Re: [CR]CR term of the week

(Example: Events:Eroica)

From: "ternst" <ternst1@cox.net>
To: "ternst" <ternst1@cox.net>, <j.mccoin@comcast.net>, <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
References: <080820051521.13040.42F77886000CD754000032F022007481840207010C0C03D206@comcast.net> <00a001c5a13f$14852990$0200a8c0@D8XCLL51>
Subject: Re: [CR]CR term of the week
Date: Mon, 22 Aug 2005 19:47:08 -0700
reply-type=response

Sorry, everybody, I'm a day late so you'll get a bonus term. Last week's: Saddle tight, sleigh ride, sit in, and the bonus, sit on. Saddle tight as I learned it is when a rider can ride with the group, field, team and not get shook off. Does his share at the front, swings off and gets back in line and comes through again. Or it could be interpreted if he is alone that no matter how hard the opposition rides they can't get rid of him. You can come up with your own scenarios of the psyche here, and get the feeling of what it means to be jamming hard and be part of the action, or withstanding the enemies' attacks. Sleigh ride is when the group is racing along and a rider gets in the field and gets a ride along without coming to the front and pulling through. As if the horse is trotting along and the rider is sitting in the sleigh getting there without much effort.This needs a field of 30+ riders to be able to hide away. Sitting in really means in a field of riders where one can hide, never go to the front and let others pass and be nice and tucked in. Like sleigh riding or sitting in. Today's term is wheel sucking, very crude, no romance, no imagination. Unfortunately most of today's kids / riders are somewhat boring in their unrealistic expectations. Sorry, you know what I mean. This would be a great topic for extra- sportif discussion at a gathering. Bonus: Sitting on is the term used with small group where the riders are in a line changing off while setting the pace. The "sitter one" will be at the back of the line and as the previous pacesetter falls back to get into the line and rest in the slipstream as he goes through, the last rider will feign weakness and drop back a length to allow the rider coming back to swing in front of him. He's resting all the time, conserving, conniving, calculating. You can figure out the strategies going on as the other riders pick up on this. As the riders push themselves to get to the finish, nerves begin to fray, then the fun begins. Please remember that these terms are from the 1900's up through the '60's. They are originating from amateur riding where the strategy was different from what you see on TV about the TDF today. Some of the things are the same as you can readily identify. But, many new nuances exist today in our jargon that weren't in use years ago because of our non-participation in the international events other than on our tracks in the '30's and in the 6-day races. If any of you have any Q's you'd like to ask about any descriptions that use other old terms, don't hesitate to ask. I'll do my best to explain the explanation. For this week, how about: Sitting tight Close the gap Daylight.

Ted Ernst
Palos Verdes Estates, CA


----- Original Message -----
From: ternst
To: j.mccoin@comcast.net
Sent: Sunday, August 14, 2005 7:14 PM
Subject: Re: [CR]CR term of the week



> Enjoyed your memories, These are always great.
> Here's the term(s) for this week. They are related.
> Let's see how you do.
> 1) Sit in.
> 2) Sleigh ride.
> 3) Saddle tight.
> Ted Ernst
> Palos Verdes Estates, CA
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <j.mccoin@comcast.net>
> To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Sent: Monday, August 08, 2005 8:21 AM
> Subject: [CR]CR term of the week
>
>
>> Ted brought back fond memories, for me it was from the early 60's. Our
>> training rides would normally start somewhere in San Francisco and either
>> go South to San Jose or North over the Golden Gate Bridge.
>>
>> The top of every hill was a sprint, every city limit sign was a sprint. I
>> remember the nervousness in the pack the pace speeding up, the subtle
>> gear changes, I tried to include my gear change with returning my bottle
>> to its cage, it fooled some but not all. It was normal on the way back
>> from San Jose to cross over the Coast Range to Highway 1, normally when
>> you crested the hill you rode into the coast fog and as much as a 15
>> degree drop in the weather. The sprint into Half Moon Bay was always well
>> fought, I broke a chain in one of those.
>>
>> The rides to Marin were fantastic, we normally crossed Mt. Tamalpias and
>> then up the coast on Highway 1.I remember the sprints in to Rancho
>> Nicasio being especially long, imagine fifteen or twenty riders spinning
>> 52/13 combinations before even beginning the sprint The major change has
>> been the amount of traffic on the road, you don't dare have three riders
>> abreast on El Camino sprinting flat out. In those days about half of El
>> Camino Real had no sidewalks, the same with Marin County, it was mostly
>> dairy ranches.
>>
>> And for those of you waiting for it most of the bikes were Italian,
>> Bianchis, Cinellis and the small builders that nobody ever heard of,
>> brought back by the guys who had raced in Europe. I remember those having
>> especially nice fit and finish.
>>
>> Jim McCoin, yeah stuck in the Sixty's
>> Fremont Ca