Articles
Cyclocross October 26, 20082008 Expo Cycle September 11, 2008
Stabalizing The Stable June 18, 2008
Cycling Caps As Fashion November 18, 2007
Cyclocross
For some reason this year I had a notion to race cyclocross. It was going to be great. I knew about 4 other guys who are not really races and we were going to go into Cat 5. We went out on a handful of rides together, but somehow I was the only one to actually race. It is really too bad, because it was a load of fun.
The short cyclocross season came to an end this weekend. It was a cold -1 with winds gusting up to 60km an hour. I was tempted to not even race. The wind zapped any energy I may have had. In the end it was a good race. I did not crash and I felt like I gave it my all.
The thing about racing is that it is pretty intimidating. For the most part everyone out there has been racing for years. So it is obvious that my steel frame Sury 29'er, flat pedals ,and sneakers do not really fit the "scene" of carbon and spandex. Maybe that is why there is not really anyone racing Cat 5. I am actually pretty happy that I did go out and race. In all I made it to 3 races out of 6. Strange thing is that somehow I won Cat 5 Provincials and I think I won the Cat 5 Cyclocross Sask Cup Points.
2008 Expo Cycle
I was lucky enough to check out Expo Cycle this year. This is the large Canadian bicycle show that takes place between Euro Bike and Interbike. With 5 days to check out bikes, including one day out on the mountain testing out a whole bunch of 2009 bikes, it was a great chance to see what is new in bikes. I have a chance to see all the bread and butter offering from the majors, but took a lot of time to check out the fixed gears, single speeds and 29'ers.
The 2 main eye catchers this year were the belt drive 29'er from Spot bikes and the fixed gear from FBM. I took the Spot bike out for a nice trail ride at Mount Bromont. It accelerated great and just had a nice feel to it. Unfortunately they had no real information about the bike, like prices, availability, or even a catalog of their products. The belt drive was silent and engaged instantly, I know this stuff has been around for a while, but it was nice to take it for a ride and feel for myself.
The Sword by FBM was the other stand out. It was built up as a complete, but is available as a frame and fork. The frame is nice and clean, no labels and no logos except for the nice head badge. I am still not sure if I like the looks of the track ends on it, but the rest of the frame makes up for that. This may have to be my 2009 fixed gear bike.
In terms of what else is going to be on the market for 2009, there is a whole lot of stuff. Cycles Marinoni had a beautiful fixed gear bicycle, that was probably the best made mass production bike I saw.
Giant has three fixed gears this year including the Bowery Mashup, a flatbar version of the Bowery. The are also coming out with a mid-range fixed gear complete with their '72 logo. For under $1000 it is a nice looking bike.
Shimano had a custom built Naked Bike diplaying their Alfine rear hub. It was a amazing city bike complete with wooden rims! The frame details are one of a kind.
SE had a few of their fixed gear bikes out. They are looking nice and show a trend that is moving away from the vintage look and moving more towards the bmx scene. Very nice.
Urbana Bicycles had what appeared to be a cross between a cruiser bike and a mountain bike. A very strange mix of step through frame and a single speed chainring with bash gaurd. Not sure what the real purpose is. They had no info on the bikes and the website has none either. Hopefully more information will be available soon.
Soma had some of their gear on display. In Canada we do not actually see much of their product on the street but it seems like they have some cool track bars and cranks.
All around it was a crazy five days. So much to see. Some companies have raised prices a whole bunch while others have remained the same. Either way there will be a lot of nice stuff on the market in 2009.
Stabalizing The Stable
It seems like every year I have been acquiring one maybe two bikes. Some out of necessity, others just because. In the end it has created a spare room filled with over 8 complete bikes as well as boxes of parts, many of which would probably never see the light of day. I kept many of these thing "just in case", because you never know when you may need an old single wall 27x 1 1/4 wheel. This spring I decided I needed to do something, as the stable was out of control.
The first part of the cleanse was to get rid of some arbitrary parts that have been set aside for so long I cannot even imagine why I once kept them. This was easy and painless. Parting with whole bikes was not as easy. Two I placed for sale, another I gave away, and yet another I parted down to a frame which has thus become somewhat of an art project. All in all the parting of ways has been good for me. But with all this paring down of bicycles I was left with a bit of a void. I needed a do it all bicycle.
Along came the Karate Monkey. For years I have wanted a 29'er. A do it all bike that could fill many dreams, so when I had the chance to snap a previously enjoyed one at a great price, I could not resist. I have already had countless trail rides, as well as a few road rides on it, one that ended up with drunkeness at the river bank. This is always a good time. Now I am sure my other bikes have started to feel a little left out in the new world that seems to be my cycling life. But there are many days in a week and even more in a month, lots of time to ride all.
This bike along with my fixed gear road bike, and an old "twenty" folder have become the main stays of my riding. I have stabalized the stable, at least for now. Creating a perfect mix, that has adapted to apartment size and relationship tolerance levels. Thus a perfect mix, and a renewed love for the utilitarian nature of bikes.
Cycling Caps As Fashion
I remember as a kid having a cycling cap. It was white, with the world championship stripes down the centre. I was probably about 9 at the time, and rode a neon yellow BMX. I went a good 20 years without ever wearing a cycling cap again. I still rode my bike, but styles changed and to be honest, I never really saw any caps for sale. Watching the Tour De France on T.V. I would see the riders wear them, but that wasn't me, and I certainly was not rushing out to buy any spandex shorts in the near future.
Fast forward to present day. I still see very few cycling caps being worn in my city, and trying to buy one in a store here would seem impossible, but they are out there. With the fixed gear phenomenon that seems to be taking over, cycling fashion has taken a whole new route. Shants, t-shirts, messenger bags, and cycling caps are now fashion, both on and off the bike.
It doesn't take long to find a dozen companies on the internet selling cycling caps. Some are still making the traditional styles and colours while others have opted for a more creative route. Mixing colours and patterns to create a more individual look, or even dying and printing on fabric add a true DIY feel to the caps.
Venture out of Saskatoon and into any metropolitan centre like New York, San Francisco, or Vancouver and you are more likely to see a fashion trend forming. Much like the likelihood of seeing a fixed gear bicycle you are also more likely to see someone at the local coffee shop, art gallery, or co-op in a cycling cap. Some may be cyclists, others hipsters, or the often dreaded fakenger. This broad range itself shows that it is now part of fashion. Will it ever be the next big thing? Probably not. You never know though. That person at the table beside you at Starbucks just may be a purchaser for the Gap!
So if you want to jump on the trend before it becomes so 2007 you should check out what these cool companies have to offer: