Superheroes: Refined by hand

Yesterday I wrote about feeling conflicted over enjoying female bicycle "pin-ups" while recognizing the complete absence of substance within such images.  Last night, however, I discovered something that has left my conflicted mind at peace:  a cycling pin-up calendar which actually serves a purpose (other than raising the seat post). 

The TyK (www.thoughtyouknew.us) Project was:

 "....created to address modern day stereotypes of women.  Frustrated with being pegged as either mechanically savvy but asexual, or cute but inept with their bikes, these PinUps showcase the dual nature that women cyclists embody."

The women featured in the calendar are everyday cyclists from Chicago and the proceeds from the sale of the calendars go directly to the Chicago Women's Health Center.  Of equal and obvious importance as helping an important organization, however, is the knowledge that I can, once again, oogle lovely women wearing unrealistic outfits, and striking uncomfortable poses with their bicycles, but now do so entirely guilt free.  Thank you TyK for returning a piece of my soul.

This year, the TyK project has also made a calendar of male cyclists, dressed as superheroes.  If the reasoning behind displaying women as pin-ups is in reaction to frustrations of female cyclists being seen as either "mechanically savvy but asexual or cute but inept" are we to gather that dressing up male cyclists as superheroes is out of frustration that we are perceived either as 'fashionably challenged yet obsessed with depilation or fond of dressing in tights but are slow?'  Of course, those are both obvious truisms where I am concerned...but beyond that, men, in general, also just like to play superheroes.  Even when they are already the fastest men in the world...like Cancellara.

So strong is the affinity between cycling and superheroes, that a Geman-based bicycle manufacturer called Fixie Inc, uses as their slogan "Cycles for Heroes."  Specializing in steel frames, they make road and cyclocross bikes, but exhibit their clear passion in fixed gears, as their name suggests.  And because they are fixie-fixated, one can imagine that their ad campaign features absolutely nothing to do with fixed-gear bikes, but rather tries to capture the enigmatic urban cycling culture.  Take the cover of their 2009 catalogue.

I'm not sure how riding a fixed gear bicycle makes one a hero (or heroine as the case may be), but it has clearly upset this poor women wearing a latex corset with pearl crucifix to the point where she is crying her mascara away.  Related to Fixie Inc. is the following: If you've not yet heard, Bicycling magazine and Colavita are sponsoring a contest to win a trip to Verona, Italy to ride in the 2010 Granfondo Eddy Merckx by describing how you incorporate olive oil into your cycling.  What does this have to do with Fixie Inc?  If you were going to say that the young lady above has to grease up with it before squeezing into that outfit, you would only be partially correct.  The real answer is that Fixie Inc. sells a singlespeed bike called "The Rusty" which comes, pre-rusted.....

...a very labor-intensive process they refer to as "refined by hand" which requires the frame to be regularly sealed with olive oil, extra virgin.  Leaving it outside in the rain for a couple months doesn't hurt either.

The folks at Fixie Inc. are clearly so obsessed with their own awesomeness, that I'm sure once they bust into the olive oil, there is much more than their rusty frames that are being "refined by hand".  But I digress......Instead of merely playing dress up (whether you be a pin-up, a hand-refined rusted bike, or superhero), some truly embody the act of a superhero, like old-school Graeme Obree who invented the 'Superman' posture while competing in the hour record, which was later adopted by Chris Boardman and used in the individual pursuit.

Because the 'Superman' position has now been banned, current competitors must ride the 4km (3km for women) in a more conventional time trial posture, which is exactly what Jack Bobridge did a couple days ago when he posted the second fastest time ever at 4:14:427.  The fastest time was established by Boardman's (4:11:114) at the 1996 World Championships but was completed using the now defunct 'Superman' position.  Could not positioning himself in the 'Superman' really explain the differences in time?  I wonder if oiling up his skinsuit with some extra virgin wouldn't shave a little more off of Bobridge's time...a little hand-refining never hurt....

Pedal on!

