kay tsui mom, cyclist, national champion - Spokes Magazine

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BALTIMORE & WASHINGTON – FRIENDLY CYCLING CITIES by RON CASSIE Baltimore and Washington, D.C., have made the top ten among America’s most bicycle friendly cities, according to a study released in June. Baltimore was ranked third and D.C. was ranked sixth. For the first time in four years, a new city claimed the title as the worst in the U.S. for road rage. New York has unseated Miami as the least courteous city, according to the fourth annual In the Driver’s Seat Road Rage Survey, commissioned by AutoVantage, a leading national auto club. The Big Apple moved up from its No. 3 ranking last year to claim the distinction. Rounding out the five worst cities for road rage are Dallas/Fort Worth, Detroit, Atlanta and Minneapolis/St. Paul. The survey also named a new city as the most courteous. Portland, Oregon, took the top spot, moving up from No. 2 last year. It was followed by 2) Cleveland, 3) Baltimore, 4) Sacramento, 5) Pittsburgh, 6) Washington, D.C. 7) tied: Philadelphia & St. Louis 9) Boston 10) Seattle. Behaviors by other drivers that cause stress for commuters and can lead to road rage include: • Drivers who talk on their cell phones (84 percent see this every day) • Driving too fast (58 percent) • Tailgating (53 percent) • Drivers eating or drinking while driving (48 percent) • Texting or e-mailing while driving (37 percent) Commuters also reported other drivers frequently: • Cutting over without notice (43 percent see this every day) • Doing other things – putting on makeup, shaving or reading behind the wheel (27 percent) • Slamming on the brakes (25 percent) • Running red lights (22 percent) As a reaction to rude or bad driving by others, people surveyed admitted that they: • Honk their horn at the offending driver (43 percent admit doing this every month) • Curse at the other driver (36 percent) • Wave their fist or arms (13 percent) • Make an obscene gesture (10 percent) • Call the police to report the driver (7 percent) • Slam into the car in front of them (1 percent) FREE CLASSIFIEDS @ www.spokesmagazine.com 16 August 2009
TOUR DE FRANCE: A SPECTATOR’S PERSPECTIVE by LISA A. KILDAY It was fitting that I chose to view Stage 13 of the 96th Tour de France in Colmar, France. Colmar is home to the sculptor Frédéric Bartholdi who designed the Statute of Liberty that was donated to the U.S. in 1886. A 12-meter high replica of Lady Liberty is displayed when you enter the town. Colmar is located in the Alsace vineyard region of France bordering Germany’s Black Forest and has been a six-time host city for the Tour. This region has been predominantly under German control, which is reflected in the local German inflected dialect of French, their food, and culture. Recently in terms of European history, Germany ceded this region back to France after WWII. This may provide some relief for those who suffer from Francophobia. In contrast to Colmar’s genteel hills, the historic center of Colmar was bustling with Tour de France fever. Coordinating yellow and black trash bags hung on the barricades of the Tour’s route inside Colmar. As the temperature dipped into the low 50s, the people watching in Colmar began arriving. Spectators donned yellow baseball caps from Tour sponsor, LCL Banque. The giant green foam hands from PMUS, also a Tour sponsor, returned to the Tour in foam this time instead of the accident-prone cardboard versions. Pensioners were a plenty to receive many of the freebie’s provided by the sponsors of the Tour. Miraculously, I wandered past heavy barricades and half a dozen French policemen to enter into the park that housed the media. The media area was more than a park; it was a mobile command center for TV stations from around the world. The media park was like a movie set on steroids. Instead of a few TV trucks and tents, there were over 70 big rigs and dozens of trailers and tents from what seem like every European TV station. I gravitated toward the Versus Channel truck naturally. The Versus 18-wheeler studio had a unique setup with two levels. Members of the TV crew allowed me to look inside their rolling studio while Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen and Bob Roll were filming upstairs. The sides of the trailer on the first level opened up to form a mobile stage. A few rows of chairs were arranged facing a huge flat screen TV showing -- what else -- live coverage of the Tour de France on Versus TV on the first floor of the studio. The wardrobes of the presenters were hung up on the opposite side of the stage. A staircase connected the first floor studio to the second floor studio that is primarily used for broadcast. I would have never guessed that the Versus TV studio was designed like a pop-up camper. The second floor was retractable and popped up to rise above the trees, which not only provided a lovely backdrop for the