Visit to the Dutch Bicycle Co in Somerville

Sorte Jernhest Carrier Bike
Originally uploaded by ahconway

Yesterday, we finally visited the Dutch Bicycle Company in East Somerville. It's a bit out-of-the-way, so it took me a while to finally make it there.

It's housed in a big space that's shared with a used car dealer of some sort, which is ironic to be sure, but it does provide lots of great indoor space for test rides.

I was most looking forward to test riding the Sorte Jernhest Carrier Bike, a cargo/passenger trike that's roughly comparable to our Cristiania. The proprietor insisted that we all give it a try, all four of us got to check it out in detail...

Having three wheels and a box in the front is where the similarities between this trike and ours is where similarities end. Our box is made of plywood, this one seems to be aluminum. This one has smaller wheels. And most interestingly, this one steers with the rear wheel alone, while ours pivots the whole front box.

It appears to be much lighter than the Cristiania thanks to the materials used, but I don't know how the lighter materials would translate into durability. I'm absolutely confident that our trike will still be on the road when our girls have kids of their own, but it's impossible to know about this one.

It's very comfortable to ride, and the passenger compartment is also very accommodating - though there are some poky-outy bits on the inside of the box that could be scratchy. The roof is very nicely made, but lateral visibility is limited, and there seems to be less space inside overall than we have.

But any differences mean very little in practical terms, because it's the only human-powered vehicle of this sort that's really available in this area. Sorger imports them directly, and he's got full liability insurance for everything he sells. (Cristiania won't import to the US, and anyone who tries to do that independently is taking a big liability risk.)

So, based on my limited experience with this trike and the shop, I'd absolutely recommend it for anyone who wants carry kids and/or cargo around town in comfort and style.

The shop also carries lots of other exciting stuff, including super-stylish Sogreni bikes, a big selection of Gazelle products, and Conference Bikes. Not to mention a GIANT spaceship, which Sorger claims is a boat that he's storing for a friend.

We also test-rode the Gazelle Cabby, which is a more refined version of the Bakfiets cargo bike. The original Bakfiets has a plywood box in the middle and steers via a front wheel out front. The arrangement of this version is similar, but it's lighter, and the cargo/passenger compartment is heavy fabric around a sturdy frame, which folds when not in use. (A little web surfing reveals that the Gazelle doesn't have a rain cover, though, which is a big problem if you're going to rely on this for regular transport! There's a comprehensive review here.)

Great to see all this stuff being made available in the US! According to Sorger, his sales are going great - so I hope to see some of these beautiful bikes out on the Minuteman Bikeway soon.

Look who's on a Trail-a-bike!

Look who's on a Trail-a-bike!
Originally uploaded by ahconway

I finally set up the Trail-a-bike I bought second-hand for Gemma yesterday. What a triumph! She caught on straight away and was pedaling like a fiend. It was a bit fiddly to attach to my slightly-oversized seat post, but I got it on there in the end.

I also got Elsie's free-on-curb bike seat set up on Kim's new bike, and she was equally thrilled. We had a nice family ride around the neighborhood to celebrate.

Bike Week is here again!

Hooray! Bike week! We (Ciclismo) are doing a bunch of events... Lauren led a nice ride on Monday, and today (Wednesday), we're hosting a bike breakfast at the office. Lauren made it downtown for the kickoff on Monday and even met the mayor there. I had a nice surprise on my way to Cambridge for a meeting yesterday when I came across this bike breakfast at the Alewife end of the bike path. Forgive me if I was more interested in the utility bikes than the coffee and scones!

Great ride with Kim today!

You did it, Kim!
Originally uploaded by ahconway

With the girls happily settled in with a fave babysitter, Kim and I were free to ride for the morning - her first jaunt out of Arlington on her new Rivendell Betty Foy.

We did one of my usual loops up through Lexington, Bedford, Concord, and Carlisle, with an ice cream break at Great Brook Farm. Kim was a super trooper, managing the 34-mile distance with no trouble at all!

