DZR keeps things going with another good looking shoe- adding to their impressive line up of already existing SPD compatible footwear. The Midnight. These are canvas and have a faux-leather upper (read: vegan.) They have a luminescent, reflective badge and have a nylon inner shank. They also come with retainer plugs and a replacement cleat plate. They retail for $95 and are available through Mission Workshop. Looking good DZR- keep it up!
Adam Clement, founder of Retroshift- has a solution for those that are worried that their expensive shifter/lever combos might get messed up on the muddier cross courses. The Retroshift is basically a lever that has been altered to allow the use of an STI downtube shifter. It gives you shifting at a lower price and they are easy to rebuild. Like my grand dad always said “You can tell how well something was built- by how easy it is to rebuild.”
These little guys will be available later this month and the levers alone should retail for $140- they’ll likely be offered with Dura-Ace shifters for $220.
Erik Tonkin has been testing these shifters this season.
A new look for a great project- the folks at Pedalr are making things happen by not only changing the layout, but adding a STORE to their already fantastical MARKETPLACE. Pedalr has been around for over a year, and it’s a great place for all your cycling stuff- whether new or used. We have our own little store for Go Means Go which you can check out HERE
The Pedalr Marketplace will continue much as it has to date, with the cycling community placing their items for sale on the site. The new Pedalr Store will be more curated, with the “Best of” being elevated to the new Store. It will also bring in larger brand items that will be highlighted then rotated every 2-3 weeks.
Something you may not know about Seattle- it rains here. It’s also occasionally windy, making umbrellas something that aren’t ideal. Many pedestrians give up on umbrellas and invest in a waterproof shell, putting their heads down and trudging along to their destination. Cyclists don’t even have the option of an umbrella, and unless you want something like this:
You better get a shell as well.
You by no means need a cycling specific shell for riding. I’ve used a Northface lightweight shell for a number of years with great success. It’s a lightweight rain Read the rest of this entry »
The winter season is approaching quickly and with it comes that time of year where many people exchange gifts to celebrate the birth of the little baby Jesus. Much like Cal Naughton Jr., I like to picture Jesus as a figure skater. He wears like a white outfit, and He does interpretive ice dances of my life’s journey. But that’s just me and Cal. You can celebrate anything you want. Or nothing. I don’t give two toots. But if you are looking to spend some money on somebody or yourself. Here’s a little guide to things that don’t suck.
Tools. Tools are handy. There are also so many to choose from. Multitools to individual shop tools. Here are a couple that I’ve been thinking are a good idea.
Topeak Ratchet Rocket. A small, fairly lightweight ratchet set for allen keys, a T25 Torx and a #2 Phillips, in a clean little package. They also have two other lighter, more svelte versions
Feedback Sports Pro-Elite Workstand. This stand is legit. Whether a home mechanic or taking it to the races- it’s solidly built and will collapse small enough to put in the trunk of a small car. They’ve also got a number of other handy things for the home and shop like scales, and bike storage stands.
Lezyne Alloy Floor Drive Pump. Do you hate how your bike mechanic girlfriend won’t put her bike tools away when she’s done fixing your bike? Does the pump she uses to fix your flats just clash horribly with the decor of your studio apartment but there’s no where to hide it? Well get her a new one! One that will blend with your Ikea furniture, or your rustic hewn wood furniture all the same. Lezyne makes some beautiful stuff. It’s tools for people that don’t have a place to put them other than their living space. Well designed, and functional- with a very clean appearance. A good pump will last years and years. Might as well get her one that looks good.
Tubes. Tubes you say? Yeah. Aren’t tubes tubes? No. Foss Tubes are crazy. I haven’t used them. But they look pretty awesome. And they are expensive- so it’s unlikely that your broke ass cycling family member is going to drop $20ish dollars on a tube. But watch the video. It’s the real deal. Make sure you are getting them the right size. When it comes to tubes, size DOES matter. Outside of finding them at your LBS, there is a place online you can get them HERE
Bike Lights. If you love somebody- help them see the light. As darkness falls earlier each day, it’s important to see, and be seen. Reflective clothing is Read the rest of this entry »
Now available from Gingko Press. A book about the bicycle in art. 256 pages in a hard cover with 900 images. A good thing for that table that you put your feet on while watching TV. $34.95 and available HERE
I’m giddy for tomorrows MFG Cyclocross race. I’ll be racing on a new CX bike. You may remember the SSCXWC as it was in Seattle last year? Well I’ll be on one of the frame sets which are now no longer available- you snooze you lose… Anyhow- it sat in the basement for 6 months waiting to be built- me wondering a little if it would ever happen. Through the support of Gates Carbon Drive and one of our Soft Like Kitten sponsors- Recycled Cycles as well as the master mechanic-ing of Mr. Blaise Curry, I’ll be rolling up to the start on a bike that is by far the nicest I’ve owned to date. It weighs in at 16lbs and change and is built super solid for a Clydesdale such as myself. If I wanted to knock off a little more weight- it would be in the wheelset- but carbon wheels are a big expense. One that I don’t have in the budget at this time. These wheels are still lighter that my old Surly 1×1/Velocity A23 combo with clinchers. This will be my first real go with the Gates Carbon Drive which I’ve been raving about purely on the theory of it. I hope that it performs well in our (typically) muddy conditions here in the Northwest- and I’ll be reporting back with thoughts on it’s performance in different conditions. You may notice that as with the Traitor that I’ve been riding- the steerer is uncut. I’m looking for some guidance on bike fit for cyclocross (any shops I should talk to?)- and am leary to cut the steerer at the moment. I want to be sure that it’s right. If you can forgive that, then enjoy the photos.
