Anatomy of a Photo: Rules Pioneer

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• @eightzero

  Oh Merckx, not the pump vs. CO2 bitchfest again.

  The jury is still out on my road tubeless conversion. 1500 miles, no flats. Yes, I know what my saying this means. But I plan to replace the tyres at 2000 miles, hell or high water. And I now carry a AAA WA membership. 2x CO2 only, extra latex, and fingers crossed. And no more fucking tubes.

  I will make a nod to @frank's assertion the micro pump is lighter than 2x CO2. Possible, and worth considering.

  I hear that Evie Stevie rides tubeless these days too!

• @Puffy

  @ChrisO

  I don't know what it is but something is seriously wrong to have that many flats in that time.

  How many kms are you doing ?

  250 to 300 each week.

  Touch wood but I do about the same and have probably one a month on average, if that... cue a swarm to come of course.

  The roads here are good - no potholes or flints - but lots of shit from trucks and construction traffic.

• @ChrisO roads here are crap. Lots of glass, gravel and small stones (flint?) most of he time I refuse to ride on the shoulder because its littered with crap. I'm waiting for a cage to tell me to use the shoulder so I can reply "have you seen it? You wouldn't drive it" I thought that was normal for an urban environment. I do most of my kms before the sun rise so riding in the dark doesn't help avoiding debris I suppose.

• @johnthughes

  @Gianni

  @johnthughes

  After moving to Belgium, I was informed that a mini-pump is considered superior to CO2 on the basis that if one is serious about one's ride, then one needs a way to maintain a high heart rate while changing a flat. Of course that was translated roughly from Vlaams to English by a third party(I am only just yet learning the mother-tongue). It was a rough translation to my understanding, but I was told it was "close enough" by a smirking hardman in the rain.

  Do keep us informed on the conversion to a Belgian life. Vlaams seems like a tough one to pick up. Keep us posted with more "smirking hardman" anecdotes.

  The language is both easy(Lots of words that are the same or very similar) and hard(words and sounds that don't exist in US english; 'd's that sound like 't's, 'b's that sound like 'p's, 't's that sound like 'c's except for "sometimes")...and it is a challenge. Necessary though. Everyone in my club can speak english...except when we are riding, then it is all Vlaams. To be honest, I have been here for 2.5 years and am just now working on the language with any seriousness(I am a bit ashamed about that). As for conversion....I have been sold since my arrival here. I love the US, but I am not coming back permanently if I have any choice. I plan to live and die in Belgium. Cycling is such a different thing here(possibly an obvious statement). From the worst of it; solo canal work in a headwind that will strip every layer of ego you didn't know you had; but still awesome. To the best of it; a house in the Ardennes for a week, riding the roads around Houffalize, La Roche-en-Ardennes, and up to Signal Botrange and Baraque Michelle. Or still amazing, if not less majestic, just the Wednesday night ride with the club, tucked into a peloton of 30 riders, just one of 3-5 groups from my club(a small one) out on the canals with many many other clubs, as if it were some kind of giant stage race involving the whole country. Winter is a whole other story....still filled with cycling. Never have I looked outside on a sunday morning just above freezing and thought "Just 30 more minutes and its time meet the group and go ride, I can't wait!", but here....here it is like a drug. I have headed out into the worst of weather, and not once ever regretted it after. For me a long ride was 50 miles, and 100 miles was a mystery to worry about. Here, there is no trepidation. Ride with the club to the sea and back with a pasta lunch in between(230km)? Sure! The LvdK(Lady van de Kempen) says "Lets just ride to Malmedey(from Antwerp) and back this weekend. It's just 190km each way. And we get to ride up and over the highest point in Belgium[admitedly not saying much]. We can stay at the youth hostel and drink the local beers." and I reply "Of course, lets go!". I am not sure why I just wrote all this. I guess I should have just wrote "I'll do my best to report back any quotes I can." I'll try to keep it more terse next time.

