Oct 31, 2007 · 09:42 PM
Critical mass attendance usually drops as we head deeper into fall, but October is usually well attended and seen as one of the better rides of the year because of the Halloween spirit. A few more photos of bikers in costumes below, the whole set is here. Happy Halloween Huggers!
Oct 31, 2007 · 04:59 PM
After months of planning, discussions and set backs, the Bike Master Plan comes before the City Council for a vote. Show up and support at the upcoming meeting:
City Hall, City Council Chambers, 2nd Floor
600 4th Avenue
Monday, November 5, 2 p.m.
The Bike Master Plan (BMP) was initiated by the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) with the help of consulting firm Toole Design. The plan includes improvements to on-road cycling and public policy changes to complete Seattle’s current disjointed bicycling network.
Oct 31, 2007 · 12:57 PM
Happy Halloween from Pum’kin head Pug and all of us at Bike Hugger
Oct 30, 2007 · 01:56 PM
Late-breaking news from Cascade yesterday, regarding a budget amendment that was introduced on Monday. The amendment would provide $6.8 Million to complete the Burke-Gilman trail within the City of Seattle.
From Cascade’s Breaking News:
Attend the City Council Budget Hearing on Tuesday, October 30 and offer your support for funding for the Burke-Gilman Trail. Each citizen is allowed 3 minutes maximum to address the Council. Arrive at 5 p.m. to secure your place in line. Address:
City of Seattle Budget Hearing TODAY!! Tuesday, October 30, 5:30 p.m. City Hall, City Council Chambers, 2nd Floor 600 4th Avenue
If you can’t attend the hearing, call or email the Council on Tuesday Oct. 30 between 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. The phone number is 206-684-8821 and the email address is budget@seattle.gov.
Those of us “regulars” on the Burke are all-too-familiar with the missing link in the Ballard neighborhood, sending cyclists and other users through rough industrial roads and over parallel and rather precarious train tracks. The completion of this section is a huge win for the thousands of multi-purpose users through Ballard each year.
Oct 30, 2007 · 01:12 PM
Submitted by a reader and from the Telegraph UK, we have a story about a man who was caught trying to have sex with a bicycle. There’s also a follow-up story on how exactly one would do that and if it would hurt.
Sure we love our bikes, we’re Bike Huggers afterall, but we don’t go that far (that I know of and I don’t want to know otherwise).
Oct 30, 2007 · 12:45 PM
Under 4 pounds isn’t racer light, but for a travel/touring bike with S & S couplings and Paragon dropouts, that’s really good.
Total bike weight in Single Speed Mode is under 18 pounds. I’ll post the details of the built bike in another ready-to-ride post.
Oct 29, 2007 · 09:27 AM
I’ll ride in San Antonio later this week. We’re there on a related business trip and I’ll have the Modal with me for the first ride. Are any of our readers from San Antonio or have ridden there?
It looks like the terrain and region is similar to Austin where I have ridden. Speaking of Austin, during a ride to Creedmoor and back, is when the Bike Hugger concept was first thought about.
A reader responded with a tip to ride in The King William district south of downtown, stop by Bluestar Brewing, and possibly the trail to the Missions. I found the SA Wheelmen.
Oct 29, 2007 · 08:12 AM
As seen on a bike shop wall … the Bike Calendar Girls poster
The 2nd annual Lovely Ladies on Beautiful Bikes calendar is out and the release party is on November 1st at Conor Byrne Pub.
Oct 29, 2007 · 07:30 AM
The media loves the Paris Vélib story. It was covered on NBC news on Friday night and featured in the NYTimes Travel section as a great success and great vacation.
“Twelve weeks after the introduction of the Vélib, 15,000 bikes have been put into service at more than 1,000 stations. In that time Vélibiens (or Vélibeurs or perhaps Vélibistes) have checked out bicycles almost six million times and ridden them an estimated 7.5 million miles.”
