Paris-Roubaix : first person
Daniel Connelly
lately.... anyone recommend a good SF Bay Area ISP (private email)?
Anyway, the following was sent to me, clearly truncated, via email.
The author is left as an exercise to the reader. It's epic stuff,
to say the least.
There seems to be an issue with some Unicode characters in the report.
Maybe it looks right on your browser. Maybe not.
-------------------------------------
As we huddled in our cramped camper, Peter Van Petegem, a hard man
among hard men, looked out the window pensively. When he turned to
address the team, we became silent in anticipation of his thoughts.
Devoid of emotion, he said, "This will be a day you will never
forget." He has a way of stating the obvious in such a way that makes
it seem profound nonetheless. And he was, of course, correct.
In the trenches of the Western Front of WWI, grown men lay huddled in
fear just moments from a battle they could only imagine. Perhaps they
had heard tales from others. Perhaps they had previously experienced
a bit of battle themselves. But nothing could prepare them for the
hell they would encounter when the order was given to begin the
assault and crawl over that trench wall. What would be going through
their minds? Why would they even obey that order? At 10:50 AM,
Sunday April 15, 2001, I felt like I now had a vague idea. The
commissarâ??s whistle blew, calling riders to the start line. I
donned my helmet, stepped out of the safety of the camper, and entered
the hell that would be the 99th Paris-Roubaix.
Here was out battle plan: First, we had to repel the potentially
devastating first strike attack. Many teams would try to send riders
up the road on the flat to rolling and windswept initial 100
kilometers of the race. If enough riders, from enough teams, got
together without representation from our team, a dangerous alliance
could be formed that would cost us many casualties from a dreaded team
chase. Our counter to this strategy would be to dedicate two riders
to patrol the front of the race during that long run into the pave to
insure that if a large break got away, it would have our team in it.
A small break of 6 or less without us would be acceptable, but a large
one would have to include us. The early break patrol would consist of
Jans Koerts and myself. Due to the nature of that task, entailing a
great deal of effort very early in a very long race, we took on the
unofficial motto of the marines: "First to die." We knew that our
assignment would likely mean that we would not survive the race long
enough to see it to the end.
Second, we had to protect at all costs our two most potent and
destructive weapons: Leon Van Bon and Peter Van Petegem. As the race
is very, very long, it is important to save all of their power for the
fierce battle on the cobbles. Because the run into the cobbles is
mined with dangerous crosswinds, without protection they could be
caught having to expend energy before the real race begins. So, we
created two weapon protection units consisting of Gord Fraser and
Plamen Stainov for Leon and Wim Vansevenant and Jamie Drew for Peter.
Their mission would be to follow their assigned leader, sheltering him
from the windâ??s onslaught and supplying him with any needed food
or clothing. In crosswinds, the field will form an echelon with a
long tail on the leeward side where the road edge prevents further
continuation of the echelon and hence protection from the wind. If
one of our key weapons finds himself in that tail ("in the gutter")
then his protectors will escort him, wind sheltered, to the front of
the echelon. Also, if the race were to break apart into many
echelons, then it would be necessary to get Leon and Peter into the
first echelon.
Third, all available personnel would be responsible for proper
positioning of our weapons for the start of the real battle: the pave.
Position into the first pave section is critical. Because the roads
are so narrow, and passing nearly impossible in the muddy conditions,
oneâ??s position at the start of the cobbles at kilometer 100 can
virtually predetermine oneâ??s finish at kilometer 254. As the
saying goes, you canâ??t win Paris-Roubaix by having good position
at the start of the pave, but you most certainly can and will lose
Paris-Roubaix by having poor position. So, we would have to use every
means at our disposal to help Leon and Peter be at the front at the
right time. One tactic would be to line up our team at the front with
our leaders behind the sacrificial lambs who would push the wind. If
that were not possible due to general chaos, then individual sprints
to the front with Leon or Peter on the wheel would have to do.
Fourth, hit the pave and go like hell. It would be important for all
our riders to ride the initial sections of pave in the best position
possible. If Leon or Peter were to flat, a teammateâ??s wheel may
come faster than that from the team car, support motorcycle, or
roadside support. "Never give up early," was the mantra proffered by
the Belgians on the team with experience in the event. They knew that
regroupings sometimes occur unexpectedly. Fight on and suffer until
the race has clearly sorted itself out.
I stepped out of that camper into heavy rain, 40-degree temperatures,
and strong wind. Reports from the pave fields told of 2 inches of
slippery mud on top of the cobbles. Johan Lammerts (team director and
former Tour of Flanders winner) and Greg Lemond (team sponsor and
former Catâ??s Hill Criterium winner) gave me last minute advice
which consisted largely of seemingly useful truisms as "ride the
front" and "start the pave in the top 10." Good ideas both. I found
my way to the start line and negotiated a position near the front.
The lead car drove away and we followed. We cruised through the town
of Compiegne at 20km/hr to the cheers of thousands. Miraculously, I
was able to spot Kevin Moran and friends out of the corner of my eye.
