David Tang’s Tidbit Archives

David Tang has deep roots in the Tucson cycling scene having grown up in Tucson and cut his cycling industry teeth working in many Tucson shops before becoming the owner of Ordinary Bike Shop.  Most recently, before joining Campfire Cycling, David managed the cycling department at REI.  Beyond a deep and broad focus on all things bicycle retail, David ran a production company for many years and is a lover of House music and all things audio/visual.  David also is an avid traveller and recently took an amazing sounding trip to France and Spain.

David has been busy running our ecommerce warehouse here, making things hum.  David is a craftsmen of the cardboard, a tetris player of the storage shelf and a maestro of the inventory software.  David does all of these things with a keen interest and love for all of you adventure minded cyclists out there.  Order delivery turnaround time and super helpful customer service have taken a major leap forward here at Campfire under David’s watch.

Off the Couch, but not Over the Bars – October. 7, 2024

This past weekend I participated in one of my favorite rides, the Tour of the White Mountains put on by the fine folks of Epic Rides! While it was great to get out of our week of record shattering heat, I did not train or prepare for what always proves to be a very arduous task. After 50 dusty miles and a few more, I was cooked, but very happy to have done another year.

No End of Useful Life – September. 30, 2024

I recently went to pump up before a ride with my trusty Lezyne CNC Floor Drive, but was sadly presented with no feedback on the downstroke- no pressure to be had. This pump has been with me for over a decade and pumped up thousands of times, consistently and efficiently. Despite the gauge malfunctioning years ago, I calculated the difference of pressure displayed vs actual PSI, and happily continued using it. I ended up purchasing another of the same pump, with a larger, accurate gauge, and a quick connect valve head! Because I can’t just let something salvageable go to waste, I’m going to rebuild this old friend’s plunger gasket, and give it a new life as a backup/travel pump.

The Pants with Nobody Inside – September. 23, 2024

There’s a welcome chill in the air,
Fall is here, so don’t despair,
Spooky season can give a scare,
with lunar eclipses and pricked hair.

Along my commute, there’s a house with a planter that makes me wax nostalgic about a classic book I used to read as a kid: What Was I Scared Of? by Dr. Seuss. There was one particular story about “the pale green pants with nobody inside” that really freaked me out, and I remember clearly trying to work out how they would ride a bike.

HurryCat Adjustable Geometry – September. 16, 2024

After owning a full-service, deep-inventory shop for more than a decade, I ended up with some very odd components. A recent social media post that caught our attention in the shop this week: Bitchin Bikes featuring their new and unique GeoShift bike at this year’s MADE show. It reminded me instantly of one of these extremely obscure and questionably functional items: the French made HurryCat adjustable geometry seatpost! The internet seems to have forgotten about this gem (or intentionally buried it), and it predates dropper posts, so you lose the dual height/geometry adjustment functionality (and double Paul lever), but the principle is the same. I really love and appreciate new and unique ideas like this, it’s never too late to reinvent the bicycle!

Human Handmade Hoodoos – September. 9, 2024

This past holiday weekend I was lucky enough to be able to escape the heat, and get up to Arizona’s White Mountains (I feel like every state has a region with this nomenclature) with the family. It was really nice to be able to spend some time disconnected from the interwebz, and even nicer to get a morning spin in the pines! Next weekend, I’ll be in the shop with Jake, while the rest of the team will be up in the same place doing the Lobo Lupes bikepacking trip. Maybe they will see this cairn collection on their journey!

Choose Your Own Radventure – September. 2, 2024

There’s a big back to the labor rate sign that hangs prominently in the shop area, and on that side, some of our visitors from around the world have scribed their notes while undertaking their treks. I often stand and read the fun tags that folks have left while stopping by, and I imagine all the thousands of miles that the bikes on the board have travelled. It’s a really neat musing to read snippets of trips from people that chose to have R&R at the store. Cheers to being on tour!

Choose Your Own Radventure – August. 26, 2024

There’s not too much more philosophical and reflective than being given a choice of route to take when out on a ride. Do I head straight to my destination as fast as possible? Do I want to explore a new path that I’ve never seen before? Do I want to go visit a friend that I haven’t seen in a while? Lately I’ve been trying to add extra padding to my commutes to allow the time to venture out into new spaces and meander through the labyrinth of bikeways in the neighborhoods, and love all the variety of character I’ve encountered, as well as fun little sections of singletrack carved out by renegade wanderers.

Just Another Sunset – August. 19, 2024

The weather is beginning to give inklings of the impending encroachment of fall: the shorter days, temps a few degrees lower, and more wonderful visuals for my corpuscular neighborhood strolls. While I love the long daylight, I’m into the slight drop in temperature! Also, Leo makes a cameo in this week’s picture, which makes it easy to see the AZ state flag inspiration!

