Happy Friday.  Now get on your bikes and ride…

This is a blast from the past.  I admit I owned America’s Least Wanted while in high school.  “Throw your hands in the air, I like to see your armpit hair!”  Enjoy.

This is the 700th post since Go Means Go has been at it’s own domain.  Maybe you remember the old Emerald City Bike Bloc days- good times indeed.  It’s been a while since GMG began and there has been some seriously fun times that we’ve had together.  Thanks for reading, and more importantly, thanks for coming out to the events- and I hope that we are inspiring you to do your own thing wherever you live.

Ride your bike like no one’s watching.  Love like you’re never going to get hurt.

It’s still summer in Seattle, though it may not seem like it- so here is a little something to remind you that on your bike- you’ve got 12 months of joy.

Thanks to Koos for sending this on.  He saw it over on notcot.

Last day to pre register for the 9 to 5. We may get sprinkled on, so be prepared!

Some great sponsors came through. We are really excited for this!

I’ve been riding a set of 700 x 28 Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires over the winter. They have been on my rain bike- which gets 100-150 miles a week and is a true work horse when it comes weight carried and the roads traveled over. A fully fendered bike- single speed with a coaster brake. A 5-rail Cetma rack up front and a basket on the back…. It hauls beer, groceries, flowers for my lady, packages bound for the post office, and whatever else that needs to be hauled. These tires have run over glass, rocks, potholes, whatever the winter Seattle roads can throw at them- and have come into spring unscathed. They roll smooth and feel fairly fast, even with all that protection. Though they may not be a bulletproof Ferrari, they could maybe be compared to something of a bulletproof Subaru.

I love the reflective sidewall and I found them grippy throughout this winter in Seattle. Granted, we didn’t get the same snow fall that we did in 2008, but it was a wet one and I was impressed with their traction on the road. These tires are killer commuter tires if you run through industrial areas or areas prone to collecting glass or other sharp objects on the side of the road. Schwalbe has dubbed these puncture proof- which is a pretty big statement, but I have been impressed so far.

As for skidding- even when riding fixed, I don’t skid that often. Tires are expensive, man. On the coaster brake bike I only skid when I’m goofing off. I haven’t had any odd wear patterns on these tires from the long skids that I have pulled. Though I can’t speak from experience on it, I have been told that if you skid through the outer layer, the inner blue layer is spongey and lends an unfavorable ride characteristic.

The Marathon Plus tires do add some weight to your wheel. The 28c tires weigh in at 740g. If the specs are correct, the 25c is much lighter at 580g. Personally, on a commuter bike a little extra weight is worth the piece of mind if changing a flat in the rain is a possibility.

All in all, a great tire, retailing at $54.95. You can find them in Seattle at Wright Brothers and other quality shops.

This past weekend was the Cascade Bicycle Club’s annual Bike Expo- the largest consumer bicycle trade show in the US. The Expo took place in a new venue- the Magnolia cruise ship terminal which seemed well suited to the event and outside of being a little hard to find for some, I think all who attended would call it a success. Two floors of bike shops, bike builders, ride coordinators, food vendors and a wide array of companies that pertain to bicycles and the culture surrounding them in one way or another.

The Expo has grown over the past couple years that I have lived in Seattle and I feel that this year was the best yet. A new venue came with some new challenges for the organizers- like parking and directing traffic- but I’m sure that next year will run much smoother. I do hope that next year the separation between cars and bikes in the parking lot is more straight forward. When I arrived on Saturday morning, the parking lot was filling up quickly with cars and bikes were thrown into the mix. One thing that I have noticed over the years is that if there is any place that cars are not paying attention to bicycles on the roadway, it’s in parking lots- when drivers are looking for a space to park, they have a tendency to drive more erratically and make sudden course changes. I was also expecting a little bit more from the bike corral parking area- staffed by and benefiting Bikeworks. Something along the lines of a valet parking area perhaps? It was more like a pay parking lot than a valet lot. When riding a bike- charging people to park their own bikes, even when the money goes to a good cause, seems a little shady. I can’t speak to whether cars were charged for parking, but I think that a $5 per car parking fee would generate far more revenue, while encouraging people to ride their bikes. Perhaps it would have been better to have a separate donation area for Bikeworks so people had the option to pay money to park their bikes. In addition to the fee, the logistics of sending multiple riders down a long corridor filled with bikes of varying proportions made for lots of waiting.

Once I was parked the line into The Expo went fairly smoothly.  Around 6 CBC volunteers kept it going by shouting “Next!” and directing traffic efficiently.

