April 16, 2009
April 15, 2009
The Town Vol. 2
Just got word from Stevil that he's having a show at One on One this May.
Steve's stuff is weird and creepy and just right. Don't miss it.
Steve's stuff is weird and creepy and just right. Don't miss it.
Watch this
I love footplants and dork moves and this video delivers in spades. make sure you watch all the way to the end. You gotta catch his backflip.
This guy has a style all his own and you have to respect that.
seen on fixed gear london
and this one.
This guy has a style all his own and you have to respect that.
seen on fixed gear london
and this one.
April 14, 2009
Alex TD17 Outcome: not good
So I wake up from an evening nap, hustle down to tricks and drinks all excited to try out my new wheel, do one rock-walk and boom. My night is done.
One attempt, that's all it took. In comparison, my Velocity Fusion tied and soldered withstood several hours of learning how to do rock-walks and many many attempts. Now to be fair, I did land with my weight too far rearward and I'm not sure if I should really expect any 700c rim to hold up to that kind of side load, but all I know is that I was able to ride the shit out of that Fusion before it was finally taken out by another rider's front wheel.
The damage:
Because I'm a glutton for punishment I actually may build up another one, since I already have the spokes and the rim is so cheap, just to make sure that I didn't create some perfect storm of side load and am not unfairly writing off a rim that seems fairly reasonable for the application. But as of right now I don't know what I'm going to do. Perhaps lay off that trick until the Chukker becomes available, but as anyone who's ever been on the cusp of grasping a new trick knows, that's easier said than done.
I kind of feel like Cartman in that episode of SouthPark where he travels to the future because he can't stand waiting for the Nintendo Wii to come out. Velocity I need some Chukker's now!!!
One attempt, that's all it took. In comparison, my Velocity Fusion tied and soldered withstood several hours of learning how to do rock-walks and many many attempts. Now to be fair, I did land with my weight too far rearward and I'm not sure if I should really expect any 700c rim to hold up to that kind of side load, but all I know is that I was able to ride the shit out of that Fusion before it was finally taken out by another rider's front wheel.
The damage:
Because I'm a glutton for punishment I actually may build up another one, since I already have the spokes and the rim is so cheap, just to make sure that I didn't create some perfect storm of side load and am not unfairly writing off a rim that seems fairly reasonable for the application. But as of right now I don't know what I'm going to do. Perhaps lay off that trick until the Chukker becomes available, but as anyone who's ever been on the cusp of grasping a new trick knows, that's easier said than done.
I kind of feel like Cartman in that episode of SouthPark where he travels to the future because he can't stand waiting for the Nintendo Wii to come out. Velocity I need some Chukker's now!!!
Sorry, Portland
Last fall a fellow by the name of Eric Smillie contacted me about an article he was writing on Minneapolis. It completely slipped my mind until today, when I received an email from him with this link to the published piece.
It's about cities that aren't named Portland, that have strong bike cultures.
Here is the Minneapolis section of said article:
Minneapolis
Population: 377,000
Workers commuting by bike: 3.8%
Alley cats a year: 30
People at Critical Mass (approximately): 600 per ride
Bicycle Friendly Community rating: Silver
Miles of bike lanes and trails: 122
Scene: Even 56 inches of snow each year cannot smother Minneapolis’s beating heart of bicycling. “I don’t know if I dare say the alley-cat scene is the biggest in the country, but it’s ridiculous,” says Jeff Frane of the Bike Jerks crew. A recent women-only street race saw 123 riders, and the 2008 Stupor Bowl drew 400. Chalk up some of the depth to local companies like the national distributor Quality Bike Parts, the bike manufacturer Surly, and a contingent of custom frame-builders like Capricorn Bicycles. Plus, the place is flat, which obviates the need for gears. “Minneapolis is huge for single-speed mountain biking. It’s basically the birthplace of it,” says Frane. “In winter, they handle the snow better and don’t need much maintenance.” In summer, meanwhile, bike polo matches run three times a week. The scene gets hefty support from the city, too: The local administration has earmarked funds to install self-service bicycle rentals and 45 more miles of trails and lanes by 2010, and the city’s 5.5-mile Midtown Greenway, a path that cuts all the way across the city’s south side, has been so successful that riders are clamoring for more.
Read the whole article here: www.good.is
It's about cities that aren't named Portland, that have strong bike cultures.
