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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frank says:

Sep 21 2011 at 10:57 am

@scaler911, @sgt, @mcsqueak
As the Illuminati had Cabals, one thing in our vision is to have Cogals organized by community memebers where people get together for organized rides. I envision sub-velominati sites that would be used to manage them and allow members to communicate and plan; they would also store routes for that local area.

Brett did organize a pilot Cogal in Welly for the Welli-Roubaix, and it went really well. We need more of those.

Now, if any of you know of investors who want to support me while I quit my day job and work full time on Velominati, I could even make it happen.
Roadslave525 says:

Sep 21 2011 at 11:16 am

@frank

Roger that, wilco
scaler911 says:

Sep 21 2011 at 11:25 am

@Cyclops

@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.

Email me at johnbruneel @ yahoo.com (my 'ghost' account) and I'll give you my contact info. Be fun to have 3 VM out on a ride, maybe more.
marko says:

Sep 21 2011 at 11:38 am

@wiscot

@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.

The movie may very well end up being a fun, brainless way to while away a couple hours on a repackaged format for a thriller. To that, I say, well, maybe I'll netflix it some day maybe I won't. Something tells me though it won't make it onto The Works page.
Dr C says:

Sep 21 2011 at 11:50 am

Interesting that some of you consider the cycling more important than the event - I'm inclined to agree with that - I've been doing one design boat racing for years, and am just about fed up with it - the sailing is fun, but so often you sit around waiting for whatever to get sorted, missing some great actual sailing time - then there is the buzz of winning, which nobody else cares about other than your team, and the downer
Dr C says:

Sep 21 2011 at 11:58 am

....of under performing - with cycling the same exists - much hanging around at TTs, track racing, whatever

The joy is in just doing the damned thing - I'd rather be riding for the sake of it - which is why we decided to do the Trans Pyrenee Trip - I want to get lost up in the hills, taking our time, celebrating the joy of just doing it and being there - the thought of a cyclosportive, whilst we'll do loads and enjoy them, just doesn't excite me as much as the pure odyssey of the several days trip - I imagine we will feel completely stoned the whole time - dozing in the fresh air with the feeling of freedom that getting up to the top of a mountain under one's own steam brings - can't come soon enough - better book something after it of course
Dr C says:

Sep 21 2011 at 12:05 pm

@Buck Rogers @Chris @all Northern European Velominati @ in fact anyone who is game

I'll try to sort a Paris Roubaix trip for 2013, for those who like to gaze into the distant future, to include the P-R sportive and a few other rides over a couple of days and of course, the race itself - could be a good focal event for the EuroV'ers
Buck Rogers says:

Sep 21 2011 at 12:44 pm

@Dr C

@Buck Rogers @Chris @all Northern European Velominati @ in fact anyone who is game
I'll try to sort a Paris Roubaix trip for 2013, for those who like to gaze into the distant future, to include the P-R sportive and a few other rides over a couple of days and of course, the race itself - could be a good focal event for the EuroV'ers

"Good focal event for the EuroV'ers" Talk about your understatement of the century! It would be FUCKING awesome!!!

Thanks man.
Buck Rogers says:

Sep 21 2011 at 12:49 pm

On a side note and completely unrelated (or as Monty Python would say, And now for something completely different) I have to share some good news. I was stuck by a needle yesterday during surgery and the patient was a trauma dude that I was fixing his eye. He's some guy from the Mexican border who was stabbed in the eye with a broken beer bottle while in a bar fight.

Needless to say, myself and the Infect Disease folks were a bit worried about his HIV status so I had to go on the anti-retroviral meds that make you sooooo sick! Even two doses of this stuff has made me feel totally like shit. But, the lab results came back 10 minutes ago and he is HIV negative! So I can go off the HIV meds.

Now if only his Hep C can come back negative, I'll be all clear!!!
huffalotpuffalot says:

Sep 21 2011 at 12:49 pm

@Dr C

I would definitely be up for that, keep the updates coming as things progress.

@Frank

Perhaps its possible to add some kind of page for events where people can put details and others register interest in said event.