In most situations, silence is an ominous thing that signals impending doom. Having never been in any danger myself, I base this largely on my experience watching box-office movies. As a general rule, I use Hollywood as the principal source of information on all subjects as they relate to doom and politics, principally because I’m loath to do any “reading” or “research” of my own; the more thinking an actor or actress can do for me, the better. The more glamorous they look, the more trustworthy they are.
For the Cyclist, however, silence signals efficiency. Noise is loss; every creak, squeak, click, clack, groan, moan, or other emanation of sound from our machine or body is energy escaping the system. Energy that we put into the system through hard-fought application of The V. That includes uncontrolled, dog-like panting or wheezing, and the creaking and clicking of body parts, by the way.
Sound is energy carried on waves of vibrating air. Sound escaping our bicycle or body as a consequence of us applying pressure to the pedals is evidence that some portion of our energy is being expended to produce noise instead of moving us forward. This makes noise intolerable and infuriating in equal measure and in extreme circumstances may precipitate a Rule #65-violating Millarcopter. Drivetrain noise means loss with every link of the chain that passes through the derailleur and over a cog. A click in the bottom bracket or a creaking in the cleat signals energy poured into compression of bearings or plastic, not speed. Wheezing or panting indicates air converted from V-giving breath into the useless rattling of a larynx.
Silence the machine, control your breathing into a steady, muscle-fueling source, and maximum V will follow. The mind fixates on noises and is distracted from The Work; it is only through the Principle of Silence that we may find Rule #6.
But riding a quiet bike is far from riding in the silent vacuum that signals impending danger. On the contrary, a silent bike submits us to the genuine beauty of our Sport: the whisper of the wind in our ear, the song of a bird who encourages us along our way, the crisp click of a perfect shift, the rhythmic patter of rain on our helmet, cap, or the tarmac as we carve our path along La Vie Velominatus.
But the most beautiful sound of Cycling has come to me late in my life as a Velominatus. My reluctance to ride sew-ups has for many years denied me the sublime sound of a handmade tubular rolling along the road. This world opened up to me early last year when I finally built a set of Golden Tickets for my introduction to the Hell of the North. This year, almost by accident, I wound up riding my Café Roubaix Arenbergs for all of Keepers Tour 2013, glued to the best set of tires available – the FMB Partis-Roubaix. The amplifying qualities of the deep-section carbon rim allows the supple hum of the handmade tubular to sing like Merckx’s mighty rollers upon the rock of Mount Velomis.
This sound inspires. It is a reason to get out to ride. It is a reason to be a Cyclist. This sound is a reason to live.
Vive la Vie Velominatus.
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View Comments
@frank
What cages can maintain the sound of silence? The only noise my steed makes is the bidon rattling in the cage over rougher roads and it is driving me insane. I need, no must, rectify this post haste!
@Yannersan
Arundel Mandibles are blessedly noise free.
I think my sunglasses are creaking when I stand up to pedal on steep hills. Should I put some lube in the joints? Clean dirt out of the spot where the lens meets the frame?
@Ron
Recently tried Vittoria Open Pave CG III clinchers. They have a 320 TPI casing, and they run @ 120-30 psi. I'll be damned if they aren't the quietest and smoothest clincher I've ridden.
@G'rilla
yikes. Maybe train enough that you're not grimacing so much at a club pace?
@itburns
yes.
This is my first post so I'll introduce myself.
I'm an American living in Italy (for 3 years now). I'll be moving back to the States soon and bringing all of the Euro-pro snippets that I've learned to my fellow Americans.
I noticed a bit of talk about choosing to get of the bike when put into difficulty. This is a bit off topic but I'll use the previous mention among comments as an excuse. I haven't seen it in my several readings of the rules over time but tweaking with this situation could be a valued addition.
Something along the lines of: "One shall not dismount the bike during a ride except for the following reasons... 1. A planned stop to refill bidons, 2. A group bathroom break on an exceptionally long ride, 3. Upon successful completion of a righteous ride where plenty of V has been laid to the pavement."
Merely a suggestion.
I'm a huge fan of the site and refer all new cyclists in my midst here for valuable education.
I've ridden sew-ups for a long time, which I thought was a strange thing to call them because when I did try repairing one, it didn't stay sewn up well at all. Especially inflated to the max pressure. Stored in my apartment next to the couch I heard a little tink... tink... kapow! Then I didn't hear anything but my ears ringing for a long while.
The true work of art with those old sew-ups was the hubs they rolled on. I have this set of Mavic 501s which took a freewheel and a sachs freewheel on that hub that coasted in silence. Loved scaring people as I passed in silence while coasting. Eventually I found the Mavic axle made of ground up unicorns and updated the hub (and dish) to 130mm spacing and sadly the 9 speed freewheel was not the stealth bomber its 7 speed predecessor had been. A bit quieter than a Shimano freehub, but no match for the old one.
The new NSW hubs give me hope that maybe we'll go back that way someday and my current I9s which violently remind one to resume pedaling will be old school some day.
@GoldenGorilla
I have one of those Sachs Blocks on The Butler. Really freaks people out to coast in silence. Most just think it's about to pack up. It's great to just hear the hum of the Tubs.