La Vie Velominatus: The Choice

Koblet in all his Cyclist Majesty

The only people I would care to be with now are artists and people who have suffered: those who know what beauty is, and those who know what sorrow is: nobody else interests me.
– Oscar Wilde

I have a theory that every living being is designed to cope with a certain level of stress in their lives, that if our lives are somehow free of stress, we will invent new ways to meet our mind’s infinite capacity to worry about things it can’t control; I call this phenomenon the Suck Equilibrium.

The ability to cope with stress is what makes a person great; in Einstein’s case it was the stress caused by a desire to discover the Unified Theory, in other cases it might be to balance the checkbook. The driver isn’t important; that it pushes us to do more in life is what matters.

The Suck Equilibrium dictates that we adapt to the amount of stress we carry; no one is free of this burden – the hungry seek a meal, the homeless a home, the bike-less a bike, and the millionaire more millions. There is no cure, there is no remedy; no matter the level we reach, our natural inclination is to seek more from ourselves. In the end, there is only Rule #5.

The Cyclist is a unique character among the others. While the artist suffers because they must; the Cyclist suffers because they choose. To me, the greatest artist is that who choses to suffer, and who discovers the beauty in that choice. I am proud to call myself a Cyclist.

Vive la Vie Velominatus.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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frank says:

Oct 2 2013 at 3:35 pm

@Optimiste

@ErikdR

@Buck Rogers

Surround yourself with optimists and people who are interesting and that do things. If you hang out with crazy, energetic, interesting people who REALLY live, chances are you will too and if you hang out with coach potatoes, you will probably have a fat arse.

Now thÃ¡t is beautifully written...

I realize I'm arriving late, but mind if I hop on? I've been following for a while, but don't want to be a wheelsucker.

This post, indeed the way of the Velominati, encapsulates what I have attempted to convey to family, friends and co-workers for decades. I have often said, whenever we employ a labor-saving or time-saving device, our minds and bodies find a way to compensate. As @Buck Rogers alluded, with that extra time and energy we can CHOOSE to do things, or we can CHOOSE to be a couch Potato. But if we choose the latter, we will be REQUIRED to spend that extra time and energy hauling our fat arse around.

At times, when I'm exploring the Pain Cave, a thought will creep in saying "you know you could slow down." Instinctively, my response is "why would I want to do that?"

Awesome first post, mate.

In a way, what we're talking about is the conservation of energy. I love it!
Optimiste says:

Oct 3 2013 at 8:37 am

@frank

@Optimiste

@ErikdR

@Buck Rogers

Surround yourself with optimists and people who are interesting and that do things. If you hang out with crazy, energetic, interesting people who REALLY live, chances are you will too and if you hang out with coach potatoes, you will probably have a fat arse.

Now thÃ¡t is beautifully written...

I realize I'm arriving late, but mind if I hop on? I've been following for a while, but don't want to be a wheelsucker.

This post, indeed the way of the Velominati, encapsulates what I have attempted to convey to family, friends and co-workers for decades. I have often said, whenever we employ a labor-saving or time-saving device, our minds and bodies find a way to compensate. As @Buck Rogers alluded, with that extra time and energy we can CHOOSE to do things, or we can CHOOSE to be a couch Potato. But if we choose the latter, we will be REQUIRED to spend that extra time and energy hauling our fat arse around.

At times, when I'm exploring the Pain Cave, a thought will creep in saying "you know you could slow down." Instinctively, my response is "why would I want to do that?"

Awesome first post, mate.

In a way, what we're talking about is the conservation of energy. I love it!

Thank you for the warm reception. And from the Founding Keeper no less. I can only imagine the lashing I'll get for my first bone-headed comment...said the optimist.
ErikdR says:

Oct 3 2013 at 10:47 am

@Optimiste , @Frank

Guys, I just heard/saw something amazing on the Danish 18.30 TV news. They interviewed this lady (in her thirties, at a guess) who explained that she had been (and in a way, still wÃ¡s) mentally ill, to a degree that she had to be committed to a psychiatric hospital on a regular basis and, while there, physically restrained at times (i.e. strapped to a bed or cot, and left there for a considerable time).

At some point about a year ago, her doctors/therapists decided to try out a form of treatment that included physical exertion - so they put her on a mountain bike. (Cue footage of the lady grinding her way up some steep forest paths, with her therapist/coach shouting encouragements)

After about a year of this, they realized that it hadn't been necessary to physically restrain her even once, and today, she is basically 'discharged' from her hospital regime... How cool is that?

