Talking Bikes with Obree

From Here

Cop Allegedly Threatened To Ticket Cyclist For Wearing A Skirt

Look out ladies. The NYPD doesn't like the way you dress. I saw this article on Gothamist.

Wanderlust 2011 Part 4.something

I'm loading my bike up right now. I should just have to get dressed tomorrow morning and roll out. If you'll be meeting me there, have a great ride! If you're missing out on this one, well, that's too bad. Looks like the weather is going to cooperate...more or less. Should be a real nice ride on Sunday. Have a great weekend!

Wanderlust Revisited

Okay. So. I'm actually going this weekend.

Wanderlust 2011 Delayed!

My significant other informed me this morning that I have a wedding to attend this weekend. That means the trip to the lake shore is put on hold for one week.

Wanderlust 2011 Part 3

Link to Part 1

Link to Part 2

Okay, so I'm going to ride to Saugatuck on Saturday, May 21st, 2011. I will be leaving Hastings around 10 AM. That should put me at Saugatuck Dunes State Park some time around 3 PM. High temperatures are supposed to be in the 70's and overnight lows in the lower 60's.

Once I get there, I'll be either swimming, laying on the beach, hiking back and forth from the beach, or playing disk golf. You can find directions to the disk golf course on my route sheet in the Part 2. If you're going to come out, and you want me to be looking for you, drop me an email at pocketfullofaugerchips at gmail dot com, or you can just surprise me if you actually do show up.

2011 Le Tour de Donut

Greenville, MI
Friday, September 24th, 2011

(From the 2010 info)
The “Tour De Donut” bike race is a spoof on the “Tour de France”. This appetizing 30 mile bike race is a fun race with rest stops every 10 miles where racers can get water, fruit, first aid, use the bathroom, and get delectable DONUTS. For every tasty donut eaten, a tempting three minutes are deducted from your official finish time. There are only two rules: All donuts must be eaten in the “Donut Zones” and if you toss your cookies- you’re DQ’d. The race has well marked roads, assisted crossings, sag support, awards, prizes and is tons of fun for families, individuals and even experienced cyclists. The race begins and ends at Klackle Orchards Family Fun Farm west of Greenville. The course follows lightly used rural roads and a paved scenic bike trail. Are you a good enough cyclist and donut eater to go into negative time? Competitive cyclists- what’s your strategy? Are you a “glutton” for punishment?

You Can Race or Ride Just for Fun
Keep in mind, 30 miles is no easy task for many mortals! If this is true for you, your family & friends, and perhaps you are looking for a less competitive ride, then ride the 10 mile Family Fun Ride. This group of riders will leave the start shortly after the racers, however they will not be issued race numbers nor will they be timed. They will ride the first 10 miles and “shortcut” to the finish line to enjoy fresh squeezed cider and apple crisp donuts as their reward. Perhaps make it a family challenge! Entry fee is the same and included is a Fun Ride T-shirt, refreshments, and a chance at some really cool participant awards.

or Just Enjoy the Post Race Party
The great post-event party includes the awards ceremony, live entertainment, great food like Pancakes & other eats and of course all the fun Fall activities offered at the Klackle Orchards Family Fun Farm!

I'll keep an eye out for additional information, but it sounds like a great time! This is an event I've wanted to do since I first heard about it.

Wanderlust 2011 Part 2

Link to Original Post (Yes, I know it's right down the page but this should keep things more simple.

Here is my new route with some extra details added:

There is a disk golf course pretty much next door to the beach. I'll be bringing my disks. Here's the info on the disk golf course: Link

I'm thinking of going this Saturday or next. That would be May 21st or May 28th. It depends on the weather. So check back here for confirmation.

Making a Tough Job Tougher

This is a long video, but I think it's pretty good.