I went with V-brakes in order to both reduce the possibility of brake shudder as well as getting solid braking power. They are mini-v’s so they don’t require the long pull that v-brakes normally do. We’ll see how they do with mud clearance. Coupled with v-brake specific drop bar levers- they feel solid (at least dry). The cranks were a trade out- because the FSA Gossamers that I ordered- I ordered with an incorrect BCD. So Blaise took care of me with some stuff he had around. Dura-Ace is what is on now. Boo-yah. The Chris King hubs will be my first- and I’m looking forward to seeing what all the hullaballo is about. They are brown- because they will be muddy soon enough. I like the Major Tom rims- built wider and as a cross specific rim from Velocity. I’ve been running their clincher version- the A23 on the Traitor. The Challenge Grifo tires are pretty popular in the NW and the rear tire is switched around the other way for more traction in muddy conditions.
I’m not typically a weight-weenie as it were; mainly because when a fella weighs over 220lbs and starts getting carbon levers to shave 15 grams here and there, they have too much money. Like Donna Summer, I work hard for my money- and my goal with this build was a balance of weight, strength and cost. If only allowed 2 of the 3- I chose my usual cocktail composed of strength and value.
The bike gets lots of comments and though I’m not one that typically likes the flashy side of things- I’m hoping I can get a shirt for the bike that says “don’t hate me because I’m beautiful.”
This was the original idea for the bike. It came out pretty spot on huh?
Build details:
frame: 2010 Raleigh carbon SSCXWC frame with ENVE carbon fork and integrated FSA headset
wheels: 32H Chris King classic road hubs laced to Velocity Major Tom rims
tires: Challenge Grifo 32′s
handlebars: Salsa cowbells 44cm wide
tape: Fizik glossy black
levers: Cane Creek Drop bar V levers
brakes: TRP CX-9 mini V brakes
stem: PRO
saddle: Fizik Arione
seatpost: FSA carbon SL-K (soft like kitten?)
cranks: Dura Ace
drivetrain: Gates Centertrack CDX belt drive 55T chainring 24T cog
Once again- a big ol’ wet sloppy kiss to Blaise for helping me out. To Raleigh as a sponsor of SSCXWC without which I wouldn’t have the bike to begin with, to Recycled Cycles for being a rad sponsor of an amazing team, and of course to Gates Carbon Drive for doing what they do. As a parting shot- here is Blaise doing what he does and one of the reasons that he’s so bad ass. Your cheater bar is weak sauce. His is a gun. A fucking gun.
(not sure who took this photo- I’ve had it on the computer forever and this feels like a proper time to use it)
*Update 10/30/11
Yesterday was a great course for me out at Magnuson Park. MFG rarely (ok, never) dissapoints. As I was in the line waiting to start- I got a few comments on my bike to which I replied:
At Interbike Billy walked me through the Fitzroy and I got what seemed like it was going to be a fantastic little video. Well… It wasn’t. My new camera didn’t have a fast enough card in it and the video is chopped up and dumb. Blogging is hard enough for me- to make a video was an undertaking that I should have known was out of my league. That doesn’t change the fact that the Fitzroy is a solid looking pack.
Though I currently don’t own any Mission Workshop gear- I’ve been wondering more and more why. I’ve inspected them at shops and love the packs. This one especially. It’s made in the USA and has a lifetime warranty. It’s sexy, it’s got the cargo capacity (2200 cubic inches,) I really don’t know why I haven’t bit the bullet. Sure, $219 seems like a lot of cash- but it’s not much more than other offerings out there. When you look at how long a quality pack like this will last and the value of the things we sometimes carry in our bags (hello zippered pocket for your laptop!)- it’s really not much at all.
I’m not really sure why they call it The Fitzroy- but I’m going with them naming it after Robert FitzRoy- the captain of the HMS Beagle, on Charles Darwin’s famous voyage.
So here it is- The Fitzroy:
You can (and should) check it out over at Mission Workshop. It’s available online now and in the San Francisco Store tomorrow.
I got an email from Gregory Klein the other day about some of the projects he’s been working on as of late. They include a few fine kits made by Pactimo, as well as a journal- which you may recognize as similar to the design work he did for the Bike Snob NYC book.
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