Looking for Love

Beyond being inherently mushy, this year’s Valentine’s Day was downright slushy.  We almost canceled the Looking for Love Scavenger Hunt event we had planned for Saturday.  But, happily, some folks felt it’s never too slushy to go looking for love on bicycles! And, sure enough, as soon as we stepped foot outside of the shop, everything wet stopped falling from the sky.  Truth be told, though, there was plenty of splish-splash on the ground and we were going to be at the mercy of our fenders, and, in my case, woefully inadequate footwear. Too bad I didn’t have any garbage-bag toe warmers this time. Regardless, we were excited to set off on a quest for love... 

With three teams, competition for the $50 prize to Busboys and Poets was not going to be particularly fierce, so we decided to pool our intellectual resources and ride as one big team.  That way, we'd collect as many points as possible, split the prize, and all have a couple of beers after a fun day riding.

Since I penned the riddles of love, I was along more as a spectator, and I enjoyed watching everyone come up with creative answers to the provided scavenger hunt clues. Case in point: one of the answers was the pentagon, but no one felt like crossing the river, and since we were already in the Natural History Museum, it was decided, to the amusement of the rest of the visitors, to hold hands and form a pentagon of bodies in the entrance of the museum.

The Natural History Museum turned out to be a jackpot for clever answers to my hints: we found and attempted to steal the Hope Diamond (get a priceless rock for your sweetheart), failed to touch some orchids (don’t pick the flowers!), and made tongues at a giraffe (second largest mammal heart).

We were having a great time in the museum, and we didn’t much want to go back outside, but the siren song of love beckoned us to the AMOR sculpture at the National Gallery of Art, and the Kennedy Center (only president to win the Purple Heart), with a stop at Virginia Avenue (an avenue, “for lovers”).

“Hey Mike, come over here!” (Jumps in slush puddle, splashing everyone)

After two hours, it was with warmed hearts and frozen toes that we decided to return back to the shop, and what was waiting for us? Mini, crumble-top cherry pies (sized for two) from our pal Sol of Acme Pie Company and hot coffee from Vigilante Coffee! It was, dare I say it, the sweetest end to a lovely, if rather cold, ride.  Well, that, and our trip to Busboys and Poets to cash in the grand prize!

If you want to see more from our adventure, check out all the photo submissions the participants collected here.  

Thanks to those who came out!

For those that didn't make it, we'll be doing more scavenger hunts like this soon.  Sign up for our email list, follow us on Twitter or Like us on Facebook to learn more about our fun and FREE events!

By Kevin Sundeen, Event Coordinator

Staff Camping Trip

Vortices, polar or otherwise, be damned, the BicycleSPACE crew was going camping last Friday. I’ve never been bicycle camping, and when I go backpacking I try to pack ultralight, getting by with only the bare essentials. It didn't go down like that with this round of bike camping because we were rolling deep with a Surly Big Dummy. It took one look at Austin’s cargo bike piled high—tents, cookware, knives of every shape and size, a wooden cutting board, a tool roll, water, a bundle of firewood, beer and food for six hungry dudes—to know this would be relative luxury...

Francis, on his Surly LHT, taking a break from hauling production gear, Jake on his Nature Boy Zona, and Austin on the aforementioned Big Dummy, left the shop before dark, and worked their way up the C&O canal towpath to Swain’s Lock Campground. Austin admitted to bonking a few times, but since he was carrying 100+ pounds of bike and gear up a muddy towpath, there was no heckling his barge-like pace. You don’t heckle a man with that many knives.

After I popped home to throw my camping gear in a backpack, I grabbed by own Nature Boy Zona, and headed over to the towpath to wait for Tony and Adam, on their respective bikes, an All-City Macho Man and Surly Crosscheck. It would have been a little creepy waiting in the dark by Glen Echo, but, luckily, Tony and Adam had multiple Light and Motion lights strapped on their helmets and bikes.  I could see them coming practically all the way from Georgetown, lights over the horizon style a la Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Once they did arrive, we enjoyed mashing away on the frozen mud, lighting up the towpath with over 1000 cumulative lumens: an Urban 400, Urban 550, and a Stella. For reference, the user “Unicorn” at candlepowerforums.com (of course there’s a forum for that) claims that the spotlights mounted on the side of police cars are about 800 lumens.

