What is a cycling journalist to do?

A Scene from the movie The Program
Scene from “The Program.” Armstrong and Landis in hotel room.

I miss bike races. I miss watching them. I miss following them. I miss enjoying them without needing to be cynical constantly. But mostly I miss the constant feed of interesting things to write about.

As a cycling journalist blogger hack, finding something interesting to write about on a regular basis is the food that feeds the soul. It is super easy to take the advocacy fear mongering path. One can find a steady stream of stupid comments from politicians, tales of death in the city streets, ridiculous public spending on things that are supposed to be “infrastructure.” Some can brave this stream and do the hard work of exposing these important issues. And some can do a damn good job of it. But it it as unfortunately negative view.

Bike industry news is another topic. But even that can be draining. How many times can I enthral you with yet another new product, reinventing yet another old product, by copying what an even older product already did?

But bike racing. The human drama. Battles to the finish line. Heartbreaking crashes. Overcoming incredible odds at the last minute. Ahhhhh….. that’s good stuff.

Except when it isn’t.

Despite all the lip service and ad dollars thrown at it, bike racing still has the dark cloud of doping mucking up all the fun. Stupid people doing stupid things, then trying to cover it up with stupid excuses.

I, for one, miss the times when I was either ignorant of all of the dark side stuff, or was still able to set it aside and enjoy the good. A grumpy old crumudgeon makes for a very poor cycling journalist.

Photo by Richard Masoner / Cyclelicious https://www.flickr.com/photos/bike/

So to that end – time to pay less attention to the Tour Giro Vuelta. There are still interesting, positive, and fun cycling stories about bike racing. Go find your local crit. Connect with a local “just for the hell of it ride” and remind yourself that this whole bikey thing is fun. Sprint to the city limits sign with your local cycling club safe in the knowledge ignorance that the caffeine from the coffee shop where everyone met is the only PED to worry about. Admire new products not for their super-light-weigh uber-aero technology, but their beauty and art. Screw the rules – wear your wool cycling cap whenever you want. Go to a local CX race and be a non-abusive, yet commercially intoxicated, spectator. Don’t let the doping BS ruin it for everyone else.

Just… have fun.