I think I’ve watched less pro cycling races this year than in a long time. Actually – I know I have. It wasn’t even a conscious decision. But I do have to admit almost every race I look at, there was some guy that I was suspicious of. And that doesn’t make it any fun to watch. There are a few folks I’ve enjoyed watching race around on bikes a little more than others. It is a short list. As a fan of the sport the names Chris Horner, Jens Voigt and Fabian Cancellara (who just so happened to end up on the same team) always stood out for me somehow. Part of my enjoyment of Horner and Voigt specifically was their age. They showed me that getting older wasn’t an excuse I should even consider.

It would be great to be confident these men – and others like them – have ridden clean. But the pragmatist steps in. They’ve been on teams where other riders and management have been linked to doping. More and more people come out and say they doped. Unfortunately what has happened now is not that specific riders have been identified, but an entire generation of riders are now under suspicion – deserving or not. Every win is subject to a “was he doping” question.

I’m not specifically upset that doping occurred. It is understandable. If you pin paychecks on performance folks will do what they can to improve performance. So what do we do? Chris Horner has been quoted as saying, basically, that if we don’t trust the tests we shouldn’t bother with them. That’s a paraphrase for sure, but it is a valid question. How do we get back to a place where folks can sit down, watch a bike race and not have the specter of doping over every winner. Because I miss enjoying a good bike race.

Maybe I should just stick to my local races and clubs. Or watch women’s racing instead.

May is bike month. We all know it, and many of us go on about it. We get bike to school day, bike to work day, and in addition a whole bike to work week! Local coffee shops, bike shops and assorted business get the excuse opportunity to set up tables along popular bike routes and paths giving away free swag and looking very bike-friendly. This should be a month for me to rejoice – to share enthusiasm and passions with the greater cycling community. A time for us to pat ourselves on our collective back and take stock in how far advocacy efforts have come. And May is action packed with a lot more than just advocacy and riding to work. On the racing front, we had not only the grand american race Tour of California, but also the Giro d’Italia.  The Tour of Cali was especially engaging for me this year, as I watched one of my personal favorites – and fellow old guy – Chris Horner appear to struggle through the Time Trial with an anchor on his bike. The setback would have crushed the spirits of other folks. But the drama unfolded in the final significant climbs of the race as Horner, Jens Voigt (another personal favorite and fellow old guy) and others took a flyer off the front. Slowly riders from the break away dropped one by one, until Chris Horner had actually made back all the time lost in the TT and then some.  He climbed his way into first place on paper – as Phil Liggett likes to say – and had me on the edge of my seat. Unfortunately the herculean effort was not enough and he was eventually caught. But what a way to highlight what bike month is supposed to be about – enjoying all aspects of bicycles. Rolling the cruiser, commuting to work, or ripping the peloton apart.

Unfortunately, this time around all Bike Month managed to do for me was remind me that the other 11 months are not bike month.  June came this year to punch me in the gut and drive the point home. June has brought us the apparent implosion (again) of what should have been the best team in the peloton – RadioShack Nissan Trek. Andy Schleck has been plagued by … something … all season. There are already rumors of the Schleck boys leaving the squad. When the team announced their Tour de France lineup, Chris Horner was not on the list. This lead to all kinds of speculation and drama as to why that happened. Shortly thereafter, it was announced that the presumed Tour de France GC contender Andy Schleck was not going to make it due to injury. Ahh, but poor Bruyneel wasn’t done with bad news yet. Just when we thought it was over, Bruyneel and Mr Armstrong find themselves in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Yup – doping allegations again. What is a cycling enthusiast to do.

But hold on a second…

I once again started my commute on a bicycle this morning in beautiful San Francisco. I passed numerous folks doing the same thing. I continue to ride my bike and enjoy it. And despite the fact that folks are predicting a guilty finding for Armstrong would “destroy cycling” my bike will still pedal and roll regardless of a USADA decision regarding Armstrong.

So that’s what I’ll do. I’ll let June suck for Bruyneel and Armstrong. Come July, I’ll be keeping track of the Tour de France and enjoying it. Bike Month is irrelevant to me, honestly. I don’t have a bike month, or even a bike year. I have a bike life, and plan to until I can’t turn my pedals any more.

I was sitting in my new favorite greasy spoon – Heidis Pies on El Camino Real in San Mateo – when Blue Oyster Cult’s “Don’t Fear the Reaper” came on the radio.  As I was half-listen while reading the latest issue of Road Bike Action magazine, I could hear the cowbell in my head.  Only, the cowbell isn’t really there – at not least as much as I heard it.  The cowbell had been engrained in my subconscious so much that I actually thought I was hearing it.

I’m referring, of course, to the Christopher Walken skit done on Saturday Night Live featuring that song.  That particular skit has become so iconic that most folks from my generation will know exactly what you are talking about if you mention “I gotta have more cowbell!”

(Yes – this will eventually have something to do with cycling)

That got me to thinking about how somethings just get stuck in the collective psyche – become memes.  “I gotta have more cowbell” sure falls into that category.  Then my mind immediately jumped to Jens Voigt.  It seems that every time he opens his mouth it is as if he is saying “I gotta have more cowbell!”  The guy can’t seem to speak without being quotable.  What cyclist hasn’t heard “Shut up Legs!”  Jens himself talked (very humbly) about this very phenomenon himself in a recent blog post.

