Set your alarm clocks. Once registration closes, that’s it! See more on the forthcoming Ideas City Red Hook Crit event below.
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Affinity Cycles: Kelli at Red Hook Crit Brooklyn
Photos by Doug Dalrymple
I’m still bummed that I missed the 2013 Red Hook Crit. Mostly because I didn’t get to see a lot of my friends, including Kelli, who decided to race it this year. Affinity posted up these photos of her, taken during the Red Hook Crit weekend. Check out more at Affinity and keep checking in on The Job for more portraits!
Radar
FBM Bike Co: 2013 Sword Pre-Order
Speaking of FBM, the pre-order for the 2013 Sword SQ track frames is now open. Colors include: clear, trans blue, trans gold, galaxy grey and flat black. Head over to FBM Bike Co now for more information and see my Sword build photos here.
Radar
MelburnOut: Never Let a Mate Ride Your Bike
Photo by Andy White
… and this is why. Well, ‘Straya, it’s been fun. After my flight got canceled yesterday, I’m leaving today, so the site will be dormant for a few hours. Andy from FYXO will be posting more photos of me ripping his brand new BT track bike (with a black Shamal!) soon…
Radar
Velodeath Girl
Brazil-based track bike squad Velodeath has some fancy new artwork, penned by Adams Carvalho and I dig it!
Radar
Met Helmets Fixed Adrenalin Tournament
“The 13th of April was one of the most anticipated days in the world’s mini velodrome racing calendar. The MET Fixed Adrenalin Tournament is a unique track event for fixed gear bikes. A wild ride that takes place on one of the smallest velodromes in the world. Fearless cyclists face a demanding test of mental and physical strength and technical skill. The MET FAT is a fantastic tournament. As with many knockout tournaments, the stakes are high and the excitement is intense. The magic really started after the qualifying runs round of the tournament, which is when only the 16 fastest riders enter the final rounds. Juliet Elliott and Thomas Dalbigot proved to be the most skilled riders on the track that night and won the prestigious trophy.”
Check out more at Met.
Reportage
531 Cecil Walker Track with Zipp Wheels
The story with this bike in particular is a common tale. As a youngster, the owner used to race at the velodromes here in Melbourne. Like many kids growing up, he rode what he could afford to and when the time came, he sold off his bikes to buy new ones.
As adults, many people track down their distant memories and relive their youth. The owner of this gorgeous 531 Cecil Walker track just recently put it together to get back onto the boards and what a build. A brand new frame, complete with Dura Ace track parts, Zipp 1150 rear and a Zipp 3000 tri-spoke front would bring out the inner child in any track racer.
Radar
Ride + Style Artists Team Up With Leader
This year for Ride + Style, Leader is teaming up with a few of the artists to paint and auction off a pair of 735’s. One of which is being painted by LA artist, Risk. Here are a few teaser Mr. Matt Lingo sent over. Nice photos man!
Radar
Mobius Cycle Gives the Phil Wood Cranks Some Love
This lovely yellow Seven fixed gear has a hell of a drivetrain. The Phil Wood cranks are a good way to bring some balleur componentry to any build. Leave it to Mobius Cycle to deliver some great photos. See the rest here.
Radar
Mikey Ramirez for 14R
Photo by Giles Smith
14 Bike Co’s collaboration with Royce, the 14R low pro debuted at Bespoke Bristol this past weekend. Here’s Mikey Ramirez’s 14R, via Fixed Gear London.
Radar
The 2013 Red Bull #RideNStyle is Coming!
It’s almost time for Red Bull RideNStyle!
“On Saturday, May 4, Red Bull Ride + Style will return to San Francisco for the third time, reuniting the world’s best fixed gear racers and freestylers together in Justin Herman Plaza. The event also brings together four of the world’s top street artists through collaborative art on both the racecourse and the freestyle ramps.”
Check out more below!
Reportage
Northside Wheelers and Shifter Bikes Open House
I fucking love Melbourne. It’s without a doubt, the best city in the world. The people, the bikes, the food. Everything about it is exceptional. Today was the open house at Northside Wheelers and Shifter Bikes. It was great to see old faces and new.
Tomorrow, we leave for a two day, 200 mile, 25,000′ ride over the dividing range on cross bikes, aka an Australian ass-whoopin’, so let these photos get you through the weekend!
Check out some narrated photos in the Gallery!
Radar
The Job: Alfred’s Cinelli Track
Photo by Doug Dalrymple
Doug’s portrait photography is always refreshing when I come across it in my RSS. Here’s one of the forthcoming Cinelli track bikes, ridden by Alfred in NYC. That tapered head tube looks so mean! Keep an eye on The Job for more portraits and track bikes.
Reportage
Tyler’s Factory 5 Low Pro Track
Another one of the Factory 5 track bikes that was on the bike tour was Tyler’s. This 61cm frame has quite the component kit on it. Most interestingly, one of five pairs of H+Son carbon fiber wrapped Formation Face rims. The aluminum rims were thinner, to compensate for the wrap, resulting in a lighter rim. They’ll never see full production, because they were a pain to fabricate, but they look great laced to Dura Ace 7600 36h single side track hubs. Tyler’s also riding Paul Royal Flush cranks, which he’s had for over four years in China with no issues.
This is the third prototype of the forthcoming Factory 5 aluminum low pro frame, with smoother welds. The final version will still have a few revisions. Factory 5 has been working on this particular model frame for over a year, revisiting the geometry before making the final version. It makes their motto “We Build. We Ride” even more fitting.
I wanted to photograph his bike after the tour, muddy and all, as a recording of how fucking dirty his bike got riding through China. I’m going to miss hanging out with Tyler. He’s like my metal brother in China…
Check out Factory 5’s current frame offerings here and more photos in the Gallery.
Radar
Red Hook Crit 2013 Media Overload
Photo via Manual for Speed
Man, I feel like this year’s Red Hook Crit has produced some of the best photos from the event. There are hundreds of exceptional photos on the Red Hook Crit Tumblr, so head over and check them out. I like this one that Emiliano Bronado shot.
Reportage
MMC’s Factory 5 Low Pro Track
As I ease back into normal blog content, I’ll be posting some of the bikes that the dudes rode on our bike tour. The first of the bunch is owned by one of the most famous track bike riders in China, MMC. The story goes that MMC was one of the first people in Shanghai to really embrace track bikes. When he wasn’t tearing through the streets, he was scouring the internet for deals on vintage Italian and Japanese components and frames.
Once he started working for Factory 5, the guys made sure he was on one of their new prototype aluminum low pro track frames. These frames look great with their classic lines, true track geometry and a 1″ threaded fork mixed in with oversized and shaped tubing. This particular frame is the third prototype. Many changes will be made for the final production model.
You can build them out however you want (you’ll see more examples). MMC usually rides his Zipp 404 laced to gutted Novatek hubs (upgraded to titanium bits and ceramic bearings) but we put the HED3 on for the photo shoot. Even his cranks are balleur. Campy C-Record Pista with a custom manufactured carbon chainring. He literally contacted a local factory to make it for him (53 x 18).
It’s a slick bike and he rode it like a champ on our tour. It really has one of the meanest stances I’ve seen recently in a track bike… Check out Factory 5’s current frame offerings here.
Reportage
Mission Workshop _ PiNP Bike Tour: Day 08
I think I speak for the whole gang when I say that we’re all very happy to be done with the bike tour of China. It wasn’t so much the distance, because on paper, it’s not that much, totaling around 300 miles. But when you consider everything we encountered, it was one of the most sobering experiences of my life.
One of the things I did look forward to each night were the group rides. For me, it’s rad to see what and how people are riding in each city. Hangzhou was no different from the other cities. Most of the riders were young, most had cheap “rainbow fixies” but some had insane track bikes, ready for the boards…
Check out some narrated photos in the Gallery and keep an eye on Mission Workshop’s (@MissionWorkshop), Factory 5 (@Factory5) and my Instagram (@JohnProlly) during the day for updates.
Radar
Mission Workshop _ PiNP Bike Tour: Day 07
We all woke up this morning knowing that we only had 70k to go on our trip and most of it was downhill from the bamboo forest. I really wanted to mob some trails on the Geekhouse Mudville, so James and I headed into the bamboo forest to shoot some video. When we got back to the lodge, we ate lunch, packed and headed out.
The ride today was hellish. Even though it was downhill for the first 15 miles, the wind was blowing hard. Then, when we got on the main road, it was filled with potholes and giant trucks spitting exhaust into our faces. Hangzhou was our final destination so we just put our heads down and pushed forward.
Finally, we were in the outskirts, but had to go through four tunnels to make it to the hostel where we were staying. Four tunnels that were so disgusting that the sissy Americans nearly puked after passing through them (myself included). To give you an estimate, the AQI in the tunnels were over 1000 and I forgot my mask.
Tomorrow, we have a day off before heading back to Shanghai, via a bullet train. We’re all nice and tipsy from post-ride beer and are about to head out into town… May the Necronomicog have mercy on our souls.
Keep an eye on Mission Workshop’s (@MissionWorkshop), Factory 5 (@Factory5) and my Instagram (@JohnProlly) during the day for updates.
