trackosaurus rex

In 2000WIN Ride a Bike!

by Jesse Brew!

Thanks for the kind words Jesse!

So good...

And 3D Cogs!

From...HERE!

Good day in Italy!

I guess Twitter ain't so bad...

A Bike Theft in the Time of Twitter!

and Austin sure knows how to dress!

Damn...Austin is all over the media!

"Good Habits, Clean Living"

A Tribute to Major Taylor by Chris Piascik!

Only 50 of these were made and I just bought 3!

Swoop...HERE!

NAHBS 2010 RVA!

NAHBS- The Beginning from Vuelo Velo on Vimeo.

NAHBS - Part II from Vuelo Velo on Vimeo.

NAHBS - PART II from Vuelo Velo on Vimeo.

NAHBS Part III from Vuelo Velo on Vimeo.

Transient Messenger Bags available 3/08/10!

Okay....Alex offered me a prototype Transient Messenger Bag to try out for a couple of months, use in working conditions, and then give him some feedback. I am not a "true" messenger [I do half my work in a cubicle, and don't sit around street corners looking surly and kewl anymore] but I do my daily rounds. I ride a bike to file documents, and I just happen to use a bag to carry those items, so there you go, I am justified in testing this. In any case, I noticed the shape of the bag, which is unique, in that it is angular and vaguely compact looking. It is waterproof and mine was a lovely royal blue[favorite color! Yippee!] with black stripes. It has an awesomely simple to use shoulder strap, a stabilizer strap and a very effective reflective stripe on the bottom. The outside has the standard two buckles to tighten down and the bottom has two straps to allow the bag to expand for more room. The inside has the main pocket and an inner pocket next to the back that can also be sealed by Velcro. There are two outer pockets, also closed using Velcro, two smaller open ones right under them, and a row of small pockets on the bottom.

The bag held fast, and there was no sway. The Velcro is firm. The four outer pockets are very useful and accessible. For looking compact, the bag can hold a good number of items. I was able to slide a bankers box in...although I had to take some items out first and play Tetris. This bag has my favorite shoulder strap. So damn simple. Just a pull and it's tight. Pull the ring, and it's loose. No unfastening or following a specific configuration. Simplicity. Same goes for the stabilizer. It was kept short by a buckle, but would tightened as needed. There has been no sway, and things have cinched tight. The bag has stood the rigors of sunny LA weather, as well as a week of torrid rain. No cracks or tears as of yet. Some things did take getting used to, however.

Of note. These were topics that I addressed after testing the prototype, and having informed Meester Alex, have been addressed and improved upon. In regards to the bottom row of outer pockets well, they're too short and too shallow. I found myself not putting anything in them. Alex has lengthened and widened the pockets, so that they could hold items better. The buckle on the stabilizer strap broke on me. Alex gave me an FYI that he used a too large buckle, and that the production bags will have the adequate size on them. Good to know and awesome to see that he would repair the stabilizer strap, as well as give me a beer. Right, Alex? All in all, I am sticking with this bag. I've got my court runs down and taking out items for the x-ray machine have become so instinctual. I've lost things inside the bag, a good sign of it's size, and quite frankly, I am enamored with that brilliant royal blue, and those reflective stripes are a comfort. Good solid build, and I'm stoked to have been a Messenger Bag test pilot.

Thanks for the review Orlando!

The bag will be available on the Transient Bag's website or if you want to see one in person tomorrow and are in the Los Angeles area you can stop by Orange 20 Bikes! I know they have a few. Can't wait to see what other think about the bag. Remember these bags are handmade in the USA!

Cyclocross doesn't need saving!

2009 Chicago Cyclocross Cup from Heather Jurewicz on Vimeo.

Well...maybe a little bit of saving would be alright.

Fixed Gear American Red Ale...

from Lakefront Brewery just minutes away from Cog Magazine's main station!

Seen it first @ Mixt Meat! Found this interesting because I just watched Beer Wars the other day.

4815 Track Bike!

Here's a pretty good look at Rock Racing's 4815 Track Bike!

You can see the full set...HERE!

Can't wait to see more...

Flwrider productions brings you, FRAME interviews, the first video in a series, featuring close-up interviews with professionals and insiders involved in the cycling and bicycle industry in and around the Hong Kong Delta.

Introducing some of cycling�s most creative people and giving us their details and thoughts on cycling, urban mobility and future outlooks on where they think cycling is heading.

We�ll be going into studios, workshops and offices to find many interesting characters passing through and within Hong Kong. Insights from Product designers, CEO�s, retailers, ex-race champions and many more coming up.

Our first interview is with acclaimed British product designer, Michael Young. Who designed the iconic urban commuter bike, the City Speed for Giant. Michael has worked on many design projects internationally and was currently appointed creative director of 100% Design Shanghai. We ask him about designing for Giant and how product design is filtering into cycling.

text from Flwrider!

[FRAME] Chapter One from BrianFu on Vimeo.

Love this...

saw it over @ Fixed Gear Blog!

Tomorrow...

This Is Big Time!

Dario Pegoretti is coming...

Sacha White and the Vanilla Workshop announced the details behind the first ever run of Speedvagen Track Machines this weekend in Richmond Virginia at the North American Handbuilt Bike Show. In addition to being the latest in a growing family of Speedvagens, the Track Machines, on sale as of March 1, 2010 will be the result of a collaboration between the Vanilla Workshop and one of frame buildings greatest legends, Dario Pegoretti. Dario, a highly skilled and prolific builder with unparalleled style and a reputation for building exceptionally fast and accomplished race bikes, including a number of Giro D�Italia and Tour de France wins, is scheduled to come in May to Portland, Oregon.