It felt good to know that familiar faces would bear witness to my
saga. At the outside of town we passed under the large banner which
read "Depart â?? km 0." The battle was on.
The attacks started instantly. I tried to be as selective as possible
with which ones to follow. Because I donâ??t know the riders and
teams here as well as I am accustomed, this proved difficult to do. I
jumped again and again in pursuit of attacks. I often found myself in
a group that had gotten a significant gap on the field, but the right
combination was not there so we returned to the field. Our speed was
consistently above 50km/hr during this battery of attacks. After
about 40km, a group of five slipped away on a long false flat in the
crosswind. Because the group was small enough to not be a threat, I
could let it go. The field stayed restless for about another 20km,
then finally settled down to await the rush for the cobbles. We had
190km to go, and I was already feeling fatigued.
Now that the first strike threat was contained, I could turn my
attention to helping out Leon and Peter.
With about 20km to go before the pave, you could sense the field was
getting anxious. It was clear that it would be impossible to get the
team together at the front and ride to the cobbles together. There
was just too much movement and aggression to stay together just off
the front and too much power from other teams to remain the whole time
at the front. So, we just free-lanced as best we could. I saw Leon
was about half way back so I tried to stay near him. With 15km to go,
it was time to move up. But by then, it was almost already too late.
The field, despite it going rather fast, remained completely bunched
up at the front from curb to curb. There simply was no place to move
up at all. Power was not an issue â?? you could not have moved up
on a motorcycle. Even the common practice of hopping onto the
sidewalk and dodging pedestrians and lampposts to move up would not
work because riders in front of you were already doing that without
success. All I could do was remain in my position with absolutely no
place to go. With 10km to go, Leon was just behind me and asked me to
move up. Of course, it was just not possible. He wisely took matters
into his own hands. With about 7km to go, I saw him hop onto the
sidewalk. A completely blind corner approached as we wove through a
small town and dove past a large brick building. When the others on
the sidewalk pushed back into the field before the corner, Leon hit
the gas and took the corner on the sidewalk. There was no way for him
to know what was on the other side. He took a chance, and it paid
off.
Narrowly missing a pole and several spectators, he moved up about 50
riders and was now near the front. Without a bit of luck, or a huge
team leadout, that is just what it takes.
With about 3km to go, we hit a very narrow road with heavy crosswind.
This provided a bit of an opening on the windward side of the road due
to some echeloning, but we were now going over 50km/hr and it was very
hard in the wind. I sprinted into the wind as hard as I could every
chance I could get to try to move up, but a huge effort would only
gain me about 5 positions. At one point I got back into the top 40,
but a crash on the shoulder of the road pushed me back about 30
positions instantly when I hit the brakes to swerve. When we finally
turned onto pave sector 1, I was probably in about 80th position and
the field was single file.
The moment I hit the pave, the mud started splattering up onto my face
and everything else. It was a shower of mud coming straight up off
the ground. You could not see the pave at all. The road simply
looked like it was mud alone. But you could sure feel the pave â??
the pounding was violent and relentless. About 100 meters onto the
pave, a Lotto rider (read: native Belgian) spectacularly crashed.
Several others piled on top of him, many others coming to a stop just
behind the mess. I had to stop, dismount, and run around the traffic
jamb. I continued on. This process was repeated again and again. It
was carnage â?? muddy bodies lay strewn about throughout the
initial sections of pave.
Riding the pave in these conditions was like climbing â?? it was
nearly impossible to use the rider in front of you for drafting. For
one, the speeds were slow (I typically rode a 44X16 or 15). Two,
there was too much mud coming off the rider in front of you too see.
Three, you really needed to be able to see a few feet of road in front
of you to navigate around the holes (being so slippery, quick turning
not possible - only gentle drifting.) I felt like I was now racing
against the pave, not the other riders.
I, like most riders, rode on the tops of the bars the majority of the
time on the pave. I frequently switched to the drops for a short
time, however, in order to spread out the pounding to my upper body as
much as possible. Holding the bars further from the stem actually
gives you a bit more shock absorption for the hands, though it is
harder on the back. Three examples of the pounding you get from the
pave: 1) A sensitive tooth of mine began to ache from the vibration
passing though my spine to my skull. It continued to ache for several
days afterward. 2) It is difficult to see while on the pave because
your head is shaking so violently that your vision is blurred. 3)
While attempting to switch gears with my STI levers, my hand somehow
smashed against the lever and tore my finger nail almost completely
off. My hands were already aching enough by this point that I only
realized the extent of the damage to my finger when I reached paved
ground again and could see the blood running down my bars.
I nonetheless found that I was surprisingly adept on the pave relative
to many others. I was encouraged that I always seemed to be going
forward, slowly moving up one rider at a time. Many riders were
fishtailing awkwardly constantly, whereas I felt smooth and in
control. I was even able to pass riders when needed, which is
difficult. To do so you have to slide down off the hump of the pave
into the gutter, accelerate around the rider, and quickly get back up
on the hump â?? all without sliding out. A personal triumph for me
was passing Ekimov, who I found was slowing me up.
