[Closed] 'Cycling has given me camaraderie with other men again,’

A contender for Pseuds Corner.

yep but good for him

[i]Kemp’s wife dubbed his bike 'the mistress’. [/i]

My wife usually refers to whoever it is I'm riding most with, as 'the wife'.

And once you get past 40 and start looking at others of your age (and younger), you start to realise how fit/healthy cycling keeps you.

I think it's also that you sit down and realise that you are passed half-way, and that monetary things are just that. Things. So it's how best to ensure you keep healthy to enjoy a long happy life - while enjoying yourself.

In no particular order,cycling has given me...
Saddle sores
Poverty
A crap career (see above)
Frequent flyer miles at A&E
Really odd tan lines
Hatred of cars
Hairless legs
4 nice photos
Numerous mid pack finishes
Cat AIDS.

The article says he has a "fleet" of bikes but lists three. I hope he didn't use that word to describe it, nor stable or quiver for that matter.

Rorschach - Member
In no particular order,cycling has given me...
Saddle sores
Poverty
A crap career (see above)
Frequent flyer miles at A&E
Really odd tan lines
Hatred of cars
Hairless legs
4 nice photos
Numerous mid pack finishes
Cat AIDS.

POSTED 10 MINUTES AGO # REPORT-POST

and dead robins, milky badgers and a new use for bombers.

I'm not sure that article is a good advert for cycling or not.

It comes across as a load of pretentious waffle to me.

And he genuinely thinks he looks stylish?

[img] [/img]

WGAF? He likes riding his bike. Good for him.

The article says he has a "fleet" of bikes but lists three. I hope he didn't use that word to describe it, nor stable or quiver for that matter.

I wonder what colourway his favourite steed is?

And he genuinely thinks he looks stylish?

If he was THAT keen he'd have matched his kit to his bike.

good work Mr Kemp.......i reckon that is why a lot of us ride bikes.

and just to add, he looks no more foolish than any of the other thousands of mamils and weekend stormtroopers....... 😀

If he was THAT keen he'd have matched his kit to his bike.

I was thinking the same...

paul weller?!?... aaargh I think I'll give up cycling. Pretentious tosser

why do I get the feeling he's never ridden in the rain !

@ Rorschach 😆

Cat AIDS! OMG - I thought I was the only one... 😯

Camaraderie with other men... er.. what. is. that. ?

...not sure I've ever experienced this.

Men are generally a bit odd, especially the cycling types. That's why I only interact with them on the internetz.

I was thinking the same...

Also, non-drive side photo. 🙄

His water bottle caps don't match - that's definitely a roadie fail.

Camaraderie with other men... er.. what. is. that. ?

Mostly for me it involves whizzing along in the dark like giddy kids then talking rubbish for half an hour in the pub afterwards.

But on the plus side ...
Bike looks well set up (bars/levers/saddle not at odd angles)
Not wearing Sky replica kit
No visible paunch
Photo taken in countryside, not front garden

I'll give him a pass on this one.

I'll give him a pass on this one.

I'm withholding judgement, as I cannot ascertain fully if his valves and logos are aligned properly.

Why the grim-faced catalogue pose though? I reckon Fun Boy Three were taking the piss in the background.

Mr Rapha will be thrapping himslef into an early grave with this publicity.

Photo taken in countryside, not front garden

Probably is the front garden of his country estate...

My wife usually refers to whoever it is I'm riding most with, as 'the wife'.

And once you get past 40 and start looking at others of your age (and younger), you start to realise how fit/healthy cycling keeps you.

I think it's also that you sit down and realise that you are passed half-way, and that monetary things are just that. Things. So it's how best to ensure you keep healthy to enjoy a long happy life - while enjoying yourself.

wife usually refers to whoever it is I'm riding most with, as 'the wife'.

his son Milo

Mr Rapha will be thrapping himslef into an early grave with this publicity.

http://internationale.teamjva.com/

I think we're all missing the most important point here. This man was responsible for this....

