Categories: Anatomy of a PhotoAwesome Belgian Guys

Anatomy of a Photo: Maximum Awesome

Baller.

Freddy effortlessly demonstrates Rules #80 and #82, the Three-Point System, and the Goldilocks Principle while his mechanic calmly swaps a mortal’s wheel for one that can withstand his ferocious sprint. All the while, a young Colonel Sanders looks on with bemused disapproval.

For anyone still wondering whether the 70’s was the coolest decade ever, it was.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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Chris says:

Nov 19 2013 at 3:49 am

The cap lounging against the car looks like a young Swiss Toni

Changing a wheel, Freddy, is like making love to a beautiful woman, you've got to be very careful with the quick release."
Deakus says:

Nov 19 2013 at 5:34 am

After a month of enforced isolation (house move and no broadband for a month)...I is back! Now I get to read all the last months articles and try and catch up on the monday morning quiz!
Ron says:

Nov 19 2013 at 5:51 am

Freddy is such a unique looking individual. Reading a bit about him in "Half Man, Half Machine" I'm more intrigued than ever. Some really big wins...but financial and bottle troubles seem to have limited his full potential. Always feels odd writing that about such an incredible rider, but have to wonder what might have been if he'd lived more monk like.

How big were he and Godefroot? Neither seems too large, though both were stout by today's standards. Still, seem on the small size to have handled cobbles so well. I guess being Belgian doesn't hurt...
Buck Rogers says:

Nov 19 2013 at 6:07 am

Just a brillantly gorgeous photo. Does anyone know what year and/or race this is and how Freddy ended up at the end?

Seems like a northern Spring Classic but it could be any of them.
Buck Rogers says:

Nov 19 2013 at 6:09 am

@Gianni

Damn, Freddy is wearing those awesome leather gloves. And the legs. Yep, that's a man.

Jesus, and the white socks and the hairnet. And the legs again. Fucking awesome.
Rob says:

Nov 19 2013 at 6:26 am

"For anyone still wondering whether the 70"²s was the coolest decade ever, it was."

FrÃ¤nk, dam, you can get it with so little!

Every day I wake up and swing a leg over the iron I thank Merckx that I was on a racing machine at the tail end of the 70's!

There is nothing, I repeat, NOTHING that comes after that has yet to make the ride better or almost more importantly better looking. Starting at the hair net and working down to the Marresi or Duegi shoes, nothing!

As a P.S. I bet Fast Freddy was a tough s o b as we're many in the day. No college/Uni boys and thin pickings at the top. When I think of hard men its not only the guns but the elbows and fists... Where do you think he got that nose?
wiscot says:

Nov 19 2013 at 7:24 am

So how awesome was Freddy? In 1977 when with the Red Guard of Flandria, he won 13 stages of the Vuelta! That's right, 13 fucking stage wins. He led the race from start to finish and his teammate Michel Pollentier won a stage too. That is dominance never seen since.
Nate says:

Nov 19 2013 at 7:44 am

@Jarvis

@Rick

He's leaning on a Trabant, looking like a Stasi agent disguised as an MI5 agent trying to look like a Stasi agent.

That's not a fucking Trabant.

Right it is a Peugot.
wiscot says:

Nov 19 2013 at 7:46 am

PS Shocking fact of the day: Freddy Maertens never won a monument.
Buck Rogers says:

Nov 19 2013 at 8:12 am

@wiscot

PS Shocking fact of the day: Freddy Maertens never won a monument.

Indeed. I had no idea. I never would have said that he did not win at least one. I know that he podiumed a few but never on the top step, eh? Cool trivia right there!