Of being a hack...women's cycling.

Too frequently (ie - all the time) I've reduced female cycling on this blog to be nothing more than pin-ups on bicycles.  It's easy, it has boosted readership, and let's face it...for a heterosexual guy, it's fun to look at.  But it also makes me feel like a hack.  It reminds me of the last time I raced last summer.  After the start, when everyone was settling in and getting organized, I heard the words of the individual who was coaching me at the time running through my head:

"Don't do any work.  Sit in.  Do NOT pull.  Stay close to the front, but not AT the front.  Conserve every ounce of energy you have for the end, JUST in case you actually manage to stay with the leaders and want a crack at the sprint."

This was good advice, especially for someone with little experience, and less natural ability.  And after sitting in and watching others pull for the first 20 miles, grumbling at me every time I jockeyed for position at 3rd or 4th wheel, refusing to pull, I started feeling guilty.  And then I said, "Fuck it."  I'd rather not be hated by the guys around me who were really good and be dropped, then have any kind of chance at the sprint at the end, knowing I'd wheel-sucked for 40 miles.  I mean - I wasn't going to win anyway - who was I fooling?  So I started to pull.  And they let me.  And it was stupid.  I burned up a lot of energy on a couple of long stretches, but still managed to hang on when others finally came around and accelerated the bunch to split off some of the stragglers.  There were still about 10 of us left for the sprint at the end, of which I came in 9th, completely exhausted.  But at least I wasn't a hack that day.  I didn't race very wisely either....but the former was more important to me than the latter.  That day anyway. 

Today, I don't feel like being a hack writer, either.  Thus, I bring you some news of what is really going on in the world of women's cycling in three acts that do not involve near nudity (not that there is anything wrong with that).

Act 1:  The Goddesses:  A few days ago, cyclists Jennifer Smith and Rebecca Rusch (2009 Leadville 100 winner) completed the six day Trans Andes MTB stage race.  The circular course covered between 60 and 100 km per day, traversing 6 volcanos and around 10 lakes in the heart of the Andes Mountains. Sleeping in tents each night along the way, the two woman team called The Goddesses ended up finishing as the top women's team.  They posted daily reports on cyclingnews.com which you can read here.

Act 2: Tour of Quatar:  The women's road season kicked off yesterday at the Tour of Quatar, a 3 day flat stage race.  Last year's winner Kristin Wild will be attempting to defend her title with her Cervelo TestTeam squad.  The US national team is present and being led by Shelley Olds who spent the winter competing on the track.

Act 3:  "Cycling isn't for women, it hurts too much." So says Riccardo Ricco, currently suspended for doping with CERA, when asked if he helped his girlfriend Vania Rossi dope with the same substance.  Rossi, who races cyclocross and finished second in the Italian women's national cyclo-cross championships on January 10th, tested positive for EPO CERA during the competition.  Ricco stated, "When I was found positive, I confessed everything.  I was honest.  I hope she does the same.  People know I don't like her racing, you can imagine what I think about her taking anything.  Cycling isn't for women, it hurts too much."  The ramifications of her alleged doping are even greater as she was breastfeeding their son during the time her tests revealed CERA in her bloodstream.

This wouldn't be a COMO CYCO blog post without the addition of something tasteless....thus I share with you a comicstrip from NYVelocity regarding the potential ramifications of EPO CERA contaminated breastmilk: a new way to transport your drugs....the LacTote 2000 featuring Vince ShamWOW! (Click to enlarge).

Pedal on!

6 weeks and 6 days: Screw you, Phil....

