DL Byron: May 2008 Archives

Interestingly the green lanes look like astroturf — expect some street artists to set up lawn chairs, beach balls, and a picnic blanket. There’s a Critical Mass suggestion. Next one, go and occupy all the Green Lanes and just chill there.

Note: to Portland, "we got Green Lanes too!"

And I sorta feel like a Bear at the Zoo, where they drop new toys into an enclosure to reduce boredom. This Summer in Seattle, the City has added new wayfinding signage, green lanes, new bike lanes; it’s all very exciting!

A reader wrote to say he designed his girlfriend’s bike and sent photos

Nice. Mark’s shared his girlfriend’s bike earlier in the year. I like how the bunny horn matches the reflectors.

Our friends at Kona invited us to Whistler BC’s Kokanee Crankworx

The most ground-breaking gravity fueled mountain bike festival in the history of all things badass.

That means the Huggas are gonna put on some baggy shorts, full-face helmets, some crusty ‘tude, and blast down a hill on a freakin’ Freeride bike — hooah!

Ya know, slopestyle is new for us, but when in Rome. Shit I may even do some huckin’.

Kona will also have their asphalt and utility bikes onsite. I’m hoping to ride one of these to a store and back …

I’d like a bottle that didn’t harm me with nasty chemicals and one that let the water taste like water — too bad the Camel Back Bottle is bulky, doesn’t fit in the hand well, and I know I’m gonna drop it. The nipple action is very good though.

Uploaded by Hugger Industries | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

Dug how the video is a reverse perspective. When we shoot video, we’ve got the camera pointed in the opposite direction.

Just as we were talking about the dapperness in Portland, we spotted Dashing Tweeds in the UK

Not only stylish, but that cape is woven with high visibility Lumatwill. Commute in style and make sure you’re seen. Pair that cap with the Beret Helmet and a baguette in a basket. How could BSNYC refuse to wave hello when your rode by looking that good?

A Seattle setup …

Uploaded by Dapper Lad Cycles | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

We’ve got a set of Monkey Electric lights going on Bettie 2.0. It’s likely you could induce a shared trance state at a party with these lights and we may do just that during the Bizjam Seattle Party. Get them wheels a spinning, round and round with some House music and that’s a whole new hypnotic use for Bettie. Or flip them on during a commuter challenge as a defensive measure!

Also posted on

• Make
• Wired
• Cyclelicious

Cyclelicious has got a coupon code for 25% off.

During the Tour de Fat, New Belgium is offering to swap cars for bikes. Four wheels for two:

Through the program, one volunteer in each Tour de Fat stop will commit to live car-free for one full year. The dedicated individual will sign over their car title and receive a custom New Belgium commuter bike in exchange. The selected candidate will chronicle the trials and triumphs along their car-free journey. The volunteer is chosen after submitting a video or essay describing their desire to live without a vehicle.

More details on the Follow Your Folly site.

Manpris (that’s capri pants for men, but we don’t call them that) are def in and the longer the better. Seen here are Keith and me comparing our ‘pris.

Uploaded by Hugger Industries | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

We don’t get into politics here, but as a bike culture item, the Obama Spoke Cards are making a statement. For equal spoke time, someone should offer Hillary Spoke Cards … .

Also noticed by the Goat.

A group of our readers just purchased Hugga Jerseys and will wear them during Ride the Rockies later this month. We’re are running low on stock (back-ordering mediums directly from us, still available at Amazon) and new club fit jerseys are on the way. The Club Fit jersey from Hincapie offers more room for commuters, urban cyclists, and beer drinkers. We’ve also got new socks on the way and some surprises.

Those looking for new bar tape, may consider this option from Liz Hatch (seen in Maxim and Bicycling).

Uploaded by fairyonabike | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

We didn’t get enough photos of all the Portland Urban Cycling Style, but did notice much dapperness, like this cycling gentleman with his shoes that matched his shirt.

Also saw several women cyclists in cowboy boots. Saw a couple of those fashionable horse-riding helmets, but no beret helmets.

