The title of ‘Ravissantste RetroRondeRenner’ is once again up for grabs this weekend in Flanders, which obviously means that the 2012 Retro Ronde is soon upon us. If your Flemish is a little rusty, allow us to explain that Brooks is sponsoring the prize for Most Ravishing Retro Ronde Racer.
The water’s lovely. Bike messengers dive-bombing the hot tub last weekend in Edinburgh. photo courtesy Alan Forbes
Readers will recall how earlier in the week we advanced the theory that Naked Bike Rides might possibly be evidenced as the latest adornment of Courier Life to go mainstream.
This is because many bike messengers, when not acting in their capacity as unwitting arbiters of style for other urban cyclists, have a famous propensity for taking all their clothes recreationally off.
Amid all the cheering and hubbub surrounding Mike Hall’s victorious return to Greenwich earlier in the month, it was perhaps easy to lose sight of the fact that there are still riders out on the course, so to speak.
The WCR continues apace, with three of the original riders who set off in February fighting the good fight.
Just behind our cyclist, a Naked Puncture Repair is in progress. Attention grabbing stuff.
The clothes, the accessories, and even the gear ratios which bike messengers opt to use while working can be a famously popular port-of-call for the rookie urban cyclist in search of street-credible guidance.
Almost equally famous, perhaps, is the courier penchant for getting recreationally naked. And judging by last weekend’s events in the English capital, it would seem that partying without many clothes on at all could be the next adornment of the messenger sub-culture to go mainstream. Well, that’s our theory anyway…
Photo Liz Seabrook
Brooks was once again on board last weekend in London for the IG Markets Nocturne, an evening of street racing in the heart of the English capital.
Around 12000 spectators gathered at Smithfield to witness racers vying with each other to take the top spot in a variety of categories.
In time-honoured tradition, riders’ shoes are sent skywards before the group start. Photo Geoffroy Libert
The inaugural Belgian Single Speed Championships took place recently over the last weekend of May, with Brooks happily on board to assist in any way we could. Race organizer Bruno Duquesne has kindly got back to us with some pictures and memories of the event, which attracted Shifterphobes from as far away as the United States to the World’s Conveyor Belt of Cycling Greats.
As another week for us mere Mortals draws to a close, we have news from the WCR Grand Tour, some of which may be of interest for anybody near London who has been following our riders since they began their race around the World earlier this spring.
