STUFFE

THE MOUSTACHE BRACKET
home of "The System", Roscott Inc. brings this bit of typographic fun (and an ampersand eye test chart into the bargain). Those of you doing this year's "Mo'vember" may want to combine your love of facial hair and love of typography...

ASK RITTE
Pavé blog brings you an new feature, the advice column "Ask Ritte".

"If you can’t win the race, at least win the party. I heard that once from a guy in a San Diego bar, but I think he was talking about NASCAR."

You can mail your questions to paveblog@gmail.com - remember to put "Ask Ritte" in the subject line.

VELO ORANGE
Some new product listed on their website, including an interesting looking dynamo light from Shimano. In this light, a secondary bulb flashes as the dynamo turns, with the main light switching on as ambient light falls below a certain level. Looks like a good solution for commuting. Also in the post is a nice looking front rack, and a cleverly designed rear brake hanger.

GIRO D'ITALIA
Close now - Podium Café has a team round up here.

And you can try your own hand at being a director sportif at these fantasy pro-cycing games;
NRToone
Velogames

"TWO STEPS FORWARD, ONE STEP BACK"
Cosmo comments on the recent bio-passport bans on Cyclocosm.

"From the horrific press release, which seems to have been optimized to avoid search engine results, to the lack of specific data on what makes these riders’ information abnormal, the UCI has created a massive information vacuum..."

I'm in full agreement with him in that the values placing these riders' passports outside the tolerances of the system need to be discussed in detail, otherwise we'll just have endless claim and counter claim.

STUFFE

EMMA POOLEY
Podium Café has a good interview with Cervelo Test Team's Emma Pooley

"Though they have the support of Cervélo’s resources, the women are not entirely insulated from the difficulties that women’s cycling faces. Three races Emma Pooley won last year have disappeared from the calendar."

THE LOST CYCLIST
Urban Velo reviews "The Lost Cyclist -The Untold Story of Frank Lenz's Ill-fated Around-the-world Journey".

"Part travelogue, part murder investigation, “The Lost Cyclist” is a clear-eyed look at bicycle travel in the days before paved roads and automobiles. Herlihy mines myriad press accounts, not only to track the trips but also to explain the sometimes testy relationships among cycling clubs, the media, government officials and the riders’ own family."

The article also includes an interview with the author, and can be read here.

CYCLING AND DOPING
With the UCI's Biological passport in the news, it's probably a good time to round up some useful information on the passport system.

First, the UCI's own page "Information on the Bio Passport".

Scientific American "Can Biological Passports Root Out Doping in Sports?"

On NYVelocity - Michael Ashenden interview #1...and "The Bio Passport: 5 Questions for Michael Ashenden".

ART
I love the "Lost Myths" website featured on Drawn.ca yesterday.

Its creators describe it as

"A playful medly of cryptomythological fiction, pantheons, bestiaries, comics, art, games, readings, performances and more by Claude Lalumiere and Rupert Bottenburg."

Whilst the best title award undoubtedly goes to "Fun and Games with the Hippatocora", the alternately whimsical and sinister "What To Do with the Dead" is superb too.

INFOGRAPHICS
Flowing Data takes an interesting look at the trend for large infographics.

Big information graphics have been around for a long time. They've come in the form of maps, visualization, art, signs, etc. That was all on paper though. In the past couple of years, humongous, gigantic, and often really long infographics have found their way onto the computer screen, through blogs and news sites. Some are great. Some really suck. The volume is booming for both.

Let's take a look at when this all got started, where the trend is headed, and how much we should really read into these things.

STUFFE

The Paper Boneshaker - Original image from the makers' site.

THE PAPER BONESHAKER

Just how much does Japanese deisgner Shinichi Iwami love bicycles? Enough to have 1/24 scale kits laser-cut out of 0.5mm black paper with enough precision and detail that they require a scalpel, tweezers, glue, instructions, and nerves of steel to assemble.

More information here, at Bikehacks.

300 KM TO THE SEA
Just when I'm feeling pleased with myself for having done a couple of rides edging close to 60 miles, Redbikes puts me in my place by riding a colossal 192 miles. And this despite exploding saddle bags and having to make running repairs to his bike. Chapeau!

