Tombs and King Generator

Couple new records featuring Blackbox impresario and all around master of heaviness Mike Hill. Tombs is his new post Anodyne/Versoma band and King Generator is more of a project(I guess?) KG (not #5) give you 8 minutes and 18 seconds of fury. Fast and furious hardcore. Flirts with D-Beat and power violence but not at all generic. All but one song clock in under a minute. Features Dave Witte on drums so that should get your attention. One sided lp with a cool etching on the blank side. 1000 pressed. 300 on color so record nerds get hunting. Also comes with a CD version so you can get it right up on your IPOD with no fuss. Tankcrime put this one out.

Tombs is up next. 7 tracks on black box recordings. Definitely some dark and heavy music. Not to far removed from Versoma in that it has a melodic edge. That is what kicks this up to the next level. Heavy is good, but heavy, depressive, and memorable makes for repeated listenings. 4th track is some instrumental damage that has a kinds 4 days in the studio with no sleep vibe-kinda Zen Arcade style. Finishes off heavy and pummeling. Graphics are suitably dark and claustrophobic. A winner. Keep an eye out for a new record on Relapse!

Giro 01 Stage 8 Some Photos part one.

I guess it was the 2001 Giro that I got to see. A stage that departed from Montecatini Terme a cool spa town northwest of Florence.
It was the year Julio Perez knocked out his teeth. Simoni won and did that stupid dye job on his head.. It was also the year of the big drug raid in San Remo that got Frigo kicked out and had riders jumping out of windows to escape the cops.

These photos were all from a disposable camera that I dragged around. I found the Liquigas and Mercantone Uno buses and gear trailers, but the pictures did not come out so sweet.
I remember emptying the camera on this corner as the race jumped off. If I remember quickly, I was out of film when Jan Ullrich rolled out-after all the team cars with a couple Telekom riders to bring him up to the race.

Wish I had a digital cam back then but here are some of the shots.

Lotto were riding GTs and from the looks of this team car most of the spare wheels were Paves? Unless they were on the ugly green michelins. Can't remember. Rik Verbrugghe killed the prologue this year and lotto was in pink for a minute.


Pantani was there(look hard, I am not a great photog. I think his spare bike is up front on the team car shot)




Mapei was riding for Garzelli this year.

Finally would it be a Giro without Saeco? This was they heyday of the Red Train and Super Mario!

return of the seatbag

When I first started riding road bikes, I had a giant seat bag that could hold tools,tubes,food, a chance of clothes, etc. I should have zip tied a small Baileyworks bag under there-it would have looked cooler. Overtime and trial and error, I gained confidence. I knew what things I really needed and discovered that on most rides under 60 miles, you could fit all you needed to be self sufficient in your jersey pockets.
I developed a real attitude problem about this. I remember an aborted blog entry about what looked good on a bike frame. "Bottles and a frame pump are acceptable. Period. Seat Packs were a necessary evil and everything else sucked." Was the jist of it.
Well after this spring/summer of mechanical dicontent, I have broken the saddle bag back out on most rides. I am carrying more tubes and tools. Ready for war. I am too busy to have a ride cut short cause I floated out the door without tire levers or allen wrenches. Or with the crucial extra tube in the pocket of a jersey lying on my basement floor. Thanks to my new found ability to make bike malfunction, I have had to learn how to keep them rolling and the seat bag is my ally.
Welcome back.

Where's Waldo

This is why I am amazed by Graham Watson. I was just standing on a corner and I couldn't really get the stars in the middle of the picture. He can do it hanging off the back of a motorbike. Look closely and try and play the Italian version of Where's Waldo aka Where's Simoni? Bonus points if you can pick out Julio Alberto Perez Cuapio. Should be easy since there aren't too many dudes in this incredibly well composed picture......



A few more old, blurry Giro Photos will be up by the weekend.

Colnago Part Two

I took this picture in Italy-Florence I think (Firenze to the locals) about 7 years ago. Is this a legit Colnago? Can't say. Is this the weirdest Colnago mixte frame or Colnago knock-off bootleg Mixte frame? Yes! Also nice attempt at some Cannondale worthy shock action on the top tube(s)???? Is this the worst lock ever on a Colnago? Probably.
I just got a bunch of old photos from this trip scaned so expect some terrible 2003 Giro photos to follow.

Modular Monocoque

Colnago must have been intimidated with all of Campy's new acronyms because with their new CX-1 frame they have introduced some real unique marketing double speak.
The frame is a "modular monocoque". ????? You can clearly see lugs behind the BB and at the seat tube junction that look like standard Colnago design. I guess the front end is one-piece with the seat and chain stays bonded on. Why not say monocoque front triangle or something simple? Why "modular monocoque"? Never mind that "modular" makes me think of some hideous modular home on the back of a flat bed -not the Italian image of speed they are hunting for.

Colnago seem to be struggling to stay releveant with all the other high end carbon bikes coming out and gobbling up market share, but they should stick to making unreal frames, not reinventing the English language and making frames that seem to mimic other carbon frame makers that are getting more attention.
I wanted a C-40 couldn't afford one, wanted a C-50 couldn't afford one. Started to get nervous when they introduced the HP chain stays and the Extreme Power models, but no worries-still couldn't afford one. Then came the "affordable" Colnago CLX and the whole "can it be a Colnago if it is built in Taiwan debate". No comment on that subject. So I guess it is a moot point whether I like the new design since it is unlikely you will see me on a CX-1 with full Super Record and Ultra Bora wheels anytime soon, but still don't make me insane at 6:00AM with your marketing double-speak.

Ice Cream Cobra

"Moreover, I have not fattened up one gram because when it is hot I don't have hunger, I have only ice cream and cold drinks."

A lot of people hate Riccardo Ricco cause he runs his mouth like Simoni on too many espressos. I have always found that amusing, he is 24. You can' expect much sensible to come out of a twenty four year olds mouth, but with the above quote he has pushed even me too far He eats only ice cream and doesn't get fat?? Fuck you, youngster. As you get older and seemingly turn into flab despite you best efforts, comments like this make you want to run anyone under 30 into the curb.
But maybe I am looking at this the wrong way. If ice cream and cold drinks keep RR in top form, maybe I need to adopt his training regime. An all ice cream diet shoud make vomitting during intervals that much easier.
It would be interesting to see him at the Tour. I would guess he coud snatch a stage win, but at his age back to back Grand Tours seems like a stretch.
Of course he diplomatically noted on his second Tour ride, 'Last year I was 20th in my first crack at it, so this year, I’m sure things will go even better....” A the melodious sounds of a humble rider.