Bike Hugger 

Cragmont jeans for cycling

A Spring Sale at REI is a good time to mention their cycling products I’ve been wearing in 13. Over the Winter for all the snow biking, I was in Headwind jacket and tights. You see that gear in the shots featured in the Wired article. Also, Novara’s Brimmed Bike Beanie hat, which has since sold out.

With Vittoria Classics shoes

In Austin, during SXSW, I had their new Cragmont jeans and Westbrae knickers with me. I like the jeans especially for the details like a padded, reinforced crotch, articulated knees, and reflective cuffs. Each year, Novara’s gear improves and this line is their best so far. It’s made by cyclist I ride with in the Pacific Northwest.

Considering we’ve reviewed Rapha, Castelli, Giro, Road Holland, and Novara recently, cyclists have more choices than ever in road or urban gear.

To get the 25% off deal at REI this weekend, become a member if you’re not already one, shop online or in store with the 25REI coupon.

For their 5th annual ride on the the Strip, 350 cyclists joined Blinking Man and lit it up with spokes.

A personal Red Kite Prayer

On a 45 minute climb up into the Santa Monica Mountains, Patrick O’Brady half-wheeled me for approximately 44 and 1/2 minutes. During the time, I studied his kit, his pedal stroke, and asked him after every switchback how much longer we had to go. We’d turned off from the longer ride, both nursing war wounds, and feeling old. The guys on the long ride were 1/2 our age, had more to prove and still making a name for themselves in this business. For us it was stories from the past, what’s happening now, and what we’re going to do with ourselves, as our earning years dwindle like the energy in tired legs.

Shifting up and down on the new 22 from SRAM cross-chaining every possible combination, I said, “can’t find the right gear on this 52/36!” Patrick replied, “you got to get over that man, Tyler rode that drivetrain.”

“He was on dope!”

“Yes, but a fast doper….”

That I believe compact cranks are like clip-on ties, they work, but require less effort or skill Patrick would and will disagree with. He has a hundred stories to prove me wrong. That’s cause he’s a storyteller, one of the bike industry’s finest and has collected his best tales into a book. You can join the crowd on Kickstarter and fund it further.

Then ask him about his ride with me someday. He never saw me again until after the descent where I wished I had a 53 x 11 the whole time.

Note: the Red Kite Prayer happens at the end of the ride, or the race, when you see the Red Kite. It’s the final milestone before the finish and seen at the 1K to go mark.

Pedal and the Turbo kicks in like the power in a 3 chord song

A year ago yesterday, when no one was looking, hungover Sea Otter attendees weren’t up yet or were waking and baking in a team camper somewhere, rode the Specialized Turbo. This version was for the European market, unlimited, non-restricted and with snap-your-head back acceleration. In one stomp on the pedals I knew why Spesh named their ebike the Turbo – could’ve spelled that with all caps and exclamation point.

I was on a short leash for the ride, before any PR peeps got wind of it or heard the electric motor whir, but impressed I was. It’s up to Spesh to explain to why the Turbo costs so much, what you’d do with it, battery life, or how it fits your lifestyle. I was just thrilled to ride an ebike that doesn’t look like the ones Lee Iacocca tried to sell in the early 2000s.

The Turbo is available now in the States, they launched it here yesterday and our boy Cyclelicious attended the event. If this bike appeals to you, call your LBS and put a deposit down now, cause it’ll sell out. Then figure out how to remove the speed limiter so you can ride it like I did.

More photos from my ride lightboxed on Flickr and G+.

Update

“And it’s really fun to ride,” says Outside’s Micheal Roberts in another report from the launch. How Spesh got the Turbo into the States is an interpretation of the laws about speed limits. Because the drivetrain is a pedal assist instead of a throttle, the laws don’t apply.

They just took a closer look at the law, which states that e-bikes must have a motor of less than 750 watts and an unassisted speed of less than 20 mph. Because the Turbo is an electric pedal-assist bike, meaning you have to pedal to get any kick from the motor, the speed limit doesn’t apply. In fact, the only reason it tops out at 28 mph is to comply with European laws, which restrict e-bikes to 45 mph. Specialized installed a governor on the Turbo that automatically turns the motor off when it reaches this speed.

stiff like a road bike

The Turbo is governed to 45, which I’m sure every owner and test rider of the Turbo will try to reach.

Note: this post was edited with new information regarding States laws and clarification from Specialized PR

If we had more marketing budget, or knew a cyclist from the LA Bike Cult, would fly a Raise Your Seat banner behind their 12-foot tall, Stoopid Tall bike. The aerial adverting would promote a ride in the sky, a story tall! Don’t know that records are kept on the tallest bike, but Felix built an 18-footer in Cuba.

Quad Tall

In Austin, we rode with Tall Bikes during Mobile Socials, including this quad. The Tall Bikes flanked the rides like infantry sentries spotting cars and corking intersections. Also witnessed a joust in the Georgetown neighborhood and a chill moment with a Schwinn.

Joust Impact

What inspires a maker to build a bike taller than themselves? The same thing that causes a climber to reach the highest peak they can.