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Bikes vs. The World: Round #6 – Dave Zabriskie vs. Zabriskie Point

24 Jan

It’s baaack! And you thought I had gotten sick of it. Today’s match-up: Utah’s own Dave Zabriskie vs. the 1970 counter-culture classic Zabriskie Point. Click here for a listing of the previous battles.

Category Bike Culture:
Dave Zabriskie		 Pop Culture:
Zabriskie Point (1970)		 Winner
Claim to Fame: Bicycle racer, ’04 US TT Champ, Fastest TT in TdF History, won stages in three straight Grand Tours “Daring” Hollywood cinema attempt to cash in on popularity of 20-something angst and European directors Dave; Point is hardly as memorable as its packaging declares

Bikes vs. The World: Round #5 – Jan Ullrich vs. Lars Ulrich

6 Dec

Now we’re talking. The drummer of one of the all-time great metal bands versus the eternal challenger for the TdF title. Both German-born, both constantly disappointing me, both with the same last name. Oh, yeah, this is a gonna be a good one, folks. Far better than these other whimpy fights.

Category Bike Culture:
Jan Ullrich		 Pop Culture:
Lars Ulrich		 Winner
Claim to Fame: Bicycle racer, 1997 TdF winner, 5-time runner-up Metal drummer, 7-time Grammy winner Lars; As crappy as Grammys are, he’s won a lot

Bikes vs. The World: Round #4 – Steel 531 vs. Steel Reserve 211

28 Nov

I really don’t know how these two combatants got tangled up. I mean, can you think of two things less related than a well-regarded vintage bike tubing and a smooth finishing, oddly glowing malt beverage? I guess it might be a make-up call for last week’s pathetically obvious battle. Rounds 1 and 2 can be found here and here, respectively. Now let’s get down to seeing which steel is more real.

Category Bike Culture:
Steel 531		 Pop Culture:
Steel Reserve 211		 Winner
Claim to Fame: For over half a century, the standard for high-end bicycle tubing Premium “high gravity” malt liquor 531; based entirely on longevity

Bikes vs. The World: Round #3 – Lance Armstrong vs. Neil Armstrong

21 Nov

Yeah, I know, this one is obvious. If you gave a 7-year-old kid a cycling blog, this is probably the sort of crap he’d come up with. But come on, I can’t keep filling this page with arcane nonsense or no one will want to read it.

Category Bike Culture:
Lance Armstrong		 Pop Culture:
Neil Armstrong		 Winner
Claim to Fame: First man to win 7 Tours de France First man to walk on the moon Neil; More danger + fewer moonwalkers than TdF winers = more greatness

Bikes vs. The World: Round #2 – Gary Fisher vs. Bobby Fischer

14 Nov

Ok, so perhaps last week’s contest between Campagnolo and Camp Anawana was a little esoteric. No big deal. Today’s battle between Gary Fisher and Bobby Fischer (yes, that link is his official page) should prove far more of a crowd pleaser.

Category Bike Culture:
Gary Fisher		 Pop Culture:
Bobby Fischer		 Winner
Claim to Fame: Mountain bike pioneer Greatest American chess player Draw; a solid start for both sides
Palmares: 12th, US Road Nats, 1974; 5th US ‘Cross Nats, 1977 8-time US Chess Champ, World Champ 1973-5 Bobby; by a fair margin
Went on to: Found mountain bike company Become recluse Gary; as noble as the career of recluse is…

Bikes vs. The World: Round #1 – Campagnolo vs. Camp Anawana

6 Nov

In what we at Cyclocosm hope to make a regular weekend feature (at least during the off-season), out expert team of analysts will take two similarly-named elements Cycling Culture and Popular Culture and send them into a head-to-head deathmatch from which only one will survive.

This week’s combatants are: Campagnolo and Camp Anawana. Let the games begin!

Category Bike Culture:
Campagnolo		 Pop Culture:
Camp Anawana		 Winner
Basics: Italian component manufacturer Fictional summer camp from “Salute Your Shorts” Campy; they actually exist
Fan Base: Purists and bike snobs Nostalgic twenty-somethings Draw; both groups are equally repulsive