Monday Blues: Coyote Finally Catches Roadrunner

In those old television cartoons Coyote was never successful. No matter how much thought, time, money, or effort he put into his schemes, the end result was always the same. Failure. Plummeting, crushing, exploding failure.

After years of trying, after years of failing, your author can announce that he has finally succeeded, with a few rapid clicks of the shutter, in capturing Roadrunner in the act. While climbing the road along the backside of Bonelli Park a couple weeks ago, a road which, not un-coincidentally is also known as the Coyote Trail, Roadrunner crossed ahead of me from right to left. Running through some dried grass he surmounted a rock, where he perched or posed long enough for me to break out the camera and snap his portrait. He turned his head first to the left, back to the right, then turned completely around and stared directly at me.  After that, it was back across the road in that neck-stretched-forward gait, that he normally uses to such speedy effectiveness in making good his escape.

This is not typical Roadrunner behavior. I have tried for years to take his photo at Bonelli; he has always teased and taunted, running across my path, stopping just long enough to fool me into believing I could get my camera out for a photo. Always, he is off at a run just as I bring the camera up to my eye. Always, I have been left standing empty-handed; fooled once again. Each time I could hear it in my head as he sped away - meep, meep!

This Roadrunner is different, he wants to be caught, he is a camera hog.

Two weeks after my first success, at the exact same spot, Roadrunner appeared once again. Our little engagement followed the same pattern - appear, pose, retreat. It seems as though we have reached a detente in our conflict, however temporary it may prove to be. I am not sure what brought the change about. Weariness at the game? Perhaps Roadrunner decided to take pity on the old Coyote? Whatever. I'll take it. The no-Roadrunner-photo blues are gone. I finally have my picture.

Blue: A color, a mood or emotion, a genre of music. Tune in each Monday for another installment of the Blues, with a cycling twist.

Sponsorship Opportunity: Seasons in the Sun

As the idea for my book of photographs and essays of the 2013 Southern California racing season evolved, I began to realize that it would be a small run, a limited edition, if you will. Cost would prohibit anything greater.

But I also realized that if I could find a funding source, I could bring the price down and make the book more widely available. A Kickstarter campaign was one suggestion, and is likely to be the path that I take for the 2014 edition (yes, I do hope to make this an annual keepsake publication). Yet, at this time of year there are so many pledge drives, and pleas for assistance, from so many more worthy social and humanitarian causes, that I thought maybe there was a better way this time.

A local friend and idea man (seriously, his head is bursting with ideas), suggested I might try the sponsorship route. So, that is the idea I am going to ride with.

What I will do (assuming there are any takers) is add a sponsorship page, or pages, to the book - the kind of thing you see all the time in annuals - lists of contributors, business card-sized (and larger) ads of businesses. That sort of thing.

For under $1,000 dollars I can do a limited edition run of 25 books and bring the price down into the affordable range. For a business card-sized ad, I am asking a $100 contribution; $200 will get a 1/3 page-sized ad. For each $100 dollar sponsorship up to $1000.00, I will gladly provide a copy of the book. This fundraising effort may seem to be directed toward businesses, but individuals who wish to help out will receive the same. While any amount of sponsorship will be much appreciated, I need to make that minimum $1000 to be able to bring the price down.

So, if you are in the bicycle industry, operate a local shop, run a business that in some way caters to bicyclists, if you sponsor a regional team or club, or simply want to help out with this project , lets talk. Click on my name or photo (upper right) for contact info.

Incidentally, the book is far enough along, that I can provide a little more information. While essays still are to be added, photos are selected and mostly set in stone. The book is a 7" x 7" keepsake square, hard cover with dust jacket, thirty-eight pages, though essays and sponsor page(s) may bring that number up, and contains just over 100 photos.

Hoping to pique your interest, I previously showed you an "in progress" view of the dust jacket, and while I don't want to give too much away, I can give another computer screen "in progress" glimpse of two additional pages:

Any questions about sponsorship, or the book in general, just send them my way.

Winter Rolling

Willie Grimm at either the New York or Newark, New Jersey velodrome, c. 1922

Some colder temperatures around these here parts finally, at least in the morning and evening. People roll with it in different ways; some thrive in it, outside, the full experience. Others retreat indoors and comfort. And how about those rollers of Mr. Grimm's - ninety years later, not much has changed in that basic design.

Stuff Someone Said: Gianni Bugno (allegedly)

"On the descents, to borrow the withering self-beration of Gianni Bugno, an Italian racer from the 1990s, 'a priest in a soutane could have made it down faster.'"

