Oregon Manifest Portland Handmade Bike Show – Oct 10-12

Posted on September 30, 2008
Filed Under Bike Kwak, Events | 2 Comments

http://www.oregonmanifest.com/

Oregon Manifest Handmade Bike Show

This looks like it’s going to be fun. I’m planning on taking the train down, unless it turns out there might be a couple people who want to go, in which case I might drive. We shall see.

From the website:

OREGON MANIFEST will feature an unconquerable mix of custom framebuilders, bike-centric vendors, bike culture squads, and blowout parties, crowned with a Sunday cross race to bring home the glory.

OREGON MANIFEST is the collective vision of Portland, Oregon’s cycling and creative communities, who’ve come together to dream up and develop the most original, spirited and spectacle-laden boutique bike show in the nation.

Round trip with a bike on Amtrak is $74, and you can start drinking the minute you get on the train and sit in the dining car. Sounds like a winning strategy from here.

There’s some event going from 7pm to midnight I hope to catch, and then the midnight mystery ride which I’m told should be happening. Looks like good times to be had for sure. We shall see.

Onward.

 

Last nights bicycle shennanegans

Posted on September 26, 2008
Filed Under .83, Bike Kwak | 2 Comments

Nova and I killed a couple pitchers of beer and a small pizza between us at Pazzos Pizza in Eastlake, then busted ass for Goldies on Airport Way where we ran into .83’s Thursday ride coming off Beacon Hill.  Much more beer was consumed and karaoke was  sung.  We then packed it up and headed to Ballard for the Boxcar after stopping in Myrtle Edwards park for beers on the pier.   I later drunkenly bicycled home alone in the dark over large hills I needn’t have bicycled over, bought microwave burritos, and passed out on my couch with them uneaten.  I still don’t feel any better about recent events, but I’m having a good time at least.  Fuggit.

Tonight is Critical Mass, the Presidential debates, Chris Cotie’s birthday party, and the Greenlake Race.  Somethin’s gonna have to give here, I just don’t know what yet.

I was gonna sign this off saying there were no pictures in this post because there were no pictures from last night.  And then I remembered, THATS NOT TRUE.

Remember Ken?

Well this is us lighting bottle rockets out of Kens ass along the side of Airport Way.  Pointythree represent!

(not work safe image behind the cut) Read more

Henry Ford Bicycle Exhibit

Posted on September 25, 2008
Filed Under Bike Kwak, Misc | 4 Comments

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IMG_5009 by fotoman311.

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More HERE

Wright Bros. workshop HERE

Pictures from Josh Duggan

Suiattle Camping Trip – 9/20-21

Posted on September 23, 2008
Filed Under .83, Bike Kwak, Maps, Routes | 12 Comments

7am

I am very warm and cozy and only slightly hung over from the night before. My cat is snoring beside me under the covers with me – he’s that kind of cat.. It’s Saturday morning, and I’m supposed to get out of bed and go into the steely gray rain darkening my apartment windows. To spend the next two days heaving and sweating and thrashing about that surly arm of clockwork sitting in my kitchen – carrying all the What I can carry into the mountains where it only promises to get colder and wetter. This is my weekend to be.

As I lay here in the warm and cozy I ask myself – what part of THAT seems like a good idea?

Yeah, I dunno. But It’s time to go.

For a month I’ve been looking forward to this trip. As much as it sucks out, there’s no way I’m not going, rain be damned. I’ve got a barely used Long Haul Trucker, I’ve got camping gear ready to go, I’ve got a menu and groceries and whiskey and friends (presumably) going. Fuckit. Lets roll.

Lee put this ride together in early August. Since then it gained and lost and gained momentum in the forums. I think the rain that day and the forecast clipped off a couple fence sitters, but the roster wasn’t bad at all. In the end, there were 12 of us rolling north that morning:

We meet at the 65th street park and ride at 8am, and by 8:45am we were on the road.

This is Lee looking way too chipper with his Naked Juice.

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Suiattle Camping Trip Route

(This post has a metric butt ton of pictures. Be warned - BUT READ ON)

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Cool – Thanks Uncle Martha

Posted on September 17, 2008
Filed Under Bike Kwak, Bikes, Misc | Leave a Comment

noidea

Kelly Takeoffs vs Pauls Thumbies

Posted on September 16, 2008
Filed Under Bike Kwak, Mechanical | Leave a Comment

http://www.kellybike.com/2nd_xtra_takeoff.html

Someones giving Paul a run for his money.  $40

The image “http://www.kellybike.com/images/takeoff_photo.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors.