There Is No New Black – August. 12, 2024

For model year 2024, the fine folks at Salsa that decide things decided on a neon tangerine orange color for the Fargo. While I believe that there are no good or bad colors, there are definitely some that I prefer over others. Black, or the absence of color, is still a favorite clothing color (sometimes I’ll mix it up with grey or a dark blue) which apparently is a wardrobe choice that could get me into trouble if I was in middle school in Texas. Anyway, we had a customer that was not feeling the stock citrus paint job, and wanted to have a black frameset with the same parts hung. A few hours of labor and a little bit of cutting and measuring, Toby had it all set up, and it looks sharp! Let us know if you want to custom build anything, we’re happy to oblige as long as it’s reasonable!

Mini Morning Color Melange – August. 5, 2024

Tucson rainbows are a bit uncommon in the earlier hours, but a touch of morning precipitation gave us a treat on the way to this month’s Breakfast by Bike. The monsoons have been healthy this summer, and the opportunistic vegetation is thriving. The evening breeze was actually a tad chilly yesterday, and my dogs have been more than happy to get longer walks with the family, on tarmac that isn’t hot like a lava flow. This was a great visual to start the day!

Remember to Lich, Comment, and Subscribe! – July. 26, 2024

We spend quite a bit of time in our warehouse, which is the basement of a railroad depot building that was constructed at the turn of the 19th century, and the foundation walls are exposed lava rock, quarried from the nearby Tucson Mountains. I’m generally very interested in odd architectural details, and there’s a particular volcanic stone by the shipping station that frequently catches my eye- there is still lichen on it that has been present since the mason placed it more than a hundred years ago! It sits dormant now, enshrining the age when this chunk of rock sat exposed to the outdoor elements for centuries. Even though it has reached an underground sepulcher, I’m still struck by how long it has maintained its form!

Stellar Fusion Diffraction – July. 19, 2024

I was on a family vacation last week, so I don’t have much for a Tidbit this week. Once in a while, I do get to enjoy a sunset while leaving the shop, and even the simple and unremarkable ones are appreciated. The tribulations of the day are almost immediately tranquilized by the soft warm hues on the horizon, and the temps begin to drop to something more manageable. 

Sofa at Home, Couch in the Streets – July. 12, 2024

Many years ago, when I still had active social media accounts, I had an idea to chronicle the “Free Couches of Tucson” to show liberated living room lounge furniture in its new environment, mainly because there almost always was something alluring about creating a storyline behind it. I began taking pictures of recliners, sofas. and loveseats that had found new outdoor freedom on the curb, fearlessly accepting their fate while keeping quiet about their past. Recently, the retail space near us was getting cleaned out, and we were graced by the presence of this urban mega flora for a day. Someone picked it up, and I can only imagine the new adventure it has undertaken! To some, it is simply blight, but I enjoy creating an odyssey for these abandoned parlor fixtures.

Fare Thee Well, Drunken Chicken – July. 5, 2024

One of the things I love most about being in an urban center is guerilla art. There’s been paste up murals in the downtown area like these for more than a decade, and they always seem to give some sort of sly snarky commentary. This on e has gone up by the former cavern of bricks known as The Drunken Chicken, where the Marie Sharp’s and maple syrup flowed freely with hearty, breaded tenders and fluffy waffles. Maybe someday we will get a replacement, but for now, we get this fashionable skateboarding poultry.

Cryptobeetle Resurrection – June. 28, 2024

The monsoon rains have finally graced us with their life giving deluges, and that translates not only to a break in the heat, but also lots of fauna that remains dormant underground most of the year begins to emerge! I have always been fascinated by the spadefoot toads, cool looking insects, and even fish that remain in stasis during the dry season, erupting during the summer rains to take advantage of the water while it’s available. The most palpable sign that monsoons have arrived other than copious precipitation and wind, are the nighttime visits of the Palo Verde Beetles!

One of these days… – June. 21, 2024

The Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa is something I’ve been wanting to participate in for quite a while, but somehow have never made the commitment. I know many folks that make an annual pilgrimage to be one of the more than 30k participants in what seems to be a really great casual tour. As it gets closer this year, I always start hearing and seeing riders getting prepped for what sounds like the “Burning Man” of bike touring, and feel a bit of envy when they return with big smiles and the desire to return next year to a different route. To those headed this year, stay safe and hydrated, bring lots of snacks! Maybe next July I’ll join you!

