An open letter to cyclists,

Every few years my local paper’s Letters to the Editor  section features people writing in on the Cars v. Bikes subject.  Drivers are angry at cyclists who disregard traffic laws.  Cyclists are incensed by rude drivers yelling at them or running them off the road.  Recently I read about a cyclist in Indianapolis who pulled a gun from his fanny pack and shot out the back window of a car with whom he had had a honk-flip off-brake slamming on incident and about some municipalities who want to outlaw two abreast riding.  Seems like the intolerance on both sides is getting worse.  It all came to a head for me yesterday.

I have seen the enemy and enemy is us.

I was riding with Mikey going west on Eastern Avenue approaching downtown Cincinnati.  It’s a four lane (2 each direction) road.  We were riding side-by-side rolling along talking.  We caught and passed a guy who I would classify as a cyclist, but not a “racer” (carbon Specialized, jersey, shorts, helmet, middle aged).  We gave him a “Hello, how ya’ doing,” as we passed.  Two miles later we hit a red light as we entered downtown.  We were in the right lane.  There was a dump truck in the lane to our left already stopped.  We stopped.  Five seconds later, light still red, non-racer guy comes from behind and blows through the red light on the left of the dump truck and in the oncoming lane over the double yellow.  Really!!? I think I’d like to talk to this guy and gently persuade him not to do things that.  Explain how his actions reflect badly on cyclists in general.  The light goes green and I set off after him.  I have just about tracked him down when the next light changes to red.  I stop, he goes through… again.  I never did get a chance to talk to him.

Do I always obey the traffic laws when riding?  No, of course not.  Do I always obey all the traffic laws when driving my car?  No, of course not — and neither to you.  But I would like you to consider how your actions are perceived and how I now become – because of Joe Run the Red Light – that guy in the eyes of motorists.  I am lumped in with “all cyclists” and “all cyclists” look the same and do the same stupid things on the road in the eyes of many drivers.

Group Rides 

Ride two abreast.  It’s fine, it’s permissible under the law, it’s social, sometimes it’s safer.  But, if there is a car behind you, why not single up?  Give them a polite “thanks for your patience and not running us down” wave.  Riding three abreast?  Four abreast?  Crossing the center line?  I’ve seen it all on the local group rides.  This is not a race.  The road is not closed to traffic.You are not a pro.  You will never be a pro.  You will be dead if you keep riding like that.

Intersections 

My rule is always stop at red lights.  Sometimes, if there is not a car behind me and I don’t trip the light sensor, the light never changes.  If that happens I”ll roll through when safe.  If the police stop me I’d be happy to explain my actions.  Stop Signs: I have a fairly in depth set of “if / then’s” when dealing with stop signs.  If it is a 4-way stop and there are cars present and cued up then I stop with foot off the pedal and on the ground.  If it is a 4-way stop and there are cars present but not cued up and I am at the intersection first then I slow down to an almost stop, with foot on pedal, then go (a rolling stop essentially).  If it is a 4-way stop and a car can see me from any vantage point I make a good faith effort to slow down to an almost stop.  You are thinking, “hey, I’m not impacting the flow of traffic if I bust an intersection where cars are not present.  I’m not hurting anyone.  Why stop?”  Again — when you blow through an intersection I become you in the eyes of the motorist who sees you do it.  I become the target of his irritation and anger.

Ok, here’s the part where I become the sanctimonious, elitist, grumpy old bike racer.  I have been riding and racing bikes for 30 years.  I am a USAC Category 1 racer.  I have ridden and raced all over the US and Europe.  New guy rider who watches the Tour on Versus, buys a fancy bike and kit, trains twice per week and rides like an idiot in traffic — STOP IT!!  It is not cool, pro, or otherwise acceptable to ride like you do.  You are pissing off motorists.  I am not you.  I know how to coexist with cars.  I know how to ride safely.  The problem is that they (motorists) think I am you.

A postscript to cars:

Perhaps unbelievable to you, cyclists might be out there riding to work, are car drivers too, and have the legal right to be on the road.  We are riding 2′ – 3′ from the edge of the roadway to avoid holes, glass, dead animals, gravel, sand, opening car doors, and oh by the way, because we are allowed to under Ohio law.  Incidentally, we are not permitted to ride on the sidewalk (a favorite slogan yelled from the passing car) unless we are under age 13.  Slow down, don’t pass so close, stop talking on your cell phone, and do you really need to make a dangerous pass endangering my life, your life, and the lives of oncoming traffic just so you get to UDF 30 seconds quicker to buy your fat ass another milkshake?

OHIO LAWS FOR BIKES

http://www.cincinnaticycleclub.org/education/law/ohiobikelaws/

http://www.ohiobike.org/bicycle-law-digest.html

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A few things.

