The Radavist

Like Max from Tokyo Fixed Gear, I first saw the work of Philosophy Bags at this year’s NAHBS. Their handmade in the USA panniers and bicycle bags are elegant and just what you need to class up that rando or touring build. But as Tokyo Fixed Gear shows us, they look great on a Tokyo Fixed Bikes Dream Machine! The thing I love about their panniers is the use of the modern rack mounts. No one wants to use buckles and straps anymore, so why bother with an antiquated technology on such a classy bag. These panniers are simple and clean.

Pick these up at TFG if you’re in London!

Drew at Milwaukee has been saying for years “we need to make a road version of the Orange One” and I always agreed with him. But where do you get it made? Taiwan? Sure, you could. It’d be cheap and you’d be able to sell them in bulk. But that’s not always the answer. With Milwaukee’s relationship with Waterford, they decided to go local. Waterford already makes Milwaukee’s Cream City so going with a road model was painless.

I received my frameset a few weeks ago and finally got around to building it up yesterday at Fast Folks. Check out more photos of my Milwaukee Bicycle Co. Orange One road below!

Remember when having a custom REload bag was all the rage? Hell, they still are but that approach to bag making has now spilled over into the rando, commuting and touring crowd. Swift Industries is a small, two-person operation out of Seattle that specializes in customizable panniers, porteur, saddle and rando bags. They’ll let you pick your colors, sizes and other options and build your bag for you by hand.

I’m really holding back from buying an Ozette Rando Bag right now!

When Marty and the Geekhouse crew refused to send me any kind of teaser of my Woodville touring bike during the fabrication process, I knew it’d be good. Sure enough, I showed up at the 2011 NAHBS at their booth while they were prepping everything and was greeted with Marty saying “Your bike took me longer than any other to build”. I replied “For this show?” and he said “No, EVER.”

God is in the details and that holds true here with my Geekhouse Woodville. For a tig-welded frame, there’s a ton going on and you can see more below.

Dan commutes on a rather rare bird. For those of you who weren’t aware, Grant Peterson, of Rivendell, used to design bicycles for Bridgestone. His most famous models were the RB-1 and XO-1 frame. In 1993, the XO-1s sported a burnt orange color and could fit either 26″ or 700c wheels. They became the essential touring bikes of choice for many and have accumulated a rather cult-like following. Dan’s Bridgestone is a 1991 and was the only XO-1 to ever come with standard calipers, not cantis and it was designed for 26″ wheels, not 650b or 700c. This was also the only year that the XO-1 came in a purple or “tusk” paint color.

Bottom line is, Dan’s got an awesome commuter and you can check out more photos below.

The other day while I was in Fast Folks, this dude came in with a broken spoke. He had been touring for the past 5 months; from Portland to Canada and across the US, he’d been everywhere. I took this shot of his bike all loaded up with a Bob Trailer and full panniers.

Nuts! Safe travels my friend. Check out some more photos from my Recent Roll on my Flickr.

Velo Cult Psychedelic All-Seeing Eye Tee

Skye and the Velo Cult crew have the “Scorpio Curse” like all of us. Bow down to the Eye of Providence, slit your wrists with a Campy peanut butter wrench and drink the linseed oil, the crew at Velo Cult have dropped the perfect Holiday gift ideas for the cyclist in your life!

Check out more from the ‘Cult below.

Believe me, I know what you’re thinking and no, it’s not Photoshop, just a wacky Merckx Mondays brought to you by those little nuanced moments in cycling and Tears for Gears. If you’re as confused as I was when I first saw this photo, you’ve gotta check out the rest of the post!

Edi Merukusu Mondays!

Photo by John Francis Peters for the NY Times

I’ve had multiple opportunities to meet Bike Snob NYC in person over shots of whiskey and beer at various establishments in NYC. I even helped him fix his panniers once (sounds dirty doesn’t it?). One thing that he’s always told me was he’d reveal his identity to the masses when his book is published. The New York Times beat him (and everyone else for that matter) to the punch in a recent City Room blog entry.

If you’ve ever wanted to know the name of the man who pissed you off or made you laugh, check out the article here.