After the first few sectors of pave, I found myself in a group of
about 20 that was probably 2 minutes or less behind the leaders. I
could not tell how many riders where in front of us, but I guessed
that there were about 40. There were some strong riders in my group
who were powering us along. I was starting to tire rapidly, however,
my earlier efforts and the cold taking their toll. I started to lose
position on the pave now and found myself falling towards the back of
the group. When riders fell, as someone did on every sector, I often
found myself caught behind a bottleneck. This was a particular
problem for me because I lost the ability to clip out of my pedals.
When I had to come to a stop, I simply fell over. On the ground I
could bang my heal out of the pedals with a good blow from my fist.
Clipping in was also difficult because the vibration from the stones
made it hard to align my foot on the pedal. Each fiasco I ran into
meant a hard chase back to the group â?? and more fatigue.
By the 6th sector of pave, I got split off from the hard chasing group
I was in on a false flat road in heavy crosswind. I fell back into
another chase group which was less motivated. I rode with that group
for another few sectors of pave. Slowly, however, my group
disintegrated when some foolishly attacked on the pave and others
dropped out. They realized that they would never see the front of the
race again and that their duties were over. Before long, on sector 9,
I found myself alone.
I really wanted to finish the race, but I had other factors to
consider. One, I had done my job and had nothing left to contribute
to the team. Two, I had another race to do in two days and one more
two days after that. To ride the whole course would be fine for the
legs, but absolutely brutal on the upper body.
Finishing would likely mean being sore for a week. I know it's
Paris-Roubaix, but I came to Europe for only 5 races â?? and this
one could ruin my ability to do the last two of those. Three, I was
unfamiliar with how this race deals with stragglers. At
Ghent-Wevelgem, you were totally out of the race if you were just two
minutes behind â?? and there was no broom wagon. I didnâ??t
want to get caught having to ride 100kms on my own in the cold rain on
pedestrian crowded pave only to find that the Roubaix velodrome had
already been closed. Fourth, I was tired as hell. Fifth, in my mind,
the honor of finishing a race comes from actually being part of the
race to the end. Simply riding the distance, at training speeds, with
nothing left for grabs like prize money or UCI points, is not what
racing is about.
At the beginning of the 10th sector of pave, after 145 kms with 17 kms
of pave, I called it quits. More than half the field had already done
so. I saw a group of team cars from other teams. I had hoped to
hitch a ride with one of them to the second feed zone where my
teamâ??s staff would be. But, they had no room. They told me that
a van would be coming soon and that I could get a ride from it. Well,
that van took 15 minutes to reach me â?? I must have been not too
far off the pace at that point. While I waited, I was passed by my
teammate Plamen Stainov and one other. Were they really going to try
to finish? When the van did arrive, I discovered that it was the
broom wagon â?? meaning that it would be following the entire
length of the course. With 100kms to go, that would be 3 hours in the
van. Unless, we reached the 2nd feed zone before the staff left for
the finish. Any hope of that was dashed when we caught up with Plamen
and friend, who were creeping along. The broom wagon would not pass
them, so we would be stuck behind them for the rest of the race. I
respected their determination, though also knew that by finishing
Plamen would be useless for the rest of the week in the races to come.
It actually turned out to be good fun in the van. It was filled with
defeated riders, but no one was in bad spirits. We all had done our
best in a very special race. Also, the under-appreciation of
domestiques was the root for camaraderie. We listened together to the
race radio and shared thoughts on how the race was unfolding.
When we reached the last feed zone, Plamen and friend were now 45
minutes down. All team cars were gone. We would have to go the last
50km behind the struggling duo. When the
w.a. manning
Daniel Connelly
>
> was it DBH?
Who else would use "proffered" in a EuroPro race report?
ronde champ
"Daniel Connelly" <djco...@ieee.org> wrote in message
news:3AF0130F...@ieee.org...
Daniel Connelly
>
> Where's the rest of the story?
>
He goes on to describe how, no matter how epic his Paris-Roubaix
experience, it just didn't compare to riding the Stowe RR with West Hill.
Clearly, someone along the email stream edited it to protect
his reputation.
w.a. manning
ronde champ
his reports.
Champ
"Daniel Connelly" <djco...@ieee.org> wrote in message
news:3AF0130F...@ieee.org...
Andrew Karre
far:
"In the trenches of the Western Front of WWI, grown men lay huddled in
fear just moments from a battle they could only imagine. Perhaps they
had heard tales from others. Perhaps they had previously experienced
a bit of battle themselves. But nothing could prepare them for the
hell they would encounter when the order was given to begin the
assault and crawl over that trench wall. What would be going through
their minds? Why would they even obey that order? At 10:50 AM,
Sunday April 15, 2001, I felt like I now had a vague idea. The
commissarâ??s whistle blew, calling riders to the start line."
It's a bike race, for God's sake!
Andrew Karre
"Daniel Connelly" <djco...@ieee.org> wrote in message
news:3AF0130F...@ieee.org...