If I could only work on Bike Hugger full time, I’d photo blog all of the industrial areas we ride through. While Seattle is known for it’s software, tech, and biotech, it’s actually an industrial port city.

Built during the Klondike Gold Rush, the town thrives on boats, planes, trains, and beer like PBR.

These murals are painted on a building in the Georgetown Neighborhood, across the street from the old Brewery.

Uploaded by Hugger Industries | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

From the Washington Post today

City officials, hoping to make commutes like his less treacherous, have created a seven-block experiment of a bike lane on Ninth Avenue. Here, concrete dividers and a row of parked cars shield a bike lane from the street and its traffic. Low mini-traffic lights show when cyclists have the right of way. Bike commuters, messengers and delivery people peel down perfectly smooth paths.

The article also cites Portland as an example, how bikes are fashionable, and cites a needed change from car culture to bike culture in major cities. (Who’d a thought we’d see NYC promoting commuting!)

One of our faves is still the Calmest Road in America.

Later that night at Hopworks … beer, bikes, pub food.

Uploaded by Hugger Industries | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

A reader wrote to say

I was riding to work today heading south on Beacon near the VA hospital when I think I saw a police officer pull over a rider for not wearing a helmet. As I rode by, I asked the rider if he was okay (thinking maybe he had gotten hit), and he just looked mad. Has anyone else heard reports of this today?

And I just heard from another cyclist that they got a 103 ticket for no helmet.

Just like the periodic stop-sign crackdowns on Mercer Island, sounds like the po po are looking for helmet scofflaws.

Anyone else seen cyclist getting tickets or got one themselves?

good times all … good times.

Uploaded by Hugger Industries | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

We’re in Portland, chilling before the Urban Ride and Reception at Lucky Lab. See you all there.

Tomorrow night is the annual Ride of Silence. We’ll toast the ride during the Mobile Social reception and pay our respects. Our event ends just as the Ride of Silence begins at 7:00 PM in Portland. And we encourage all to ride silently from Lucky Lab. We will.

Following the Mobile Social @ Webvisions, we’re giving away even more schwag via Twitter. Check how we’re doing it on the Twitter Giveaway details page. All you have to do is follow us on Twitter, tweet us, and pick up your prize if you win.

Quick FAQ

So what’s a Mobile Social Event?

It’s an intersection of bikes, technology, and culture — we ride, talk bikes, party, and giveaway schwag.

Twitter Giveaway? Huh?

Yep. We’re giving away schwag from our sponsors during Webvisions. Just tweet us for the chance to win. There’s no catch, spam, or weirdness.

What’s the catch?

If there is one, we haven’t thought of it yet. But check back.

What’s this Twitter thing you speak of?

It’s a messaging application where you tell all your brohams what you’re doing all the time. It’s a terrific time suck.

How to Follow Us on Twitter

The instructions and how to with visual aids are on the Twitter Giveaway Details page.

From the Necessity is the Mother of Invention category, comes the Neodymics self-contained, powered-wheel conversion kit. With gas prices raising and increasing interest in electric bikes, I expect to see more entrepreneurs and inventors developing their own take on powering bikes. Using Dewalt power tool batteries is practical and even thinking of just popping off a non-powered wheel for a powered one is an interesting approach. It also looks like something that fell off a moon-lander or was once connected to a Cyborg …

Seems there isn’t a race or ride I do where I don’t forget something. Like discovering the tube that’s in the saddle bag is the old flat tube or that I don’t even have the saddle bag. No helmet, front wheel, or damn it my Polar!

Forgotten items I’ve heard of include

• A bike — arrived at the race, no bike on car. FAIL
• Shoes — I think we’ve all forgot our shoes. FAIL.
• Helmet — you can usually find a helmet at a race or tour.
• Gloves — yep, you can ride without them.

For her commute, Pam has forgot

• socks
• bra
• underwear
• makeup

and today a shirt. So she just wore her liner at the desk. No one probably noticed.

