It is time to disassociate myself from the Old Guys Who Get Fat in Winter Racing Team. Not that the definition no longer fits, just time to do something different. But what?
Twinkie gave the recruiting pitch for Team Unattached when we were at the Norcal Elite State Track Championships on Sep 8th. The primary benefits of affiliation with Team Unattached is that everything can be what you want it to be, you can race as often or as little as you want (no commitments), and you get to choose your own sponsors. And the non-teammates are pretty nice folks. The downside is that there are no teammates to work with since by definition members of Team Unattached do not race/work together. Hmmm, some pros and a con. The Wife was thinking she will not go that direction as she believes that if Team Unattached adds a member it will become a full-fledged team thus losing its non-identity. Twinkie assured The Wife that since those on Team Unattached do not work together it is a non-issue.
The new manager in our small office has tried to recruit me for his team, the ubiquitous green and whites of the south peninsula. Definitely a substantial organization, but they have a lot of baggage from the actions of a few and I am afraid that if I fly those colors some of my friends may prefer not to ride with me. Not an assumption on my part, rather basing that on statements from the past. Even the new manager in the office admits that the team has a bad reputation, but he believes it is somewhat undeserved. I would hate to lose those friends, so a big concern.
I am a bit of a color agnostic so the actual colors will not be an issue for me as it is for some, e.g., Twinkie and Beth who both say “no pink”. Of course, it might get to be an issue if I wear a color that clashes with the colors flown by The Wife. A bit tricky since one never knows when kit redesigns will cause an issue for next year even if this year’s kits from two teams did not clash.
For now I will just muse on things. Perhaps I can take a page from Arley, who is really unattached but lists his team as ‘Field of Rabbits’ which he says is the old meaning of ‘Arley’. But the old meanings of both my given and surnames are not all that interesting. Sigh.
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I would only say to pick a team that is active in the promotion of the sport. I am on a team that just sort of exists without any real interaction from the team members. I don’t know most of them because we don’t have gatherings ever. The team only sponsors one race per year as well. I would joint a team that organizes at least a few races a year because that will give you an opportunity to get involved. I would also join a team that has riders in your demographic.
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Chris – uh, demographic? Is that a diplomatic way of saying ‘old farts’ or ‘ultra geezers’? He’s OK if you call him the latter
There are lots of old farts in NorCal racing, so he should not have trouble finding a team. I would suggest SJBC as a maybe. Plus, their uniforms do not clash with anything (because they are boring!)
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yeah, you need team mates.
i was on a team last year with only 1 other woman. granted we only raced cross, but still, it’s nice to have team mates.
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“Team Unattached” is anyone whose team/sponsor name is “unattached.” We don’t recruit, but the team/group has been silently well-represented by those who choose to be “unattached.” We don’t stop or encourage them to join other teams.
It’s all up to the rider…who tends to have a commitment issue in bike racing, and possibly in other aspects of life as well.
PS: There was a team called “Old Farts” in the last century…Fred was a member, I heard.
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Chris – fortunately most teams here are active. Need to find one that fits in other ways. And Ms. Chatterbox is right; lots of ultra-geezer types around here.
Ms Chatterbox – We’ll see about SJBC, though you know both of us will be paying dues anyway … since we have to in order to do the Twilight Crits (assuming they continue). But their kit is pretty ‘conservative’ (euphemism for boring).
Lauren – Yep, good to have someone there, hopefully someone you can work with.
Twinkie – I don’t know, that sounded like recruiting to Ms. Chatterbox and myself
And ‘Old Farts’ sounds suspiciously close to ‘Old Guys Who Get Fat in Winter’ …. -
the most important thing is certainly whether or not the kit clashes with the BIKE, not the WIFE! if you have multiple bikes of different colors, this can be tricky–and thus you should stick to something as neutral as possible (like black, my “kit” of choice). Finding a kit is difficult for me because I have a red track bike and an orange road bike. By going with a red team (or contrast, an orange team)- I will essentially be favoring one bike over the other. I don’t have kids, but I hear this is a no-no. Ideally, I wish a team would appear that has orange and red kits. That would be a major draw, as I could show equal love to both of my bikes.
It is my moto to: 1) look good, 2) go fast. In that order. That way, if you don’t accomplish #2, you at least look good. -
Beth, yes cannot clash with the bike, but cannot clash with The Wife, either. Fortunately my task is not so hard: one red bike (commuter, does not count), one all black bike (touring bike, does not count), one black and grey bike (track bike), one black bike with green, yellow, and pink accents. White, black, or one of the accent colors all work, only thing will be to match the bar tape … which is relatively easy and inexpensive. And looking good will be paramount, since my puny quads make it more difficult to go fast. BTW, if you cannot find a red/orange time, perhaps it is time for new paint job on one of the bikes
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Last year I really screwed up on Beth’s #1. My kit completely clashed with my bike, and since I couldnt afford to just buy a new bike or get mine re-painted, I was stuck looking bad…so I had to rely on #2, which thankfully did work out some of the time! However, for this upcoming year…I’m completely keeping #1 in mind…and I think, although I haven’t seen the final kit designs, that it’s going to be a match!!
Good luck finding your new team! And I’ll probably see you out there at the early season Nor-cal races, which I’m hoping to do next year if the “extended pre-season” goes well. -
Doc Kim – looks like you had a few minutes to finally catch your breath; the school year start seems to have you swamped. Look forward to seeing the new kit, and catching you out at some races next year. As an aside, I have a good photo of you taken before the race at San Ardo that I need to post up soon.
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