Your bike hides no secrets: A mechanic's desire to see well loved bikes

After turning the wrench on bike after bike you begin to notice patterns and anomalies in the sort of lives that bicycles live.  They start speaking to you in differing ways as you nurture them in the stand, attempting to fulfill the love they are so often crying to receive.  Its something that I imagine paralleling a therapist listening to story after story while attempting to navigate the tribulations, secrets, aspirations and difficulties of various patients.  Servicing  peoples bicycles is like having a door opened to the deeper realities of these little machines.  Its as if we mechanics have been granted an intimate tour that tells us of the love and attention or neglect and carelessness that said bikes have experienced.  From severe cases of reoccurring trauma and abuse to paranoia induced cleanliness indicative of overbearing love, we see it all as the bike hides nothing in its varying states.  To the mechanics eyes, ears and hands your bike bears no secret.

Riding on a flat tire to get back home is one of the quickest ways
to throw your wheels seriously out of whack.  Getting a ride or walking
will save you a headache down the road

Your bike wants to be loved

Numerous are the occasion that my soul has been crushed as bike after bike arrives in my stand to share with me their all to often harsh realities.  Skipping gears, bent derailleurs, broken spokes, bald tires, bent handlebars, indexed bottom brackets and headsets: you name it, these are the more obvious first signs that often foreshadow much deeper neglect.  From overambitious and "beyond the intended use" of the bicycle to blatant misuse, I see bikes in states that absolutely amaze me.  Often times I have pondered wide eyed with my peers as we contemplate and imagine the stories behind these bikes.

It seems that basic education, riding technique and simple bike care are often the missing aspects that underscore the varying states of countless bicycles that I and thousands of other mechanics have rehabilitated.  The lack of pre-ride once overs, post ride tlc, post crash inspection, fines in bike handling and the employment of gentle shifting techniques become glaringly obvious as we scan through the aftermath.  Even the best mechanics in the world (no I am not one of them) need your help with preventive maintenance and good riding technique if we are to help keep the gears going as you expect to see a return on the life expectancy of the beautiful bicycle(s) you worked so hard to acquire.

Cyclocross rider Katie Kompton finessing her way through the rough stuff
by letting her body weight off the saddle and her limbs act as suspension

Be gentle and you shall be rewarded

If there is one big drawback (there are many) that modern racing has on recreational and commuter cyclists (no i am not anti racing) its the deeply ingrained mentality that we often have to "mash" and "go hard" at mostly any cost when riding "seriously".  We feel the need to take big risks, push our bodies and gear to their absolute threshold and in turn write off any adverse side effects that incur to our gear as necessary casualties.  "Yeah man.. I totally broke my pedal while I was crushing down that rock garden" is the kind of stuff I hear regularly as some cyclists almost seem to boast about their suffering bikes.  Its as if getting gnarly is directly proportional to how much you can manage to fuck your bike up throughout a season.  Hearing things like "My drive train is totally blown.. I mean I put in so many miles this month on that new cassette" as said rider fails to recognize that shifting under 100% load on uphill pushes will make short use of any cassette/freewheel regardless of how well the shift ramps seem to function is not uncommon.  This is the mentality of a culture that is dominated not only by a hyper disposable/throwaway approach to cycling but by a gear smashing, getting rad at all cost attitude and is reverberated throughout the adverts and rhetoric of the racing world.  The bottom line is that regardless of whether you consider yourself a casual/recreational cyclist or a serious/sporty rider, there is so much that can be done to prevent us from wasting our way through unnecessary amounts of gear by being realistic, riding safely and understanding basic mechanics.

getting aero sometimes means getting air tho....right?

 

  Experiment, watch, listen, learn

As a developing and learning cyclists (and veteran cyclists too for that matter) there should be no shame in asking questions, watching tutorials, attempting to get your hands dirty with basic tune ups and watching experienced cyclists ride.  Learning starts as soon as we open up the doors to criticism, engaging in trial and error and become ready to try new things.  From riding techniques to mechanical advice, there are people out there in the cycling community who want to help you out in any way they can: Forums, local bike shops, group rides and bloggers/vloggers to name just a few.  There is a sea of resource out there to help you give your bike the love it needs in all the good ways you can.  Education is what firstly predicates the subjects discussed in this post and I hope the doors of curiosity and question asking will be the byproduct of my words here.  Please ask! Please help us mechanics take care of your bike as we want nothing more than to see it in a healthy state of being!

