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Wednesday, June 13, 2007

doing us a solid

thanks for the help!

... making it a more cycling friendly world for us all, one water bottle at a time.

- - -


Beat the Clock endangered by ...

Carola Berger is putting a lot of effort into saving a staple of a training series in the Bay Area that donates cash to cancer foundations.

The story goes that a resident of the area has become bent to such a degree with bike riders on her roads that she's gone ballistic against every pair of spandex within' spitting distance ... including USAC and the sponsors of the event.


What can we do?


I really don't know. We could write emails to USAC in support of the series. We could send letters of support to local papers. We could call local governing officials ...


but what i'm going to do is try and become better at sharing the roads with people who ... don't understand my cycling, won't want to understand it, and pretty much think i'm in their way.

i'm going to:

observe traffic laws better.
wear a helmet.
ride single file when necessary for safety.
not think i own the road, like they think they own the road.
not flick a finger or even get the blood pressure up when an asshole turns into me.
try and stay alive.



no win situation

24 comments:

Ron Castia said...

Word!

Although I think you will have trouble with the blood pressure thing. I have seen you respond to stimulus then think about your reaction later. Pretty much like the rest of the human race.

shawndoggy said...

I read that too and I don't get it... the event is permitted as "non-competitive" through USAC so the promoter can get cheap insurance. Somebody convinced USAC that it is competitive and now it's got to run through a tougher USAC permitting process. Right?

So for a low key weekly TT series, why not just dump USAC and go with a third party insurer? problem solved.

dr-nitro said...

After taking out a windshield with my back a couple of years ago, I became a real hot head with the four wheeled race. However, I realized that that was cutting into my enjoying my spandex time. And I found out that a vigorous, gleeful wave to offensive motorists is the best response. Sometimes they actually realize that they are driving a loaded weapon. And if they don't, waving at them really gets them riled up. After all, they are often just jealous that we are enjoying ourselves. Flipping them off just justifies in their little head that we are jerks.

As far as the problems with the practice race, story by the local media could do wonders, discussing how the proceeds goes to fight cancer. Letters to the editor often end up ignored, or can get confrontational. If a story focuses on the benefit aspect of the event, anyone against it will look real self centered.

BTW. Notice when you trash talk, you get all sorts of responses. But when you try to promote good Samaritanism, the comments go silent.

Anonymous said...

Vanderpoop,

No Astana comment yet?

The Astana boys seem to be on a better medical program....errrr trained harder....yeah right!

norcalcyclingnews.com said...

Astana ...

are you saying that riders from a former eastern bloc country are doping!


[/shock!]
-


i'm shyte at good semaritan work, Nick. you know that.

but i loves me some trashtalk.


when we get to drop your carrot-candy ass anyway?

you makin' the trip up for NevCity?

jAndy donka-donk said...

Its starting to smell like a big AMD v. Safeway man orgy in this geezer blogsphere.......

Pat's TT series has lasted longer than a lot of us originally though, will be missed but it isn't Woodsides fault as much as it is the group rides that terrorize that lil yuppie community. I participate so guess it is guilty by association.....

norcalcyclingnews.com said...

JAndy nailed it there, eh?

about the group rides, not the AMD thing.

personally, i dig proper on what AMD is doing with the youngsters and ... the way they put the screws to us up in Hood.

HellMan, Nolan, Roemie, Bailey, Angers and Anderson, etc ... that's a damn good crew.

and, it's not like what Innes did couldn't have happened to anybody who decided to throw a bottle at a car, for whatever reason.

but, fukking A ... this is gonna do shit for us in the public eye. i'm just hoping that we:
a) learn from this experience
b) no major media outlet has a slow news day and picks this up to run with.

that could really sting.


group rides ... meh.

norcalcyclingnews.com said...

oh, wait ...

Innes is a douche.


(is that better?)

EB said...

I hate to play devil's advocate, here, but after seeing what other folks are cycling through on the other side of the world...well, we got it better than I thought.

And I definitely prefer the 60-watt smile & wave or the sad, disapproving little head-shake to any finger. Kill 'em with kindness...

Brian Peterson said...

Maybe Patt or Carola can comment in more detail about the TT series.

However, it's not a group that is set on bringing things down, it's an individual that has a long (since the 70s?) history of nothing to do and causing a stir.

The town council and the mayor support the events.

Problem is said individual took things to USAC and sponsors on their own accord.

However, reason seems to be prevailing, and the Canada TT's are safe AFAIK, and the latest on the OLH TT sounds positive.

