phenology: The first couple of years after we moved to the neighborhood in 1993, we grew explosive, fantastic tomato crops. But in later years, they became increasingly disappointing. It was like a slot machine calibrated to pay off early and get you hooked, then suck the quarters out of you. I love fresh tomatoes in …
Rumors running wild in the cycling press that Jan Ullrich, kicked out of the Tour under the cloud of a doping investigation, has donned a fake beard and is showing up among the screaming throng, trying to hex the remaining riders:
Bike racing – not the kind of weekend jaunts we do around here, but the real deal European racing scene – is fucking crazy. I mean, we as fans should feel this deep and abiding guilt about what we demand of “our” athletes. The doping is only part of it. Think of the most exciting …
The bike racing web’s crackling with the Floyd news: American Tour de France favorite Floyd Landis (Phonak) will hold a press conference on Monday to respond to press reports that he is suffering from a degenerative condition that could threaten his career and may undergo hip surgery following this year’s race. Landis, sitting second in …
We rode one of my absolute favorite stretches of Albuquerque-area road this morning. It’s in the Manzano Mountains, the road leading east from Oak Flat Picnic Area, a twisting gentle descent through the woods that lets a slowpoke like me feel really fast without being so steep that you end up going scary fast. The …
There’s an interesting article in the August Bicycling magazine that explains how Floyd Landis has done it. When he was a young cyclist, Landis sat down with cycling doctor Arnie Baker and plotted out an eight year plan. In the early years, he rode as much as 24,000 miles per year – 40 hours a …
With Ullrich and Basso out of the tour, and apparently half the people in Europe who have ever worn spandex being connected to doping in the Spanish press, David Millar suddenly looks mighty attractive, having just finished his two-year suspension for doping. Or, as a friend suggested yesterday, Pee Wee Herman’s starting to look good …
One last word: Attacking in a bicycle race— riding off the front of a pack of cyclists, heading into the wind— is either a fool’s errand or the sign of a champion, or both. Tony Geller said he’ll always remember his riding buddy, Bill McLain, as “the guy who attacks all the time, any time.” …
When I was first thinking about getting a road bike for cross-training (I was a runner at the time), I was quizzing my neighbor Bill McLain about what to get. Bill looked me over and asked, “How tall are you?” When I told him – six feet – he said, “I think I have a …
I did a couple of water-themed bike rides this weekend, one intentional and one accidental. I didn’t have the camera with me today, so you’ll have to take my word for it, but my chums and I rode up to the snow on the east side of the Sandias. By the cheap altimeter on my …