They didn't mention the exact nature of her affliction, or whether she (still) has to take medicine, or anything (for reasons of discretion, no doubt) - but apparently, she will have to continue her 'cycling therapy' - and she seemed extremely pleased with the prospect!
ErikdR says:

Oct 3 2013 at 10:48 am

@Optimiste

Oops... before I forget (again): Welcome!
GeeTee says:

Oct 3 2013 at 8:25 pm

@ErikdR

My dad is getting old now, and was showing some signs of what might have developed into dementia. (His mum went totally crazy). But he's also pretty self-aware, and he has a terrific specialist, who said the best thing he could do was as much physical exercise as he could take. So dad, at age 85, started going to the gym nearly every day. I cleaned up an old hybrid bike for him which he rides a couple of k's most mornings down to the post office, or to the pool for a swim. And he's not forgetting things ....
mouse says:

Oct 3 2013 at 8:35 pm

@scaler911

We had record rainfall in PDX last weekend. Made for some fun spectating for 'cross. The course was more suited for kayaking than cycling:

Now *That's* a 'Cross race!

Betcha no one was in the big ring for that one.
mouse says:

Oct 3 2013 at 8:36 pm

In other news, State CX champs tomorrow in Melbs. Woo!
ErikdR says:

Oct 4 2013 at 12:54 am

@GeeTee

@ErikdR

My dad is getting old now, and was showing some signs of what might have developed into dementia. (His mum went totally crazy). But he's also pretty self-aware, and he has a terrific specialist, who said the best thing he could do was as much physical exercise as he could take. So dad, at age 85, started going to the gym nearly every day. I cleaned up an old hybrid bike for him which he rides a couple of k's most mornings down to the post office, or to the pool for a swim. And he's not forgetting things ....

Wow... that's amazing. Big kudos to him. It fascinates me how we seem to become more and more aware of the human specimen as an intricately connected mind-body system, rather than merely "a mind, in a vehicle called a body", so to speak.
Teocalli says:

Oct 4 2013 at 2:51 am

@ErikdR

@GeeTee

@ErikdR

My dad is getting old now, and was showing some signs of what might have developed into dementia. (His mum went totally crazy). But he's also pretty self-aware, and he has a terrific specialist, who said the best thing he could do was as much physical exercise as he could take. So dad, at age 85, started going to the gym nearly every day. I cleaned up an old hybrid bike for him which he rides a couple of k's most mornings down to the post office, or to the pool for a swim. And he's not forgetting things ....

Wow... that's amazing. Big kudos to him. It fascinates me how we seem to become more and more aware of the human specimen as an intricately connected mind-body system, rather than merely "a mind, in a vehicle called a body", so to speak.

I read an interesting research article on this recently about how it has found that exercise seems to promote the brain to reconnect synapses and can help in the battle against Dementia so bears out the above. Affirms that old adage of "use it or lose it". VMH's Mum is not well at all with Alzheimer's but my Mum is fine at 89 and is booked to come skiing with us in Colorado again this year. I hope I have a good packet of her genes.
Buck Rogers says:

Oct 4 2013 at 6:49 am

@Optimiste

@ErikdR

@Buck Rogers

Surround yourself with optimists and people who are interesting and that do things. If you hang out with crazy, energetic, interesting people who REALLY live, chances are you will too and if you hang out with coach potatoes, you will probably have a fat arse.

Now thÃ¡t is beautifully written...

I realize I'm arriving late, but mind if I hop on? I've been following for a while, but don't want to be a wheelsucker.

This post, indeed the way of the Velominati, encapsulates what I have attempted to convey to family, friends and co-workers for decades. I have often said, whenever we employ a labor-saving or time-saving device, our minds and bodies find a way to compensate. As @Buck Rogers alluded, with that extra time and energy we can CHOOSE to do things, or we can CHOOSE to be a couch Potato. But if we choose the latter, we will be REQUIRED to spend that extra time and energy hauling our fat arse around.

At times, when I'm exploring the Pain Cave, a thought will creep in saying "you know you could slow down." Instinctively, my response is "why would I want to do that?"

Welcome aboard this crazy ship of fools!!! Sounds like you are well qualified to be an inmate! Just saw this quote over on the Peloton Mag site in remembrance of Amy Dombrowski and though it fit perfectly. I remember reading this book the summer before heading off to college and being blown away. Just loved it and still do.

"the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones that never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes "Awww!" Jack Kerouac