The author of the article notes how, “As I peddled around the glass pyramid at the Louvre, I was struck by the strobelike reflections from the royal buildings around it.”
Oct 26, 2007 · 01:06 PM
If you’re anything like me you look forward to Fridays with eager anticipation. Not just because it’s the end of the week, it’s also Donut Day! And if you’re anything like me, you feel obligated to do the long ride to work on Donut Day to make up for such indulgences. Which raises an interesting question… How do you fit a dozen donuts on a stripped down, clean, urban bike?
Sure the donut store will give you a cardboard box to strap on your rack, but I’m not riding my longtail in just to haul donuts. No, no, these donuts have to go in the messenger bag with everything else.
Here’s what I came up with earlier this morning: two yogurt containers and a cardboard oatmeal tube. It fit a dozen Mighty-O’s perfectly. No crushing despite a full bag and hard contents, all the donuts with sprinkles had the majority of their sprinkles intact, and those with icing didn’t even suffer from being stacked under their icing free siblings.
Oct 25, 2007 · 06:54 AM
I’ve admired 925s since I first started seeing them in shops and on the road. The 925 is Redline’s popular, single-speed, urban bike with slightly slack geometry, wide bullhorn bars, and a 4130 chrome-moly steel frame. It’s a simple bike to get you around town or campus and is well thought out with flip-flop hubs, fenders, and aero levers for the ends of the bullhorn. Also notice how the tubes are free of excessive decals. This bike is more about transportation then showing off brand names.
Oct 24, 2007 · 05:30 PM
Submitted by Zannestar, who noted that Bike Hugger loves, “girls, skirts, and girls wearing skirts on bikes,” some related links
And here’s an entire gallery devoted to the topic and of course on flickr (don’t get me started with milfs on bikes wearing skirts and heels).
Oct 24, 2007 · 06:23 AM
Simple, sturdy, Dutch. The Batavus Lightning is a urban, city bike. It’s equipped with Nexus 7 and roller brakes, which means clean lines and just a few cables.
It’s modern looking and focused on form and function. With the big Schwable tires, powder-coated 7005 aluminum frame, and heft, the Lightning rides very solid, with sure steering, and comfort. The flat bar and adjustable stem are for an upright position. I was able to climb hills with the gearing and straight up, really dug this bike. There was plenty of tire clearance for fenders.
Oct 23, 2007 · 10:14 PM
I just picked up a Dinotte tail light. A real review of the light is coming later after I get a chance to try it out. Mounting the light has been a challenge for many – the simple O-ring system included works great for front lights, not so great for tail lights. Dinotte’s released an updated frame mount recently, but I’d rather have the light on my excellent Alchemy Goods messenger bag since I frequently switch bikes but always bring my bag.
Here’s a mounting option I made for the bag, out of $4 of pvc pipe. It tucks into the external side pockets on the messenger bag. The mount let’s me adjust the aim of the light both left/right and up down.
Oct 23, 2007 · 08:32 AM
This video shows the Modal Travel Bike Concept being built at Davidson Bicycles. The Modal has Paragon dropouts and S and S couplings. The bike folds and toggles between singled, fixed, or geared modes.
See more of the Modal on Flickr and our discussions.
Oct 23, 2007 · 06:28 AM
During a recent visit to Seattle Bike Supply for a product line review — Batavus, Lapierre, Redline, and more — we got to talking about the bike industry, history, stories, and Chuck Hooper, SBS President, told Tim Rutledge and me about the strangest prototype he ever approved.
Shown here, it was a finger bike with matching John Purse action figure head. Sales surprised all and remarkably, I remembered the ads for finger bikes.
Oct 22, 2007 · 08:13 PM
Orbea doesn’t really advertise that they do full custom aluminium frames, but they do. I’m not talking about custom spec’ed kits; I’m talking frame geometry. And not just top tube length: full custom geometry!. They also make a track version of their sexy Lobular aluminium road frame. Put the two together and you get HOT HOT HOT.