Wade Summers
Andrew Karre wrote in message <9cpkg6$psa$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net>...
>I like colorful conceits as much as the next guy, but this simply goes too
>far:
>
>"In the trenches of the Western Front of WWI, grown men lay huddled in
>fear just moments from a battle they could only imagine. Perhaps they
>had heard tales from others. Perhaps they had previously experienced
>a bit of battle themselves. But nothing could prepare them for the
>hell they would encounter when the order was given to begin the
>assault and crawl over that trench wall. What would be going through
>their minds? Why would they even obey that order? At 10:50 AM,
>Sunday April 15, 2001, I felt like I now had a vague idea. The
>commissarâ??s whistle blew, calling riders to the start line."
>
>It's a bike race, for God's sake!
>
>Andrew Karre
>
Comparing sporting events to battle is nothing new. Its done quite often in
sports literature, news stories and broadcasting. Since all of the spring
classics are raced in areas where there were significant battles in both WW1
and WW2 I don't think DBH is going over the top here.
Wade
Dan Connelly
be in no short supply. Granted, it isn't quite like charging out
of trenches into a hail of machine gun fire, but the analogy isn't
too strained. I think the writing is excellent.
Wade Summers wrote:
>
> Andrew Karre wrote in message <9cpkg6$psa$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net>...
> >I like colorful conceits as much as the next guy, but this simply goes too
> >far:
> >
> >"In the trenches of the Western Front of WWI, grown men lay huddled in
> >fear just moments from a battle they could only imagine. Perhaps they
> >had heard tales from others. Perhaps they had previously experienced
> >a bit of battle themselves. But nothing could prepare them for the
> >hell they would encounter when the order was given to begin the
> >assault and crawl over that trench wall. What would be going through
> >their minds? Why would they even obey that order? At 10:50 AM,
> >Sunday April 15, 2001, I felt like I now had a vague idea. The
> >commissarā??s whistle blew, calling riders to the start line."
Cathy Boland
precisely what those going to war felt. I enjoyed the post. Too bad it was
cut off at the end.
Cathy
"Dan Connelly" <djco...@ieee.org> wrote in message
news:3AF05F4F...@ieee.org...
> If I was due to start Paris-Roubaix, fear and anticipation would
> be in no short supply. Granted, it isn't quite like charging out
> of trenches into a hail of machine gun fire, but the analogy isn't
> too strained. I think the writing is excellent.
>
>
>
> Wade Summers wrote:
> >
> > Andrew Karre wrote in message <9cpkg6$psa$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net>...
> > >I like colorful conceits as much as the next guy, but this simply goes
too
> > >far:
> > >
> > >"In the trenches of the Western Front of WWI, grown men lay huddled in
> > >fear just moments from a battle they could only imagine. Perhaps they
> > >had heard tales from others. Perhaps they had previously experienced
> > >a bit of battle themselves. But nothing could prepare them for the
> > >hell they would encounter when the order was given to begin the
> > >assault and crawl over that trench wall. What would be going through
> > >their minds? Why would they even obey that order? At 10:50 AM,
> > >Sunday April 15, 2001, I felt like I now had a vague idea. The
> > >commissarâ??s whistle blew, calling riders to the start line."
Andrew Karre
safe pursuit of bicycle racing to the near-certainly lethal activity of
trench warfare, than sure, it's a fine comparison. Some of us would hope for
a greater sense of perspective, though.
I realize the sport=war metaphor is age-old, but that doesn't mean it can be
uncommonly tasteless, which DBH's certainly is. I am grateful for the
Internet diarists who amplify standard race reporting, and am not critical
of some of their near illiterate accounts. Generally, they're not trying to
be writers--which is fine--I don't read race accounts for their value as
literature. But when someone tries to construct a rather elaborate conceit
such as DBH does (among other attempts to raise the tone), he's plainly
entering into the domain of real writing and is therefore subject to real
criticism. Nothing personal, but the writing is cliched and trite.
Andrew Karre
"Dan Connelly" <djco...@ieee.org> wrote in message
news:3AF05F4F...@ieee.org...
> If I was due to start Paris-Roubaix, fear and anticipation would
> be in no short supply. Granted, it isn't quite like charging out
> of trenches into a hail of machine gun fire, but the analogy isn't
> too strained. I think the writing is excellent.
>
>
>
> Wade Summers wrote:
> >
> > Andrew Karre wrote in message <9cpkg6$psa$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net>...
> > >I like colorful conceits as much as the next guy, but this simply goes
too
> > >far:
> > >
> > >"In the trenches of the Western Front of WWI, grown men lay huddled in
> > >fear just moments from a battle they could only imagine. Perhaps they
> > >had heard tales from others. Perhaps they had previously experienced
> > >a bit of battle themselves. But nothing could prepare them for the
> > >hell they would encounter when the order was given to begin the
> > >assault and crawl over that trench wall. What would be going through
> > >their minds? Why would they even obey that order? At 10:50 AM,
> > >Sunday April 15, 2001, I felt like I now had a vague idea. The
> > >commissarâ??s whistle blew, calling riders to the start line."
