Cobbles, Bergs, Beer, and Legends. Putting the V Back in Vlaanderen.
It has been a busy couple of weeks in the Velominati Boardroom as we’ve been scrambling to finalize a few partnerships and get all the products for the Keepers Tour customers designed and produced. Suffice to say, fists and beers were slammed in tandem as we feverishly worked out the final designs.
Producing V-Pints, V-Shirts, and V-Musettes seems a simple enough task; and we also needed a flag and banner to fly at the roadside of the various races we are due to watch from the roadside, including de Ronde van Vlaanderen and Paris-Roubaix. There was also a the small matter of getting our hands on musette bags, which aren’t commonly found on the market, as far as we could tell. Fair heart, never worry; Gianni and his VMH took matters into their own hands and made them up from scratch. If their other business ventures fail, musette-sewing may be a good fallback, they Look Fantastic.
The most significant effort due was for the Keepers Tour Cobbled Classics 2012 design; enter our graphic-design mastermind, KRX-10. We tossed a few emails across the net and settled quickly on the notion of using a variation of the Lion of Flanders. “Now we need a public-domain vector graphic. Race you to it”, was the last word from KRX10 on the matter before the design was finalized. Then it was on to deciding on a tag line, with the result being perhaps the best example of what happens when the Keepers argue long enough on such matters.
With that, we proudly present the official artwork for Keepers Tour: Cobbled Classics 2012:
The last two weeks I’ve felt like a kid waiting for Christmas as orders were placed and we entered into the torturous period of time while we waited to lay our hands on the final products and see the fruits of our labor. And I have to say, this round may have produced our finest products yet; the V-Lion and tagline turned out magnificently, as did all the other items. The flag and banner are actually breathtaking – waving in the wind. We hope you like it as much as we do.
A few items of note: Attendees of Keepers Tour will receive a musette packed with their V-Shirt and V-Pint along with a few lovies from our sponsors, and will also have the honor of commenting for the next year with the V-Lion badge. Also of note is the matter that these products are not available for sale and will never be; the only way to get Keepers Tour products is to attend a Keepers Tour, so bear that in mind next time around. Finally, if you’re looking for a real photo of the V-Pint, you’ll have to wait until we arrive in Belgium, as they were shipped ahead while I was away on business and as such they have not yet been seen by anyone, even me.
Please also get yourself acquainted with our Twitter and Tumblr sites if you’ve not done so already – we’ll be reserving the site for major updates, and will be posting minor updates in those to locations throughout our trip, with Twitter being used for small updates, and Tumblr for the ones that are too much for a tweet and too little for the V.
VLVV.
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@frank
Hope to Merckx it does.
@frank
Any sign of the Veloispouse? She came along?
We do have a comprehensive list of attendees? We need at least a provisional start list.
Things appear to be off to an interesting start…
@eightzero
By horrible luck, she has to be in Kenya at the same exact time. We’ll have three-hour overlap tomorrow in Amsterdam which isn’t long enough to be useful.
@frank
Show off.
I forgot to mention, I hung out in the pentalty box waiting for my oversized bike box and chatted with the Women’s Tibco Racing team. Super cool girls and super friendly/approachable. They’re here racing the Spring Classics, so we’ll have to make sure we catch them racing.
@frank
Humpf. Well, I can see you and I have different opinions about “useful” as it applies to being with our velomispouses. 3 hours is plenty for me, provided the proper accommodations can be arranged, if you get my drift.
Random comment: @Frank mentioned the Tibco women’s team. How come we never see feature articles on the cycling web sites (Velonews, cyclingnews) or the magazines that show the Womens’ Pro bikes? Lots of pics on Tommmke’s ride, Cavendouche’s ride, etc etc. But I’d like to see details on what the girls put between their legs, and why. (And yes, that was intentionally double entendre, but I mean it earnestly.)
Get some pics of their bikes. Curious what they ride.
@eightzero
They ride Specialized Amira S-Worksthis year. http://www.teamtibco.com/ They have a nice following on Facebook too. I thought I saw an article on their bike on velonews, but I couldn’t find it.
@mcsqueak
Great movie!
Good omen for KT. I found a pair of these in a charity shop this morning for NZ$2!
VMH and I are about to follow @Rigid and @Brett on 30+ hours of travelling hell from one side of the globe to the other. Still beats working…
I’m in awe. Have fun storming the kastell! Looking forward to details details details.
@roger
Firstly that’s a ridiculously generous offer given the chances something could happen to it when left in the hands of the Dutch Monkey & the Aussie Kiwi under the influence of Belgian Tripels…
Secondly, cheers for pointing me in the direction of the K-Edge bar mount, I’ve been torn between ruining the look of my bike with the official GoPro one or having to withstand the disappointment on the VMH’s face when her birthday present from last November continues to go unused. Now I just have to choose which colour.
@Harminator
Heh, heh, heh, heh…
@Harminator
wow, competition for the V-badge shall be tight between DerHoggz, Itburns & yourself this week.
Might as well up the ante. This is a more complete version of what I think would be a cool jersey. Velominati font still not right and a bit big, but it gets the idea across:
@itburns
I’m still holding out for the addition on the Man with the Hammer:
Can we work him in?
