This is my sporting tool. The one I use to enjoy my pastime of cycling, something I do just about every day of the week. I love this machine, I love it when it’s finely tuned and humming along in harmony with me, it’s a genuinely beautiful feeling and the sensations are wonderful on the days I have I’ve got good legs.
That’s the thing about most sport, it’s a marrying of man and machine, or man and tool, and getting it just right is an obsession for many.
In another sporting life my tools were about a dozen Tennis racquets sitting in my kit bag, each one tuned, gripped, balanced and strung to exacting specifications, some were for night matches, and others for hot days on the court, work that I did myself. I’d go crazy if something didn’t feel right.
I imagine that if I had played Cricket, shot the put, thrown the Javelin, or ran the 10,000 in a nice set of spikes, the obsession with finding the right to tool would be similar.
I’ve had tennis racquets that I always remember as feeling better than the rest. Weird given that they all appeared to be the same. And bikes that I’ve really loved. This one the best.
So, what’s the tool you use for your pastime, do you obsess about it, love it, and why?
6 responses so far ↓
David from The FredCast // Apr 10, 2007 at 2:24 pm
Nice ride, Phil. Personally, my sporting tool of choice is my Colnago C40. I remember when I took it for a test ride and I came back to the bike store with this huge smile on my face. I had ridden dozens of bikes before this one, but I wasn’t going to give this one back.
Since then, I have put tens of thousands of miles on that bike and I plan to put in thousands more. The only thing that might separate me from the C40 is a custom carbon fiber bike, built just for me!
Spinopsys » Blog Archive » Yes, I’m seeing someone else // Apr 10, 2007 at 5:09 pm
[...] What’s your sporting tool? Why do you love it and why do you obsess about it? I’ve posted on sporting tools of the trade over at Sidelined. Head on over there and let the Rounders and Cross Country Wrestling tragics in on your dirty cycling secret. [...]
Shaun // Apr 10, 2007 at 9:29 pm
I’m still learning to love my Apollo Evolution. One thing I have learned is that hills are deceptive. It is the long, gently sloping ones that you gotta watch out for on the morning/evening commute.
I’ve also been using an el cheapo Gray Nicolls bat for the past two cricket seasons. It has impressed me when, on the rare occasion when I’ve middled a ball how quickly it goes to the boundary.
However, it doesn’t have as much wood as most bats so I’m going to upgrade before the start of next season to something beefier.
dj // Apr 11, 2007 at 11:59 am
It’s not a sporting tool as such, as I do not ride competitively but i love my Mongoose Randonneur EX and my Azzurri Uno, which I got for a very good price.
As for actual sporting tools, given that I only need shoes for both sports that I play with any regularity, my favourite sporting tool is my Polar S625x watch and heart rate monitor.
Amanda // Apr 11, 2007 at 1:12 pm
My favourite sporting tool is Shane Warne.
Crowlie // Apr 13, 2007 at 11:01 pm
ROTFL Amanda. I must say, I’m somewhat concerned with this dialogue about marrying of man and tool… Other than that, the first thing that popped into my mind wasn’t J (the frankenbike) but my much neglected Rope.
I haven’t been climbing in over a year and damn I miss it! Now I’m going to be cranky all weekend thinking about it.
My lovely, slinky, sinuous 60m Edelrid fat rock. Mmmmm.