broadcast but helped block other TV trucks and tents that may interfere with Versus’ background. Although I enjoyed roaming around the media village, the temperatures were dropping quickly and I left to warm up inside a café. About two hours before the expected finish time, I searched for a good viewing spot. Unfortunately, the crowd was lining up three deep against the fence. Despite strong French police presence and a few members of the French Army guarding the VIP section, I strolled in to the barricaded VIP section without a wristband or expensive ticket. It was pretty sweet to be within 100 meters of the finish line even in the pouring rain. At the end of each stage usually two hours before the expected finish time, all of the team sponsors and team vehicles do an impromptu parade through the last kilometers of the stage. While it was fun to receive some token race goodies, I thought that the parade was over commercialized. I find this ironic since Europeans tend to have the view that Americans are money obsessed. In my opinion, the Tour is essentially a 2,800- mile train of advertisements; each cyclist is branded from head to toe with advertisements and every team vehicle is a billboard for their backers. I spoke to several French spectators regarding their favorite team and cyclist. The Frenchmen displaying fevered nationalism only supported French riders, such as, Sebastien Minard, on French teams (Cofidis) who were not particularly talented or favored to win. Their blind allegiance puzzled me but then again most Americans are fixated on the veteran seven-time winner Lance Armstrong. Cycling’s popularity has also waned in Europe recently due to the frequent doping dramas, such as, Festina Affair and Operacion Puerto. Helmut Berthold of Germany told SPOKES, “the Tour is irrelevant to sports. [It’s] a Tour de Pharma.” Despite the inevitable cynicism, the 2009 Tour went on with great success with a lot of help from Armstrong’s comeback. And not one rider was cast our due to doping allegations. The local newspapers in Germany and France featured articles on the Tour’s arrival to their region; notably, each paper had a feature article on our hometown hero Lance Armstrong. Even some French people could not contain their excitement about Lance’s return and admitted that they would not mind seeing Lance riding in the peloton that day. Stage 13 was expected to favor the sprinters despite the category 1 climb and a pair of category 2 and 3 mountain climbs in the 200 km course. Alsace is home to modest mountains and did not produce any challenging climbs. Surprisingly, Heinrich Haussler riding for the Cervélo Test Team broke away from the peloton 5 km after the start and raced solo to the finish to gain his first maillot jaune. Haussler is an Australian of German descent who relocated to Germany as a teenager to pursue his dreams of becoming a professional cyclist. He currently lives and trains 30 kilometers away from Colmar in Germany. The self-titled “Racing Kangaroo” could not hold back his tears after winning his first Tour de France stage by more than a mile. The peloton finished seven minutes behind him. The only difficulty that the riders and spectators had with the day was the cool weather and the miserable downpour of Stage 13. As a spectator, I was disappointed with the weather but glad that I had a chance to attend. Plus, the Tour de France is a free event, so I cannot complain. I originally planned to attend Stage 15 in Verbier, Switzerland. Stage 15 in the Alps proved to be exciting and decisive for Team Astana’s individual standings, potentially spoiling Lance Armstrong’s chances to win the Tour. Mountain stages generally have more fans because the stages offer multiple viewing points and the cyclists ride by slower during mountain stages versus the flat or time trial stages. However, the fan fare and people watching in Colmar were worth the two-hour soggy wait for Haussler’s solo finish. A-1 Cycling TWO LOCATIONS OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK! Mon - Sat 10am-9pm Sun 12pm-6pm HERNDON Clock Tower Shopping Center 2451-13 Centreville Rd. (703) 793-0400 MANASSAS Next to Best Buy 7705 Sudley Rd. (703) 361-6101 www.A1Cycling.com Bicycles & Equipment for the Whole Family! COMPETITIVE PRICES WITH HOME TOWN SERVICE SINCE 1980 A-1 is a family-run business focusing on quality and service. Our staff is trained to superior standards to create a bicycle enthusiast's dependable source. COME EXPERIENCE THE DIFFERENCE! We stock products from: Giant Thule Specialized Burley Raleigh Speedplay Felt Sigma Sport Haro Descente Hoffman Camelbak Minoura Continental CTS Serfas August 2009 17
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Page 29 and 30: THE CYCLIST'S KITCHEN by NANCY CLAR
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kay tsui mom, cyclist, national champion - Spokes Magazine

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