The Radavist

Now I’m not a fan of so-called “comfort” saddles. They’re for the more enthusiastic and, well, dorky riders. What I am a fan of is a nice throwback silhouette like the Turbos, Concors and Unicanitors. I’d pick one of those over a modern, SLR saddle any day. Maybe it’s because I feel what’s good enough for the pros of yesteryear is good enough for me and my riding habits. That’s where the Selle Royal Origins line comes in. Specifically the Contour saddle. This saddle was used in the pro peleton throughout the 1970’s and it even adorned Marino Basso’s bike as he won the Giro in ’77.

I recently received one of these saddles and immediately, I was impressed at the craftsmanship and general feel of this saddle. Check out more of my Initial Reaction below.

Creepers. You know, the shoe-gazer’s / rockabilly’s shoe of choice. Don’t get it twisted though. It’s also the name of Gran Royale‘s new 2011 street fixed bike. Knowing tradeshows like Interbike are around the corner, Gran Royale shot me some exclusive sneak peeks at their new 2011 line. The Creeper is the less-expensive version of the Lurker. With the quality of steel being the only noticeable difference. For those wanting the feel of 4130 over high-tensile, check out the Lurker below.

The Royal Sporting Clvb is a new blog showcasing some fixed freestyle riders in the south of France. Fixed freestyle isn’t huge there so these guys are pushing it. Here’s a lovely photograph of Ronan, one of their riders, dropping into a massive bank. Really awesome shot!

To see more photos (on film) head over to Royal Sporting Clvb!

Caught this dude over at Zlog. Seems Alex Royal has been coming up through the ranks in Seattle and has been doing great at the past few Future Tenses. Nice stair gaps and clean 180’s. His bike makes a very satisfying sound when he gaps shit too. No bottoming out.

Keep it up dude!

Gran Royale has announced their accessories for 2010. Included in the offerings are these integrated drop bars with a fast-back stem clamp. I’m pretty stoked on these. Perfect for your street machine. Three colors to choose from; black, white and silver. The stem looks to be about a 100mm and the bars have a very traditional bend to them. Like the Cinelli “Madison” track bars, there is about a 2″ wide flat spot on either side of the bar clamp; or in this case, the stem intersection. This is just enough room to ride comfortably on the tops. Or if drops aren’t your thing, they offer some other variations of handlebars.

Check out the integrated flat bars below.

Photo by Calvin C

See. I told you so. Doesn’t that thing look nice? I’m impressed. In case you can’t tell what it is, it’s the Gran Royale Lurker, shot by Calvin at Fixie Pixie. Check out one of my favorite details on a street fixed gear below.

Out of all the BMX company’s first-attempts at a ‘freestyle’ fixed gear, I have to say, this one looks like they spent some time designing it. I met the rep from Eastern a while back. He told me that their sister-company, Gran Royale, was making a fixed gear freestyle bike and that they were planning on selling it as a complete. They’ve named it the Lurker and I’m sure you’ll be seeing them on the streets soon. More information below.

Edit: I’ve added the MSRP to the post, along with availability information.

The Fringe Union houses some of Sommerville’s most unique artists. From Keena Photography, to Aarn Works Design and Icarus / Royal H. Cycles, just to name a few, this old warehouse contains true talent! Paper Fortress, one of the Fringe companies, put together this video showcasing the studios.

Royal H. Cycles Custom Time Trial

As I mentioned in my previous entry, in 2010 I got to travel all over this year and while traveling, I always look for Beautiful Bicycles to photograph. Narrowing the field down to 10 was no easy task but I did my best. Beginning with this time-trial that embodies Bryan’s work at Royal H. Cycles in Sommerville.

Check out nine more below.

Pardon the quick photoshop work but I’ll be in Boston this weekend to meet up with Geekhouse, Icarus, Royal H, OPEN, Superb, Seven and hopefully Indy Fab. It’ll be a busy weekend but flag me down if you see me rolling around! I’ll have some stickers with me to hand out as well. See you in Bean Town!

Marty over at Geekhouse has a wonderful Polaroid gallery up on his Flickr from the Circle A open house party. Included in the stacks is this absolutely stunning Royal H. Cycles road frame, freshly coated by Circle A.

Drool-worthy right?

Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…

Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…