Dan Connelly
>
> If your definition of "not too strained" includes comparing the relatively
> safe pursuit of bicycle racing to the near-certainly lethal activity of
> trench warfare, than sure, it's a fine comparison. Some of us would hope for
> a greater sense of perspective, though.
>
> I realize the sport=war metaphor is age-old, but that doesn't mean it can be
> uncommonly tasteless, which DBH's certainly is. I am grateful for the
> Internet diarists who amplify standard race reporting, and am not critical
> of some of their near illiterate accounts. Generally, they're not trying to
> be writers--which is fine--I don't read race accounts for their value as
> literature. But when someone tries to construct a rather elaborate conceit
> such as DBH does (among other attempts to raise the tone), he's plainly
> entering into the domain of real writing and is therefore subject to real
> criticism. Nothing personal, but the writing is cliched and trite.
>
One could detect a certain level of elitism in your position.
Derek isn't trying to impress the editors of the Atlantic Monthly,
nor is he trying to impress you,
he's trying to describe a scene using impressions people will
understand. If his references have been used before, it's
because they are effective. And the result is therefore
effective, and quite readable, which is more
than I can say for most of the diaries out there.
Dan
Mark VandenBerghe
"Andrew Karre" <andrew....@lawrence.edu> wrote in message
news:9cpv4d$q9g$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net...
> If your definition of "not too strained" includes comparing the relatively
> safe pursuit of bicycle racing to the near-certainly lethal activity of
> trench warfare, than sure, it's a fine comparison. Some of us would hope
for
> a greater sense of perspective, though.
>
> I realize the sport=war metaphor is age-old, but that doesn't mean it can
be
> uncommonly tasteless, which DBH's certainly is. I am grateful for the
> Internet diarists who amplify standard race reporting, and am not critical
> of some of their near illiterate accounts. Generally, they're not trying
to
> be writers--which is fine--I don't read race accounts for their value as
> literature. But when someone tries to construct a rather elaborate
conceit
> such as DBH does (among other attempts to raise the tone), he's plainly
> entering into the domain of real writing and is therefore subject to real
> criticism. Nothing personal, but the writing is cliched and trite.
>
> Andrew Karre
You've got to be kidding me. How elitist can you be? The guy shared his
observations on a race he participated in. And you have the gall to call
him tasteless and exhibiting elaborate conceit? Screw you. Andrew, why
don't you find something better to do with your time like saving a whale.
Mark VandenBerghe
Ken McKisson
"When we reached the last feed zone, Plamen and friend
were now 45 minutes down. All team cars were gone.
We would have to go the last 50km behind the
struggling duo. When their speed became unbearably
slow, the policeman who was accompanying them began to
motor pace them. We in the van were happy to be going
faster, but we were now less impressed with their
determination. Soon, they stopped motor pacing all
together and started simply hanging onto the
motorcycle. The van became very irritated with that
maneuver. To be stuck behind a valiant, if misguided,
effort to finish was one thing. But to be stuck
behind two guys hanging on to a motorcycle was
another. That was just poor form. I took some heat
for being on the same team with one of the offending
riders.
Alas, nearly 40 minutes down, we arrived at the
Roubaix velodrome. I climbed out of the van and
walked to the showers. The 99th Paris-Roubaix was now
officially complete. It was a race I will never
forget and would do again in a second.
Misc. Race notes:
Our team used very little special equipment for the
event. The most important thing we did (like many
other teams) was use 25mm tires with a kevlar bead,
rather than our standard 23mm tires. This may seem
like a small difference, but it is not. I don't know
whether we were lucky or the Vittoria tires we used
were brilliant, but our team didn't have a single flat
in the event. The other thing we did was wrap our
bars with a thin, closed-cell foam under our usual
handlebar tape. I found that helped my hands quite a
bit. Leon's bike was outfitted with an extra set of
brake calipers that could be used when the hands are
on the tops of the bars.
Most mechanical problems encountered by riders were
not from flatting, but from the mud. In particular,
only riders using mountain bike pedals escaped
problems clipping in and out. For instance, Telekom's
Steffan Weseman rode for 80kms in the front group
without being completely clipped into his pedals.
Other problems included the loss of shifting and
tremendous chain drive friction. Many riders did bike
changes just to get a clean bike.
The Domo team, which dominated the event, did not do
so by accident or strength alone. From perfect
equipment choices to intimate knowledge of all the
pave sectors, they invested heavily in the race. For
instance, they recruited friends, family, and fans to
form an army of roadside support for the team. They
had literally dozens of people spaced out on the
course with spare wheels for the team. This army
would leap frog the race from spot to spot to minimize
the distance the team could go without having wheels
available.
At one point when Domo's Wilfried Peeters was off the
front solo, he flatted right in front of one of our
team mechanics on the course who had spare wheels for
us. Wilfried rode right up to him and asked for a
wheel. Our mechanic, despite Leon being in the chase
group 45 seconds behind, didn't hesitate - he changed
his wheel and pushed him back into the race. Despite
taking some heat from our team's management for the
benevolent act, he later said that as a fan of bike
racing he could not help but to give a wheel to the
leader of Paris-Roubaix. I could not agree more.
--
Ken McKisson
"ronde champ" <ronde...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:9cp69e$70o$1...@sshuraab-i-1.production.compuserve.com...
Danny Callen
West Hill? Yes, that is hell. It makes you want to yell at the people on the
side of the road clapping and cheering "Shut the F^&K UP ICAN"T GO ANY
FREAKIN' FASTER!
Somehow I'm guessing this is either Chann McRae or Derek Bouchard Hall...oh
shit I just figured out what DBH means!
Danny Callen
Cathy Boland
of racing in one of the most exciting European classics and all you can
bitch about is how trite his metaphor is!! Maybe you prefer reading
Kunich's rantings instead?
What ran through my mind as I read the account was: "Oh yeah...NOW I
remember why I lurk around this cesspool of a newsgroup!"
Cathy
"Andrew Karre" <andrew....@lawrence.edu> wrote in message
news:9cpv4d$q9g$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net...
Ken Papai
>Good Grief! We were just treated with a well-written first person account
>of racing in one of the most exciting European classics and all you can
>bitch about is how trite his metaphor is!! Maybe you prefer reading
>Kunich's rantings instead?
I think Karre been reamed enough. In his post Karre even
used "than" when he should have used "then"!
In fact, Karre is not even on the Faces of RBR list
nor is he even on the "Missing" list.
Ha!!
>"Andrew Karre" <andrew....@lawrence.edu> wrote in message
>> If your definition of "not too strained" includes comparing the relatively
>> safe pursuit of bicycle racing to the near-certainly lethal activity of
>> trench warfare, than sure, it's a fine comparison. Some of us would hope
^^^^^^
>for
>> a greater sense of perspective, though.
>>
>> I realize the sport=war metaphor is age-old, but that doesn't mean it can
>be
>> uncommonly tasteless, which DBH's certainly is. I am grateful for the
>> Internet diarists who amplify standard race reporting, and am not critical
>> of some of their near illiterate accounts. Generally, they're not trying
>to
>> be writers--which is fine--I don't read race accounts for their value as
>> literature. But when someone tries to construct a rather elaborate
>conceit
>> such as DBH does (among other attempts to raise the tone), he's plainly
>> entering into the domain of real writing and is therefore subject to real
>> criticism. Nothing personal, but the writing is cliched and trite.
--
Ken Papai Marin County, California
k...@kenpapai.com http://www.kpapai.com
"A photographic memory but with the lens cover glued on."
Andrew Karre
Mia culpa. I deserve it.
However, elitist as my criticism may be (whatever that means), I worry about
what the Internet does for writing in general and sports writing in this
case. The demand for instantaneous coverage makes considered, thoughtful
writing difficult and after we see enough artless writing, we cease to
appreciate the good stuff or to call for it. In general, I think that's a
shame and we can even see it making its way into print journalism at the
lower levels (witness the trash in Velonews and even in the Euro mags--which
everyone buys for pictures anyway). It is possible to write well about
sports, but we see few examples anymore in cycling.
Now, is all that worth more to me than the instant and interesting coverage
of the participant/diarists? It depends. I'm greedy, and I'd like to have
both. I want interesting, instant coverage from participants and carefully
written, thoughtful commentary from writers. In cycling, we almost never
get the former; probably, I think, because we're glutted on the latter.
DBH's fault? Certainly not. Still, people called it good writing, and I
disagree. What else are newsgroups for?
Andrew Karre
PS: As for faces. Ken emailed me about faces it seems to me about two years
ago. I still don't have a picture with my bike or in a race.
"Ken Papai" <kpa...@rahul.net> wrote in message
news:9cqf5p$gi$1...@samba.rahul.net...
Hamish Ferguson
You have obviously never competed in such a fantastic event, ever!
Hamish
"Andrew Karre" <andrew....@lawrence.edu> wrote in message
news:9cpkg6$psa$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net...
Hamish Ferguson
And you obviously have no passion for cycling.
That is the most inspirational piece of writing I have seen. And I have read
most great texts on cycling.
Try and do something special in cycling yourself before you criticise others
who have had the opportunity!
Hamish
"Andrew Karre" <andrew....@lawrence.edu> wrote in message
news:9cpv4d$q9g$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net...
> > > >commissarā??s whistle blew, calling riders to the start line."
Hamish Ferguson
material!!!
Hamish
"Ken McKisson" <ken.mc...@silentweb.net> wrote in message
news:3af0a...@news1.prserv.net...
Robert Chung
> The other thing we did was wrap our
> bars with a thin, closed-cell foam under our usual
> handlebar tape. I found that helped my hands quite a
> bit. Leon's bike was outfitted with an extra set of
> brake calipers that could be used when the hands are
> on the tops of the bars.
Hmmm. Handlebars wrapped in closed-cell foam and suicide-brake
cheaters. Did they use stem-mounted shifters, too?
Daniel Connelly
attacks. As misdirected as I feel his comments were, his purpose
is not, and ad hominum attacks, rarely justified, were certainly
not justified here.
Derek's not a professional writer. He can't
spend days revising and optimizing his work. He has a bike to ride,
itself more than a full-time job. He also has his life business
to conduct, as do we all. And while the internet has watered down
the available writing, it's also increased the supply. Derek's
description would have been unjustly lost on an editor's desk
had it not been for the internet. Instead, it will achieve a
substantial distribution, as it's getting passed around mailing lists
and maybe even printed in newsletters.
There's bad with the good.
The Guttenburg Press stole the art of calligraphy. Television & film stole
from live performance. The Internet steals from print. Yet all these
advances increased our access to information, opinion, and communication.
That's the way things go.
Daniel Connelly
No, but they did have multi-colored streamers dangling from the
end plugs, and a baseball card taped to the fork to make a motor
sound in the spokes when they rolled.
Tom Kunich
about
> what the Internet does for writing in general and sports writing in this
> case. The demand for instantaneous coverage makes considered, thoughtful
> writing difficult and after we see enough artless writing, we cease to
> appreciate the good stuff or to call for it. In general, I think that's a
> shame and we can even see it making its way into print journalism at the
> lower levels (witness the trash in Velonews and even in the Euro
mags--which
> everyone buys for pictures anyway). It is possible to write well about
> sports, but we see few examples anymore in cycling.
I agree with you Andrew. Cathy may have a point that bad writing is better
than reading her stuff, but good writing is possible. Too bad she can't tell
the difference.
What exactly goes through the mind of a writer when he asks of a Tour rider,
"What is your favorite color?" Does he think that is something that I will
be interested in? (Maybe Cathy would be -- that seems the sort of thing that
women think should be public knowledge -- like two days after you're born
you fall in love with a particular color and then won't have anything else
for the rest of your life. My ex-wife liked blues and greys. That made for a
really welcoming home atmosphere.)
> Now, is all that worth more to me than the instant and interesting
coverage
> of the participant/diarists? It depends. I'm greedy, and I'd like to
have
> both. I want interesting, instant coverage from participants and
carefully
> written, thoughtful commentary from writers. In cycling, we almost never
> get the former; probably, I think, because we're glutted on the latter.
> DBH's fault? Certainly not. Still, people called it good writing, and I
> disagree. What else are newsgroups for?
I think you are mistaken. This newsgroup is for and about a little clique
who think that it is for their own personal gratification. Anyone that would
consider the idea of "Supreme Ruler of RBR" as cute obviously is
intellectually challenged. And to watch them pat each other on the back is
pretty pathetic.
Nevertheless, Henry Chang the Wanker has something of worth to say when he
deams it necessary. For real information Sleepy John and Adam and Coggan and
Connelly and Brad can be counted on (though we may have to slap Connelly
around a little to wake him up again.) Luckily we have always had a good
group of Europeans reporting the live stuff if for no other reason than to
make the rest of us feel bad that we can't get it on live TV like they can.
Now you don't expect these guys to know how to write and most of them are
only passable (Except for Sleepy John who has a talent though it's a bit
unchallenged.) As for professional reports -- it would seem that anyone that
knows how to write is purposely driven from the profession by the latest
crop of failed english major editors. Cycle Sport may have absolutely
witless writing, but even that is miles better than the stuff that passes
for editorial material in Bicycling Magazine.
Need we remind people that the likes of Ernest Hemmingway, William Saroyan,
Somerset Maugham and Mark Twain wrote about bicycling? Instead we get
eye-bites from Bicycling Magazine who can't find it in their budget to pay
real writers and photographers. In a multimillion dollar market they can't
support Graham Watson. And then they wonder why they can't make a living at
their chosen profession.
> > In fact, Karre is not even on the Faces of RBR list
> > nor is he even on the "Missing" list.
>
> PS: As for faces. Ken emailed me about faces it seems to me about two
years
> ago. I still don't have a picture with my bike or in a race.
If there is one thing that makes you a made man on rbr it's having your
photo on Ken's site and a bad attitude. Try looking over those pages at the
faces of the people who are no longer here, driven off by the likes of
Patton and Lacour the Lardass or some anonymous ass such as ronde champ who
wins training rides.
Tom Kunich
news:3af1...@clear.net.nz...
>
> You have obviously never competed in such a fantastic event, ever!
Well, you are completely correct Hamish. I can see a whole lot of
similarities between, "I'm cold and wet and worn out and my ass hurts but in
a little while I'll go home in my car and relax in a hottub" and "I've been
laying here for 12 hours with a bullet hole in my stomach and I'm going to
die and my friends would die too if they tried to save me but I still can't
help groaning in pain." It certainly works for me.
ronde champ
"Tom Kunich" <tku...@tality.com> wrote in message
news:9crmfu$qt5$1...@news.cadence.com...