WHEN I WERE A LAD
BrokenTV, king of the bar chart, and producer of the epic "Top 100 TV shows of the '00s", turns his attention to board games. (Younger readers: Board Games are sort of like paper and card based Wii games. It's what we did for fun in the olden days, after telly had ended for the night, or if there was nothing on on the three(!) available channels).

This time, it's the turn of the TV Times board game. You can read the first in this series (covering the game based on Carla Lane's "Bread") here.

HOW OTHERS SEE US
Cycling Inquisition has been to London;

Instead, British cyclists look like Mr Bean, they favor day-glow attire and often ride a Brompton folding bikes.

The full article is here.

AND SO IT BEGINS?
Podium Café has a decent timeline of events in the recent unpleasantness surrounding Liquigas and Franco Pelizotti.

Liquigas have responded;

"Right now the evidence presented does not appear able to show with certainty, at a scientific level, illicit behavior by the athlete," Liquigas said in a statement on Tuesday.

Hopefully the evidence is going to be open to scrutiny, so the UCI scientists, and those in the employ of Liquigas can make their case. I'd be interested to see quite what values Liquigas are disputing.

There's a fantastic interview with Michael Ashenden on the site most of us know as the home of Toto NYVelocity, on the UCI's Biological passport system and how it works here.

"However I believe the point you are making is that if they had been doping, they should have been sanctioned via the Passport in the first place. The issue here is sensitivity - the Passport is the most sensitive tool we have available to detect doping once the banned substance has left the system. But it is not 100% sensitive - it won't catch every single rider who had doped. A large part of this is due to the margins of tolerance we must allow to ensure that riders are not wrongly accused of doping."

(My emphasis).

STUFFE

ME
Whilst STUFFE is largely about interesting things I find elsewhere, those of you who were following Mrs Monkey and I across France and Belgium last year may be interested to know that I got chance to write up Day Three of our Tiny Tour yesterday, having finally had time to sort through the pictures and tour diary. Day Three is here, Day Two here, and Day One here. Day three was our longest day in the saddle (42 miles from Brugge to Ieper) and one of my favourites. Just don't ask why I'm pulling that face.

I've also been tidying up some older posts a little (sorting out malformed tags, for the most part). Depending on how both of you read my blog, that might make posts pop up as "new" in your feedreader - apologies if that does happen.

PENCIL VS CAMERA
Lines and Colors blog features the work of Belgian painter, illustrator, caricaturist and photographer Ben Heine. His Pencil vs Camera project is a series of photographs taken with Heine's sketches of the location (often with a surreal twist) held in place in the appropriate part of the frame. It's a wonderful, fun project, consisting of 13 images so far.

(US) NATIONAL BIKE MONTH
Bike Commuters reminds US readers that May is national bike month.

There's a list of events on the site, and you're invited to add your own via the comments on this page.

DISC BRAKES FOR BEGINNERS
Disc brakes are becoming more common on road bikes and commuters. Over at BikeHacks, they've obtained their first disc brake equipped bike, a Globe Vienna. This post runs through their experience of adjusting them, using, typically enough for Bike Hacks, a steak knife.

URBAN VELO #19
Urban Velo are a regular source of bits and pieces for STUFFE - their own magazine is available now (issue 19). You can order a print copy, or read it online for free here.

Contents include: Denver’s Courier Veterans, Aiming for an Urban Cycling Mecca in Asheville, NC, Finders Keepers, I Love Riding in the City, Gallery: 2010 NAHBS, Residue, The End of Favoring Motorized Transportation, Red Hook Crit, The Lost Cyclist, Freewheel Removal, Get a Grip and Bicycle Helmet Evolution.

INFOGRAPHIC
Cosmo over at Cyclocosm has created an infographic charting 100 years of Giro Winners.

The graphic is word cloud of Giro winners in the shape of Italy, running more or less chronologically from Sicily to the Austrian border. Text sizes correspond to the number of victories, and dates are provided as well. Colors are from the Italian flag, and pink from the maglia rosa worn by the race’s GC Leader.The graphic is word cloud of Giro winners in the shape of Italy, running more or less chronologically from Sicily to the Austrian border. Text sizes correspond to the number of victories, and dates are provided as well. Colors are from the Italian flag, and pink from the maglia rosa worn by the race’s GC Leader.

