If you're anything like me, then your days pretty much follow the same routine. As comforting as a routine may be, it does mean that if, ITTET, you want to augment your income with a tax-free Christmas bonus by kidnapping me and holding me for ransom all you have to do is hang out at the intersection of Willow and Prince and I'll just fall into your lap (or van with blacked out windows or whatever). Of course, this assumes that a) there is someone who will wish to ransom me back and b) should (a) be true, they have the means to pay said ransom. Both of which are rather large assumptions. However, I digress.
The reason I bring up routines is that many of us will have found that our routines have been subtly disrupted recently; a police road-block on the way back from the pool, your lunchtime 5 miler this Thursday is clashing with something all of a sudden or Cyclesmith have hung a bunch of white-painted sprockets in the window. What gives?
The holidays are upon us once more and while they tend to creep up on people at the best of times, I think it's worse for us. One moment we're racing, then we're digging out the big gloves and hats while pondering next season's program when all of a sudden we're ambushed by mince pies, egg-nog, tofurkey and you know that spot in the living room where you put your rollers? Some-one has gone and stuck a tree there!
The midwinter festivals are rooted in a hope that the sun, seemingly dead, will come back into our lives. As outdoor athletes we are probably hoping more fervently than most (and given another month of this, I suspect potentially more likely to resort to animal sacrifice) for the return of light, warmth, an ice-free lake at Ingonish Beach and cropped tops. Most of all we're hoping for a new racing season!
What better way to start off preparation for the Navy sprint (May 30, mark your calendars) than some shiny new kit? Our friends at livemultisport.com have trawled through the catalogues, websites and LBS (both near and far) to bring a selection of what's hot. Not only that, but they're doing four lists, each list curated by different people with different tastes. Here are my favs from each list...
From Jen's list, a hand-made, tweedy, wooly cycling cap. What did you expect? I ride fixed, I ride steel and I do it at the same time; what sensible, gear-ratio quoting ubergrouch Sheldon Brown wannabe wouldn't pick the hat? Yup, it looks dumb in TZ and it about as technical as my late grandmother but it isn't made for TZ and a high-intensity workout, it's made for scooting over to TIBS on the fixie for an espresso and a croissant.
......sorry, I'm back, I was thinking about those croissants. Where were we? Oh yes. From TJ's list, espresso. Seriously. Yes, I'd love a pair of Rapha shorts (I'd love that Rapha EPO T-shirt even more but I'm dead out of luck), but c'mon; something you can crash or coffee? Was there really a choice?
Finally (for now) from Cliff's list, aero wheel-covers. You tell these guys what wheels you have and they have aero wheel-covers for them so you can convert a regular wheel into a disc-wheel without all that messing around skinning your knuckles with a chain-whip and blowing a wad on race-wheels that cost more than your first car but you only use three times a year. "A $90 price tag that acts like a $700 purchase" as Cliff puts it. Do you think Wheelbuilder will laugh when I ask if they have a set that'll fit MA2s?
Go check out what I didn't pick. I'm off to reclaim my credit-card from the Finance Officer and LMS haven't even published week 4 yet. I'm doomed!
In all seriousness though, thanks LMS
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The reason I bring up routines is that many of us will have found that our routines have been subtly disrupted recently; a police road-block on the way back from the pool, your lunchtime 5 miler this Thursday is clashing with something all of a sudden or Cyclesmith have hung a bunch of white-painted sprockets in the window. What gives?
The holidays are upon us once more and while they tend to creep up on people at the best of times, I think it's worse for us. One moment we're racing, then we're digging out the big gloves and hats while pondering next season's program when all of a sudden we're ambushed by mince pies, egg-nog, tofurkey and you know that spot in the living room where you put your rollers? Some-one has gone and stuck a tree there!
The midwinter festivals are rooted in a hope that the sun, seemingly dead, will come back into our lives. As outdoor athletes we are probably hoping more fervently than most (and given another month of this, I suspect potentially more likely to resort to animal sacrifice) for the return of light, warmth, an ice-free lake at Ingonish Beach and cropped tops. Most of all we're hoping for a new racing season!
What better way to start off preparation for the Navy sprint (May 30, mark your calendars) than some shiny new kit? Our friends at livemultisport.com have trawled through the catalogues, websites and LBS (both near and far) to bring a selection of what's hot. Not only that, but they're doing four lists, each list curated by different people with different tastes. Here are my favs from each list...
From Jen's list, a hand-made, tweedy, wooly cycling cap. What did you expect? I ride fixed, I ride steel and I do it at the same time; what sensible, gear-ratio quoting ubergrouch Sheldon Brown wannabe wouldn't pick the hat? Yup, it looks dumb in TZ and it about as technical as my late grandmother but it isn't made for TZ and a high-intensity workout, it's made for scooting over to TIBS on the fixie for an espresso and a croissant.
......sorry, I'm back, I was thinking about those croissants. Where were we? Oh yes. From TJ's list, espresso. Seriously. Yes, I'd love a pair of Rapha shorts (I'd love that Rapha EPO T-shirt even more but I'm dead out of luck), but c'mon; something you can crash or coffee? Was there really a choice?
Finally (for now) from Cliff's list, aero wheel-covers. You tell these guys what wheels you have and they have aero wheel-covers for them so you can convert a regular wheel into a disc-wheel without all that messing around skinning your knuckles with a chain-whip and blowing a wad on race-wheels that cost more than your first car but you only use three times a year. "A $90 price tag that acts like a $700 purchase" as Cliff puts it. Do you think Wheelbuilder will laugh when I ask if they have a set that'll fit MA2s?
Go check out what I didn't pick. I'm off to reclaim my credit-card from the Finance Officer and LMS haven't even published week 4 yet. I'm doomed!
In all seriousness though, thanks LMS
AD
Thanks for the re-post AD and Tom will have the Lanterne Rouge spot so you can be SURE your credit card is gonna be maxxed out!
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