Wanderlust 2011

I've got Motion City Soundtrack stuck in my head, and that can only mean one thing: It's time for a bike tour! Now a bike tour can mean a lot of different things depending on who you ask. Technically, I just want to go "bike camping", but most people don't understand the difference. (Or care that there is a difference.) Anyway, I'm planning to head on some morning, point my bike west, ride until I hit a lake to big to ride around in a day, go swimming, eat, set up camp, eat some more, maybe drink some beer, sleep, pack up, and ride back home.

Here's my route: LINK

When: This seems to be the thing I have the most trouble with. The truth is, I don't know yet. Maybe next weekend, ie, May 21st and 22nd. Maybe. Hopefully. Maybe.

Who: Me, and anybody who cares to show up at the beach at Saugatuck Dunes State Park on the day in question.

What (to bring): Ride your bike. Bring food. Bring beer if you like. Bring your sleeping bag and tent. I'm planning to camp in the woods between the entrance and the beach or on the dune overlooking the beach.

I'll nail down a date within the next few days. If nobody else can make it I'll still have a great time, but it would be cool to meet some other people on the beach. If you need to do planning, I can best be reached at pocketfullofaugerchips at gmail dot com. Otherwise, it'll be sweet to meet some folks there the day of and be surprised by who shows up.

Stay tuned for more details.

Idaho Stop Law - A Really Good Idea

Bicycles, Rolling Stops, and the Idaho Stop from Spencer Boomhower on Vimeo.

Haters Gonna Hate

Rider, Wouter Weylandt, dies after crash in Giro d’Italia

From VeloNews:
"The Italian news agency RAI is reporting that Leopard-Trek’s Wouter Weylandt died after crashing out of the Giro d’Italia Monday."

How It's Made: Bicycle Chain

Helmet Manifesto

Here is a funny little story about helmets.

How a tubular is made

Woman hits a 71 year old man with her car, walks

Link

Wired.com on bicycle messengers in the future

link

This is an interesting article about where bicycle messengering may be headed, and there are some pretty good pictures too.

Austin, TX - Church Gap

There's a place in Austin Texas known as "The Church Gap". Scratch that. There was a place in Austin Texas known as "The Church Gap". It's gone now.
Here are a couple videos:

SOLIDSTEEL Johno & the Church Gap from Clint on Vimeo.

Go to BNQT.com for more videos.


And a couple pictures:

Fixation Trailer

Official FIXATION Trailer from Alex Trudeau Viriato on Vimeo.

"Fixation is a true life documentary focusing on the thrilling world of single speed cycling. Shot over the course of 12 weeks, Fixation captures, for the first time, the excitement and popularity of this growing sport from all perspectives. With the resurgence of single speed bikes we are going to discover the appeal to having only one gear. Single speeds are the original form of bicycles but technology has come so far, providing multiple speeds for faster and easier riding, yet single speeds, fixed and freewheel continue to have a strong following. The range of riders is vast, from professionals to the casual everyday rider. Their styles and motives are different but the outcome still seems to be the same, the freedom of one gear, simplicity and the challenge, is what brings them back to the basics.
We will explore the full spectrum of the style: Messengers, Olympic Racing, Commuting, Bike Polo, Brakeless, Freestyle and more.

With each of these categories we will find there personal story but also the experiences behind riding in the specific city. What is it about the simplicity that attracts these people? Are there life’s so hectic that they need to unwind using bikes, or is it merely a form a transportation.
Each city will have its own personality and terrain, changing the style and culture of the rider. Finally we will be joining the entire nationally ranked San Jose Track Team as they perform on their last race of the season at the Hellyer Velodrome. The motives for a track racer and a messenger in San Francisco are going to be vastly different but still pointing to this one form of riding.
Another side of single speed is that of the businesses. We will explore how the uprising or downfall has an affect on small towns and inner city bike shops."

This description was taken directly from their Facebook page. The trailer video looked like this might be a fairly legit movie, but this description has so many errors with commas, using the wrong there, their, or they're, and generally bad editing. It just makes me think that this movie probably wont be any better than the ones that came before it.

