Monday, December 05, 2005

Old School Bastard Visits "Fitness Center"

So I am traveling for work and decide to take advantage of the hotel exercise facilities. Gleaming chrome, rolled towels, bottled water, and a million bucks worth of exercise and video equipment. I am told by some of my less cheap-ass friends who actually belong to gyms, that this is the norm in gyms now. Every piece of cardio equipment has it's own television so you can tune it to your favorite program. Everything is gleaming and new and the latest in high tech. Call me a grumpy old bastard, but it's hard to get a real pump in a gym that is so clean you could eat off the floor. Be old school people, be hard, focused, and determined in your training - and don't let modern gym distractions lead you down a feeble path.

One more rant and I am done for now, I promise. Why, oh why do people make exercise bikes that are built like an easy chair? Man that thing I rode last night was a piece of crap. I could not adjust it to get in anything other than an Archie Bunker easy chair position, the console got in the way of a stretched out hand position, and the saddle looked like it came off a tractor. My ass was barking after riding that thing. Why do people think wider is more comfortable with regard to bike saddles? - That will be the subject of an upcoming post, I can feel it.

I am enjoying getting away, but my basement dungeon is sorely missed!

Friday, December 02, 2005

Brrr - Pass the Sheep!

Hey there, finally back online after a brief period of letting my priorities get all out of whack...imagine putting work before cycling. I must have been hit on the head. Anyway, on with the blog!

Here in the mid-Atlantic it is getting downright cold for cycling. Last weekend's ride was spent dodging frozen puddles on the road, but I kept my motor warm under a nice thick blanket of pure Merino wool. Yes indeed my friends, there is more to cycling clothing than that garish team logowear crap that you see every other person wearing. Now is a perfect time to ask WWED? What would Eddy do? What did Eddy do? He wore wool baby, pure Merino wool. Soft as the downy fuzz on Jessica Simpson's backside.

Why did Eddy wear wool? It is the best insulator available even when it gets wet from the elements or from your soft, pasty, out of shape ass sweating all over it. Vintage Velos sells replica wool jerseys, trainers, base layers, and casual clothing. I have two of the trainers which are a heavyweight wool without rear pockets designed to be worn over another jersey in really cold weather. They are replicas of team jerseys from two different teams that Eddy Merckx used to race for - Faema, and Molteni. They are very, very well made with heavy duty Riri zippers and are pre-shrunk. The designs are so timeless you can actually wear them as casual tops without feeling like an idiot. Check them out - makes a great Christmas gift for a cyclist.