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=7149

Pauls Thumbies – $50-$65

I don’t know what quality is like on the Kelly’s above.  I know the quality on Pauls are awesome.

Bicycle One

Posted on September 16, 2008
Filed Under Bike Kwak, Mechanical | 3 Comments

This coming weekend a bunch of us are going camping up the Suiattle River, and my focus has been to finish getting Bicycle One kitted out and ready for the trip. It promises to be a beautiful ride, and I’m very very excited.

This weekends Slow Sunday ride was encouraging. The weight felt good, the bike handled well. The handlebar bag works really well now that I rerouted the cables to thread through the handlebar bag mount. Boy, Arkel makes some NICE bags. I think they also have the best most detailed site ever. A lot of attention to detail with this company it seems. On all fronts. IMG_1434.JPG

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You can see the locking mechanism connecting the bag to the brackets here. Very nice.

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The only problem with the handlebar bag is, where to mount the light?  This is the best spot I could find, under the brake hoods.  Doesn’t really get in the way, and still provides good light.  Wish I had a little nubbin to bolt onto the bars for the light there.  I may fabricate one if I like the location after the trip.  We’ll see.

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Heres the WHOLE GALLERY.

On other fronts, I finally picked up a tent that doesn’t suck - if I could only find a sleeping bag that was half as good without spending an arm and a leg, ithat’d be great. I’ve literally bought and returned four separate bags from REI. Gah.  Today I picked up a sleeping bag from Second Ascent in Ballard. It’s not a very cold weather bag but it was cheap and it’ll do I think.

Oh, speaking of Second Ascent - holy crap that place is great. If only because they carry used equipment. I picked up an awesome day-pack for $35. Oh, right now they’re also carrying a really cool single wall tent for $149. Single wall meaning, there is no separate rain fly, the tent itself is water proof. If you’re looking for a light duty light weight tent, go get it.  If I hadn’t just bought a tent I liked, I would.

Anyhow enough gear-head talk. I’m done rambling for the night. Bed calls, and that whole bit.

Onward.

Freedom Fry Eatoff, Goodbye Kat, Slow Sunday touring test ride…

Posted on September 15, 2008
Filed Under .83, Bike Kwak, Events, Slow Sunday, Videos | Leave a Comment

But here I am trying to catch up a little.

On Thursday we had our second annual freedom fry eating contest at Red Robin.

Which was incredible. Prefunk at the Whiskey Bar and then down to Westlake Center, Laura showed up with a bag full of Americana paraphernalia, and we got our patriotism on.

With flags sprouting from every location, from my Long Haul Trucker was born Bicycle One (think Airforce one).

About 50 people showed up for the event, and we rode north to Red Robin at Northlake Mall. The Rules:

1. Vomit: if you vomit, you cannot continue until you re-eat the vomit food. if you refuse to eat your own fry vomit, disqualified. if you do eat your vomit, you are a-ok to continue.

2. Time Limits no time limit! im hesitant to make a time limit, because we are doing this unannounced and cant expect a constrant stream of fries at hand every second (so speed of eating is not important). I’ll have a tally system in place to count how many fry baskets everyone has eaten, regardless of how fast they get to the table. if two people are still eating the fries at the table an hour and a half after they first hit the table, let them continue eating until we make up a new rule saying otherwise or until one of them finally bows out.

3. Bathroom breaks NO BATHROOM BREAKS. go before the burgers hit the table. if you must go to the bathroom, in order to continue without disqualification, pooping and or peeing must be done AT THE TABLE. if you’re man (or woman) enough to make more room in front of everyone, then more power to you.

4. Bowing out if you’re done, and you can’t go any further, you must scream “IM A STUPID BABY”. at that time your total will be posted, and you are free to do whatever you’d like with the contents of your stomach.

the person with the most fry baskets eaten will win the GOLDEN POTATO trophy, a few extra pounds (enabling them to enter craigslist personals as a BBM/W), and our constant admiration and limited respect.

MOST BASKETS OF FRIES is the goal here. if you can down 20 baskets of fries in a short time then you bow out. thats ok. length of time is not important. if you eat 20, dont vomit (or eat it if you do), then bow out, it’s up to everyone else to beat your limit. amount is the goal here, not time.

