BEAN THERE, DOING THAT
THE TRADITION: COFFEE! COFFEE! COFFEE!
Of all the things cyclists do, the thing we undoubtedly do best
is coffee. Coffee has been hardwired into our cycling DNA. In fact, ‘Coffee’ goes with ‘cycling’ like ‘hash’ goes with ‘tag’, and ‘Batman’ goes with ‘Robin’.
One of the reasons for this must be the various physical benefits of coffee for riders. The first few hours of a morning ride are fuelled by a double espresso; it’s a pre-ride energy boost. Caffeine can also promote fat metabolism and retain muscle glycogen, so downing a black coffee before a fasted ride is a great fat-buster. After a ride, a latte or a coffee mocha made with full-cream milk will provide much-needed recovery nutrition in the form of protein, calcium and fat.
Then there’s the social element of coffee. Gentle weekend coffee-shop spins unite riders the world over, from weekend warriors to hardened pros; and let’s face it, there are few things on this Earth better than a post-ride coffee.
So, where did this tradition start? Well, pro cycling has its roots in Europe, and Europe has a very strong coffee culture, so it’s no surprise that coffee brands have got behind the pros. Faema, an Italian espresso-machine maker, promoted its products by sponsoring a pro team in the 1960s (Eddy Merckx rode for Faema in his 1968 Tour de France victory); a Colombian coffee-growers’ cooperative sponsored the Café de Colombia squad, which was active from 1985 to 1990; and Saeco, the company that sponsored Mario Cipollini’s wildly successful team, is another coffee-machine manufacturer.
And because riders in the pro peloton spend a lot of time in Europe, this coffee culture has, um, filtered down to the amateur ranks.