Oct 22, 2007 · 01:09 PM
Last Friday in Taipei, I went for a second ride with Dahon to test ride some prototypes and hang out. On the way, Josh Hon and I riffed about how we ride in the U.S. all decked out in Spandex, cleats, and helmets, whereas in lots of other places in the world, bikes are just normal part of life, no fuss required.
Apropos that conversation, in Taipei I saw people moving themselves on bikes, but I also saw a ton of people using bikes for work—such as this ancient woman grunting a load of who-knows-what to who-knows-where. These three wheelers were everywhere—some heavily modified with gas-powered motors and low gearing. But only this one was moving slowly enough for me to get a photo—whatever she was hauling must have weighed a ton.
Photo: Grunt, originally uploaded by mobil’homme.
Oct 22, 2007 · 08:15 AM
Sue, in charge of the Hugga Hookups, had a chat with the 2 Mile Challenge bus boss and got the down low from a recent stop in Davis, CA. There’s also lots of photos of the Davis stop and more on Flickr.
Video available on our Huggacast.
Oct 22, 2007 · 06:18 AM
I finally got my single speed cross bike setup. Saturday was a shakedown ride, and today was the Redline Cup at the Kelly Creek Cross Race. I’ll spare you the details of the race, but will tell you that hanging out with a bunch of ‘crossers is a great way to spend a Sunday. The atmosphere at a cross race is like a party with people bundled up for the fall weather, tipping back some beers, snacking on bbq, ringing the cowbells and yelling for all they are worth. That, and it’s a GREAT way to have a go at racing. It’s a no-pressure environment, most any bike is welcome, and you can get a 1-day license for $10. Interested? - post a comment with questions and we’ll do what we can to make sure you have what you need to get started.
Oct 21, 2007 · 01:29 PM
In Huggacast Episode Eleven, we go inside the Clif Bar biodiesel bus before it departed on the 2 Mile Challenge tour. Clif Bar’s 2MC is educating the masses to the benefits (personal and for the planet) of urban cycling. Clif Bar found that 40% of urban travel is 2 miles or less and the magic bus demonstrates how easy it is to ride to work, school, or the store — all within 2 miles.
Bike Hugger is working with Clif Bar to blog from the various cities the 2MC visits.
Oct 20, 2007 · 09:45 AM
The New York Times Freakonomics folks had an interesting run down of studies on cycling safety a couple of days ago, under the title Will Bicycling to Work Get You Killed?. Timely considering another recent fatality here on the West Coast.
The intuitive answer is that the more riders there are, the higher the chances of a fatality. The article sites a counter-intuitive result from the Safety in Numbers study (Full text): “An individual’s risk while [cycling] in a community with twice as much [cycling] will reduce to 66%”.
Weirdly, the Freakonomics article morphs this study (and a few other links) into a discussion of cyclists obeying traffic laws and helmets. The cited study actually draws a very different conclusion: more pedestrians or cyclists cause motorists to behave differently.
Oct 19, 2007 · 07:06 AM
Hugga comfort, our retail line, is now fully stocked and being fulfilled by Amazon. That includes:
and those items all are eligible for Free super saver shipping.
Oct 18, 2007 · 11:57 AM
For those of us that ride in the rain, the pouring rain, we’ve all got our lube techniques. Some clean and lube after every ride or wait until the chain squeaks. There are wet or dry lubes, paraffin-based, and new miracle lubes that may last about 1/2 a ride. There’s no better test case than a wet, grimy ride.
As I wrote about earlier this year, I use Lubriplate Chain and Cable Fluid. Cleaning up the rain bike for this weekend, I didn’t bother relubing from last year. It’s still gooey and smelly. I just wiped it down.
So what are your lubrication techniques? What works and doesn’t work?
Oct 18, 2007 · 10:04 AM
With an articled titled, Bike Hackers, Wired shows some “whimsical” bikes including a cart bike. No mention of Bike Mowers.
