Did your bike chose you?

googly eyes for your bike! kinda cute, right :)

 “Life always seems sweetest when we stumble upon a new experience, whether it be a new trial, an open road, rush hour traffic, a freshly tamped set of rollers or in this case a fixer upper project bike.”

via urbanvelo

Who's That Lady?

Who is this lovely woman?

That's Soraya. Soraya is the owner of My Dutch Bike (great shop, kick ass woman). MDB is the place to go if you wish to ride in the traditional European style (of course it used to just be the way everyone rode until something strange happened to us in the 1980's).

These two are her lovely husband and son.

Looking this happy and comfortable on their bikes, you just know they know something. They know how to be happy on their bicycles. Makes you wanna buy a dutch bike, doesn't it : )

The Bicycle Electric

Sometime last year, I was riding home with my family along 22nd Street. There is a very mild incline between South Van Ness and Valencia streets and I was really feeling it. We had been out all day and I had carried Declan on the back of the bike the whole time. Despite this, I felt like I was doing pretty well. Just as I was feeling good about my progress I heard a bicycle coming up fast on my left. It was a woman on a Townie extracycle with a preteen girl sitting on the back reading a book (a much larger kid on a much larger bike with really bad geometry). She flew by me like it was nothing! I was utterly demoralized. She was older than I, on a heavier bike with a heavier load and leaving me in the dust.

James found the whole thing terribly funny and let me feel sorry for myself for a few blocks until he pointed out that the woman who had passed me so handily on her damned bicycle was, in fact, not a stronger cyclist than I, per se, simply one that had the benefit of an electric assist! I have been a little obsessed by electric bicycles ever since.

Recently I was asked to test ride a Gazelle with electric assist by Soraya of My Dutch Bike. I jumped at the chance. I didn't have many ideas about what it would be like but I knew I would get some insight into what makes electric bicycles so popular.

There are a lot of technical things that can be said about bicycles. I am not qualified to say anything about any of them. I know nothing about how electric assist hub systems work and I do not know what the one on this bike is called. Those seem like unimportant details in this particular critique. It is enough to say that Gazelle makes a perfectly acceptable bicycle, that I do not like cushy Selle Royale saddles and being very upright is always pleasant.

As soon as I got on it and took off down Market Street I could feel the difference. With the lowest setting engaged, by the second pedal stroke I could feel the hub in the front wheel kick in with just a little bit of help. Not enough to be intrusive, but more than enough to set me at a much faster pace than I would normally experience. It reminded me of being given a gentle push along by a cute boy on a fixie- pleasant and helpful but I am still in control. With higher settings I got more help and my normal level of exertion was sending me flying! I was passing bicycle messengers and lycra roadies and taxi cabs while wearing heels and a skirt and a great big smile because I was making such wonderful progress pedaling at the same level of exertion I always use but actually getting somewhere fast!

Over subsequent days I discovered all kinds of interesting things while riding this electrified Gazelle. If I took my regular routes to get places I found I could cut my travel time by 30% without utilizing a greater level of energy than I usually do (and I didn't have to have the assist on its highest setting to do it). Even better, if I used the highest setting and took the super hilly routes I usually go around I could cut my travel time by 50% and not be any more fatigued than I would be on my Batavus taking the long way around. My knees didn't hurt and neither did my back at the tops of really big hills and starting from a stop with a heavy load was so much easier and less joint jarring. Over the week it was with me I found myself going on errands and to parts of town I have stopped going to because of the fatigue factor (I hadn't consciously decided to stop doing these things, I just stopped going because I didn't want to wear myself out).

One of the most surprising things I found was that I wanted a helmet for the first time in years! When I ride my Batavus I am slow enough that I always have time to react to things. The door zone is not usually much of an issue for me because I have time to look several cars ahead to see where the problems may come from. With the assist engaged I was passing parked cars so much faster that I knew I wouldn't be able to react fast enough if someone opened a door at me and that made me uncomfortable. There was nothing to stop me from slowing down but the easy ability to just zip along constantly crept up on me (riding with the electric hub turned off was unpleasant as there was a lot of resistance from it). The more I was on the bike the less I felt like I should be in the bicycle lane as I was constantly moving in and out of it to pass other riders and was obviously not part of the flow. Riding with others was an exercise in restraint as they would have to strain to keep up with me if I didn't pay attention (I have to admit I kind of liked that because I am usually the one dying to keep the pace). There was no longer any incentive to take the scenic route because I could just get there so much faster.

The reactions of others to the bike was interesting as well. One person I rode with one night was very animated about it when he discovered I was riding an electric assist bicycle. We had just crested an absolute monster of a hill at the end of what for me had been a very long day. I commented that it was so nice to get to the top of the hill and not be exhausted. My friend instantly let me know I was cheating and should only use my own power to get places. I laughed at his vehemence, especially as he had just reached the top of the hill on a fixed gear bicycle I have never tried. He was committed to his way of riding, which was the opposite in some respects of what I was doing. There was some understanding when I told him how surprised I was that I liked it and that not having pain and fatigue was letting me ride so much more than I would otherwise. As long as there was more riding happening it was kind of OK in his eyes.