The Minuteman path was, of course, a highlight of the ride, as was the ice cream! The bike fared well also - Kim described it as "awesome!"

Only 466 more miles until her saddle is broken in!

Applying the finishing touches to Betty

Amber shellac & brush
Originally uploaded by ahconway

Yesterday, I applied three coats of amber shellac to Kim's cork grips. This sort of thing is a real hallmark of Rivendell geekery, but I have to admit that the finish and color really look nice!

It was pretty easy to do too. My stroke of genius was inspired by my dentist, who likes to drill a tooth that's poking through a sheet of latex... I put a black trash bag over the front of the bike and made holes for the grips.

New Betty Foy video

Here's a video that's as lovingly crafted as Kim's new bike itself! Highlights include: Kim's first test ride, Elsa & Kim trying on a Rivendell cap, Betty's arrival at our house, our first family ride, avoiding a baby in the street, and a slide show of the details.

Go to Youtube to watch in all of its HD splendor!

Betty est arrivée

Meet Betty Foy
Originally uploaded by ahconway

At long last, Kim took delivery of her shiny new Rivendell Betty Foy! It was worth the wait. She's only taken it for a couple short spins, but she adores the ride and the look.

As the photo shows, it has a nice upright position, but there's plenty of scope to lower the quill stem if she wants to do that later. It ended up pretty much like we'd originally specced it, with a few exceptions. She really wanted a front rack/basket, so we got a tidy little Nitto rack, and we'll have the choice of a Wald basket or a little bag, depending on whether we're riding town or country.

The other change from the original spec is that we went with Nitto Dove handlebars instead of Albatross - they're more compact (and much less expensive!), much better-proportioned to the bike and its rider.

The rear rack was a big question, and the black Blackburn rack that's on there now is clearly not consistent with the Betty/Riv aesthetic.... But she'll need to carry a passenger, and this happens to be the best compromise - the rack serves its luggage-carrying purpose with aplomb, and the Elsie's child seat can snap right on when needed without any further rigmarole.

I'm shockingly (but unsurprisingly) considering having the rack powder coated in a matching Riv blue or contrasting red....

We're planning our first big ride into the country for next weekend - we'll call the babysitters tomorrow!

There are lots more photos on Flickr, and a nice YouTube video is in the works!

BTW: Elton at Harris Cyclery in West Newton was great throughout this process! Very knowledgeable and enthusiastic!

Go Gemma go!

Go Gemma go!
Originally uploaded by ahconway

Gemma loves climbing up into the driver's seat. One day she'll reach the pedals! Elsa's a willing passenger too.

Kim test rides Betty

Yesterday, at last, Kim, the girls, and I went to Harris Cyclery where they've got a Betty Foy frame on hold for us. I'd been corresponding with sales guy Elton, who said they were building one up as a floor model, and she could test ride that.

Elton wasn't there, but we had a good time talking with Jim. He set her off on a test ride - not too long, though, since rain was threatening. Plus, this was her first experience with non-hub-gears for ages and she was still getting the feel for it.

For the sake of comparison, she also tried a couple hybridy bikes - a Jamis and Giant, I think. She said they were a bit nippier, but didn't shift as crisply. And of course, they're completely lacking in the personality of Betty.

So Betty Foy it is. We talked through some of the details with Jim, but we'll finalize everything with Elton via email this week. With any luck, we'll have it by Easter!

Here's the spec we're looking at for now:

• Nitto Technomic stem
• Pyramid Northroad bars
  
• Cork grips
  
• Deore front & rear derailleurs
• Sugino triple (26, 36, 46) chainset
• Ultegra 8 speed bar-end shifters attached with Paul Thumbies
• 8-speed Deore cassette
• Tektro 73mm brake calipers with Shimano levers
• 650b Synergy-Deore wheelset
• Panaracer Col de la Vie tires
• SKS fenders
• Pletscher kickstand
• Nice red cabling (to match the little apples) and a red Blackburn bottle cage
  

Still undecided: Saddle & pedals. Maybe bars too.

