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What I’ve realized over time is that I end up with a lot of bike portraits of riders in my film rolls. This sparked an idea: a “ride along” interview series. We’ll start this off with Chris Lee, in NYC, where he interviews Brean Shea, a bike messenger and track cyclist.
In order for the Red Hook Crit to maintain its unofficial title of the gnarliest track bike criterium, it sometimes must rely on mother nature. This year’s race was a total wash. Literally. Rain poured all day and well into the women’s and men’s circuit, shortening both and creating a less-than-desirable mental mind fuck for the racers.
Even the photographers and crowds suffered.
Chris Lee has contributed multiple times to the Radavist and I couldn’t think of a better person to capture and document the eerie environment of the 2014 Red Hook Crit…
SO GOOD. SO FREAKING GOOD! Thank you Chris. Also brings up a good segue into that Thomson 27.2 dropper conversation…
Monster Track. The world’s most infamous, dangerous and in my opinion, most significant alleycat. In the 15 years it’s been thrown in New York City, it never ceases to surprise its contenders. There are only a few rules, the most important being two words: NO BRAKES.
Typically, there’s a weeding down process, at the hands of multiple manifests. Everyone starts with one, but only a select few make it to true completion by filling up to three. This year, mother nature smiled on the event, delivering somewhat favorable conditions (when compared to previous years being riddled with rain and snow). At the end of the event, the winners of Monster Track XV were Cooper Ray and Hannah Todd.
On the scene at the event and working the Williamsburg Bridge checkpoint was Chris Lee, who provided a few photos from the event. Check them out in the Gallery!
Photo by Chris Lee
King Kog has some new shirts for sale. Surely you can never have too many Black Flag flips? Scoop one up at King Kog!
As evident in the Year in Photos post, this website is and will always support the excitement found in riding bikes of all kinds.
Over the years, I’ve noticed people who were generally enthusiastic about track bikes and fixed gears talk down on other forms of cycling and it bums me out. As a population, cyclists should be kind to each other, share the road, trails and paths with our extended family and most of all, have fun.
If you’re reading this website, I doubt you need anyone to tell you this, or to ride more in general, so just know that I’m here for ya!
Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s warm and sunny outside.
Thanks to Chris Piascik for the killer illustration!
Hey guys, cross season is over. Nationals are in a few weeks and chances are, you’ve already cleaned your bike for the last time this season. Chris Milliman‘s latest work took him to Belgium to interview Lars Van Der Haar for Giant.
This video from Swobo and Bicycle Times, profiling Igleheart is amazing!
“Christopher Igleheart is probably the nicest guy in the bicycle industry–but don’t hold that against him. He’s been making bikes longer than most folks have been riding them and he does it a deep sense of understanding and a gracious smile.
We got to know him when he relocated to Portland, Oregon about a year ago and started building custom frames in a shared shop space with Joseph Ahearne. His bikes are simple, but they’re beautiful and they’re strong. He should know a thing or two about making tough bikes as he had a big hand in the building of the iconic and coveted Fat Chance mountain bikes in the 80’s.
Sharing a conversation with Chris about bikes is like taking a history lesson from the coolest professor on campus, who also happened to have a hand in the making of the very history they are teaching that semester. He’s wise, he’s insightful, and he’s probably one of the best people to share a post-ride beer with that we’ve ever met.
Igleheart is the inspiration for the entire Movers and Makers Series and we figured it was right to start off Volume 1 with him. Enjoy!”
Well done!
Photos by Chris Lee
The King Kog team is killing it this year up in NY, most recently at Supercross. Check out more of Chris Lee’s photos here!
With the success of the Rapha Raeburn line earlier this year, my friends at the Rapha North America office reached out to me for a different kind of press. I was very impressed with what the first Raeburn line accomplished: high end, performance cycling wear, manufactured in the UK and developed by one of the UK’s most renown fashion designers, Christopher Raeburn.
Check out my interview with Christopher and his brother Graeme Raeburn for Rapha below!
Photo by Kristina Nash
Chris Igleheart is one of the raddest builders. His history dates back to working at Fat City Cycles in Somerville. Last year, he moved to Portland, Oregon to continue building for himself and also for a couple of notable companies.
A few weeks ago, he was struck by a car on his commute home and he’s out over $15,000. There’s a YouCaring site set up and they’ve already raised over $9,000. One more big push will surely get him there.
I’m not telling you to donate, because I hate it when people do that, but if you would like to, do so at the I Heart IGLE YouCaring site!
