Traffic Sign Furniture

As you may have guessed I am a little anti-car, certainly anti-traffic and anti-pollution etc
No we do not own a car, I am 38 with a wife and daughter and have never owned a car, I know the day will come....

I do spend a lot of time on the roads though and even though traffic signs are not considered part of the beauty in a landscape I do find these pieces quite attractive, certainly there is room in our place for one of these.


Designed and manufactured from recycled materials by Boris Bally: http://www.borisbally.com/

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Sub 5 #8

Almost Indiana, almost Indiana, almost Indiana, almost Indiana........

Headed South to go just that little bit further, just spin the legs.
Once in the city though I found myself riding down Wabash and Michigan instead of the Lakefront Path, just to see what it would be like. Not too bad really. Once you get to the Skyway though the industry starts and the traffic picks up.


I found Calumet Park for the first time and took a little break to take in the southern tip of the Great Lake Michigan. Pretty beach actually, even nestled up to some power plant or something.


The Burnham Greenway which heads south towards Munster and seems to be the cycling gateway to Northern Indiana. I only rode on the first mile or so but it looks like a well maintained asphalt trail amongst plenty of green.


Not really wanting to spend too much time out I figured I would just dip my front wheel into Indiana just for the hell of it. There was a road east that was closed but I scooted around the barriers and ta dah!!. There was no big welcome to Indiana but somehow I just knew I was there:


Basically on the way back I rode on the lakefront into a headwind, about 19mph south and 15mph on the way back. Just took it easy.

Quick note to Chicago's lakefront rider's - it's a recreational path, for walkers, joggers, skaters, tourists and small kids learning to ride bikes. Sure south of McCormick place it's pretty empty and you can pick up the pace within reason, anything north of that! Seriously some kid is gonna get hurt. Save the TT bars and the head down stuff and the through and off for the race, for the empty roads - some kid is gonna get hit by a 'training' cyclist.


Here is the link for today's ride: 52 miles in 3h12.

Molly is famous.

I borrowed Greg Borzo's book 'Where to bike - Chicago' from the library.
Flicking through it slowly seeing what's what.
GASP!!



Cool..... Or what?

Not sure quite how Sarah and I feel about this - it's cool and we do remember the picture being taken but did not know it was for use in a book. I know it's not a legal issue unless that particular photo is used for advertising but, well it would have been polite to ask.



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75,000 miles in one year - Cycling Weekly is 120

That's how far Tommy Goodwin rode to claim the 'Cycling Year's Mileage record', whilst there was a war going on. Back in 1939. And as far as I can tell it still stands this very day.
209.5 miles a day for 299 days!
Insanity with a stiff upper lip.

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Sub 5 #7

I woke at 4:30 and lay there till the sun rose and was out of the door by 6.

Not sure about where to go but figured I would head NW on Milwaukee and see how I was doing.
Riding N on Sanders was a whole new stretch of tarmac for me all the way through Old School to Rockland Rd. The only hiccup was standing at traffic lights through 2 cycles of red/green for everyone else before figuring the lights were on a sensor. By the way it is possible to buy a 'box' which attaches to the bike frame and generates enough electromagnetic feedback for traffic light sensors to mistake you for a car.


I was out so early the roads were pretty empty and the sun was burning off the clouds. So the first 90 mins was ridden at pretty much 19mph which put a grin on my face - I know it's not TT worthy but that's not what I'm after.


I decided to head south on the Skokie Trail and was surprised by the amount of other cyclists and groups of cyclists using it, well I guess it's a weekend!

The great thing today was feeling that I was keeping a constant pressure through the pedal revs and at near enough 20mph, it didn't really drop off on the ride home. Really was a beautiful morning. My legs finally died about 2 miles from home, I guess my body kinda switched off knowing the ride was over. The whole thing was 54 miles, 3h 12mins, which is near enough to 20 mph for 3 hours solo, thank you very much.

See it here: http://www.mapmyride.com/workout/51899548/

Back home and all is quiet as Molly is sleeping on and off and looking pretty sorry for herself.

Seriously 65.9 mph on the flat into a headwind!

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Sanitov Cargo Bike.

Seen over on DesignBoom. The Sanitov cargo bike looks like it can carry some serious weight though all I seem to be concerned about these days is whether or not it would be a sensible choice to carry my daughter as she starts outgrowing her i-bert. Obviously it's too expensive an option but it's another example of the growing development of cargo bikes for public use. I am seeing more and more Bakfiets in Chicago all the time.

The Sanitov:
"....bicycle features full leather handles and saddle, a stainless steel and aluminum frame and rack,
and a GPS tracker-system with a better-driven engine. the battery is utilized for traveling over long distances or when transporting heavy goods - a supplement that ensures convenience and usability of the bicycle in all situations."


Head on over to Design Boom to read more: http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/8/view/14961/sanitov-cargo-bike.html


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Victorians Invented the Disc Wheel - Cycling Weekly is 120

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Sub 5 Training #6

No it did not take 2 weeks to recover from the century ride.