Is recreational cycling just a rich boys club?

Cycling as a sport has historically been predicated on racing.  We have modeled our bicycles and appearance as cyclists (both on and off the bike) for decades now after our favorite racing heroes.  We have measured our physical efforts by the same athletes and in turn molded both our rides and riding styles with performance based metrics and goals in mind.  The bicycle lifestyle has become a pseudo carbon copy of what we see on euro-sport/sporza, read in bicycling times/dirt rag and lust over in bike shops the world over.  Entry cost into this sport of ours soars easily into the quadruple digit figures before factoring all the cycling apparatus, lifestyle gear and accessories. 

Being taken as a "serious cyclist" even within the supposed "non-racing" cliques has become increasingly difficult as bloggers work diligently to bombard our desktops with images of the slickest, newest, most stylish buzz-kit of the moment.  Acceptance into these uber-chic cycling communities seems to be a silent rite of passage dictated by monetary status, physical ability and lush amounts of leisure time.  Seldom do we see features of "serious" riders/rides with people who use lots of "dated" second hand gear, lack adventure/racer cred or have the ability to engage in "epic rides" for whatever reason physical, monetary or social reasons.  We see photo dump after photo dump of typically well dressed, male cyclist riding on often strikingly beautiful hand built/custom bikes, with absolutely amazing bling parts while often looking like doppelgangers of one another.

This is often the first point of contact for newly interested people getting into cycling.  The blogs, the races, the magazines and bike shop experiences will almost always leave a taste in the mouth and a mental echo of how cycling should look, feel, cost and be like.  If the first image planted in our newly developing cyclist psyche is that of an affluent white male flooded with recognition and style points, we will continue to see individuals attempt to measure their own personal experience based on false ideals and disproportionate representation.

The message hasn't changed much since the early
century. Get rich, get fit, get a nice bike, get the girls.

Cycling has no race, status, size or color

Silly though the header above may sound, it feels almost essential to emphasize the fact that bike riding is something that nearly anyone, anywhere on the planet can do for relatively little to no money at all.  The activity in and of itself is one of the few social equalizers that exists today: an activity where people can exercise, engage socially with others and negate costly forms of transport simultaneously.  Cycling is a hobby that transcends the definition of hobby in the sense that it melds seamlessly with lifestyle to the degree that the user makes it so.  The line between "bicycle commutes" and "serious bike rides" become blurred as longer rides often become forms of transport, exercise and social stimulation all at one time.  

The problem with these hypothetically simple and low-cost forms of cycling is that they often never occur due to elitism, sexism, and varying forms of prejudiced that unfold in the aforementioned contexts.  The glamorizing of unrealistic levels of monetary success, superior fitness and high social status are key deterrents to an otherwise openly accessible and affordable activity.  As people are increasingly introduced to these false faces of cycling they are being subconsciously swayed from ever dipping their feet into the waters of experimentation.  If you never believe that you can take up cycling as a form of commuting or sport because you are either too poor, physically unequipped, not macho enough, the right color or gender, or simply not smart enough to learn about it all, you have fallen victim to the alienation of modern-day elite bike culture.

The legendary Jacquie Phelan.  One of cycling's first big female faces to break
norms and give women cyclists a positive image.  Still riding that same bike...

Representation and integration

When we start walking the walk and talking the talk we can begin to make a tangible difference for long-established cyclists and new faces alike.  When we invite people on our rides who have "inferior" quality bicycles that are "ill-equipped" for the job we can truly start opening new doors for those who are curious.  It is when we represent the masses of cycling with realistic physical figures, black/brown skin tones, and non cis-gendered passing males in adverts and blog posts that we start to tear down the walls of alienation and misrepresentation in cycling communities.

Whether writing blog posts or talking about these things personally with people, I try my best to use images of people with all physical builds, photos of women, children and faces of color and all walks of life in general.  I try to make it clear that anyone is capable of getting into riding if they desire, regardless of what contrary words and images the marketing powers that be have conjured for display and sale; regardless of monetary status or class.  I try to encourage everyone to treat one another equally, with similar levels of respect regardless of preferred cycling disciplines, age, social status or any other potentially divisive factor.  When I ride my bike and discuss cycling ideas, I try to do so in a way that I would want others to do as well; attentive, careful, compassionate and all-embracing.  If we can all broaden our horizons, subscribe less to the "serious" rhetoric, ideals and behavior that dominates the cycling waves and be more openhearted/minded about all of this, we will grant such a service to all parties considered by helping perpetuate this simple little activity that we have all come to love so much - and not just our white male counterparts.

