Category: Thoughts

Essays, philosophizing, reflecting, theorizing, wondering, wandering, ruminating, percolating, etc.

The Tour of California Is Slow

JPPartland

The Amgen Tour of California is slow.  I love watching bike racing, but when I see the racers on wide roads, rolling through towns on eight-lane highways, even most finishing stretches, it always looks like […]

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The Sublime Pleasure of Racing Floyd Bennett Field

JPPartland

The first time was jarring. Gritty seems to be the nicest way to characterize my first impression. Floyd Bennett Field felt old, grimy, and broken down. Decrepit. Abandoned. I don’t think I had ever raced on […]

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200 Years of Controversy and Joy

JPPartland

Bicycles are controversial! They’re good. No, they’re bad. They’re a savior. They’re the devil’s handiwork. No. That’s all irrelevant. A sideshow. Bikes are fun. All portrayals are on display at the Museum of the City […]

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The Long, Cold, Pleasant Ride

JPPartland

Once the mercury drops below freezing, I generally have little motivation to ride outside for an hour. Four hours: that’s another story. It’s probably part of cycling culture I’ve picked up over the years, on […]

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Information Deluge. Expertise Drought.

JPPartland

In our current consumption environment, we’re deluged with information, but are simultaneously experiencing an expertise drought. The information is great for people who have the time and inclination to geek out on deep dives into […]

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The Scuba Jacket

JPPartland

When I started training in 1983, aka riding through the winter in bike clothing, it seemed like winter bike threads had barely gone past the 1950s, while summer bike clothing was starting to catch up […]

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Getting A Fit From Happy

JPPartland

Riding to Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) with a backpack filled with spare clothing and sneakers to my first fit session in more than a decade, there was some trepidation, a little insecurity about my […]

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Making Sense of Bicycle Geometry Part 3: How Components Can Modify Ride

JPPartland

Part One explained most of the frame dimensions. Part Two explained trail. Frame materials, frame shaping, frame construction, and bicycle component selection can somewhat modify the ride qualities that the frame geometry is designed for. […]

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Making Sense Of Bicycle Geometry Part Two: Trail

JPPartland

Part One served as an introduction to bicycle geometry. It isn’t absolutely necessary to read, but it does present many of the terms and concepts you need to understand what goes on with a bike. […]

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Making Sense of Bicycle Geometry

JPPartland

Bikes are kind of inscrutable. Standing still, there are lots of clues to the character of the ride, but many of those clues can be deceiving. You can sense the bike’s stance, examine the tubing […]

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