La Vie Velominatus, Part IV: The Great Escape

The Col du Tourmalet

One of the most magnificent things about Cycling is that not only does it represent different things to different people, it represents different things on different days. Some days, it’s training – a means to an end. Other days, it’s the culmination of a body of work; rather than a means to an end, it represents that end itself, whether that end is exhilarating or devastating. But these two facets represent Cycling only as Sport, the complex simplicity of the balance between dedication and results.

Cycling stands apart, however, in its many dimensions beyond Sport. For me, Cycling is meditation, a time to clear my mind of ancillary concerns and contemplate on those that require my focus. It is thoughtlessness, a time to eliminate everything through the simplicity of pain. It is simultaneously medication and therapy; even a short ride can shake a heavy lethargy from my bones and rejuvenate aching muscles and joints. It is simultaneously tension and release; Cycling can fill my being with effort, an effort that overflows my legs and lungs and spills over to fill every fiber of my being, flushing from me all those things I wish not to keep.

Cycling is penance for my mistakes; a few hours at the mercy of the Man with the Hammer can help me understand the error of my ways. It is cleansing of other’s mistakes – here the Man with the Hammer helps pound out the ripples in the surface of Life they cause me.

I am by no means a great man and never will be. But I am a better man for my bike, and for that I am eternally grateful to it.

Vive la Vie Velominatus.

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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View Comments

Ron says:

Sep 21 2011 at 9:08 am

Nice one, Fredrik!

Good point. I do find being on the bike clears my mind, but I'm rarely trying to escape or forget anything. It's more along the lines of letting my mind wander, wonder, and roam. My life ain't bad, not much to escape!

Last week I was finishing a ride, hammering along the home stretch which is a slight downhill that gives you some nice speed. Suddenly I realized that my legs were seemingly turning on their own, flying around effortlessly. It was a magical moment.
drsoul says:

Sep 21 2011 at 9:09 am

Just went to their site...I take it back. They do some "heavy" trips...

http://www.backroads.com/biking-trips
frank says:

Sep 21 2011 at 9:43 am

@Fredrik
Of course, the title of this piece is "The Great Escape", but to say you are escaping from something by no stretch is intended to mean you're escaping life - hopefully we have fairly good lives and cycling enhances that, hopefully it's not the only good thing you have. I'm happy to say I have a great life; I have a good job, a happy family, good friends...nothing to escape from there.

The point is, Cycling gives me whatever it is I need on any particular day. I change for the worse when I don't ride, and I change for the better when I do. But it couldn't give me all those things without also giving all those beautiful things you describe.

Fantastic stuff. Bobet's book changed my life, in particular that chapter on La Volupte - I've written several times on the subject. Best cycling book ever. Also, absolutely agree on the goals - they're very good in some ways, and very distracting in others. Also, if you're driven and motivated by the event, you risk faltering when the event is over if you don't have another lined up afterwards. Cycling is much more than just a means to an end.

Excellent work, this post earned you the +1 Badge for the week. Cheers.

@all
Continuing fantastic discussion. All great stuff!

@roadslave
You'll have to send me the original of that photo - that is fantastic! Don't worry about hitting the summit in clear weather; you're not riding for a view, are you? My favorite rides ever have all been in the misty clouds. Seems appropriate.
Fredrik says:

Sep 21 2011 at 9:43 am

@Ron

Nice one, Fredrik!
Good point. I do find being on the bike clears my mind, but I'm rarely trying to escape or forget anything. It's more along the lines of letting my mind wander, wonder, and roam. My life ain't bad, not much to escape!
Last week I was finishing a ride, hammering along the home stretch which is a slight downhill that gives you some nice speed. Suddenly I realized that my legs were seemingly turning on their own, flying around effortlessly. It was a magical moment.

That's exactly what Bobet calls La VoluptÃ©. A moment you cannot control, or even call up, but must savour.
pakrat says:

Sep 21 2011 at 9:54 am

@sgt
I have always wanted to explore Solvang on my bike. Good family friends own the Solvang Bakery. You can put on a few pounds in that little town pretty fast.