Oct 17, 2007 · 01:41 PM
The dudes from Dahon (duh-hawn, not DAY-hawn) just before our ride.
Oct 17, 2007 · 01:40 PM
A package of Stride will freshen your bag for an entire trip overseas. Not only is the flavor long lasting, but so is the wintergreen scent.
Oct 16, 2007 · 04:16 PM
As promised four intrepid BikeHuggers rode last Friday evening. Objectives: Ride for fun, Promote urban cycling awareness for all vehicles — cars and cyclists, demonstrate automobile/bicycle co-existence, and engage in the consumption of nutritious fermented beverages.
Good news: Objectives MET. Even more amazing, it was more than just two dudes who showed up! This is positively stunning given the 8 hour notice. Check the Bike Hugger Urban Bikes group on Flickr for more photos.
We’ll keep the experiment up, check back for scheduling of future rides. But before we go too far, we’ll need a better name. Hugger input requested!
Oct 16, 2007 · 04:14 PM
From 15 feet away and more this looked like Starbucks, but no, it wasn’t. Not even close. I travel with my own coffee, and Senor Muggy, but when needed I’ve found that Starbucks works. Zeldman told me that once. He said Starbucks was a trusted, known source, of mediocre coffee — consistently mediocre. I was like whatever, but that’s totally true in Taiwan. While the Taiwanese do buffets right, corporate coffee is bad just like everywhere else.
In Taipei, they also have a thing for outlets with funny names.
A comment and revised sentence above clarifying that Taipei’s corporate-chain coffee was bad, just like anywhere else (v. Starbucks that’s mediocre everywhere).
We did have good coffee in a stand during our ride.
Oct 16, 2007 · 01:30 PM
One of the focused stories at Interbike was bikes for Africa. There were a number of groups represented including SRAM and their World Bicycle Relief, and Tom Ritchey and his Project Rwanda. There is plenty of good literature on the sites, but if you can help - you can donate here or here.
I heard that there’s a Project Rwanda bike at a local coffee roaster. I’m going to check it out and see what else I can dig up on this great initiative.
[UPDATE - Another local group is sending bikes as well:]
The Village Bicycle Project provides sustainable and affordable transportation for Africans. Owning a bike promotes poverty reduction, rural development and personal empowerment. Millions of Africans do not have basic, reliable transportation. 99% of Africans cannot afford cars. Public transportation is expensive and unreliable. Contact bikeschangelives@gmail.com if you can help.
Oct 15, 2007 · 11:09 PM
During our visit to Dahon’s offices, the Keiko Bike stood out: we admired, discussed, photographed, and after much deliberation described it as having a strong femininity. Matthew Davis, Manager — Global Sales and Marketing, gave us the backstory of the bike
Keiko Itakura approached us, and we decided to collaborate on this bike. It has been in the works for a little over a year, but the results were well worth it. They exceeded everyone’s expectations and we are now trying to figure out what kind of limited production run makes sense. If demand is strong we’ll definitely take that into account. It definitely gives off the “Strong Femininity” vibe, much in the way filigree does with the extremely delicate details taking form from intricately worked metals.We’re working with Keiko now to figure out how to execute the launch and final announcement properly, but we’re happy to have given Bike Hugger reader’s a sneak peak at this special bike.
Whatever the final version of the bike is, it’s going to further establish the connection between artists, designers, urban mobility, and bikes.
Oct 15, 2007 · 08:28 PM
They’re were just riding around on the bike paths and so were we …
Oct 14, 2007 · 09:31 PM
I don’t have the exact numbers, but heard that Taipei makes lots of helmets and spotted this helmet store during our ride.
Oct 14, 2007 · 06:00 PM
As noted in this post, Jason got a big betel nut boost during our ride around Taipei with Dahon. Betel nut is a chewable stimulant sold in stands, similar to cocoa leaf, and it’s dispensed by girls in lingerie.
