Cycling is a mighty sport with a rich and complex history. Every company, racer, piece of kit, and component has a legend, a story behind it; in many cases it also has a personal and nostalgic connection to our lives. While this particular sport is steeped in tradition, it is also fiercely modern, a fact that serves only to deepen its complexity.
All these factors combine to provide an unique atmosphere and breeds devoted and loyal disciples of our great sport. We are of a peculiar nature; we seek out the highest mountains and the roughest roads on which to worship at the altar of the Man with the Hammer. Our legs are what propel us; our minds are what drive us. We refer to our shaved legs in the third person – the legs – and speak of distance in kilometres and measure sizes in centimetres regardless of what country we are in. We adhere strictly to the Canon of Cycling’s Etiquette: The Rules.
A Velominatus is a disciple of the highest order. We spend our days poring over the very essence of what makes ours such a special sport and how that essence fits into Cycling’s colorful fabric. This is the Velominati’s raison d’être. This is where the Velominati can be ourselves. This is our agony – our badge of honor – our sin.
I have a unique way of looking at bicycles. A good bicycle and it’s components are beautiful things to me. I’m not just talking about appearance, but also how the frame and components show the dreams of those who made them.
– Gianni Bugno, Hardman and Italian cycling legend
Perhaps we are too wrapped up in the past, but the Velominati don’t believe that to be the case. After all, the greatest lessons can be learned from the past and those lessons can then be applied to the present and may then allow us to more fully experience the future.
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Velominati reserves the right to edit posts with the express interest to preserve the spirit of the conversation and the community. Regarding posts that address a grammatical or typographical error, Velominati may elect to take their input, correct the error in the articles where appropriate, and editing posts that point them out. This editorial action is not to serve as a censure entity, but to preserve the spirit of the conversation. That said, we endeavor to only edit those posts that point out a minor issue and only in the event that we make the edit before the post has yielded further discussion. Furthermore, when possible, we will strive to acknowledge said poster for their correction.
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View Comments
@DocBrian
Rule violations aside, I have a pair of those wheels in black and they are awesome!
@Deakus how long have you had them? I have had two pairs of American Classics. Great feeling light wheels but both failed in the rear hub
@Marcus
Not long, I originally grabbed a set in white (I managed to get £100 off the list price) but as my custom build on the Argon 18 progressed (and before I had ridden them) I managed to persuade the LBS to swap them for a black set. I have been out on them probably only 3 or 4 times but was really impressed with the "spin up". A little concerning about the hubs though.....spent most of the spring on my rain bike so just waiting for the weather to tick up above 5degC and the rain to stop before taking it out again. Actually it is currently in the LBS having a brand new gruppo installed (Campag Centaur Red and Black....I decided in the end to stay 10 spd). Picking it up this weekend!
@Marcus
I had heard Confidis train on 420's? This came from last years TdF..
train on 420's? This came from last years TdF
@DocBrian
Rule 52
Rule 60
and what's the fork mounted sensor. It looks like you've got a Garmin 800 which uses the cadence/speed sensor on the non drive side chain stay? You're not going for a double transgression of Rule 74?
If there was a rule on the acceptable use of of GoPros, I'm sure it would mention discreet mounting, i.e., hanging under the bars, and svelte mounting kits rather than monstously over engineered plasticy efforts.
Other than that and my dislike of white bikes (mine is white too), nice bike.
@Chris A sad attribute as a Mathematician is that I love analyzing all sorts of things, including my rides. I know that I shouldn't and that now that I am an acolyte of this illustrious order I should just RIDE/RIDe/RIDE and not worry about heart rates (or even whether my heart is beating at all), cadence etc, but character traits developed as a youth are hard to get rid of. As an older man I have overcome several of the venal sins of youth. I must now overcome some of the traits that THE RULES prescribe as sinful, such as keeping valve caps on. I will now, grasshopper, spend some time learning the catechism of the order.
@DocBrian Don't get me wrong, I'm no Rule 74 Nazi.
As a relative newcomer to the sport, I am less able to ride by feel alone when I am pushing myself and I often find it easier to push myself harder when I can there is a number that I have told hold myself above. Amongst others, Rule 74 is one that I'll continue to flaunt (if you only worry about recorded data once you are off the bike then you're off the bike).
I was just interest in what the fork mounted sensor actually does.
@DocBrian
Hey Doc, don't feel alone with having extra stuff on your bike. Lots of riders do. I tend to skip things like saddle bags, GoPro's, frame pumps, etc. but I DO ride with a Garmin 800 on my bikes. I think the information they give me is very valuable. I rely on the Garmin heavily when I ride new routes or decide mid-ride to go a different route or if I have to bail and head back to the house due to some emergency. I personally think they are fantastic. Small, wireless, fits right on the stem, keeps all my ride info convenient and not too expensive!
The negative I will give having the GPS on the bike is that I do find myself on (what are supposed to be) easy rides, looking at the Garmin and seeing slower speeds or cadences and subconsciously I will speed up because the numbers I am seeing don't line up with my usual ride numbers. If I catch myself doing that, I just unlock the Garmin and put it in my jersey pocket. The GPS still collects all my data while in my pocket but not having the computer forces me to ride by feel. I think there is a lot of value to riding by feel alone sometimes.
By the way, I like the American Classic wheels on your bike. I have a set on my track bike. Not a single complaint about them!
-Dinan
@Chris The fork-mounted sensor is not for the Garmin. It is for the more discrete tiny hardly noticeable and therefore (or possibly not) acceptable Sigma wireless computer.
I usually have the Sigma set to show current speed and average speed, while I have the sinful Garmin set to show cadence, heart rate and gradient, all things a mathematician would be interested in but which, according to the catechism cyclists should not worry about.
For the sins which are about to be identified I apologies in advance, even before I commit them and will perform a few decades on the rosary chain. I am rapidly wearing chain links out counting decades.
I have to run a small wireless Cateye on the stem. How else can I get data into the file rides.xlsx and know things that will change my behavior in no way at all?