10% back when you buy a bike this weekend

This one is truly a standout, so we're dedicating a post to share our valuable offer with you.

Buy any bike and we'll email you a gift certificate for 10% of its value. Your $1,000 bike nets you a $100 gift certificate.

But, wait. There's more.

This offer can be combined with 15% off bikes of $1,500 or more. 

Double dip during our Double Grand Opening!

And, double dip again by doing your own personal Tour de BicycleSPACE. Shop in one location and show your receipt at the other location for 10% off your purchase (excluding bikes and labor).

If you feel like you need a scorecard, you're right. We'll have printouts at each shop so you can see all our awesome offers on one page.

Double Grand Opening of BicycleSPACE Adams Morgan and Downtown July 10-12

Good things come to those who wait!

The wait is over, friends. Our Adams Morgan and downtown shops are having a Double Grand Opening July 10-12, 2015.

Some of the fun includes:

• Win a bike ($1,000 value)
• Buy any bike and we'll email you a gift certificate for 10% of its value ($1,000 bike = $100 gift certificate)
• 15% off bikes $1,500+ (excluding cargo, electric and folding bikes)
• Show your receipt from one shop and get 10% off at the other (excluding bikes and labor)
• photo contest
• free water bottles

The festivities take place during normal business hours:

Adams Morgan

Friday: 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. | Saturday: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. | Sunday: 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Downtown

Friday: 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. | Saturday: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. | Sunday: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Short and Sweet FAQ

What's new? All about our new bikes and products.

What about the weekend rides? Here's the schedule.

***

Thank you for keeping the faith and believing that a better BicycleSPACE was on the horizon. What was once an abstraction of architectural renderings is now a brick-and-mortar reality.

The shops are filling up with beautiful, durable, functional things and an eye-popping assortment of more bikes than ever before, e-bikes, clothes, shoes and so much more.

The most important component is you, our dear friends. We can't wait to welcome you into our new homes.

We'd love to see you at both shops and will reward you with a special offer: Show your receipt from one shop and get 10% off at the other (excluding bikes and labor).

Sign up for our newsletter and follow us on social media for updates about our Double Grand Opening Extravaganza.

Vintage Rally to Bloomsday 2015

A friend of the shop connected to the Irish Embassy has invited us to ride in the Embassy of Ireland Bloomsday-Yeatsday Celebration on 16 June. Embracing our adventurous spirit, we said yes to a daytime social in vintage costume, taking a huge leap of faith you'd come along for the ride.

Bloomsday pays tribute to Leopold Bloom, the central character in James Joyce's Ulysses. The annual celebration is big in Dublin, where thousands of people recreate Bloom's epic ramble through Dublin on June 16, 1904. Edwardian costumes are an essential component of the celebration.

Cities around the world hold Bloomsday celebrations.

The U.S. Embassy of Ireland is celebrating Bloomsday in Dupont Circle Park from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. All Washingtonians are invited to the free celebration of readings, music and more. Participants are encouraged to bring lunch to satisfy their literal and literary hunger.

We've been invited to partner for a Bloomsday bike rally to the picnic celebration. Here's the scheme:

• Assemble at 11:30 a.m. at 440 K St NW
• After short history talk by our local historian and Irishwoman friend of BicycleSPACE, ride departs at 11:45 a.m.
• We parade through the central city in period costumes on as many vintage bikes as we can find/borrow/commandeer
• Taking a relatively direct route, we arrive at Dupont Circle for the 12:30 celebration

Let's make this work, BicycleSPACE mates!

Telecommute, schedule a doctor's appointment, take flex time. Free yourself from your desk and travel back in time with us for one extended lunch break.

We have only one chance to make a good first impression on the Irish Embassy.

Also, we have to dress the part. Think of it as a Tweed Ride with an Irish accent. Not everyone has to be in full costume. A top hat and bow tie is sufficiently symbolic. Our expert historian is here to help us with our costumes. But, we do have to be properly outfitted in some way, shape or form.

The Dublin tradition is to dress in Edwardian costumes. Leaders of past D.C. Bloomsday events do not fixate on historical accuracy, but have found that a good impression of early 1900s Dublin can be made with the following tips:

For Gentlemen: Tweed, linen or white jackets, hats of some sort including caps or boaters, bow ties and suspenders. Bonus points for such additional accessories such as monocles, brass-tipped canes, lapel flowers, etc. Other looks of the time include bike delivery boy in a cap, black pants, white shirt, big apron and wicker basket on bike.

For Ladies: One style is a flouncy blouse beneath a modern-day full-length evening or bridesmaid dress with a brooch at the neck and wide belt/sash. Another look that works is white button-up blouse (with brooch), long skirt and straw hat. Bonuses for wicker baskets, up-dos, hair fascinators, dangling pearls and parasols.

