The Radavist

Portland’s having a Tweed Ride this Saturday, thrown by TweedPDX. Lots of tweed, free coffee, tea, crumpets, and cheap beer! Sounds like a winning combination. Details below:

Man. What a weekend! Rather than attempt to cram every-last detail into a megapost, I decided to do a few posts. After a major hiatus today at the airport, I came home to 500+ photos, 20+ videos and 200+ emails. Sitting down at the computer to make a post like this takes a lot of time and needless to say, it’s the last thing I feel like doing right now. In any case, here’s the Mid-West Mayhem Recap: Day 1.

I want to say something before we begin though. This weekend was made possible by a few major supporters. Sure, Sam, Kris, Antonio and Shea organized the event with the help of Trick Track, but in any major event in a city, there’s always a hub; a centralized location where the people hang out (I think it’s called loitering? – heh). At the CMWC, W-Base acted as the hub and at the MWM, It was Ben’s Cycles / Milwaukee Bicycle Co. The guys at Ben’s helped kids with everything. From directions, to bike building, to airport shuttling, to food. Man, It was so comforting. Sure, I’ve been sponsored by them for a few years now, but I saw Drew, Vince and the other guys help everyone out like they were one of their own team riders. So this is a HUGE thank you to Ben’s Cycles. You guys really outdid yourselves.

NYC Velo tweeted at me about this last week right before I was heading to Tokyo so I didn’t get a chance to check it out. The Smile is a new coffee shop on Bond St. in NYC and they’ve got a bit of coffee and cycling history up in their shop.

The WNW (winners not whiners) space will be premiering the London to Paris video this Thursday, October 29th at 7pm. Be sure to check it out. Also, if you haven’t been by the space, be sure to roll through on your commute tomorrow morning for free coffee!

231 Eldridge.

Catch the full WNW schedule below:

WNW is a community space in the heart of L.E.S. brought to the NYC cycling world by DQM, Trackstar, Livestrong and Nike. It’s at Trackstar’s space (the flier had me confused for a second). Tonight is the opening party, from 7-9 at 231 Eldridge.

WNW is a pop-up installation within Trackstar that works as a companion to the STAGES show. Open Weds – Saturday, 10/22-11/22, WNW is all dedicated to cycling and art in New York. It’s a place for the community to get a sense of what LIVESTRONG and the Lance Armstrong Foundation are about and to connect with people who are stoked on cycling and art.

They will be serving free coffee and donuts every morning for riders headed to work, offering free flat fixes and teaching classes on bike stuff like wheel building and headset installation. There will be weekly rides visiting all five boroughs of the city that will leave from WNW. The London to Paris film will also be screened here.

The Stages begins at Deitch on October 31st and runs through November 21st.

Previously:
The Bikes of STAGES Exhibition at The Armory
Stages09 New York

Speaking of creativity and ingenuity, Austrian design studio Paulbaut has designed a absolutely amazing coffee cup holder for your bike. Just be wary of lane-splitting with this if you’re using riser bars.

I wonder if it’d hold a tallboy?

Via Design Boom

Today is shaping up nicely. I got free coffee from Gimme! for commuting to work by bike today (which I do anyway, everyday). But still, free iced coffee is always an added bonus. Which reminds me, it’s bike month, so give your girlfriend (or boyfriend) the ride of their life!

I’m sure everyone knows the Giro D’ Italia begins in less than 8 hours. Who’s playing hookie tomorrow to eat a bagel, drink a coffee and watch the team time trial?

Not me. Oh well…

Check out the latest posting over at Metal Inquisition for the greatest cross-cultural analogy ever! Well done chaps, well done.

The 2009 Red Hook Criterium is an unsanctioned race through a desolate post-industrial part of Brooklyn. Brakeless track bikes are mandatory for riders. The field will be a mix of semi-professional cyclists, bike messengers, and urban cyclists. The race consists of 16 three quarter-mile laps featuring several hairpin turns, a fast sprint through the parking lot of a chain retailer, a cobblestone stretch, and a sprint finish. Start time for the race is 11pm on Saturday night, and assuming a 2-minute lap time, will last roughly a half-hour. Bus and automobile traffic on the course, even if kept to a minimum, is a near-certainty.