What have you forgot during your commute or on the big race day? (Pam and I wear the same kits, different size and a few times I’ve raced in a really tight jersey that was hers.)

Yubas are now distributed in the U.S by Rock the Bike. Check with your local bike shop to see if they can get it. Rock the Bike is importing two models: Mundo singlespeed or 6-speed. We’ve got the Yuba 6 on test and a report is coming soon.

It’s not very often that I’ve got a bike to test, just adjust the saddle/stem, ride it for 4 hours and and totally enjoy a comfortable ride. That says a lot about the Lapierre S-Lite 500 I rode around the South end of the Lake yesterday. The more I rode the bike, the more I liked it. For the S-Lite series, Lapierre has “tube forms that offer more comfort, with 25% more vertical flexibility in the rear triangle for better absorbtion of vibrations.” That means it’s a vertically compliant frame that flexes enough to smooth out the ride. As I wrote in my initial review of the bike, it’s for a century like Seattle to Portland. That flex also transmits road vibration so it doesn’t feel dull and carves very well. Consquently, without all the stiffness, it’s not the fastest climbing or sprinting bike. You’ll need to wind it up towards the finish line and use that triple to get over the big climbs.

Having been arrested and prosecuted for a car/bike road rage incident, I try my best to just ride away from a-hole drivers, but yesterday when a motorist drove his car onto the bike path in front of me, I decided that was “over the f’ing top” and gave his Lexus a Love Tap. A Love Tap is a gentle reminder to a car that you’re nearby, that they’re in your lane, or have rolled past a stoplight into your path. Dude wigged out when he heard the tap on his trunk and I was all, “seriously dude you’re on the bike path with your car.” I rode away and he parked his car. Never saw him again.

It’d been a while since an altercation and the last incident was in Maui where ironically a hippie-driven, bio-diesel, end-the-Iraq-war-stickered Mercedes tried to run me off the road. I’d never yelled at a hippie before, but this went down harsh and could’ve ended badly, if I’d not backed off, and that was a straight-up defensive-protective measure. I later concluded it was karma for me flipping off this Mercedes the year before.

Tip: a good Love Tap technique is to pop a breakaway mirror. That’ll get their attention and not do any damage.

What’s your Love Tap story or worst incident with a car?

It was tough for me even to mount a bike with a triple drivetrain, but we’ve got a Lapierre S-Lite 500 and that’s what it ships with. I figured, I’ve been running a 25 cassette for a while and finally put a 26 on my bike with SRAM, I’ll try it. That doesn’t mean I’m like those dudes palling around on bikes in the Flomax commercials, even though I’m a Masters Racer that’s closer to middle age than I’d like to think about.

Today in NYC is a Doggie Pedal Parade for all those cyclists transporting their dogs in baskets, trailers, and cargo bikes.

WHAT: Time’s Up! Doggie Pedal Parade
WHEN: Saturday, May 17, 2008 at 2 PM
WHERE: Traffic island on south end of Union Square East between Broadway & 4th Ave

It’s obligatory, I think, that the pets are in costumes.

Nice new signs spotted all over downtown Seattle.

Met this commuter en route back to West Seattle. I showed her the way to her meeting on California. Alaskan Way was a gauntlet with cruise boats and a cargo ship arriving at the same time.

Uploaded by Hugger Industries | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

I commandeered the “I’m with Big Dummy” shirt from the schwag Surly sent us for the Mobile Social. It’s well timed with Bettie 2.0 arriving at Hugga HQ and I’ll wear it as I ride Bettie New around town.

More on Bettie 2.0 as we test ride her, but the quick review is

The bike is remarkably quiet. All I hear is the tires. Old Bettie was a cacophony of sound with the Stokemonkey, two chain rings and gears. It’s also like I went from driving a beat-up old truck to an Escalade. It’s smooth. Now that I understand how Nuvinci shifts, it’s a thing of drivetrain beauty. Also slow. Smooth and slow.

