Tubulocity

A Tale of 2 Chilis & 6,000 Cyclists.Chilly Hilly & F-ing Hills Race 2010.

Bicycles of every imaginable kind co-existed peacefully.

More than 6,000 cyclists of all varieties packed ferries from Seattle to Bainbridge Island.

This past Sunday (2/28/10) was the annual Chilly Hilly bike ride. It is the huge kick-off event for bike season in the Seattle area, organized by Cascade Bicycle Club. Here in the Great Northwest many of us struggle to emerge from our yearly dark-dank-daze like cicadas. If you can complete this ride it's a sign that you've survived Winter reasonably intact. With 2,675 feet of climbing over 33 miles, the Chilly Hilly is no stroll in the park. Some of the hills look like walls as you approach them. I felt every quart of ice cream I ate this Winter as I climbed each one.

The weather this winter has been exceptionally mild, with record-breaking temps throughout January and February. On event day it was shockingly sunny and seemed to be in the mid-50s or warmer. It would appear that bicycling is booming in these parts. Rumor has it there were 6,028 riders this year, a huge increase from the 3,585 riders last year.

A parallel event known as the FHR in polite company (Fucking Hills Race) took place on the same day and place. Originally started as a pirate ride by Point 83, it is now pretty well organized. Participants wear pirate flags instead of numbers. In support of both events and seeking the most fun and best chili, I paid registration fees and rode in both events simultaneously.

FHR pirates meet up under the viaduct.

FHR had terrific prizes for all participants and a more alternative theme from the mainstream clean-cut Chilly Hilly. Prizes included all sorts of bike schwag as well as $60 toward a Point83 club tattoo, body waxing, and a lap dance. The FHR crowd numbered over 100 mostly twenty-somethings who prefer vintage clothing from Goodwill over the spandex more typical of Chilly Hilly riders. The FHR chili was spectacular. I asked one Chilly Hilly rider how their chili was and they said they didn't get any because there wasn't enough to go around for the 6,028 riders.

These cheery bearded FHR pirates will someday look like the guys below if they continue living right.

The Chilly Hilly rider on the left towed his sweet old dog in the Burley trailer.

These parallel events are proof that there's plenty of room on the road for all kinds of people: kids, seniors, competitive racers, casual riders, skinny & fat people. Good spirits were everywhere. In these contentious times that is a rare and beautiful thing.

Riders from the Major Taylor Project team, a Cascade Bicycle Club Education Foundation program.

Pirate booty.

A Grand Day Out.Seattle Tweed Ride Photos.

The Seattle Tweed Ride was amazing on this most beautiful mid-February Day. A loud hurrah for Nova & Silvie who organized the event.
Click here to view more photos.

Party Like It's 1910!Seattle Tweed Ride this Sunday,February 21 at Cal Anderson Park.

Meet at Cal Anderson Fountain on Capitol Hill.
High Tea at Noon. Leisurely ride departs at 1PM.
Dapper attire strongly encouraged. No Lycra please.

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That’s right, Seattle will be hosting a Tweed ride. It will be a group ride at a leisurely pace. This ride is about fun, community, and Tweed. Here in the Northwest, wool is popular, so let’s make this a good one.

From the desk of organizers Nova & Sylvie:
All you dapper ladies and gents and goody folk,
If you are so inclined to bring along a spot of tea (or other delicious beverages) or some tasty treats (such as scones, finger sandwiches and the like), it would be most appreciated by one and all.
In addition to enjoying a spot of tea, we are most excited by the idea of playing with your balls! Yes, yes! Your hard little balls will fill us with laughter and glee! Bring your croquet and bocce ball sets, and we shall have a grand time playing with the balls and riding the bicycles. The ride shall culminate at a fine British pub-type establishment, where we shall imbibe in the freshest ales and consume wholesome foods.
Good show! Pip, pip! Cheerio,
Nova & Sylvie

Click here to see photos from a San Francisco Tweed Ride

Click here to see photos from a Philadelphia Tweed Ride

Dutch Bikes at the Vancouver Olympics

This video and story came from markenlei via youtube.

The Dutch "public transport bicycle" is a very successful system of rental bikes. They shipped 400 of their bikes to the Olympic Village in Vancouver. The bikes are meant for the Dutch athletes to use as a means of transport. Just like they would at home.

Almost 600 people in Richmond showed up for a testride. A lot of the people had Dutch roots as many Dutch emigrated to Canada in the past. The Dutch Prime Minister came to hand over the bikes officially. When he made a test ride too, he forgot one important difference to using your bike in the Netherlands: in Vancouver bicycle helmets are mandatory!

Heroes of the bicycle:Kent Peterson and the 2,745 mileTour Divide Mountain Bike Race.

