No brakes. No problem.
Sunday, April 29th, 2007By N*ke:
By N*ke:
Manly – City Alleycat
Thursday May 3rd
10.45pm Wharf 3, Circular Quay (for 11pm ferry)
$5 entry, winner takes all
Winner is 1st person back to finish line having successfully completed all checkpoints.
Bring lights & bike locks.
All riders ride at own risk, especially brakeless fixed gear.
There’s something fascinating about the bicycling hour record. While riding in circles for an hour sounds like a simple and pointless activity, when you set out to answer for yourself the crucial question:
How long a distance can you ride in exactly an hour?
It makes sense in some sort of way. It is not just like riding for an hour, it is not like riding a long distance, it’s not like any other ride you’ll do. It is a remarkably difficult and rewarding challenge, that requires both physical and mental exertion. 16 riders took up the challenge this last Saturday and made a fantastic morning out of it.
In the spirit of the typical fixed.org.au rides, there were no hard rules. Just ride what you have for an hour. To save time we ran the event in two groups, those not riding would count laps for those riding. Des split us approximately according to gearing, and at about 8:30am the first group kicked off.
Traffic was inevitable, but passing while maintaining a sustainable rhythm enhanced the challenge, and helped to break the monotony.
Part of the fun of the split group was the constant encouragement being yelled out by counters, egging each rider on to stay out the hour, and then the benefit of being able to reverse roles for the running of the second group which set off just before 10am.
There were some temporary bunchings of similar paced riders, but most were able to find their own pace for the majority of the hour.
Thanks to everyone for coming along and for making this such a fun event! Here are a few links to photos taken on the day:
The results…
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| Blakey | Corey | Cress | Damo | |
| Distance: | 32.69 km | 35.10 km | 34.16 km | 35.83 km |
| Gear: | 70 " | 65 " | 81 " | 85 " |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| Des | Horatio | John | Jules | |
| Distance: | 31.49 km | 37.16 km | 34.43 km | 33.49 km |
| Gear: | 69 " | 88 " | 77 " | 63 " |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| Lats | Mike | Nath | NickR | |
| Distance: | 38.20 km | 37.16 km | 38.87 km | 34.06 km |
| Gear: | 76 " | 76 " | 81 " | 75 " |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| NickT | Pete | Steve | Tristan | |
| Distance: | 37.20 km | 34.46 km | 35.92 km | 40.00 km |
| Gear: | 75 " | 80 " | 80 " | 93 " |
Again? Are you crazy?! Interestingly, almost everyone said, at some point following their ride, something along the lines of: "Next time, I’ll [blah blah]". Maybe, in about six months, they’ll all get their chance.
ndf 23/04/2007
The new sticker designs are ready for voting! Please click on the thumbnails to check out the larger versions, and then make your vote. Thanks to everybody for taking the time to submit designs - I hope democratic voting shines, and we collectively choose the right design - I know which one I want to win! For designers with multiple designs, just vote for them once and we’ll re-vote on which one of theirs goes to the printer.
Please do not vote more than once. Voting closes one week from today (27th April)!
| Powdah | Elatito | LAM |
 |
 |
 |
| DaFrog | NDF | JOL |
  |
  |
 |
nick.
"The hour record is the most distinguished, and most difficult record in bicycling. It is different from all other records in that it is measured in metres, and not in minutes and seconds. How long a distance can you ride in exactly an hour? That is a question many famous riders, over the years, have tried to answer precisely." [The Impossible Hour]
On Saturday the 21st of April, join the fixed.org.au regular Saturday ride and try to answer for yourself "How long a distance can you ride in exactly an hour?" This is a fun personal challenge, which will be run over two sessions from 8am to midday. Unlike the strict UCI rulings on bicycles and positions, there will be no rules; ride what you have, or add any aero advantage you can think of… like Boardman’s Superman or Moser’s Funny bike:
Everyone is welcome, and welcome to take it as seriously or not as they desire.
Or join the discussion on the forums.
ndf 13/04/2007
Thanks to everybody for coming to the table and purchasing the required minimum of 20tshirts - In the end we managed to get 30 orders, meaning we’ve collectively raised $120aud for the Amy Gillett foundation. I will be posting the transfer receipt to the foundation here in the coming week - Special thanks to snowflake/nick for all his work on organising the logistics of the shirts.
I hope you like the tees when they’re printed!
nick