Saturday, August 30, 2008

Too Many Tricks?

Lot of people say you shouldn't really try to do those BMX-inspired tricks on a fixed gear bike... Well, John Prolly for one was not listening to them. 
  

Acne + Bianchi Pista = Fashion?


You might have already seen these quite scary pics posted somewhere but do you know what they're about? Let me enlighten you:

"Swedish fashion and denim brand Acne has partnered with Italian bike manufacturer Bianchi to create a slick, streamlined collection that is both fashionable and functional."

Yeah, right. 

Let me just tell you that the 'strung-out heroin addict caught red handed stealing a Bianchi Pista somewhere in SOHO' -look/style the model is sporting in the pics just doesn't do it for me. 

But if you happen like that stuff, sometime soon in the autumn you can apparently go to an ACNE store somewhere and buy that bike. From the clothing store. A bike from a clothing store. Oh, yes. And if you do buy it there, let's just hope the sales boys & girls with trendy hair-dos will set it up just right for you. Tighten the cog and all that stuff that makes your hands all greasy and grimy. So that you can just ride your trendy bike and look really really good. 


Buy that 3Rensho You Saw In MASH SF?


Yup, you can. It's for sale on Ebay right now. Frameset only, though. 

Friday, August 29, 2008

Pharrell "be pedaling backwards like a Track Bike"



Hip hop and bikes don't really go together that much. KRS-1 boasted in mid-1980s that he used to ride 'a freestyle fix' and Kanye got his track bikes but that's about it. Well, now Pharrell is in on it too if you listen to the new Common track he is on. At around 2:10 in the song Pharrel claims to "be pedalling backwards like a Track Bike". So maybe he means skidding?

Laurent SL = Pure Sex

Don't even think about it. I'm not telling you anything more about this except that it's French. Yes, of course it is.  

Damn!


That's a Velocity Deep V rim there. 

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Bad News From Japan: No More Sugino 75 Chainrings


I just read this sad news from Rene's blog. Sugino has discontinued their very excellent and slightly more economically priced 75-series NJS-certified track chainrings for 2009. This sounds very strange as one would expect there be huge and growing market for these things but I trust Rene as he runs a fixed gear / track bike shop in Osaka and knows his stuff. 

Tomity's Guide To Velodromes In Japan


If you're into Japanese Keirin and curious about the Velodromes in the Nihon, look no further as everyone's favorite Keirin Ambassador Tomity provides all the information you might ever need here

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Lord of the Cog, Milano 20.-21.9.2008


There you go, Andrea gave this flyer to me last weekend at Helsinki King of Fixed. Unfortunately I don't think I'm going to be able to be in Milano to participate but I love the flyer design anyway. 


Tuesday, August 26, 2008

100 Pinarello Pistas & 100 Colnago Pistas... In the Basement of the Forli Velodrome

For all of you people who dream of owning a real vintage Italian Pista bike. At the Forli Velodrome they have them. Lots of them. 

And ok, let's say it here before all of you run off to buy your flight tickets to Italy, the bikes are apparently NOT for sale. 



What?

Hellsinki King of Fixed 2008 Pics


All right, King of Fixed happened last Saturday, organized by the nice people of BC-Hellsinki, lots of people showed up and participated and everyone had fun, met new people and all that. 

And yeah, Eki got crowned as the King of Fixed 2008. Congratulations!

While the final full KOF Alleycat results are still lost somewhere there are lots of pics for your enjoyment (thanks to everyone whose pics I'm borrowing!):

















Victoria Pendleton Again

Monday, August 25, 2008

Friday, August 22, 2008

More Victoria Pendleton


I had to post these to counter balance the ugly mug shot of Igor Kenk below. More of Victoria here


King Of Bike Thieves Igor Kenk: 2865 bikes, cocaine, crack, 15 pounds of marijuana and a bronze sculpture of a centaur and a snake in battle



Some quotes:

"What exactly was he planning to do with 2,865 bicycles?"

"The  Toronto Police are baffled by what Igor Kenk planned to do with such a surplus of bikes. That is just one of many questions the police and others have been puzzling over since the arrest last month of Igor Kenk, the owner of a used-bike shop here."

"Mr. Kenk’s little shop, the Bicycle Clinic, appeared to be a black hole that consumed stolen bicycles. Bike theft victims regularly discovered their missing bicycles there, and were often able to recover them, either through vigorous argument or a payment of $30 or $40."

"That was just the beginning. An additional 200 bikes were seized in Mr. Kenk’s home. Ten landlords around the city reported that their garages had been rented by Mr. Kenk and were bulging with bicycles. 

As the police gathered the mounds of bikes, they also found cocaine, crack cocaine, about 15 pounds of marijuana and a stolen bronze sculpture of a centaur and a snake in battle."

"In the past, Mr. Kenk has said that he was accumulating bicycles in preparation for a severe oil shortage."

"Mr. Kenk portrayed himself as a crusader against theft and a protector of cast-off bicycles."

"Mr. Kenk holds a passport from Slovenia and has claimed he was a police officer and a former K.G.B. agent. He has shed little light since his arrest. After one court session, he told reporters, 'I’m a dead man.'"


King Of Fixed 23.8.2008 Helsinki

Only one day to go now

Chapter One: Fixed Gear First Step How To Movie



Transworld Japan / T19 have seen the growing need and and wisely put together a 'Fixed Gear First Step: How To Movie'

Looks nice but notice how 'cruising' seems to come bit later in the list of skills to learn than backward circles, for example. 

Metallico Tsuchinoko-Bar


Metallico Tsuchinoko-Bar AKA Dildo Bar, straight outta Japan. 

Some might like it, some might not. 

She skidzzzz....

Pic snatched from Aki's Kinky Life blog.