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green oil massive brush
many moons ago, i was sent a cyclocross jacket for review, from a range of clothing designed by a once prominent member of the british cyclocross fraternity. at the time, being less than familiar with the nooks and cranies of that particular sporting endeavour, i was led to query the wisdom of producing an all-white jacket for wear in a sport that luxuriates in susbtantial quantities of mud. your reasoning would probably have been remarkably similar to my own; not only is thibau nys regularly to be seen with a brown stripe up the back of his predominantly white european champion's skinsuit, but also british champion, cameron mason, whose white outfit is interrupted only by blue and red hoops around the middle. and don't get me started on mathieu van der poel's all-white, world champion's ensemble.
for the very reasons that we all love cyclocross and for the selfsame reasoning that allows riders to change bike up to twice in one muddy lap, it is a particularly onerous sport when it comes to keeping stuff clean. one can only wonder why the soap manufacturers that constantly advise to 'keep away from children' are not the principal sponsors of at least one cyclocross team or individual. surely the marketing rewards would justify the comparatively minimal outlay? pressure-washer manufacturers karcher appear at least to have seen the light that remains obscured to the likes of persil, daz and fairy, though to be truthful, which 'cross rider would be keen on competing with the word 'fairy' emblazoned upon his or her skinsuit?
to briefly return to the review jacket mentioned in my opening gambit, it transpires that it was intended purely for use on the startline, being the very garment worn by our heroes prior to hearing the starter's pistol. for those who are regular fans of the sport, it's the jackets removed at the last minute and handed to mechanics, wives or girlfriends before battle commences. thus, in theory at least, jackets that would never catch sight of any mud (unless accidentally dropped).
i'm sure that, perhaps even as a result of the substantial number of karcher banners surrounding the pit area, those invested in actually racing cyclocross will possess their very own pressure washer, and possibly even the enthusiastic few domiciled in agricultural regions such as my own, in a vain attempt to keep the gaggle of velocipedes presentably clean following the sunday ride. i cannot deny that i have considered the option on more than one occasion, but so far i remain pressure free, a tautology clear to all who may have seen my bicycles. we are not blessed with one of those external taps which would allow the washer to be kept charged with h2o, and i have been advised against those which feature a refillable tank, though for what reasons i have been unable to ascertain.
however, though undoubtedly less forceful in action, but inimitably kinder to wheel and bottom bracket bearings, green oil's massive brush comes a close second. and massive it certainly is, at marginally under half a metre in length and sporting a large section (7cm) of soft(ish) bristles, perfect for eeking out grime from those hard-to-get-at regions of the average, and not-so-average bicycle. not only can those bristles scrub between the rear tyre and the seat tube, but they are of a constitution that does no harm to even the most sophisticated of paint schemes, whether on carbon, steel or aluminium. it can be used on cassettes, derailleurs, chainrings, chains, brake calipers, the rear of the fork crown, tyre sidewalls and tread; in fact, every part of the bicycle that presumes to accumulate grime.
and just like its big brother, the pressure washer, there's no need to bend down to reach even the parts closest to the ground. admittedly, i scrubbed two of my bicycles affixed to a workstand, but the length of the handle makes the massive brush every bit as pragmatic when the cycle is sitting on the ground.
of course, having scrubbed the cassette and chain within a millimetre of their constitution, you'll then need to lubricate the links, in this case, with a bottle of green oil, the container for which is now manufactured from ocean prevented plastics diverted from rivers in asia and heading to the open sea. whether you like it or not, the bicycle is an environmentally sound means of transport, so it well behoves us to continue this meme by keeping it in tip top condition with synthetic chain lubricant that obviates the use of fossil fuels.
massive.
green oil's massive brush is available direct from the website at a cost of £47.99
sunday 1 december 2024
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