Bike Hugger 

the bike and the bingo hall, by Literal Salmon.

then I send the to Byron and he yells at me to post them. So here goes. They make me smile, hope they make you smile as well. I will continue to post stuff like this to help lighten the mood and give you a little midday cheer.

New Bike Day! Everyone loves new bike day!

Campy Chick Magnet! I ordered 10 of these, report to follow.

Getting caught up on email after Interbike and a reader sent us Recycled Bike Furniture from Get Outdoors. Cool. That’d work very nicely in a Bettie boutique, especially the loveseat and tables.

At Interbike, I was handed a mysterious brochure for an event that passed, a product that’s been discontinued, and the promise of secret project to build adult-sized big wheels.

I’m interested. Anyone know what’s going on?

If you’re not ready yet for the rain, try the Ellensburg Manastash Metric Century /Half-Century Bicycle Tour this. The ride promises Autumn colors, mountain scenes, historic towns, and no rain. Hopefully not bone-dry woodfire smokey! like our ride in Mazama.

When she’s not cycling, adventuring, knitting, cooking, and ranting, the crazy biker chick blogs and has some words for motorists.

I ride my bike year-round as my main means of transportation. My bike is not a toy. I don’t aspire to be Lance Armstrong. I’m not too poor to afford a car. I choose a bicycle because its healthier for me, and healthier for the city I live in. I’m not riding in the middle of the lane to slow you down or thwart you. I’m just trying to do the same thing as you - get from point A to point B safely.

A reader wrote in to ask a well-timed question about riding in the rain.

Don’t laugh but what do cyclist do when it rains? I’m asking because I would love to get rid of my shitty car and get a bike but I’m worried about the rain here in the bay area.
– Joe, Manning Web and Graphic Design

Good questions – the best of all possible worlds is full fenders, often with a mudflap (especially if you ride with others), and a rain cape/poncho. If full fenders won’t fit your bike, there are lots of options, including those easy-on fenders.

So as Byron and I are talking today bemoaning the fact that all the major companies’ offerings all pretty much look the same and offer the same value, I mention that it is actually good for the industry as it allows more specialized and boutique companies to bring new things to the forefront as people are not having their needs met from the cookie cutter offering of hte major bike companies.

Small builders can much more easily do one-offs and custom things since that is really their business anyway. I was out riding Critical Mass this past friday night and ran into David Wilson, an old friend that I knew was doing some framebuilding. He told me that he had opened up his own frame shop and was doing some really interesting stuff. I definitely had to check it out since he was riding along on a Borracho! He has fashioned a cargo bike using some very interesting engineering (check out the steering on this thing!). He was always an innovative guy and has a true passion for cycling. Seeing him do his deliveries on this very inspirational.

I love that the industry still has a place for small builders with great ideas. Let’s hopw that we get to see more and more of this type of thing. Plastic bikes from plastic companies are great for some people, but its guys like David that keep the soul of cycling alive.

In his second post, Mark V reports on Easton, Truvativ, and more. Read more from Bikehugger@Interbike.

Las Vegas, Interbike 06, Day Two

Vegas is best taken at night when the neon lights are wondrous and sidewalks are chock-a-block full of revelers. During the day, the sun is too hot and a billion f*ing times too bright; the natural light vindictively pointing out the strained artificiality…kinda like seeing Celine Dion in person.

One of the big industry moves this year was Bell Sports’ acquisition of Easton. In the short run, there’s been a shake up on company reps and the product availability headaches during the transition, but we’ll have to wait a few months until the new designs hit the shops. For my part, I welcome the death of the “twin-thread” spoke design leftover from Easton wheel division’s previous identity of Velomax, in which the spoke threaded into the hub flange as well as having a standard nipple at the rim.