is plugged in with a USB cable, the segments underneath the sit bones heat up. Next, the rider pedals their bike on a trainer for a few minutes in their normal riding position. The last step is to climb off and let the saddle cool and form.

And yes, that's Landyachtz the skateboard company, whose longboards you'll find under the feet of many a manbun-sporting longboard bro:

But if you think that means they don't know anything about The Crabon then think again:

That's $748 just for the deck, so just around a hundred bucks shy of that nice steel Milwaukee frame I've been riding:

So basically between crabon skateboards and wooden bikes it seems we're in the midst of a complete bike/skateboard inversion:

And no, I haven't heard a peep since August about that Renovo I'm supposed to be "testing," so I guess my dreams of woodgrain glory have been consigned to the wood chipper once and for all.

Finally, Peter Sagan has won his third rainbow jersey for being the World Champion of Men Who Ride Road Bikes:

Sagan is the first man to win three in a row, as well as being the youngest to achieve a hat-trick, and his photo-finish victory in Bergen was not just an achievement for the ages, but a reminder of why Sagan is such an important figure in cycling.

But after winning the rainbow jersey yet again, will an imminent change in the Slovakian’s personal circumstances dull his famously competitive instincts?

The answer to that question is obviously no, because once that baby comes he'll be out on the bike as much as possible.