… speaking of ‘cross. Here’s the newest from Chris Milliman, featuring one of America’s greatest cross races, Gloucester.
When this frame popped up on Craigslist here in Austin, I crossed my fingers that it would be my size. Alas, it was way too small, but luckily, Chris picked it up. Last year, it was set up as a singlespeed, but this year, he’s got it nicely equipped for a bit of trail smashing and racing. What’s not to love about a pink bike? Especially one with a bit of style. Purple Chris King? Check… See more in the Gallery!
When Ian at Icarus moved to Austin, Texas, I don’t think he anticipated working on this many local frames. Or that Chris would put down two deposits at once: a lightweight road bike and a fendered, touring / commuter. This is the first out of the queue, a modern, steel road bike with a matte paintjob and a few clean details. Nothing extravagant, but also nothing simple.
Chris is a father and he works full time, so riding is always a last minute, unplanned endeavor. He was looking for a little inspiration to sneak in an hour or two when he could and Ian built him just that. With a Zipp cockpit, seatpost, Chris King R45 to HED Belgium, Fizik Kurve saddle, Campy Chorus 11 speed and King Cage bottle cages, it’s up there in the “dream bike” category…
The newest from Chrome features one of my favorite photographers in cycling, Chris Milliman:
“Chris Milliman has been taking pictures since he was a kid. He’s been riding a bike a little bit longer. Chris is lucky enough to do both for a living. He’s captured some of the most epic cycling moments around the world. From Cyclocross Nationals, to the Tour de France, to the streets of NYC and Chicago, Chris captures the essence of cycling in every shot he takes.
This season’s Limited Edition Artist Series features four of Chris’ iconic photographs: A local cyclocross race around an old castle in Belgium, the iconic industrial bridge structures overlooking the bike lanes of Chicago, a locals only watering hole of the same windy city, and the organized chaos of a bike shop. The inside of each bag includes an exclusive woven patch that references old school photo processing.
The Chrome Artist Series celebrates photographers, graphic designers, screen printers, and painters who inspire us. These collaborations are built in limited quantities and once they’re gone, they’re gone.
The four Milliman Artist Photo Citizens include:
Zonnebeke (brwn/red), Chicago Steel (brnw/yellow), Locals Only (brwn/green), and Shop Rat (brwn/blue)“
See more at Chrome.
It’s hard to deny the impact that the original Ritchey Swiss Cross had on American cyclocross. Any cycling history buff will note Thomas Frischknecht’s many victories in the early 90’s while riding the original, so it had to be a perfect choice for Ritchey to re-introduce the mighty red machine for 2012. Having only seen the bike at Interbike, I was stoked to hear Chris’ choice in picking one up when he wrecked his previous cross bike. Built with mostly matching Ritchey components, this build turned out perfect. Last Sunday, after a Walnut Creek singletrack session, I got some photos of this race-ready machine.
Some of my favorite details are the integrated head tube and that wicked cable routing at the seat tube cluster. Check out more in the Gallery.
I haven’t posted about Independent Fabrication in some time now but their latest blog entry beckoned for some circulation. At first, when I heard Chris Chance was at last year’s NAHBS, I thought it was a rumor but after several sources confirmed, after the fact, I’m pretty bummed I didn’t get to at least shake his hand. At the IF booth, Chris engaged in a discussion with the ex-Somerville builders. What did they talk about? Mountain bikes, naturally. As a starting point for discourse, IF presents the latest project of theirs, Deluxe :: Redux. Hit the link for more!
Onto my second point: where the hell do I get a purple Sotto Voce King?
If you’ve been following this blog for any extended period of time, you’ll know how much I absolutely love the late Mike Mulholland’s work. There was just something so idiosyncratic, yet classic about his style and how could you overlook that head badge? While I’ve never owned a Cyclops, I once found myself in a eBay bidding war on an old t-shirt, respectfully bowing out at $100… A few months ago, Mike from MASH listed up this frame. After realizing it was way too small for me, I posted about it and a friend here in Austin scooped it up.
Chris took his time with this build. He wanted a modern road group, so he chose SRAM Red, mixed with Ciamillo Cycling Zero Gravity calipers. He even learned how to lace up wheels, selecting Chris King R45 hubs to HED Belgiums. There are a few off details with the bike as photographed here which I’ll go ahead and point out. Yes, the Thomson post is backwards and so is the front wheel. But don’t let those distract you from the double wishbone seat stays!
Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.