The graphic is available as a poster or a T-shirt from Cyclocosm.

VIRTUAL MUSETTE TOP 50 UPDATE
Eric over at the virtual musette has updated his Top 50 riders of the modern era with points scored this season up to and including the Tour of Romandie. Commentary on the results is to follow (the post linked above is numbers only), but if you're interested to see how the landscape has changed during classics season, head over.
(See also - how the riders are scored part 1 and part 2).

IS THERE A PLACE FOR ELITISM?
This piece at Bicycling argues that riders can be "too nice".

But all that stuff worked. It weeded out those of us who didn’t belong there, and we didn’t ride there until we belonged.

I’ve always contended that, as reprehensible as roadie elitism is, it is also valuable. A pack of racers needs to be elitist because, when you’re going 37 mph bar-to-bar you want to be there only with the elite. You want to know that the racers in front of you and on either side of you understand what’s going to happen and how to react and what is fair and expected and, even, unfair but expected.

I don't really have a view - I don't ride in groups, and if I'm honest, people sitting in on me makes me nervous (I don't know them, they don't know me). It sounds like I might have the right idea too - I ride my bike for fun these days, and tbh, dealing with this sort of stuff seems a distance away from what I want to do with my spare time.

SALSA AND THE USBRS

Take a moment and think of the transportation route system that the United States has developed primarily around automobiles. Now imagine a similar route system for bikes.

Salsa has signed on as a sponsor of the new U.S.B.R.S. fundraising campaign: Build it. Bike it. Be a Part of It. We encourage you to consider donating if you are able.

US readers can learn more, and help the campaign for the USBRS at this page.
(I know it's another US specific thing, but I love the promo graphic, and it's also further proof of Salsa's COOLNESS).

A Tiny Tour: From Crewe to France and Belgium, Day Three

Mrs. Monkey succumbs to Hills and Headwinds

Day three was planned to be our longest day on the road, travelling from Brugge to Ieper.

After a very pleasant breakfast with our hosts and the other couples staying at the B&B (including a couple from Florida, who were charming) we headed out of Brugge. This was one of the few times the LF system let us down, as one of the points seemed to be missing. We were able to ask for directions, and a combination of that, and picking up another knoppunkt signpost (not for our route, but did tell us which (wrong) way we were heading) which allowed us to find our way back.

This was quite a challenging day of riding - as we were travelling south and west at this point, we began to have the prevailing wind against us. This part of the LF route had large sections of off road trail, so I was able to ride two abreast with Mrs. Monkey & push her where she was flagging, although occasionally the only answer was to dismount and push.


Mrs. Monkey and the Pavé

We also got our first real taste of Belgian cobbles on this day.


Cobbles, Baby

This is another reason for examining the "Recommended Alternative Route" carefully on the fietskart, I think, a lesson we'd sadly not learned after our experience of Cabourweg on day one. This stretch was by far the longest bit of pavé we encountered on the trip, on a road appropriately called "Steenstraat" (Stone Street) - I think this is around Diskmuide. It's hard to describe adequately just how jarring these are - even on 32c tyres, it feels as though your fillings are about to part company with you. This was also the point that I began to hope in earnest that I'd done a good enough job on my homebuilt wheels...



The scenery was beautiful though. The fietsroute, once you're properly out of Brugge, winds through a series of wooded areas and parks.


The Entrance to Aertrycke Castle

I think the most spectacular of these was the one around Aertrycke Castle.


Aertrycke Castle Grounds

This route is also part of a signed "Kastell Route" (there seemed to be lots of these themed tours, in addition to the LF route signs).


Me, in the grounds of Aertrycke Castle, the weather is nice enough for me to need my cycling cap

If all the castles are as nice as Aertrycke, the Kastell route is definitely one to note for future tours. We also had a picture taken of both of us, for a change, by some nice Flemish ladies who were kind enough to offer on seeing me trying to set up the camera on a stone plinth.


