Follow along live as ten intrepid travelers race to be named the fastest world bicycle traveler (currently the fastest circumnavigation cyclist is Alan Bate (UK) ~ 96 days, 10 hours and 33 minutes).

 To make your prediction of who will be the fastest:  Click Here.

 To follow along live:  Click Here.

Okay, I get the humor.  And yes, if I weren’t a cyclist and so many other cyclists hadn’t been killed by careless and distracted drivers, I may not find this offensive.  But I do.  What I find more offensive than the comic strip itself, is some of the comments.  The cartoonist is making a statement, ‘some cyclist are elitists or have a better-than-you attitude’.  Okay, true enough.  Some are. The problem is this sort of thing promotes the idea that the life of a person riding a bicycle is of less value than the life of a person driving.

Or am I just taking this too seriously?

“Now this is about to get really interesting” I thought to myself.  I ran to the edge of the mezzanine waiting for the four young monks to whip out some pretty sweet Kung-Fu moves and lay waste to the old bastard.  Nope.  They bowed respectfully and started cleaning up the mess.  This disturbed me for weeks after.  “Why didn’t they flip out and beat the stuffing out of the old guy?  Was he some kind of retired ninja master assassin and they were afraid?  Was he packing a pistol under his robes?”

With one swipe of his broom the elder monk had taught the four younger monks valuable lessons.  Nothing is permanent and suffering comes from attachment.  I think they also learned that joy comes from the process of creating not from the thing created.   My Westernized mind could not grasp the concept of non-attachment and impermanence.  I still struggle, but I try.  As The Velo Hobo approaches the 100,000 visitor mark, I toy with the idea of hitting the “Delete This Blog” button.

I’m not a spiritual person and despite minoring in philosophy and religion, the deepest thought I think now-a-days is “how do they get tabasco sauce through that little hole in the bottle?”   But I have been thinking lately how my life might be different if I were unplugged from the matrix?   Would I be more creative?  More productive?  Would I read more books?  Spend more time with my family?   Spend more time riding than writing about riding?  Maybe. 

The Velo Hobo receives between 5,000 and 6,000 visitors a month and those numbers grow each month.  Blogging has been a fun pastime and I’ve connected with some great people.  So for now it’s business as usual, but somewhere around mid-summer I’ll have a decision to make.

Thanks for reading, Jack

Here’s the link:   The BROOKS Despatch.  Here the link to follow the race live: Worldcycleracing

Impending Race Around the Globe,

18,000 Miles by Bicycle

“World Cycle Racing Grand Tour” gets underway on 18 February 2012. Ten cyclists from the British Isles will take off from Greenwich, London on 18 February to assault en masse the Guinness World Record for the Fastest Global Circumnavigation by Bicycle. The coordinated attempt is the largest of its kind ever to take place.

The concept of this simultaneous attempt is the brainchild of Vin Cox, who held the record until very recently, having completed the 18,000 mile journey in just 163 days. Fellow Englishman Alan Bate however, recently bested Vin’s record with a stunning time of under 97 days.

Since Guinness included the record for the first time in 2008, cyclists have been fiercely competing to hold the crown of world’s fastest traveller. Last year alone the record was broken a number of times, before finally being held by Mr. Cox for over one year.  ~ From The Brooks Dispatch

 Check it out here: Bicycle Traveler Magazine.  Extra points if anyone can spot the quote by yours truly.

Before I say a word about my favorite outdoor gear supplier, let me say that I am in no way affiliated with the retailer.  This is a totally unsolicited review of what I believe to be the best source for most anything camping related.

Campmor has been around since 1978.  In 1978 I was a poor kid living in a mountain community with few opportunities for shopping around for gear.  This was years before Al Gore invented the internet and even if he had there were no computers to use it.  Catalogs were my only choice for lusting after gear.

Campmor’s catalogs were small un-glossy things without photographs.  All the goodies, from snow shoes to Swiss Army knives were simple line drawings and still are to this day.  Campmor must have a team of artists locked away in some back room feverishly drawing each and every item.  Of course today (thanks to computer scientist and former VP Al Gore) you can go to their websight and see pictures of the items.  I sincerely hope this new technology doesn’t put line drawing artists out of business.

But anyway, if you’re new to outdoor sports or have never happened across Campmor, give them a look.  After several decades of buying tons of gear from them, I have never had a bad experience and their prices are usually the best around. ~ Here’s the link: Campmor

Just my opinion, Jack

As the temps drop into the single digit range in the ridge tops of the Smokies, I have two choices if I want to avoid the cursed stationary trainer.  One, seek out lower elevations.  Two, say ‘frostbite be damned, I’m riding as high as I can go”.  As often as possible, I’ll take choice two.  A good pair of booties is worth the price to keep toes toasty, warm and dry. 

I’ve owned this pair of Sugoi Resistor bike booties around four or five years now.  They’ve ridden from the mountains of North Carolina to the coast and on countless shorter tours and day rides and are holding up remarkably well.  They’re always with me on tours, stuffed away with my rain jacket and helmet cover and are very easy to put on and take off.  In the dead of winter they provide just enough wind resistance and insulation to keep my feet comfortable in the coldest weather.

The 8 inch high Sugoi is made from a fleece lined rubberized material.  Features include a full length rear zipper held securely in place with a Velcro tab. An un-coated yellow material in the heel and toe creates a nice snug fit and an elastic band runs across the middle.  The bottom is open to allow for cleats and this also makes them more durable for walking around during the ride.  Reflective trim and logo adds to visibility. Cost is somewhere around fifty bucks and we bought ours from REI.  Well worth every penny.

This was an unsolicited review.  I just like them, Jack

That was over thirty years ago. I think I’m in full remission and not likely to relapse. My palms no longer get sweaty when I see an all carbon bike and I can’t even remember how to spell paleton or have a clear recollection of what VO2Max is (a shampoo maybe?).  I pawned my heart rate monitor decades ago to pay off a bar tab.  I can’t remember the last time I rode a bike with a computer on it.

I’m 48 and getting thick around the middle.  I’m no longer aerodynamic.  My knee is shredded and pops out of joint if I try to sprint, not that I ever try.  But every year my love for cycling grows deeper.  No, that’s not it.  Every year my love for where bicycles take me grows deeper. 

If you’ve stumbled across this blog, and for some odd reason, keep returning, maybe hoping it will get better, 2012 will be an interesting year. 

Thanks for reading, Jack

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 48,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 18 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.