Some time ago, we listed Bikesnobnyc as a "must read" daily blog. Well, now we are recommending a cartoon strip that rivals Bike Snob with it's wry bicycle wit AND local connection. Get your daily dose of bike-related-laughter with YedhudaMoon and his buddy Joe. It's a stitch. And if you are so inclined, become one of his patrons.
It's here!!!! Our beautiful Calfee bamboo frame arrived yesterday and it is undeniably one of the most fascinating and beautiful bicycle creations ever! The frame is extremely versatile. Brian designed it to take caliper or disc brakes, single or multi speeds, drop-bar or flat, 35mm tires or narrower, and fenders. It will be built (for the time being) into a single speed "urban" machine.
More good news came today in the form of the newest issue of Adventure Cyclist Magazine. For the first time in many years, I have had an article published and I'm pleased to say that I couldn't be happier than to have it in Adventure Cyclist! If you don't already belong to AC, join. And, if you'd like to see a sample of the Magazine, click on the above link.
Our Seven Demo Weekend is only a couple of weeks away. Please join us! We are partying down on Friday night (7-10pm) with refreshments, live music, and a preview of the beautiful fleet of bicycles that will be available for test rides on Saturday and Sunday. Here is more information!
Our Keen cycling sandals for women have been shipped and are expected to arrive tomorrow or Friday. Men's sandals will be shipped tomorrow or Friday to arrive next week. They are back-ordered at the factory, so this is the only shipment we will see for a while. Shimano sandals are in stock in all sizes.
Assos shorts and bibs are starting to experience shortages. We have most sizes in both but will run out of bibs in large and medium soon. Assos chamois creme is in stock as is the Active Wear Cleanser.
HubBub helmet mirrors are out of stock right now. We have 100 on order! If you want to be added to the waiting list, please send an email with helmet mirror in the subject line and I will flag it for shipment as soon as they arrive. <sigh> Wish I could be specific about timing, but honestly, I can't!
Last but not least, the May Yoga Schedule is on line and High Peaks Coffee just got a new shipment of Fruitfull Bars & Healthy Snacks! (Along with our outstanding coffee!)
Have a great day. Come visit. (You can touch the bamboo frame!)
Diane
Find an hour, get a nice glass of wine, sit and listen to a great interview with Richard Schwinn as he is interviewed by Georgena Terry.
Then, when you ask us about steel bicycles, you'll understand our position!
Enjoy!
Most of us have seen the photo of Albert Einstein on a bicycle, but today I got to see ELVIS! SO young and handsome! And, riding what looks to be an old-style Schwinn. Here comes the segue ... commuting!
Have you thought about parking that gas-guzzling heap a couple of days a week and either a.) taking public transport or b.) taking a two-wheeler? Coming up locally is a series of events for May - National Bicycle Month. Go to Walk+Roll's web site and check it out. Sign up for something, plan to ride, go to the movies, enter contests - just DO SUMTHIN'! (And, if you don't belong to the League of American Bicyclists, please consider joining - it's a great cause)
Which brings us to OUR May event - HubBub's 2nd Annual Seven Demo Days! Friday night, eat, drink, and be merry! Meet our Seven Cycles rep, listen to the great music of The BlueDrivers, see old friends, and meet new ones. Saturday and Sunday, get on a demo and RIDE!!! Sign up for a time (email me!) and bring shoes, shorts, helmet, and a valid driver's license and credit card. It's gonna be a blast!
And, back to commuting. What IS holding you back?
If it's the facilities at your place of business, maybe it's time to step-up and see what can be done for safe bicycle and clothing storage as well as shower facilties. (Riding might actually save your employer money in the long term!)
Do you not have an appropriate bike to ride? If you aren't willing (or able) to ride your "good" bike how about considering an inexpensive commuting bicycle? You can convert an older bike to a modern commuter with a new rear wheel and shifter - turning it into a great 7, 8, or 14 speed with downturned bars and our HubBub drop bar adapter, then adding fenders, lights, and a rack with an Arkel briefcase pannier to house your laptop and other office necessities.
Finally, join one or more of the of the planned events for bike-to-work-week!
In our "private bathroom" in the shop is the current issue of Bicycling Magazine. It's never been my favorite and this one, while better than many in the past, still has phrases on the cover that just crack me up (or piss me off) or maybe both!
