thewashingmachinepost




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rapha cross jersey and 3/4 bibshorts

rapha cross jersey

on july 20th 1969, neil armstrong (seven times winner of the tour de france) stepped off an american spaceship, and became the first man to set foot on the moon.

allegedly.

i say this because, at the time, a common conspiracy theory stated that, in fact, armstrong and buzz aldrim had never left the earth, and that the whole thing was staged in a movie soundstage by nasa to gain a moral victory over the russians in the race to be first on the moon. i doubt that there's any way of proving this theory right or wrong, though i think the nasa version has become the more accepted version.

that such controversy can exist at all, is proof that there are a lot more things in heaven and earth than us mere mortals are necessarily party to. witness the following:
one of britain's finest cycle clothing providers recently opened their north american office in portland oregon, not a whole bunch of kilometres away from chris king components resident in the same town. i happen to know that the other chris is a good friend of rapha's north american manager, slate olson. with me so far?

now just prior to the interbike show in las vegas, chris king components announced that the latest colour to be applied to their hubs, headsets, new bottom bracket et al, is - brown. not the most obvious choice, i'm sure you'll agree, though quite fetching in its own way. roll on a few days, and hey presto, rapha (remember them from the last paragraph?) produce their very latest clothing range, which in this case contains a cyclocross jersey, something they're very keen on in portland. in fact, to be more specific, a brand of cycle racing much favoured by messrs the other chris and mr olson. and the rapha cyclocross jersey is - yes, you've guessed it - brown. well, brown and black with a bit of orange if we're splitting hairs. can this be purely coincidence?

the conspiracy theory raises its ugly head once again.

actually, ugly doesn't come anywhere near; the jersey is part of a pair, joined by a pair of black and orange threequarter bibshorts, similar in profile to the original black and whites released last autumn/fall. worn as a suit, these items of apparel are particularly striking; if pink was the new black, and lime green is the new pink, then orange is the new lime green. all we can hope for now is a matching casquette with an orange ribbon down the centre and on to the peak.

and in the true manner of cyclocross bikes, which have no need of bottle cage mounts (they only race for an hour, and frequently change bikes), the rapha cross jersey has only one rear pocket, bearing a slanted zip for easy access on or off the bike. a road jersey has need of the custom three rear pockets for spare tubes, pumps, food, multi-tool and step ladders. cyclocross has no real need of anything but loose change for an espresso. but, of course, many will buy this jersey with no intention of setting foot near a knobbly tyred, cantilever braked road bike, so just how much can you stash in this pocket?

you match my sentiments entirely, so i popped a spare inner, a cool tool, co2 mini-pump and a panasonic digital camera into the open pocket, and still managed to close the zip. of course, there's not a chance in heck that you'd ever manage a stowaway in there too, but we all have to make choices, and we all have to make compromises. the cyclocross connection is visually and pragmatically underlined by a reinforced section atop the right shoulder, padding to aid shouldering of the bike over the inevitable obstructions that seem to feature on cross courses.

rapha cross threequarter bibs

the jersey bears a full length zip on the chocolate brown waffle patterned sportwool which features black side panels and cuffs, with a contrasting orange hoop on the left sleeve. in a bit of an administrative error, rapha sent me the small jersey instead of the requested medium, but such is the skill of rapha's tailoring, that the jersey fitted a smidgeon away from perfect. the sleeves were an almost perfect length, and the elastic nature of the sportwool meant that body fit was superb. and anyway, i'm not the heftiest of riders. there is an adjustable drawcord at each side to determine how close the hem pulls into the bib threequarters, kept in place by that gloopy stuff that's appeared on pretty much everything these days.

the bib threequarters have really only changed by way of colour over their original black with white piping and white shin panels. on the cross version, swap white for orange. the pad is apparently the same excellent cytech pad employed by rapha in the originals. at the base of the rear bib section is a small waterproofed, zipped pocket. fit is quite brilliant - you'd still think you weren't wearing anything below the waist (always check to make sure).

both items are also available in the same colours, but featuring independent fabrication logos, an offering provided in conjunction with this cult bicycle manufacturer. there is no difference in price between either option. the jersey retails at £120 ($230) and the threequarter bibs at £130 ($240). if you're not a cross rider, you're the only one who can decide whether you want to live with only one back pocket, the bib threequarters are a no brainer - just buy a pair.

rapha.cc

posted on saturday 27th september

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colnago eps

colnago eps

colnago have continually progressed over the the last two decades, from the master frame (still produced as the master x -light utilising the tried and tested lugged steel method) through to one of the finest exponents of carbon technology in conjunction with the engineers at ferrari. always one to wait and see, ernesto colnago has never been one to jump on what may appear to be a marketing fad, hence the resistance to fitting any sort of integrated headset to his top frames

that is, until now.