If you are reading this from outside the United States, you may not be familiar with a little tradition we Americans have on February 2nd every year called "Groundhog Day."  It's common knowledge that on the morning of Groundhog Day, people (especially those who live in the Northern climes) gather around a hole, watch a groundhog named 'Phil' emerge to see if he is scared by his shadow, and if so prepare for 6 more weeks of winter.  What is not commonly known is that this holiday of sorts was created by those Americans who live in Southern climes, and typically are already tasting the sweet balmy notes of springtime.  And as Northeners crowd around the rodent hole waiting to see if the groundhog will notice his shadow with the fear of suffering a longer winter, Southerners crowd around televisions and watch the Northerners watching the groundhog on something called The Today Show and revel in the news that someone else will be miserable for a while yet to come.  The Today Show has embraced this tradition so much, that they've hired their own rodent which they keep on their staff full time, now:

And if you've not yet heard, that little bastard adorable bundle of fur did in fact see his fuzzy little shadow this morning, thus committing us to a longer winter.  Because Phil lives in Pennsylvania, he has a marked dialect, making it occasionally difficult to understand when he tells everyone if he has, in fact seen his own shadow. Therefore the entire ritual is overseen by a group of individuals refered to as the "Inner Circle of Punxsutawney" who interpret and then communicate Phil's decision to the masses.  I am left wondering if this "Inner Circle" like any other "Inner Circle" isn't at risk for interference from outside forces, from someone who say, gets to live and train in warmer, tropical locations, like Hawaii and Southern California?

msnbc

This is a serious matter, of course, because prolonged winter, generally speaking, is not good for people.  If you are a road cyclist and cannot escape the basment trainer because of the weather, then you may start to contemplate things like your bike's gears, and 52x12 versus 52x11 gearing, and what, if any, the difference a single tooth can make.  If you are trying to get a job, and the absence of the prominent tooth is in your mouth, this can be a make or break factor (depending on the place of employment).  But what if you are a cog?  As you ponder this, the next thing you know you are staring at your chain as it engages the sprockets in your cassette and you begin to contemplate how the links swing around the various angles as the rollers seat themselves between the teeth, and before long, you start to draw graphs like this and write extensive blog postings on the subject.

This is not healthy.  I  might just be saying that because I'm not very smart and thus cannot understand a flipping word of the aforementioned post, but everyone who has seen a certain movie should be well aware of how this kind of obsessive activity in the midst of a prolonged winter can turn out, when "all work and no play" begins to take hold.

In the days of yore, such cabin fever was dealt with by cyclists through the creation of indoor events, of which, one of the most popular was the six-day race.  This started in 1878, when, in the dark depths of a London February, a cyclist named David Stanton bet someone that he could ride 1,000 miles in 6 successive days, riding 18 hours a day around a track.  He won the bet in 73 hours.  Thus the six-day race was born.  Initially, racers would ride as far as they could around the track over a period of six days, resting and riding when they chose to do so, but often refusing to stop.  Over the course of the event, as the cyclists exhausted themselves, their faces would become gaunt, their nerves frazzled and many were reported to become delusional with hallucinations.  This of course, drew more spectators, most entirely ignorant to cycling, who simply came to watch the men suffer, much as the people in Honolulu all are giggling this morning about the news regarding Punxsutawney Phil.  The six-day races became extremely popular social events and may have even given birth to the original cycling hipster.  Take this photo of Fausto Coppi from the 1952 Paris 6-day race.

Crowds of the socially elite would gather around the track and eat, drink and listen to music while the cyclists rode.  A favorite drink amongst the spectators was champagne, but the cyclists, ever fearful that their legs would go flat like a popped bottle of champagne loses it's energy once the cork is on the floor, started riding with corks wired to their saddle rails to superstitiously never be "out of cork."

Despite whether or not the cyclist ran "out of cork," however, riding around in a circle, day upon day, must have been a mental exercise of such futile tedium that it rendered the mind numb.  Imagine getting up each day to sit in the exact same seat, staring at an endless track ahead of you while being surrounded by clueless assholes.  Every day - nothing changes, just the same old thing.....I mean, as I sit at my desk now contemplating it, I can hardly imagine what that would be like.......oh, wait.....nevermind.

Pedal On!

Teeth!

