Categories: Keepers TourKitLa Vie Velominatus

Q1 2012 V-Kit Order

It hasn't always been this way, where we thoughtlessly disembogue 140 characters or less in messages sent into a medium where our crimes against language, spelling and grammar will live for ever.

There was a time when we wrote letters. These letters were carefully composed and penned onto thick, quality parchment paper and sealed in wax. These letters were then dispatched to the farthest reaches of the world where they would be carefully read and digested before a response was given. Technology and innovation are often taken as synonyms for progress, but with that progress usually comes the death of ritual and tradition.

As we close the books on the Q4 2011 V-Kit order, we open the books for the Q1 2012 order. Our insistence on the highest quality products made to our exacting standards translates into a long wait while the kit is manufactured. This presents a challenge when loving family and friends want to give the kit as a gift to a velominatus, because the timing of our delivery timetables rarely coincides with the intended occasion. To work around this problem in the past, we have arranged for a letter which is carefully crafted and personalized before being printed on thick parchment paper and sealed with a hand-dripped wax V-Seal for wrapping and giving on the day.

With the holiday season coinciding with our next kit order, we introduce the V-Gift Letter for wrapping and laying under the tree, announcing to the recipient the impending Glory of Merckx which will befall them upon the arrival of their kit several weeks later. We also offer a version of the letter for the Keepers Tour in the event that any loving family or friend intends to make a gift of the ultimate cycling trip to their Velminatus/a. The letter is free, with the cost going towards postage only.

With that, we officially open the 2012 Q1 V-Kit order. The only thing that remains is the choice: Zwarte, Witte, or Winter. However you choose, choose wisely and choose carefully as orders are custom made. Place your order by midnight on January 6 for the next V-Kit shipment, scheduled to arrive in late February.

[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/frank@velominati.com/V-Gift Letter/”/]

A point of clarification: all packages from the Q4 2011 V-Kit order have been dispatched.

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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redranger says:

Nov 30 2011 at 3:43 pm

I just realized the the date on this order and I realized that its perfect! I can usually count on some extra cash at the beginning of the year. hmm, what to get?
Dr C says:

Nov 30 2011 at 4:00 pm

@itburns

@frank

@Dr C

Makes me think again, take my #1 bike to Roubaix ride.....Mmmmmm

Of course you take your own bike. Its called a Roubaix, isn't it? Should it break? Well, what better place for it to meet its maker than in the hallowed grounds for which it was created?

@Dr CYou have to bring your 2012 Expert Roubaix. I'll have my 2011. As I wrote to the Keepers, if catastrophe hits and I crack the frame I just hope it is before the factory tour so I can be a kid in a very expensive candy store with expert input from the Velominati. Bike and rims are definitely built strong, though. Fire roads, unexpected massive potholes, nasty temporary "big" chip seal - has handled it all with just a chain slap of defiance.
How does this compare to The Cobbles? We will find out. Hope I haven't just cursed myself.

How could I contemplate anything to the contrary - any wounds inflicted on her will be scars of pride in years to come
Chris says:

Nov 30 2011 at 4:31 pm

@Buck Rogers

Just finished my roller session, 1:32:56 of L'enfer du Nord. Awesome. But it wasn't on a v-kit pad and I could almost feel that pavÃ©.
Chris says:

Nov 30 2011 at 4:32 pm

@Dr C

I'm quite envious, my Cannondale is not built with comfort in mind.
Buck Rogers says:

Nov 30 2011 at 4:58 pm

@Chris

@Buck Rogers
Just finished my roller session, 1:32:56 of L'enfer du Nord. Awesome. But it wasn't on a v-kit pad and I could almost feel that pavÃ©.

NICE!!! I have my roller session tomorrow early morning before work. It will be my sixth or seventh session. My longst on the roller is only 87 minutes so far. Maybe I will try to push it out a little more tomorrow as I am now inspired!
Chris says:

Nov 30 2011 at 5:10 pm

@Buck Rogers

I've not yet tried morning roller sessions for fear of waking the little people up as I crash round the kitchen. Tonight's was the longest though, previous best was an hours worth of sufferfest, either Downward Spiral or Hell Hath No Fury. My cycling sensei is very keen that I make 2 x 20 minute intervals the cornerstone of my plan at the moment. They're properly brutal when you get them right. That'll be tomorrow night.
Buck Rogers says:

Nov 30 2011 at 6:46 pm

@Chris

@Buck Rogers
I've not yet tried morning roller sessions for fear of waking the little people up as I crash round the kitchen. Tonight's was the longest though, previous best was an hours worth of sufferfest, either Downward Spiral or Hell Hath No Fury. My Cycling Sensei is very keen that I make 2 x 20 minute intervals the cornerstone of my plan at the moment. They're properly brutal when you get them right. That'll be tomorrow night.

I do not really have a plan except ride when I get a chance. Really should be a bit more formal, I suppose. But then again I do "pushes" here and there throughout the ride and keep the HR up if it is a hard ride day and down if it is an easy ride day. Need to try some of these 2 x 20 minute intervals. What level do you gauge your interval effort by? HR percentile? Perceived effort? Wattage?
frank says:

Nov 30 2011 at 7:22 pm

@Buck Rogers, @Chris
You're both reminding me that trainers are such a great way to do interval training. No other way of controlling your effort for precise periods of time. Might have to set mine back up for that, I'm getting great base mileage in this time of year, but I need to do some speed work - noticed I was really flat on my last ride. Wooden legs.
Chris says:

Dec 1 2011 at 1:36 am

@Buck Rogers

The plan with the 2 x 20s is get a nice 10 minute warm up down then select a gear on which you can put in a sustained 20 minute effort at 100rpm. If you get it right it'll start off feeling too easy but by the end you'll be working hard. If you get it wrong, you'll either breeze through the whole thing or you find yourself looking for bigger cogs Then a nice 5 minute recovery before selecting the same gear and repeating.

I've only done a few of these so I'm still getting used to getting the right gear. Last time round I pretty my nailed it. Felt fine for the first 10, worked hard for the next 5 then started to wonder whether I'g gone one cog too small for the last five. Got my heart rate under control during the recovery. From the outset of the second effort I was doubting whether I'd make it without shifting but hung in. Last eight minutes hurt alot. My heart rate maxed at 167bpm and averaged 147bpm (my max HR is 191bpm). It was only in the last few minutes that felt my lungs and heart working hard. The real effort was in keeping my legs going at the required cadence without shifting. I would say that leg strength is a weakness though. In terms of perceived effort, I haven't really looked at thing from that angle but I'd say that if you're questioning whether your going to be able to hold your cadence and gear for a few more minutes then this goes all the way to 11.

Constant cadence is key and I also found it helps to count it to keep my mind off the task at hand. If you've got, ahem, a power meter then I guess you'd be looking t a constant output for both efforts.
Buck Rogers says:

Dec 1 2011 at 4:35 am

@Chris
Good stuff! I do not have a power meter, hell, not even a cadence sensor, but I do have a HRM and speed distance. I use feel and my HR to monitor effort, even though I know that the HR tends to drift over time.

I'll have to try those next week, AFTER the Cogal on Sunday (not going to kill myself today with that coming up! :)