thingamy

Cycling on a Monday

A week ago Thomas Otter, George, Richard and Geoffrey set out on their bikes from Genova on a most gruelling but spectacular path ending up in my tourist infested area.

Here's more from Thomas.

And note that the ride reaches beyond the pedalling, sweating and ooh and ahhs over the nature - it's for a good cause as well - so pop by here to support the cause!

Underway Isabel joined them from Germany for the last three legs. But George, the strong one (he was preparing for the UCI MTB masters world championships) must be the unluckiest of all cyclists this summer: In a inexplicable crash early on, perhaps starting with his brake cables getting tangled up in a slow descent, left him with a broken leg in the hospital in Savona. He's on the mend now but I would guess he's pretty annoyed. I would have been.

Myself, having a scheduling conflict had to limit myself to the last leg - but I loved it.

Yesterday, with some transport help I got myself up to St Andre-les-Alpes, about two hours drive from here where I met up with the very efficient looking bunch.

And a cool 10 degrees centigrade it was, but starting with a 500 meter ascent sorted that out. Soon we were pedalling along completely deserted and narrow roads, sans wind-breakers, passing through the occasional deserted picturesque village in one of those high altitude valleys that stretches east-west a bit inland here.
I'm particularly fond of these as they offer a lush mid/north European vegetation as well as no traffic and some absolutely spectacular nature once they slope off towards the Mediterranean.

That's when the fun starts with roads not useful for bigger cars than the smallest Renaults, one at a time - meet somebody and prepare to back up three kilometres. Add that some of those roads have been stapled onto straight vertical rock faces, usually ending in pitch dark tunnels barely big enough for a cyclist. Just remember to remove sunglasses, the tunnels have bends as well!

Thomas on a stapled-onto-cliff road.

Wide part of two-lane highway with hole-in-the-wall tunnel in background.

Map. Click for technical details.

Lunch was consumed in the usual French way, three courses overlooking the mountains, in a village that prompts questions like "what do they live off here?". Spectacular, fascinating nature, but definitely socio-economic puzzling places.

At this point a certain cultural difference between the sports inclined from more northern climes and the southern assimilated one (me) became clear: While all the others had Coke for lunch I simply had to stick to the usual small pitcher of Rosé.

After lunch I just had to work hard as hell in the ascents so as not to give wine-for-lunch a bad name. Luckily, Rosé doping in amateur sports still has a good reputation.

Thanks goes to Thomas, Isabel, Richard and Geoffrey for allowing me to join them and to George who I never met, hoping that his leg will be quickly mended!

P.s. My Garmin suggested 145 kms, 3200 meters ascent, 6920 kCals and six hours twenty on the narrow seat. Ahem, that (last one) my bum strongly suggested too.

krautrock, rap and cycling

As a student in Zürich I was quite fond of Kraftwerk - Ralf and Florian making up the wee little German techno group, something that often got me dissed by my "real music" loving friends.

But revenge is sweet, now Kraftwerk is often mentioned as a major influencer in rap, hip hop and techno, and for whatever reason, they liked cycling! For it's monotony perhaps? Not the dope I hope.

So here's a Tour de France snippet (better quality on the Kraftwerk site) while we're waiting fro the next etape to start:

Enjoy the summer and the cycling!

for cyclists only

Sunday, sun, 24 degrees. Took the car to Pont-du-Loup a small cluster of houses where the Loup river leaves the gorge between the last of the lower alps.

The ride starts nicely uphill for about 9 kilometers with nothing more than a 5% incline, perfect way to get the muscles going. And it's spring, all leaves just out and everywhere you look there are flowers. Cycling uphill in the shade on a sunny Sunday morning, ahh.

25 minutes up to Tourette-sur-Loup where I took a left towards Le Caire which is the last cluster of farms under the Pic de Courmettes, a climb of 400 meters in just over 3 kilometers, that's a 13% average. 10% stretches seemed flat!

Once up I could follow a gravel road along the ridge until it rounded the corner along the gorge where it became a rather bumpy singletrack in a canopy of green leaves for a descent of 300 meters over some six kilometers.

Not that I was equipped for heavy duty downhill, my mount of the day was my trusted Ridley X-night carbon cyclocross with Campagnolo Hyperions and Tufo tubulars, a total of 7.5 kilo of carbon and titanium. But a light bum and holding the handlebars like a bird's nest and all was fine. Not to mention some gawping female spectators that always gives the daring an extra push.

Once down there's Courmes, a small medieval village nested on the hillside with wonderful views and one very nice restaurant with outside tables and much friendly banter.