The thing about saddles is that Brooks certainly look the part, but they're also vulnerable to rain. And Kim prefers an upright riding position, so she'll be putting more weight on the saddle than I put on my B17. Does that mean she should have a saddle with springs? I'm a little nervous about that because Elsie will be a passenger at times, and I'd hate to have her little fingers get pinched. Also, it might take her a while to break it in... so I'd rather spare her the rigmarole if possible.

What alternatives are there, I wonder?

As for pedals, it's going to be platforms. There are various quill-sorts by MKS and others, but they aren't too sneaker friendly with the narrow contact points. I do like the Grip Kings, but they're a little odd, and a little dear. The pedals we've got on our German commuter bikes have good surfaces and built-in reflectors, and I think something like that would be just fine. Just gotta find them now. I think they're something like these bargain Wellgos. Or maybe something like these red Easterns?

As for bars, the Pyramid North Roads are similar to Nitto's Albatross bars, but not quite as wide. But they are definitely more swept back than the bars Kim's used to. I may send Elton a photo of her current pedals & bars and see if there's something similar he can find for Betty.

So, it's all very exciting! I did a lovely ride out to heretofore undiscovered corners of Carlisle today and all I could think about was how Kim will enjoy getting out there too! (She assures me that this will indeed happen.)

Will post pics & further developments as they come.

In the meantime, comments welcome!

(BTW: We're grateful to Dottie and her Let's Go Rid a Bike blog for her comprehensive entry about her own ambition to own a Betty Foy!)

Bicycling Magazine surpasses itself

With every new issue of Bicycling Magazine, I grow increasingly amazed at how unappealing it's become. (Lucky I have my archive of mags from the 70s and 80s!)

Most issues contain precisely 0 articles that are of any interest at all to me, which should be surprising because I'm so fascinated by so many aspects of the cycling world. But there you are. The magazine seems to try to appeal to the masses and the lycra louts without much consideration for the many, many different interest groups in the cycling world.

One bright spot in the May 2009 issue is the cursory review of the Alternative Needs Transportation Boston Roadster. As usual, the piece lacks any insight whatsoever. One of my least favorite features of the magazine is how it boils down every review into "Buy it if" and "Forget it if" - and this is where the review of this wonderful bike goes off the deep end. "Forget it if you're a real saddle snob - this one isn't real leather."

What? Author Emily Furia couldn't have thought of anything better than that? Of course, its ridiculous to think that a hand-crafted utility bike available in 20 colors wouldn't have any saddle options.

I think a better soundbite might have been "Forget it if you're reading this magazine - you probably don't care about this type of thing anyhoo."

New Bikescape podcast from Sacramento

When I arrived at the media meet-up in Sacramento, I was delighted to find two of my fave podcasters - David Bernstein of the Fredcast and Jonathan Winston of Bikescape. When I arrived, the latter was in the process of interviewing the former!

Now Jonathan has posted the podcast that resulted. He warns that it's a bit noisy, but I can't wait to listen!

Great springtime ride today

Didnt seem so much like spring when I left home at 7am, though -it was clear but really cold, about 25 degrees. Still, it was very quiet on the roads, and while there were lots of potholes and sandy patches, at least the snow and ice has largely gone. I made it home just in time to head out with the girls to Gem's last skating lesson of the season.

As I was heading home, I went past a good-sized group on the Quad Cycles Sunday ride, with the owner bringing up the rear with a child in a trailer. I must do that ride one of these days!

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

What's a bicycle tour, Daddy?

Last night Gemma and I were talking about what I do at work. She asked me "What's a bicycle tour, Daddy?"

So I asked her what she thought it was, and she said "Is it when you shrink down really small and give people a tour of your bike?"

Media meet-up at R15 in Sacramento

Media meet-up at R15 in Sacramento
Originally uploaded by ahconway

Over the course of a very long day at the Tour of California, my Sambas somehow rubbed most of the skin off heels. That didn't stop me from walking a mile and a bit to R15 to meet up with various bikey blogey folk. I'm glad I went! I talked to lots of great people and met a few who I know from their podcasts and blogs.

Among them, Fritz of Cyclelicious, David of the Fredcast, and Jon from Bikescape. What a treat!

I also met Jonathan of Bicycle.net (before he had to dash off and post coverage of the day's action), Markus of Cyclefilm (who has done a video of the route of L'Eroica I must watch immediately), local Sacto blogger Saccyclechic, and Paul, co-author of The Bike to Work Guide (thanks for the copy you gave me, Paul!) and blogger on bike commuting.

Tyler Hamilton

Tyler Hamilton
Originally uploaded by ahconway

In my first ever video posting to Flickr, here's a brief glimpse of Tyler Hamilton in the Prologue.

Cannondale arrives at the Capitol

Cannondale arrives at the Capitol
Originally uploaded by ahconway

I went for a nice walk around the site of the Tour of California Prologue stage in Sacramento this morning. It was still pretty early (I'm still on East Coast time!), but I was in time to see lots of the big vendors arrive.

In Sacramento for Tour of CA

So, here I am in Sacramento for the Amgen Tour of California. Exciting? You bet! Justin and I arrived this afternoon, and we'll be exhibiting at the so-called Lifestyle Festival tomorrow. The weather is looking pretty grim, though. It's cold now and wet and cloudy.

It's neat to see the other bikey companies around - there's a big Orbea van at the Clarion hotel next door, and Schwalbe is here at the Holiday Inn Express with us. I had a nice chat with the proprietress of a really good newsagent on 20th Street - she said everyone in town is psyched for the race.

Oh my goodness

So I rang up Harris Cyclery and asked about a Betty Foy. They are planning to get some in for April, but people are already putting down deposits. The frame/fork/headset/seatpost is $1000, and they'll build it up however you like. All very similar to what Rivendell will do.... And, like Riv, they require a deposit to secure one. But the Harris deposit is refundable, and Riv's is not. So I did it! Scandalous, but very exciting. For Kim, of course. (Tee hee hee!)

Betty Foy for Kim

Okay, here's what I'm thinking for Kim. She wants/needs (I want/need for her...) a bike that's sweet and stylish, easy to ride, and geared for pedaling up our big hill at the end of a long day.

She loves her 35lb German city bike, but it doesn't have the gearing she needs. There's no shortage of performance women's bikes out there, but she prefers an upright riding position.

So I think we're going to go with the new Rivendell Betty Foy. It's as pretty as could be (as befits the rider in this case), and should last her for decades. It should be available soon, and we're lucky that we're near a dealer that should be able to sort us out too!

Ah, what a great feeling!

My ride today was pure bliss. I didn't break new ground by any means - I just did my usual loop up to Carlisle, then Concord and home via Mill Road, about 30 miles.

But still, I managed to keep great energy up the whole time, and a pretty good pace, particularly considering how little exercise I've had over the past several weeks. Now I'm home and completely invigorated! Ready for a fun Sunday with the girls.

Since I left just before 7, I didn't see too many other riders. Lots of runners in the hinterlands of Carlisle and Lexington, though. Much of the road surfaces are still a bit treacherous. The main roads are bordered with streams of melting slush and berms of ice, and the edges are very gravelly. Lesser roads have SERIOUS potholes in spots, and many also (like Mill Road in Lexington) have patches of thick ice and dirty packed snow. Not a big deal if you're expecting it, but it could be nasty if you're not.

Before tackling the Park Ave hill towards home, I saw at least a dozen cyclists congregating outside Quad Cycles on Mass Ave in advance of the 10:00 regular Sunday ride. I'll make it out on one of their rides eventually, but I really do like my early-morning solitude. Very calming and restorative, plus, I have all my best ideas about work at these times - and today was no exception.

(As an aside, Quad Cycles is in the process of moving to new premises, even closer to our house in so-called Brattle Square. It will be interesting to see how they do up the new shop! I wonder if they'll renovate attitude at the same time.)