Also available on the Huggacast.
Oct 14, 2007 · 04:03 PM
Much like Beijing, there’s a flow in Taipei, and we just rode in it. We were surrounded nearly at all times by scooters. I’ve never seen so many scooters. The don’t have specific bike lanes, except around the business district, but relatively wide lanes, and cars give you room. There’s a roadie scene and even a Tour de Taiwan.
Oct 14, 2007 · 08:30 AM
Most of the ride, Jason was hanging out behind us with Matt from Dahon until we had some betel nut. Then he was all sprinting from stop lights, taking pulls, dropping us, mister energized on the bike — watch the video. Then I climbed a hill like never before on a folding bike, while I heard Once in a Lifetime in my head. I expect my legs to really hurt tomorrow.
Oct 11, 2007 · 07:30 AM
By now Dwell Magazine is arriving in the mail and on newsstands with an urban bike report. Bike Hugger provided the expert commentary for the report and other insights. Check the related story online and see these snapshots I took during the photoshoot. Bikes in the report include
There’s also a short blurb on sport-utility bikes, Bettie 2.0, and Xtracycle.
Oct 11, 2007 · 07:26 AM
As
Oct 11, 2007 · 06:30 AM
A week before Interbike I’d posted about Ultra Mobile Bike Devices and connecting an iPod to a bike. Remarkably during the Hugga Hookup we met Cy-Fi, an iPod speaker and remote for your bike. Good timing!
I did test ride and video the Cy-Fi, but it was too dark and the video didn’t turn out well. The device itself was cool and the owners of the company were very proud of it. Using new technology, from Kleer, it’s an iPod remote that connects to speakers you mount to your handlebars. What’s unique is that the speaker has buttons to change the track, volume, and select playlists.
Oct 10, 2007 · 06:44 AM
Seems I’m not the only one that thinks Critical Mass should have a positive effect on traffic and the community. Check this article from the SFGate.
The cyclists were polite. The motorists were respectful. The pedestrians were happy. The cops were incredulous.
Critical Manners are also reportedly happening in Portland.
Oct 10, 2007 · 06:30 AM
James wrote us to say
I read bike hugger in a feed reader and I was disturbed to see a Jimmy Dean sandwich ad appear below a story on bike commuting in the rain. I went to the BH front page and there’s a big ol’ Viagra ad posted below the same story.
Besides being really tacky these ads aren’t apropos of cycling or in my opinion any healthy lifestyle.
Can you guys be more selective about who you let advertise on your site?
and I responded, “at Bike Hugger we’re friendly to all sorts of cyclists, including those that eat sausages or take erection pills.”
Oct 09, 2007 · 10:25 PM
A month has passed since 2 cyclists and a dump truck had a fatal interaction at the intersection of Eastlake and Fuhrman here in Seattle. I went past the site on the way home tonight to see what’s changed in the last 4 weeks. What’s there is mostly paint – painted ghostbike up on the street sign, painted signs on the sidewalk and roadway, and a touching memorial to 19 year old Bryce, the cyclist who was killed.
What is going to make this intersection safer? It only took the 10 minutes I was at the corner for me to see another close call between a car and bike. If history’s any guide, we’ll be lucky to get paint. Unfortunately I don’t think paint would have made any more difference than if the cyclists had brakes (they did), freewheels (they didn’t), or if they were wearing helmets (they weren’t, and it wouldn’t have mattered anyway).
Update: SeattleLikesBikes.org plans a memorial ride for Nov 3rd.