Rigid is flexible: the versatility of steel, all terrain bikes

I took a train up to Santa Fe yesterday and rode uphill out of town for a few miles into a beautiful trail system called Dale Ball.  The trails transitioned in and out of varying states of smooth and flowy, gradual to steep climbing/descending with rocky and technical sections throughout.  I rode about 8 miles total (of trail) and another 7 or so of pavement.  The ride was amazingly fun, I suffered no flats, my bike performed flawlessly, and riding at my own pace made for a great outing with no stress to rush; though I did ride somewhat quickly overall.  I enjoyed the ride on my beautiful, fully rigid 1985 Kuwahara All terrain bike (yes I did just use that term).  The bike is no frills.  Cromo steel, friction shifting and utilizing "old" technology by today's standards.  I rode on 26" x 2.25" tires inflated to low pressure.  Wide handlebars and a brooks.  No nonsense, good-ol time tested stuff that has worked well for me.  I find myself returning more and more to this style of riding.  A good pavement push up toward some wonderful dirt trail is followed by a ride on yes, the same bike.  You might be thinking "One bike.. for pavement and dirt trail rides?".  The thing is that I like to keep things simple these days.  There is something about riding a diversified bike for multiple disciplines that just keeps you honest.  I don't want to make this post about gear as much as I want to make it about riding fully rigid steel bikes, the type that will get you from your door, to the trail for riding/hiking and back to the place where you started from.

One of the earliest versions of the mountain bike beautifully made by Tom Ritchey.
A fine bike capable of doing just about any kind of riding.  Load it with gear and you have a camping/touring bike.

Wanderlust

I come from a background of riding pavement and lots of it.  My first real interest in bikes began with thin tired road/fixed gear/single speed bikes and thus all my riding was on pavement.  I learned the value of pacing myself, negotiating big hills, maintaining a healthy cadence for my not so amazing knees and overall good riding etiquette.  I loved road bikes and the freedom they provided me but I wanted more exploration.  I knew of vast trail systems that existed in my front and back yard with no real way of riding them on the bikes that I was building and using up until that point. Eventually at one of my local bike hangouts I found an early 90's, fully rigid rock hopper frame/fork and built it up as a single speed with plush 2.3" tires.  I subsequently gave it the full gear treatment, rode it everywhere and loved it.  I was surprised at how amazingly well the bike did for city riding as it did on the loose stuff.  I could roll over massive cracks and breakups in the roads, hop on and off sidewalks if needed, roll over just about any imperfection in the streets and feel very comfortable doing it all.  I definitely noticed a slight gain in weight and reduction in speed with the new "mountain bike" but was having so much fun and enjoying the new freedom on the thing that it didn't much matter at the time.  The bug bit me and I started really getting into off road riding.  I started looking all over and around town for single track, fire road and new hiking trails to explore.

One of the only photos I have of my first ATB.
preparing to carefully descend the rocky La Bajada

Doing it all

 

My skills as a rider went through the roof when I started riding rigid bikes on dirt.  The bike control learned by riding off road was something that would directly translate to my ability on pavement as well.  Conversely my endurance, pacing and technique from riding long road rides greatly enhanced my abilities on the dirt just as well.  It was as if both disciplines of riding mutually benefited one another.  The best part was when I started incorporating road and dirt into long adventurous rides without any particular theme.  Riding paved roads on these bikes to trail heads opened the door to out and back trip that gave me a little bit of everything in one ride.  It was engaging in this style of cycling that began to lay to waste to the mentality of the necessity for dedicated genre bikes.  I was discovering that I could do it all on one modest machine while challenging myself in the process.  Having a jack of all trades bike inevitably slowed me down on both the road and dirt, but as I became more comfortable with doing everything just a little bit slower and stopped comparing my speed with others, I knew that I could have a ton of fun with fewer bikes for fewer dollars.