Two and a half hours, some gratin des aubergines, truite au creme de l'ail, tarte aux noix, a glass of kir and a half bottle Bandol rosé later my restitution was completed and my chakras aligned.

Just a 9 kilometer wiggly downhill left, took that in good wine induced over-confidential speed.

Paris-Roubaix II

This is becoming an annual posting ritual - bow to the CSC team and it's leader Bjarne Riis!

But of course, mostly a standing ovation for Stuart O'Grady!

[Image: Team CSC]

Amazing, he hails from the tracks and is a well-known sprinter. Nothing says that he should win a race that is made for "roleurs"... truly astounding.

I'll simply cut and paste last year's message: "If you want to study an amazing leader in the true meaning - check out Stuart's teamleader, the Dane Bjarne Riis of Team CSC"

sales pitch - male or female approach?

When asked "what's the meaning of what you're doing, why use thingamy?" I all too often respond

"So you can beat the heck out of your competitor!"

Now, that is a male speaking.

And do I know all about it, being a cyclist in a Sunday morning group! Pick any long hill and pass any male and there is no way he will not dig deep and burn his croissants to pass you again. And I'm as bad as any.

I call that a male chromosome defect.

The thing is it that thingamy started out as an answer to what I think is a complete waste of resources by current ways and means to run business (for- and non-profit).

Want a recent example of resource waste gone amok?

Take a look at this.

But I'm sure you have your own very good examples, they're everywhere.

Actually I think we waste about half our resources, something that can be easily rectified by a rethink and new ways. The thingamy is a first working draft to deliver the practical means. Note the term draft though.

Hello Microsoft, could I offer some software that could help you before you drown?

Clamping down on my male attitude, my answer should be:

"So you can save half the resources while delivering same value!"

But that would be less catchy for the male population would you not think?

Obviously, saving masses of resources while delivering the same product or service would translate to margins, profits and beating the competitors hands down - but we're talking catch-phrase here.

Beating the shit out of the competition is more fun than saving the world? I dunno, I'm male and is thus defective.

(More on the saving part in the upcoming Christmas series of posts here)

Mt Ventoux

We made it up the hill! And SAP showed muscles (and nimbleness I must add)!

Thomas and Dean drove down from Walldorf on Friday and we met up in Bedoin on Saturday morning - nice temperature (23 C), some clouds, all in all perfect cycling weather.

A quick glance at the mountain did indicate a hat of clouds though, but nothing could stop us now.

First few kms were flat (5% flat), then the 10%s hit us...

Dean decided to find his own pace early and let Thomas and myself go ahead, smart chap Dean. As you can see from the video, everything was fine, 10km/h and smooth pedaling as Thomas and I chatted along.

Soon the chat petered out, then yours truly petered out... and suddenly we were all by ourselves. Not a bad idea, now that all focus was on breathing anyway.

Worst steepness passed, 6 kms left, fog. Wind. Cold fog. 10 degrees Celsius. Focus on leg survival.
Unperturbed, Thomas powered on while I was more into counting snow-drift-markers, slowly, slowly.

Until I heard voices up there somewhere to the right in the white nothingness and I knew I was home, on the top, energy back!

Thomas did the 1,614 vertical meters and 21 distance kms in 1:49 - extremely respectable that (Armstrong managed just over the hour)! I came in 15 minutes later, and Dean a chat and a quick change to warmer clothes later.
Dean and Thomas rolled the way down while I joined the broom wagon for a more civilised ascent.

Being smack in the middle of wine country we just had to do some on-the-farm shopping, and of course the local bike shop chap could tell us that there was a coop, but a Ferme St Pierre a few kms down the road had good! wine. And he was right of course - Paul Vendran himself pottered around and handed over glasses and bottles in a most unhurried manner :)

This will be repeated good folks, suspect we'll do it late spring - and we're open for suggestions - the wiki will remain open.

So no excuses that you're not "in shape", you have more than eight months to get there! And Hamish, no more amusement parks for you for awhile!

Many, many thanks to all of you who donated to the Warchild charity! And you, you know who, whip out that credit card now and go here, some kids will thank you.

travelling

Saturday 29th Thomas and a few of his SAP compatriots will be driving all the way down to Bedoin where we will meet up and go for a charity ride up Mt Ventoux.

If you have not already, flip out your credit card and make a donation to Warchild here!

October 9th - 14th will be spent in San Francisco where I will attend Office 2.0 and have a few meetings etc. But I still have some time on my hands if you're keen to meet up!