Basically work and weather happened.
Sarah is very busy which means I am more of a full time Dad than ever and on the one or two days singled out for a ride I woke to thunderous rain and flashes of lightning. Not riding amongst lightning if I can help it. So the end result for two weeks of training was a very clean bike, at least I did something.

This morning I had a window and was gone. Straight down Elston into the city, I strangely like riding Elston and prefer that to the joggers on the Lakefront anyday. Once downtown I figure I would cruise by the Bike to Work Rally, see what was going on and see if they were handing out coffee. None to be had, but there were nut bars, bananas, bagels and water. I didn't need any food but the homeless guys I rode up to later on appreciated it, one even offered to exchange some canned goods for the banana. I did score a new dark grey 'Goose Island 312' water bottle, the guy there was impressed to see my older model yellow bottle on the bike, and a Bike Chicago t-shirt - woohoo.


I rode south on the lake front path I intended to try and get some speed or at least some power into the pedals but nothing doing really. It just became a beautiful morning ride. A ride in which I rode further south in Chicago than ever before - ta daahh. Only to 70th street but that's new territory for me. I need to look into the routes that connect to Indiana, apparently it is advisable to skip Gary Indiana, Gary Indiana, Gary Indiana. Funny to think that whilst living in south London for 10 years I don't think I rode more than 15 miles north of my home at any point. On the way home I caught up with Sarah and Molly who took the chance to go see Ralph Covert perform an intimate concert on the WGN Chicago morning news. Molly loved it.

So my work out was a little casual but the freebies and weather were great.
The entire rest of the day was spent with Molly out in the city and the beach and the sun and I probably carried all 30+ lbs of Molly on my shoulders for over an hour. My thighs are absolutely killing me. Cross training.

Woke up on Saturday and stayed in bed, in fact I stayed there till about 2pm, absolutely exhausted. Either a lack of food on Friday or the amount of sun, weird...

Here is the route: http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/37912712

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Pro-Cycling can be so confusing sometimes

Today Levi Lepheimer won the Tour De Suisse, in the final day's TT.
I write this without having followed much of the race or today's drama but it seemed as though Cunego had out in a wonderful ride all week. He attacked and fought each day and deserves to be back on top. Just watch this high speed finish:


Tour de Suisse - Stage 3 by cyclingvids


To see the old man up there is bittersweet. He obviously also rode fantastically and it would appear that Cunego lost 2 mins as opposed to Levi gaining them but who am I to say, Damiano certainly has the best viewpoint and:

Graciously, the Italian’s first action on crossing the line was to seek out Leipheimer and congratulate him on his victory. But as he pushed away the television cameras and gathered his thoughts, Cunego must surely have been ruing the seconds lost when he failed to hold Leipheimer’s wheel on the final push to the line at Triesenberg/Malbun on Thursday. - cyclingnews.

and man haven't TT helmets gotten ugly again.


photo by Bettini also on cyclingnews.

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Terry Miura

Don't know much about Terry but here is a great painting featuring some bikes.
Love me a bit of bikes in painting! Website here: Terry Miura

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'How I Ride Through Machine Gun Fire' - Cycling Weekly is 120

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Get schooled in time for the Tour De France

The big race is almost upon us and www.io9.com tells us what the world's best riders have in common with fish.

It's called fluid dynamics and it's why the weaker riders have an easier time toward the back of the bunch;

Those leading a group of fish (or cyclists) get hit in the face and body with every molecule in their path. Unless the current (or wind) is with them, those molecules are standing still when the moving creature smashes into them. The molecules are accelerated quickly and tumble up and over the moving animal.

Get on over to io9 to make your next ride easier:
http://io9.com/5810786/what-do-schools-of-fish-and-the-tour-de-france-have-in-common

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Bike Lanes

Love this, so funny.

What I don't understand is if a cop writes a ticket for something that isn't even illegal how does the 'judge' pass a guilty verdict if there wasn't even a crime! Absurd!!!!

You're gonna have to go over to Prolly's fabulous site to watch the video, he deserves your custom.

http://prollyisnotprobably.com/2011/06/this_is_why_i_hate_bike_lanes.php

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Cycling Weekly is celebrating 120 years in 2011.

I was lucky enough to be in old Blighty when they published their celebration issue which included a great section which highlighted some of the fascinating stories they have covered.

I will share a few over the next week or so. I guess Cycling Weekly won't mind, it doesn't have much of an audience over here with Uncle Sam except for the ex-pats who still need their fix of the comic. If you do see it on news stands it is worth checking out, there are often great interviews or articles, not just Brit centric news reports.

First up is one of my favourites, a story concerning Beryl Burton:

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It's a trap.....

Star Wars suddenly got a lot better!

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Sub 5 Century training #6

My fabulous wife gave me a day to ride. She was off work so was planning a fun day with Molly, I was free to go. At 7am I set off and later wished I had actually eaten a decent breakfast.

Today was about taking the positive elements of a ride that kicked my...