Business and cycling meet at the Biz, Bikes, & Brew event — similar to our Mobile Socials with an emphasis on networking. We posted on deals on the bike earlier and have ridden with Dahon and others. A couple weeks ago, I met up with a potential new business partner and Bike Hugger was vetted by REI during one of their legendary lunch rides.

There isn’t a handbook for these rides, but I’d suggest

• Take a pull and a good, hard one
• Ride hard, but don’t drop the VP of whatever
• Don’t pop-off about your skills and then suck
• Bring the good wheels
• Ask where the sprint is and line up for it

Our friends and Clever Cycles and Recyclery have offered to help us with bike parking at the end of the ride during the Mobile Social. They’re right across the street from Lucky Lab Hawthorne where the reception will take place.

We’ll just ride on over, drop our bikes off, and not worry about bike thieves.

If you need a bike, Clever Cycles has a good assortment of Bromptons and more to ride. Contact them and ask for Martina. Waterfront Bikes is also renting and just mention us for a hookup.

Uploaded by qcom | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

So we’re all busy with our day jobs, working on the Mobile Social, totally distracted by Bettie 2.0 (lots of new gear) and Bike to Work day shows up on the calendar!

I’m out riding that day in a hugga kit saying hello, and we gave a bunch of hugga socks to Cascade for their stations.

You all riding to work as well?

A reader wrote to say

The Mobile Social. What the heck is that? It sounds like so many wonderful things. I’m interested in the intersection of bike culture and mobile technology.

Well that’s exactly what it is! The Mobile Social is the intersection of bikes, technology, and culture. We ride bikes, we’re mobile, use technology, socialize, and into gear. So we combined all that into an event and called it the Mobile Social. We think it’s wonderful and the first one was a success. Our next one is a week from today in Portland. And here’s what you need to know

• Register on Upcoming — limited to 50.
• Ride with us or just come to the reception
• Need a bike? We’ve got rentals lined up from Waterfront Bikes — just ask for the Bike Hugger deal

Comment if you’ve got questions and we’ll see you all there. I posted on all the schwag and just added to the list is a free SXSW 09 Interactive pass.

About this time of year, I get really burned out on my current stock of energy bars. Taste change and so I don’t have a “best bar,” but try to rotate them in and out and mix it up with pastries, bagels, and a good old PB&J. I travel with the PRO Bar and Bear Valley Pemmican Bar. Those are considered meal replacements. A jersey-pocket standby is Clif and their shot chewy things are good for a nervous stomach right before a big race.

Rotating into the choices are bars from Zing. They’re developed by nutritionalists, taste like food, and are all-natural. They’re good and a nice change. For the bike, they’d need more substance for more calories. And, I wish that Natures Path would form their toaster pastries into bar shapes for my jersey.

What’s your bar of choice?

It’s that time of year when more bikes start coming out. Cyclists are riding to work and lots of them are prepping for a tour with some big miles. Even if you’ll never kit up, pin a race number on, or turn a pedal in anger, some racer skills will help protect you and other cyclists. Flying around a blind corner, turning abruptly and other sketchy moves that’d take down a pack in a race can have the same effect at Seattle to Portland, on your commute, or an event in your area.

Last week, a woman was roaring down the Swing Bridge nearly right into me as I was coming up onto it (possibly setting a personal best on her commute). Later a commuter swung wide into a blind corner nearly clipping me and another came just whizzing out across the yellow line. I don’t know if it’s rusty skills, maybe they have no skills, or don’t care, but staying the course and holding your line is a good thing to do even if all you ever ride is a tourist bike path.

Anyone else seen this?

Uploaded by shaderlab | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

Noticed this Ibex softshell jacket at a cafe in Seattle. With that well-worn patina and mud spray it’s obviously used for more than just looking nice. The owner said he loved it. I’ve got a blue one (on clearance) and it’s perfect for chilly spring days — in a week or so it’ll get too warm for it, but it’s currently my fav. I also took it on my trip to Chicago.

What’s your fav well-worn jacket?