We arrived at the campsite to a feast that only Austin could have prepared with all of the gear that seemed to spawn out of the black depths of his Big Dummy’s rack bags. Cincinnati Chili cooked over an open fire, canned oysters, and plenty of beers for dessert (don’t tell the park service).  A few nips from some flasks, combined with the effort of riding up to Swain’s Lock, made sure everyone slept soundly—most of us in tents, although Jake, in utter contrast to Austin’s kitchen-sink approach to camping, slept in a hammock and bivy-bag combo that he could fit in his Chrome Berlin.

The next morning was a chilly one, and I for one, found it impossible to get out of my toasty sleeping bag before 8AM, at which time Tony, Francis, and Jake had the unenviable task of riding back into town for a full day of work. A good bit later, Adam, Austin and myself cleaned and packed up the campsite while enjoying some nice camp coffee. Austin, of course, had warm boots on, but Adam and I suffered with frozen toes due to the ample vents on our cycling shoes, until Adam had the genius idea to use the campsite-provided trash bags as toe warmers. We looked a little bit homeless-chic as we rode home with empty trash bags around our toes and beer can filled ones strapped to our bikes. I suppose it’s better to look warm and a little odd than cold and miserable. As someone said, there’s no such thing as bad weather, just improper clothing. In a pinch, the trash bags turned out right proper.  

By Kevin Sundeen, Event Coordinator

Kate's Billy Goat eating Surly Troll

This is my purple Surly Troll single-speed, baby fat bicycle. Built to the lowest standards (exempting the frame, natch). Built tough-- my Troll is perfect for mountain biking and definitely at home in the snow. Riding the unplowed Met Branch Trail is the Troll's dream.

She's equipped with Soma hubs laced to Weinemann 65mm rims with pink and orange powder coated spokes, "The Pig" headset (one of our favorites here at BicycleSPACE, the thing is bombproof), 32t Surly Chainring on a old Deore crank with an FSA bash guard, Avid BB5 up front, BB7 in the back, 16t & 18t cogs (this baby fat only masquerades as a single speed!), Pedros "Trixie" tool for any unforeseen trail issues, and a Bern beer opener thingy attached to the fork.

For grips I went for my cheapo favorite, ESI Orange with a SpaceOr bar. My wheels got Kenda Slant 6 26x2.5 tires with Q-tubes and Gorilla tape. For pro braking power I used Jagwire ripcord cables and housing. As for the rest of the little bits I've got a Velocity bottle cage, Single Digit 5s, Shimano UN55 bottom bracket, Aztec 160mm and Clarks 180mm rotors, Salsa flip lock, Salsa stem, Bontrager seatpost and a Specialized saddle.

Goes to show you can make a sick bike on a budget. My troll thing definitely lives the surly life. 

By Kate Schrock, Assistant Service Manager 

March on Washington 50th Anniversary

Thousands gathered on the National Mall to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington.  President Barack Obama addressed the crowd from the very steps where Martin Luther King delivered his on iconic "I have a dream speech" on the Lincoln Memorial. 

A bicycle was the vehicle of choice for many of the attendees. 

Photos by Francis Tatem, Marketing Manager 

Stand Up and Deliver

Strip the Sticky Black Icky

Hi, I'm Dave, one of the production mechanics here at BicycleSPACE with a tip to help you keep your bike out of my stand.

Lubricating your bike will lengthen it's life and make your rides easier, but dousing your chain with lube will result in a layer of grit and goo that will wear out your drive train far quicker than necessary, causing poor shifting and skipping under load. Wiping off any excess lube on your chain will help prevent this problem, but if your drive train is already a mess of sticky black icky, you need to clean it before it wears significantly. The problem is that a rag won't do a thorough job cleaning your chain, especially in the bushings (the moving bits that allow your chain to “bend.)”