 Much of this approach came from a time when I started to critically take note of how and why we cyclists endure so much pressure from the cycling industry and cycling culture as a whole.  The pressure to fit into boxes.  The pressure to look the part.  The pressure to be taken seriously as a cyclist by other cyclists.  I wanted to break free from the gear obsessed, mile counting, weight pinching, high speed at all costs culture and enjoy riding with what was accessible, affordable, and easily repairable.  It was and still is in a way to me a form of silent protest, a proverbial middle finger to the marketeers that have often tried to sell us lower quality versions of the bikes that we sometimes had all along.  Like so many others I only felt that I needed more, newer, ever so subtly differing bikes and gear when I allowed myself to be sold the idea that it was a necessity.

Fetishizing the bicycle-toy in the name of the "greenness"

So I wrote a post earlier this year titled "The Green Paradox" that asked some questions about the seemingly ass backwards mentality that pushes some of use to buy a labor intensive, cost prohibitive, toxic in production methods/materials and often disposable bicycle as a form of "transportation" in the name of greenness.  It talked about the act of mindless upgrading, the pressure to have the most future-tech bike possible and all of the issues that come to mind when contemplating the nature of mindless consumption for the promise of lighter, better and stronger.  You might almost forget that we are talking about bicycles here, but the lets remember that this is happening all around us in the typical guise of "green cycling".  You know, spending that $3k+ on a full suspension mountain bike or full carbon road bike is full of anti global warming merit after all; because when we aren't busy commuting for work, family life and leisure purposes in our 20-something mile to the gallon petrol guzzlers, gallivanting about on our mostly-plastic framed, hydraulic hosed, electronic filled, suspension oiled play toys is synonymous with a truly green pastime.  Yeah...

I was once visited by vaguely cyclist-looking riders that told me I needed to ride my local trails like this

Bikes are great.. mostly

Obviously I enjoy bikes and riding them, just as nearly anyone who is probably reading this does; but one of the biggest aspects that underscores the differentiating factor between sensible and "green" purchasing habits vs the contrary is a semi-concise awareness of the resource sapping that incurs in the form of labor, mining/extraction, refinement, manufacturing, packaging, advertisement, reallocation and upkeep/repair of such produced bicycles.  I am talking about the foresight that comes with knowing that the hobby (for most people) that is cycling comes both literally and figuratively at a massively exhaustive cost.  Getting out on the road with this years new play-thing is in every sense of the word taxing, and I can't seem to see it in any other light here.  Of course the input/output (resources used to miles traveled) of nearly any bicycle will stand strong against the automobile if leveraged in terms of miles per dollar, but that seems to be the equivalent of comparing the efficacy of a leaf blower to a rake made of pure gold, or ivory for that matter: as if to say that there is inherent goodness based on the fact that one uses human power vs some form of hydrocarbon-whatever.  Just because we are pedaling our way around neighborhood and trail systems with our expensive "green machines" does not mean that it holds enviro-clout under the scrutinizing eye.  

So where do we really draw the line?  What does the all too subjective notion of greenness really amount to anyway?  Its difficult to answer in short, and my observations above are certainly just that; subjective.  They come from places of personal observation, weighing moral values, asking challenging questions and embracing new changes.  Though the realizations that I come to and adhere by may be differing to many, I have to think that there can be a fairly general consensus as to what the hell we are really doing with bikes, what the cost/value of it all is and if it is really "green" at the end of the day.  My goal here is not so much to sit down and crunch various metrics, to shame any particular person or to encourage people to get off their already acquired bikes (be it the aforementioned varietal or not) as much as it is to encourage positive steps in forward thinking with regard to future consumption.  I am talking about embracing new ideas revolving around increased longevity, enhanced foresight, reduced redundancy and having a higher understanding of what goes into our "hobbies" and what in turn comes out of them.

non-fitness model female cyclists get rad on
 relatively normal/useful/repairable/affordable bikes!!!?
That KOM jersey on the right though... :)

We can't all be commuters.. but...

There is a huge number of people out there who would love nothing more than to commute by bike but for varying reasons can not.  From epic millage between the work place and home to physically debilitating conditions that prevent them from extended periods in the saddle, it is not my place or anyone else to shame and blame here.  Most people will only ever mount a saddle (or recumbent/"adaptive" bike seat for that matter) on the weekends, days off, after work or whatever else downtime is available.  Though we cant all be commuters, we can certainly exercise discerning levels of educated purchasing for these equally important times of cycling.  Maybe its just a short ride for exercise, a long ride from one cafe to another, or simply trying to develop good balance; a modestly priced, realistically designed, comfortably setup, repairable, strong and replaceable bike can and certainly will get the job done.  

