Categories: Anatomy of a PhotoCyclocrossThe Hardmen

Anatomy of a Photo: The Shoulders of Giants

The question tackled here is of carrying the bicycle, should it require carrying. The non-cyclist is perhaps more inclined to consider carrying their bicycle than is the Cyclist. Examples that come to mind include the navigation of a giant mud pit or a steep twisty narrow snowy descent, where the uninitiated may erroneously contemplate the likelihood of survival between riding the bike as opposed to walking or carrying it. Other examples might be bunny-hopping a 1 meter vertical wall where a slight miscalculation may result in going from being Awesome to merely being OK.

But if one thing is certain, should matters come to carrying the bicycle, it is the shoulder that should be employed for this task, as time-tested by cyclocross riders for well over a century. No further research is required to resolve this matter. And, should the question of leather handles come up, I put it to you thusly: are you a giant hipster douche nozzle, or are you a hardman with Ultimate Rule #5 Leg and balls so big you could wear a sun visor with a gauze stocking cap?

Thanks to KRX10 for making me aware of this abomination of a leather handle.

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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Buck Rogers says:

Aug 10 2012 at 7:08 pm

Also, would that be chapeaux? Always sucked at French, even after eight years of schooling in it!
frank says:

Aug 10 2012 at 7:08 pm

@TommyTubolare

@Nate

@frank

BOOM! You got it, mate! That's the one.
Cheaves says:

Aug 10 2012 at 7:08 pm

Thanks for the reminder. First 'cross race of the season is less than 2 months away. Practice starts tomorrow. Gotta get a step out of that remount.
meursault says:

Aug 10 2012 at 7:14 pm

@mouse

@Nate

You do realise that there is an opposite side of the world where the seasons are reversed. Crazy I know. We're bang in the middle of Cross season down here in Aus and NZ.

that is just crazy talk, the things you read on the interwebs.
Nate says:

Aug 10 2012 at 7:37 pm

@mouse

@Nate

You do realise that there is an opposite side of the world where the seasons are reversed. Crazy I know. We're bang in the middle of Cross season down here in Aus and NZ.

As long as you're still ripping it up on a pink cross bike what else do I need to know about the antipodean cross scene?
Nate says:

Aug 10 2012 at 7:37 pm

@Buck Rogers

Also, would that be chapeaux? Always sucked at French, even after eight years of schooling in it!

Oui.
Buck Rogers says:

Aug 10 2012 at 8:02 pm

@Nate

@Buck Rogers

Also, would that be chapeaux? Always sucked at French, even after eight years of schooling in it!

Oui.

ah, mercy buckets!
Adrian says:

Aug 10 2012 at 8:40 pm

I carried my bike on and off like that for 10km the other day after my chain broke.....serious sense of humour failure I can tell you.....
frank says:

Aug 10 2012 at 9:33 pm

@TommyTubolare

Hey, I see we (Nederland) made it into the final for the 4x100 relay. Did someone tell the team that the Nazi's were in that heat? The last time I saw the Dutch run so fast was during the invasion.
Xyverz says:

Aug 10 2012 at 9:57 pm

@Adrian

I carried my bike on and off like that for 10km the other day after my chain broke.....serious sense of humour failure I can tell you.....

I carry a spare Master Link in my EPMS for just this reason.