He inflicted that on an unsuspecting world, and therefore deserves nothing that he can derive even the slightest pleasure from for the rest of his days

he wears a peaked cotton cap reminiscent of those worn by early Tour de France riders, a merino-blend jersey in vintage team colours and yak leather shoes with aluminium buckles evocative of old-fashioned toe-straps – all crafted by Rapha

🙄

Velo Club Rocacorba – a gentlemen’s cycling club run by the British cyclist and five-time Tour de France stage winner David Millar. The group meet near Millar’s home in Catalonia to conquer mountains, drink wine and dine in restaurants

Now, I like the sound of this.
I might rock up on my Tri-Ban3, in my usual [i]road kit[/i] resplendant in Humvees, Giro Hex & filthy Camelbak.

🙂

Good on you Mr Kemp.

Mr Kemp and Mr Rapha are mates. There is a chapter in Ned Boulting's latest book about them.

yak leather shoes with aluminium buckles evocative of old-fashioned toe-straps

yak leather shoes with aluminium buckles evocative of old-fashioned toe-straps

Which, other than the yak leather, alu buckles and rapha name are Giro Factor shoes, only more expensive.

"Camaraderie with men"?
Does that mean taking the piss out of your mates when they crash?

Kemp will readily admit that he takes a long time to get dressed before a ride.

Shorts on, shoes on, zip up vest & put on helmet, gloves & glasses. What takes a long time? Doin' his hair?? This article is very pretentious. Plus he's standing around trying to be a cool ****t.

It is clear he loves riding his bike - great. It is also clear he loves some of the other things around cycling - the mystique, history etc. Good for him I say. YMMV but what works for him is his business. The more people on bikes the better IMO.

FWIW I thought it a well written article which I could relate to. I don't go in for the merino wool/peaked cap look - but I love steel framed bikes (as do lots on here) and old school kit. I would love to get an ancient bike and ride L'eroica on it - so yeah - I get where he is coming from

Lol, what a load of old tosh. 😐

The only good thing I can say about him is his taste when getting his first bike. Want. 🙂

martinhutch - Member

Why the grim-faced catalogue pose though? I reckon Fun Boy Three were taking the piss in the background.

Made me haha! 😀

And once you get past 40 and start looking at others of your age (and younger), you start to realise how fit/healthy cycling keeps you.

Has to be said that for a 54yr old British man, he doesn't look that bad. Stylish? Dunno, failing to colour match his bike is a bit of a fail, must be said.

I would love to get an ancient bike and ride L'eroica on it - so yeah - I get where he is coming from

Just to make you jealous I am ,roll on next Friday !Flying to Pisa for L`eroica with an old Holdsworth with toeclips (no yak leather shoes though !)

[i]with an old Holdsworth with toeclips[/i]

In the month that they shut their doors of their shop for the last time after 90 years I think that's a good send off.

Not sure what Planet-X will do with the brand now, tbh, I'm expecting more 'retro' steel frames with inappropriate wheels.

And to think he actually got into cycling just to to wear the poncy clothes. Same reason he got into a band I guess.

He'd look better cycling in this getup I reckon
[img] [/img]

^^^^That is his brother isn't is [ embarrassed by 80's knowledge but step sister loved him.

I think MTB ers talk more when riding as its just easier to do this, than in a chain gang ,so there is a greater camaraderie there.

What he needs to do is develop some outlandish and unsubstantiated views on a range of topics that he knows next to nothing about, develop a beard gut, develop a love of all things pastry based , grow a beer and /or a love of real ales then ride an inappropriate bike somewhere - [ SS, fat bike , FS when not needed - so many options]

Its good to have a positive article on cycling tbh from a cyclist- who cares that he does it differently from me he loves cycling I love cycling its all good. Seems ovelry image conscious for my tastes tbh
However he did the Etape so he can obviously pedal some

I would love to get an ancient bike and ride L'eroica on it - so yeah - I get where he is coming from

Just to make you jealous I am ,roll on next Friday !Flying to Pisa for L`eroica with an old Holdsworth with toeclips (no yak leather shoes though !)