announced just before the summer season came upon us, the monocoque cx-1 became the first colnago to feature a semi-integrated headset, in this case, a proprietary colnago design. this model was rather surprisingly followed by the realisation that milram sprinter, erik zabel, was riding yet another new colnago, also bearing a version of this headset, but with somewhat exaggerated tube sizes in comparison to even last year's extreme power.

so it is with no small degree of pride and joy, that thewashingmachinepost has become the very first in the world (so ar as i know) to road test the colnago eps, a machine that retails at a slightly intimidating £2900 for frame and forks. the demand is high, so this particular eps had only a fortnight's holiday on islay during which it covered close on 700km - enough to have a pretty good idea of how this frame fares in comparison to others.

read the review here...

posted on friday 26th september

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the bicycle book. wit, wisdom & wanderings. edited by jim joyce. published by satya house. 250pp illus. $14.95 softcover

the bicycle book

up at 08:30, grab whatever seems wearable or suitable from the collection of cycle clothing at the side of the bed, and hastily dress in same. shamble downstairs to the kitchen, pausing briefly to pop back upstairs again and put on the casquette left on the bathroom cabinet. toast on, juice poured, cereal chucked into bowl and midst much slurping and spilling, all consumed ready for the sunday ride. of course, still have to find where mrs washingmachinepost put the box of bonkbreakers, fill the water bottle with some torq powder and water, and manage to achieve all those other things that should never be remembered when on the bike, heading for debbie's.of course, even on a really, really good day, when the wind is at our backs all day, chat in the peloton verges on the hilarious, colnago have sent a shiny bit of carbon fibre to test, and we all find we're due a free coffee on our debbie's loyalty cards, the ride has to stop somewhere. some of us (and i mean the mighty dave t and i), still have at least 15km to cycle back home, so there's time for some sort of a reprise, but eventually home is reached, cycle clothing divested, and we're back to the mundane cutting the grass chores that always seem to invade the cyclist's reverie.

happily, there are antidotes to all this; just sometimes there's cycling on eurosport or cycling.tv and that fills the hours and minutes before teatime. or there's the bicycle book. this is a very fine volume of short stories that can make the average, and not so average cyclist think about why they do it - why the bicycle is such an object of devotion, of joy, of endless expense and occasionally of frustration. it contains the life is a bike musings of gianna bellofatto:
'...while life is a bike, there are no monday mornings, my apartment is spotless...
excerpts from 'andy the mechanic' wallen's bike repair column, and even an interview with lance's pal and long-term trainer, chris carmichael.

it's a book you can dip in and out of whenever the fancy takes you - such as just after the sunday bike ride has finished and facing reality needs to be put off for just a few more minutes/hours/days (delete as applicable), or on one of those long ferry journeys over to scotland. and the very best part is that most of the chapters easily bear re-reading, in the same way that it's nice to look at old holiday photos.

so far as i know, the book isn't readily available in the uk, but copies can be ordered from satya publications for a mere $14.95 (around £8). order today, and then just cycle until your copy arrives.

satyahouse.com

posted on thursday 25th september

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solo classique england jersey & white equipe jersey

solo maxwell jersey

there is a notional notion amongst the cycling die-hards of the world (that's you and me) as to which countries are regarded as great cycling nations - though admittedly, some are perceived as greater than others. this is, admittedly, a very euro centric way of looking at the world of cycling, but since even the antipodeans and north americans seem to adhere to a similar view, i think we can take it as read that there is little wrong with this way of looking at things.

since we're now about half way through the 2008 world championships taking place in varese, italy, if you're keeping one eye on cycling.tv and the other eye on the work you were supposed to be doing anyway, the variety of national jerseys on display gives a whole different perspective on cyclists we would normally associate with jerseys bearing sponsors' logos. someone who has built a substantial business, presenting finely crafted, nationally themed jerseys over the past few years, is paul mason of solo, based in auckland new zealand. every year, solo hold an online poll where you and i can choose the nationality that will be represented by a new jersey later that same year. and despite my demand for a recount, and the thought of voting under hundreds of assumed names, yet again scotland failed to hit top spot.

but in 2008, england did.

shown above is the jersey that will be available from the solo.cc website from friday 26th september, and eventually, from mosquito bikes in london. while i am wont to say it is rather a fine example of the jerseyist's (i just made that up) art, and gives little away as to its inherent nationality, i shall not be reviewing this new solo jersey. the very english mighty dave t will - when the jersey arrives from new zealand just shortly.

solo equipe white jersey

and lest you think that solo have concentrated their entire year on production of one jersey, along comes a welcome upgrade to their long-sleeved, equipe jerseys. until now, these could be had in red, blue or black, but in a surprising choice, solo have produced a white equipe. company owner, paul mason says he was a mite sceptical about the large number of customer requests for this colour, but he's been testing it all winter (our summer), getting it covered in road grime, and smiling to discover that it washes out just fine.