This is the third known instance of a bird flying into a drivetrain. The first was when I saw a crow fly right into a fellow cyclists wheel and out the other side. The crow kept flying. Then one time I rode right over a seagull; don’t think that one made it. Now, this third one happened to another cyclist during a descent down Madrona hill and if you look close at the front derailleur you can see the feathery evidence.

still haven’t ridden in san francisco, but it’s on the list …

Uploaded by shaderlab | more from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

This one goes out to all the moms out there with their kids at races, kids on their bikes, riding bikes, giving kids bikes, and just being moms.

When I was young, my mom let me ride my bike all day long, periodically handing me sandwiches, and then riding some more.

Also

• Three Generations
  
• Bicycle for Two
  
• 1939 - My mother on her bicycle
  
• F-0032.jpg
  
• imperial bicycle
  
  Uploaded by omnia_mutantur | from the Bike Hugger Photostream.

Ah yes, have we all not fantasized that we’d awake to find our fixed-gear, safety bike adorned with flowers and mounted by an erotic victorian girl …

From the Private Collection: A History of Erotic Photography 1850 to 1940. Published by Other Criteria. Related article from the Telegraph.co.uk

Notes:

• Suspended seat
• Toe clips
• Dropbar
• Stick holding the bike up

Any of our Austin readers plan on attending Mellow Johnny’s opening and can report?

After our Urban Ride in Portland, we’re meeting at Lucky Lab and giving away schwag from

• Crumpler
• Ibex
• Kona
• Reynolds
• Surly

with a raffle for Crumpler’s Headaitchs and a Raygun Famous Winebar. Free beer, food food, bike talk, Mark’s V club-life MC’ing skills, and I’m predicting a damn good time.

Sign up on Upcoming so we know who’s coming and can make sure we’ve got enough beer!

Bike Hugger got its start in part because of all the bike culture I noticed as I traveled around on business, speaking at conferences, and vacations. These bike connections continue today and just this week at Web Design World where I met Planet Propaganda. We talked blogs, social media, and the work they’re doing with Gary Fisher.

Traveling a lot leads to airport fatigue and there’s nothing more refreshing than seeing a bike exhibit!

The goal of the exhibit is to offer a glimpse into the role bikes play in the lives of Oregonians – racing, replacing a car, riding up and down mountains, or just riding for the joy of it. The exhibit is organized by the Port of Portland, Sweetpea Bicycles, the Regional Arts & Culture Council and the Portland Development Commission.

PDX is my fav little airport and many of Webvision’s attendees will see the exhibit as they arrive.

Simplifying a bike even further, Mission builds fixies with no visible branding. They sell, “a blank canvas for design.” This one was built for Joi Ito.

Of course, we’d ask for hugga green for ours with the hugga badge on the head tube.

I’m in Chicago for a quick trip, speaking at Web Design World, and rode through Millennium Park. First attraction I saw was a bicycle rental station.

I asked and on a good day all of those get rented. Good thing they’ve got fat tires to avoid all the broken concrete.

The Crumpler Cartons arrived today and that means schwag for the Mobile Social in Portland @ Webvisions.

and lots of it.

I think blogs are dedicated to cruelty, they’re dedicated to dishonesty, they’re dedicated to speed

I don’t disagree with that rant from the Bissinger, the author of Friday Night Lights, on Costas Now and also see the counter argument. Textura Design publishes Bike Hugger and is in the blog business (social media). Over the past 2 years, I’ve seen lots of changes and the exponential growth of the bikesphere. The bike community is one of the most active out there with no shortage of bike blogs, including this one. For every positive thing about blogging like keeping us updated on Masiguy’s status, there’s a celebrity-stalker blog posting photos of Hanna Montana’s underwear.

It’s also interesting to see a vibrant bike community while the industry itself is rather old-school, with traditional, in-the-box marketing. On a ride yesterday I talked with a designer from a Seattle-based 100-yr old company that is “aware” of blogging and social media, but not yet ready.

So the question is whether or not the bike industry is benefiting from social media? Or is it just the dumbing down of society and a massive time suck.