Possible sources could include back of the closet, elderly relatives, local thrift store, or that pal who's really great at coming up with original Halloween outfits. 

Get in the spirit by watching this Dublin video and thanks in advance for agreeing to our madcap idea.

Bring your own bike -- ideally vintage* -- and picnic lunch.  Feel free to post your costume questions on our Facebook event page.

* Want to buy a head turner for the occasion? We suggest a classic Pashley Cycles jewel, such as the Countryman or Princess, available now at BicycleSPACE.

Tour de Fat on May 30

Who likes beer, bikes and bemusement?

Spend a seasonal Saturday down by the river side wearing a crazy costume, riding in a bike parade of colorful characters and drinking bicycle-friendly beer for a good cause. Cruel punishment, we know.

Three cheers for the Tour de Fat, New Belgium Brewing's celebration of beer-loving bicycle culture at its ... weirdest?

Are you ready for this -->

2015 DC Tour de Fat at a Glance

Date: Saturday, May 30, 2015
Time: Costumed bike parade at 11 a.m. Festival from 12 to 5 p.m.
Location: Yards Park, 355 Water St SE 
Admission: Free!
Beer: Cash bar (via tokens)
BicycleSPACE pre-festival ride: Pickups in Adams Morgan (9 a.m.) and Mt. Vernon Triangle (9:45 a.m.) to arrive in time to ride in the 11 a.m. costumed bike parade.

Proceeds from beer sales benefit D.C. bicycle non-profits such as the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) and Black Women Bike D.C. Translation: you drink beer. The money you pay for said beer supports local bike organizations that serve our community's interests. Cheers!

If you're overwhelmed by the Tour de Fat spirit, you can catch the pre-game action Wednesday-Friday, May 27-29.

Tour de Fat Trivia takes place at 8 p.m. on May 27 at Stoney’s L Street, 2101 L St NW. Play trivia to win fun prize packages and quench your thirst with $4 Fat Tires and $14 pitchers. 

WABA and New Belgium are hosting a pre-Tour party for volunteers and beer nerds on May 28 at Churchkey, 1337 14th St NW, from 6 to 9 p.m. Get lucky and you could win a 2015 Custom Cruiser in the raffle. Get hoppy and sip 15 New Belgium drafts, including six Lips of Faith beers and five New Belgium brews on cask. (Click here  to volunteer with WABA at the Tour de Fat.)

The Tour de Fat pre-show is May 29 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Yards Park. Musicians and performers will entertain you while New Belgium beers refresh you. This free show will set the mood for the big day Saturday.

Last but not least, congratulations to Instagram user @chipper_skipper, whose lovely photo won a BicycleSPACE tune-up in the Tour de Fat DC photo contest.

Bike to Work Day 2015: One for the history books

A record 17,500+ people joined in Bike to Work Day this year. You -- the new and longtime Washington Area bicyclists -- are proof that bicycle commuting is viable, efficient, enjoyable and increasingly mainstream. Thank you for bicycling on May 15 and sending this message just by being you.

All year around, bicyclists are the VIPs of our community. On the day when bicyclists are in the spotlight, we draw attention far and wide. A Cabinet Secretary wanted to join our movement, so we welcomed U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez to our upcoming Mt. Vernon Triangle shop at 440 K St NW. 

We learned Sec. Perez is a serious cyclist in real life. He didn't speak from the podium with the microphone, but he was most assuredly there with us. Dressed in cycling gear, the Secretary rolled his bike down the red carpet then spoke informally with bicyclists.   

We also received visits from Tommy Wells, Director of the District Department of the Environment; D.C. Councilmember David Grosso; and D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen.

We rolled out the red carpet for you and you looked mahvelous, dahling.

The photographic evidence:

440 K St NW was the place to see and be seen on the red carpet.

More multimedia:

Facebook photo album

Instagram video from the red carpet

A time-lapse video of Sec. Perez's Bike to Work Day ride to us

Wouldn't it be great if there were more bike lanes and better bicycle infrastructure? We're working on it. Help show strength in numbers and advocate with us. 

For starters, please stay up to date with Washington Area Bicyclist Association campaigns and calls to action. Also, we encourage you to get involved in the D.C. Bicycle Advisory Council, a public agency comprised of bicyclists appointed by D.C. elected officials. The council's job is to advise policymakers on legislative matters of interest to bicyclists. The council issues advisory recommendations to improve the transportation system for bicyclists. BicycleSPACE co-owner Erik Kugler is a BAC member appointed by Councilmember Grosso. D.C. residents are invited to attend the council's public meetings and to serve on its committees. The council meets at 6 p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month at 441 4th St NW.

Bike to Work Day 2015

In this year of exciting growth to three BicycleSPACE shops, May 15 Bike to Work Day is especially meaningful to us. We're proud to sponsor this benchmark event that shows policymakers the quantifiable demand for better bicycle infrastructure. 

