Chamois cream, does anyone use it? I do and why.
The Archives
Yesterday, Cyclops posted a link to a story about the abandonment from the Vuelta and subsequent retirement from cycling of Jose-Luis Arrieta. Nice work Cyclops. This man deserves a special mention. He’s pictured on the far right above and just a glance at his kit indicates the length of this man’s years as pro. Unless…
I’ve spent a lot of time of late looking at ‘vintage’ road bikes on the interwebs. It all started when thinking about what my ‘dream bike’ would be, and invariably the frame material of choice was steel. Beautiful modern-day frames from the likes of Baum, Speedvagen and Italian classics Colnago and De Rosa were high…
This picture makes me think, “There’s a right way to ride the cobbles, and a wrong way.” Those riders who have raced on the cobbles of Flanders and Northern France will tell you that riding the stones fast takes a “something” that can’t be taught. The trick seem to be finding a subtle space between…
I have to admit, until BigRingRiding bestowed upon us the honor of gracing their site with our humble image, I had never heard the term “Inhaling a Wasp” being used as a climbing tactic. My Great Aunt once swallowed a wasp; she was rather portly and since I think the wasp might have been in her…
As Frank mentioned in his response to the Evanescent Riders piece on Pascal Lino, there is a modicum of research that accompanies the relics of my memory to bring the riders and races of the 90s back to life. Whilst trawling the interwebs for usable images, I came across this awesome shot of our latest…
For Danish cycling, before Bjarne Riis, there was Rolf Sørensen*. Before Rolf Sørensen, there was Ole Ritter. Ritter was a badass, a champion, rode Bianchis for Bianchi. He had himself built the lightest bike available at the time, by a company that specialised in making the most badass handlebar tape in the history of this…
Festina. The name alone instantly conjurs up the spectre of doping, and in particular the 1998 Tour de France, when soigneur Willy Voet was caught with a cache of medications that would've done Pfizer proud. That the term “Festina affair” has become synonymous with 98 and the name of the watch company, has clouded the…
It only takes the most cursory glance through the Lexicon to realize that we have a special love for nicknames here at Velominati. I’m not sure what it is that compels us to call things by some made-up name instead of the actual ones; it almost seems like we’re bragging that we know something well…
Initially, “Beer in the Bidon” was to be a single, definitive posting, an authoritative ranking of the single best variety of the single best and most important cycling performance beverage yet devised by the hand of man: beer. “Beer?” you ask. That’s right, beer (and say hello to your mother for me). Or, to put…
Until I started wearing the sacred threads of the V-Kit, I believed firmly that Assos produced the finest clothes in cycling. Their winter clothes are toasty-warm and lack the bulk of most winter garb, while no epidermal cell has ever been lost to chaffing while wearing a pair of FI.13 bibs. For a company who…
With La Vuelta in full swing and the Worlds only weeks away, there are more than a few riders who will be feeling the effects of a long, hard season. Months of training, travelling and racing take a physical and mental toll that we, as mere mortals, can only begin to imagine. But without the…
The Velominati are proud to present the following guest article by community member Marcus, who also writes for the Squadra di Vecchi Tori blog. Here is a tale of a man who embarks in 6-man open race. Of the five starters, one drops out to make it a 5-man race, but the race still manages…
Laurent Fignon passed away today at the age of 50, after suffering from cancer for several years. Fignon was an amazing rider, and a true all-rounder. He won year-round, in stage races, time trials, and one-day classics. His victories include wins in the Giro as well as the Tour, and classics like La Fleche and…
There are several moments in my childhood when I realized the bike held a more meaningful place in my life than the other fancies and desires one experiences growing up; those instants that somehow stand out from the others in the endless stream of memories that hold greater significant than the rest. One such moment…
Maybe it’s my mountain bike background. It could be the brand’s long association with Thomas Frischknecht, one of my all-time favourite riders. It’s more likely that they are light, look great and don’t cost the earth. Whatever the reason, there’s something about Ritchey 4 Axis stems that just does it for me when it comes…
My friend and trainee Velominata Rachel has a keen cycling eye and an inquisitive mind. While perusing the book Tour de France/Tour de Force she happened upon this image of The Badger, Bernard Hinault, sprinting for a stage win in the 1981 Tour. We know this because the caption says so. And that is pretty…
There has been a lot of talk lately about shoes: the While Ladies, the Yellow Princesses, and the safety and reliability of Spinal Tap Black. But shoe color has not always been a choice, and it is with this premise that fellow community member Jarvis has contributed the following article for our consideration. He commented…
As an ex-muso and DJ, I thought my days of rockin' out, layin' down some beats and droppin' tracks were well behind me. Then, last week I received a curious email from our esteemed community member, Geof. Curious, because he was now referring to himself as the “G'Phant”, and informed me that we (meaning him…
The Velominati would not exist if it weren’t for The Rules. Of the current 79 Rules, only two, Rule #34 and Rule #69 stipulate anything about shoes. Perhaps that is all that is needed. However, I do have a set of personal Rules that I’ve been living by and developing for nearly ten years now….