I AM jealous. Very. I have hankered after a Holdsworth Whirlwind for some years now. One came up on Ebay but was in such good nick that I didn't bother bidding for it - figuring it would go for way more than I could afford. In then end it went really cheaply - kicking myself!

I am the same with mid 70s Dawes .I wanted a black Super Galaxy tourer and a Double Blue racer as a 14 year old .I have yet to see what I want in the right condition and price !

can't decide if its him being pretentious or the writer trying to get as many plugs in as possible dreaming of the commission he will get from the bike fitting company, the clothing company and David Millar's company in spain.

I reckon its the latter as there is absolutely no way a bloke is going to talk about his yak leather shoes - why yak leather? What is so good about yak compared to cow other than it is more "exotic".

It sounds more like a monty python pisstake sketch than a real article.

but fair play to the Kempster for getting involved in a proper sport and he does look in good condition for his age, so there is defo something to be said for it... wonder if his litespeed is up for sale?

and just to add, he looks no more foolish than any of the other thousands of mamils and weekend stormtroopers.......

I can't speak for any mamils, or weekend stormtroopers - of which I am neither, but does any cyclist actually leave the house thinking they look stylish?

Kemp obviously does, but really?

TheArtist - never to be seen in lycra, ever!

This is a good positive read about the attitude of cyclists like Mr Kemp, Keith Rapha (not his real name) and others.

[img] [/img]

I can't speak for any mamils, or weekend stormtroopers - of which I am neither, but does any cyclist actually leave the house thinking they look stylish?

[ponce]Stylish, probably not. But on the road bike I do wear red, white and black as my bike is red, white and black.[/ponce]

does any cyclist actually leave the house thinking they look stylish?

Mt road bike is black so i dont match it in attire as I tend to wear something bright yellow - like that fetching number you were wearing on Monday HtS.

Camaraderie with other men... er.. what. is. that. ?

I'm quite amused to hear you all laughing at the notion of [i]"camaraderie with other men"[/i] with a forum full of (mostly) other men that you only know through cycling.

😆

wonder if his litespeed is up for sale?

Get in the queue matey! My Litespeed mtb needs a sibling. 😀

Camaraderie suggest we like each other Graham
Are we not just here to point out how wrong we all are 😉

In essence Graham you are wrong

When he invites me to join him for a spin in the Chilterns he wears a peaked cotton cap reminiscent of those worn by early Tour de France riders, a merino-blend jersey in vintage team colours and yak leather shoes with aluminium buckles evocative of old-fashioned toe-straps – all crafted by Rapha, the iconic British brand that now kits out Team Sky

Sounds like an excerpt from American Psycho

Has the word 'aspirational' been mentioned yet?

🙄

In essence Graham you are wrong

An excellent point my friend 😀

I met the writer of that article whilst riding the Haute Route Pyrenees - he was there to cover it for Cyclist magazine (he did their story on Haute Route Alps last year too).

He's a nice, normal bloke - does a lot of the European articles for Cyclist.

I think it's great that well-known, style-conscious, exclusive-club member types see bikes as cool and positive things. It balances out the image the rest of us give it )

I think MTB ers talk more when riding as its just easier to do this, than in a chain gang ,so there is a greater camaraderie there.

Probably a bloke who's genuinely interested in cycling (cool) just a bit difficult to see that as the write up sounds a bit pretentious and ****y with all the catalogue poses and twaddle about what he's wearing. Thing is, did he go into a shop and say "Ooh yak leather shoes with aluminium buckles evocative of old-fashioned toe-straps, yes I'll have a pair" or did he see some shoes and say "they look nice let me try them on, ooh comfy" ?

Lets give him the benefit and say the latter.

Are telegraph readers generally rapha fanboys?

Actually, it looks as though the Telegraph article is about 4 years too late

http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/400222/gary-kemp-the-big-interview.html