Wijnendale Café Stop

Of course, all that riding into the wind, and negotiation of cobbles is drying work, so you can imagine how glad we were to see this sign in Wijnendale. I also recommend the café by the canal at Knoppunkt 8, although I can't for the life of me remember its name.

Our destination was the Hotel Sultan at Ieper.


View from the Hotel Window

Recently refurbished, the hotel is basic, but has a fantastic position right on Ieper's Grote Markt, as you can see from the picture above. Bike storage is adequate (bikes go in a corridor at the back of the hotel, with a railing they can be locked to), and the proprietors were helpful and friendly when we arrived, opening a large side door to allow us in more easily.


The Menin Gate

Despite having been to Belgium before, we'd never visited Ieper, and Mrs Monkey wanted to see the last post ceremony at the Menin Gate. Having showered and changed, we ate another hearty meal to replace (more) cycling energy, and headed for the gate.


At the Menin Gate, before the ceremony

The scale of the gate is astonishing, and begins to illustrates the scale of loss suffered during the first world war.


This model outside the memorial shows the original concept for the gate

Despite the crowds at the last post ceremony, it seemed to me to be an appopriately sombre affair, although there is more opportunity for reflection afterwards, I think.



By the time we left the gate, night had all but fallen, and we decided to grab a coffee before returning to the hotel.


Coffee

We headed into the "Regina Republica" bar by the fountains on the Grote Markt, and were very pleased to see coffee served with cake, and even a miniature Twix.

Miles Covered: 42, at an average speed of 9.21mph

STUFFE

BADGER II
From BikeHugger, this Piet Mondrian saddle. So, you grab your Look bicycle, mount this on it, buy the "La Vie Claire" kit from Prendas, and your rolling Hinault/De Stijl tribute is complete.

SPEZI 2010
Velovision has this quick rundown of the recent SPEZI show, with LOADS of pictures.

Spezi is a show for Recumbents, Quads, Tandems, Trikes, Folding Bikes - those slightly out of the ordinary things that you don't see all that often in most bicycle media. Worth a look.

ARTS AND CRAFTS
Simon at La Gazzetta Della Bici shares this post on wrapping handlebars. From an original post by Simon's friend James, the method he uses to make custom finishing tape produces a *really* nice effect. (Manufacturer finishing tapes are crap, as James rightly points out, even, and it pains me to say so, Fizik's).

For wrapping the bars, I think it's hard to beat the guide on Park Tool - use the "self tightening" method described in their advanced tips. And do melt the ends of the finishing tape as both Park and James recommend.

TRAILERS

Biketrailerblog.com is always an interesting place to look for utility cycling inspiration.

They cover a DIY project today, this trail maintenance trailer.

"Dean found that walking to different parts of trails that required maintenance and carrying tools took way to much time out of the day, and sometimes when you only have one day a month do to trail work time is of the essence. Dean felt that pre-made retail bike trailers where not cost effective, So he decided to design a bike cargo trailer that he could attach to his mountain bike and that would allow him to carry the tools he needed for effective trail maintenance."

They also link back to an older post, using the BOB trailer for tool carriage (and as a barbecue grill, as it happens).

PORTLAND
I'm not sure it's even worth linking to BSNYC because EVERYBODY reads it, but on the offchance that you might miss his Portland write up...

"Yes, that's another Rivendell (with wooden fenders to boot), which people apparently even use to ride to the store here. I don't think I've ever seen two Rivendells in a single week in New York City, let alone in the space of a day or two, and I've certainly never seen one locked up outside. ... If I ever were to see more than one Rivendell in a day in New York I would just assume some kind of beard convention was in town."

It's vintage stuff.

JOE PARKIN
Urban Velo review Joe's new book, the follow up to "A Dog in a Hat". "Come and Gone" is;

"...not the book of a champion, but rather of the guy who had a few good rides over thousands of races. This is something that most bike racers can relate to. He talks about cycling in America’s competitive cycling heyday, the 90’s. Most of the races that he competed in are long gone."

LEADERSHIP DEBATE
Charlie Brooker reviews last night's;

"According to some polls, Cameron won, or at the very least tied with Clegg. Which is odd, because to my biased eyes, he looked hilariously worried whenever the others were talking. He often wore a face like the Fat Controller trying to wee through a Hula Hoop without splashing the sides, in fact."

