We have good news: we are starting the phase of collaborators, of people who interest us in what they do, what they think, and we couldn't be happier to start with Ramon Sagues, “Ramonet”.
Ramonet has spent his entire life on a bike and when he sets his mind to something he goes “all out” for it, always with maximum involvement. Ramon has not only worn a number in the best races in the world, but he is also riding it, linking his philosophy of life with what we are all passionate about, the bike. Young son of Dolors and Agustí, from the Sant Andreu neighborhood of Barcelona, he has competed at the highest international level in MTB. From lap races he went on to marathons and stage races and in one of them, TransAlp, having dinner in a pizzeria after one of the stages, let Mercè Pacios choose the pizza, they ended up sharing it! An authentic story of true love! He began to change races for bike trips through Cuba, Peru, Bolivia... You can discover the rest in his networks, we recommend you feed yourself with them. We leave you Ramon's reflection on what he has called the “new normal.”
Ramon Sagués
For two-thirds of my life, at some point during the day I have worn shorts and never seen my hairy legs; Before my first hair appeared I was already a cyclist. This means that at 46 years old, I have been kicking some pedals while looking at an odometer or GPS for more than 35 years.
In those pre-adolescent years, where my world was still very small, the bike was synonymous with freedom. Not a free freedom, but a freedom embraced by the culture of effort.
My father, without me knowing it—not even himself—instilled in me that the one who tried the most was the one we had to admire the most. The “professionals” were our gods and the bicycle was an object to admire. Always with the chrome of our bicycles well polished with Aladdin and kept on an altar so we could admire them while putting a smile on our faces…
But cycling has changed a lot in recent years. New disciplines, new users, new interests have appeared...
In those years, our parishes were neighborhood stores with pieces “random” spread throughout that place, always a little chaotic and an owner who always attended to you by name with his hands stained with grease. The hierarchy of the parishioners was based on results obtained and kilometers traveled.
For a few years now, these stores have been disappearing, swallowed up by large stores with little personality, but with many thousands of euros displayed in the shape of a bicycle.
It was a small world, but this one has grown. Those small bicycle brands, some artisanal, are now multinational and with it has come the commercialization of our passion.
The advertisements promise us great news. Advertisements about bicycles and/or accessories disguised as tests promise us happiness in exchange for a few euros invested in new technologies. Where “appearing” is more important than “being”.
This makes us forget the essence of cycling. That we divert our attention, that we unconsciously associate the happiness that pedaling brings us with having that electronic gearbox, that extra crown, that very aerodynamic helmet, those 50 grams lighter wheels, that...
Cycling is that Sunday with friends, that hungry breakfast, that new landscape, those boiling endorphins after a good outing...
During my life I have had many bikes, when I competed most of them were top of the range, but without a doubt the bike I have enjoyed the most is the one I am crossing Africa with right now. A steel bicycle, with decades-old technology and already with more than 40,000 kilometers combing the world. But with it I am experiencing more things, going further and enjoying it more than with any other bicycle. Less is more, they say...
In the end, the bicycle is the tool without which it is impossible to practice cycling. From there, the rest is diverting attention.
When we consciously get the idea that without “that new technology” our cycling will not be complete, we will enter a loop where we will mortgage our happiness. Making a rule of three where the “cycling enjoyment” will be proportional to the money spent in that sterile store in the form of a hospital or Apple Store. Forgetting about the happiness that those first pedal strokes gave us, when we were aware that this vehicle was going to provide us with freedom and happiness in equal parts.
Ramon Sagués
Ramon Sagués has spent his entire life on a bike and when he sets his mind to something he goes “all out” for it, always with maximum involvement. Ramon has not only worn a number in the best races in the world, but he is also riding it, linking his philosophy of life with what we are all passionate about, the bike. Young son of Dolors and Agustí, from the Sant Andreu neighborhood of Barcelona, he has competed at the highest international level in MTB and traveled through Cuba, Peru, Bolivia... You can discover the rest in his networks.