Superbowl weekend

I have a confession to make. Even though I have lived in the US for more than 25 years, I have never once watched the Superbowl. I have never watched American Football period. I do not know the rules of the game nor do I care to sit down and learn them. It appears to me those rules are mostly dictated by the need to insert commercials on a regular basis. The game itself has no flow to it and it does not surprise me that many viewers only watch it for the commercials.

Superbowl commercials are as big as the game itself. People write and talk about these commercials as much as the write and talk about the game. Commercial rating has become a sport in its own right. It would not surprise me if one day the commercials truly take over and the superbowl itself fills the breaks. We are very close already. But back to football.

To me, football seems like a boring display of machismo performed by steroid-pumped men with artificially inflated chests and shoulders and ballerina tights. But what do I know? I am just a smug cyclist. And perhaps not surprising road cyclists (not mountain bikers) were voted the smuggest sports participants by the readers of Adventure Journal. If you don't know what smug means just study this graphic that went with the article.

Am I smug or what?

Roadies outsmugged other sports participants by a very large margin (41% of the votes). Triathletes ended up second (just under 20%). Skiers were a very distant third at 7% and all other categories, from surfers to rock climbers, snowboarders to backpackers were practically in the noise. Mountain bikers too ended up in the noise, showing that it isn't cycling per se that is grating on people's nerves. 

Although I don't care for football, I do look forward to Superbowl Sunday. It is one of those very rare days when traffic is exceptionally light. That makes it an ideal day to go cycling. Traffic is light that day because most Americans hang in front the TV, drinking beer and eating chips, all afternoon long. 

The Superbowl experience is also very instructive. It shows one simple thing that most cyclists in this country never seem to grasp: to have a successful sport you need spectators. Human spectators that is, not cows. And the only way to get spectators is to schedule events at a time and place that is convenient for most people.

Look ma, no spectators!

But there is one other essential element. Spectators are people who are familiar with the sport. They are people who have tried the sport when they were young. Unless people have a personal connection to a sport, a connection that one can only get by practicing it, they will find it boring to watch. That is why Americans find European sports boring and vice versa.

Creating future spectators (and competitors) is the area where US cycling fails in the most dramatic way. Rather than promoting an all inclusive youth field, the people in charge do just the opposite: they drive youngsters away from teen-only events. They want teens to compete with adults as soon as the kids can stay upright on a bicycle. They drag them away from their friends and peers, out in never-never land before the crack of dawn.

They create an elitist environment that pushes kids out for all sorts of reasons. Reasons that go far beyond fitness. These inane moves not only limit the chances of promising youth who may become star cyclists, they assure that public interest will stay low too. The result is a group of licensees that gets older year over year. Already more than half the USA cycling license holders are masters. When you look at the membership from 2000 to 2010, one thing is crystal clear. Everyone is getting older.

Flanders: critical mass

I am always surprised how far Americans will travel to race their bikes. Granted we live in a big country and in the West in particular, the distances between population centers are huge. Even so, it is remarkable that amateur racers living in the Bay Area think nothing of going to Phoenix to race and have their kids race in Valley of the Sun; or driving to LA to have those same kids ride the track at ADT.

These treks are in stark contrast to the disinclination many feel towards European travel, especially when it comes to racing. Bike and wine vacations in France and Italy may be popular with adults, but the idea of sending the kids to Belgium to race appears frightening to most.

Just recently I talked to a family who had spent almost $5,000 to go to Quebec so their junior could race in Tour de l'Abitibi. The unhappy youth had crashed on the first stage and the family was forced to return home after that. The end result was much money spent for no racing. Yet the idea of going to Belgium sounded outlandish and expensive to them.

I think it is time to set the record straight. Belgium is a very safe country and 16yr olds come and go everywhere and anywhere they please. Unlike American kids who are chauffeured around and escorted, Belgian kids freely ride on their bikes unescorted, even at night.

While there are occasional incidents of fighting, especially at nightclubs and parties, the level of violent crime in Belgium is way below that of an average American city. Nearly all of Belgium is a perfectly safe place for a teen to wander around.

Secondly, when it comes to money spent, $5,000 will easily get you a very rewarding month-long stay with plenty of races and more competition than you will see in a decade in America. If you happen to be unlucky and crash in one race, there will be plenty of others within riding distance where you can try again. The reason for that is simple. It is called critical mass.