The first person to cross the finish line at the completion of 16 laps will take home $300. The second place finisher will receive a $150 prize, and the third place finisher will pocket $50. Additionally, the first rider to complete the first and eighth laps will receive a prime, or prize, to be announced on race day.

Immediately following the race will be a house party where the podium presentation and distribution of prizes will take place.

March 28th, 2009, Registration at 9:00 pm, Race Start: 11:00 pm
Entry Fee: $10. Prizes: 1st place – $300 | 2nd place – $150 | 3rd place – $50
@ 65 Dikeman St & Richardson
Rules: Brakeless track bikes AND HELMET required

On Saturday, March 28 the 2009, the Red Hook Criterium will take place and will be be filmed as a competitive sporting event. The film will be produced by Kalim Armstrong (Orange Bikes Take Manhattan, Messenger) and John Hoppin, with assistance from Daniel Leeb (Cinecycle). The race organizer is David August Trimble, and the race director is Al Barouh.

Multiple HD cameras will be set up to film the race. At least one helmet cam will follow race action firsthand. Additionally, a surprise helmet cam shooter may be in town to cover the race. We will have a camera at the podium presentation immediately following the race. Live race commentary and analysis will be provided by John Hoppin and Michael Green (bikeblog NYC).

This project is made possible by the Bicycle Film Festival family, a festival showcaseing films featuring the bicycle in 39 cities annually. The Proud Sponsors of the Red Hook Criterium are the Coffee Den, Katherine’s Homemade Granola, Zafeiropoulou, Trimble Racing, Sam Trimble Design, Taki’s Express, and Roo Design.

Hugo from Snap! delivery was featured in the NYtime’s fashion section today. The article was about reviewing the different brands of bike lights. Read up here and I’ve pasted the 1st page below.

AS more commuters ride bikes, more cyclists put themselves in danger. Should riding across the Williamsburg Bridge at night really be a deadly adventure sport? From 2007 to 2008, the New York City Department of Transportation recorded a 35 percent increase in the number of commuter cyclists, and an observational study released by Hunter College last fall found that the majority of city riders don’t obey safety rules.

Today, commuter cyclists have just as many options in bike lights as they do avenues down which to careen and curve—potentially unseen. But not every bike light is built to survive city riding, and if you intend to remove the flashers every time you slip into the office or stop for coffee, be forewarned that bigger isn’t always better, especially when it comes to convenience. Hugo Giron, a New York City courier and the founder of the Brooklyn-based bike-messenger service Snap Delivery, tested five sets of headlights and taillights during his 6 p.m. to midnight shifts.

Abe and Tyler are hustlin’ at full speed. I gotta hand it to Outlier, they produce some fine clothing. I’ve worn these pants for about two weeks now and have been caught in the rain a few days. Their pants stayed bone dry. Even in the pouring rain.

When it’s below 40 degrees, I wear my leg tights underneath and I stay warm, but not hot. The finish of the pants feels like Dickies on the outside, but is soft on the interior. They fit about the same as the Dickies work pants, but as I said, are water-resistant, stain-resistant and they don’t stink like ass after riding in them for a week.

Some people do the wine test, but I spilled a good amount of Budweiser on them recently and it just ran right off! Not to mention coffee, while riding one-handed to work from Gimme! in the morning.

Here’s some news ahead of the jump! Stay tuned all week as I update their drops!

An Outlier product is not your typical garment. We strive to make what we call future classics, garments that don’t just last a season but instead work for decades. That means we are always in action, always tweaking cuts and experimenting with fabrics, always striving towards producing the perfect garments.

TODAY we will be releasing a version of our OG Pant in a new Workwear fabric. The exterior is a tough canvas, the inside a soft fleece. This is the durable one, its got a high abrasion resistance, and Lotus treatment so that dirt and grease rolls off when exposed to water. It breathes great, is highly water resistant and dries fast. Available in a dark blueish gray.

If you’re in NYC, you can pick these up at Affinity Cycles and Chari & Co!

A new cafe has opened in Greenpoint around the corner from my apartment. Boneshakers is, as described, a cafe with bikes, coffee and food.

Tomorrow at 7:30, they’ll be playing The Triplets of Belleville. Come through before Peel Sessions!

Check it out next time you’re in the neighborhood!

and thanks for the heads up Doug…

speaking of “heads up” or off rather… what do you guys think of this?