Urban Velo magazine issue #11 hits newsstands, both real and virtual, today.
Download the PDF here, or view it in your browser here.
Contents include: Ghost Bikes - Remembering our Fallen Friends, Fixed Freestyle Evolution, Fyxomatosis Gallery, How to Tie & Solder Spokes, The Rotafix Method, Residue, Black Sea by Bicycle, A Legacy of Bicycle Advocacy, I Love Riding in the City and No Exit.
Following in the footsteps of NYC, Washington’s Golden Triangle Business Improvement District is calling for entries to design creative and functional bike racks for the area. The winning designer gets $1,500 and a two night stay in a posh DC hotel, and the pride of having their design installed across the city.
Entries are due February 9, 2009 at 5pm, and the winning design will be selected in March. Download the informational/entry form PDF here.
Chris King, Nutcase Helmets, Vanilla Cycles and Bike Friday are just a few of the cycling companies based in and around Portland, Oregon, and the January 2009 issue of Oregon Business covers the explosion of the industry there and the cycling culture that surrounds it.
Bikeportland.com, a local cycling blog, was quoted as saying they’ve had to hire additional reporters to help cover all the cycling news in the area. Vanilla Cycles apparently has a five year waiting list (maybe that’s why he hasn’t responded to our interview request from November…).
The article also discusses the spill over benefit of such a mad cycling culture. More jobs are created in industries like alternative power, organic farming and craft brewing. Some of these new companies or industries may not stand the test of time, but they help to alleviate the rash of job losses in automotive-related industries (car and RV dealers, etc.). Portland also enjoys a tourism boost by hosting the Bicycle Film Festival, Oregon Manifest and countless cyclocross and other events. In fact, Bend, OR, was just awarded the ‘cross nationals for 2009 and 2010.
It doesn’t come right out and say it, but I walked away with several reasons why a strong cycling culture improves the local economy. There’s a good lesson to be learned for those working to improve their own local cycling culture through transportation planning and local policy. Read “more” for that and the link to the full story…
I know, it sounds like a Polish* joke we told in grade school when the term “politically correct” wasn’t even in our vocabulary. And we cheated on vocabulary anyway (thanks Olivia!).
21 Lights has the Owleye solar powered bike light that stores energy during the day (or under indoor lights, but it takes longer to recharge), then lights your way after dark. It operates in both constant and flash modes, has three LED bulbs, comes with a handlebar mount and can be used independently as a flashlight. They also make a tail light version with red lights.
* Seriously? If you don’t know what joke I’m talking about, read “more“. Oh, and you’ll also get to see more pics of the Owleye and the available color options, pricing, etc.
From the League of American Bicyclists:
Congress is currently putting together an economic stimulus package to have ready when the new Congress returns in early January. While public details of the forthcoming stimulus bill is not available, we are hearing that there is a chance that funds for transportation and infrastructure projects in the stimulus package may go overwhelmingly to road projects-the same unbalanced strategy that has created our existing transportation problems.
We must speak up now to make sure that the economic stimulus language maintains the established transportation funding allocations including the Transportation Enhancement set aside which is the primary source for bicycle and pedestrian projects.
Please take a moment and hit the link below to the take action and contact your Congressional Member now (very easy, takes 1 minute).
http://capwiz.com/lab/issues/alert/?alertid=12324346&queueid=
Editor’s note: I did it, it takes less than a minute, and it’ll automatically deliver it to the right congressman (or woman) for your territory.
NiteFlux is an Australian brand of bicycle lights, offering a full range for commuters to racers. We tested the Photon 4 Commuter light, which is the starting point for their line.
All NiteFlux lights are crafted from Aluminum Alloy, black anodized with laser etched logos. Inside, all of their lights have an electronic brain that controls the power to protect against total discharge, alert you when the battery is too low and keep “Constant Wattage” going to the light. This last bit is helpful when the battery starts getting low…it keeps the light at full brightness. Instead of dimming, it’ll blink every few seconds to let you know you have a limited amount of time to get where you’re going.
We’ve got about two solid months of night riding and commuting with the light, and we’re extremely impressed. For a straight up Commuter light, you’d be hard pressed to find a better light that has so many mounting options, has a lot of upgrade options and is so darn bright!
Even if you’re looking for a racing or mountain bike light, read this review, because the technology and features in the Photon are the same for their higher end lights. If you’re into 24 hour racing…you’ll like being able to piggyback chargers to reduce charge time to just 2 hours! Check out video, pics and the full review when you read “more“…
Reelight is a Danish company that makes the first magnet-powered bike lights. Yep, magnets…is there anything they can’t do! Seriously, though, there are some great benefits to these lights.
Reelights are sold in a set, one for the front and one for the rear (more pics after the break). At first glance, the absence of batteries may seem like the biggest improvement over normal blinkies. But, look at where these mount…once installed, you don’t need to worry about leaving them on the bike because they can’t be stolen. This also means you won’t head out for a ride and forget them. This is a big plus for convenience!
Reelight won a EuroBike Gold award for these innovative lights…but do they work as advertised? Read “more” for our full review and see if these are the right commuter lights for you…
If you want to read a lot of CPA tax jargon while learning how to claim a transportation benefit, check out this article by WebCPR editor Howard Wolosky.
Now, you can get the answer to that question you’ve been dying to ask someone:
“What is a qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement fringe benefit?”
Personally, I say the answer is “that good feeling you get from exercise.” But, according to Uncle Sam, it’s an employer reimbursement for reasonable expenses incurred by the employee during the calendar year for the purchase and repair of a bicycle, bicycle improvements and bicycle storage, provided (here we go) that the bicycle is regularly used for travel between the employee’s residence and place of employement.