We seem to forget that we can exercise, get around short distances, be outdoors and embrace cycling altogether with out subscribing to the notion that we need the ultra expensive, toxic bike toys that we are being sold as we try to look the part of the "serious" cyclist.  By attempting to "hang with the guys" we sell ourselves the notion that recreation riding "for fun" needs to be synonymous with ultra-luxury oriented bicycle/component consumption habits.  There is no reason why we can't get out there on a non-race-machine and get exercise, adventure, traverse from place to place and most importantly have a good time doing it all. 

Two years blogging

As of this month I have consistently been writing this blog for two years now, with posts initially spanning book reviews and mechanic tidbits to more of a short essay style series of posts that gravitate heavily on ideals that often dictate the marketing, attitudes, goals, appearance and overall philosophy of cyclists and the companies that manufacture cycling related goods.  Contemplating bike related design, ideology, politics and philosophy has become one of my favorite things to write about on the blog and has enabled me to develop new ideas, abandon old ones, forge new attitudes and grow overall as a cyclist, writer, mechanic and teacher.  Though not many know about or read this blog, it has served more as a personal journal that documents ideas and questions that float around as I become inspired and curious by everything spanning bike related conversation, reading online forums and blogs, observing cyclists, my own personal trial and error, mistakes and Epiphanies in the workshop, observing cycling marketing/design and mostly just going out and riding my bike.  Though a lot has come to me during my rides, it is usually slightly afterward that many of my questions and curiosity unfurl and derive themselves from personal experience and my own conjecture. 

New experiences

Over the last two years I have had a lot of new and inspiring experiences in many different contexts.  From rides with new friends to different environments in bike shops, I have met many new faces and had a lot of time to contemplate differing points of views regarding bike stuffs. From full-tilt nu-gear motivated technocrats to die-hard Vintage iconoclasts, I have been offered many different cups of kool-aid of which to taste, guzzle, and more often than not spit back out entirely.  Black and white forms of compartmentalizing seem to split the bike community fairly well into little chunks of the bigger pie and I want nothing to do with it.  As the last two years has come and gone, one of my biggest developing goals has been to disassociate myself from any "type" of cyclist (see my "Not a roadie, not a mountain biker, just a cyclist").  Regardless of what I ride, whenever I choose to ride it, wearing whatever clothes I choose to wear in the process of doing so; I hope to be seen as someone who loves riding bikes, studying its vast culture and history, advocating for its use for various purposes and being involved in the cycling community abroad.

Its time for us all to grow up and bury the hatchet once and for all...

Still learning, still blogging

I have seen, heard, and though about a lot of stuff; but it in no way rivals the amount of things I have yet to experience and hopefully learn.  Growing my skills as a cyclist, writer, mechanic and teacher I hope to move forward in a positive and progressive fashion, continuing to exercise discerning levels of skepticism, willingness to embrace new things and opening up to new dialogue.  I hope to become versed in all of the aforementioned realms and wish to do so by listening carefully, learning well from my mistakes and those of others as well.  Receiving both positive and negative feedback from my peers in a way that opens up healthy dialogue along the way are things that I will look fore more and more.  Having actual conversations as opposed to the heated, emotionally driven arguments that tend to fall flat on their faces from their own dizzying cyclical nature are what I hope to experience the most as I will do my best to foster a good sense of acceptance in being forthcoming.

 I want to thank everyone who has ever read this blog and been supportive in the process of me continuing to write.  Those of you who have taken the time to flesh out ideas, engage in intelligent discussion and make friendly, non vehement suggestions: thank you.  Those of you who don't even read my blog or care much to ponder the topics of the blog but have been friendly, supporting and loving along the way: thank you for these things.  I look forward to more of this and am excited about this crazy future of all of ours.  Cheers everyone! 