Hopcat Alleycat

There is a saying that no news is good news. Not so in the world of bicycle races. I've asked around, but nobody seems to have any info on this race. It may not even happen.

Far be it for me to say anything about withholding/forgetting details about events, but there is no information available. None. Not even a little. So did we lose one of the biggest alleycat races in this area? I couldn't tell you for sure.

Tour de France cafe raid

So apparently the racers would steal beer and wine (and water...sometimes) during the race. Then the shops would bill the race director after the race. Seems odd to me.

Theories about bicycle physics may need to be rewritten

Who will guard the guardians?

Link to the story

Basically, an NYC Police Officer made up a charge because the NYPD is "cracking down on outlaw cyclists". In other words: police officers are abusing their power. Not really news.

Triple Rush Premieres Tonight on The Travel Channel

Triple Rush - Extended Trailer from Triple Rush on Vimeo.

I don't have the travel channel, but I'll try to find it online.

This is what bike messengers are for

New Sponsor Link

I should have added this a while ago but it totally slipped my mind. Dan's Bike Shop has a new(ish) website. You can see a pretty complete listing of the available used bikes, events, and general information about the shop - including shop hours and phone number.

I had a post about the new site a while ago, but only now added it to the link/sponsor list. Go check it out!

Monopoly Alleycat Results

The new format seemed to work pretty well. There were 8 checkpoints, but it was possible to finish with only 6. Gary was the only person who had to hit 9 to finish. With this format you could come up with a really great route and hit all the checkpoints, but someone could beat you by hitting one less checkpoint and getting really lucky with the dice.

If I use this format again I'll do it with a couple more checkpoints. This will really magnify the effects of the unique strategy of this format. 10 checkpoint would be perfect.

Unfortunately I forgot my camera, so there are no photos this time around. It's only the results that most people care about anyway. So without further distraction, the results:

1st - Josh Rockhold - 8 checkpoints
2nd - Gary Ferguson - 9 checkpoints
3rd - Tony Hotrust - 8 checkpoints
4th - Rich Miller - 5 checkpoints + 3 checkpoints
5th - Paul Downing - 8 checkpoints
DNF - Guy Buckingham - 5 checkpoints

Rich was the first back to the start. He turned in 5 checkpoints, and got 3/4 of the way around the board. Guy returned next. He turned in 5 checkpoints. Then Gary came in with 8 checkpoints and ended up two spaces from finishing. Josh turned in 8 and won the game. Gary had to go repeat one checkpoint to finish. Tony came in with 8 checkpoints. Rich was just behind Tony with 3 more checkpoints. Paul came in with 8 checkpoints.

After the race, Gary/Dan's Bike Shop fed everybody with chips, salsa, guacamole, rice, cookies, puppy chow, apples and beer. Not a bad way to end a race.

Thanks to everybody for coming to the race. Thanks to Gary and Dan's Bike Shop for feeding everybody and for being the start, finish, and hangout for this race.

details. details.

Man, you forget one little detail and everybody freaks out. I mean, how was I to know that people might need to know when the race starts? Or what city it's in? Or where it starts? So here it is. Nice, clean, and all in one space:

Saturday, April 9th, 2011
Dan's Bike Shop
350 W. Main, Ionia, MI
4 PM

...and again...in bold:

Saturday, April 9th, 2011
Dan's Bike Shop
350 W. Main, Ionia, MI
4 PM

and on a picture:

Nearly 260 rpm

That's fast.

Squid putting on Velo City races in Michigan

Velo City is an introductory velodrome racing series put on by world famous nyc bike messenger Squid. The series will make 3 (THREE!) stops in Michigan:

April 30, 2011
Dorais Park Velodrome
Mound Road and Outer Drive
Detroit, MI.
9:00 AM to dusk
Rain date: April 31st

June 12, 2011
Gilmore Car Museum
Kalamazoo, MI.
9:00 AM.to Dusk
Rain or shine

September 10, 2011
Dorais Park Velodrome
Mound Road and Outer Drive
Detroit, MI.
9:00 AM. to dusk
Rain date: September 11th

Now, last I knew, the Dorais velodrome is only a velodrome in that it was once paved, was once banked, and was once used by bicycles. There's a group in Detroit trying to restore it, and these events will help them raise money to do it. If you've never riden on the banked board, this is a good place to give it a try. The banking is low enough that you can ride just about any bike on it.