The In-laws live in Paso so when we come down from Tahoe I always bring the bike. Next time I'm gonna venture south a bit more to your neck of the woods. I've also always wanted to do the PCH from Carmel and end in SLO. Have you done it?
scaler911 says:

Sep 21 2011 at 9:56 am

@Fredrik

Nice piece, Frank, and the discussion that follows.
I concur with many of the comments, and would like to add some thoughts - sorry, this is a long post.
I have been riding bikes for a long time, beyond riding around the neighbourhood with my buddies, for more than 25 years with varying degrees of seriousness. I am looking forward to reaching the 10,000 hour mark that it is said that it takes to learn to do something well. Recently I am riding with more seriousness and focus. But I do not ride to escape the rest of my life, or to help me sort it out or to think about and solve problems from work. I ride to ride. This focus on the moment itself, on the physicality of it, on the effort, on the weather, on the right line for the next corner, on deciding whether or not to add the extra 20km loop, on remembering to eat, on the right gear for the next pitch of the climb, etc. is what give me pleasure and helps me in the rest of my life. To be a better father, husband or colleague. It has been shown that focusing your conscious intensely on things that are away from your daily problems actually allows your subconscious to solve those problems. Then when you bring them back to the conscious you find that the solution is evident. Cycling does this for me. This focus is nowhere more evident than when riding the rollers, as I am forced to when the days shorten. I ride on the terrace in the pre-dawn darkness while my family sleeps. If I am thinking about work, I fall off.
In recent years I have to some extent focused my riding on big rides (Quebrantahuesos, Maratona dles Dolomites, La Marmotte, all great events in beautiful places). This gives great motivation (why else would you ride the rollers?), but at the same time the focus on one event takes away from the overall enjoyment. You are in an incredible place for riding, but have to save your legs for tomorrow, get up ridiculously early, wait at the start, worry about getting run down by some turd who has never done a real descent in his life,.... So, this year I am focusing on something else, yet to be clearly defined. Either something like the Atlantic-Mediterranean route that Dr C mentioned or checking off as many of the climbs on this list as possible (List of highest paved roads in Europe - http://bit.ly/qeptfn), or looking for the highest dirt road passes I can find. The idea is to focus on the ride, not on the event.
Along these lines, I often refer to these words from Jean Bobet's, Tomorrow we ride.
"People ask me whether I actually enjoy cycling. This question surprises me, since the answer is so obvious. Yes, cycling is enjoyable, and one can even give enjoyment to others, at times, but all in all it's a rather banal question.
The divine surprise comes when you discover that beyond enjoyment lies the thrill of la voluptÃ©. The voluptuous pleasure you get from cycling is something else. It does exist, because I have experienced it. Its magic lies in its unexpectedness, its value in its rarity. It is more than a sensation because one's emotions are involved as well as one's actions. At the risk of raising eyebrows, I would maintain that the delight of cycling is not to be found in the arena of competition. In racing the threat of failure or the excitement of success generates euphoria at best, which seems vulgar in comparison with la voluptÃ©.
The voluptuous pleasure that cycling can give you is delicate, intimate and ephemeral. It arrives, it takes hold of you, sweeps you up and then leaves you again. It is for you alone. It is a combination of speed and ease, force and grace. It is pure happiness."

Nicely done sir!
wiscot says:

Sep 21 2011 at 10:00 am

@drsoul
Thanks for the preview. Let's face it, incorporating cycling into a movie is hard. A fairly regular actor can pass as a messenger; masquerading as a pro is much more difficult. Also, the logistics of recreating say, a Tour de France, is just a nightmare on so many levels. (I doubt any movie about COTHO's exploits will ever come to pass). While I'm no fixie, the messengers do ride for a reason (to make a living) rather than just fanny about and pose. Kudos to the filmmaker for incorporating an aspect of our bike culture into a movie. It won't be everyone's cup of tea as many see all bike riders as the same (violating traffic laws willy-nilly) but from a filmmakers point of view, its a viable and novel ingredient to a thriller movie.
mcsqueak says:

Sep 21 2011 at 10:06 am

@scaler911

I'm all for a group meetup that starts here in Portland! OK, so our count is up to two now.
Cyclops says:

Sep 21 2011 at 10:44 am

@mcsqueak

I plan on spending about ten days in Portland and Seattle in a couple of weeks. I'm up for a ride out on Skyline Blvd or out to Larch Mt. or Multnomah Falls if the timing is right.
mcsqueak says:

Sep 21 2011 at 10:52 am

@Cyclops

Hey that would be sweet. OK, up to three now!