Straight North on Waukegan which involved a near miss with an irate van driver who was shouting something about bicycles and sidewalks, like that's safe and legal, you cant win eh! 15 minutes later I heard a truck slow behind me, wait ad then pass in the lane alongside me when his way was clear before leaving me plenty of room as he pulled back over, he did the same thing again later. Which is why even though I know nothing about the quality of their landscaping service I heartly endorse Careen and Careen on Northbrook Illinois. I will be calling them on Monday to tell the boss to give that driver a little something extra, by way of my appreciation. Sure its all very well to complain to companies when their drivers besmirch their names but surely it's cool to actually thank those that do it right.

I turned West to do the Old School ride, which is a regular training route for teams around here, and was surprised by how pretty and quiet it was. By 30 miles the sun had started burning the clouds off and I was beginning to feel it on my skin and had not brought any sunscreen to top up with. The first gas station was no use so it became a plan, I wasn't turning around until I had more sunscreen otherwise I would pay for it on the way back.

Because of the heat and how I felt, even though I was keeping a steady 20mph, I figured I would turn around at the state line and not worry about the magic 100. By the time I did get there, (after seeing buffalo or bison?) I was already on 45 miles. Close isn't it. I headed East to the lake to find the bike path to follow back to the city, by then my computer said 47miles, 3 more and I would have my 100. So that's what I did north into Kenosha to find food and sunscreen. The latter was found and applied but food was an issue. so with 54 miles done I headed south on the Robert McLory bike path. Turning south I discovered the next snag, a headwind, which would be with me for the next 50+ miles.

The bike path is pretty neat, quiet, free from traffic, shaded which was nice as it was well over 80, and the surface is a fine loose gravel. The path was shielded a little from the wind but the gravel does slow you down a little as opposed to smooth asphalt. My speed heading south was more like 16mph - I knew it was gonna be hard.

To be honest I was drained over the last 30 miles, probably not eaten enough, slept enough, definitely not used to it and a sore right knee which I think is a pedal/cleat alignment issue.

I did eat my first Gu in about 5 years and boy that stuff tastes great, they could serve Vanilla Gu as dessert, God knows if it does anything.

I made it home with 102 miles done, I was riding for around 6h30. So yeah 90 mins off but I was never gonna do sub-5 alone, especially with the headwind. Still a lot of work to do but just wanted to prove to myself I could still do it. Bloody good fun, I haven't kicked my ... like that in some time, probably not since I was trying to complete the UMCA year round challenge back in Brooklyn.

Here's a link to the route map: http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/36329844

My legs are killing me!!!

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Gilbert - in progress

He deserves a big canvas!

Oh The Places You'll Go.

Ok, so we all have a saddle bag filled with inner tubes, puncture kits, levers and quarters ( I don't have a cell phone and some gas stations still have pay phones!). I have toyed with a map holder on the handlebars but did not like it and did go as far as taping some extra food to the frame when riding in 12 hr TT's. Most of us have a favourite rucksack for carrying the change of clothes post race or the mid week run to the grocery or library. Some people want to ride their bikes further, for longer, over rough terrain, in poor conditions with as little outside support as necessary or just need more groceries. So they turn to Revelate Designs owned by Eric Parsons.

After years of experimenting with different setups for hauling multi-day loads, it was clear that a frame bag -- tailored to fit within otherwise unused space -- offered a highly functional way of carrying heavier items, such as foods, tools, and water.

With an industrial sewing machine in a basement apartment, Eric began producing burly frame bags for fat-tire snow bike riders, including those racing the Iditarod Trail Invitational in Alaska. Demand for the bags grew, and after a short three months Eric left his engineering day job behind and devoted himself to designing and sewing bags for others who shared his adventure biking drive and needed functional, lightweight gear. The result is what you see on this site. Eric has since moved out of the basement and into a larger shop, but we remain a small Alaska-based business making quality gear for passionate cyclists.

rev·e·late /rev-i-layt/ n. & adj. 1. a sudden, complete, or marked change in human-powered travel by bicycle. 2. exhilarated, blissful, ecstatic at the prospect of adventuring aided by innovative, lightweight, and highly durable gear. [derived from L. stem of p.p. efferre, from ferre – to carry.] quoted from the Revelate website.

Made in the USA, with as many domestically sourced materials as possible!

Fantastic looking stuff here, when investigating some blog posts by people using his kit they often comment on the high quality of his craftsmanship and understanding of their needs.

You can see his range of products here: http://www.revelatedesigns.com/index.cfm

and a gallery of some serious haulage bikes here: http://www.revelatedesigns.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=gallery.list

I hope he doesn't mind me sharing a few images.

Bike Art VI - Altered Esthetics - Gallery Show

Altered Esthetics in Minneapolis is holding it's 6th annual 'Bike Art' gallery show.
It opens today, June 2nd and runs until June 23rd.
I am proud to have a piece hanging at the show - 'BOB_Woods'.


An archive of previous shows can be seen here on their site:
http://www.alteredesthetics.com/events/65.

The show is definitely worth visiting if you are in the Twin Cities neighbourhood, also some great activities planned during the show, hell it may even be worth sticking your bike on Amtrak and going just to get your bike washed!


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