Car culture, illusions of safety and commuting alternatives

I have been cycling in a city environment now for 9 years, 6 of which has been commuting without a car.  During that time I have lived all over my city of Albuquerque and noted the differences in city planning and infrastructure, driver behavioral patterns, bike lanes and lack thereof, traffic density and overall reception to the cyclist.  Though I have had spills, been hit by cars and been harassed/threatened: I have conversely had amazingly positive experiences and been welcomed and embraced as a cyclist in various ways and places.  I have also seen more bike lanes appear, vehicular apprehension to cyclists diminish somewhat, cyclists exercising more critical thinking in behavior and the outright number of bikes on the road increase.  Though inner city cycling has taken a big leap as more and more individuals commute to and from work, school, the grocery etc; our inherent danger as cyclists has not substantially changed with the increase in the previously mentioned.  The risk factor of being an object riding on the fringes of city streets (with or without a white-line-painted bike lane or a perforated half shell of foam on your head) with 4,000 lb + boxes of steel passing us at an average of 4 to 5 times the velocity is simply dangerous any way you want to look at it.

This guy is hanging out on the razors edge of safety.  It only takes a quick distraction of a driver to cause an accident
when we are so closely married with cars for space on open roads.

Car culture

When observing the aforementioned risks to riding one can't help but ponder the options to help mitigate the danger factor of cycling.  Some say more bike lanes, others say compulsory helmet laws and some even suggest the cessation of trying to function as a cyclist-commuter in a city setting altogether.  The bottom line is that none of the above embodies the answer to our problems.  The fact at hand here is that our cities, already as developed as they ever will be for the most part, were developed by those who had interests to cater to the advent of the automobile and its predicted proliferation.  Powerful lobbying and ease the of accessibility gave rise to the perceived need for a car culture to flourish and so became the de facto mode of thinking for civil engineers and city planners world wide.  The automobile was embraced as godsend and virtually everyone who could afford one acquired one and commuted daily with it.  The car shaped the genetics of the cities that we all live in bar certain notable places in the Netherlands for example.

Fast forward to 2017 and we see a large resurgence in cycling and its use not just as recreation but as a legitimate mode of transportation altogether.  The only problem with this growing trend in bicycle commuters is that we are growing in a way that is not supported by the environment that we are a part of.  We as cyclists are something like amphibians that are longing for the ability to exercise our limbs in a more useful way that transcends the realm of water.  Though we need and want a better, safer, more consistent place to dwell; it seems to be that it is sadly not as much within the confines of these cities as we had hoped.

its time for us to wake up a bit and face reality, our almost purely car-centric city infrastructure
 won't transform into this overnight, or any time soon (Copenhagen)

Alternatives

So you want to divorce yourself from car culture and commute more by bike and foot but see the dangerous nature of this option for what it is.  You understand the implications that exist and have come to terms with the fact that there are fundamental risk factors at present when you decide to live such a life.  So whats next?  You can do one of either two things: stop cycling altogether and throw in the towel, or look for options and alternatives for sustaining a safer and more consistent method of traversing the cities that we all live in.  If you opt for the latter, here are a few of the not-so-obvious things that come to my mind when thinking of how to work with all of this.

#1 - Neighborhood Riding

To the best degree that you can, riding on smaller neighborhoods is one of the best options.  It usually takes more time and planning to devise a more neighborhood and side road oriented method of commuting, but the payoff is huge in that you are contending with vehicles that are often driving at 2/3rd the speed of those on non-freeway city roads (35-45 mph).  You have a substantially better chance of being seen by slower automobiles and if an impact with a vehicle does occur, the difference is greatly reduced.

#2 - Travel when traffic is low

If possible, try to ride when you know traffic is going to be at its slow points.  Though you may not be able to dictate the time and place of destination for your commutes, you can certainly try and get that hour head start before traffic becomes frighteningly high paced and dense. 

#3 - Get some wide tires

There are going to be times when you simply cant help but have to do everything in your power to evade an accident.  Often times that means swerving out of harms way without taking into consideration things like irregularities in the road.  With all the cracks and bumps that exist in the road it is easy to get thin tires caught in these places which can pitch you clean off your bike (I speak from multiple personal experiences).  This one isn't about personal preference for the ride quality or speed factor of skinny vs big tires as much as it is about fundamental stability and the ability to evade harms way suddenly.

#4 - Be confident and assertive

If you make it clear to motorists that you know what you are doing on the road by demonstrating assertiveness and confidence in your riding, it is my opinion that drivers will become acclimated to the presence of safe and smart cyclists.  An example being you approaching a four way stop with a vehicle behind and holding the the entirety of a one-car lain: you are definitively making your intentions clear and have every right to be doing so.  Though this is very different from deliberately blocking the flow of traffic, it does allows you to assert your presence in a much more intimate, 1 on 1 way with drivers.  Making it clear that you are just as much a meaningful and discerning part of traffic as vehicles are is massively needed and in our best interest to show it.

