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the impending mud
i'm not that keen on mud and even less so of sand. several years ago i'd to strip down ten pairs of hubs, scrub up the bearings, re-grease and re-assemble. i can assure you, there are more cheerful ways to spend an autumn day. the cause/reason? the guy who then owned the post office, hired bikes to anyone with the appropriate cash and will to do so, and in similar manner to hired cars, those doing so really couldn't give a stuff for the well-being of those particular velocipedes. i know from the personal acquaintance with forty sets of bearings.
the reason for such substantial bearing maintenance rests with the two elements of sand and mud. though most hirers were requested not to ride the bikes across the sands of the big strand on the shores of loch indaal, few, it seems, paid any attention. come the end of the hire season (september weekend usually), there was nary a wheelset that ran without sounding like motorhead's lemmy in full voice. a couple of years of this, and it is perhaps comprehensible as to why sand, mud and i are not entirely on speaking terms.
it would be unfair to level the drudgery of routine maintenance at each and every set of hubs; those of higher quality rarely suffer to the same degree. simply a matter of quality. so why now has my disaffection with gloop softened somewhat? it's many a long year since i had a set of knobblies and a propensity to fall off midst a scattering of sheep droppings. aside from the iniquities of having to ride for miles on big chunky tyres in search of appropriate locations to carry out my falling over routine, mud and a variety of agricultural substances rather undermined the experience in my increasingly road-focused eyes.
but along came cyclocross, leaving those drop bars in place, tyres that made road riding less of a chore and the fabulous imagery that was and is pdxcross.com. photos such as those seasonally seen on the pdx web pages were almost by way of dispensation to not only have a bit of fun, but seemingly sanctioned the art of falling off. not only that, but it seemed more than possible to enjoy all those factors without pinning a number on a back pocket. the internet and eurosport provided more than sufficient hours of coverage to satisfy the armchair combatant.
so now i can enjoy my autumns and winters getting muddy but in a manner for some reason, not redolent of mountain biking. presumably a simple state of mind. or simply a state of mind. however, some folks are old hands at this, and rather than making the best use of an opportunity to go play off the street, there are more serious aims afoot. taking everything a stage further than that, suppose you're the bloke responsible for building the darned bicycles in the first place? richard sachs needs little, if any introduction in these pixels. an inveterate poster of photos to flickr, richard has displayed an impressive array of red frames ready and waiting to be kitted out for the coming 'cross season. does he ever find it a progressive chore to ready the bikes for each season, or is the emotion closer to excitement?
"I do all the RS 'Cross Team frames and forks in batches so that the larger task interferes as little as possible with my orders from paying clients. Nearly all the prep work is done at nights or on weekends, or in rare instances when I am bored with work and need a change. At some point in the late Spring I'll take the requisite number of tubes, miter them, and place them in a box. Other times I might grind the lugs and fittings for the batch - they get tossed in the box too. Rear stay to dropout assemblies. Fork blade assemblies. All are done en masse (that's French for in the mass...) and in numbers corresponding to that season's team needs, so that when I do block out the time to make the complete units, the per-frame time is about five to six hours. The sub-assemblies usually become frames by late July. That gives team sponsor Joe Bell Custom Paint time to get them finished and returned so that I can build the bicycles for the season."
my sole concession to readying myself for a world famous impersonation of sven nys was to swap out a pair of panaracer 28mm road tyres for a set of continental 'cross variants (i may also have tightened up the cantilever brakes along the way). thus, there is little, if anything in the way of unbridled excitement and hours of unfettered mudslinging. this, however, is a solo expedition in my case, sachs has an entire team to prepare for and work with. does he still harbour the same enthusiasm for the sport as in previous years?
Yes. That has never changed. I believe this season will be my 30th contiguous (I love using that word, contiguous...) year of sponsoring and running teams. The 'cross team became a full time effort in 1997. Some of the same motions, and body English, and muscle memory (hey - are they all the same thing?!) that I feel when it's let's-go time are the same ones I have felt for decades. One season ends. Winter and Spring pass. And all of the sudden my days are consumed with prep work for the team and the season ahead. It's part of the routine.
though i intend to maintain my stance as a conscientious objector to the realms of competitive cycling from a participatory point of view, this does not stop several friends and colleagues from urging me to take baby steps into the world of cyclocross on the basis that i might just enjoy myself and what harm could it possibly do? all this despite the knowledge that my bike handling skills would trouble the course tape far more than any fellow competitors. this seems not to matter much; cyclocross seems naturally inclusive. from richard's experienced point of view, does 'cross present itself as a more participatory branch of the sport than, for example, road racing?
