SIDI Cycling shoes

Imagine my surprise when a Humble Older man Mr Dino Signori says to me "I don't speak English but i speak Japanese" !

Turned out he was joking about the japanese since i replied "Ohio (g'day before midday)" ! He then admitted to not speaking Japanese and enjoyed the joke . The gentleman in the photo is the founder of SIDI shoewear . The lady , Rosella , i have met on many occasions at cycling events when she was in company with Antonio the Responsible person for signing the likes of Contador , Bettini or Sara Carrigan whose shoes are on display in the foyer of their new Factory complex .

Delayed this post as i waited to get the photos into the system but thanks to SIDI for first class product .

This story started years ago whilst riding some of the Pro Tour routes when i used to josh Antonio about the fact that my wearing their shoes would cost far less than the Stars but i would also test them to destruction . The pair i am wearing are Mtb shoes which have carbon soles but the ridges are all detachable so that uneven wear can be countered by inserting new pieces . Previously i have worn out shoe bottoms but the uppers have remained in good condition if you of course overlook the scuff marks that come about through constant use . Mountain bike shoes are necessary for me since when i have completed the day's stage i have to wander around whilst awaiting the racers to arrive .
Last year at the TDF i happened on Antonio together with Rozella and she told me then they would be giving me shoes . At Trentino Antonio told me that i would have to wait until the Giro and so it was that i received the shoes . Wearing new shoes always effects the knees so i have been careful about the time spent wearing them . The old shoes were so worn that i am having to tread carefully as i walk up and down stairs .

SIDI Cycling shoes

DOPING IN SPORT

Bonds, Ramirez, Armstrong, Clemens Just Tip of Sports Drugs Iceberg was an itemi found whilst Trawling the Internet the link to the article is here !

The full lecture material link is here .

Points that i took away from the brief appraisal are :

"Olympic surveys taken at the 2000 and 2004 Games show that a majority of athletes would rather get an Olympic Gold medal than be alive in five years, according to Runners World.

"The $200 to $400 a test are pennies to the billions-of dollars Olympics, major professional sports, and even major college sports. Cost aside, there is NO practical test yet for HGH, even though the labs are close. Under Olympic rules, samples can be saved for two Olympiads (8 years)—largely thanks to former U.S. Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey's insistence on retroactivity. This allows punishment for past cheating if the science improves. But why not save samples for as long as the substance holds, given how law enforcement now uses DNA from decades ago in solving crimes?

"Drug busts do not mean the Olympics are dirty — they mean the Games are being kept clean. Frank Shorter, the Olympic Marathon Champion who headed up the US Anti-Doping Agency, told me that the big three drugs that athletes need to be tested for are steroids, EPO, and HGH. The Olympics also say 'or related substances' -- a catch-all that makes busted athletes unhappy who want to say their drug 'wasn't on the list'.

"However, because of HGH, TUE's, new designer steroids, masking agents, and especially because of the still remaining culture of protection, we have a lot of work to do, in the Olympics and professional sports, to make sports clean and keep our youth safe."


Then i happened on a CNF thread that relates to lowr levels of competition :

http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?t=13273


Windless Breeze has disclosed few details of his persona so one wonders what interest he has in raising tis troubling subject .

One thing is clear to me andthat s that once an aspirig athlete reaches a certain level of competition their National Authority should do a comprehenive health benchmark test on them so that there are criteria to refer back to as they pogress in their career . Will this solve the "Doping Problem " i doubt it but it may deter if not delay consideration of drug assisted compeition

DOPING IN SPORT

YOUR BIKE STOLEN

Panic , Dismay , Disbelief , how do I get home , what do I do ?

Trawling through Blog posts this arvo whilst it was raining I came across a London Cyclist item that grabbed my attention . Luckily I have not found out what so many others have had to experience . A broken window in a Vauxhall Viva car taught me not to park in Parking Stations in London in the 1960’s , lost my portable radio that time . Another broken window in my Ford Sierra pointed to the fact that the contents of the boot including a video camera had gone walk about . Parked outside the place where I was living in New Malden in the late 90’s reminded me that property was better locked in the house than out of sight in the car boot . Visited a lot of car boot sales that weekend without success .

Lisbon in the 90’s also saw a box of ski gear going missing including size 29.5 ski boots and a rather nice knitted sweater from Vancouver . What the culprits planned to do with the boots defies imagination . Likely the urchin who arrived with hand held out as I was parking for the night was planning to operate his form of a protection racket , Local Cops really helpful with their English and stamp for the insurance company if needed . Dropped a box of Crystal Glass wear in Sydney years before which that insurance company declined to payout on , so no longer waste the premiums .

Back to the purpose of the post and what I learned today . Should I have the misfortune of living in a Large City once again then the bike will need considerably more attention than pulling out the front wheel whilst in the shop or café . My mate in Manchester area scooted down to the shop on his £700 commuter bike and came out to discover he had to walk home . You get some funny looks walking around a shop with the front wheel in hand . Occasionally I lock up the front wheel with the frame and the lock wire goes through the frame and rear wheel and around a lamp post so that all three items are attached as long as the villain doesn’t have a pair of strong scissors .


Photo lifted from London Cyclist site !



Twitter is now the latest warning device for those trying to track down a lost/stolen bike , simply put those with the latest gadget can tweet to ; www.twitter.com/stolen bikes.London although other neighbourhoods may offer a similar service the way twitter is expanding into our everyday lives.

Commenters on LONDON Cyclist also mentioned security marking as a deterrent and thus www.immobilise.com was mentioned as a service occasionally offered free . Another was a website www.bikeregister.com where you can act/register before the possibility of the event occurring .
www.cycletaskforce@met.police.uk was mentioned as a reporting service after the event .

There seems to be a debate about the standard of locks required by the insurance companies . Visiting London cyclist’s post : http://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/secure/have-you-ever-had-a-bike-stolen/ will give you a few clues as to what will work for you .

When I want to do repairs to my car in Austria I have to produce my “log book” so that the repairer can figure out the info that is needed so as to get the right parts to the service personnel . No log book tends to mean no service , how or why you need the log book to change the tyres defies me .

Police these days seem to think villains deserve to be treated with respect , they have your goods and you don’t have the serial number and the receipt of purchase they are happy to let the miscreant walk , no forms to fill out and your word just is not good enough for their purposes .

Had a funny story to tell but decided to get on with the post and now it has gone missing , sorry will post it when it returns .

Like others you can leave a comment or join those following through RSS and the “follow” facility , or do as georgethecyclist did and add your name on all the other blogs so that you get the automatic advice as I post . Following @skippydetour can also be a reminder when I post .

PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE ! Seems like if it is not nailed down then it is finders keepers these days !

YOUR BIKE STOLEN