Heat on the Street – June. 14, 2024

Now that it officially feels like it will never be cold again, taking time to rejoice and celebrate the little things is an important part of my day. After many years of enduring what I considered some of the most brutal pavement in town, resurfacing has begun in my neighborhood, making life on wheels much more satisfying. While the 109 degree air temp may make this new blacktop heat up to what feels like 1500 degrees in the afternoon, rolling around on it is quiet and smooth! I’m even able to ride with no hands- this was not possible without fear of breaking a clavicle or chipping a tooth a month ago! Cheers to the hardy souls laying down hot tar and gravel on these sweltering days!

Know Your Enemy – June. 7, 2024

The most ubiquitous problem faced by cyclists throughout history: flat tires. There have been countless workarounds, from solid tubes, to sealant, to tire inserts, to weird airless wheels. Aside from gimmicks that promise the solution to all of life’s problems for a questionable price, most of us find ourselves occasionally faced with the reality that flats are like hills- an inseparable part of cycling. While there really isn’t a perfect solution (despite the attempts) to never deal with inflation obstructions, I have always advocated for preventive community maintenance: if you see nails or staples in the road, grab them and rescue someone from the frustration they may cause in the future. One of the most prolific causes in our area is the infamous Tribulus Terrestris (a.k.a. Goathead, bull’s head, caltrop, cat-head, devil’s eyelashes, devil’s-thorn, devil’s-weed, puncturevine, and tackweed), which can seem harmless as a plant, but as soon as the seed pods dry, they are a headache for anything that comes into contact with them, including the air in your tires! Next time you encounter this plant, you can pluck it from the center stem easily, and keep it from proliferating and making children cry!

🐍🖤In Loving Memory🖤🐍 – May. 31, 2024

The week’s tidbit honors the legacy of my longtime reptile companion, Miss Marca Esquandolas, Esquire. Twenty-four years ago, as I was moving into the “I’m an adult that can have any pet I want” part of life, I purchased a cute little Jungle Carpet x Diamond Python (Morelia Spilota) with a vague notion that the snake would probably live a long time. She turned 25 this year, and has been through quite a few adventures with me, from cross country moves (she’s been to Moab on an MTB trip) to getting “lost” for a week, only to be found sleeping inside a speaker. She wasn’t much of a conversationalist, but she was a good cuddler, had a very sweet disposition, and she will be missed. She was laid to rest on Sunday, and was ushered peacefully from this world after developing complications from a neuromuscular disorder. She is survived by her two canine sisters, a human dragon baby brother, and her biped parents.

Loving Locally – May. 24, 2024

We ship orders globally, but we are still a small team that likes to support our local community. So when we needed another run of Campfire T-shirts, we turned to our awesome friends at Yeah Right! Designs, who have helped me with many creative projects in the past. They do a phenomenal job with design and turnaround, and have some really unique and cool stickers, shirts, and art, not to mention that there’s a giant glowing Mantis that works there! 

Wax Lube Nostalgia – May. 17, 2024

Every so often, we have a bike come through the shop that Toby will remark on being a joy to tune up, and it brings joy to my heart when the mentioned bike is adorned with a little neon green sticker on the frame! This Scott Speedster (circa 2012, a.k.a. the golden age of road bikes) was sold by Ordinary Bikes, and came to the shop for a rejuvenation. Many years later, the attention to detail during the build shined, and it was a highlight of repairs for the day! Cheers to preventative maintenance!

Leo! – May. 10, 2024

I have more of a whopper than a Tidbit this week! On April 8, during the peak of the solar eclipse, my wife gave birth to our son, Leo! They are both happy and healthy, and he has been a really awesome tiny human so far. We are getting ample sleep, and routines are beginning to settle in. If you’ve emailed me or called, you probably already know that I abruptly went on leave last month to help with getting him all settled in, but I’m back in the dungeon, and catching up as fast as I can! Thanks for all the well wishes!

Ellipti-ground score! – Apr. 5, 2024

A few months ago, Toby and I were riding home from work, and a pair of handlebars protruding from a “free stuff” pile on the side of the road caught my eye. We quickly circled back to investigate, and I was able to nab a seemingly new ElliptiGo that just needed air in the tires! I ghost rode it home, and it has now become an oddly fun neighborhood errand runner, perfect for a quick trip to TJ’s to grab snacks, or the Korean tea house nearby for a Boba drink. I’ve been brainstorming ways to mount a front rack on it, as the ultimate oddball grocery getter, but for now it carries what I can put in a backpack or hip pack, and the handlebar cup holder. Cheers to the unexpected ground score!

Cloudy Day Customs – Mar. 29, 2024

With most of the team away in Mexico for Ruta del Jefe this past weekend, Toby and I got a bit of shop time together, and put together an awesome MIM-Configurator built bike! Not only did we get to make this sweet customized ride, but the rider saved some major fold by putting it all together through the configurator. This Surly Midnight Special is a gravel-grinding, fire road-burning, head-turning dream whip! I’m always stoked to get a personalized rig out into the wild! Happy Trails! (photo: Tobias)

Tang is Gnat Backwards – Mar. 22, 2024

I love bikes, I love friends, I especially  love bike friends! Over the weekend we had a visit from our PNW friends from Swift Industries, and they hosted a pop-up event in the shop with us all day on Saturday. After the “workday” was done, we met up with about 30 bike friends for an adventure of a social ride (which was supposed to include a little bit more art, but St. Patrick’s Day revelers made getting out of downtown a priority). Along our mostly car-free cruise, we encountered a section of The Loop that had no breeze, and was the perfect condition for billions of gnats to converge in clouds above the path. It was an interesting experience, and I now know not to plan a ride through that area during mid March. The sunset was beautiful, the flowers were beginning to emerge everywhere, and the tacos and beer at Borderlands were delicious. Huge thanks to everyone that came out to enjoy a Saturday evening with us!

Payday Pieday Friday Pi Day – Mar. 15, 2024

Jake and I started a small tradition a few years ago as an homage to our love for pizza, and it manifested as Payday Pieday Friday. On Fridays when we would receive our paychecks, we would answer the ubiquitous bike shop question of “what’s for lunch?” with an impassioned order of our favorite toppings atop flat, woodfired bread. We regularly observe the two week celebration, so every other Friday, you may catch the scent of melted mozzarella embracing sauce and crust in the shop. This year’s close proximity to “Pi Day” (3-14), brought the realization that next year’s alignment of the two would coincide, and we get to experience a syzygy of pizza festivities. This year, we will be happy to settle for two minor pie days consecutively!

Spring is in the air, and the air is in the tires! – Mar. 8, 2024

We recently had a day that closely approached 90 degrees, and was welcomed by many by baring our calves and getting out on the trail. I can feel Phil’s prediction (from Punxsutawney) coming true as the days start getting longer and the weeds in my yard get taller. I’m excited to see the “superbloom” this year, and can feel the yearning of the bikes on the sales floor to make turns and get dirty. Happy Spring everyone!

26″ Isn’t Dead, But It’s Endangered – Mar. 1, 2024

This is an old friend and longtime trail companion, my 1996 Merlin XLM. It was welded by Rob Vandermark in Massachusetts during what some would say was the heyday of US produced Titanium frames. This one has over 20,000 miles of dirt under the wheels, and is the successor of most of its components from its predecessor frame, a 1995 Merlin Echo. The Echo would still be in service if its Moots YBB suspension hadn’t worn out 10 years after a rebuild in 2005. Although this bike has not reached the end of its useful life, it’s in need of a new fork (the Magura Odin is at a point of replacement) and finding a new 26″ suspension that suits my needs is proving difficult. As I ponder the possibilities of modern geometry, and larger tubeless ready wheels, I have to pause and pay homage to my loyal steed, and show it gratitude for all of the adventures we’ve been through together. Cheers!

Dunnage Rescue Cave – Feb. 23, 2024

Every product that we receive and sell comes in a box, sometimes only used for the purpose of conveying the product to our warehouse, and that is generally the end of its intended useful life. Single use makes me sad, and I try to always upcycle our cartons into useful dunnage for outgoing orders. If you’ve ever received an order for something and found previously loved cardboard, airpack, or kraft paper, it comes from a small cardboard cave by our shipping station that stores boxes and packing materials ready to live again! While I know this won’t stop our glaciers from melting into the ocean, reusing these materials helps give me peace of mind that they aren’t just going directly into the waste stream after being used once. If you order a rack, and it comes nicely nestled in a cardboard frame, just know that it has doubled its lifespan!

Hail to Tucson’s Cycling Infrastructure – Feb. 16, 2024

While Tucson may not have made it on the People for Bikes Best New Bike Lanes of 2023 list, I still want to commend and appreciate our city’s commitment to bicycle infrastructure. From our ever-expanding 131 miles of car-free path found on The Loop (which connects to camping at Catalina State Park), to frequent HAWK lights where bikeways cross major arterial roads, to the protected two-way lanes found downtown (picture from from the shop doorway); I am very appreciative of the initiatives taken to help protect cyclists in a town where the cycling weather is pretty much perfect all year long. We often rely on all of these features as substrate for our events and rides, and it’s hard to imagine living or commuting without them in place. I have anecdotally observed our cyclist population grow tremendously in the past 20 years, as more and more projects are completed, and the network of improvements have expanded and become much more than an afterthought of solid white stripes on an existing road. Cheers to the expansion of bikeways in Tucson!

Ostentatious Bar Tape – Feb. 9, 2024

While I tend to dress on the drab side (generally the same tan work pants and black or grey T-shirts), I really find it difficult not to be extra when I dress my bikes up. One of my more recent accessories on my Salsa Journeyman is my prismatic Supacaz bar tape- I purchased it on a whim after a disappointing roll that only lasted a month. At first, I was hesitant about how much flash was beaming at me from the cockpit, but it has drawn many compliments, and stayed as shiny as the afternoon I wrapped it.

It’s difficult to describe how mesmerizing it is, but it definitely keeps me entertained on the way home- the sunset really sets it off! I can only advocate for more drip if you are on the fence about whether or not to add that splash of color- it will give you inspiration every time you look at your rig!

Anticipating Father/Son Bike Rides – Feb. 2, 2024

My partner and I are (attempting) to get ready for our first child in April, and aside from the standard ubiquitous anxieties of whether or not we will have their room ready, my developing skills building IKEA furniture, and where we are going to keep all of the bottles and diapers, I continually find myself thinking “how are we going to cycle together in a way that’s fun for everyone?”

At the most recent Breakfast By Bike, I was fully stoked to see a shotgun seat on a dual suspension, with canine companion, and smiles all around. I’m really looking forward to introducing my offspring to life on two wheels!

I’m staying warm here in Tucson, Joffrey, not so much…
– Jan 26, 2024

With the polar blast that most of the country has been experiencing, many folks may find themselves empathetic to the nearly 900 mile journey Joffrey Maluski began from the Loften Islands of Norway, through Northern Sweden and Finland, and finishing in Vardø, Norway. The trip lasted 25 days, during the coldest, darkest days of the year, with the only natural light being a state of sunrise/sunset from 10am to 2pm. Most of his travels were in a constant state of darkness, rendering solar panels useless to charge his photography equipment. The average temperature was -4°F during his journey, with a bit of rain and snow to start the trip.

He did get to experience Aurora Borealis many times throughout his odyssey, and commented on the trek as “It has been such an incredible, and cold, adventure.” I’ll try to keep Joffrey in mind when we start to hit the 110°F mark here in the Sonoran Desert. 

On the 50 Year Trail – Jan 19, 2024

While I haven’t been able to get out on any overnighters lately, I’ve been getting out on local Tucson dirt to keep the cabin fever at bay.

First choice on any given weekend is the 50-Year Trail system that winds its way from Catalina State Park out to the West of the town of Catalina, nestled at the base of Samaniego Peak. It’s mostly mild green/blue singletrack, but the western and northern portions are slickrock slabs and some of my favorite pump/rhythm in AZ. There’s almost always great sunsets any time of the year, and night riding in the summer is a welcome respite from the punishing heat of our concrete jungle. There’s plenty of amazing scenery and easy sections if I’m taking out folks that are new to MTB, and plenty of toe curling drops and fast rollouts for friends that have long travel and adrenaline addictions.

If you’re in the Tucson area looking for a great all day ride or an hour quickie, this trail system won’t let you down!

Bikes and Dogs Winter-Time Inspiration – Jan 12, 2024

Two of my favorite things, coalescing on the trail.
As the holiday frenzy subsides, and the winter doldrums set in, I find myself daydreaming of a novel adventure on two wheels. 

I recently had a discussion with a customer that has ties to Alaska dog sledding, and the idea of a mush team going hut to hut in the rural tundra sounded intriguing, but lacked the bicycle component I seem to want to include with all of my outings. He brought up Bikejoring, which I had only seen small snippets of via random YouTube videos, and from friends in the PNW who have yodeling huskies pining for their canine job fulfillment. 

While my two rescue pitties are not a great fit for this job (they would much rather be curled up inside on dog beds with their dog blankets when the temperature dips below 60°F), he brought up the idea of a trip where carbon fat bikes and canines eager to pull would be awaiting for a expedition from the Golden Heart of Alaska, with a chance to see Aurora Borealis, and an appropriate use of the technical outerwear, that I seldomly get to use in the Sonoran Desert. The dogs involved may seem like they are getting the short end of the stick, but apparently, they get great physical and psychological satisfaction from mushing, and of course there pulling someone who is chipping into the effort!

There’s also quite an autumnal race scene involved with this facet of cycling/dog ownership, and it gives a family inclusive cyclocross vibe. I hope to take a trip north to experience this wild ride as soon as I can!