As I made my way into work this morning, I still felt hungover from the proceedings of last night.  Maybe I wasn't yet warmed up from the deep hypothermia that set in during yesterday's ride, or it might have been the two plates of lemon-cheese pasta I ate last night, or the half-gallon of Breyer's chocolate crackle ice cream I consumed after that, or when the GEEC and I were channel surfing last evening and we stumbled upon some talentless horror movie on TV that freaked the shit out of us both...

At any rate, the weekend was an eventful one for cycling....

Alberto Contador and Team Astana had their official coming out party in Vienna, Austria on Saturday.  We may be seeing a new kinder, gentler AC these days as he stated openly that he doesn't like to think of himself as the Tour favorite this year.  And beyond that, the Spaniard has decided to replace his classic and self-promotional "fingerbang" victory salute with the iconic Fonzie "Heyyyyy!" gesture which he shares with his posse like congregation members of the Church of the Fonz.

When asked about the old "fingerbang", Contador has declared that his extended index finger will be relegated only for picking purposes when the need arises (boogers, wedgies and ear wax buildup).

Astana competed this weekend in the first French race of the season, the Gran Prix la Marseillaise.  Strangely absent in early season racing has been Mark Cavendish however, of HTC-Columbia.  Last week reports indicated that Cavs would have to delay his 2010 season because of ongoing dental problems, and thus will not race until the Ruta del Sol on Feb 17.

Perhaps the Manx Missile could take some lessons in dental care from local cattle rancher Steve Schmidt who became the teeth-lifting champion of the world this weekend here in COMO and made the Guinness Book of World Records by lifting a 220.5 pound weight with his teeth 50 times over the span of a minute.

(photo courtesy of the Columbia Tribune by Nick King)

Despite his wife saying that Mr. Schmidt's teeth are a "God-given gift", (because tooth-lifting sounds like a pursuit any God would be proud to promote) Steve attributes his dental health to brushing with coconut oil.  My own theory of his dental good-fortune is that he's simply not British.

But if the Manx Missile's teeth are wishing they weren't British, there were a whole lot of Oregonians pretending they were British this weekend.  In sharp contrast to its long standing practice of naked cycling, Portland hosted its very first Tweed Ride Saturday.  I can only imagine that the act of donning clothes, let alone heavy woolen fabric, whilst cycling was a concept as foreign to the Portland residents as the chap featured in the event's posters saying "No dessert for me, please!"

But by all accounts, the ride seems like it was a great success.  Awards were given out after the ride which included:  Most Convincing BBC Character, Most Likely to Murder in an Agatha Christie Novel, The Best Red-Breasted Boobies, Miss Tweed Gorgeous, Most Colorful Argyle Socks, and lastly, the Longest Pipe Award...which at first mention had me wondering if the rather flamboyant male host (seen here)....

was using a euphemism to hit on another tweeded male cyclist (not that there is anything wrong with that)...but in fact was actually and truthfully referring to Kenneth's very long pipe.

No mention of the Most British Dentition Award was made among the twaddle of tweeders.....But rumor has it, they did bust out and sing a rendition of 'Teeth' by the aforementioned Lady Gaga in honor of last night's Grammy's.....the most meaningful lyrics of which are...

 

"Take a bite of my bad girl meat

Take a bit of me, boy

Show me your teeth

The truth is sexy."

 

I'm guessing Cav's girlfriend doesn't sing this to him much......

 

Pedal on!

Friday Mail: Testicular fortitude and apologies

I recognize that many readers may stumble upon this blog from somewhere other than Columbia, Missouri, and if you are one of those individuals, first, let me say sucks to be you how sorry I am.  Whereas if Portland, Oregon has become the bicycling Mecca of the United States, Columbia has become, at the very least, the Medina....we ride a lot, but for better or worse, don't feel the need to get as naked as our Oregonian brothers and sisters while on the bike.   Secondly, let me also say check out the great local shit you're missing!! that I am sorry for the regional nature of the inital part of this post which focuses on some local upcoming cycling events.