I started wonder why Jens seems to have gained this particular social standing in cycling.  It occurred to me that Jens seems to just ride his bike.  Sure, all pro cyclists do that.  But for some it seems almost as if “pro” is more important than “cyclist” in that label.  Obviously all of these guys are doing this to make a living.  Somehow Jens – and others like him – seem to live outside of this celebrity-pro-cyclist persona.  Again, quoting Jens himself:

I was just being myself. Maybe that appeals to cycling fans, too. People see what they get with me and they get what they see. I don’t have brilliant earrings. I don’t have tattoos. I don’t have a Porsche or Ferrari in my garage. (And let’s not forget my funny German accent–that helps as well!)

Contrast that with someone like Lance Armstrong.  Lance has very much focused on the celebrity – the public persona.  Don’t get me wrong, I think that was the right thing for him to do.  He is one of the rare folks that has been able to harness that persona and channel it to benefit the world via the Livestrong foundation.  However, it is a very different approach to cycling.  Lance seems to utilize cycling as a tool – a means to an end.  Jens – well, he just seems to be out riding his bike and happens to collect a pay check for doing it.

There is one other guy I can think of in the pro peloton that seems to convey that attitude – Chris Horner.  Both men are straight forward, personable and seem like the guy next door – no matter how many cameras are in their faces.  It is probably no coincidence that they also happen to be two of my favorite riders.

It is folks like Horner and Voigt that keep cycling alive.  Despite all the drama and turmoil that we currently find our sport in, these guys seem to be outside the nonsense.  They help bring me full circle, demonstrating that in the world of pro cycling I gotta have more cowbell!

[singlepic id=57 w=320 h=240 float=right]I found it particularly rewarding to watch Chris Horner win the 2011 Amgen Tour of California.  Horner is one of my favorite riders in the peloton.  As anyone that has been reading my posts will have noticed, I’m primarily a Leopard-Trek fan.  Or, more precisely, I’m a Voigt, Schleck, Schleck and Cancellara fan, and they just happen to still be riding on the same team.

While my Leopard Trek fandom comes form watching the guys race, my appreciation of Chris Horner is much more personal.  I had the opportunity to both meet and ride with Chris Horner at last years Clark’s Corner Cycling Challenge.  That’s where I learned that, well, Chris is just a really cool guy.  There are few folks as down to earth, approachable and humble.  Oh – and the guy seems to have a perpetual smile on his face.

Horner even mentioned Clark’s Corner in one of his video diaries taken during the Tour of California:

[singlepic id=65 w=320 h=240 float=left]One of the things that struck me about standing next to the guy is how tiny he was last year – at least to me.  What is interesting about that is that Horner has stated that getting his weight down was key to winning the AToC.

Levi Leipheimer had made a couple of joking comments to the press about Horner “Getting the diet under control,” and Horner himself was quoted regarding his dieting efforts by VeloNews as saying:

We [Chris and grilfriend Megan Elliott] tried it the grocery route, preparing healthy meals at home, but I wasn’t losing weight. While cooking meals, I was snacking, too. Often you don’t start cooking dinner until you’re hungry, and dinner takes an hour to make. Next thing you know, you’re shredding cheese and cutting yourself an extra thick slice to nibble on, or taking a handful of almonds, or eating a piece of the bread that is supposed to go with your pasta, and even though your dinner is only supposed to be 1,000 calories, you’ve added an extra 700 just snacking while making dinner.

It looks like other folks might get the opportunity to rub elbows with Chris Horner in the same way I did.  Indications are that he will again be attending the Clark’s Corner Cycling Challenge on September 25th in Ione, CA.  I spoke with Kraig Clark regarding this second annual event, and it looks like things will be changing a little bit from last year’s format.  This time around it will be a bit more traditional, with set routes of varying lengths.  I would also highly recommend the VIP dinner – as the food last year was fantastic.

I talked about it in the previous post titled “Chris Horner to ride the Sacramento Area.”  Well, I was finally able to spend a big part of my weekend at the festivities at Clark’s Corner.  It was a great experience to ride along with Chris Horner of Team Radio Shack, who was out to support the event before heading off to the US Pro National Road Race Championships.

The VIP dinner was fantastic – great food and a small group made for a very friendly evening.  I’ve actually got audio of a question and answer session with Chris Horner after dinner that is both humerus and informative.  Of everything about my experiences with Chris Horner, I walked away first and foremost with the impression of Chris Horner as a kind, friendly and approachable fellow.  Very down to earth and easy to talk to.  He also seems to have a great sense of humor.

After the dinner on Friday, I was lucky enough to ride about 40 miles from Sacramento to the Cafe in Ione, before joining others on the 10 mile ride around the city.  Again, great conversation and the relaxed atmosphere to the entire thing was incredible.  With a couple of blocks of Ione closed off, all things bikey had reign over the road in front of Clark’s Corner.  You can tell this is an event that is going to take off in the next couple of years.

Thanks to Clark’s Corner for hosting the event, and Chris Corner for coming out.  It was a great experience, and I’m very much looking forward to repeating it again next year.