Just like you should think twice about taking a high tech job in the Midwest, or an acting gig in the Deep South, or a movie enterprise on the High Plains, you need to sit down and reflect about racing anywhere in America (except close to home).

It is not that there aren't any good business people in the Midwest, or artistic talent in the Deep South or promising directors born on the High Plains. Talent, like other human attributes is widely distributed and can indeed be found anywhere. But for talent to thrive and to mature, a critical mass is needed.

Critical mass is the secret behind Silicon Valley, Broadway and Hollywood. And the same applies to bike racing and Flanders. Critical mass means you won't be stuck when your original plans fall short. In Silicon Valley, when your start-up fails, all you have to do is walk across the street and you'll have another job. Good luck trying that anywhere else in the country.

The same applies to racing in Belgium. There are so many races within such a small area, that no matter what happens, you will always be able to find what you are looking for and more. If you manage to get to Belgium in good health with your bike, you will be able to race without spending hardly any additional money. That is true anywhere in Flanders, from March to October. No matter what age group you are in, you will find more races than you can possibly enter, and you will find more competition than you can possibly handle.

And that is why you should consider Belgium before you board that next flight that will take you to some small race, in the middle of nowhere, at the crack of dawn. Why not race in a big race, with plenty of spectators, in the center of town, at a reasonable hour instead?

Do what so many other people from the Netherlands, France, Israel, Britain, and other countries do. Go to Flanders and race where racing is king.

Junior Nationals in Bend, OR

No sooner did I arrive home from Lake Placid or I was on another flight to Bend, OR, where Alistair was competing in Junior National Championships. The trip from Lake Placid took almost 15 hours including a very long car ride back to Newark, where I almost missed my flight.

On Wednesday I flew to Oregon, where temperatures were soaring in the triple digits. First I flew to Portland and to my surprise Horizon Air actually served crackers and drinks (including beer and wine) free. How's that for service.

The flight to Bend was delayed but not by much. I arrived late at night and found some of the Team Specialized parents partying in the bar.

Nationals did not go well for Alistair. Before I arrived he had crashed in the road race was forced to abandon. When saw him he was full of bruises and his hip hurt rather badly. He limped when walking.

On Friday he had a time trial and not surprisingly, his performance was subpar. His hip bothered him and he had trouble maintaining a good cadence. He ended up in 48th place and behind people he had beaten earlier in the year in similar TT's.

To make matters worse, on Saturday in the criterium, he got caught behind a crash in the first turn and lost contact with the main group. He was pulled when the field lapped him. Fortunately he did not get hurt. And that was that for Nationals. Not good.

As far as vacations go, it was fun though. We went white water rafting, and explored a lava tube. We also went to the top of Lava Butte for a great view of the Oregon desert. We enjoyed a team barbecue one night, and there were lots of other fun things for the kids to do.

While in Oregon I ran twice on the treadmill. The first time I ran 55 minutes at an 8 mph pace and the day after I ran 7.5 miles at a slightly slower pace. Other than that, no exercise, but I need the recovery time. We got back home yesterday (Sunday) after an 8 hour drive.

Mendes Criterium Pleasanton

I had a good time on Saturday at the Joseph Mendes Criterium in Pleasanton. Although I was never much of a criterium rider, and although I don't train for this sort of intense burst activity, I managed to do pretty well in the 45/55 masters. I stayed in the pack until the very end and that was more than I had hoped for. A decent showing I would say.

It was my first race of the year, as I have been without road bike since my Merckx frame broke last November. Last year I applied for a cycling license so I can race when I drive Alistair to his events. Since he races nearly every weekend, that worked out just fine. I can race too and so I don't have to stand around for hours. In general, I aim to get a good workout, while trying to avoid crashes or other mayhem.

This year things did not work that well. Without a road bike, there are no races to be had. Saturday was different because the Junior race was hours before the Masters event so I could use Alistair's Specialized. He rides a 56 and that works well for me. Most "experts" would say it is a bit too small, but I like the more upright position. It helps my back although I do pay a price in the aero department.

During the crit, I had to move up in the pack on the backstretch on every lap because I would lose a few spots on the tighter turns closer to the finish line. My line is not optimal and I also try to avoid cutting it too close. The last thing I need is a crash before Lake Placid.

My strategy worked very well and I managed to keep my spot in the middle of the pack that way without too much trouble. Overall it was a fast race and I got a good workout.

Today I ran 10.5 miles in the hills.

On Friday I rode 30 on my mountain bike.