Big Bikes

Time to Get Fat

I have a thing. Even in the privacy of my own home, no one watching, no one around...I will never and I do mean NEVER put on my shirt before my drawers or pants. I will always, and I mean 100% of the time put my boxers on before my shirt. This stems from a traumatic experience I had as a child.

I was watching Animal House with my "very conservative and responsible parents". There's the scene where Boon (Some guy who never got work again) shows up at his girlfriend's (Karen Allen, Indiana Jones fame) house to find that she has a guest, her professor played by Donald Sutherland. Sutherland shambles into the kitchen wearing nothing but a sweater and scratching his backside. He then reaches for a high shelf, briefly exposing his white, doughy, sagging bum.

Severe Trauma.

During that same period of my youth I saw Jaws and a truly awful film about Big Foot. Neither of these did I find as horrifying as Donald Sutherland's ass being unveiled from the bottom of his sweater. I wanted so much to share a photo of this with you, but I could not find it anywhere on the the Inner-Nets. All I accomplished was creating the possibility of a guest user on my computer having "Donald Sutherland's Bum" auto-fill the Google search bar.

This is it. Bike racing is over, you have a winter of this stuff to "look forward to" lucky you.


Sunday I woke up from eleven hours of much needed sleep very hungry. Miriam and I headed over to Washington Square Tavern in Brookline. This establishment is owned by Gerry Finnegan, big time bike guy. The walls are adorned with vintage photographs of early bike racing. The atmosphere is relaxed, calm, and warm. Quite a contrast from the usual spots we hit which however good they might be are generally overrun with obnoxious, pajama wearing Tufts kids who think it's awesome to wear aviator shades indoors.

The food is spectacular. They make a pancake that looks like it might kill you. It's as thick as four normal pancakes, but light, fluffy, and freaking amazing.

The place looks like it's super-expensive and swanky but it's really not (the super-expensive part, swanky it is). Brunch won't cost you any more than it would at Bickford's or IHOP and it's incalculably better.

Just picked this guy up in oh so eager anticipation of another winter of New England bike commuting. It's The River City Pack by Detours. No need to stop and pull out a rain cover, this bugger is totally sealed all the time. Feels like a light Camelbak without the water bladder in. Almost like it's not there at all. Perfect for lugging lunch and a change of clothes to work. I'm trying to get away from commuting with my 1800 cubic inch, overloaded pack all the time. It's killing my back.

A package showed up to work the other day,I had no idea who it was from. Turned out to be a surprise package from Mega-Bottle-Ride. An original watercolor commemorating my place as first East Coaster at Single Speed Worlds 08 in Napa. Pretty damn cool. Georges also sent me some custom Defeet Wool-E-Ator socks, just in time to keep my feet warm as the temperature drops below 50° on my morning commute.

Thanks man, much appreciated.

Oh ya, this is important. We're starting up Night Rides out of IBC Newton tomorrow night. That would be Wednesday October 8th at 6PM. This will be a regular thing. All are welcome, this is a no drop type ride. Duration about 1 1/2 hours. We'll be hitting Cutler and Nahanton Parks. These are some pretty mellow trails. Call over to the shop and ask for me if you got any questions now.

-t