I had myself a good laugh when I read this in Land of Second Chances (pg. 304), all the more so because, other than a handful of occasions in a more throw-caution-to-the-wind-past, it is so self-descriptive. Along with our fondness of cycling caps, this is another common characteristic I seem to share with Signore Bugno.

Book Project: Seasons in the Sun

Biking in LA's very own Ted Rogers almost got it right the other day when he mentioned the word calendar in regard to some of the photos I have taken this year. However, I had something a little more substantial in mind.

I have been immersed in this little project lately - a book of photos and words chronicling some of the Southern California bike racing scene over the past year. I don't have the luxury of traveling to all the various races that take place around the southland, but I try to get to as many road, track, mountain, cross, and grassroots races as I can. The photos are some of my favorites from among the thousands that I have taken. The words are mostly my own.

Right now the project is in the midst of photo selection, but expect the book to be ready by the end of the month, January if things go slowly - December has a way of speeding by. There will be photos of people in the heat of racing action, some will be well known, others less so. There will be photos of a more artistic nature as well. All were taken between January and December 2013.

Since I don't have unlimited funding, nor a friendly benefactor, the edition will be limited. The dust jacket, shown in progress above, will give you a little taste of what it will look like finished. If you have some interest in ordering a copy, want to reserve a copy, drop me a line. I will have more information about ordering when it is finished, but I can try to answer questions in the meantime, if you have any.

Points

I bet many of you who do not participate in any of the various floggings, also known as group rides, are unaware that points are given, and received, along the way. I am not talking about the points for winning the sprint to the Pomona city limit sign. Uncontested, I might add.

No, I am talking about the points accrued for lending and hand, or two, during those moments when riders' tires expel their fill of air, or chains decide to split in two. Or when riders themselves decide to tumble around on the ground. All three of these happened at least once during Erik's night ride on Monday. Honestly, at this rate it won't be long before they stop sending me invites; seems every time I show up there are incidents in multiples.

Back to the points - just for stopping when an incident such as one of the above takes place earns a point; if you happen to be in front of the afflicted incidentee, stop and turn around to help out, you get two points. It does not take long to realize that the further back in the bunch you are, the more opportunity you have to tally up a nice collection of points. There is a reason Richard is known as the most helpful man in the bunch. Mmm hmm. Technically, that honorary may belong to Erik, but then, serving as ride leader does carry certain obligations.

Anyway, all kinds of things will earn you points. Picking up broken bikes or broken riders, for instance, or the things that come flying out of jersey pockets. If there is a flat, handing over a freshly rolled, unused tube, or a Co2 cartridge garners the most points. But even rolling up the old spent tube pays dividends, as will pointing out the tire levers scattered around the sidewalk, as the group starts to push away. Pointing out the fact that there just may have been some sharp pointy thing protruding through the tire casing, as the new tube noisily exhales, may get you some laughs, but sorry, no points.

Unfortunately no running count of point totals is kept, so don't expect to earn a nice big, post-ride, bacon cheeseburger for your efforts. I guarantee, though, everyone remembers the helping hand.

Erik's Night Ride rolls both Mondays, and Thursdays, 6:30 during the winter months, later during summer. They swear it is faster than ever - my legs agree with that assessment.

Monday Blues: Sanki Gazelle

I haven't really been able to make a clear determination of what is going on here. Sanki is a rather vague Japanese bicycle manufacturer dating back to, at least, the 1970s. If I had not taken a closer look I might have been content to call this their Gazelle model. But. Both the seat tube sticker and the smaller round sticker near the fork crown are clearly marked Gazelle Bicycle Co, suggesting that Gazelle, in this case, is not a model name. Gazelle is a respected Dutch manufacturer, but I have found no evidence that that company ever worked in partnership with Sanki to produce bicycles.

Anyway, this bike was sitting outside the Velo the other day when I stopped in for a visit.  The owner had brought it in for a little TLC and maintenance. Its unusual manufacture aside, what caught my eye were the bmx pegs attached to the rear hub - not exactly standard fare on a bike such as this. Never-the-less, the paired accoutrements turn this one person ride into a bike capable of carrying a stand up passenger. Or, maybe the owner performs aerial stunts.

Blue: A color, a mood or emotion, a genre of music. Tune in each Monday for another installment of the Blues, with a cycling twist.

From the Archives: Three Sisters and a Bike

Not your typical From the Archives race scene, I saved this one for December simply because I know that at least one of the sisters pictured has a birthday at the end of the month. Taken outside their home on a quiet street in Burbank in the very early 1950s, I would suppose, one I call mom, the others aunt. Not sure if the bike belonged to one of them, or was shared among the three, but we might find out once this is posted up. Quintessential mid-century Southern California.