Walking away from the bicycle I was happy to see that I really enjoyed getting back on my Batavus (it just fits me so well) and not spoiled by my experience in the land of the electrical assist. I was also very pleasantly surprised to find that I had gained some riding strength over my week with the Gazelle. All of the extra hill riding and longer cross town rides made a real difference to my strength level. A few of weeks of being back on my unassisted Bat has not made me wish for an electric hub, but it hasn't made me not want one, either. I really loved how it opened up the City to me in a way I hadn't realized was that closed to me. Not needing as much time to get around made getting things done so much easier. However, all the speed and ease made the slow ride I love harder to achieve and I found myself speeding up the number of things I would put on my to do list in a way that I am not terribly comfortable with (I lived like that for way too long already). However, saying that I find myself missing the speed across town.

I did come away thinking of people I would like to give this bicycle to. My Mom lives in the desert and quite a ride from many of the places she goes to daily. Trying to ride after 9 in the morning can be impossible when the heat starts to kick in. She has found herself on the side of the road needing to be rescued from heat exhaustion a couple of times when she underestimated the weather. Were she to use the maximum setting and not pedal too hard she could ride through the heat with a great deal more comfort than she would find from her normal bicycle or from walking. This would get her out of her car quite a lot. For a parent who needs to get across town quickly to pick up or drop off children this bicycle would be ideal. They would be able to handle the challenge of heavy weight on the bicycle without being slow or tired. For someone who has a very long or hilly commute to a job that requires nicer clothing this would eliminate the need for extra clothes or crowded cross town buses.

So there are a whole bunch of words about an electric assist bicycle I rode for a few days. Would I buy one? Sure, if my general needs were in line with one. If I were still riding 18 miles each way to work or having to go across town to pick up Declan everyday like I was last year I would have to seriously consider something like this. If my knee finally starts to give out like the orthopedist said it will then I am going to be on Soraya's doorstep looking for a little electric assist. You never know.

Keep on rolling

Change your tire. Get back on your bike.
The other day two of us here, calitexican and I, joined a number of our wheelwomen friends and their peeps to learn more about our bikes and some tips for maintenance. It was very simple but super helpful.
So we can keep on rolling.
Often times it helps to know how or why things do not function or can possibly be fixed, before heading to the bike shop and not knowing how to explain something that is wrong or has not been working properly for you.
I forgot mi camera this day, but so lucky for me I have one of those shiny smart phones =) so here is some evidence. We started with basics and helpful tips here pictured is our clinic guy fellow riding bike buddy Trystan, working on Calitexican's bike: Joanie. He was very professional and throughout sharing his tips and general rules of thumb for various scenarios.

It also helped that we had various levels and multiple bike users in the group from mixtes, road, and mountain. A few of the ladies will or have participated in the annual AIDS Lifecycle ride, so too much knowledge or clinics about tips will not hurt any of us.
We continued the evening with info and tricks about brakes, brake pads, cables, front+rear derailleurs.
It was nice to have case-scenarios and how we have gotten to know our bikes throughout our experiences and share them with the girls.
I'd never thought I'd hear Shannon say that bibs rock, but hey well, if they are comfortable. I can't help myself but to think of Borat's yellow bib, but that's just me. I guess it could work with a pair of tights and some boots and wear it with a dress.... mmmh.

Oh, HAAY. All the ladieeeees (well and me, taking this) with Trystan at the all women-clinic. Wooot

Anyway, have you attended a clinic at a local bike shop, or company? do tell.
And what was most fun of it!? Here we learned we were ALL guilty of having the blackest, non-lubed chains evarrrr (sorry bikes!!...)
A special thanks to Klaw for organizing, and to Trystan and the folks at Marin bikes for the space on a late Monday night

Being savvy and super-efficient with our bikes is super sexy and powerful, bike clinics rock!
♥xxo.meli

Metal Health Will Bike You Mad

I love DIY anything. Some things are just way easier to have mass produced (socks and underwear come to mind). Many things, though, benefit greatly from being smaller and handmade. Bicycle shops are no exception. I love any shop that has a definite sense of ownership to it. One such shop in San Francisco is Heavy Metal.

Heavy Metal is funky, cluttered and very down at the heel. If you blink you will miss it. We must have passed it a hundred times before I noticed it there. The guys that run it are no nonsense, like vintage bicycles and keep things very low key (all things I like). There isn't a corporate bone in the body of the shop. It is exactly the place I would have brought my bicycle to be repaired before I met Hubby the Bikeman.

The other day, I noticed a new sign in the shop window.

I am unsure if this means they ran out of them or just don't have them on principal. Either way, the plate is a good touch. The front door of the shop is pretty funny, too.