So, where's the party?

Our home base is the Mt. Vernon Triangle pit stop at 440 K St NW, site of our upcoming shop. We're literally rolling out the red carpet for you there.

This being a special occasion, prominent elected and appointed officials will join you -- our everyday VIPs -- at Mt. Vernon Triangle.

We're expecting visits from:

• Hon. Tom Perez, U.S. Secretary of Labor
• Hon. Tommy Wells, Director, District Department of the Environment
• Hon. David Grosso, D.C. Councilmember
• Hon. Charles Allen, D.C. Councilmember (pending confirmation)

As we grow to the largest bicycle retailer in D.C., we're adding 40 jobs to employ a total of 70+ people. We're proud to stand as a D.C.-based small business on the cusp of exponential growth and we're honored that Sec. Perez is literally standing with us. (Do you want in? Yes, we're hiring).

The Secretary will speak at approximately 8:30 a.m.

Let's amass our BicycleSPACE community spirit and show the power of our numbers during the Secretary's remarks. Please plan to stay for the Secretary's appearance to represent the best of Bike D.C. We'd be so grateful if you'd re-route yourself to come to 440 K St NW. 

What's more, our neighbors at Baked & Wired would love to see and feed you. The cafe isn't open yet, but Baked & Wired will be there with sample sizes of Hippie Crack Granola for you. Le Pain Quotidien and Safeway are also generously donating breakfast for you. BicycleSPACE thanks the Mt. Vernon Triangle Community Improvement District for our fruitful partnership.

While you fuel up, you can get to know Arc'teryx, a Canadian retailer of rugged, fashionable outerwear. The company recently opened its first D.C. shop and will be at the pit stop to exhibit its high-performance apparel.

If another pit stop is more convenient to you, please join us at Freedom Plaza or Adams Morgan. The parties will be large and lively at both places.

You can also find us at these pit stops:

• Edgewood (Metropolitan Branch Trail) 
• NoMa
• Capitol Riverfront at Canal Park 
• Columbia Heights (afternoon)* 

*For those who just can't get enough of the fun, come to the Bike from Work pit stop in Columbia Heights from 4 to 7 p.m. We'll be there to let the good times roll, BicycleSPACE style.  

Please be sure to register. Signing up really does count as meaningful data that helps improve bicycling facilities.

See you and your bike in the Bike to Work Day spotlight Friday! 

--------------------

Public service announcement: One of the best kept transportation secrets is a program called Guaranteed Ride Home. It serves bicyclists, transit riders and others who live car-free or car-lite. If you need to get home in an emergency, unexpected or unscheduled situation, your ride is guaranteed for free.

Dear Mt. Vernon Triangle: Hello, again

Co-owner Phil Koopman (left), co-owner Erik Kugler and General Manager David Dorn outside the soon-to-be BicycleSPACE shop at 440 K St NW.

In anticipation of opening our brick-and-mortar shop this spring at 440 K St NW, BicycleSPACE is saying "hello, again" to Mt. Vernon Triangle.

Co-owner Erik Kugler will speak about the shop at the May 5 meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6E. The meeting takes place at 6:30 p.m. at the Shaw library.

Likening the Lyric Building shop to a "dream come true," Kugler said, "it's exactly the kind of space we've been working for since our inception."

Recalling BicycleSPACE's first temporary shop in Mt. Vernon Triangle in 2010, Kugler said, "no matter how big our company gets, we will always remember the early support of the Mt. Vernon Triangle community and consider Mt. Vernon Triangle to be our home."

BicycleSPACE will also be in the neighborhood for these mid-month events:

5/15 Bike to Work Day. We'll host a pit stop outside our shop from 7 to 9 a.m. Pre-register to be counted as a regional bicycle commuter and to reserve a coveted t-shirt. 

5/16 Spring Fest. Hurray for spring and opening day of the Triangle's FRESHFARM Market. This creates a fine occasion to come together, celebrate the season and prepare for the opening of our shop. We'll have a table on the plaza from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. to share bikelove and community pride with our neighbors. Visit us and shop the market to nourish mind, body and  spirit.

Please visit our Facebook events page to view the May activities we're organizing from our temporary shop in Chinatown at 700 5th St NW. Please subscribe to our newsletter to tune into BicycleSPACE community events. Take a two-wheeled spring fling with us!

Pie ride on Pi Day

Saturday is March 14, a day math nerds cherish as Pi Day (3.14). Not everyone is a math wizard, but everyone eats pie. If you're skilled at math, eating, socializing and/or bicycling, we invite you to our Pi(e) Day celebration.

