Wood You Wear This?

We think it is pretty cool, for a helmet.

Would go very nicely with a set of MK Fenders.

 

Bike to Work Week Wrap

So we had our exciting Bike to Work Week windup happy hour party here at the shop last week.

Always good to see bike racks jammed to capacity and spillover parking engaged.

We drew a deserving winner from the box of this wonderful christiania bike that is in for repair.

The final selection has been made and look for one of these at a bike rack near you, assembling it today! Big thanks to Civia for providing us with a demo bike fleet to show off and thanks to all that biked and bike to work, we love what you do!

Now we are all back to the grind, biking to work, working to bike, taking photos of cool shadows in the shop, etc.

behind the scenes

We had a return visit from this super cool bike that first we assembled, and then later MK Fendered.

This time we added the VO chainguard. Not sure if this bike could really get any cooler at this point, but we are excited to see if it is possible.

 

Happy This Year!

And we are back. The break was good, and needed, and many miles were ridden and beers drank and coffees too. And a couple of few (five?) bike crashes as well. The good life! But it was not all relaxation, there was some work, too. Like coming into the shop for a day to build up this Surly Disc Trucker with purdy MK Fenders. A great bike for the last build of 2012.

And the first bike of 2013 to be built up was this stunningly light and purdy Masi Evoluzione with 11 speed Dura Ace group. This is a bike that looks good leaning against a cardboard box!

Wowsers, 15 lbs 13 oz with reflectors computer cages and pedals according to the shop scale.

Back to the heavy lifters (which are more our style) we did some remodling in the shop here and so had to gather some materials with the zero emission Xtracyle / Bikes at Work / Super Duty- Dual Piston-Overhead Cam-Sport Utility Vehicle with onboard safety and navigation “Brain”. Which is an actual human brain.

A bigger and better repair area along with more display space.

All over but the painting. And another year of work of course. Hope to see you soon!

 

Blammo rhymes with Grammo

If you liked LOG from Blammo, and who didn’t?

Then you are going to love all the great bike parts made by Grammo!

Like these pink cantilever brakes that are going on a hospital foamy Surly Cross Check commuter build we are starting on. Pink all over the place, you’ll see when we get it done. In other revolutionary consumer products that make your life even more worth living, lets talk chainguards like this one here on this super fine Ira Ryan commuter / racing bike.

Bicycle chains and the Common North American Driveside Pantleg are natural and bitter enemies. Many peacemakers have attempted to end the conflict. Steel leg bands, velcro leg bands with added reflective capability, even the bulldog clip has been tried but they can only broker temporary truce arrangements, they can’t stop the lubeshed. The chainguard, however, can and does!

So if you are tired of grimy pantlegs and looking for them durned pantleg peacemakers every time you want to take a ride consider if a chainguard is right for you.

 

Pretty Bike Friday

Own that bike rack!

We assembled this 3 speed Papillionaire for a customer, solid bike and nice style, too.

Speaking of style, this Trek has it all over the place! If you are not familiar with Trek bicycles they are a small American company that builds only the finest lugged steel bicycles just over the border there in Wisconsin. They don’t even have a website, just catalogs made of paper! Anyways, we added the SKS Longboard fenders, PDW fenderbot, Nitto Campee rear rack to match the front, and put mustard on it.

Mustard colored Brooks leather wrap, that is. Really a beautiful bike with Phil Wood / Open Pro wheelset, those wacky Paul brakes that need special mounts brazed to the frame, and other thoughtful bits all the way around.

In other Made In the USA pretty bike news, Steve’s Ira Ryan is back on the road!

After a successful racing career including a win, a top ten and a top twenty finish this beautiful machine will now see serious duty both around and out of town commuting and training. And bike rack owning!

 

On Tour

Will Whitmore played at the Trumpet Blossom earlier this week. In addition to fabulous vegan eats, espresso by Wake Up Iowa City and more awesome beers on tap than you can shake your empty PBR tallboy can at, our neighbor has a sturdy stage that is hosting some great music. So check their website, like their facebook, or stop in for food and drink and check the posters to get in the know on who is playing next!

Also on tour this week, a lot of people on bikes! As the annual last full week of July ride across Iowa rolls on more people angle towards it to take in a day or two.

One of Steve’s old college friends came through and spent a night on his way to Marshalltown. Steve rode out of town with him yesterday morning, and then on the way back in ran into these guys just heading out on their versatile Masi cyclocross bikes.

Another bike tour in Japan coming up in August, we are excited to be helping the only representative from the U.S. participate in the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War World Congress. Michelle Gin will be cycling 550 kilometers from Nagasaki to Hiroshima and still has a bit of fundraising to go before the trip, so check it out. As Michelle says, by contributing you are supporting a young woman leader, cycling, our shared environment, nonproliferation, peace, a healthy planet, and collaboration across borders.

 

A Few Favorites

We ordered a complete sidewall dynamo light set up for a customer through Peter White Cycles.  This is not it.

1/4″ ball bearing included for scale

The new technology is lighter, svelter and brighter.  And more expensive, but you get what you pay for in most things, and in dynamo lighting systems in particular.

And don’t forget we are offering a special deal on handbuilt custom generator wheel setups including headlight while supplies last!  Today we also got our first pair of Crescent Moon snowshoes for stock.  Made in Boulder, PVC free, best bindings in the business according to Backpacker magazine.  Now we are just waiting for that snow we ordered…

More appropriate (I just heard thunder!) to our rainy 50 degree December day, we recently received a couple of sets of the new improved MK Fenders!

Thinner than before, newer excitinger inlay patterns, plus longer for better wrap around the wheel and better spray protection.  Made in Iowa wood fenders – for sure one of our very favorite things!

 

 

 

MK Fenders

MK Fenders have been getting some attention around here as of late.

Once again, it is pretty easy to up a bike’s wow-factor with fully shaped wood fenders.

If this vintage lugged Trek, possibly actually made in Wisconsin(?!), becomes the winter bike, those fenders will see you on the other side of spring.  Just ’cause they’re wood, don’t mean they ain’t as hearty as a winter rider.

Remember this one?

Split tubes plus wood fenders equals BOOM!  This may be the tightest clearance we’ve seen on an MK Fender install.  Narrow margins but clean lines nonetheless.

We also have a Voodoo Agwe currently in-shop that is getting a deluxe build-up.  It, too, may be getting the MK treatment in the near future.  Photos forthcoming.

 

 

Tiny Tour Too!

Over the long weekend (2 days for us!) we took another overnight bike camping trip.

The bikes were almost the same, but Cody got fenders on the Big Dummy, and converted it to a drop bar set up.  Look at all the bottles that rig can carry!

We rode to some beautiful land that a friend of ours was nice enough to let us stay at.

It was a great night for it, the overnight temp dropped below 50 and we were happy to have a fire.

Look how happy bike camping can make people, the season is not over, there is still time to grab your bike and a bag and get out there!

 

Tiny Tour!

We went for an overnight bike camping trip Saturday night to Lake MacBride.

We rode a bit of gravel along the way.

Steve rode his touring townie, Cody rode her Big Dummy (with handmade at Home Ec. Workshop waterproof saddle cover).

We slept in one of the Mountainsmith tents we sell.  Did you know we can sell you a tent?

We saw deer and toads and geese and frogs and turkeys and a raccoon investigated our bikes to see if we had anything good to eat stashed in there.

Steve had a flat.  It was a good trip!