colour is not the only thing that's changed on the equipe jerseys. the collars and cuffs have now moved to double knitting, and they've shifted over to an improved mapp matrix fabric that is fully machine washable. you'll also find this available on the solo website, and at mosquito in the fullness of time.

watch this space (horrendous cliche) for the mighty dave t's review of the maxwell jersey - soon.

the maxwell classique jersey retails at £63 ($125); the equipe jersey retails at £90 ($179)

posted on wednesday 24th september

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there's challenging, and then there's this...

cent cols challenge

with islay enjoying some unseasonably fine weather at present, fine as in no clouds in the sky and very little wind, it took no real persuasion at all (all by myself, i hasten to add) to stuff some breakfast in my face, extricate the colnago from the bike shed, and head out for a swift 34km before settling down to the daily travail. yes, i agree entirely, 34km is not a great deal, especially when the weather and muscles coincide, but there is the small, not insignificant matter of earning enough money to keep me in the colnagos to which i would like to become accustomed. therefore, that was all i could cram in before heading off for a day in front of the computer.

however, while i was bemoaning (i'm not a grumpy old git for nothing, you know) this curtailment of a fine bike ride, one of my colleagues in the cupboard we so comfortingly like to call the office said that she'd struggled enough trying to get out of bed this morning. the thought of even trying to pedal a bike was more than her frail constitution cared to think about. yet another example of how one man's brief cycle ride before work is another's physical nightmare.

we here on the post (and i'm referring to you, not to me), are made of far sterner stuff, since i often hear of deeds of derring do from correspondents that make my three days of london paris look like the proverbial walk in the park. but a gentleman of my acquaintance, recently moved to belgium, threw all caution to the wind in july 2007, and rode over 300 cols in a month. it will surprise you not, that mr deeker (for it is he of whom i speak) is whippet thin and has even more of a predilection for going uphill than i can even imagine on my finest days in the saddle. but phil has not stopped at simply partaking of this endeavour purely for his own delight (another relative term). in an effort to inflict pain and suffering on the adventurous but unassuming amongst you, mr deeker has devised the cent cols challenge, loosely based on the randonnee permanente des alpes.this, you will no doubt be glad to hear, consists of climbing 100 cols in ten days, averaging around 200km per day and 3000 metres of climbing on each stage. it's not a race, but the four man teams will have their times recorded and grading will take place at the end of the ten day event. the first edition will take place between 13th - 23rd september 2009, hopefully the first of an annual event. there will be a maximum of eight teams.

now, should you be sitting there with your slippered feet resting on the basset hound, debating whether to switch the central heating on or not, and thinking what a darned good idea, you will be expected to provide some evidence of respectable recorded results in organised sportive events over the last three years (i was last in the ride of the falling rain - would that count?), because this isn't the same as the velo club d'ardbeg sunday run. if whetting of appetities is still to be achieved, cast your beady eyes over the climbs that mr deeker expects you to conquer: joux plane, colombiere, madeleine, glandon, croix de fer, telegraph, galibier.... and that's only in the first two days.

not unusually, given their mild obsession with pain, suffering and the colour pink, rapha will be providing custom jerseys for all participants, something included in the £1250 entry fee (deposit of £195.) registration and much of the logistics is being handled by classic tours. cent cols challenge if this sounds like just the sort of thing you'd fancy suffering (even better, if you know three others daft enough to join you), pop across to centcolschallenge.com and familiarise yourself with what you may be about to put yourself through.

and simply know that while the girl in the office might not be jealous, i definitely am.

posted on tuesday 23rd september

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park and ride

there's a possibility that there are only really two types of cyclist: those who regard themselves as cyclists, and those who think of themselves as simply somebody with a bike. yes there are endless subdivisions of both, but basically, no matter whether you're on skinnies or knobblies, you're either into cycling because it forms a substantial part of your life, or it's a convenient means to an end. this doesn't mean to say that there aren't situations that don't affect both, but there's more likelihood that the former category will be the ones trying to do something about it.