Kent Peterson at work at Bikeworks, a non-profit bike shop in the Columbia City neighborhood of Seattle. Photo by Taizo Curry.

How do you know if someone is amazing? Usually, people are considered ordinary until they win a Grammy or are dating Jennifer Aniston or hanging out with Snoop Dogg at his crib, or sitting next to Jay Leno on whatever his show is called.

Kent Peterson looks and acts like a regular guy but he is extraordinary. On June 11, he will be racing in THE TOUR DIVIDE, a one stage, 2,745 mile self-supported mountain bike race from Banff, Alberta to the northern border of Mexico along the spine of the Rocky Mountains.

This is Kent's second time competing in THE TOUR DIVIDE. In 2005, he was the first person to complete the race on a single-speed bike. He wrote the story of that trip in a Dirt Rag article and an online book called The Way of the Mountain Turtle. He's 51 and his kids are the same age as some of the other competitors. He's a master mechanic, a terrific writer, and has a very generous heart. At Bikeworks he helps people (mostly kids) get their busted bikes into road-worthy condition for a fraction of what it would cost at a for-profit shop.

Kent's Bike Blog is a great read. It's beautifully written and covers a lot more than I can even begin to write about here. Like many Olympic athletes, time spent training and participating devours income. I encourage you to support Kent's 2010 Tour Divide efforts by making a donation through a link on his blog.

Kent's Redline Monocog Flight

OVERVIEW OF TOUR DIVIDE RACE

Tour Divide is a solo, self-supported ultra-cycling challenge to race all 2,745 miles of Adventure Cycling Association's epic Great Divide Mountain Bike Route. There are no compulsory rest periods or specified distances racers must travel daily. The race clock runs non-stop. He or she who can ride the fastest while making fewer, shorter stops usually wins. With an average time-to-completion of three weeks in the saddle, this grand tour is the longest, most challenging mountain bike race on the planet. It's a contest for the ultra-fit but only if ultra-prepared for myriad contingencies of backcountry biking.

The Great Divide Mountain Bike Route is the world's longest off-pavement cycling route. It's highlighted by long dirt roads and jeep trails that wend their way through forgotten passes of the Continental Divide. The Route travels through Canadian Provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, and the United States of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico. By Route's end a thru-rider will climb nearly 200,000 feet of vertical (equivalent to summitting Mount Everest from sea-level 7 times).

Divide racers must not only be conditioned to endure weeks of consecutive 16+ hour days in the saddle, they need to bring other skills to the trail. The Route is unmarked and circuitous, requiring navigational acumen. It travels through remote backcountry with Grizzly and Mountain Lion density. Intervals between services are frequently 100+ miles and demand calculated food/water resupply — or else. Riders must also find shelter each night or bivouac trailside. In minutes the Rockies' dynamic mountain weather can wreak havoc on route surfaces, skewing even the most near-term travel projections.

ESSENTIAL LINKS
Kent's Blog
Tour Divide
The Way of the Mountain Turtle: an e-book by Kent
Bikeworks

1909: Latest Method of Grinding Coffee

More evidence of my belief that the bicycle intersects all things. I found this by accident on a blog called VINTAGE KANSAS CITY, which features newspaper articles from the archives of The Kansas City Journal. This device should be in use here in Seattle. I will be sure to speak with Starbucks about it. This article first appeared Feb. 21, 1909, just about 101 years ago to the day.

"A combination exerciser and coffee grinder is the latest product of the inventive genius of Curtis F. Smith, a Kansas City, Kansas grocer. On the rear porch of the grocery store at 2063 North Thirteenth street, Kansas City, Kansas, a large coffee mill is connected by a belt with a bicycle which is propped up so as to act upon the principle of a treadmill. When the Saturday orders are in, a small boy takes his stand by the coffee mill prepared to pour the coffee into the hopper. Mr. Smith mounts the bicycle and beginning slowly as though climbing a steep hill, he gradually increases his speed and bends low over the handle bars until the wheels of the bicycle and the coffee mill fairly hum. The Saturday coffee is ground in a jiffy."

Where Are You Go?A film by Benny Zenga & Brian Vernor

I wrote about WHERE ARE YOU GO last summer after seeing it in the BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL. It's a film about life changing experiences and having full contact with the world. The bicycle is the tool people use to have those experiences. The place is Africa. It's a film by Benny Zenga & Brian Vernor. It's not generally available yet, but they are working on getting distribution. I'm posting this again for those of you who've never heard of it.

2008 Cycle Messenger World Championships: A Benny Zenga Film

I am a huge fan of Benny Zenga. Everyone should know about him and his films. Benny is heavily into bikes as part of the creative experience. Here's a short fun film he edited that I found on Vimeo. 2008 Cycle Messenger World Championships, Toronto Island. Shot by Brian Hunt, Lucas Brunelle, & Benny Zenga.

