I know, it’s not Spring anymore, but this pic from Paris-Roubaix is my all-time favorite “tough guy” bike race photo. I’d lost it but finally found it. Back up on the shop wall it goes!
(FYI, it’s Duclos and Moser battling at the front, in the early 80’s, from the French mag Miroir, back WAY before there was much bike race media in the US, much less the Net. And back before they were helmets or sunglasses. It was all about the eyes. With a pic this fine I didn’t need much more to keep me riding every day no matter what the weather. Photo credit and praise to Henri Besson, if you’re out there.)
I know it’s Tour Time now, but let the obvious heart of these two riders inspire you as you watch Lance’s big finale.
A little Tour digression…
Last week I rode over to my parent’s house to watch some OLN of some of the big mountain days. So far, the TdF actually hasn’t been that exciting. But there have been a few VERY exciting moments. Man, watching Basso attack and Lance counterattack on the killer climbs is really something. Just boggling. Then watching them descend is again eye-popping.
It was great seeing LA’s loyal lieutenant Georgie finally WIN something even though the win was nearly entirely tactical—GH went with everything but was never obliged to work. Weird. It must be insanely hard to go with every attack yet to be spared the obligation of further work is a godsend. Well, it was the key to a win, finally, for George. He deserved it. He was the only one to hang with the Spaniard. And yet… Well, that’s how wins work—not so mysterious after all. It takes real talent, too, to play a hand expertly.
Man, I would just LOVE to go over there sometime and camp along the route, ride those climbs, cheer the riders…
But why cycling?
Why does OYB emphasize cycling so much? Isn’t it just another hobby or specialized activity? It’s like having stamp-collecting take up most of some other supposedly “general interest” media empire, right? Well…
Here’s why. Cycling has it all. Everything OYB, anyway.
It offers companionship, adventure, travel, daily utility, sustainability, liberty which is moderated (as freedom requires), affordability, contact with every aspect of the world and the senses and the personality (that is, human and natural exposure of every kind—it both heightens and challenges all the senses and relations), sport, art, technology, scale, harmony of many kinds, it can be part of the built-world (riding on pavement and in cities) or at home in the wilds (trail riding), resourcefulness, convenient home repair, construction and even innovation. It’s even politically liberal, as it’s hard to suppress a population on bikes (it’s a robust means of communication, like the messenger pigeon, and the most unstoppable mode of transport). It typically involves the input of small business, yet there’s room for the economies of big biz. The webby network of bike culture CAN be an example of how western reality is functional.
There is submission involved, however—one must sit on the bike, after all. Or at least push it (which is still far easier than carrying a load on your back). A bike does demand that one trains the body to tolerate it. One thus typically can’t be a blimp or a wreck and still ride happily. Riding also tends to involve some suffering. Effort isn’t a big part of the American idea of fun. But effort on yourself, that can’t really be projected against others, isn’t pathological either, unlike so much of American culture.
Many other activities offer the wholesome aspects of cycling. But I’m not sure how many do it all so well. Cycling is just a wonderful distillation or test-laboratory for all kinds of independence values.
Like, cycling has the speed and daring of motor-racing—only bike racers aren’t hidden away nor are they world-burners. And cycling is both punk and conservative. It’s a uniter. Pure DIY, pure OYB.
By emphasizing cycling, I’m not putting anything else down. There are lots of other strongpoints out there. I can catch a lunch a lot easier with a fishing pole than with a bike. But a fishing rig is a nifty piece of technology not so far removed from a bike (Shimano being the biggest maker of parts for both sports!). One dials in what one brings on a river outing, and how one arranges it, like one dials in what one brings on a bike tour. And there’s a lot of crossover—a Leatherman tool is handy in both places. But it goes further: one often sees real-world fisherfolk riding their bikes to a river, with pole in hand and bucket on a handlebar. It all works together in OYB-land.
And if you want to see the steady gaze of a king, cycling can give it to you, as well…
Here’s the first pic again, big…