i am readily both renowned and castigated for stating rather baldly, that cycling cures all ills. from my point of view, perfectly true; from the point of view of those inured to motor travel whether in splendiferous weather such as islay sported today, or when it's blowing a hooly from the north and the rain is horizontal somewhat harder to accept. and no matter how many of the purported benefits of pedalling i can cram into one conversation, basically nobody is listening. and, it seems, this is not confined to the cupboard in which i operate - i read recently that a company in london had prevented any more of its employees from cycling to work, because those that already did so had completely filled a whole car parking space (the devils).while i'm outwardly calm at this, the real me is jumping up and down inside at such myopia. the real me, however was sated partially by information from those scutteringly brilliant personages in the oft mentioned portland oregon. seemingly, cycle parking in the far northwest of the usa can be created on demand, as a result of demand. unlike the unmentioned company in london, the portland office of transportation has received over 30 requests for on-street bicycle parking, and as a result, the pdot celebrated national park(ing) day on 19th september, with four new bike corrals across the city. (watch the movie above, sourced from streetfilms

laughing planet cafe has had a bike corral out front since june 2007;'we've always been a very bicycling oriented company. they've (the bike corrals) have been very successful. they're used all the time, and the usual business argument that you can't take away vehicle parking just doesn't work here.

darned right. other than railway stations, just how much cycle parking have you seen around britain's towns? and a bike padlocked to a lamp post just doesn't count. if some of us are going to be the proverbial pain in the arse, by continually promoting the fitness, health, fun and sheer good sense of travelling by bicycle, someone somewhere is going to have to provide facilities for those that believe and act upon the promotional activities of yours truly, and all those of you out there doing likewise. if you pop over to mellow johnny's website (once you've finished this - get back inside that browser, this minute!), you'll see that for only one dollar, the in-house (austin, texas) downtown bike station will provide bike storage, day locker, shower, towel, and soap.

that's what i'm talking about.

posted on monday 22nd september

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vittoria revo kxs tyres

vittoria revo kxs

a strange one indeed. these tyres arrived fitted to the wheels of the colnago eps currently on test (you'd be able to read about it if i wasn't having so much fun riding it) and are sufficiently different, i think, to warrant a test all of their own. the revos are folding tyres using the same casing as vittoria's open corsa evo cx; the equivalent of the finest 290 kevlar/cotton threads per inch. this equates to a top quality clincher tyre, about which there is nothing untoward, bearing in mind the bike to which this pair are fitted.

however, the revos are different because they have two treads, not on the one side, but on two. if i make this a tad less confusing by pointing out that while one tread is meeting with tarmac, the other is hiding inside, keeping company with the inner tube. it's obviously the choice of the tyre fitter at colnago uk that meant these arrived smooth side out, and if i'm perfectly honest, at the time i had no idea this was just such a double tread clincher. but during my industrious research for the colnago review, i discovered them to be such - quite a surprise - i'm not aware of any others that can claim this feature.the smooth side is great. excellent control, superb cornering, low rolling resistance. i've not been party to a pair of high quality vittorias almost since i started riding road bikes over twelve years ago; the colnago primavera on test earlier this year bore a pair of vittoria rubinos which were indeed fine, but not quite in the same league as the revos. what strikes me as amazing about these tyres is how pliable and flexible these have been in day to day riding, specifically because i'd expect two treads to be a mite more cumbersome than one.

in my intrepid need to satisfy not only my own inquisitiveness, but principally on your behalf, because that's just what you'd expect me to do, i flipped the tyres over after a week of smoothness. tricky process really, because the existence of two treads makes the tyre want to remain flat across its width when trying to re-fit to the rim, and once the tube is pretty much in place, it's eve harder to curve the profile and slither it back into place. however, a modicum of patience gets you there with only a couple of swear words, but i really wouldn't want to have to do this out near saligo bay (on the edge of the atlantic) in the middle of february.

vittoria revo kxs

the opposing tread has the file tread pattern on the centre ridge and sort of a herringbone on each shoulder. this latter is what vittoria refer to as the aggressive (kx) tread, while the smooth is the ks tread. between each tread is a puncture resistant belt (hence the stiffness). weight is a claimed 275g, a subsrtantial difference over the 190g schwalbe ultremos fitted to my c40, but in practice not really noticeable at all. however, having tried both treads over that utterly crap surface that we keep for special occasions, i have to admit to having noticed no real difference. i've run the smooth tread in very wet and perfectly dry conditions; the aggressive tread has only been out in the dry so far. if i can find some rain this week, i'll give it a go, but i still don't think there's likely to be any noticeable difference.

i'd be sort of interested to find out if these tyres give double the shelf life of standard tyres; when one side wears out, can they be flipped over to start wearing out the other side? i really have no answer to that, and unfortunately, i will not have these in my possession long enough to find out, but i would happily fit a pair to the c40, smooth side out, because they present a very reassuring face to the rider. the only mildly worrying part - and it is marketing speak - is that vittoria present the revo kxs as being extremely adaptable to any road condition. who the heck is going to be bothered to continually flip the tyres every time the road condition changes? over here, it would take me about a day to cycle a mile. conclusion: great idea that doesn't really make as much difference as you'd hope it might.

the vittoria revo kxs tryes retail at around £60 per pair ($110)

vittoria.com

posted on sunday 21st september

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