Benny Zenga is half of the team (with Brian Vernor) that made WHERE ARE YOU GO, an amazing documentary about the TOUR D'AFRIQUE, the world's longest bike expedition (and race for some). A 7,000 mile, four month epic journey by bicycle between Cairo, Egypt and Cape Town South Africa. I saw WHERE ARE YOU GO at the BICYCLE FILM FESTIVAL last summer. You can't see WHERE ARE YOU GO anywhere except film festivals at this point, but the filmmakers are currently working to get distribution for their film. Should you hear that it's showing somewhere, run and see it. I just watched a film by Benny called THE WINKING CIRCLE. These two films establish him in my mind as some kind of genius or at least an important heroic creative leader. I hope to be able to share more of Benny's films with you as they become available.

WW2 Military Bicycle Ads

While researching an article on BICYCLES IN THE MILITARY, I found a very cool website called THE LIBERATOR, published by Johan of Belgium. Johan started collecting WW2 US militaria at the age of 10 back in 1976. He kindly sent me a few ads for military bicycles to share with you. Click on the images for a larger view.

Visit THE LIBERATOR to learn more about military bicycles and other amazing WW2 memorabilia.

Mother Nature's Lessons in Visibility

I originally made this montage as an illustration for the article about the Traffic Master Jersey, which incorporates similar visual effects. As you can see, the Monarch Butterfly Caterpillar has stopped the Hummer in its tracks, by using its markings & coloration to say "Dude, stay away from me, I'm inedible, likely poisonous, and will mess up your windshield!".

We know from experience that anyone can get a driver's license. There are countless incompetent and distracted drivers on the road. Strong contrasting colors and patterns are highly visible, even from a distance.

Eleven Gear's Traffic Master Jersey:"Retina-searing, Listerine-for-the-eyes".

In my recent article on hideous bicycle clothing (kit) design I promised to also write about design excellence. I'm not the final arbiter of taste, and recognize that you may think my suggestions are not for you (or worse). What's likely behind the worst offenders in kit design is "design by committee" rather than a dumb-ass designer. Conversely, what is often behind some of the best design solutions is a designer working for him or herself, trying to create something that effectively solves a problem, that they themselves would wear, that appeals to cyclists, and will sell. Their money is on the line, and the last thing they need is a garage full of unsold merchandise.

Rick Pepper, owner/designer at ELEVEN GEAR is an example of a designer/entrepreneur/cyclist. His designs also reflect his edgy sense of humor. His designs are good looking, funny and thought provoking.

"I got into this jersey biz by designing the club jersey for Alto Velo racing back in the '90s, a team I raced for. Then in like '97 or so a cardiologist friend of mine and I developed the Republic of Anaerobia. We did a run of 100 and sold them out to our club in about an hour. That told me there was some room in the marketplace for jerseys that offered some veiled humor and interesting design and themes. I started Elevengear myself in '07. It's still small as you might have guessed but it's been a pretty fun ride."

In designing the TRAFFIC MASTER our goal was to make the brightest cycling jersey that we could conceive of, a retina-searing, listerine-for-the-eyes kind of garment that will keep us comfortable, warm and quite visible to our motorist friends during the fringes of these shorter days.

It also has a BONUS FEATURE that is pure genius. "If, while riding, you are approached by a motorist who wishes to "discuss" whether your presence in the roadway is a lawful endeavor in the first place, as a courtesy to you, we have added the text of the United States Universal Vehicle Code, §11-1205 to the sleeve, which explains in reasonable detail that a cyclist is in fact allowed the right hand side of the road, as well listing the circumstances under which the cyclist is legally entitled to the entire lane."

I'm wearing one while writing this article and can tell you it's very comfortable (fleecey interior) and very well made. It's got a full-zip front. On top of all that it's MADE IN THE U.S.A.! (Holy crap, I didn't know anything was still made here!)

ELEVEN GEAR'S other jerseys are also very smart and great-looking: VELO POSEUR; REPUBLIC OF ANAEROBIA; CHURCH OF THE BICYCLE; DOPPLER SHIFT; SATURN FIVE; GEARHEART; & THE BEEF.

Paperboy Brothers Win Mead Ranger Bike.Prize Incites Family Strife.

Washington, D.C., circa 1921. "Times bicycle contest." Winners of a Mead Ranger bike for selling 30 newspaper subscriptions. National Photo Co. This came from SHORPY.COM, a vintage photo blog and one of my favorite sites. Assuming they are brothers, sharing this prize likely created significant family drama. Judging from their expressions and body language, here's what I think just happened. "It's mine." "Is not." "I sold more subscriptions than you did." "Liar." "You're a liar."