So if you find yourself on 29th Street, keep a look out for the bicycle shop placed between the kids fixing their vintage mopeds on the side walk and the loud corner bar with the hand written, neon yellow signs in Spanish. When you see the rusty old franken-tandem locked to a sign post out front, you will know you have arrived.

Putting His Brompton Where His Mouth Is

Many of you out there in the world outside the blogosphere have heard of a bicycle store in Portland, Oregon by the name of Clever Cycles. CC was started by Todd Fahrner who has become something of an internet friend of mine over the last year. Todd invented the Stoke Monkey, too.

A little bit ago, Todd informed me he would be riding to SF from Portland at the end of August. I was more than a little jealous. A long distance bicycle tour is a dream of mine that I hope to fulfill in the not too distant future. What makes the tour really interesting is that Todd has decided to make the journey on his daily ride- his Brompton.

He has made a few modifications to make the long distance a little easier, but overall, it is just a regular old, everyday Brompton.

Todd will not have his trusty dutch bicycle to carry his folder with on this trip, but he will have his hammock and his IPhone and his GPS. With a Twitter page to keep us updated, we can all see how all you need is a bicycle to get you where you are going as Todd follows the coast on his folder.

Good luck, Todd! Let me know when you are hitting the Golden Gate so I can take your finish line shots!!

What is the price of your bicycle?

Here at this blog we ride all kinds of bicycles. Mostly re-purposed, passed on from relatives, found on the curbside, with the exception of Ade's Yacht (the bat), I could say all of them did not cost much at all.

Ade

meligrosa

cailtexican

This morning I read an article (from a woman's persepctive, written by Christina Binkley) and found it quite interesting. Check it out at wsj.com: The Season of Biker Chic

These are old-fashioned-looking bikes with heavy frames, strong, wide tires and handlebars high enough to let the rider sit upright.

Well, my frenchie is that. Melyssa's bike is that. And most of Ade's bikes are that. But they certainly did not cost over $1,800 USD. The article does offer information from bikes in the range between $300 - on. I am all for exposure of bicycle city riding of all kinds, not only the uber cutesy marketing that has recently sprung out (not that I am against it either) but all choices. People should ride as they please. And also support new companies that make an effort to be locally active (ie, Public bikes has participated in many events here in San Francisco)
The article also mentions the various companies, targeted at getting more women to ride, which I think sets the tone for a thumbs-up in my books.
My favorite part of the wsj article, which sounds like a story cut for our story blog here is:

"My ride to the office is 7.2 miles, mostly downhill. As I cruised to work, I saw Los Angeles from a new purview. The city is badly in need of bike lanes, and the streets are littered with hazards like glass.

But generally, I found L.A. surprisingly easy to bike in. To avoid car traffic, I tried to stick to quiet neighborhood streets. Being near to the ground allowed me to discover several new shops and restaurants along the way, and the ride made the city community seem closer and smaller. I arrived at work feeling as energized as I do after a morning yoga class. I even made a mental plan to do this more often."

(this excerpt and the quote above from wsj.com by Christina Binkley: The Season of Biker Chic)

So to put out the question out there, how much would you drop on a new bike? (from publicbikes.com "Our bikes are designed in the United States, by us. They are built and assembled in Taiwan...more") or would you rather fix an older bike yourself?
And I'm curious that if design and colour would influence you to drop almost 2K on say, those juicy citrus orange mixte public bikes? If I had spare money I'd be tempted because they are quite irresistible, but to be honest, if I had 1500 to burn on a bike, I'd probably do so on a touring bike like a Surly LTH.
Maybe.

Ben & His Bike Shop

After leaving the house with S.A.M. for the first ride after being put back together, I discovered my front brakes were... useless. It wasn't so bad, but I had to be extra vigilant until I got it fixed (I couldn't figure out the immediate problem which is the one drawback to being married to Hubby the Bike Man- I let him take care of it : ).

I thought I was going to stop at Box Dog Bikes as they are the ones that always have the kind of parts my old re-cycles need, but that was not really on my way. That was when I remembered that Ben, the guy who has become well known for opening up shop on the side of the road in the Panhandle, had opened up his own place on Treat St. That was exactly on my route, so that was where I headed.

Ben's shop is tiny and cute. I am sure that Ben would not describe his bike nook as cute, but it is. He has bikes hanging from the ceiling like salamis.

He has room for his single bike rack, and a rug, and a boom box and his tools.

When I looked to the back of the shop, I saw a familiar bicycle on the floor- KT's Motobecane. I thought it was funny that I recognized the pieces of my friend's bike without knowing the bike was there in the first place.

Ten minutes and $5 later, my brakes were doing their appointed job and I was on my way. I love little shops like Ben's. Nothing fancy, just the tools required to do the job and a guy with a nice smile and a bike stand. I was off for the rest of my errands in the brief sunshine we got that day in no time.

Thanks, Ben!