Guest Article: The Cyclist’s Creed

Do we love our inanimate objects too much? I don’t think so. I remember getting home from yet another Sunday ride, completely ruined. I had to thank my bike for getting me home again. I love my bike. Modern centaurs, we are not Cyclists without out bikes. @gaff sent this in from Sweden. He does not feel this is perfectly rendered so please help him rework this to something we can all chant in unison.

VLVV, Gianni

I rode a local race the other day. After the race a bunch of us that spent the race in the same group throughout were drinking a post-ride coffee. During that, one rider had a short monologue in reverence of his noble steed that was kind of over-the-top-funny, as well as really heartfelt. The same night after I came home I was reading “The Bikes” section here and had the idea of writing an alternate version of “Rifleman’s Creed”, known from the U.S. Marines in general and the movie Full Metal Jacket in particular.

So here it goes:

This is my bike. There are many like it, but this one is mine.

My bike is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life.

My bike, without me, is useless. Without my bike, I am useless. I must ride my bike true. I must ride better than my opponents who are trying to wear me down. I must overtake him before he overtakes me. I will…

My bike and I know that what count in a race is not the time we spend leading the race, the silence of the drivetrain, nor the color of my socks. We know that it is the winning that count. We will win…

My bike is human, even as I, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strength, its parts, its accessories, its wheels and its gears. I will keep my bike clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready. We will become part of each other. We will…

Before Merckx, I swear this creed. My bike and I are the defenders of our craft. We are the masters of our kind. We are the true meaning of my life.

So be it, until victory is ours and there are no opponents, but behind us!

There’s also a story about the events when an individual started rolling up his sleeves during a club ride. But that’s for another occasion…

And this, just because.

https://youtu.be/XaPxYWi-roM?list=FLI15JOGMLHXb_DmLqaYbUiw