�We have a great problem - we must build a great frame!� � Dario Pegoretti

Sacha White started Vanilla Bicycle Company in 1999 to make frames for his friends and for fellow racers and couriers in Portland. As his craft and the demand for his bikes progressed, and as his frames and process became more involved, Sacha began to collaborate with local artists, designers and engineers - slowly but surely the Vanilla Workshop was born. At the same time, bikes from independent builders experienced an explosion in growth, interest, and value. They got hot. Frame building got hot and Sacha, by this time, was widely attributed with pioneering next generation frame building. Vanilla�s wait-list steadily climbed to three, four and finally in 2007, five years long. In response to this and his desire to service the needs of racers who need new bikes in months not years, Sacha was inspired to begin building limited production racing thoroughbreds - Speedvagen was born. While Vanilla remains a solitary enterprise, Speedvagen has provided Sacha with the opportunity to further collaborate with other builders at the top of their craft such as Mike Desalvo and now, Dario Pegoretti.

�Dario is a rocker and an artist - His experience and reputation in the racing world runs deep. So deep that he can simultaneously push limits with tubing materials, shapes and sizes, and express his artistic side through abstract, un-conventional paint work. I knew that Dario was the right person for this job, and while it seemed like a fantasy at first, it made good sense.� � Sacha

�Every project is a mystery. In the beginning you think about the tube sets and the shape of the bike and some problems. And while I can have an idea about the final results, I can be sure only at the end that I did an okay job. Sometimes it is completely a surprise.� � Dario

From his start in the early 70�s, Dario learned to build bikes by the thousands. Twenty years later and a continent away, Sacha learned to build Vanillas in a completely different environment and market. For Sacha, framebuilding has always meant one labor intensive frame at a time, but with Dario�s help and guidance Sacha is excited to further refine and streamline the Speedvagen process. In many ways this project is a cultural exchange of sorts but it�s also possibly the first time two different schools/generations of builders have come together to bring the best of what they know into a single design and build.

�The form and function of a track bike has been nearly perfect for so long, true innovation in the track world is elusive, which makes the challenge that much more enticing.�- Sacha.

Faced with the challenge of improving a style of bike already refined from years of race-generated insights and research, Sacha started work on the Track Machine project from the tubes up. No other builder has pushed and is pushing the limits of steel tubing like Dario. Shortly after he agreed to work on the project, the idea and design for a custom tube set went from initial conversations and drawings to the production of sample tubes from Columbus with Dario managing the process directly.

�There are basic rules of thumb with track bike design. The steering has to be heavy enough so that the bike wants to track straight during a sprint. The BB has to be high enough so as not to clip a pedal on the bank and at slower speeds. The wheelbase wants to be tight so the rider can move in and out of racer traffic. Aerodynamics are also a factor on the track, and another benefit of working with Columbus on custom tubes has been the opportunity to tweak and improve shapes. And because of the nature of track racing, crashing and durability has been a big focus.� - Sacha

At it�s core, Speedvagen is about stripping away what�s unnecessary on a race bike, then refining and rethinking what�s left. Sacha�s design and prototype work over the last three years has resulted in a number of design refinements and improvements like a top tube with an extra thick section where the bars hit in a crash, the one piece bar and stem combo with integrated top race for the headset, U.S. built Edge Composites fork designed specifically for the Speedvagen Track Machine geometry, big -- Pegoretti inspired -- round-as-all-get-out chain stays (the heart and soul of power transfer on a race bike), tubular truss dropouts, significantly stiffer than traditional plate dropouts and finished with brass reinforcements to guard against wheel slippage, and a carbon fiber reinforced headtube and carbon seatpost head.

Like all Speedvagens before them the Track Machines are available as frame/fork and seatpost assembly, or built and tuned as a complete bike in the Vanilla Workshop. There will be three stock colors and one option called Surprise Me, which Dario and Sacha will work closely to develop.

�I don�t know what will come from our collaboration in terms of paint. My style is very crisp and graphically oriented while Dario�s is often abstract and based on patterns. I imagine that we will start by agreeing on a base color, and then explore variations on the existing shield logo and blocky SV type. It is important to me that the finished product is 100% Speedvagen, but Dario is such a visionary when it comes to finishes, his influence here is one of the most exciting aspects of the project.� � Sacha

�Unicorns, I think this is very German, and Italians have some problems with the Germans, but it�s not a problem for me.� -Dario

Because of the custom tube sets and specialized nature of the project, capacity is set at 25 bikes. They go on sale March 1, and will be sold first come, first served. The Vanilla workshop is asking that everyone interested complete an application of sorts which is basically a fun track themed fill-in the blank questionnaire.

�The application sets the tone. It tells people what Speedvagen is about by asking people what they�re about.�

For more information about speedvagen news and updates - Speedbloggen!

For more information about purchasing a speedvagen - Speedvagen!

To view or download the speedvagen application � Speedvagen Application!

The amount of detail put into this bike is just spectacular. Most the time with a bike as simple and perfect as a Track Bike there just isn't much more one can do to try and make it better. You really have to look at things a little different. First it was the stem/bar combos and integrated seatpost. Now it is custom drawn tubes to create one of the largest steel chainstays in existence and custom made Chris King Inset Headsets integrated into the frames and stem/bar combos. And don't worry...they haven't changed the dropout! Looks like the Track Bike has been saved!

While Dario is in town his main focus will be on producing these magnificent machines but Daniel Wakefield Pasley will be focused on documenting this project between two living legends in way that will show uniqueness and unconformity paralleling the Speedvagen Track Machine and the two men behind it!

More images of the Track Machine from the 2010 NAHBS...HERE!

Chris is at it again...

this time working with the Hive!

Chub Hubs from Christopher San Agustin on Vimeo.

And I'm calling it...commercials are the new Macaframa!

Thule "Bike Spot" from Nathan Avila on Vimeo.