"Yes - on every level. Without even touching on the first group, a typical 'cross race has a separation almost when the entrants leave the pavement and start lap one. There are normally cats and kittens all over the course by the time the second lap begins. Some folks are there to win or be near that first group. Others get jettisoned by an obstacle or a mechanical and lose contact. Others still may lack the skills and fitness but still pin on a number. All of this becomes a spectacle that is quite interesting and even beautiful to watch (as well as be part of). It's also the consummate spectator sport as far as cycling disciplines go."
Apart from Richard, Mrs Sachs and Buddy (the dog) who else is in this year's team? "For 2012, we are supporting three riders in the Elite Men's field. They are Dan Chabanov, Christian Favata, and Dan Timmerman." and in how many races does the team intend to compete? "All of them atmo. Ha. But really, I think we start about 40 UCI C2 and C1 races beginning Saturday September 8th and ending at the National Championships in Colorado in January. Should one of the cats get a Worlds Team selection, increase the number to 41."
cyclocross is hardly immune from the march of technical progress, with many a component being improved, replaced or superseded. richard sachs, however, is a creature of habit; has he made any technical 'improvements' for this year's bikes, or is it a case of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'?
"I have made eight new bicycles for 2012 and we also have some spares from the 2011 season. The only significant difference on this year's batch is that I now (finally) use the Richard Sachs Piccoli Gioielli (that's Italian for Little Jewels...) frame and fork dropouts. I continue to use a lightweight version of the PegoRichie tubing that Columbus supplies for me, along with all the Richie-Issimo castings that I have used for years. The bicycles are all Sram Force equipped, with Zipp stems, 'bars, and seat posts, Cole-Richard Sachs T24 CX wheels with an assortment of Challenge tubulars, Selle San Marco Aspide saddles, Crank Brothers Candy 11 pedals, Connex chains, and Cane Creek headsets and cantilever brakes. We'll race in Northwave footwear, protect our heads and eyes with Rudy Project helmets and sunglasses, and - has has been the case since 1997 - all racing kits are from Verge Sport. The entire mother lode will fit in specialty duffel and apparel bags made for us by Bailey Works.
"Huzzah, huh."
times, we are constantly reminded, are hard at present, with allegedly less and less money available for other than the necessities of life. for those who race cross, that would be easily included by such a word. however, transporting several bicycles plus spares plus personnel up and down the east side of the united states is never going to be cheap, and though there's always the prize money, form and fitness rather presages whether that's something that can be counted on or not. which brings us neatly to the subject of sponsorship, the monies paid by businesses eager to associate themselves with cycle sport and, in this case, with richard sachs. have all his previous sponsors re-signed for the 2012/13 season?
"Yes - all of the sponsor and industry suppliers are back for 2012. The title sponsor is RGM Watch Company and I often refer to the organization as the RGM Watch Company - Richard Sachs 'Cross Team. Also, we have House Industries, The Radix Group, Rajanaka Yoga, and Rex Chiu as official sponsors. I want to add that the team also benefits from financial support of several who wish to remain either anonymous or for whom there is no reason to place a marque on the team kits. We're both lucky and thankful for all of this."
the t-shirt says it, the advert in cyclocross magazine says it (black on yellow), but is it still true? does 'cross still fugkinc rule? "Not only does it still rule, it pays dividends atmo. At the core, we are here to 1) represent the sponsors, suppliers, and support system superbly well so that they can grow their brands with us and, 2) make memories such that every weekend can be looked back upon by each of us and make us wish it could have lasted forever and, 3) achieve our personal goals as athletes. To be candid, nothing else matters."
cyclocross, particularly in north america, tends to be a smidgeon more inclusive than the traditional homeland of middle europe. in other words, it is not an entirely male dominated sport in the usa. however, whether male or female, both are often dependent on their other halves cutting them some slack when training is involved yet dutifully travelling to each and every race with cowbell in hand. having met deb sachs at nahbs this year, she seemed happily resigned to her husband's place in the cycling firmament and equally as happy to support from the sidelines. it therefore seemed not entirely unseemly that i ask if she enjoys the 'cross season as much as does richard?
"I will reply for TLD (The Lovely Deb) so that she can remain in Garbo mode - Deb is about personal connections and face-time more so than is afforded by the ones and zeros of the internet. Anyone can come visit us (her) at the race venues and chat about the cyclocross weekends, our team-mates, the lifestyle we cling to each Autumn, or about her impending studies that involve getting a Master's Degree in Writing For Children from Simmons College. Just make sure it's not near to the time we need to get to the pits so we can crew for Dan, Christian, and Dan."
i know richard is not alone in his enthusiasm for 'cross season, but in view of the singular preparation and investment of time and effort required against that of competing teams who are quite literally handed their factory bikes from a willing sponsor, it is impressive to see the hold that 'cross has on richard sachs'. and, of course, the enjoyment he has received in return for the last thirty years of his involvement.
i will never complain about having to inflate both tyres on the same day ever again.
tuesday 11th september 2012
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