@itburns WANT
I’m in.
@mouse
@eightzero, that is what I call a cycling jersey, however, the ‘aardmannetje’ should go on the caps of the sleeves, like a badge of honour.
@eightzero
With a little luck, we’ll do it ourselves. I was too classy to photograph the girls (and too worried about my bike) but I’ll do if I can this week. Also, one bike box was very rattle-ey. Here’s hoping her bike was still in one piece.
@itburns
No offense intended and I love the creativity and I love the initiative you’re taking here, but you’re about to get an idea of what KRX-10 goes through when he and I sit down to do design sessions. I am one big asshole when it comes to design. I am not on board with the retro design and modern materials concept; it makes no sense to me. I am fine with a real vintage jersey, though, in wool.
My thoughs on the matter over on the other thread.
Might not be a tricolore but it has a bit of the national champs jerseys about and keeps it nice and simple. A bit more V-branding but not much*.
*Apologies for the shitness of my design skills and riping off @Harminator‘s awesome design template
@Bianchi Denti
I can practically taste in on my lips….
@frank
The V-lions rock, any chance of those ever being turned into official decals?
@frank
No problem. Just responding to Marko’s request for ideas. What can I say? I like the Brooklyn jerseys.
@itburns
I’m REALLY liking the Brooklyn motif! Count me in too.
@teleguy57
It ain’t gonna happen…Frank has a potential plan for a woolen retro jersey he discusses elsewhere, but it won’t be in a Brooklyn stylee.
@Oli
Not like this?!
@sthilzy
Damn, I hope so! All that needs is a few V-Loins and it will be perfect!
Bike and bags packed. On the plane at 13:00 tomorrow!
Still have to finish a work project. Bah. Hopefully I can do it Friday morning while waiting in Lille.
@G’rilla
I still have a work project too. Its called the Velominati Keepers Tour: Cobbled Classics 2012. Have you heard of it? You didn’t think this was fun and games, did you? THIS IS HARD FUCKING WORK!!
Fingers crossed that all goes well on the KT.
I’m on a ferry on Saturday morning and will be watching the RVV with my VMH in Ooudenaarde on Sunday. I’ll keep an eye out for you all!
At last, after two weeks off the bike with , well, no bike, and then a head full of glue, I finally goit out yesterday on my new single speed (not brave enough to flip the hub to fixie yet), and took it off road – elbows were siezed by 50 metres – this weekend is gonna hurt!
@Dr C
Off road? Are you mad? Did you self medicate to get rid of the glue?
@Chris
The perception of madness is something one can only aspire too, as it does entail doing things rational people think you need to be missing a few spanners to do, but which ultimately sets one apart from the mundanos
I confess the off road was more country park trails than off road, no jumps etc, but the bike is so light and twitchy, that I couldn’t resist
Defo think it is worth having a singlespeed in one’s quiver, totally different experience to riding the fully loaded weapons we all now to go to war on – pure simplicity, total connection – it is being part of the coutryside rather than conquering it – albeit you lose everytime it jacks over 6%
That said, I’ll stick to the tarmac from now on
Sadly still producing high viscosity industrial grade adhesive from the nose – I can’t even blow it coz my ear pops and the vertigo 30 second trip kicks in, which having experienced once before on the bike, I think I’d rather not revisit on the cobbles – so I may arrive in the velodrome with a massive dusty moustache, despite the shave beforehand, if you now what I’m saying!
@Dr C
’tis a very good point but one man’s rational is another man’s completely fucking mind bogglingly irrational.
ride the cobbles of PR with a bunch of strangers from the internet or veg out on the sofa with a bucket of processed lard and mechanically recovered non-specific meat products whilst watching the voice or britain’s got talent.
take your pick.
@Chris
AMerckx to that (just wanted to see the Lion of Vlaanders by my name)
A little gem from Pellos for Saturday…
I don’t know if anyone around here follows Ted King on Strava but it’s worth it just to see what he names his rides. Yesterdays ride;
I swallowed three bugs on the second Daag of de Panne. Which is gross since these are Belgian farm bugs, so surely they were just hanging out on some cow poo..
http://app.strava.com/runs/5846997
I think he’d be a fun guy to hang out with.
@Chris
Fantastic. Need a print of that.
@Chris
Did you see that big fat 17 yr old bot on BGT last week?
Amazing – next big Tenor for UK for sure
oh….need to get on my bike more….
@Dr C
er, no.
When it comes on I retire to the garage or my study to flog myself on the rollers.
@frank
Now now Frank, calm down. It appears you missed the memo, that this site is all about me. Just so you know.
(PS I wouldn’t organise jack for Bretto. Make him sleep in a paddock)
A couple photos from the start of the Keepers Tour:
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@G’rilla
hope you arrived well and the jetlag is not too bad! strange to see Kemmelberg and the village of Westouter on this site…
so, I m a bit curious, as my study deals with intercultural differences: what are your first impressions about Belgium and Vlaanderen? maybe it s a bit too soon to ask, but a first impression only happens once.
good luck tomorrow in L’Enfer du Nord!
Top stuff!
@G’rilla
Nice! Keep ’em coming!