Linkage:
Velo City Tour
Michigan Events

I'm back!

So I hopped the pond and spent three weeks in Europe. Now I'm back and we've got some racing going on. This coming Saturday, the 9th of April, will be the monopoly alleycat. This ones for bragging rights, so done expect any prizes. Next weekend is the Yankee Springs Time Trail at Gun Lake. I know it isn't really the type of race that this blog deals with, but I'll be there and probably racing.

I just checked the weather for Ionia on Saturday. Looks like there is a chance of thunderstorms, but warmer temperatures. This is going to be a blast!

Report from the Field

Europe is pretty great, but so far I'm glad I was born in The States. We American's are truly lucky. It's pretty crazy how rich even Michigan is. Especially during these rough economic times. It really shows up in grocery stores. We have so many more choices, and our stores are so much nicer. It's wild.

So many more people use bicycles for transportation, and that is really cool. Most of the bikes are pretty utilitarian, but I've seen a couple $5,000+ road bikes too. There are several different types of bike lanes, and the bike lanes have their own street lights that turn green a few seconds before the car lights. There are also a TON of unmarked intersections. I can't figure out who is supposed to have the right of way, and I'm not sure anyone else knows either. You just kinda go and hope for the best.

We're heading to Paris this weekend. I'm excited about that, but I'm also starting to get excited about coming home, sleeping in my own bed, seeing my dog, and putting on this next alleycat race. Hopefully you're excited too.

Monster Track XII

MonsterTrack XII from BODABODANYC on Vimeo.

I love alleycats!

Adiós

I'll see you all when I get back. I'll be the worldly guy who's already done everything you've always wanted to do. (Somebody's excited!)

some changes

I changed the way the blog looks a little. Hope you like it.

Cycling Style Etiquette

If you can't ride good, look good...euro style.

linkage

The New Yorker's John Cassidy: Owned

The link

John Cassidy has taken a position on bike lanes that many cyclists will disagree with. Now I'm not sure if the writer for The Economist is a cyclist or not, but it's a pretty good argument either way.

Here is the link to Mr. Cassidy's New Yorker article.

Shop Website

Dan's Bike Shop has a new website. Go check it out, and then stop by the shop and tell Gary what you think of it.

Beast Lansing

One of the guys who showed up for this year's Snowcat has a new blog called Beast Lansing. He's covering the local polo, fixed and urban riding, and general goings on. I'll be watching for info on Lansing alleycats.

Upcoming Events

I'm going to be off the map (and on another one) from March 15th to April 5th, but I'm all set to do the Monopoly Alleycat as soon as I'm back. I have everything in a file and ready to be printed. I may even get the printing done before I leave. April 9th seems like a really nice date to me.

Here's what I can tell you:
I'm going to be trying a new format for this race. Each racer will have a piece on the monopoly game board. At the checkpoints, the racers will collect tabs with a code on them. The codes match up to a decoder sheet with dice rolls on it. The first racer to get his or her piece around the game board wins.

There will be 8 checkpoints spread around Ionia. Each checkpoint has a unique set of codes designated by a letter. If you happen to be unlucky, and can't get your game piece around the board in 8 moves, you can repeat checkpoints. You must have completed checkpoints A-H before you can start over, and when repeating you may only go to each individual checkpoint once.

Hopefully nobody will need to do 16 checkpoints...but that would be pretty hilarious.

There wont be any prizes for this race. With me being gone, I just don't have time to send out all the emails and deal with all the sponsors properly.

So that's what's up. Get excited. Spring is almost here!

