Predictions for 2015 (Pro Cycling and Beyond)
Without further ado, in 2015 I believe…
Dealing With Saddle Sores
Saddle sores.
At some time in our cycling lifetime, each one of us will be visited by this demon that lurks in the darkness of our chamois. Steeped in tales of horror, deeply personal and sometimes utterly disgusting, this little pest can derail the most dedicated of cyclists, grinding their riding, training and racing to a complete halt. To top it off these devils are often incredibly difficult to treat and get rid of.
There may be many causes of saddle sores, plenty of confounding elements, and a lot of closely inter-related issues behind the development of one of these pests, and you have to look at each and every one of those aspects if you want to finally be free of that pimple on your nether regions.
That being said, let's delve into your shorts and see what's cooking (or boiling, as it may be.)
De-Fredification: Trim Your Helmet Straps
Since the weather has warmed up, I've seen more riders than I can count on the local roads. From cruisers to single speeds, slick road machines to mountain bikes, I've noticed one common element among a great many of them: dangling helmet straps. For some reason, they drive me up a wall: the ends of helmet straps dangling in the breeze, flapping around when descending, blowing up into your mouth…besides all of that, nothing says “fred” like dangling helmet straps. So take about 5 minutes of your life and fix those straps, eh? This brand of de-fredification is easy, and I'll show you how to go about it:
The Irrelevance of the Triple
[dc]S[/dc]ince my previous post apparently stirred up a bit of controversy, I think it's appropriate to address the following question:
"Why didn't you include triple cranksets in your comparisons?"
Well, the simple explanation is because triples are irrelevant.
"What?"
Yes, they're irrelevant. With the rise of compact gearing and wide range cassettes, triple cranksets have been relegated to the dustbin of cycling history (with the notable exceptions of loaded touring and possible commuters.) But the question remains, why is this the case? Let's find out.
The Gray Market Struggle
A posting that recently made its way around the internet has sparked some interesting discussion in the past few months. The poster in question is a shop owner and has instituted a policy of adding an additional 20% markup on his labor rates for work done to items purchased through eBay or items purchased overseas (such as Wiggle, Ribble and ProBikeKit.) He also goes on to say that he will report those who bring in “gray market” goods and haven't paid import on them. Lastly, he comments on the morality of purchasing goods from overseas or on eBay.
That being said, the full text of his posting (names edited) appears after the jump: