Tour de France

Levi Leipheimer will lead the Discovery Channel team at the Tour de France which begins July 7. Ask me if I care. Well, actually, I kinda do.

Bike Commute

I've been commuting by bicycle to my office for about a week now. I've done this on and off for a couple of years, but this summer I'm going to make an effort to ride to work daily. It's not a major feat, only about a mile and a quarter and most of it by trail. I've always been a little embarrassed that I drive, but errands and driving the kids around make it easier to bring the car.

On the way home the other night, en route to the trail, my timing was such that I jumped in with my local club's evening ride. About a dozen riders in full kit on road bikes and me in street clothes on my 32 pound knobby-tired mountain bike. They were winding down the ride, spinning easily, probably about 20-21 MPH. I got in the paceline thinking that this oughta be fun. And it was. A little goofy, perhaps, but fun. I had company for the three minutes it took to get home and some incentive to finish work early next Tuesday. Maybe I'll start the ride with them as well.

On my road bike.

Fathers Day

This was my favorite comic strip from Fathers Day.

Glencoe Grand Prix

I recently learned from one of the organizers of the Glencoe Grand Prix that the course is slightly different for the Cat 5 men and the juniors. Here is what it looks like. This accomplishes two things. First, it is a safer route for the less experienced riders and second, it allows St. Elisabeth's Church to keep their 9:30 service. A win-win for all. August 26. Sign up now.

Tour de France Dopes

The Tour de France won't accept riders who refuse to sign the UCI's new anti-doping charter. UCI president Pat McQuaid said Tuesday: "The line has definitely been drawn in the sand. We'll have no more rampant doping."

If Mr. McQuaid thinks signing this charter will end doping, I'm afraid I'll have to ask him to submit a sample to LNDD to make sure he's not on something. If the key elements of the pledge are submitting DNA samples and having riders to pay a year's salary along with a two-year ban if found guilty of doping, then it's going to be more of the same, only now with higher penalties. And why should the riders sign this pledge if it is optional? They get nothing in return. No matter what you may think of Floyd Landis, we will never know if he doped. His privacy was violated when his 'A' sample results were leaked to the press and the lab that tested both his 'A' and 'B' samples(!) was shown to be less than fully competent (there were issues with at least how they operated the equipment and with the sample chain of custody.) In addition, it was shown that the lab knew it was testing his 'B' samples to confirm their own 'A' sample results. His defense has bankrupted him (or nearly so). And the entire process of testing the athletes has created an atmosphere of mistrust. Where are the protections for the riders?

If the UCI wants to clean up cycling, there's far more work for them to do.

Bicycle Film Festival

The Bicycle Film Festival has announced its Chicago dates: August 15-18. More info as they get it.

American Biathlon

Here it is, our new sport: American Biathlon. Can someone suggest an optimized training program?

Glencoe Grand Prix Criterium

There is exciting news for those of us in Chicago's north suburbs. The August 26 Glencoe Grand Prix is a series of bicycle races to benefit the Glencoe Educational Foundation. The current issue of the Glencoe News (Pioneer Press) had a well written article about it. Here is a map of the course. Tell your friends.

MS 150 II

Rained out. Drove out to DeKalb with 8 friends. Had pancakes at a diner in Elburn trying to see if the weather would break. It wouldn't. We drove home and did a 40 mile ride locally where it was dry. Can you believe it? Just 80 miles away and we could have ridden all day. Oh well, there's always next year.

Science

Here's one way to make the argument for the scientific method:

Mindless Eating

Cyclists seem to be frequently (constantly?) looking to lose weight. I listen to the weekly Scientific American podcast and heard a very interesting interview on their June 20, 2007: Science Talk podcast. Brian Wansink, Ph.D. has written a book called Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think. I think he has hit on some key issues why it can be so hard to lose weight. There were obvious ideas, like not being fooled by "low-fat" foods that are usually high in calories and there were more insightful (and surprising) ideas like using smaller plates (and narrow, tall glasses) so that you can better judge how much you are eating. Being more mindful of what we are eating is a far better solution than restrictive or faddish diets. Looks like my library has the book (but someone has it out) and has ordered the book on CD.

Mmmmmm. Beer.

I could only find two beers with some kind of connection to cycling. There's Fat Tire Ale and Tire Bite Golden Ale. Both delicious. If you know of any others, put 'em in the comments.

MS 150 Ride

I am riding in the MS 150 this Saturday. Feel free to make a donation by clicking here. Thank you.

Why I Ride Campy

'nuff said.

GoogleMaps StreetView Contest

Cyclelicious is posting a winner today. Here's a link to get you right there.

Recovery Ride

Somewhere I read that a real recovery ride is so slow that you have to take a different route so that your friends don't see how slow you are riding. Friday, I tried doing a recovery ride keeping my heart rate below 70% of max. This was easy on flat road where it meant keeping my speed at about 15 MPH. The trouble came when I hit a hill (like an overpass, I live in the flat lands), I had to climb at about 7-8 MPH to keep my heart rate low enough. Now I understand why one might want to take a secret route.

More Google Street View

Here's a pedal powered rickshaw in Central Park, NYC. And that's all for me. Today. I mean it. Really.

Google Street View

There are some contests to find the best cycling content on the new Google Street View. One is at The Fredcast and the other is at Cyclelicious. Here's my entry: Sixth Avenue Cycles in NYC. I also found a rider in Central Park. If you find others post them here and at Cyclelicious.

CORRECTION: The contest is at Cyclelicious. The Fredcast was referring to that contest, not one of their own.

Cycling Cross Country For A Good Cause

The Illinois 4000 For Cancer is cycling across the US to raise money to support the American Cancer Society Research Fund, Camp Kesem and other worthy cancer-related causes. Donations welcome.

Et Tu Sly?

When it hits the world of fiction, that's trouble.