run bike skillz

RUN bike skillz!!!

on drill presses stuck cleats, gags and "cats"

A drill press is a great tool to have in every shop. Not only is it great for making polo mallets and drilling into all sorts of things for fun in a safe and controlled manner...ever wondered what a sealed fluid trainer looks like on the inside? Carbon bottom bracket shell?
All in all, wonderful tool for goofing around. It's also useful for more serious stuff like making custom brackets for fenders, racks or baskets and for drilling out stuck screws and bolts on components that you can clamp in the press. Cleat screws tend to get stuck in spd shoes, even if you grease them before you mount the cleat. I had this happen on my beat up mountain bike shoes:

Class all the way! Ahh... the glorious life of a bike shop employee

not only that, the cleats were so worn that I could not even get an Allen key into the socket on the cleat screws. Our shop guru, Steve, told me that I could dig out the edges of the socket with a hard metal tool such as a file. So I dug out the sockets and then got every screw loose, except the last one, of course. To the drill press Batman!Off come the cleats lickety-split! The drill press rocks, it's almost as cool as Stevie's magnets.
Speaking of the shop. The bathroom is located at the shop right next to Mitch's bench. This location is a bit perilous as we can see in the following picture of Andrew S.K.
-Andrew likes to fix his tires in the bathroom (for whatever reason, we don't hassle him at all!).
On a totally unrelated note, I came across this down in North Caroline the other day. It was mounted next to a fancy restaurant menu on one of the main drags in Raleigh. Some people down there have a really good sense of humour...I hope

dis aint no cat Bubba!

Anyone want a district? Maybe in Carbon?

You all know about the District single speed bike from the fabulous Trek? Oh you don't? Well they are pretty sweet. There is the basic district with just a chain, but then there is the belt driven version. It is pretty amazing. Well for 2010 they have come out with a carbon framed version, and let me say it is something spectacular. So what does this have to do with anything great? Trek has made a one off version for Lance Armstrong and it looks pretty frickin' cool.

Here are pretty much all the pretty pictures I could present to you:

He should use it for bike polo.

Seriously though, will he even ride it? Once even? Or will he just auction it off Livestrong style?

Can't wait

I can't wait to personally see some of the new tri bike that Trek and Specialized have up there sleeves. I think 2011 will be a good year for tri bikes as that is the projected year that the Trek Speed concept and the Specialized Shiv (yes like the prison weapon) are set to be available to the public, that is of course if the UCI says they are legal for use in races.

Picture Break!

One word: Bad Ass

So illegal, so attractive.

From my understanding so far they both have been deemed legal, but also deemed illegal. It seems that both bikes are almost "bending the rules" to get what the engineers want and in turn are being legalized and then that legalization is being taken away. Both bikes were used during the 2009 Tour de France, but at that point the UCI had not checked over the bikes with a fine toothed comb and had just "seen" them, letting them go and race. Shortly thereafter though they were deemed "too good" and illegalized, or something of that sort (maybe Trek and Specialized got a slap on the wrist by the firm ruler of the UCI nuns). This all seems very silly and confusing, especially when other companies have just gone and cut a big hole in their head tube and mounted the stem inside it then re-carboned above it. They didn't get any flak that I knew of from the mighty UCI. Again, balmy at best, right? Either way, Trek got their guy, Chris Leito, to ride a Trek concept speed 2011 in the 2009 Hawaii Ironman.

So, as a treat here is some new UCI hibbly-blimy legal-or-not-come-see-me-tomorrow bike porn

CHECK IT OUT, you will be in a "can't wait" mood in the same way as I am.

Hal's classy new tie

Hal makes a tube tie!

WOOHOO

On Straw Hats and Wheel Slams

Wrestler Hilbilly Jim wears a straw hat.

I am a little bit late posting this, and meant to do it quite a while ago; with that being said here we go. I have noticed two very interesting emerging trends with the hipsters of North America and Victoria. First: STRAW HATS

What are these "straw hats" you may ask? Well, wikipedia defines it as:

“A straw hat can refer to any brimmed hat that is woven out of straw. This hat is designed to protect the head from the sun, as well as protect against heatstroke."

So it is worn on your head, as a hat; like this guy (notice his guitar/stache/general hipster traits). WELL, people of the internets, it seems that lately there have been people who feel that using this hat as a device to ward off the sun, instead have felt that their rear wheel is in dire need. I have witnessed multiple bicycle riders gallivanting around on there pre 80's era cruisers with a straw hat not on there head, but stuck in their rat traps, covering their rear wheels and tires. Maybe they are trying to save their expensive rear tires from the problem "plaguing" riders: rubber dry out or maybe they are using them as a fashionable fender Either way I don't understand. I did happen to catch this elusive "beast" one day and documented this event with my special Camera-Phone.

Here is the ensuing photograph (may be enhanced for dramatic effect).

As you can clearly see the straw hat on rear
Also note that this hipster is wearing a helmet from the 80's which Shayne may crush if he ever sees it (ask Shayne for why this would happen). He seems to be also stuck in 2004 "The Twee" stage of hipsterdom, he has yet to get into the Mountain Man stage where his straw hat could be of use. He may be behind the times. *sigh*



for a break down and larger pictures see here


Moving on, to better or bigger "slammage" as they might say.


I know of the epic-ness of slammage on cars, or the souped up wheel slams.


for example:


Normal



SLAMMED!!!!!



It changes the visual appearance quite a bit. Look how close that wheel is to the lip of the body, quite impressive I think. Now you might ask how this applies to the bicycle community, well, there is another new trend that is coming out and about among the fixed gear community and it is basically the same deal:
Get your wheels as close to the frame as possible without touching (and ruining your expensive colourway).
You might ask if this makes a difference to the handling of the bike. It doesn’t really - as you’re only making the wheelbase a few mm, maybe a centimeter, closer. Here’s a picture:



See how close the rear wheel is to the seat tube? Thats not even the slamingnest of them. Look at these Prime examples


To compliment this developing visual trend, bike manufacture Volume (makers of populer "cutter" frame) has come out with the "thrasher" fixed gear freestyle frame. What makes this frame ever so special are the geometries for "trick tracking" and riding. It also includes a cut out in the seat tube so you can get astronomical amounts of wheel slammage.

Maybe wheel slams will be the new mine is bigger than yours? I really hope that kids out there wanting slammage don't start filing out their drop outs or worse yet their seat tubes to feel bigger.


Actual filing of drop out for slammage, and then it rusted

iiirrroooonnnnmmmmaaaannnn

Ironman hawaii on this saturday! Watch on NBC! Starts 430 eastern. It should be a very good race

DON'T miss OUT!