Just Another Road Obstacle

In my decades of cycling, I've toured, commuted, road raced, ridden off road and done just about anything else one can do on a bike besides BMX or Polo.  And, on the roads and trails, I've encountered all manner of obstacles. They include include debris blown or thrown into bike lanes, mounds of snow, motor vehicles parked or idled and animals ranging from a chipmunk (I never would run over anything so cute!)  to a pack of  macaques and, of course, the random cat, dog or deer.  

(I have never had to stop for an elephant, but I did see one from about five meters away on a ride in Cambodia.)

Of all the living beings and inanimate objects that have found their way into my line of riding, I must say that I have never encountered any like this:

Now, tell me: What do you do when a tank is blocking your trading ride?  Do you turn around or ride around it?  If you choose the latter, do you curse at the driver or remind him/her/them to give you three feet (actually, a meter, since the cyclist is in Kyiv) of space?  Does a three-foot/one meter rule exist there? If it does, would a Russian tank operator adhere to it?

 

How Should The Cycling Community Respond To The Ukraine Invasion?

 In response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the United States and several other countries (including, ironically, the then-new enemy of the US, the Ayatollah Khomieni-led Iran) boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics, which were held in Moscow.

Some  hailed the boycott as a strong statement of principle.  Others thought they unfairly penalized athletes, particularly those in sports for which the Games are the most prominent stage—and the end-point of athletes’ careers, especially in sports as diverse as gymnastics, wrestling and, yes, bicycle racing (at least for countries like the US that didn’t have professional racing circuits).

That last point makes an article in Velo News all the more interesting and relevant. “Where does the line end and begin between sports and politics?” Andrew Hood wonders.

Specifically, he relates that question to Putain’s, I mean Puto’s, I mean Putain’s, invasion of Ukraine.  Very astutely, he points out that while the Union Cyclisme Internationale’s  condemnation is laudable, it actually won’t do much to pressure the Russian sports establishment or government, let alone Putin himself.

While there are a number of world-class Russian cyclists—in particular, sprinters—there aren’t any major UCI-sanctioned road races—which, let’s face it, are the most-followed events in the sport—in Russia.  Moreover, there aren’t any major bike brands with a sizable market outside the country.

In brief, a full-on boycott by the UCI or any other cycling body will do more to hurt individual Russian racers, just as the 1980 Olympic boycott penalized individual athletes—and, arguably, accomplished nothing beyond a retaliatory boycott of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

Is This What They Mean By "Going Green?"

 In my half-century of dedicated cycling, I've noticed that, when it comes to food, there are two extreme types of cyclists.  One fuels up on pepperoni pizza washed down with Coke or Pepsi and eats steaks or cheeseburgers and ice cream after the ride.  The other wants the packaging to be as organic as the food in it.

Most cyclists, of course, fall somewhere in between. I admit that I eat and drink stuff that isn't found on most training tables, but I cringe at Twinkies, Jell-O and the like.  I eat less meat in all forms than I did in my youth--and I not only eat more vegetables, but more of them are fresh rather than processed.

Like many other Americans, during the past decade or so, I have discovered the joys of one vegetable in particular: