Dolin is a fashion designer in San Francisco who (until recently) commuted from her home in San Jose to her job in San Francisco via Caltrain, riding her bike the two miles from home to the train station. ” It was a very long and tiring commute,” says Dolin, “but the thing I looked forward…
Commute by Bike
No Tax On Sub-$1000 Bikes (in Ontario)
Up here in my home province of Ontario, the provincial government has removed the provincial sales tax (PST) on bikes under $1000. The program, introduced last December has been extended for another two years until the end of 2010. “We want to encourage more Ontarians – young and young-at-heart – to get outdoors, spend time…
Insanely long bike commute
I think most CBB readers know that my commute is “multi-modal.” That means I ride a bus, a train and then my bike to work. Today, I missed my bus. Rather than wait 15 minutes for the next bus, I decided to bike the entire distance to work. For me, the entire distance is 44…
Improve bike sales with commuter appeal
Ray Keener, a long time bike industry sales consultant, wrote up his creative ideas for Commute By Bike on how bike retailers can capitalize on increased interest in bike commuting. Keener writes for BRaIN and runs the Bicycle Leadership Conference. Visit his website GrowthCycle. Ray also recently developed the Selling Coasting retail training tool. Selling…
New Trailer Lineup
The Bike Trailer Shop has been expanding a bit lately, and in the interest of reaching all segments of the bike trailer market, no matter how niche, we’ve have decided to throw our hat into the trailer-building ring with the first two of what we hope will be a long line of BikeTrailerShop.com branded trailers.
The first of our new bike trailers, sure to be a hit among riders of all stripes, is the Pony trailer, designed exclusively for the mass transport of refreshing beverages. You’ll be like the pied piper with this trailer, followed closely wherever you ride by hordes of thirsty fellow bikers.
Video: Bicycle Anatomy 101
This is an amazing little video put together by Carlton Reid of Quickrelease.tv. It walks you through all of the parts of your bicycle and lets you know what they are really called (as opposed to “that lever thingy”). Let us know what you learned… Bicycle Anatomy for Beginners from carltonreid on Vimeo.
Bike Trailer Sound Systems
While most of you are probably just concerned with a good trailer for bike touring or getting your groceries home with, there is a growing scene of eclectic and sometimes inspiring ways to make further use of cargo trailers.
Bicycles and music are finding a union through bicycle trailers. In bike festivals and parades a wild variety of sound systems can be found perched on bicycles and mounted on cargo machines.
General Motors buys Specialized
Update: As most of you already figured out, this is indeed an April Fool’s post. Carlton Reid of Bike Biz, Fritz, Arleigh and I were all in on it from the beginning… about two weeks ago. It was all in good fun… seems even Mike Sinyard got a laugh out of it. Silicon Valley Business…
Stupid, but for different reasons
Everybody has been talking about this video from Slate about the “stupidest bike lane in America.” Andy Bowers thinks his one block long bike lane makes it “the stupidest bike lane in America.” In many areas, local governments have committed themselves to striping every wide street in their jurisdiction, so these short bike lanes abound…
Early Spring
We’re having an early spring here in Flagstaff. And with it we’re surging ahead with strong sales. It’s been awhile since I last posted and we’ve got quite a bit of news to report. First off, Jeff Hankens has joined the Wandertec team. Jeff was a great find for Wandertec, already having experience with bicycle…
Take the Pledge
Take the commuter pledge over at Velocommuter.org I took mine today! Try riding a bicycle to your job or school. Just once! You might discover what so many others like you have found: it’s fun, healthy, and faster than you think!Leave all of your troubles behind you as you get that exercise you keep trying…
Product Review: Cannondale Doubletrack shorts
I bought a pair of Cannondale Doubletrack mountain bike shorts on March 24, 2007. The Cannondale Doubletrack mountain bike shorts consist of a mesh inner short with a padded chamois and a separate durable outer short. Last Monday (exactly a year after I bought them), the fabric finally wore through in the crotchal area. I…
Positive feedback: Complimented for cycling?
We discussed here and elsewhere the trash talk from co-workers, acquaintances, family and strangers about our crazy habit of cycling to work. It’s a proven scientific fact, however, that the mere act of being on a bike makes you more attractive. For a dramatic example of this, take a look at my wife’s cousin’s brother-in-law…
New BikeTrailerBlog.com Authors
I am kicking off our update blog by introducing several new authors that will be contributing with posts:
What caused your flat tire?
Pinch flats. I got a classic pinch flat last night on my commute home. I was in a hurry and bumped hard against a curb, after which I heard the hiss of a deflating tire. Pinch flats happen when the tube is pinched between a hard object (like a curb or pothole) and the wheel…
Commuting 101: Ten Quick Tips
This year alone, I’ve run into a few new commuters that are using a bicycle for at least part of their trip. One of them is a long-time friend of mine in Washington, D.C. In discussing bike commuting with these people, it’s apparent that at first “riding a bike to work” seems straightforward, but becomes…
Campfire Cycling Website
Hello Everyone! We are more than happy to announce the launch of our newly designed website. Unbox our shiny new site at www.campfirecycling.com. With a mission to make our new website faster, easier to navigate, and more user-friendly, our amazing staff have spent countless days & nights building it from scratch, and we are delighted…
"Are You Crazy?" and Other Coworker Comments
Earlier this week, my wife had her first sub-zero bike commute and it actually turned out to be -15C (-5 F). We checked the forecast, booked the car in for repairs (don’t you just hate spending a new bike’s worth on car repairs?), and watched as the forecast got progressively worse over the course of…
Quiz: Would you use this bike facility?
Here’s a quiz for you. After looking at the photo posted below, how do you recommend getting through this marked bike facility? “Take the lane.” Call public works and complain about the poor condition of the bike lane. Take public transportation. “There’s no bad weather, just bad clothing.” I’d don my rain cape and rain…
First Impression: SKS Commuter Full Fenders
Photo: My Trek 1200 with SKS Commuter Fenders (click to Zoom) Fritz told us about fenders late last year. I’ve always been on the fence when it comes to fenders. It does rain quite a bit out here in the great plains of the United States, but at the same time, I have a few…
CBB Poll: Route Choice
Over the last few years I find I’ve settled on a route to work that is not the shortest distance between points A and B. I’ve also tinkered with several different routes to my dad’s house, including a new one that looks a bit crazy when viewed on a map. I’ve got my reasons as…
Singlespeed belt drive
Here’s some bike porn for you all. Lynskey Performance just posted about their use of belt drives on singlespeed bikes. They title the post “A Stunning Singlespeed.” I saw their belt drive bikes at the 2008 Handbuilt Bicycle Show and they are indeed stunning. I talked with some folks at the show about the practicality…
Boulder commuter of the year
Attention Boulder, Colorado bicycle commuters: GO Boulder/city of Boulder is in search of nominees for its 12th Annual Commuter of the Year Contest. Three people who have chosen to leave their cars behind and commute by bike, bus or some combination of biking, walking and using transit will be honored as the 2008 “Commuters of…
Commuting to School Can Get You to the Olympics
Adam Craig is one of the top US hopefuls for the upcoming Beijing Olympics and apparently he used to be quite the winter bike commuter: In the fifth grade, he rode his bike to school – six miles away. While at Dexter High, he would ride his bike to school on snow days so he…