1) Does anyone own, or has used, a Scicon travel case?  I’m replacing my decade old Trico and want some thing with a hard shell that has wheels.  Specifically I am looking for something that can roll without having to be tipped like the Trico.  This is most useful for the train station transfers in France and elsewhere where you have to go through those narrow piton/traffic poles at the tops of escalators.  With the Trico it is a multi-step hokey pokey dance to get everything through.  The USA Bike Pro and Scicons roll straight through.  The Scicons are very spendy though, so I’d like an opinion before dropping the cash.

VS.

Bibs-over-jersey Explained (from a recent email)

Hi Johns, I have an explanation about why Superman wears his underwear on the outside.  In 1938 when they were first drawing him, they envisioned a strongman or wrestler costume like the attached photo.  Note the high boots and tight pants.  They wanted to make him more colorful and less naked, so they put the tights on under that.  Then all the other superheroes had to be drawn the same way to get that “superhero” look.  So maybe bibs-over-jersey-guy is actually making a fassion statement going back to the era of circus strongmen… in that case he should be riding a Schwinn Liberty with the double top-tube.  Nuclear Power

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The stone (or better yet, cobblestone) has been rolled away.  We peer inside with great anticipation.  The tomb is empty!?  Where is he??  He has risen! Indeed, Tom Boonen is back and more bad ass than ever winning 3 majors so far and tipped to win another Paris Roubaix this weekend.

Who will be the pain in Tom's ass this weekend?

Will he come away from Roubaix looking good?

We talk Tornado Tom on this podcast then John G. recaps a recent NYC visit and brushes with its thriving cycling scene, John K. tells us about his recent exploits on the track, then we touch on our local racing action.

Next John G. interviews Bill Humphreys about his book, “The Jersey Project.”

The Jersey Project

Coaches Corner is back with some hard hitting questions to our resident expert coach Steve McGregor from Peaks Coaching Group.

We wrap it all up with a few emails from you.  If your email was not read and you’d like us to consider it for the next show please resubmit.

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John G. speaks with Bill Humphreys, creator of the “The Jersey Project.”  It is sure to bring back memories for some of you.  What was your favorite jersey from the 1970′s?  Mine has got to be iconic Molteni.

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While we have not been podcasting lately, the Two Johns are still keeping an eye on cycling.  The UCI recent rule changes  regulating things such as lawyer tabs (see below)

and limiting these camel fronts (see below) to softball fields instead of bicycle races helps keep things interesting.  

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This is the podcast version of a gluten free Two Johns Podcast missing the listener feedback section that tends to cause inflammation of the duration.  In its stead, the two Johns talk about one recent desert trip and the 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo mountain bike race experience, and winter hard training rides.  We get a guest call in from China Todd and talk some technology about John’s new Quarq.  Listener Feedback will return and fatten up the next full podcast.

There were gold shorts, silver skin suits, dresses, rider dressed as rabbits and some very fast and long racing on display.

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Special Guest: Enve Composite’s Jason Schiers

Special Guest:  New Belgium Brewery’s Bryan Simpson

The first podcast of the last Mayan Calendar year is a cracker!  The United States Attorney closes the case, Contador decision & a potential AC fairness fund.  In racing news, Boonen is back.  For those Boonen fans out there, here are couple videos you may enjoy, compliments of Godot.

For those of you who REALLY like Tommeke.

For those Tommeke fans who like that, this may be just the Burger King ad you’ve been waiting for.

And for those who want their tour fix.

Colnago Rescue Shelter, Highs & Lows, wheels, wheels, wheels, whole greater than the sum of parts?, 1 hour to train & shower, 25′s?, saggy leg warmers, burr & grinder are covered in Listener Feedback.  Finishing things off are a few Best of 2011 calls, with last but certainly not least, St. Albans, Hertfordshire’s own Fun Run Robbie.

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Recently I spoke with New Belgium Brewery’s Bryan Simpson about the beer brewer’s bike infused libations, culture and bikes.

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Listen in as Jason Scheirs talks about carbon technologies, processes and some of the future.  You can check out his company, Enve Composites on the web.

Above: section of a carbon rim, Below: the people of Enve

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That’s right, you, the listeners’ chance to be part of the podcast yet again.  Beyond the email or attached photo, passed the free style outro message, light years ahead of the random call in, leave a message telling us about your favorite cycling related best moment, ride… whatever of 2011.  They will become part of the next podcast.  The number to call is 513.253.0180.

Powering up down under with some Power Domes

But first, it’s the impromptu Christmas Gift Podcast!  We loosely go over gift ideas to show that someone special how much you care.  Maybe to the well rehearsed and heavily scripted production normally associated with The Two Johns Podcast, rather a loose, freewheel’in list- We even go over a new category, the Bro gift!