Sunday, January 31 @ Klunk Bicycles and Repair:  The 2010 Missouri Gravel Grinder series comes to Columbia.  A 46 mile ride will ensue led by our own Karl of Klunk Bike Shop. 

Portions of the ride will cover the MKT and KT trails, and there looks to be much climbing, but also partly sunny skies.  You can check out the map here.  And for more information, go here.  And on another note...if you have never had the good fortune of visiting Klunk's, and have never met Karl, then your cycling life, my friends, is not complete.   Let me give you a brief introduction to the myth, the man, the legend....one photo pretty much says it all....

Wednesday, February 17 @ The Blue Fugue:  The Bamboo Bike Project Benefit will be going down with much music and libation to support the Bamboo Bike Project which is an organization that educates people of African nations to build safe and sturdy bicycles from locally grown bamboo to provide efficient transportation to those in need, thus raising their quality of life.  There is a $5 cover, 100% of which goes to the organization.  Drink specials and sweet, sweet door prizes will be available!

And now lastly, let me apologize in advance for the remainder of this post, which is completely devoid of decent writing, decent content, or decency in general....I thus bring you this week's mail:

---

Dear PooBah,

Recently, Chris Horner, soon-to-be team Radio Shack workhorse and Lance domestique,  posted a photo on Twitter with the question of whether or not we, the readers, knew how he keeps his favorite Mavic cycling shoes "so hot".  See below:

Do you have any ideas?

Thanks!

Mary F.

Mary-

I'm guessing by hanging them from the crotch of his chamois bibs like a pair of truck nutz?

---

Dear PooBah,

I am an avid cyclist, but also own a motorcycle, which in my opinion, is the ultimate form of two-wheeled freedom.  My two obsessions have always co-existed peacefully....but the other morning, when I walked out into my garage, you would never believe what I saw.  I've read the acronym POIDH, meaning 'picture or it didn't happen' - so I did just that...captured a shot of this disturbing scene....What do I do about this?

Yours-

Trenton P.

Trenton-

Well there are one of two possible scenarios:  First, some bikes, like some dogs, will express their dominance, by mounting others.  Thus, your reflector bedazzled Giant may not be interested in the sex at all, but rather is trying to force your Ninja crotch rocket into submission out of jealousy.  The second possibility is that your bicycle is hornier than a hoot owl....and I'm guessing by the size of his derailleur, that he's not a fixed gear....so I might be making some room in the garage for a bunch of little....

---

Dear PooBah,

I saw that you finally made the Chicks and Bikes blog roll....but probably did so at the expense of your female readership.  I hope you know what you are doing....because the world of female cyclists is rich and growing all the time.  I thought I should send you a photo of myself to help lure those women back who might be pissed at you for showing gratuitous sexy female photos, but never show any of men.

Cheers!

Rich E.

Rich-

No question, your photo should take care of my readership......

---

Dear PooBah,

My Moots seatpost keeps slipping in my seat tube....do you have any suggestions?  I'm attaching a photo of it so that you might be able to see if there is anything wrong with it that would cause the slippage.

Thank you!

Mandy J.

Dear Mandy,

I would try to ease up on the silicone a little.

---

Thanks for reading everyone!  Have a great weekend and ride safe....

Pedal on!

Validation: Of chicks, bikes and bowling

Yesterday we discussed one way in which professional cyclists mark their success by personalizing their bikes and gear.  But how is success marked by bloggers?  Initially I thought I had achieved some measure of success by the gradual waning of the hate mail......but then realized a new level of achievement when I received a case of free pomegranate juice.  But early this morning, I discovered another accolade that had been bestowed upon me for which I feel largely undeserving.  Those that choose to waste time reading this blog instead of doing far more productive things (like cutting their toenails or organizing their sock drawers) know that upon occasion, I put a photograph of a scantily clad woman with a bicycle on the pages within.  Such has been the inspiration from a gratuitous site called Chicks and Bikes, which features photographs of a subject matter one can guess from the title that may or may not be safe for work, depending on the day. 

