Groucho Blogger Erika: Ignorance is not bliss!!

Hey Grouchos,

This is a day early for my usual Friday Confessionals, but I thought I might as well get a head start.

To give a brief background: There was a period of time when I pretty much hated biking. I would bike to and from work and for transportation purposes, but in terms of workouts, my thoughts were always “why not just go for a run…?” And then I broke my hip in the winter of 2008, and my medical team prescribed me a dose of HTFU and said “get used to it.” It took a while, but I grew fond of the little two-wheeled demon. Then I started the whole triathlon thing, and now I guess you could say cycling is 33% of my passion. (Or maybe, I’m just 33% passionate about cycling. Haha!!)

But in terms of education, knowledge, and terminology, I was (/am) way behind when compared to running and swimming. Not to sound like a know-it-all, but, well… I kind of do when it comes to running. The injuries, anatomy, components of the shoe, training plans, theories, gear, you name it – I’ve pretty much got it covered. Accumulated years on a swim team gave me the same background for the aquatic component of triathlon.

But put me on a bike, and what can I tell you?

It has two wheels. There is a big ring, and a little ring (but don’t ask me which “shifter” changes which ring…). Tubes and tires and wheels are three different things, but the one parallel is that you flat during a race and you’re screwed. Race wheels sound sweet with their big SWOOSHSWOOSHSWOOSH, and they come with different numbers like 404 and 808, and they’re expensive. Carbon has an atomic number of 6, atomic weight of 12.011, and is represented by the letter C in the periodic table of elements. Carbon is the fourth most abundant element in the universe. (Yeah… I got an A in chemistry.) So remind me again why full-carbon bikes are so dang expensive??

Mmmm, yep. I was (/still am, though I’m working on it) pretty darn uneducated about bikes. The big confession in this post is that I rode seriously (was competing in triathlon, riding at least 100+ mpw) for two years before I ever got a flat. I never carried a spare tube during those two years, and even if I did, I wouldn’t have known what to do with it. I only learned how to fix a flat at the end of last summer, out of pure embarrassment/harassment from fellow teammates. I am just now learning the anatomy of a bike (down tube, top tube, chain stay, seat stay, bottom bracket, cassette, etc.), and learning about optimal cadence and power output and whatnot. Oh, and that thing called Le Tour? I know what the different jersey colors stand for, and thanks to a little 101 session on the 4th of July (“&@#$ fireworks – we’re watching the Tour!“) I know a little bit about the team strategy, the peloton (which I already knew meant “little ball” in French… bonus point?), and the stages.

Long story short? I’m working on it… I really am. There are some good resources out there for bike blockheads like me, and though I know the majority of people coming to Groucho Sports probably have got it covered, I thought I’d share a couple in case anyone is hiding in the closet:

Bicycling Magazine: bikes, gear, training, repair
Bikesport Michigan: bike features, reviews, fitting
The Science of Cycling: Wheels, drives, gears, frames, materials, breaking and steering, aerodynamics, human power. I really like this one. -> #sciencenerd
TriNewbies: Basics of bike cleaning and maintenance

Reader Qs: How did all you “seasoned vets” get so smart? Through trial and error? Accumulation of years and experience? Books? Mentors? I think I learn the most from my tri/cycling buddies, who are almost always more than willing to give me a little tutorial or #bikeschool-ing.

Ride fast! No flats!

-Erika