30 January 2014

A non-rant rant...

Listen, I understand that I can be abrasive.  What do they say?  Admission of the problem is the first step in recovery.
I also understand that I'm not always right.  As one gets older, self-awareness should become a bit more acute.
And to be honest, I like a good argument.  Especially one that is easy to prove. 
Where am I going with this?
Last night, on the Twitters, Mr. Bristol said something about placing his shift levers high on his bars for comfort.  Cool.  If it works for you, have at it.  Who gives a shit what someone else thinks!  Hell, I ride mine kicked up, as do A LOT of people.
Anyway, some jackhole on Twitter tell him he's WRONG.  Not, "Hey man, why do you do it that way...?", or, "Dude, those are high!".  The guy just says, "Nope...WRONG!"
The he proceeds to explain some archaic, borderline luddite, Euro-trash opinion that we've all heard.  "Levers should be level with the tops of the bars..."
Blah, blah, blah...
A few of us jumped his ass for A)Being completely incorrect, and B)Sort of being a Bell End. (Google it).
Never mind the fact that there are myriad reasons for riding your bars rolled up, and that a whole lot of full-on Euro Pro-Dogs ride their bars and levers JACKED up.
Examples?
 Cancellara
Boonen's 09 Roubaix bike.  Oh yeah, I believe Boonen won. 
Nys' 11v Di2 levers.
Let me count real quick...oh, hell with counting...that's a metric ass-ton of race wins, and World Champ jerseys.

Your bar angle and shape, stem angle and length, and lever placement are all PERSONAL choices, and if it fits YOU, and works for YOU, then...well...you know the rest.  Hell, mine are up there...
Know why?  Because the guy who did my $350 Retul fit put them there!!  And I can tell you, it changed my fit and comfort for the better. 

Back to the Bell End...
He gets killed by a few of us, both questioning his skewed reasoning, and by posting pictures of Pros riding their levers high. 
I then posted this photo, of Sean Yates...
I guess Yates was wrong too...but the complete OPPOSITE way. 
No response...at all...for the rest of the night.  Then, the Bell End pulled the ultimate scorned middle school girl move.  He unfollowed me.  Let me tell you, I wept until my pillow was soaked. 
Why do I care?  I really don't.  I'm just writing about it b/c the shit was funny.  It's exactly what Twitter is all about.  Exchange of ideas, and other mostly inane bullshit. If you say stupid stuff, expect to get called out.  Hell, it happens to me on the regular.
I hate to see what that dude does in real life.  Probably a lot of foot stomping and door slamming...
 -end non-rant rant-

 That's just a nice picture...
Really...gear floss.  I'm sure it works, but then again, so do scraps of old t-shirts.  Or take the 3 minutes to pull the cassette OFF, and clean it properly. 

Two Bikes made by preeminent builders.  Both just plain, clean and simple.  Methinks my next road bike will be metal...

No outsidey for me tonight.  Too many hidden icy spots waiting to deposit riders on the heads.

Get back to work...










1 comment:

Junk said...

I forget where I read it, but it rings true for me. More for CX in that the hoods are high enough to feel like gripping a pistol for more control. CXMagazine had an article on this too.

Agreed as I flip through magazines tearing my t-shirt into strips and wonder on the bike floss. Or cut the green pads down for really hard muck.