#5 - Unplug and open up your senses

Perhaps this should have been the first part of my list here.  Nothing hinders our ability to exercise  preventive measure more than literally stripping ourselves away from our senses.  Be it texting or having headphones in your ears during riding, you are endangering yourself and others while riding.  Though you cant always see coming whats coming you can often hear it (and vice versa for that matter) by allowing yourself to be receptive via opening up all of your main senses.  Its also never fun to have to shout at the top of your lungs at a fellow cyclist who is wearing headphones that you are passing or having one swerve into you as they are texting or stravaing, or instagrming or whatevering on their phone.

Retro geeks and carbon freaks: My experience vending at The Denver VeloSwap

The month before last my friend Jim mentions to me that he is going up to Denver again with his friend to the VeloSwap; this time to sell things as a vendor.  I ask him when it is, how long the event goes on for and if it costs much to sell stuff.  He answers my questions, and ends up alluding to me tagging along.  I tell him that I would love to drive up with him and his friend (who I unknowingly knew) and that was that.  Fast forward a month and I am back in town after having had an exciting, hurried at times, snail paced at others, delightful and informative experience In Denver, CO.  

The company

My trip to the VeloSwap was with two down to earth, friendly fellows: Mike and Jim.  Jim is a volunteer that I met and got to know fairly well at my current place of work (Esperonza Community Bike Shop).  He is a super mild mannered guy in his late 60's who is an avid enthusiast of road, mountain and commuter bikes.  His taste in bikes somewhat reflects his age, pedigree and overall attitude towards bikes; I say this with zero negative connotation.  Suffice it to say that Jim has a comprehensive collection of bikes spanning the ranks of Lennard Zin, Bruce Gordon and Ben Serotta and Fastab, to Titus, Voodoo, Ibis and Yeti; and thats just scratching the surface.  He likes bikes of all sorts, and it was undeniably evident long before I stepped foot in his bikeshop (I mean house).  Jim is the kind of guy who can share a lot of interesting, heady information about bikes and their history without coming off cocksure and snobby in even the slightly way.  We hit it off on day one and it has been nothing but good laughs, shared stories and info, and parts swapping ever since.

When Jim told me about his friend mike I didn't know much about him or what to expect.  He talked a bit about his affinity for Schwinns and Cinellis as I began to paint a mental picture of the guy.  Roughly two weeks before out trip I met Mike for what I thought was going to be the first time, only to discover that not only had I seen him around before, but I had previously sold him Campagnolo bits at a bike swap something like five or so years prior.  Never the less I got to learn about Mike and his next-lever bike lust soon after.  On the drive I was told of how he would often spend what sounds like over a year building one single bike at a time, often waiting patiently for the perfect parts for that era correct build or ultra-specific look to compliment the overall project.  He told me that he once spent over a thousand dollars on a nearly one of a kind, Handmade, glass Cinelli stem badge (yes I said stem).  The guy likes his bikes and he likes the to be very specific about what he buys (he also happens to ride a steel Ibis mountain bike like Jim).  If there was one thing that Jim and Mike had in common it was their ability to come off as being completely down to earth about their passion for bikes while being totally inclusive and cordial regardless of differences in taste.  I knew this was going to be a fun trip, and it sure as hell was.

Getting loaded up as we prepared to leave from my appartment.  A Mercian, Spicer, Zin, Bennoto and Pogliaghi
grace the back end of Mike's truck with bags and boxes stuffed in between.

The Swap

The event was broken down for us into two days; the initial entry and booth setup on Friday and the actual Swap on Saturday that was open to the public.  Unfortunately I did not have my camera with me on the day of the swap but I was able to take a good amount of photos from the Vendor-only setup day of Friday.  It was pretty incredible seeing the turn out for this event.  I was told by some and read online that this was considered the biggest bike swap in the country.  The event itself proved to be a huge with very small vendors juxtaposed with some of the biggest bicycle, component and accessory manufactures in the market.