And as can be seen from the example above, the photographs on any given day may be more about the 'chicks' and less about the 'bikes' as one has to look with some effort to see the partial shadow of a bicycle on the pavement alonside these lovely ladies in this particular shot.

As I arrived at my place of work this morning, I started the day with my typical routine....try to dodge the plucky phone operator who always wants to chat with me, switch the mail in several co-workers mailboxes, activate the autoreply function of my email to let everyone know I will be in a meeting from 7:00 to 8:00, create a fictious excel spread sheet to consume my monitor and then open up Chicks and Bikes in a window that can be easily concealed by said spread sheet at a moment's notice.  And this morning, what did I discover?

Alongside a women clad in the retro-way fashion, reposed upon the torn pages of a magazine advertising bicycles, I saw this blog's name on the blog roll list, positioned between the 'Chic Cyclist' and 'Copenhagen Cycle Chic', as though I was in a 'Chic' menage-a-trois!  All at once I was both excited and afraid.

My fears stem from two things:
#1) I have an overwhelming Wayne and Garth-esque "I'm not worthy" trepidation and am quite concerned I won't be able to live up to the pressure that being on such a blog roll instills in supplying the mothership with more "sexy-female-oriented-bicycling" photos.
#2) I don't want to offend any women who might read these pages by my excitment for the aforementioned association which can only be descibed as juvenile.

Thus, being inspired by the non-partisan message of our president last night, I bring you two gratuitous sexy cycling photos which should please whichever gender-way you choose to associate with.  Before you scroll further, click here to assist with the concealment of the photos that follow.

For Chicks and Bikes:

For the ladies:

And speaking of watching the POTUS last evening, the COMO CYCO dog and I finally put our Xmas presents to good use as we fell asleep on the couch, each tucked away in our respective Snuggies.  In order to protect the anonymity of us both, I've chosen to use a photograph of models representing what we looked like:

I understand that remaining anonymous might be frustrating to the 6 people who actually read this blog.  Therefore, I thought I would actually break down and show a brief video that captured me in my cycling prime, several years ago, when I was living and racing in Europe. 

This is of obvious little help in identifying me if you don't know anything about me.......so I captured a still frame to help you pick me out.

Even though the differences that distinguish me from the field are subtle, here are the keys to knowing this is me:

1) I've fallen off the back.

2) I'm rather large and a little hairy.

3) I have no teammates.

4) I'm trying like a mo-fo to catch a draft off of somebody (anybody)...but no one will have any of it.

I'm not the only one out there looking for a team.  Floyd Landis is still without a team having not yet signed with Rock Racing.  And despite Michael Ball declaring that "Rock's Not Dead!"...Rock Racing might be.  They have been denied a Professional Continental license by the UCI, and now Ball is considering moving the team to Mexico, Venzuela or Colombia just to get a license to race this year.  Despite all of this, Landis recently rode in the Tour of the Bahamas last week wearing Rock kit, where he broke the time trial course record previously set by David Zabriskie while not even riding a TT bike.  When asked about his future with Rock, he said:

"I honestly don't know.  I don't know even if Ball has thought about the team these last two weeks.  I don't know what is going on.  I'm focusing on my training and my bowling.  I need to think of my future after cycling and bowling might be it."

Having a back-up plan is always a good idea.  Should my day job ever fall through, I've already submitted my resumee to the Snuggie corporation for product development.  I've invented a modification which is a crumb catcher pouch on the front for when I'm eating crackers and cheese in my Snuggie.

Pedal on!

