Two Wheel Blogs

I have found myself engaging in a lot of discussions regarding rules lately. The sport of cycling seems pretty simple, yet there are an astronomical amount of rules.

For the purposes of this mental stroll, lets simplify by only considering a Time Trial. I mean, it seems like the logical choice for the *simplest* form of racing...you "go" when you are told, they time you, and the lowest time wins. How simple can it be?

First off, there are rules regarding what your clothing can look like. Yup, there is a dress code. You can not associate yourself with any logos or "teams" unless they are "real" teams that meet the criteria set by the governing body. Simple enough, just buy a monochrome jersey and shorts (or body suit).

Next we have to take a look at our position and the bike geometry. There are all sets of rules regarding the bike dimensions, tubing shapes, and how the rider engages the bike. Once again, it seems simple enough, just get a bike that looks like what a common man would call a "bike". If you feel compelled (or others compell you) to explain why/how this bike fits the definition of common "bike", it isn't.

Finally we need to consider what is inside the rider. Has he/she taken any chemicals on the banned substance list? Not so fast, there is a lot of stuff on this list that the average person takes regularly throughout the year (cold remedies for example). Seems you may be "doping" and not even realize it.

Now for a hack like me all this is pretty trivial in that few would look my way for compliance since I am not claiming any prize money, or prizes for that matter. However, I would prefer to be able to sit back and say cheating is bad and not be a hypocrite.

This whole thing feels a lot like fractal mathematics. It is more complicated than it probably needs to be, and regardless of how focused (micro), or laid-back (macro) you are on the topic, the problem looks the same.

I think I am going crazy with this weather...