Oct 09, 2007 · 12:13 PM
The torrential rains earlier this week sparked a nascent memory — my worst ever commute. I sometimes ride a short stretch along the south side of Greenlake here in Seattle. The route’s very nice, bike lanes, slow park-bound traffic, beautiful old trees, and of course the lake itself is just a few dozen feet away. This particular late fall/early winter season had seen endless rain and I was getting used to plowing through puddles rather than trying to ride around them. I even found a set of postman’s golashes to keep my feet dry. I should have recognized water freely flowing across the entire roadway as the first sign of trouble. Instead I rode bravely on, diving into larger and larger puddles, and hey, I was starting to enjoy the challenge. All that came to an abrupt halt at the last and deepest puddle. Somewhere about 1/4 way across the water got so deep it came in over the top of my rubber overbooties. My choices were limited: Keep pedaling and get your feet soaked, or get off and get your calves soaked. Needless to say I pedaled through, barely making enough speed to stay up right all the way across. The post-puddle options weren’t much better, and I wet-footed it the rest of the way home.
What’s your worst?
Oct 09, 2007 · 08:55 AM
StreetFilms.org has a cool post about the bike scene in NYC. One of my favorite artists - David Byrne is a big bike advocate in gotham.
Oct 09, 2007 · 07:00 AM
Next week Jason and I arrive in Taipei. We’re there consulting with a client and attending the IDF.
We’re also meeting and riding with Dahon, and I’m bringing the Flyby. Considering that Taiwan is a leading manufacture of bikes, I thought that many of our readers have probably been there before.
So tell us: what must we do? What’s to see? And where to ride?
Like the trip to Beijing, we’ll blog Taipei by bike.
Oct 08, 2007 · 04:31 PM
One of the fun tourist activities in Hawaii is to take a bus up Haleakala, and zoom back down. No more of that for a while as the Park Service has had to suspend the activity in light of recent accidents and 3 deaths.
Oct 08, 2007 · 12:22 PM
Beneath Interbike, some said, is where the “real bike show” was. They had a bike check room there (video podcast to follow) with all sorts of bikes. Outside of the room, I met Stephen “Speedy” Delaire of Rotator Recumbents and Brian Hall of Thunderstruck motors. Also present was Peter Poxton of Nuvinci.
I think this photo shows a newer version of the Jackal running Nuvinci, which will produce a neck-snapping 45 mph without gears. Also see an even more massive electric bike.
Oct 07, 2007 · 08:53 PM
I’ve been meaning to review my Reelights for many months now, but the lights are so damn good I keep forgetting. The Reelights follow the K.I.S.S principal — keep it simple stupid, and this is where their genius lies. The appeal of the lights is so simple you’ve already figured it out —any time you’re moving you’re lit.
Reelights are a novel take on pedal powered lights — no ‘bottle generator’ like on your Mom’s old Schwinn, no expensive hub generator. Just two rare-earth magnets, a coil of wire, some LEDs and a fitting bracket. The light bracket fits on your wheel axel, and the magnets go on your spokes. Whenever your wheels turn, the magnets pass the wire coil in the light and power the LEDs. The high-end model has a capacitor to keep the lights blinking for a few minutes when you stop. Incredibly simple? Yes. Incredibly good? Yes. Foible free? Well…
Oct 07, 2007 · 10:31 AM
The UFB guy’s shirt read
UFB
The Ultimate Folding Bike
So I said, “can you show us?” He did. I watched the video repeatedly before editing it and it’s impressive. Titanium frame, 20 pounds, and folds to 21” x 22” x 10”. Watch below and available on our Huggacast.
Oct 06, 2007 · 09:28 PM
How’s I miss this? Apparently they were at the Dirt Demo at Interbike, but I didn’t see them. Sturmy-Archer is even blogging about it. We’ll see what comes of it. FSA is apparently releasing a group soon too - might be interesting here pretty soon.
Oct 06, 2007 · 07:39 PM
Just a reminder to the masses out there. Riding in the rain is great. I did 3 hours today, got soaked mostly through, but still had a great ride. The only issue? - getting caught riding behind the guy with fenders…but no flap! The edge of his raceblade directed a constant flow of wet grit right into my teeth.
Riding in a group this winter? Get a buddy flap!