Alleycat Results

Well, I won the track stand competition, was the fastest out of towner, and came back from 5th place at the final checkpoint to tie for 2nd place. The whole race was only 7.6 miles, and the route was kinda planned out for you (cue sheet), but there was still some room to interpret the route. I wasn't given any time to look at the manifest/cue sheet before the start which was kinda lame, but whatever. It's wasn't the way I would do it but it also wasn't my event. I had a good time, and I would probably do it again. I just wish the drive hadn't been so long and the weather hadn't been so crappy on the way home.

Race Day!

In just about 3 hours I'm headed up to Mount Pleasant to race in a Michael Bolton themed alleycat race. I haven't done an alleycat that someone else put together since...gosh...maybe two years? Right now the dog and I are chilling on the couch and waiting for time to pass.

Michael Bolton Themed Winter Race

From Urban Velo:
The Mt. Pleasant Bike Cooperative is hosting a Michael Bolton themed winter scavenger hunt on Saturday Feb 26th. Bring a costume if you’re so inclined.

Urban Velo Link

Mt. Pleasant Bike Cooperative Link

The MPBC facebook page is completely NOT helpful, and doesn't even have any event info up at this point. I sent them an email asking for more info, so I'll add more details if I get them. I have a suspicion that this might not be the most well organized event.

Anyway, it's sorta in the area and it's not one of my events. So that's progress.

EDIT:


I'm thinking about doing this race, but I probably wont go if I have to go alone. I've got a good map of Mt. Pleasant and we can split gas. Let me know. I still haven't heard back from the organizers about any extra details, but we'll see.

EDIT 2
I finally got in contact with someone who knows something about this event. Thank you to Rebecca Wissman and Samantha Fiani, of MPBC, for helping me out. I'm probably going to go up to do this race. I fixed the brakes on my car, so I'm safe to travel again. If you want to go, I'd be happy to get you a sweet map and split the cost of gas. I'll call Gary on Monday and probably Thursday to see if anyone is going. Otherwise: legitimatemustard at gmail dot com

EDIT 3
From MPBC:
"I was the main organizer and route maker last time, so I asked a friend to make the route this time. He is probably going to use the same general area we have used in the last two alleycats, but I can't be sure. If so, the North boundary would be Pickard Road, the East boundary would probably be Mission Street, the South boundary would probably be Preston, and the West is harder to describe because of the river that messes up all of the streets. It would probably go as far west as Island and Nelson parks, but you might want to study a little more in that direction since there aren't many roads over there anyway.

...

The start is at Broadway and Main. We're not officially affiliated with MoMo (ED: Motorless Motion), but we might have a mechanic or two from there racing. Gabe who used to work there is making the route.

The distance? I think the one I organized in October was like 6-8 miles. I've done a few collegiate road races (ugh) and 20-60 miles might have been appropriate, but this is an "everybody's welcome" kind of thing, AND even the fast townies took over an hour to finish the sixish miles last time. I'm hoping that this one is going to be under ten, but regardless it will be fun.

WHOOOO!!"

I've got a good map that covers an area larger than this. I'll be taking it to the printer today. I'm going to have 5 maps made up. Hopefully I don't end up being the only person going...but if I do, more prizes for me!

2011 trip to Ray's Indoor MTB Park

Monopoly Alleycat

No job leaves plenty of time to brainstorm. Sooo, how about another alleycat race? I don't have a date figured out yet, but I'll update this soon. This one will be Monopoly themed. I don't feel like doing all the crazy stuff to get sponsors, so this one is for bragging rights only. It'll be in Ionia again. Stay tuned for updates.

Snowcat III Results

Results:
1st - Gary Ferguson
2nd - Josh Rockhold
3rd - Richard Miller
4th - Tony Holtrust
5th - Jeff Coe
6th - Jeremy Skvarce
7th - Mark Vickers
8th - John Vivkers
9th - Roger Summerfield
DNF - Richard Stilwill & John Flatley

Thank you to all of the sponsors!