Here is the Minneapolis section of said article:
Minneapolis
Population: 377,000
Workers commuting by bike: 3.8%
Alley cats a year: 30
People at Critical Mass (approximately): 600 per ride
Bicycle Friendly Community rating: Silver
Miles of bike lanes and trails: 122
Scene: Even 56 inches of snow each year cannot smother Minneapolis’s beating heart of bicycling. “I don’t know if I dare say the alley-cat scene is the biggest in the country, but it’s ridiculous,” says Jeff Frane of the Bike Jerks crew. A recent women-only street race saw 123 riders, and the 2008 Stupor Bowl drew 400. Chalk up some of the depth to local companies like the national distributor Quality Bike Parts, the bike manufacturer Surly, and a contingent of custom frame-builders like Capricorn Bicycles. Plus, the place is flat, which obviates the need for gears. “Minneapolis is huge for single-speed mountain biking. It’s basically the birthplace of it,” says Frane. “In winter, they handle the snow better and don’t need much maintenance.” In summer, meanwhile, bike polo matches run three times a week. The scene gets hefty support from the city, too: The local administration has earmarked funds to install self-service bicycle rentals and 45 more miles of trails and lanes by 2010, and the city’s 5.5-mile Midtown Greenway, a path that cuts all the way across the city’s south side, has been so successful that riders are clamoring for more.
Read the whole article here: www.good.is
April 13, 2009
Alex TD17
With the demise of the rear checkerboard and the destruction of my Fusion at the hands of Mike Carney (just kidding buddy) a new rear wheel became necessary. I'm eagerly awaiting the Chukker from Velocity, so in the meantime I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on a new rim. I also recently learned to do rock-walks and found that my rear 32C Vittoria rolled off the rim (Fusion) while learning the trick and landing poorly.
So the criteria for a new rim became: tough, cheap, and wide
Enter the Alex TD17. 23.9mm wide (not too wide, just right), 560grams, designed for 29er mountain bikes, no brake track, sells for around 30 bucks, and has a neat fat lip around the sidewalls that was designed to prevent pinch flats when mountainbiking. I'm hoping that the extra material makes it more dent resistant during square edge impacts.
It's a good looking rim and it built up smooth, although there was a little daylight showing in the seam; but that gap disappeared once the wheel was brought up to tension. I also am still fighting the sticker residue, but one of these days I'll go buy some Goo Gone and take care of it.
I am a big fan of the Alex Adventurer (box section, eyeleted, cheap) and considered that first, but on the recommendation of wheelbuilding vet P. Rude, settled on the TD17; primarily because it's a disc specific rim and thus doesn't have a brake track (I'm so vain). Also Matt recently built up sets of Alex Pro 28's and a set of XD-Lite's and came to the conclusion that they both seem to be very high quality rims. Alex kind of gets a bad rap because they're so inexpensive, but if you walk into most shops and start asking the mechanics you'll usually find several who swear by them. At least that's the story here in MPLS.
The first ride will be at TnD tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes.
So the criteria for a new rim became: tough, cheap, and wide
Enter the Alex TD17. 23.9mm wide (not too wide, just right), 560grams, designed for 29er mountain bikes, no brake track, sells for around 30 bucks, and has a neat fat lip around the sidewalls that was designed to prevent pinch flats when mountainbiking. I'm hoping that the extra material makes it more dent resistant during square edge impacts.
It's a good looking rim and it built up smooth, although there was a little daylight showing in the seam; but that gap disappeared once the wheel was brought up to tension. I also am still fighting the sticker residue, but one of these days I'll go buy some Goo Gone and take care of it.
I am a big fan of the Alex Adventurer (box section, eyeleted, cheap) and considered that first, but on the recommendation of wheelbuilding vet P. Rude, settled on the TD17; primarily because it's a disc specific rim and thus doesn't have a brake track (I'm so vain). Also Matt recently built up sets of Alex Pro 28's and a set of XD-Lite's and came to the conclusion that they both seem to be very high quality rims. Alex kind of gets a bad rap because they're so inexpensive, but if you walk into most shops and start asking the mechanics you'll usually find several who swear by them. At least that's the story here in MPLS.
The first ride will be at TnD tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes.
TnD Tonight
yeah TnD, and I made a new flyer.
show up. and have some fun. Every Tuesday night. starting..... Now!
April 12, 2009
April 11, 2009
Bootleg Sessions 3 Trailer #2
In case you didn't know there's going to be a small Minneapolis section in BSV3. Needless to say, we are all very very excited.
I'm looking forward to the MPLS premier already, stay tuned for details.
April 10, 2009
Paris Roubaix
Coverage of the race starts at 4pm Central on Versus this Sunday.
The greatest of all the classics.
April 8, 2009
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