The entrance was laid out well and it didn’t feel too crowded when I walked in. Our friends at Baron Bicycles had a booth up front and I got to see the new Baron Track bike, all done up with it’s Go Means Go- decals. Photos of that beauty to come.

The Classic Bicycle Expo was amazing, with a ton of Jack Taylor bikes from over the years. I also got to meet Eric Zo- from the fabled “Zo Bags” which was synonymous with built to last, DIY messenger bag construction years ago in San Francisco. Eric has been difficult to find over the years because of his travels, but he was there hawking some of his wares to anybody that was interested.

Momentum Magazine was there- Mia, Amy and Sarah are 3 wonderful ladies working hard to bring one of the best cycling magazines available to the public.  Seattle has our own edition now, and it’s available free at a growing number of businesses.  If your local coffee shop, bar, bikeshop, or hair salon doesn’t carry it- ask them to.

I unfortunately missed seeing the world champion artistic cycling  team from Germany, as well as Ryan Leech- trials athlete.

After the Expo on Saturday, Baron Bicycles and Go Means Go put together an afterparty at 9 Million in Unmarked Bills that went really well.  Food and drink specials were accompanied with bicycle trivia that put people to a real test with questions like (answers below):

1. What 3 Belgians are the only 3 riders to have won all 5 “Monument” one day races in their careers?
2. What US city was deemed “Best Cycling City” in 1990 by Bicycling Magazine
3. What MTB racer recently plead guilty in atempting to smuggle 400 lbs of Marijuana.
4. What bike part can be of the “Ashtabula” variety?
5. As an ambassador to China in 1975, who wrote: “The more I think about our U.S. domestic transportation problems from this vantage point of halfway around the world, the more I see an increased role for the bicycle in American life.
6. What celebrity was given the Chanel branded bike, valued at $12,000

The teams were also tested with a word scramble an audio round, and a picture round where the rider must be classified as “Alive, dead, or currently serving a 2 year suspension for doping”  It was tough, and a big congratulations goes out to the teams that gave it their all.  The top four (5 really) teams were as follows:

1. Team Metal Cowboy
2. Tie for 2nd place:  Team Dope Scandal and Team Beer’d
3. Team Champagnolo
4. Army of One (actually one guy- not bad at all considering the difficulty of the questions)

A big thanks to the sponsors:  Coal Headwear, Poor Life Choices, Baron Bicycles, Bike Hugger, and Counterbalance Bicycles

I can’t say when the next bicycle trivia night will be- but if you had a good time, give us some feedback and maybe we’ll make something work out.

ANSWERS TO THE TRIVIA QUESTIONS ABOVE

1. Roger De Vlaeminck, Rik Van Looy, and Eddy Merckx
2. Seattle, Washington.  (Damn right.)
3. Missy Giove
4. Crank
5. 41st president- George Bush
6. Jennifer Aniston, given to her by Courtney Cox

It was of course a pleasure to work with Baron Bicycles and 9 Million in Unmarked Bills on this party and it seems that fun was had by all.  Thanks also goes out to the Cascade Bicycle Club for doing a wonderful job on the Bike Expo.

Keep an eye on the calendar for upcoming events in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest at http://seattlebikeevents.com.

When you visit a website or read a blog like GO MEANS GO- you do so because you like what you see. You receive a snapshot into the mind of the contributors and you come back to their site because a connection has been made. With so many things on the internet to see, read and waste your precious time that could be spent out riding on- many people visit blogs to get a taste of what the contributors have found since they last visited the site.

Blogging is a sometimes frustrating task. For many bloggers much of it is posting things they like. Through the advent of readers and bots that will collect posts from numerous sites- it has now become a race for bloggers to post content first. Searching for content that is original can be difficult and in reality- unless you are posting personal experiences or projects- it has likely been done before. Twitter has also become a blog in it’s own right- for the super ADD. You get 145 characters to say how your day is going, or to link to the next best thing that you discovered. A blessing and a curse- Twitter has likely forever changed the way social networking interacts with blogs and our day to day life.

I was recently discussing blogging with a friend of mine and he was saying that he is torn between what seems to be the two main types of blogging: A) the many times a day, photo bomb/link dump of everything new that comes across one’s path relating to their subject or B) the sometimes wordy, usually lengthy post of one- more in depth topic on a less frequent basis.

What is more entertaining/intriguing for the common reader?

I strive for a blend of the two. I grew up reading zines, having had my own bike zine in the late nineties called “Behind Bars.” I enjoy reading articles and stories that are interesting and relevant to my interests- but am ADD enough to be sucked into the photos, flashy videos and product shots that can be found uploaded onto the internet in such quantity it makes my head spin.

