One of the greatest ever runners was Emil Zatopek; I admire his running achievements but, his running style was notoriously ‘undignified’; He was aesthetically unappealing to say the least.
Cycling has a strong tradition of giving importance to aesthetics. A well polished bike has a certain aesthetic appeal which is hard to ignore. I know quite a few cyclists who spend more time cleaning and polishing their bike, than they do riding it. There is an element in cycling that as long as you look the part you can at least enjoy a large part of the sport.
photo: Will Davies
Pro Cycling makes an excellent sport for photography. The combination of athletic prowess and nature’s beauty make for some remarkable contrast in photos. There is something quite evocative of seeing the peloton climbing an alpine pass. Man against nature. On the Col Tormalet, a lone figure can look lost – evoking a heroic quality.
Not all cycling equipment is aesthetically pleasing, I never understood the attraction of T Mobile’s pink jerseys and the less said about Team Jolly’s multicoloured top the better. In designing the most aesthetically pleasing clothes and bike, you would have to think retro. A fairly plain wollen jersey and cloth cap captures the quintessence of cycling better than a helmet clad modern cyclist.
The Traditional Bike
The UCI have made many bad decisions, but, generally I agree with their decision to stick with the diamond frame for the bike. It is has a simplicity and history which is lost with the all in one moulded frames.
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