How about, "Power Abs - Transform Your Riding in 20 minutes" or, "How to Buy a Bike - A Tale of Tortured Obsession". Both of which got me to thinking about what the customer experiences when he or she goes into a bike shop. (Of course, I've been thinking about this for, oh 30+ years... but there weren't blogs in the past.)
Like nails on a blackboard, I cringe when I hear customers say "the bike shop said"..."Just stand over the top tube - oh, that fits just fine!" or in todays' very high-tech world, "our fit system doesn't lie - that bike fits you fine, you need to (fill in the blank) - get more limber, lose weight, gain some weight, lift weight, ride more - etc. etc. etc.
What makes sense is SENSE! Not non-sense. Numbers are just numbers and in the hands of an incompetent fitter they result in the same thing as not even having a fit, only you're a couple of hundred dollars lighter.
If you idiosyncracies aren't explored and taken into consideration, you may still have a less-than-desirable outcome. For example, did you disloczte your shoulder or break your collar bone? Is one of your feel 1/2 size smaller than the other? What, you had knee surgery and broke three ribs in a bike accident? IT ALL MATTERS! And, while we can look at you and "remind" you that something happened, many fitters don't bother looking OR asking, but rely on some "points of light" and a bunch of numbers that will be meaningless taken in the absence of your input. You need to be able to trust your bike fitter and be thrilled, not just marginally okay, with the results.
Enough said. I got it off my chest so, bibi for now.
To say that Sheldon Brown was a giant in our industry is an incredible understatement. Today we learned that Sheldon passed on due to a heart attack. He was 63. Sheldon was one of those rare intellects - embracing and celebrating life with his talents, wit, and humor. From our industry perspective, he was one of those "natural mechanics" - able to craft fantastic cycling things from his often whimsical ideas. From the perspective of the cycling community at large Sheldon was an encyclopaedic resource on every and any aspect of bicycles.
We will miss him and offer our deepest felt sympathy to his family and to the Harris Cyclery staff as well. As far as we know, his voluminous web site will remain up and intact for the foreseeable future. Spend a few minutes browsing and you will see just what we mean.
Rest in peace Sheldon!
It is official! The HubBub Haiku Contest is ready for your votes! Send an email with your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd favorites. We will post the winning haikus on February 11th!
Voting is open from now until February 4th.
Let the voting begin and may the best 3-liner win!
Winter is in its glory ... snow is flyin' out there right now. So, let me suggest that you turn your mind toward Spring and riding!
On February 2nd, Dick & Betsy Jones will be giving the first of two presentations about self-contained touring outside the US. The events will run from 1-3pm here at HubBub. These two wonderful people have been all over the world on their tandem and promise to deliver an articulate and interesting show. Please call (800) 888-2027 or email me if you are interested in attending either one of these. Presentations are free of charge, and refreshments will be served. (No children please)
HUBBUB WILL BE CLOSED FROM FEBRUARY 5TH - 12TH We board the "Framebuilder's Express" in Chicago and travel with twenty others to Portland, OR for the 2008 North American Handmade Bicycle Show Hope to be able to upload information, photos, and more from our trip! We will re-open on February 13th.
The HubBub Calendar of Events is teeming with information on 2008 rides, workshops, presentations, and more. Note that HubBub sponsored (or supported) events are designated with **.
For example, we will have a Spring Coffee Tasting on Saturday, March 22nd to celebrate the coming of warmer weather. Reservations are necessary as we will only be able to seat 10 per tasting. Seating is at 1pm and 2pm.
2008 PVG Ride registration is NOW OPEN! You can sign up on line and read our FAQ's.
In our January 2nd blog post, we mentioned our friend Paul Bacho and his 4 1/2 month trip from Paris to Beijing beginning March 16th. The 100-member group will be accompanying the Olympic Torch in China on July 31st as they head into Beijing for the opening of the Summer Olympics. Paul is still looking for sponsors (but is going no matter what) and I've got a couple of special requests. If you know someone who could assist with communications - satellite phone, Blackberry, email, photography, or computer link-ups, please contact Paul ASAP. You can reach him by phone (330) 815-5825 or email.
Don't forget the HubBub Haiku contest! The 3-line, non-rhyming poem needs to be submitted to us by Janaury 31st for consideration. We will post them all on February 1st and you can weigh in with your vote. Only restriction is that the word "hubbub" must occur somewhere. Start thinking!
