OMG I’m blogging! I don’t know why we all suddenly became unable to write humorous stories about cycling. Maybe because there are only so many jokes one can make about amateur racing and recreational rides around Oregon. However, banking on the chance that all of the internet has forgotten said jokes during our 3-month moratorium of writing, I am ready to give this online essay-ery one more try. Since the last time I wrote (the riveting story of attending lectures) much has transpired. For one, my back is kind of better. I ...

As you, dear readers, have probably ascertained from an avid readership of sosovelo.com and my “articles” therein, I have back problems. Annoying back problems that moved in last July and refuse to vacate my premises. Back problems that I have tried hard to diagnose through a variety of medical and medical-ish practitioners. And here’s the bullshit they keep coming to me with: “We don’t know why you’re hurt. It will get better, but it won’t happen quickly.” So I still do my stretching routine, ride my books to school in my ...

As I near the end of my first season of racing, let’s look back on the knowledge gained and lessons learned during the Cyclocross Race Season of ought-eight, which Alan Greenspan wearily describes as “irrationally exuberant”. These nuggets of wisdom contain a number of words that I do not understand, but I can remember my professors using them often and therefore assume that they are important. Not important enough to look up, but important. I’ll be updating this whenever I hear exciting new words. Races entered: 12 Wins: 0 Top ten finishes: 0 My value as ...

My teammate Emily was recently lamenting that none of the stuff left over from our recent kit order fit her. I immediately tried to comfort her by suggesting that she post something to the list asking to buy peoples’ old spandex in her size. This with met with a look of utter horror from Emily and gasps of disgust from everyone in earshot. “I would never wear used spandex,” she said, appalled. Everyone else nodded and added such comparisons as, “it’s like wearing ...

People don’t like to share their training rides, because everyone wants to be the pioneer who casually drops knowledge of the most awesomest thing ever. It’s always been that way. Hip bands. Rock climbing. Unusual sex positions. They like to act smug and say “Oh, you’ve never been to this club/bolted route/sex position before?” and “I’ve been listing to/climbing here/humping like this for years, long before all these kids found it.” But the unfortunate side of being selfish with your cyclocross spots is that the season is so short, ...

As one of the few online Bicycling and Economics Magazines out there, we feel a degree of responsibility to educate the common (ie: dumb) reader about the complicated and delicate ballet these two related topics play in our everyday lives. Yes, we may use scientific phrases that could be confusing, like “dirt poor” or “broke-ass” (hyphenated, as it was in the original Latin), but don’t be put off. If you struggle through the bulk of the information here, you may learn something. As I watched the market panic this afternoon after ...