The event was held in the huge National Western Complex Convention Center and was basically divided into two main rooms.  The entrance room had huge dealer booths selling new and discounted offerings from their company in the form of complete bikes, parts, swag and promotional handouts.
The second portion of the event had all types of vendors selling used and new everything.  Some came out with nothing but clothing and accessories and others with massive fleets of complete bikes.  There were sellers with a table full of parts and a few bikes like ourselves as well as some very eager sellers who were in buy-and-flip mode, gobbling up good deals left and right.  One guy was so caught up in his buying spree that he literally forgot his giant bag of cash on top of some old bike clothes as my friend Jim soon found the loot.  Shortly thereafter he discovered who it belonged to and made it right.  I was happy to see so many small local and domestic sellers with everything from purely modern, high end road/mtb kit for sale to old jerseys and bike parts, memorabilia, ephemera and paraphernalia.

It was a stark contrast to see many former bike shop owners selling the remaining stuff from their once-shop and share the event space with many of the proprietors that possibly helped put them out of business.  But more on that another time, as for now: a much warranted photo dump.

we sat in this line for what must have been nearly two hours just to get in, and we were
 relatively early..good thing there was a dispensary just around the corner...joking.. but seriously 
there was one right in front of the convention center 

Before we even finished setting up we were met by Mike, the owner of Boulder and Rene Herse Cycles
(maker of randonneur style bicycles frames and used vintage parts seller) as he raided
 our table with Campy boxes and small bits in hand.  Jim on the left (blue shift) and Mike on the right 

Two very friendly individuals who I discovered run a Denver community bicycle shop setup their
zone and discuss parts while some of the early vendors arrive.

before long lots of carbon begins to appear...

the guy on the right and four or so of his local, Armature Enduro-Racer friends each had their own tent, 
a few bikes to sell, tons of take off tires that were hardly used, and lots of parts. 
 At the end one of them offered me a lot of 10 or so used 27.5 x 2.6" tires for 10 dollars 
just to get them out of his hair.  I didn't have room in the truck..

a sea of moderately priced, vintage cycling caps

The loneliest bike at the show

this pooch about embodied my level of exhaustion by the end of the day.. awake and attentive, but just barely..

our zone all set up.. mostly.  The right side of the table represents my offerings as well as the bottom section
of frames, books and bits.  The bikes in the back are all Jims

A lot of early run 3-bolt White industries disc hubs.... wow

I don't believe that this guy was selling anything, but must have bought a booth
space just to get early dibs on the vendors setup day.  Doing laps around
 the event hunting those good deals

this lady came from California with her partner to sell tons of stuff.  They had multiple tents if I remember correctly

more carbon begins to appear, the boingy varietal this time

Nikki, the owner of Mobius cycles is now the owner of my once very loved Serotta 

yeti fox racing box

A coupple of gorgeous Mercian builds

someones really cool fleet of bikes for sale.. very reasonably priced

omg so much wheelz

and then this vintage Retrotec appeared that I should have purchased.
1" head tube, segmented fork... what was i thinking :(

Campy box and bike locks

Toshi, the founder/owner of Vintage Mountain Bike Project getting weird with
his unique Don McClun.. 

NOS oldies but goodies

 one of many former bike shop owners selling their remaining stash 

high dollar mtbs literally laying around

Justyne, owner/founder of Bike Recyclerly just before selling off the entire booth in one go to
a seriously ambitious buyer.  The same guy bought someone else's entire booth as well.

the second most lonely bike at the swap

Nikki at our booth again.  She also bought my Bontrager frame to build up for her own personal use.

Overall the event was an incredibly positive and fun experience for a super bike enthusiast/nerd such as myself.  I met a ton of friendly faces and saw some amazing, interesting, confusing, and unbelievably downright strange stuff.  The reception was outstanding and the buyers were friendly and willing to play ball with lots of haggle factor.  We all did some good sales and I was able to pretty much brake even on the trip.  I came back with a few extra dollars in pocket, scored a couple of very cool bits, a very unique and useful tool that I have been seeking for almost two years well as some awesome memories I wont be forgetting anytime soon.  Being a vendor was really fun but made the trips focus a lot more bike swap oriented and lacking in adventuring somewhat.  Lots of driving and repeated loading/unloading took place over the four days of our trip and had the thing feeling like half work, half vacation.  We all talked about doing the event as "buyers" next year so as to enjoy more walking around, adventuring, parts swapping and picture taking.

A special thanks to Jim and Mike for allowing me to tag along and putting up with my crazy ass!  If any of you from the swap somehow manage to read this, a big thanks for helping make the event so fun.  If so you know who you are!