Oct 06, 2007 · 09:49 AM
In one of our long talks before Interbike, Sky Yaeger told me about the white bootie scene in San Francisco (I should’ve podcasted those talks). White booties being the ultimate roadie status symbol amongst the masters, 40+, disposable-income cyclist demographic.
I didn’t get to meet Sky during Interbike (Sky, where were you?), but did shoot this photo from the Oschner USA booth where they had a set of Assos white booties, under glass, and lit like jewelry.
Any of you wear white booties?
Oct 06, 2007 · 08:47 AM
Matras announced the MS-1 this week in Paris — a high capacity/high speed electric bike. The specs are more inline with electric motorcycle/scooters — around 30 mph/45kph speed wise and more than 50 miles on a charge (100km). The styling looks a bit like the Sach’s Mad Ass scooter, which I’ve admired from afar many times. Also noted: Hugger Green. The interesting thing here is that this one actually comes with pedals, make it more like an electric moped.
Oct 06, 2007 · 08:45 AM
Dude said it weighed seven pounds and I didn’t doubt him at all. More photos here.
Oct 05, 2007 · 08:31 PM
The $1000, 1400 lumen Lupine Betty as bright a light as you can buy these days. It’s been available from the parent company in Germany (Lupine Lighting Systems) for a while but they’re just rolling in here in the states from Gretna bikes. This is an incredibly bright light — 22 watts max if you’re stacking up against headlights — light a patch of sunlight on your path all night long.
Oct 05, 2007 · 07:47 AM
This is an updated and republished post from 05.
Last weekend was quintessential Seattle weather in October. Stunningly beautiful one day and rain the next. I mostly welcome the rain, it cleans the air, the city, and signals that Fall has arrived. The Fall is the time of year when I spend hours of my weekends riding the city, the suburbs, and country. When you ride in Seattle, you’ll need a rain bike and the proper gear.
My rain bike is a custom Davidson — it’s a touring/road bike with long-pull brakes and eyelets for mounting fenders and clearance. The frame material is titanium, for all-day riding comfort and the geometry is relaxed.
New for 07, I’ll also ride the Modal, a concept travel bike that’s equipped with Hed’s carbon commuters Jet 60 C2.
Oct 04, 2007 · 01:34 PM
You expect to see lots of skin in Vegas, and the booth babes at Interbike, but I was surprised by Skins technology for several reasons. First cause I got a condom in a Skins wrapper and thought, “condoms at Interbike, well … cyclists and safe sex, cool, maybe it was an Africa project or something.” Nope; just clever marketing. Second, I kept trying to compare Skins to performance underwear, like micro-climate stuff or Lycra Power. Nope; finally, when their Director of Communications said, “stop, just check it out, try the glove box,” and I was impressed. So was the rest of the hugga contigent at the show.
Skins is Gradient Compression performance equipment that aids in recovery and performance and it’s a “got to try it” thing. Like the guy I met at the airport who had worn them non stop since stopping by the Skins booth (have not yet investigated the smelly factor) .
Oct 04, 2007 · 07:13 AM
It takes a big commitment to ride in the rain; especially in the city, where the risks go up, the flats go up, the hazards increase, and it’s just downright dirty and gritty. The other cyclists I’ve talked to are dreading the rainy season.
In Seattle, rain is a fact of riding and commuting, but training takes a big commitment and I’ve got to work myself into it. Last week, I added one fender to a bike as a start and on Sunday night, I prepped the rain bike (we ride rain bikes here, special just for the rain). And the first ride of the Fall season was in a storm!
How do you get through a rainy ride or winter weather in your area?
Oct 03, 2007 · 08:39 PM
After a few days of early fall rain my folder is filthy. Sure, mounting a front fender would have helped, but I didn’t do that. Instead I have to wash my bike. Belgian Kneewarmers ran a great set of tips for all late/early season cyclists on just this topic: Strong enough for a cyclocross Hard(wo)man, gentle enough for… me.