  Cheers

  Another convert here, 3.5 years long in the most beautiful world of cycling as well.  I recently bought a house in Ottignies just outside of Brussels having had enough of the city and I'm so glad I did.  The 30km, 400m elevation commute that I try to sneak in 2-3 times a week is absolute heaven.  Even better when I can sneak out of Brussels  through rolling flemish countryside (Leefdaal/Vossem) to add another couple hundred meters of elevation and double the length of the ride.  In just two months of doing this I no longer shy away from the 16% maximum gradients, but instead put my head down, spinning my way to the top, fully aware that my day will not get better than this moment.  I feel a certain sense of pride being on a flemish compact (53/39) but must admit to running a 12-30 rear necessitated by a recent trip to the Stelvio, Gavia, and other hallowed climbs in the Italian/Swiss Alps.  I hope one day I can be worthy of this country so full of 60+ year old men who can climb those same 16% grades on a 53/25 and still make it look smooth.

  I've been recently trying to add distance, muscle, and lose weight (down to 72.8kg) in an effort to take this cultural conversion a bit more seriously.  This last weekend I did a tour of Wallonia exploring some of the Ravel network (thousands of kilometers of rail conversion paved trails) and the Canal paths between Ottignies-Nivelles-Charleroi and back home.  It involved 135km with 20km head winds, constant heavy rain, and 3 flats but even in this my new home country was quite loving and gentle with me.  She gave me the three flats in the very beginning of the ride, when it hadn't started raining yet, and while I could still taste the pre ride espresso, enjoy the company of some grazing cattle, and watch the sunrise come up over the predawn valley.  Anyone who commutes in Belgium knows not to complain when flats occur with such fortitude, lest they anger the cycling gods on their commute in less favorable conditions.  Even the later headwind and rain was just the country gently reminding me as to the nature of Belgian cycling.  We have had 2 months of perfect weather, and it was time to be reminded that winter is already on its way.  I struggled to stay dry this past winter as I cycled no matter what the weather.  When I asked a flemish hardman for his advice on the topic his response was not some secret and costly piece of gear, rather, to just Rule 5 & 9 and get used to enjoying the weather.  I know it was just 135km, and was still a balmy 18 degrees, but I've never enjoyed such a ride in such weather so thoroughly.  Next weekend I'll be trying this and fully expect to meet the man with the hammer.

  http://www.velomediane.com/

  I am American, Texan even, and miss my family and occasionally my country and language, but I too can't ever see going back.  I've got the house, found my fiancée/VMH, have a second family now, speak more French each month, am just hours away from motoring heaven in Germany, and while the Alps might have the true claim on cycling heaven, Belgium is certainly the front yard.  The only thing left to do is cycle more, enjoy, and be polite and brush up on my Vlaams.

  VLVV

• That photo is beautiful & awesome and I love the early styleage of the Tall Hosiery. (I've worn Tall Ones throughout my sporting career to cover up the skankles and in an attempt to hide the lower Guns and instead intimidate with the more significant Upper Guns.)

  Damn flats. I now have five latex tubes waiting to be patched. It is definitely best to just accept them and move on since fearing them can ruin a ride. I usually opt for da pump but last flat was nearing the end of a ride, was at my limit, flatted nowhere near any shade, it was hot as 2 hells. CO2 can be amazing. A long arm workout versus screwing the chuck on and blasting away. Best $0.80 I ever spent, on that day.

• @pistard

  @PT

  @pistard

  @PT

  Seeing as its come up, what is the issue behind placing your bicycle upside down? Apart from looking ungainly, it would seem to be the most practical way of getting at your wheels or drivetrain while effecting roadside repairs on your own.

  Or am I missing something?

  Is it just like the sunglasses over the helmet straps issue?

  Signed,

  Confused.

  Dear Confused,

  1. Besides being disrespectful, it's a surefire way to scratch or soil your saddle, stem, bars, tape and/or hoods. It's also pretty much guaranteed that your bike will fall over in the two seconds you turn around to grab your multitool.