Does that mean I can get credit for some new King hubs on my commuter bike?
Although this interview has been in progress for about a week, it’s a great followup to the NYC Critical Mass post below.
I spoke with Atlanta’s Courteous Mass ride organizers, Jeff McMichael and Jett Marks, about their softer version of Atlanta’s Critical Mass, about the ride and why they differentiate it from a typical CM. They’re both daily, year-round bike commuters, are members of the Atlanta Bicycle Campaign and work with a few local bicycle groups. In other words, they’re pretty much like you and I, except they’re doing the right things to get more people on bikes…
BIKERUMOR: Are you the organizer for Atlanta’s Critical Mass or Courteous Mass?
JEFF: I am helping to organize the Atlanta Courteous Mass Rides. I seek opinions on routes and other matters, and post announcements on various local websites.
Critical Mass is a ‘leaderless ride’, often with just the people in front going where they want.
BIKERUMOR: Sounds like Fight Club…you don’t talk about Critical Mass, or at least not the “organization” behind it. Why not?
JEFF: I think this quote from the Wikipedia Critical Mass article says it better than I could:
“The “disorganized” nature of the event allows it to largely escape clampdown by authorities who may view the rides as forms of parades or organized protest. Additionally, the movement is free from the structural costs associated with a centralized, hierarchical organization. In order for the event to function, the only requirement is a sufficient turn-out to create a “critical mass” of riders dense enough to occupy a piece of road to the exclusion of drivers of motorized vehicles, pedestrians, and other road users.”
Read “more” for the links, pics and the rest of the interview…
You may remember this video from a past post from a Critical Mass on July 25 showing an NYC Police Officer pushing a rider, seemingly for no reason. Well, that officer will now be reporting to the New York State Supreme Court where he will find out what charges are being brought against him. His attorney says people should withhold judgement until any evidence is seen and until it’s known if the cyclist did anything to provoke such a reaction.
Uncited sources from the NY Times article state they believed prosecutors are seeking felony charges of filing falst records in connection with the original report filed after arresting the cyclist. Read the article here, it has a good bit of background story on the history of tension between authorities and Mass rides in NYC.
Light & Motion is giving trade-up credit for your old systems, or you can upgrade from their ARC to the new LED Seca lights.
Through Dec. 31, 2008, they’ll take your your old Niterider, Cateye, Cygo-lite and Blackburn systems—any rechargeable light system—working or not; and give you a credit of up to $50 toward the purchase of a new Light & Motion LED light system.
Seca Trade-In Promo
Receive a $50 credit toward any new purchase of any Seca 700 Race, Seca 700 Ultra or Seca 400 light system!
Stella Trade-In Promo
Receive a $40 credit toward the purchase of a Stella 200L light system!
For more details, download the PDF flyer and call Light & Motion or your local Light & Motion dealer today (find your local dealer by clicking here). Light & Motion’s inside sales team is available between 8:00 and 5:00 (PST) Monday through Friday at (831) 645-1538 or via email at bikesales@lightandmotion.com.
Read “more” to see how you can updgrade your ARC to a SECA for a special deal…
The bike rack shown above was the winner of the sidewalks category of the CityRacks Design Competition, entered by Ian Mahaffy and Maarten De Greeve. Hopefully, you’ll be seeing more of these around NYC since they’ve proposed ”bicycle parking rules that could be among the toughest in the nation, requiring one secure bike parking space for every two units in new apartment buildings and one space for every 7,500 square feet in new office buildings.”
Treehugger.com has a great post on this with lots of links to more info.
A little while back we got two sets of Ergon Grips to review, the GR2 Magnesium integrated bar-end model, and the GP1 standard grips. A few of our friends had been riding them, notably Eddie and Namrita O’dea (who just joined the Ergon North American Team…congrats!), and they certainly looked comfortable. Pretty much every Pro rider we interviewed at the MTB NUE Finals was riding them, so there must be something to this.
I’m happy to say that after a couple of months on them, I don’t think I’ll be taking them off. They’re comfortable and they keep your hand in place, which is basically what you want from a grip. The bar-end version I rocked had plenty of hand positions and were comfortable on the ends, too. Overall, we’d recommend them pretty highly, but there were a few issues worth noting.
Read “more” for the full review, pics and tech details…
SpinPower bicycle lubes, cleaners and degreasers is a line environmentally responsible, biodegradable, non-toxic, super green bike care products. On top of all that, they smell really, really nice and they have some great foaming cleaners that stick to the dirty parts and help really keep the cleaner where it needs to be rather than just dripping right off.
The products are manufactured by Prudent Enviro Products (PEP), which is local to us here in Greensboro, NC. PEP has been private label manufacturing lubes, cleaners and other products for several mail order companies and brands for years and recently launched their own brand. Besides the bike care goods, they also have an HR electrode gel and bottle/hydration pack sanitizer.
This review is Part 1 because we’ve only had a chance to test a few of the products, which is good for editorial purposes, because to try to review the full line would be a bit much. To start, we’re reviewing the Foaming Degreaser Cleaner, Foaming Bike Cleaner, Bike Envy Silicone Polish and Natural Chain Lube, which is formulated with renewable vegetable oils.
Read “more” for pics and to see why this Foaming Degreaser is the best cleaner I’ve ever used…
Designer David Gonçalves with Yanko Design came up with this little folding electric commuter bike. This thing is super green…the batteries charge through regenerative braking and through stationary pedaling. Yep, you can set it up as a stationary bike at home and charge it up while you’re watching the new Scrubs season in January…I know you’re just as excited about that as we are.
The design won a Merit prize at the 12th International Bicycle Design Competition. See more pics when you read “more”…