Last, but not least, in the "serves you right" department, one Melissa Arrington of Tucson, Az. will spend the next 10.5 years in jail for her insensitive, liquor induced irresponsibility! Harkens back to the Clear Channel fiasco a few years ago - only worse!
Have a great day - stay warm. For more information - log on to HubBub.com
Hey - it's 2008 ... there's lots of snow on the ground, it's sunny, and by next Monday, it's supposed to be warm enough to get the two-wheelers out again - go figure! Dunno though, just talked with one of our buddies in Verdi, NV and he said they were expecting 5-10 FEET of the white stuff "up on the hill" (hill? Old Mill is a hill - the Sierras are mountains) Maybe what happens in Verdi stays in Verdi?
Anyway, got any cool cycling plans for '08? We're hanging out here at HubBub for the month of January. Give us a holler if you want to bring your bike in for service. It's a good time to work on bike overhauls, build custom wheels, and get new fits done for custom frames in anticipation of the SPRING - which is, officially 79 days away - but then who's counting?
We're hopping a train in Chicago in early February and meeting up with a group of other industry framebuilder-types and "having a pah-ty" as we cross the U.S. on our way to the 2008 Handmade Bicycle Show in Portland, Oregon. We're both really excited to get away, take the train, meet all these other very cool people, AND get to Portland. We'll be gone from February 5-11th.
Actually, our 2008 calendar of events is already pretty fleshy. There's something listed for every month from January through October so far! And, more to come I'm sure.
We wrote a lot about PBP last summer and now Paul Bacho, who is one of the only Americans to complete 6 of these amazing rides, has taken on an amazing cycling challenge. He and 99 other cyclists will leave Paris, France March 16th on a 4 1/2 month, 7,400 mile journey to Bejing for the opening of the Summer Olympics. Paris-Pekin by Bike is about cycling, sociology, and culture. Paul is looking for a few sponsors to round-out the $20,000+ costs (excluding loss of income!). If you, someone you know, or perhaps your company, are at all interested in helping Paul, please contact him right away. (He may also be reached by telephone 330-815-5825)
I am hoping to get to the National Bike Summit in Washington, DC in March. Just depends on a few variables right now, not the least of which is getting away that time of year! Seems as if there is a lot more cycling related stuff going on in which we are both interested. That's cool for us!
Also, received an email today from one of our friends in South Carolina - Tyler Hamilton was just signed by Rock Racing. It will be so nice to see him out on the circuit again!
Well, not much else to report right now. That's probably not true, but as it's mid-afternoon and I've hit the "groggy time of day", that's all I can think about to say right now!
Oh, our friend Michael, who is an excellent photographer, just took this shot of our beautiful husky Ginger. Enjoy!
Ah, the cold and gray have settled in outside while the malls are buzzing inside (with 20 year old shooters, no less!). I however, have yet to set foot in one and I'm damned proud of it! Of course, a huge part of the reason that I don't like the malls this time of year is that it's mostly insanity! But, c'est la guerre...
Hey, our buddy Don Frey, came in last week and asked Brian to scrounge up some stuff for his "2007 Riding With The Devil Cyclocross Awards". Now, if you know Don, you know he's loopy about cycling AND he's an artist. Well, the results are astonishingly cool! Here, see for yourself! Funny thing is, those parts didn't look anything like that when we gave them to him!
So, then one of our reps came in this week and asked if we'd seen the You Tube video of Judge Judy and the couple who's dog slipped out of her collar, ran into the path of a cyclist, and knocked the cyclist down. If you want to smile, laugh, and applaud, watch this! (YAY JUDGE JUDY!)
But wait, there's MORE. I've told you about Bikesnobnyc and I've commented upon how carbon bicycles all seem to be sort of alike ... well, Bikesnob offers some pretty incontrovertible PROOF! Take a look.
So just thought I'd post a short blog before I forgot any of this stuff. You know that ad that says "life comes at you fast"? - well, they ain't kidding! It's more like, "gone in 60 seconds!"
Oh, I lied - one last comment. If you're a "boomer" (I don't really think I like that term) - how about, if you're an old hippie - nah, not that. If you like Beatles music, go see Across the Universe. Our barista Caitlin INSISTED that we see it (even gave us money so we couldn't say no!) and I'm actually glad she did. While it's a little "chick flicky", I think the musical interpretations are excellent and the portrayal of the times brought back a lot of memories - not all of them good! All-in-all a pretty good movie though.
Have a great day!