  2. In the days before aero cabling, it could also put a kink in the housings where they exited the brake levers.

  3. They're called dropouts for a reason.

  Best regards,

  Abigail Van Pistard

  Dear Abigail,

  Thankyou for the speedy and forthright advice.

  While I comprehend (certainly on the unsuitability or inverting ones steed when dealing with older generations of brake hoods), I must beg to differ. The Campy shifter tips are rubber and the fi'zi:k seat is also some leather-like product under which I carefully place a suitable item (like a cap) to minimize scratches. Dropouts are, indeed, drop-outs, I will grant you that.

  Nevertheless, I cannot foresee compliant behavior from me in regard to this particular rule. Which is unusual as I manage to follow most others.

  Sincerely,

  The Disrespectful Recidivist

  Dear Recidivist,

  I have noticed young hooligans parking their BMXs thusly inverted at the local video arcade. I will assume you are one of them.

  Best,

  Pissy Van Buren

  Dear Pissy, Puffy, JohnT, Deakus, et al,

  Merci Beaucoup for the concerned advice. Although I remain very far from convinced about the merits of doing it horizontally (I have carbon fibre pedals...lay them on t'road?!?) I will nevertheless note your well-meant advice next time one of my tubes exhibits egress of air and consider, for at polite moment at least, laying her over.  I am shaking my head as I write this....

  signed,

  The Perplexed Recalcitrant.

  As an aside,  JohntHughes I really enjoyed your notes on Belgian life.  Thank you .

• @Rob

  @johnthughes

  @Gianni

  @johnthughes

  After moving to Belgium, I was informed that a mini-pump is considered superior to CO2 on the basis that if one is serious about one's ride, then one needs a way to maintain a high heart rate while changing a flat. Of course that was translated roughly from Vlaams to English by a third party(I am only just yet learning the mother-tongue). It was a rough translation to my understanding, but I was told it was "close enough" by a smirking hardman in the rain.

  Do keep us informed on the conversion to a Belgian life. Vlaams seems like a tough one to pick up. Keep us posted with more "smirking hardman" anecdotes.

  The language is both easy(Lots of words that are the same or very similar) and hard(words and sounds that don't exist in US english; 'd's that sound like 't's, 'b's that sound like 'p's, 't's that sound like 'c's except for "sometimes")...and it is a challenge. Necessary though. Everyone in my club can speak english...except when we are riding, then it is all Vlaams. To be honest, I have been here for 2.5 years and am just now working on the language with any seriousness(I am a bit ashamed about that). As for conversion....I have been sold since my arrival here. I love the US, but I am not coming back permanently if I have any choice. I plan to live and die in Belgium. Cycling is such a different thing here(possibly an obvious statement). From the worst of it; solo canal work in a headwind that will strip every layer of ego you didn't know you had; but still awesome. To the best of it; a house in the Ardennes for a week, riding the roads around Houffalize, La Roche-en-Ardennes, and up to Signal Botrange and Baraque Michelle. Or still amazing, if not less majestic, just the Wednesday night ride with the club, tucked into a peloton of 30 riders, just one of 3-5 groups from my club(a small one) out on the canals with many many other clubs, as if it were some kind of giant stage race involving the whole country. Winter is a whole other story....still filled with cycling. Never have I looked outside on a sunday morning just above freezing and thought "Just 30 more minutes and its time meet the group and go ride, I can't wait!", but here....here it is like a drug. I have headed out into the worst of weather, and not once ever regretted it after. For me a long ride was 50 miles, and 100 miles was a mystery to worry about. Here, there is no trepidation. Ride with the club to the sea and back with a pasta lunch in between(230km)? Sure! The LvdK(Lady van de Kempen) says "Lets just ride to Malmedey(from Antwerp) and back this weekend. It's just 190km each way. And we get to ride up and over the highest point in Belgium[admitedly not saying much]. We can stay at the youth hostel and drink the local beers." and I reply "Of course, lets go!". I am not sure why I just wrote all this. I guess I should have just wrote "I'll do my best to report back any quotes I can." I'll try to keep it more terse next time.

