The luxury of data in cycling—or any sport, really—was once the rarified domain of the rich or professionally supported. Sure, we commoners had cyclocomputers and heart-rate monitors, but they generally only delivered data to a postage stamp screen, and had to be reset between rides. If you really felt like spending, you might get a…
Reviews Archive
what not to buy
Tour De Lance – Review
This is—to date—the fourth book I’ve read on Lance Armstrong, and as far as I can tell, the first written by an actual cycling fan. Dan Coyle seems to have gone into Lance Armstrong’s War without too deep an understanding of the sport, and after slogging through Every Second Counts, I’m fully convinced that Sally…
ReGen Recovery Drink – Review
I suppose I should preface this by saying that I’m not particularly focused on diet as part of my training. Other than keeping an eye on total calories, I’m not a picky eater. I’ll eat some pasta the night before a longer race, drink a pint of skim milk after a hard workout, but for…
Kmeleon Compression Shorts & Tights – Review
Kmeleon is a new company that designs and manufactures compression athletic apparel in Montreal. They sent Cyclocosm a pair of their shorts and tights for testing and reveiw. Here’s how things shook out: Style: 3. While not the most exciting look in the world, there’s something to be said for a plain pair of black…
Everki Pace Cycling Backpack – Review
The folks at Everki sent me their Pace backpack last fall. I’ve been abusing it solidly ever since. Does it still work? Style: 2. The first thing you notice about this pack is its relative formlessness. Kinda just a big lump, with everything else tucked away inside. And, it’s uh, mostly black. With this kind…
Race Day DVD – Review
Ex-Postie Robbie Ventura and realRides deliver a crit-oriented intensity training DVD. 2004, Color, Approx 90min. Originality: 5. I hate training videos. But calling this “just” a training video is a kind of like calling the Poggio “just” a hill. Its main training feature is an uncut, rider’s eye view recording of a race, complete with…
The Tour Baby! DVD – Review
Scott Coady’s behind the scenes look at the 2000 Tour de France. 2004, Color, Roughly 100min. Originality: 3. This is a fairly unique film. It starts off as the messy, off-the-cuff sort of video any cycling nut would make at the Tour, but grows into something with style and direction as Scott gets more and…
Overcoming – Review
A stylistic look at CSC’s 2004 season. Directed by Tomas Gislason. Color, 105 minutes. (My apologies, but I simply cannot properly express my thoughts on this film in my typical criteria-driven format. I’ve just got way too much to say for informational bursts.) I knew I was in for disappointment when I couldn’t change the…
Modolo Morphos Shifters/Brake Levers – Review
Back in August, I was looking to throw together a passable ‘cross bike from an old Kona Lava Dome. I had a good, 8 speed XT drive train together, but wanted drop bars and the ease integrated shifters/brake levers. OEM Shimano was hard to come by, Sora was unaccebtably poor, and Campy wouldn’t be compatable….
Exte Ondo Onther Gloves – Review
No, that’s not a typo. I, cheapskate of all cheapskates, did in fact buy a high-end ($45 retail for a pair of short-finger gloves) cycling product. I just wanted to see if all this talk that spending big for a high-end product would really save you money in the long run. That, and I needed…