Many thanks for all the positive support for this event!

Anonymous said...

You can play connect the dots with a couple of different olaf posts here. A certain AMD master who didn't like being relegated at Pescadero is also on the USAC board of directors. Since he brought up the fact that he was on the USAC board at Pescadero I introduced him to the promoter of the Beat the Clock series and filled him in on what the situation is. People who want to support the Beat the Clock series might want to contact this USAC board member to make sure proper support for the series is provided.

norcalcyclingnews.com said...

sneaky bugger

dr-nitro said...

Play nice, kids.

But yeah, my plan is to head up to Nevada City. Kramer is flaking out on my, and so is my little Kenny H--too tired from the Philly thrashing.

Brian Peterson said...

One more item - to really help the TT series there are two things one could do:

1) show up to ride in the event!
2) help course marshal!

Anonymous said...

Thanks everybody, for the great support. Very long very annoying story short, said resident is the "president" of the so-called Old La Honda Road Association who apparently have been trying to get bicyclists off "their" road for decades. Why, I don't know. I've been at a Woodside bicycle committee meeting, and there seems to have been a loooong history along these lines.

Since we started the OLH hillclimbs, that person has put an enormous effort into preventing the Beat the Clock series. The mayor came out and observed the event etc etc. Nobody could find anything wrong, so Beat the Clock continued as usual. This year, that person sent an information package to all Beat the Clock sponsors that shed a wrong light on the event. This caused USAC to categorize the event as a race, not as a training series which it has been so far, and the insurance would have been so high that the fundraising money would've been reduced to 0. Patt spent a lot of time trying to get alternative insurance, but apparently USAC's insurance was still the cheapest.

Meanwhile, thanks to the effort of a lot of people, the Canada events are secured and reclassified as training events, USAC is still debating about OLH. In any case, as Brian said, the best way to keep the series going is to show up as a rider or as a volunteer.

Again, thanks very much everybody!

Miller said...

Not that you would ever have the sack to, but if you sat down and talked to Innes about the incident prior to blasting him (not that he owes anyone an explanation) you would realize he's one of the most well spoken, intelligent and caring individuals in this "my chamois don't stink... it wasn't me" cycling world of ours... In regard to that specific incident which happened over 6 mos ago but now "we care" becuase "oooo, it's on line so it must be true..." you would know that from day one he has been there to take responsibilty for his actions.

Most people (this blog for ex.)can't relate to accountability or honesty so they would just rather presume guilt and fault and bang a gavil and trash people from behind a keyboard without all the facts...

norcalcyclingnews.com said...

i calls 'em as i sees 'em.


maybe if you and your boy pulled your noses down out of the air for half a pedalstroke, you'd be able to smell the stink eminated from your bullshit.


the dude threw a bottle at a car and it hit a woman. this article is the FIRST i've ever heard of it. and i could care less if it was Innes or you or Gandhi. As i said (or perhaps you missed it in your selective interpretation):

and, it's not like what Innes did couldn't have happened to anybody who decided to throw a bottle at a car, for whatever reason.

but, fukking A ... this is gonna do shit for us in the public eye. i'm just hoping that we:
a) learn from this experience
b) no major media outlet has a slow news day and picks this up to run with.



so, the ARTICLE is what fucks us over as cyclists. And that is worth blogging about, worth drawing attention to as an example of what to NOT do, what to be mindful of.


so, in conclusion - blow me.

Miller said...

Guess I had my "selective intpretation" goggles on when I mis read:

"oh, wait ...

Innes is a douche."


Guess "douche" means something else on the weird side of the hill..

norcalcyclingnews.com said...

sigh.


check the reference to Nick's comment that checked my own "douche-ness" and the satire involved making the comment you reference.


christ, Keith ... pay attention.

Miller said...

We all have our Douche moments and some lead to greater consequences then others... understand the scenario and the person before casting someone out for trial in the court of public opinion...

that is all..

btw-"blow me"?? that's Rad!! Got anything along the lines of mama/combat boot stuff??

dr-nitro said...

Olaf, if you would simply reference your sarcastic comments (Stupid Juice, comment 22), panties would remain unwadded, you douche bag.

PAB(a.k.a.CID) said...

a regular fukkkin douche-o-rama, that's what this is....

Anonymous said...

Casey(first name)is no dummy, you gotta love it!

Miller Time, tastes great or less filling?.....less filling, and probably tastes like the Summers Eve that he is.

dr-nitro said...

understand the scenario and the person before casting someone out for trial in the court of public opinion

Wait, I get it, irony.