  Cheers

  Another convert here, 3.5 years long in the most beautiful world of cycling as well. I recently bought a house in Ottignies just outside of Brussels having had enough of the city and I'm so glad I did. The 30km, 400m elevation commute that I try to sneak in 2-3 times a week is absolute heaven. Even better when I can sneak out of Brussels through rolling flemish countryside (Leefdaal/Vossem) to add another couple hundred meters of elevation and double the length of the ride. In just two months of doing this I no longer shy away from the 16% maximum gradients, but instead put my head down, spinning my way to the top, fully aware that my day will not get better than this moment. I feel a certain sense of pride being on a Flemish Compact (53/39) but must admit to running a 12-30 rear necessitated by a recent trip to the Stelvio, Gavia, and other hallowed climbs in the Italian/Swiss Alps. I hope one day I can be worthy of this country so full of 60+ year old men who can climb those same 16% grades on a 53/25 and still make it look smooth.

  I've been recently trying to add distance, muscle, and lose weight (down to 72.8kg) in an effort to take this cultural conversion a bit more seriously. This last weekend I did a tour of Wallonia exploring some of the Ravel network (thousands of kilometers of rail conversion paved trails) and the Canal paths between Ottignies-Nivelles-Charleroi and back home. It involved 135km with 20km head winds, constant heavy rain, and 3 flats but even in this my new home country was quite loving and gentle with me. She gave me the three flats in the very beginning of the ride, when it hadn't started raining yet, and while I could still taste the pre ride espresso, enjoy the company of some grazing cattle, and watch the sunrise come up over the predawn valley. Anyone who commutes in Belgium knows not to complain when flats occur with such fortitude, lest they anger the cycling gods on their commute in less favorable conditions. Even the later headwind and rain was just the country gently reminding me as to the nature of Belgian cycling. We have had 2 months of perfect weather, and it was time to be reminded that winter is already on its way. I struggled to stay dry this past winter as I cycled no matter what the weather. When I asked a flemish hardman for his advice on the topic his response was not some secret and costly piece of gear, rather, to just Rule #5 & 9 and get used to enjoying the weather. I know it was just 135km, and was still a balmy 18 degrees, but I've never enjoyed such a ride in such weather so thoroughly. Next weekend I'll be trying this and fully expect to meet the man with the hammer.

  http://www.velomediane.com/

  I am American, Texan even, and miss my family and occasionally my country and language, but I too can't ever see going back. I've got the house, found my fiancée/VMH, have a second family now, speak more French each month, am just hours away from motoring heaven in Germany, and while the Alps might have the true claim on cycling heaven, Belgium is certainly the front yard. The only thing left to do is cycle more, enjoy, and be polite and brush up on my Vlaams.

  VLVV

  All this is a beautiful article within a couple of posts. You gents are living the dream. Now just write a how-to manual.

• @Rob that is simply begging for a full guest article...

• @roger

  @Puffy buck has ridden 2 or 3 times this year. so, that statement could be entirely accurate. sad, but accurate.

  Ha!  Roger, you dog!  Yes, this year has been an "off year" to say the least.  Only a few rides secondary to injury but I am now back with a vengence! 

  The last few years I have been averaging 10,000 k's per year on really shit roads, esp last year in Texas.  TN roads were not awful but pretty bad as well.  I was also running clinchers at that time and would puncture once a month-to-month-and-a-half or so riding 12 months a year.

  But now, since just before heading over to France last summer, I have gone back to riding tubulars and have not flatted at all (knock on woood, sacrifice chicken, pray to Merckx, etc).

  I have to admit to carrying a bottle of Vittoria pit stop as well as the spare tub under the seat and my mini pump.  Anything over 50 k and it could be a very long walk home or the "Call of Shame" to my VMH in order to come and pick me up.

• @johnthughes

  @Rob

  Jesus, Mary and Merckx can you feel my envy from here???  Awesome stuff, guys!  Keep it coming.  Truly you are all living the Velominati DREAM!