There are many blogs that I’ve been reading for a while- and some that I have just come across. I thought I would take this opportunity to share them with you. You can of course go to the LINKS page and see a larger list, but this is a small taste if you are looking to expand your horizons. Not intended to be the end-all-be-all list of blogs, these folks are doing good things for the online cycling community. A big shout out to any body that writes or contributes to a blog. Your words and pictures make the internet a better place. Keep riding - keep writing.

Candy Cranks: Chicks that spin across the globe

Candy Cranks is written by women who ride. The authors and contributors are located around the world and you can read up on what cycling cultures are like in their respective cities. From Shanghai to Nashville- Amsterdam to Boston: Art, advocacy, bikes, and fashion- from a women’s perspective. Please note: if you visit this site looking for nude women straddling show bikes, you will be disappointed. If what you seek is a look at global cycling culture from a women’s perspective- you will enjoy Candy Cranks. They also have things for sale that are quite nice. I’m a fan of their shirts and the new Skelington chainrings.

Le Pista Resistance: Underground cycling culture in Sydney, Australia.

Australia has a great cycling culture. I’ve never been, so I am only going on the fact that it appears that way on the internet (which means it must be true, right?) I recently stumbled across Le Pista Resistance and I loved the logo, as well as the localized content. They have fun and love their bikes.

Momentum Magazine: The magazine for self propelled people

This is not a shameless plug. I work doing ad sales for the Seattle Edition of Momentum Magazine so it may seem as though I am biased. On the contrary, I am working with them because I am such a fan. A print magazine, many of the articles can be read online. I enjoy the diversity of articles, and the perspective with which it’s written.

Pedal Consumption

I don’t know how Patrick does it. His site is so packed with things that just hit the market, or aren’t even available yet, that I feel like he either knows anyone that does anything in the street/fixed gear world, or he is really slacking on his day job. Either way, I am impressed with the layout, content, and clean feel of Pedal Consumption. I met Mr. PC when I traveled down to Portland to help in their Rose City Fixed event in 2009.

Urban Velo: Bicycle Culture on the Skids

The good people at Urban Velo have done much to bring fixed gear culture to the level that it is now. The folks involved with Urban Velo were involved with Dirt Rag way back- the only Mt. Bike magazine I have ever subscribed to. They have kept it real so to speak- and started Urban Velo to build the community that they have found themselves immersed in. Polo, fixed gear, tricks, and urban riding with a little rougher edge. An interesting section to read is the “I love riding in the city”- which profiles riders around the world. Also a print magazine, available at your LBS, or available for free download online.

All hail the black market: “putting the ‘cult’ back in bicycle culture”

Stevil Kinevil consistently brings entertaining content to the table on AHTBM. With a lengthy history in the bike community; Stevil’s humor as well as the photos that he finds either on his camera or in some lost and forgotten corner of the internet- is fun to read and often informative. I have been at the same events as Stevil on multiple occasions, but we have yet to meet. One of these days it will happen- beer will be consumed, and a shit show will likely ensue. From what I can tell- he comes from the darker side of cycling. The side that sees cut off Carhartt pants and wool jerseys perfectly acceptable attire for a day spent riding in the mud. He doesn’t hate fun like some people that consider themselves “cyclists”, and we share the opinion that the occasional drunken nap in a bush only makes you a stronger person. If AHTBM were a drink- which it should be- it would be “Thug Passion.” If you don’t know what’s in a “Thug Passion” or the result it brings when consumed, then you should listen to more Tupac.

Eco Velo:

The efficiency of a bicycle is hard to argue. It works well and the design hasn’t changed much since the diamond frame was invented way back when. The beauty of the bicycle however, is subject to interpretation. Whereas one person may find a prototype full carbon Time Trial bike to be the bike all others are compared to- others will see much more beauty in a Dutch Bike complete with skirt guards and chain wheel covers. I for one would align myself with the latter. I appreciate technological advancements, but am impressed when we take that technology and apply it to a bike with what I view as nice lines, and utilitarian design. Alan and Michael, the husband and wife team behind Eco Velo have this same appreciation of the bicycle and their blog is always full of great reviews, products, and just photos of the beautiful bicycles that come across their path.

Hipster Nascar: “Go fast - turn left”

Not only do I love the tongue in cheek name that Hipster Nascar uses, the content posted is unique and well written. Simon and Aaron post a lot about Six day racing and track racing as a whole. A blend of urban riding and bike racing- they are good writers with an appreciation of beautiful bikes both old and new as well as the rich history of competitive cycling.