Emails, emails and more emails… which category should I ride?  A harrowing melodrama of the podcast’s role in an Aussie relationship, Vittoria CX too fragile for Scottish Roadie?  Wheels or pit bike?  The Airing of Grievances and is aluminum the new carbon?  Dre reforms and now photographs his bike drive side on the camera side, will a trainer ruin my smooth pedaling technique?  Shotgun gives thanks for her expanded lexicon of cycling related words among other comments and are the Johns down with 420?  Answers abound in this, our best podcast of 2011.

Go to the Source – twojohnspodcast.missingsaddle.com

That’s right, you, the listeners’ chance to be part of the podcast yet again.  Beyond the email or attached photo, passed the free style outro message, light years ahead of the random call in, leave a message telling us about your favorite cycling related best moment, ride… whatever of 2011.  They will become part of the next podcast.  The number to call is 513.253.0180.

Powering up down under with some Power Domes

But first, it’s the impromptu Christmas Gift Podcast!  We loosely go over gift ideas to show that someone special how much you care.  Maybe to the well rehearsed and heavily scripted production normally associated with The Two Johns Podcast, rather a loose, freewheel’in list- We even go over a new category, the Bro gift!

Emails, emails and more emails… which category should I ride?  A harrowing melodrama of the podcast’s role in an Aussie relationship, Vittoria CX too fragile for Scottish Roadie?  Wheels or pit bike?  The Airing of Grievances and is aluminum the new carbon?  Dre reforms and now photographs his bike drive side on the camera side, will a trainer ruin my smooth pedaling technique?  Shotgun gives thanks for her expanded lexicon of cycling related words among other comments and are the Johns down with 420?  Answers abound in this, our best podcast of 2011.

Go to the Source – twojohnspodcast.missingsaddle.com

Among the festivities that happened over the recent holiday I paid a visit to my former employer, bicycle mentor, Two Johns:  The Espresso roaster and friend, John Drake.  Podcast listeners will remember John from a couple coffee interviews and the frame builder’s special podcast.  He owns the fine bicycle shop, Bikeworks and Drake’s Fine Coffee Roasting.

It is always a treat to spend a few hours visiting him and his endeavors.  This time, John, some of my family members and friends had a post Thanksgiving mountain bike ride near Ann Arbor, MI.  After we were done gulping Mountain Dew, getting sweet air, and general hot doggery (for John G’s benefit) we retreated to one of the various back rooms.

First up was an education on coffee bean roasting.  With mechanical or process things, I believe knowing something intellectually is only knowing about something.  Knowing a process or an object involves engaging it.  In front of me was an opportunity to get to know coffee better by roasted it.

John, this is roaster, roaster, this is John.

Hello roaster.

Hello green coffee beans.

Early in the roast.

Mid roast, just starting to get color.

The roasted beans during their rapid cool down.

Despite having something to do just about every minute of the process, watch the color, watch the temperature, shift the airflow within the oven, listening for cracking two separate time… it all appeared to be very simple, under the direction of John telling me what to do.  Through experience he has developed this process and learned what observations indicate it is time for the next step.  Once the coffee was cooled, it was packaged, labeled and marked either for shipping for for retail sale.

The entire process is about having a great coffee bean.  Bean source, roasting process, and timely shipping consumption help the recipient have what is the full experience of the bean.

What does this have to do with cycling?  The next step was John showing me another of his back rooms.  This one, Bikeworks’ Studio, where bike fits are performed, bike design, component build out and servicing are done.  Beautiful examples of bikes line the walls, some old, some new all with the purpose to give someone an idea of what is possible for their new ride.  It is to work out all the things that make a difference.  Yes, the most humble of huffys functions as a bike, but to see the most a bike can be, attention needs to be paid to the details.

I remember learning how to cut a threaded steerer, more specifically, measure the head tube and the headset stack height so that once assembled the locking nut cinched the adjusting nut just before the top of the fork steerer touches the lock nut.  If your measure or cut is off, the steerer runs into the lock nut, too short and not as much thread engaged.  Not a huge deal, but not ideal, but it does make a a difference.  Like the length of cable housing, it can look cluttered and ungraceful, it will probably function that way too.  Even the feel of when you pull the cable, either the brake or shifter, to make sure the metal structure of the housing doesn’t rub against slight texture of the cable transmitting through the lever giving a notchy, less than smooth feel.  It feels right when you pull the lever and it feels like the cable runs from the cable, through helium, directly to the brake or derailleur.  It make a difference.

In the same vein, the recent article in Rouleur magazine, an interview with Valentino Campagnolo offers a window into what that company is about.  It has a deliberate focus on quality and serviceability is a uncommon today.  It is well worth the read.  My including it in the mention of my recent trip is because I see the same vein running through the Campagnolo interview that runs through the coffee roasting, bicycle manufacture and the people I experience it with.  That is one of the main reasons with how my relationship with cycling has changed and will continue to change, is why I continue to find so much in it & also probably why our listeners continue to join the ride.

By the way did I mention we sell coffee?

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