> If there is one thing that makes you a made man on rbr it's having your
> photo on Ken's site and a bad attitude. Try looking over those pages at
the
> faces of the people who are no longer here, driven off by the likes of
> Patton and Lacour the Lardass or some anonymous ass such as ronde champ
who
> wins training rides.
Fuck all the people that aren't here anymore. Good riddaance.
And I can't help it that I am supremely talented and handily win training
rides.
Ronde Champ
Paul Alman
and Dan, and how do we get info to Derek that we (some of "we") enjoyed his
two accounts and look forward to seeing more.
For the uninformed: rbr is not a forum for literary criticism. Second,
compared to most of what passes for cycling journalism/writing, for me Derek
drew me in and made me, for a couple of minutes, wish I was there, wish I
could experience what he went through, and got my HR going almost like a
training ride. Good writing? I would have to ask my college criticism prof
on that, but fun to read, without a doubt.
"Hamish Ferguson" <bike...@clear.net.nz> wrote in message
news:3af1...@clear.net.nz...
Brian Roth
>> At one point when Domo's Wilfried Peeters was off the
>> front solo, he flatted right in front of one of our
>> team mechanics on the course who had spare wheels for
>> us. Wilfried rode right up to him and asked for a
>> wheel. Our mechanic, despite Leon being in the chase
>> group 45 seconds behind, didn't hesitate - he changed
>> his wheel and pushed him back into the race. Despite
>> taking some heat from our team's management for the
>> benevolent act, he later said that as a fan of bike
>> racing he could not help but to give a wheel to the
>> leader of Paris-Roubaix. I could not agree more.
>>
>>
If you look at some of the Peeters pictures (like Graham Watsons)
you can see him on a yellow spoked spinergy. Must be the
generous Mercury loaner.
Paul Alman
personal attack, who-gives-a-shit personal history (any one surprised he has
an ex-wife?), outrageous assertions, and futile attempts at humor.
Paul Alman
(A Made-man and still around...)
"Tom Kunich" <tku...@tality.com> wrote in message
news:9crmfu$qt5$1...@news.cadence.com...
> "Andrew Karre" <andrew....@lawrence.edu> wrote in message
> news:9cr0sl$trk$1...@wiscnews.wiscnet.net...
> > "Ken Papai" <kpa...@rahul.net> wrote in message
> > news:9cqf5p$gi$1...@samba.rahul.net...
> I agree with you Andrew. Cathy may have a point that bad writing is better
> than reading her stuff, but good writing is possible. Too bad she can't
tell
> the difference.
>
> What exactly goes through the mind of a writer when he asks of a Tour
rider,
> "What is your favorite color?" Does he think that is something that I will
> be interested in? (Maybe Cathy would be -- that seems the sort of thing
that
> women think should be public knowledge -- like two days after you're born
> you fall in love with a particular color and then won't have anything else
> for the rest of your life. My ex-wife liked blues and greys. That made for
a
> really welcoming home atmosphere.)
>
Daniel Connelly
>
> If you look at some of the Peeters pictures (like Graham Watsons)
> you can see him on a yellow spoked spinergy. Must be the
> generous Mercury loaner.
Ironically, the mechanic was actually promoting the team's
sponsors. A Mercury win would have done that better, but that
was a very unlikely result at that point.
Dan
Paul Alman
No way should I have made the gratuitous comment about TK and an ex-wife.
Violated my own rules.
Sorry (gulp) Tom.
(Thanks DC for the dope slap.)
Paul
"Paul Alman" <pa...@quickrelease.com> wrote in message
news:98890229...@axilla.wwnet.net...
Kevin T Lacour
> If there is one thing that makes you a made man on rbr it's having your
> photo on Ken's site and a bad attitude. Try looking over those pages at the
> faces of the people who are no longer here, driven off by the likes of
> Patton and Lacour the Lardass or some anonymous ass such as ronde champ who
> wins training rides.
ROTFLOLWSCOMN - That's damnedest, funniest thing I've ever heard. I've driven
off who, exactly? We have all tried to be rid of you, but you're more like a
roach at ground zero, impossible to kill, impossible to ignore.
And look at me - arguing with an auto-bot gone bad. You truly do not exist
anywhere but in cyberspace. You're vacuous; anti-matter; a blackhole. You're a
collection of bits-n-bytes that only becomes something when encoded/decoded by a
newsgroup reader application. Damn, that Forte Agent. And damn you, Kunich. Be
gone, be gone.
*plonk*
Regards -
ktl
Roberta Malee Bassett
you this e-mail afterwards, you would find yourself simply enjoying a vicarious adventure. He wrote it to amuse, entertain, and inform his friends and family about his experience in a remarkable event. That's all.
--
Posted from monet.bc.edu [136.167.2.208]
via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG
simbar
welcome.
I thought the report was excellent and added even more atmosphere to a truly
awesome event.
I am absolutely staggered at some of the criticism on this newsgroup by the
cynics out there - we should be glad to share these reports.
Simbar