Shutt Velo Rapide Shorts - First Look

THE RAIN
You can blame me for it.

I'd decided to buy some new shorts, as I couldn't face Summer in my SPEG seconds again. (These had been cheap, discounted because some customers had found the pad uncomfortable - sadly I was one such customer. My experience was that the pad was not so much "uncomfortable" as "abrasive", you try that for 60 miles).

Two weeks of good weather convinced me that shorts season was nearly here, even for the early morning cyclist. My one good pair of shorts (Nalini six panel, we do not push the boat out here at Monkey Towers) clearly needed supplementing.

So I made my decision, placed my order, and the shorts arrived on the day the sun got shy, and disappeared behind those grey clouds.

THE FULL DISCLOSURE
I like Shutt Velo Rapide. I like their philosophy (British made & sourced where possible - for lefty, low carbon reasons, as well as supporting a general idea of manufacturing things here) and I like them - they're on twitter, active on facebook, and engage like anyone else as opposed to seeming to be there to push product at you constantly.

I am not in their pay, and received no special treatment, and no discount on my purchase that you couldn't get yourself (sign up at their Clubroom page for one such handy money off code).

THE SHORTS
As I said, at Monkey Towers we do not push the boat out. There are no Assos shorts lurking in the bike stuff drawer, and Castelli have yet to grace my form. I do own a Rapha cap, but this is because hardly anyone makes Winter caps with peaks anymore, for reasons that I am unaware of. Whilst we draw the line at the stuff peddled by certain continental supermarkets[1] , we are not averse to, say, the second least expensive item in most online stores. and yes, for shorts, they have to be bibs. Waist shorts are rubbish, you know it and I know it.

Fortunately for me, Shutt offer an alternative to their Pro Bibshorts, in the Standard Bib Short, and it's these that I bought. (Which is not to say that the Pro Bibshorts don't offer value for money - but we'd spend that sort of money on one of Shutt's excellent sportwool jerseys. If we had that sort of money right now).

THE ORDER
Lore has it that bibshorts are sized according to waist measurement - you match this & order accordingly. (Somewhere between a 32" & 33", depending on how much chocolate I've felt necessary for recovery in the week of measurement, since you ask). This places me in the "L" size, confirmed by a couple of brief conversations via facebook comments. (Shutt's facebook page is here).

The order was placed on Tuesday lunchtime, and had been delivered by the same time Wednesday. Excellent service.

Branding is understated & classy, consisting of this ShuttVR ribbon on the thigh If you like your shorts to have the manufacturers' name emblazoned across your backside, these are not for you.

THE SHORTS II

Shutt Standard bib shorts on the left, Nalini six panel shorts on the right. Nalini shorts are a size 4. Shorts are similar across the waist, but you can see that the bib and legs are shorter on the Shutt Standard.

Compared to the Nalini six panel (size 4) the Shutt shorts have a shorter bib/shoulder strap, and slightly shorter legs. (This has led to them being christened the "Sean Yates" shorts, according to the website).

The Shutt Pad (left) and dhb's pad (from the "Merston" bib 3/4s) The shutt pad is larger in all dimensions, and thicker.

The pad is streets ahead of the Nalini one. It's bigger (extends forther forward and back, is wider, and seems plusher) than my current favourite, the pad in Wiggle's dhb branded 3/4 bibs). The real test of the pad will be some rides on the Pro Logo Nago PAS, a saddle that pushes the boundary between "firm" and "oh my christ this is utter bloody agony" like no other I've ridden. If the Shutt Standard can tame that beast, they will have been worth every penny.

The lycra in the Shutt standard is nicer to the touch than the Nalini lycra (softer in feel, and seems stretchier) and the mesh back will, hopefully, make them cooler than the solid backed Nalinis.

Which will be nice, if the sun comes back.

Ride report will follow, because we have to get a summer this year, don't we?

Ride Report now here.


[1] Although, if we're honest, this is at least partly because of the frankly bizarre sizing scheme employed. The shorts from such places would fit a cyclist built along the lines of "Big Daddy", not a spindly monkey like myself. Or anyone who wasn't a Saturday afternoon wrestler. Just saying.