Personalization and Flare

How do you know when you have achieved the pinnacle of success within your profession?  Occasionally, our society lures us toward promotional gain with certain perks and fringe benefits that await the top rung of the ladder we are attempting to climb.  Not infrequently, those accolades take shape, not in the form of a bonus, but rather an alleviation of something undesirable.  For example, I knew I had advanced in my place of work when I got to switch my office away from the one which shared a wall with the women's bathroom.  I refrain from calling it a 'restroom' because the wall betwixt my office and the bathroom stall was thin, and to be sure, very little 'rest' occured in that room.  The doors to my old office and the ladie's room were side by side, such that I became the "gatekeeper" for the loo which must have only possessed a single stall.  I know this only because I would frequently hear a knock on my door with an anxious looking female co-worker in my doorway asking me if anyone was using the can.

However, if you are a professional cyclist, success seems to be rewarded through personalization of your stuff, which is all the rage, these days.  This seems fairly ironic since, as any professional cyclist succeeds more, they instantly become more recognized by the spectators and sports writers alike, so why the need to further personalize everything they own?  Ours, obviously, is not to question, but rather to report...

We previously mentioned the recent personalization of Mark Cavendish's Scott bicycle for the 2009 Tour de France which he had adorned with a World War II era pin-up girl.

Aside from his name accompanying the scantily clad brunette lounging on Cav's headtube, I've recently learned that this particular piece of flare has a deeper level of personalization for the Manx Missile, in that the original version bears a striking resemblence to his girlfriend, according to artist and Rapha graphic designer, Justin Greenleaf.  This original version is a bit racier, thus prompting me to cover the nippular areas with double fezzed-Shatners to render this image safe for work.

If, however, a fezzed-Shatner is frustrating you and you want to see the original version in all of its titillating glory, you can do so here.  Just kidding....you can see it here.

Cavs is not the only top-dog who is into the personalization craze.  As everyone (especially the child laborers in Thailand) knows, Nike is a major sponsor for Lance Armstrong and the Livestrong campaign, despite the fact that they no longer make cycling shoes.  Yet LA is issued special "one-off" Nike cycling shoes decorated with the "Livestrong" name across the heel.

And even though the ankle-high dark sock is old-school cycling fashion at its finest, when worn with white shoes with gold decoration, it makes him look like he will be running for the presidency of La Boca Vista retirement community in Florida.

As Cav keeps his flare on his head tube, and LA on his feet, British cyclist Ben Swift of Team Sky likes to keep his personal touch a little closer to his taint, so tucks a Union Jack between the sit pads of his Prologo saddle.

Cadel Evans on the other hand chooses not to discriminate between locations to flaunt his personal touch, and has thus adorned multiple sites with the World Championship rainbow stripes, like his helmet, seat stays and socks.

As well as his choice of lip gloss....

Perhaps personalization is less a sign of achievement, however, and more about making a statement about one's self.  Certainly, a case can be made for the desire for self-expression and such activity might be encouraged as long as it doesn't border on the obscene.  Take the bicycle that the GEEC and I found one night after dinner last week on Broadway:

Yes the many layers of deteriorating stickers all over the frame were unique and might reflect the personality of the cyclist, but not as much as what was jammed up under the seat.

For reasons unbeknownst to me, tucked up under the Brooks saddle was a spare stem, hanging loosely from the saddle rails.  Carrying spare tubes and tires is a given amongst most cyclists, but finding a spare stem is a unique finding.  As this stem seemed to be rather weathered, it first occured to me that perhaps the cyclist stole this part from another bike and adorned theirs with it as a prize, much like some tribes of cannibals would wear necklaces made of fingers or toes taken from their fallen enemies.  Similarly, there is currently a company in Australia that sells jewelry made of human teeth.

I'm not sure where the teeth come from, but I have hesitant feelings about carrying around someone else's yuck mouth on my fingers, personally.

Or maybe this cyclist is familiar with the 2006 Paris Roubaix when George Hincapie's stem failed resulting in this and thus always wants a spare handy.

At any rate, I'm thinking of joining the trend and personalizing my new Pinarello.  I've asked the GEEC if she will let me paint a nude pin-up-style image of her on my head tube like Cav's but she was less than enthusiastic about other cyclists getting to look at her naked image as they blow by me this season.  Thus I've come up with another idea...

Pedal on!