Oct 03, 2007 · 06:51 PM
I stopped by the shop to replace a sticky cable housing during the Fall storm ride and discovered that the Modal concept bike had been tack welded together, wrapped in plastic, and awaiting the Ti welder.
Learn more about the Modal and check the Paragon dropouts.
Oct 03, 2007 · 04:37 PM
Just in time for a Fall storm in Seattle, Ibex sent us their Merino Wool
Knickers. During the course of an 1.5 hour ride, I rode in gray dampness, a squalling storm cell with 40 MPH winds, blindingly-bright sun, and some bonus hail — I was soaked through in about 3 minutes. Merino Wool and Ibex’s Climawool (stretchy, breathable, wool/synthetic blend) is perfect for a wide range of temperatures.
The Ibex knickers feature Climawool over the knees and mid-weight Merino in the back. They also have a “sansabelt” style elastic in the waist, like their shorts.
Oct 03, 2007 · 07:10 AM
A bicycle caravan — with the theme, “Money or Life” — travels 500 miles across Europe to join protests in Prague against the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Caravan/Prague is a feature-length documentary about the caravan and is available now on DVD.
Oct 02, 2007 · 10:40 AM
While you were still asleep, nestled cosy in your warm bed (Ok, maybe it was just me) the hardmen of Woodland Park were doing hard core CX Training in the rain, coached by Todd Herriott and Russell Cree of Herriott Sports Performance. And they’re making it look easy.
Oct 02, 2007 · 10:29 AM
Tree Hugger posted on Bike Mowers last week (thanks for the tip Paul), including this one from Eastern Washington sent in by Montana Mike. Amazingly, that post still get hits, a few serious comments, and pedal-powered mowers are apparently growing in popularity.
Always on top of the urban bike trends, maybe we should design and manufacture a hugga mower.
Oct 02, 2007 · 06:46 AM
While entertaining a crew visiting from Bike Freak Magazine, the Chinook Cycling Club took them on various rides and introduced them to the famous tackweed (goathead) and a site dedicated to eradicating it. That reminded me of all the tackweed flats, running Slime, Mr. Tuffy’s, and it was usually better to leave a goathead in the tire until you got home.
In Seattle, most flats are caused by pinches, glass, staples, nails, and it’s much worse in the rainy season. Starting last year, I stopped using Mr. Tuffy, and instead roll the best tires with the most rubber and replace them as soon as they wear. I carry two tubes, and a tire boot for sidewall blow outs. I’ve also got fast patches and regular old Rema Tip Tops.
Oct 01, 2007 · 10:54 PM
SeattleLikesbikes.org is organizing another Ride for Freemont (2.0) tomorrow evening starting at 4:30 in Gasworks park. Ride starts at 5 and lasts an hour, see the link for a map.
The goal of the follow-up ride is protest the extended closure of the Burke-Gilman trail in Freemont and the broken-promise sharrows on Stone Way. Hopefully the ride will help influence an upcoming city council meeting on these topics. Attire is ‘every day wear to work clothes’. There’s a planned route, established message, and clear guidance on cycling behaviour on the events link.
Oct 01, 2007 · 12:32 PM
Seeing the Bike Hugger Jersey in a shop window was cool — a sense of accomplishment.
Get your Jersey directly from us, from Amazon.com, or now at Elliott Bay Bicycles.
Oct 01, 2007 · 06:30 AM
We could post for a month about Interbike 07, the Industry Cup, and the Hugga Hookup, but I’ll highlight a few topics, produce several podcasts next week, and resume our regularly scheduled programing on Monday. Also see the posts from our Interbike feature blog.
While much of Interbike was the same this year, Urban Bikes were the overall theme with a big presence from Batavus, Dahon, and bikes finally shipping with Alfine, like the glorious Sycip.
I paused for a long-time at the Brooks booth to look at the most expensive basket ever made and it’s based on a 100-yr old design from Mr. Brooks himself. Also see the Brooks waxed-canvas messenger bag.