Then, week after that, it'll be SAP TechEd in Amsterdam, drop me a mail if you're there - always keen to meet up.
(Still blown away that SAP will cover my costs, thank you good folks in Walldorf, I'll study hard ;))

thingamy takes on SAP

Cycling, of course!

In two weeks, on Saturday 30th (wind less than a gazillion mph from all directions as only constraint) a hardcore SAP cycling team led by Thomas will arrive Provence where I (and hopefully a few more) will join up for a ride up Mt Ventoux for charity!

Cycling not having changed much last hundred years - a bit more carbon and titanium involved for sure - it is still a sport of pure power and pain and capability...

So there the SAP will have a nose in front of the thingamy, no new ways of getting up there! Just grit teeth and enjoy the pain. Capability will beat potential this time :)

For you who do not know the hill here's a graph of what we're facing - note the 8 kms of about 10%! You'd have a hard time climbing such hills with your jeep with chains on a winter day to put it like that...

This will be the first of hopefully an annual event - so get out your gear and start training for the next one!

In the meantime just pop over here and give for the warchild charity - we on our side will promise to sweat profusely and do our best! Your donations will be much appreciated!

Video and photo crew will document and we'll all blog about it afterwards for your enjoyment!

Here are some earlier posts with more images:

Mont Ventoux, the echo chamber, web 2.0 and a good cause.
to the mountain top an beyond!
And a couple at Hamish' site here.

to the mountain top and beyond!

Thanks to Thomas and Hamish and James (lurking in the background) we have now a bike ride for those of you tempted to the one must-do-once-in-lifetime ride in good company and for a good cause!

Mont Ventoux!

Only 1609 vertical meters in 21.1 km - average 7.63%, superb views and a dash of heavy breathing (the outdoorsy kind)!

And that for a good cause to boot.

More about it all here.

This is how it looks like just after start, looks easy eh?

...and a bit later it looks like this:

1.5 km before the top you will pass the Simpson memorial where cyclist leaves some memorabilia like punctured tubes and bottles. Simpson died here when racing uphill in 1963... so take it easy!

The profile looks like this:

And if you're not convinced yet that this is a definite, must do etc - here's a comparison to other well-known cols around:

	climbing m.	Km	%
Bourg d'Oisans - Alpe d'Huez	1141m.	13 km.	8.77 %
Luz St Sauveur - Col du Tourmalet	1405 m.	18 km.	7.80 %
Malaucène - Mont Ventoux	1579 m.	20.6 km.	7.67 %
Bédoin - Mont Ventoux	1609 m.	21.1 km.	7.63 %
St. Marie - Col du Tourmalet	1258 m.	17 km.	7.40 %
Jausiers - Cime de la Bonette	1622 m.	24 km.	6.76 %
Briançon - Col d'Izoard	1040 m.	21.5 km.	4.84 %
Briançon - Col du Galibier	1647 m.	35.5 km	4.64 %

As you can see there are some steeper ones, but Bedoin - Mont Ventoux has that nice combination of steepness and a looong way to enjoy it!

So join us now - go here.

Support car, video recording, photo opportunities supplied and water bottles filled up at need!

the hat did not help

Well, reality has a tendency to be... ehh... reality!

Sitting on airplanes and doing bug testing late nights is not the best build up for any championship - herewith accepted in a blinding flash of the obvious.

Or rather during about 40 minutes of self inflicted corporal pain worthy of any Opus Dei member (heh, had to add that in these Da Vinci Code days).

Up at 6 in the morning, one hour drive into our beautiful back country at 1000 meters above sea level for a 23 km hilly time trial (300 meters accumulated elevation).

Already when warming up I sensed a lack of a certain something, a body willing to get going beyond mere plodding along - could not get my heart rate above threshold.

And lo and behold, so it was during the race too - lazy bastard I am - soon went into a "heh, not going to win anyway, let's enjoy the scenery" mode. In addition - yesterday's pizza and morning coffee really wanted to get out... contemplated how to manage some manly aerodynamic puke without loosing seconds but relied on gritting teeth and much swallowing.

Not a grand day on the road, pretty scenery yes, and birds chirping etc. Fourth place in the championship, about 1.5 minute worse than former years... well, well :)

Here I am, still with some hope on my way out.

And here's a bonus, my view to Cannes harbour today with all the film festival fans anchored off the beach - the biggest white one in the middle is the 138 meter Rising Sun belonging to Mr Ellison... gives you an idea of the sizes of those dots in the image!

[Click on the image for a bigger one]

Suspect those guys had no issues with yesterday's pizza on the sun deck...