BicycleSPACE Celebrates Pi(e) Day
Saturday, March 14, 2015
11:30 am
Departing from our shop at 700 5th St NW
Ending with pie at Curbside Cafe, 257 15th St SE

Our regularly scheduled Cupcake Ramble is becoming a pie ride for the day. After a 15-mile ride along this route, we'll end sweetly over pies from our good friend Acme Pie Co.

We'll enjoy them at Curbside Cafe, which has graciously allowed us to bring in the pies. We're deeply grateful that this family-owned small business has opened its doors to us. Curbside Cafe is the same as the pink Curbside Cupcakes food truck you've surely seen around town. This company is a leader in the DMV Food Truck Association and a strong voice in civic affairs. We respect their leadership in the community and appreciate their hospitality to invite us (and our pies) into their neighborhood cafe.

Please plan to buy coffee or lunch to show our appreciation for their kind gesture. (Here's the menu.)

As you ride to the shop, be mindful of possible street closures due to the Rock'n'Roll Marathon. Outwit the closures, plan your route and RSVP below to celebrate pi(e) with BicycleSPACE.

Love was found!

While it wasn't as yucky and wet as last year, Valentine's Day brought cold weather again this year. Nevertheless, our second-annual Looking for Love Velo Hunt tasked intrepid bike lovers to solve our riddles of love by sharing photos on Instagram and Twitter.

Using the hashtag #lookingforlovedc, 35 lovely riders wandered through some of D.C.'s most (and least) romantic landmarks before finishing up for a spirited afterparty at our future neighbors, One Eight Distilling. At the distillery, we enjoyed some fine spirits, took tours and gave away prizes:

Most points: Team 12

Winners of two $25 BicycleSPACE gift cards

Best Photo: Team 4

Winners of two BicycleSPACE T-shirts

Best Couple Costume: Team 7

Winners of a pair of BicycleSPACE steel tumblers

Thanks for joining us! Relive the fun or see what happened in the photos below. 

We'll be hosting more scavenger hunts in the spring, so stay tuned to our social media accounts and subscribe to our newsletter for updates. 

Plaid Ride & Ranger Games 2014

Hundreds gathered in Mt. Vernon Square this Saturday for our 2nd Annual Plaid Ride and Ranger Games. The event started off with a social ride through downtown on our way to the Ranger Games on Kingman Island.

The rules were simple: wear plaid - be rad. With lumberjack implements in hand, there were no problems with either stipulation!

Lumberjacks and jills of all ages filled the streets.

Our group wove through the National Mall on our way to Kingman Island in SE. Surely, the combination of grids on bikes on a red street system befuddled tourists, or at the very least left a lasting impression of good plaiditudes.

It's also probably worth mentioning: the Monkey Wagon is back! There's something so satisfying about a really loud sound system, and we're glad we got to share that with you!

Neighbors cheered us on as we passed through Capitol Hill. It was like when Santa comes through your neighborhood on a fire engine, except this time it was lumberjacks on bikes. 

Kingman Island sits just east of RFK stadium in the Anacostia river. It's a great little gem of the district, and we had gorgeous weather.

The Bumper Jacksons provided the perfect soundtrack for the days events. They do shows of all sizes, but they love doing small, local shows the best! A big shout out to Banjo Brothers, who sponsored the concert and continues to show us that bikes make us family through great intimate live shows!

Let the games begin! First up in the feats-of-strength: Hammertime, presented by All-City Cycles! 

It paid to be nimble on New Belgium's Sap Spill Hill Climb. Competitors fought for glory and tickets to the ultimate Ranger Banquet.

Cleverhood Rain Rangers raced Bromptons in their waterproof cycling capes to retrieve big ol' cups of fresh Anacostia. 

Rangers adhere to strict nutritional guidelines and are powered by Acme Pie Company and New Belgium.

Bikes don't have hooves, so they don't need horseshoes, but they do need good locks. We tossed Abus U-locks all day, and they were working as good as new.

The Log Lug was a popular activity. Riders had to take a log-laden Surly Big Dummy through a grassy obstacle course to compete for the prize: a snazzy new lid from Bern! 

There's not as much mountain biking in DC as we would like, so when we get the chance to bust out some fat fat meat, we take it. James sent us a few of their great mountain and cyclocross bikes for us to get thoroughly filthy. 

The dirt loop was also Cross Check friendly. Then again, there isn't much terrain that a Cross Check can't handle.

Thanks #bikedc for joining us for the Plaid Ride and Ranger Games, and a big shoutout to all the volunteers and sponsors who helped make this possible. Proceeds from ticket and beer sales totaled over $1500 and will all go to Living Classrooms who manages and helps preserve Kingman Island.

We enjoyed hosting the event, and hope to do it even bigger, badder, and plaid-er next year! What events or activities would you like to see?

Photos by Francis Tatem

Story by Kevin Sundeen