Bike Week Reflection on the Popularity of the Sport.

One of the advocates for Bike Week recently asked me if I thought that competitive cycling was going to become more popular.  I didn't have an answer, but it got me thinking.  Would it be a good thing if bicycle racing "blew up?"

I have lived through the blowing up of one subculture activity already.  I have retched as the passion and its asthetic was appropriated and abused by the masses.  In the 1980's and 1990's I was a dedicated skateboarder.  I honed my skills for years.  I "trained."  I traveled around the country to skate.  I bought decks instead of food when times were tight.  

When I began skating, the sport was dead.  There weren't many of us.  I had to mail order my first real board; there were few shops.  The activity we were engaging in was demanding, expensive and offered intrinsic rewards, but had little to no value to the external world.  We were left on our own and we flourished there, creating our own culture and building our own communities.  

Then it blew up.  Towns built skateparks, kids started showing up to the skateparks with thier supportive parents in tow.  People who didn't skate started wearing skate branded clothing.  Skating was cool.  In short the culture became diluted and commercialized.  

Obviously we know that competitive cycling is already commercialized.  But bicycle racing is not all that popular here in the states.  Those of us who race non-professionally are part of a small subculture, one that is rich with common understandings, familiarity and cohesiveness.  Across categories, like each other or not, we all know each other.  We all share a passion for something that the rest of our society does not understand.  

In thinking about it, I don't want the sport to grow.  I am happy with the way that things are now.  What do we get if the sport grows?  More sponsors?  Great, they will want something for their money.  More races?  When is the last weekend that you couldn't find a well attended race within a 2 hour drive?  A velodrome?  I would argue that municipal skateparks helped ruin skateboarding by diluting its culture and bringing "outsiders" and poseurs in, I fear that huge velodromes will do the same for bike racing.  

I realize that I hold a minority opinion here.  I realize that there will be valid and worthwhile counterpoints.  I just like things the way they are, perhaps I am becoming a curmudgeon.  

There Is a First For Everything: RMM Issues Apology

Dear Team,

 

I hate apologizing.  Mostly, I avoid it.  

 

So, why am I apologizing this time?  Because I hurt people who I care about.  In my last post (deleted) I hurt Ryan O'Hara and I hurt my team.  

 

When I originally put up the offending post, I didn't think it through.  When the negative comments started rolling in, I treated them as the usual disgruntled idiots who always post anonymously.  Not all of the comments were negative, so my error didn’t immediately register as it should have.

 

Later people I know well, people who I trust and respect began asking me to remove the post.  I won't go and sully their good names by mentioning, them, but they made me reconsider my actions.  

Inconsideration is one of my hallmark traits.  I won't use it as an excuse, but sometimes it takes some others to point out the error in my ways.  

 

Ryan and team, I humbly ask for your forgiveness for posting inflammatory comments about our race this weekend.  I fully acknowledge my misdeeds in this regard and ask that you give me a chance to redeem myself.  I know that I have done damage that can not be undone, but I will do what I can to make it up to you all.  While it in no way excuses my actions, I'd like to add that nothing that I did was done in malice, again I suffer from a serious case of inconsideration.  

 

We race bicycles.  I am hoping that we can still do that together this coming weekend. 

 

RMM

Announcement: New England Velodrome Opens Tomorrow 5/5/09

Tuesday is beginner night with C and D races.

Wednesday is advanced night with A and B races.  

Racing begins around 6pm both nights

Bikes are available rent if you don't have a track bike.  

Generally there is a train that leaves Cambridge around 4 on both nights if you need a ride.  Hit me up if you are interested in joining.  

I will be there on Wednesday to challenge all A riders (and then promptly get dropped).