It used to be a pain to clean your chain after it got gritty. When I was a kid, I spent Saturday mornings cleaning and oiling my old Schwinn with a toothbrush and a pint jar of gasoline, lubing it back up with pungent 3-in-1 oil. Things have progressed since then and we have better, less explosive methods. My favorite solution is a mechanical chain cleaner, a device that scrubs the chain with degreaser—this isn't as scary as it sounds, nor as expensive. Park Tool produces an excellent little machine that snaps around the chain, cleans all four sides with brushes and a solvent (I suggest Pedro's Oranj Peelz, a natural, non-toxic solvent that smells of citrus), captures any stray metal shavings with a magnet and also has a sponge to wipe it clean as it emerges, keeping solvent in the gizmo and not on the floor, the bike, your hands, etc. A quick wipe with a clean, dry rag and you're ready to apply lube, wipe off the excess, and go for a squeaky-free ride.

Some people never clean their chain and their bike suffers for it.  If you care about your bike, consider giving it some needed attention and get comfortable using a chain cleaner.  The process only takes a short while and will help keep your bike in great shape.  

By Dave Rooney, Mechanic

I think I can, I think Icon

The other day, I went for a ride by myself. This is unusual for me, as I much prefer to ride with a group, or at least one other person. I find it easier to ride harder and longer with a little company, as well as more enjoyable. Well this time, I was not so lucky to have a partner.

Let me be a little more honest, I hate riding alone. As I am training for next race season, though, I had no choice. I needed to get out and ride, so I forced myself to. It was cold, and not in that crisp sort of way-- just a raw, unrelenting cold that I could not get used to, only fight against.

So I rode, by myself, listening to and watching my labored breathing as it turned to smoke as soon as it escaped my lungs. I thought about a lot of things, as one is wont to do when in isolation. Soon though, I started to realize that I was riding fast, and pushing my legs very hard. I started to feel a burn in my quads– the kind that signals a tightening of your muscles as they prepare for a harder effort. I felt good...

My thoughts turned then to my bike. It is new, relatively at least. It is aluminum, which is unusual for me as I have only owned carbon or steel in the last 8 years.  And it just feels excited, like it just wants to go– faster, further, more aggressively. It feels like it was designed for this, the solo ride in the winter, done only to prepare for some future goal. The kind of ride where you struggle to push yourself until finally you break through some subconscious wall to another part of your brain where you are a little more sinister, a little less concerned about your own well-being, a little more focused on that burn in your muscles.

By this point, you must be wondering what I’m getting at. Well the thing is, it is difficult to get to this state-- the jacket unzipped and flapping in the wind, tongue hanging out of mouth like a rabid animal, racing some demon up a hill in the depth of winter-- without the proper equipment. And I’m not talking about oversized bottom brackets and electronic shifting and hydraulic braking. I’m talking about a bike that disappears beneath you. The type of bike that responds to your input immediately and effortlessly, that moves smoothly and quietly so you can forget about it and just ride.

I ride a Jamis Icon. I got it a few months ago. As I mentioned, it is aluminum, which I was a little nervous about. Notwithstanding, it offers a surprisingly comfortable ride, while giving me everything I need in terms of performance to compete. Yes, it may be made up of plenty of acronyms and catch-phrases (BB30, Small-Batch Aluminum, tapered head-tube, blah, blah), but the bottom line is, the bike is great.

Know this: it is all about the ride. Not the name on the bike, not what it is made of, not the price-tag or what pro wins races on it. You know you found the right bike for you when you can ride yourself to the edge, overheat in the brutal cold of winter, be happy in your discomfort, all while forgetting entirely about what you are doing it on. For me, that bike is the Icon.

Stop U Turns on Penn

In response to a lack of law enforcement BicycleSPACE and local commuters took to the streets to demonstrate against the dangerous practice of illegal U Turns on Pennsylvania Avenue, America's Main Street. 

Video by Francis Tatem, Marketing Manager 

Lesly Jones

Meet Lesly, Car-free for the past 10 years, she's a Grandmother that doesn't mind knocking out a century every now and then. As an active member of Black Women Bike DC, Lesly hopes to encourage others to get involved in an activity that's brought her a lifetime of joy.