There is too much to go through, so I thought I would start you off with comedy and then ease into the serious bits. Let me tell you, that Cat Massage Video is funny. Champer Dampers. "Good for you. Use both hands to Double the Pleasure and Double the Fun."
Moving on.
Benji Wagner and I worked on this piece for Readymade a couple months ago. After working on the Breaking Away (he shot and edited the video and some rad photos) action that we did down at Mellow Johnny's in Austin we decided to keep the good times rolling. I interviewed three builders of handmade bicycles. Ira Ryan (Ira Ryan Cycles), Jordan Hufnagel (Hufnagel Cycles, Aaron Hayes (Courage Bicycle), and Matt and Nate (Signal Cycles). Aren't they handsome sitting in that Ivy?
Our talks ranged from tools of the trade to actual building techniques. I think that they got most everything correct as well. The funniest side story to come out of it was that J. Hufnagel mentioned to me later that the fact checker from Readymade called to find out if he really uses the word "stoked." And to let him know that she had now incorporated it into her everyday life. So, it seems that these builders are making changes in the world in whatever they do.
These guys can't go anywhere without them turning into big stars. Check out the new Signal Cross bikes on their Flickr. So fucking hot. (Oh, hello again Benji) I'm glad that Matt and Nate are continuing to push the boundaries when it comes to paint. Their cross bike from the NAHBS show two years ago was my favorite Cross bike of the show.
Check out Nate's N.A.H.B.S. shirt in the above photo. Good times. Also, for actual good photos of it go to the Trackosaurus Flickr page.
New Speedvagen Kits.
Was honored and excited to work with Sacha White of Vanilla Bicycles on the race kits for his team. They are a little more Speedvagen than Vanilla, but its all there. I think the kits came out nicely. What do you think?
Shannon seems to like them. See how he smiles. Then, he mounts his bicycle (which is coated in Teflon-no joke) and starts tearing peoples legs off. Left, right, forward, back, it doesn't matter. He told me yesterday that he actually used to race with the Trek VW/Bike Gallery race team. Nice.
Seriously, the bike is coated in Teflon. Word on the street is that this was Tony Kic's idea. He had another good idea too, it is called Blind Date and happens on Wednesday nights. In the dark. Its all very "misty" (a term from Burlington, VT that mixes cool and mystique). I think that is actually what Steve Fran is saying in the background. "Hey Shannon, those kits are a great Misty Blue."
Seriously, Teflon. What would that do in the mud?
What is a word that rhymes with News? Booze, thats a good one. Clues is another one that I really like. Schmooze is also a good one. Snooze is my absolute favorite though, thank you for that.
Velonews put out their Cyclocross Guide to Cyclocross things in their most recent issue. The issue itself had a few great moments that I was thinking we should go over together. Lets get the big one out of the way. I did this ad for Ridley USA. Top notch guys over there and I am excited to work with them on a couple upcoming projects.
I was excited to see it in there. I also noticed these info-graphics. They reminded me of a t-shirt that my friend Drew once made for BensCycles. "How to Measure a Stem." I like the one that measures Stiffness. I guess that would make sense right? That as the crank goes up it gets, well, stiffer. Lucky for us they followed it up with one about length, as I was not sure what I was looking at. Stiffer? Yes.
Velonews put out their Cyclocross Guide to Cyclocross things in their most recent issue. The issue itself had a few great moments that I was thinking we should go over together. Lets get the big one out of the way. I did this ad for Ridley USA. Top notch guys over there and I am excited to work with them on a couple upcoming projects.
I was excited to see it in there. I also noticed these info-graphics. They reminded me of a t-shirt that my friend Drew once made for BensCycles. "How to Measure a Stem." I like the one that measures Stiffness. I guess that would make sense right? That as the crank goes up it gets, well, stiffer. Lucky for us they followed it up with one about length, as I was not sure what I was looking at. Stiffer? Yes.
Pete Smith, Mr. Mad Alchemy Himself made it in though, and that makes me happy. I have been using the Russian Tea version lately. The wind has been whipping and the temperatures dropping, so, time to liven up the Embro.
