Merckxy Christmas and a Coppi New Year

Meeeeerckxy Chriiiisstmas!

As 20VVV comes to a close, we’d like to once again thank each and every one of you for your readership and participation in this amazing community. Each of you are what makes Velominati the most exciting (if divisive) community in the Cycling world, and none of it would mean a thing if not for your contributions. From the bottom of our hearts: thank you.

At this time of year, I reflect on the amazing opportunity that you have given me and the other Keepers to take our hobby, passion, talents, and lifestyle and to share in this incredibly diverse group of people, opinions, and views. Over the years since our founding in 2009, you have become something of an extended family, complete with the squabbles, tears, and laughter. But mostly laughter. To those of you whom I have met in person, we have become personal friends. To the rest of you with whom I await the opportunity to meet: I look forward to that day with great eagerness.

Thank you for helping make Velominati what it is today.

We wish you and your families a Merckxy Christmas, and a Coppi New Year.

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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View Comments

Oli says:

Dec 26 2015 at 6:46 pm

@piwakawaka

Mmmm, Supercharger...
piwakawaka says:

Dec 26 2015 at 7:57 pm

@Oli

Don't mind I do.

@RobSandy this is how you pace a TT, when you rip the arse out of your bibs, you're going past enough!
Dana Wilburn says:

Dec 26 2015 at 9:39 pm

@Dana Wilburn
azryder says:

Dec 27 2015 at 6:30 am

VVerry VV-mas!
RedRanger says:

Dec 27 2015 at 6:46 am

I had a unconventional smash this year. I spent the day hanging out with some coworkers. I showed them what New York can be like when you drive a short way from the city. We had Chinese for dinner and ended the night at a bar in Brooklyn
RobSandy says:

Dec 27 2015 at 8:51 am

@piwakawaka

@Oli

Don’t mind I do.

@RobSandy this is how you pace a TT, when you rip the arse out of your bibs, you’re going past enough!

I could make a distasteful comment about christmas curry but I wont. I do however, know who's arse that is and he's a fine, fine man.

Merckxy Christmas to all. I received the rotundos I was hoping for (along with the Fizik bar tape; in white obviously), and how have some difficult decisions to make as to whether they are right for me.

Also received the Fotheringham Hinault book and Geraint's book; I will report back when I've read them all.
Ccos says:

Dec 27 2015 at 1:55 pm

Merckxy Christmas everyone. The puns fall apart a bit with Kwanzaa. I'm not wishing anyone a Happy Katusha...
Gianni says:

Dec 27 2015 at 4:54 pm

@Gianni

@Chipomarc

Have a good Christmas everyone and don’t F-up your training plan with that silly strava 500 thing that’s going on.

Oh, and as the saying goes ‘ Life’s too short to drink bad beer ‘ pick a *Blue Ribbon Winner*:

Is this a trap?

Are you seventeen years old? That is some woeful piss right there.

And Merry Merckxmas too…

Too harsh? Perhaps. Is it wrong and snobby to question another cyclist's taste in malted recovery beverage? Maybe, especially when he is living up near the Canadian border and maybe facing a choice of PBR and some bad Canadian beverage. My condolences.

But damn it, I do have Rule #47 on my side here. And life is short.

This has been showing up on draft around here and it's a mofo.
edster says:

Dec 27 2015 at 5:48 pm

@chuckp

Ours too. How the hell do they know?
Jamie says:

Dec 28 2015 at 12:09 pm

Best New Year wishes to the assembled Velominati and a bit of a farewell.

As some of those in the Pacific Northwest may remember, my wife and I have been planning, working, scheming, to get away from 'conventional' life, chuck it all, move onto a boat, and see the world.

Well, the house is sold, the boat is purchased, my last day of work is on Thursday, December 31 and the days grow few before this gets real and we cut the lines for good. We're currently living on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, have been working on the boat since August, and should be ready to cast off some time in early February. While the cycling kilometers have been way down from usual and participation on the Velominati site has been nil since we sold the house and moved 16 months ago, I'm not done cycling quite yet. Road bikes have their own space in the starboard fo'c's'le (the boat's a catamaran) and we plan to see as much of the world as we can on two wheels and two hulls. We'll stay in touch. Don't be surprised if I drop in on a Cogal in the Caribbean, Australia, India, South Africa, Europe, or where ever else you lurk.

If you want to follow along, visit http://gratefuleyesoftheworld.tumblr.com/

Frank, Chrissy, G'rilla, Eightzero, Peakin, and the rest - Thank you all for pushing me to be a mediocre cyclist rather than the truly awful one I would otherwise be!