So I'm building a fixie...

...From the journal of Mitch. April 15th.

Damn you Shayne and Halldor!! A plague upon your houses!!

So... I tried Halldor and Shayne's fixie's out in the parking lot at Riders Cycles... Damn it they're fun!! I must build one!


Here are some photo's from my first 'project-bike' at Riders. The project began when Chevy found an old Nishiki in her dads barn, or shed... or swamp, something like that anyway. She donated to me in exchange for a case of beer, of which I drank three. whoops. It's not my fault, one just tastes like more, then two tastes like even more... hmmm... when do they stop tasting like more?

Anyway, here is the frame after I cleaned it up a tad;




The black around the bottom bracket is not me using a spray-can for cool effect. It is burn marks from where the frame has been brazed back together. Nice, no?

The first thing I would need would be a pair of wheels. I ordered this Formula track hub after looking through, literally, a catalogue. I know that hardcore urban-fixieists will mock me for my hubs 'lack of pedigree'. But it msrps for about $45, has sealed bearings and spins. Plus, despite it's lack of pedigree, it manages to hold the wheel to the frame, what with it's 'axle nuts' and all.

I opted to use metal spoke nipples, instead of papier-mache ones. A departure, I know.

For spokes I used these long straight ones.

Under the watchful eye of Steve, the wheel guru, my rear wheel took shape... fortunately, round.

Now, I know that "Pabst Blue Ribbon" can lay claim to being 'cycling's beer of choice'. But I think that they should change it to 'American cycling's beer of choice'. Because up here in the true North, we are blessed with a quality micro brewery every half-block. Here is one of my personal favorites; 'Blue Buck' from Phillips.

These are cranks. These ones were not designed to be fitted to a fixed gear bicycle. They are too long. When I turn corners they will bottom out on the ground, and I will crash. It may hurt.

If your like me, your probably dying to find a use for your collection of old and warped Hayes brake rotors...

...Coming together nicely.








...more to follow.

Viking cat and Halo hubs

The Viking Cat was a hoot!!! We had 17 racers coming out and there were no serious crashes although a few riders did go down. For those of you who missed out, don't panic. Other events will be coming up, and definitely more alley cats since we all love them. Other ideas that we're milling around are Zoobombs, Time Trials, jungle cats and casual rides. We'll be trying to have something fun happening every month, this spring and summer and also there are lots of races coming up in the Island Cup. We'll be present at most races with a repair stand and tools, a tent and perhaps some beverages and barbecue.
I'll write a more detailed post on the Viking cat in coming days with explanations to strange clues and the race results and lots of pictures of course.
In the meantime check out these bad ass hubs that Justin got for his single speed project. These hubs are Uber smooth and run on cartridge bearings, they should make Justin a bit faster. They're made by Halo and come in this very tasteful purple which Justin wisely chose.