It was incredible.

The staff was a little stingy with the fries, White Scott had to bribe the cooks at one point for the last 12 baskets of fires, and in the end we had to finish on the sidewalk out front of Red Robin because they were closing, but White Scott walked home with the title after eating 9 baskets of fries, Keylime Ryan went home with second, and there was lots and lots of puking.

Easily one of the best highlights of the night was when we got the entire restaurant to sing the Star Spangled Banner with us. We were 50. There were probably another 150 people there. Just watch the video.

Later that night we followed it up with a chorus of America the Beautiful. Serious times.

Professor Dave made an excellent blog post about the evening that bears reading. Really beautiful.

PHOTO GALLERY – Thanks Laura!

Razi:

garrrrrr! by lgrst4.

LIE!

lie! by lgrst4.

Our bookie, Prof Dave

bookie by lgrst4.

Burger lineup

line-o-burgers by lgrst4.

Us:

eatin, eatin, eatin by lgrst4.

finalists by lgrst4.

White Scott not lookin so good.

potential champion? by lgrst4.

mans got his technique down and everything…

mush strategy by lgrst4.

the twin towers trophys

trophies became more patriotic as the night progressed by lgrst4.

Mans on a mission.

Henry, falling out with great aplomb.

After leaving the Red Robin we jumped on the closed I-5 expressway with our bikes and pedaled South. It was one of the coolest things ever. The express lanes are closed that time of night for traffic in both directions. I don’t think there should be any reason why we shouldn’t be able to ride them.

The Washington State Patrol felt differently.

There are no cars, there was a full moon, there were about 30 of us… we dropped into a paceline and hauled ass south for the Knarr. At one point I looked down at my speedometer on my little trip computer – 29mph!

However after exiting and working our way through the U District about half a dozen State Trooper cars came screaming up with lights flashing, followed by a couple SPD cruisers. It was a hairy 15 minutes but Professor Dave talked with them and they cut us loose. HA!  We continued on our way to the Knarr for beers and called it a night.

Friday night was Kat’s goodbye party. Damn. Goodbye Kat. I’m going to miss you lots and lots.

kat & americana by lgrst4.

Saturday was spent working on Bicycle One and getting ready for next weekend (will handle this in a separate blog post).

Today, myself and Bicycle One with an 80% load, rode Slow Sunday with sleeping bag, tent, fly and etc.

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We didn’t go far – just to Golden Gardens. We lazed in the sun, drank beer, ate food. I set up my new tent and fly for the first time and overall just got used to packing and unpacking the bike. We have a camping trip next weekend and figured that learning how to do it in the dry sober daylight beat having to figure it out in the wet drunk dark that my bike camping nights tend to end in. Heh.

Eric and Bob Hall showed up to hang, heckle, and wrestle. Afterwards we split and headed to the Stumbling Monk for awesome Belgian Beers, and then came home.

Tomorrow I’ll try to write about the coming weekends camping trip, where my mental focus has been all week long. Until then.

Onward…

Aden

Posted on September 12, 2008
Filed Under Bike Kwak, Misc | Leave a Comment

Aden and Trevor split two months ago, bicycling south. Trevor moving to Colorado, and Aden with him at least part of the way, to points unknown. Trevor on his trike and Aden on a Discovery – aka – Davidson.

We haven’t heard much from them. We heard Trevor made it to Boulder. We heard that Aden split off from him in Boise and went to Burning Man.

We miss them in the way that we miss all good friends who leave us for the best of reasons.

Well Aden has a gallery where she’s posting her travel pictures, and I wanted to link it up because the shots are great, and the trip pretty epic. Maybe one day I’ll get her to fill in the gaps that the pictures can’t. Until then, you get pictures of bicycle touring across the great West.

http://aden.smugmug.com/Travel

Bike safe Aden.

Man hits a bear on a bicycle. I’m not even kidding.

Posted on September 11, 2008
Filed Under In-the-news, Wrecks | Leave a Comment

Sep 10, 11:17 PM EDT

Teacher OK after crashing into bear on a bicycle

MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — A middle school teacher suffered some bruising and a big scratch on his back after he struck a bear while riding his bicycle to school.

Jim Litz said he was traveling about 25 mph Monday morning when he came upon a rise and spotted a black bear about 10 feet in front of him. He didn’t have time to stop and T-boned the bruin…

Thanks Andy.

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