A Velominatus gives the impression of having been born on the bike; the connection between rider and machine is so deeply entrenched that one can hardly draw the line where one ends and the other begins. There is an air of relaxed precision that is part innate and part learned through countless hours devoted to the craft of riding a bicycle batshit fast.
A Pedalwan will be quick to seek emulation of this characteristic, and in the spirit of Rule #3, it is our duty to impart upon you the five tenets of the Casually Deliberate.
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Apologies Frank. I find it difficult to remain casually deliberate whilst sporting morning wood!
And you wonder why no one gets around to reading the articles.
Casually Delinquent -- oblivious to cycling culture and the Rules therein.
If I pass another rider on a long climb, I find that a casual swig from the bidon while gently resting the other hand's fingertips on the flat looks especially pro (and works well to hide my labored breathing).
Passing carbon whilst riding steel, especially up a big hill, always brings a hint of a smile to my face, but merely a hint. One should never gloat -- just crush some dreams momentarily and move ahead.
You have won second prize in a casually deliberate contest! Collect $10.
@mhoffinator
I have this "trick" that I was taught by my HS cross country coach (who was good friends with Steve Prefontaine's coach Bill Bowerman): control your breathing, control your expression. With all the zen you can muster (and this takes practice), chat up the guy next to you. Even if you can't actually drop his ass, just appearing comfortable is incredibly demoralizing. Especially effective going uphill, or during a breakaway. I've used it to great effect over the years.
And I'll just leave this here (since it's the off season, things are going to digress with a quickness):
This place goes from the sublime to the ridiculous faster than I can fix a flat.
(That said, the Presbyterian girls I knew in HS were a) hawt, b) ready to go.)
@frank - excellent stuff. The current culture of spiking the ball and dancing in the end zone is the opposite of these hardmen of cycling. The me culture is downright gross. One of my former coaches definitely came form the college of deliberately casual knowledge - "don't act like you have never been there before".