Look Mum no hands!

I was cycling round East London on a Boris Bike last week and had the opportunity to pop into London's cycling Mecca, Look Mum no Hands! on Old Street. It seems like a lot of events from the launch of Boneshaker issues to Artcrank London are held at LMNH and for good reason. The place is a cafe come bar come bike shop, so you can grab a coffee or a beer and watch a bit of cycling, catch up with friends or buy some new bits for your bike. The idea came about after the founders couldn't find anywhere to watch the Tour de France and decided they should set up their own place dedicated to cycling. I imagine the atmosphere was awesome when Cavendish was sprinting down the Champs-Élysées to win the green jersey last July.

I was there to watch the first time trial of the Paris-Nice, (well played Wiggo!) and meet a friend for lunch. We both had one of their legendary pies which were really good and served with some really interesting salads. The coffee is also from the awesome Square Mile roasters and so obviously very tasty. Can't wait to catch up with them again at Bespoked Bristol, just wish they would open up in Birmingham. If you're in London you should definitely check it out, whether you like cycling, food, coffee or just beer!

Another addition to the wall of bike art

I received this little beauty in the post the other day from Lauren Peppiatt a talented illustrator who is also designer with the very cool cycling apparel company Shutt Velo Rapide. Her love of cycling comes out in a lot of her work which is available to buy at her Etsy store and the Shutt VR site. The Le Tour print is hand printed on a retro Gocco machine and the colours which come out are really nice. The print is also one of a  very limited run of 35, so get in quick before they sell out, at £10 it's a bargain!

As always you can follow her on twitter and facebook, if like me you fancy a bit of a cycling art collection she is definitely one to check out.

Togs + Cogs

Bianchi 12 speed with full Campy groupset - £600

Sometimes you come across a brand which seems to fit with you so well you wonder if the person responsible has read your mind in some way. I've been watching Togs + Clogs for while since they launched last year and recently bought a very nice pair of trousers in their awesome sale. They have a great selection of stylish clothes to keep you looking sharp on your bike and if you haven't got one they can even sell you one of their amazing collection. Featuring some lovely Bianchis and a host of great looking fixies, their vintage bicycle section is chock full of fine specimens with stock updated fairly regularly.

So if you need some new threads or a new bike I recommend checking out Togs + Clogs, and if like me you love vintage cameras and watches they have them too! One final piece they stole from my brain is the great selection of tea they have. So they stock stylish clothes, beautiful bikes, awesome watches, lovely cameras and tasty tea. Literally all of my favourite things!

One final flourish is the hand written thank you on the order delivery note, very nice touch from what seems a great company.

Brooks trouser straps

via Shutt Velo Rapide blog

I've posted about these straps in the past but I've noticed that Brooks have started selling them in a broader range of colours, the stylish guys from Shutt Velo Rapide featured them on their blog in a post from the London Bike show. My favourite is definitely apple green which would go very nicely with my blue and green commuter. At £14.99 they are a bargain if it keeps your trousers getting mangled or covered in oil. 

Apple green strap via brooksengland.com

Bespoked Bristol 2012

Due to the success of last year's event Bespoked Bristol is back and it's grown so much they've had to move to a bigger venue in the centre of Bristol. Almost 100 exhibitors will be showing off their handy work in Brunel's Old Station over the weekend of 23rd to 2th March. People showing range from makers of beautiful handcrafted frames like Brother Cycles and Donhou Bicycles to stylish clothing providers Rapha, Velobici and Shutt Velo Rapide; as well as a host of other components makers you might need to finish off your custom ride.

They also have cycle coffee lovers Look Mum no Hands! coming down from that London to run a pop up cafe in the venue. A definite blessing after having to run out in the rain last year.

Tickets are £7.50 on the door or till the end of February they are running a special offer of 2 for £10.

Hope to see you down there.

Proud to Ride Classic

Simoncini 

When doing some research on the restoration of my bike I came across a really interesting company in Lancaster called Proud to Ride Classic. Their ethos is all about renovating and restoring beautifully constructed lightweight steel frame bikes to sell on. At the moment they are still working on the stock they have and will be selling soon. In the meantime you can check out their website and keep and eye on their twitter and facebook activity. Nice to see people recycling these fine bicycles and getting them back on the road where they belong!

Good looking re-cycling

 With a little help from Bike Man Dan the old Raleigh is looking pretty sweet now. There are quite a few new bits and pieces on it now including a new seven speed rear cassette and derailleur, NOS front chainset plus a lovely new Brooks saddle. She rides really nicely and I'm hoping it should be able to take me through the various rides I've got coming up including the ridetoweymouth.com. Plus, it looks good enough now that I could put it on one of those wall shelves once the ride is finished!

Great bike storage by Elevated Woodworks

Once you've finally got that perfect bike you've always wanted surely you to show it off? Well these shelves by Elevated Woodworks would certainly help with that. I really like this idea, what better to decorate your walls than a nice vintage bike? And at $60 for the Cedar version shown here they are also great value too. They would definitely create a focal point at home, mind you the British weather might stop your bike looking this clean. Or I think a few of them in a lofty office would look great. Not sure my employers would use them.

Genesis Equilibrium

I've entered myself in for a few charity rides recently and plan to do big ride from Birmingham to Weymouth to raise money in memory of brother in September. As such I'v been out on my road bike a bit more which has led to me to start thinking about buying a new one too. The old Raleigh frame is pretty heavy and is a little bit too big for me too but there is one thing which keeps stopping me committing to a new bike. That is most of them look dull, samey and are lacking real style.

Well that was until I found the Genesis Equilibrium, I'm already a big fan of their fixed wheel Day One and I was glad to see the Equilibrium shares it's retro styling and Reynolds steel frame. It's had  some great reviews and as they say on their site 'it proves that steel is still a material to be reckoned with for a fast road bike.' I wish more bike designers in this field considered the look and ride of the bike rather than just the weight and speed but I don't think I'm your average road biker.

Best get saving some pennies though as the entry level 00 model comes in at £899.99 which is a bit out of my price at the moment. But seeing as they are a British company surely I would just be helping out the country's economy by buying one, right?

Helmet B

                         

Should you always wear a helmet when you ride a bike? This is one of those issues that crops up regularly on blogs and in the media and more often than not written by people who don’t ride regularly. I’m not going to go into it now, it’s a personal choice and people should be left to make their own mind up in my opinion.

One of the reasons people cite not wanting to wear a helmet is they are often bulky, heavy and can be quite hot too. Well French designer Julien Bergignat has come up with an idea called Helmet B, also known as ‘Tatou’ or Armadillo. Using the Armadillo as inspiration for the form of the helmet it creates a protective shell when riding but can be laid out flat when you’re not on the bike.

I think it makes a pretty nice looking helmet but not convinced it would protect you that much on impact. It’s just an idea at the moment but I would love to see it put into production to offer something different in the helmet market.

                         

                               

Feats per minute - the bike which is also a record player

'What if you were able to generate music by the simple act of riding your bike?'

This was the question which drove a group of Dutch designers to come up with Feats per Minute. They took an old bike, switched the crank to the left side and added a vertical record player to the rear. After a lot of tinkering then adding a cone and amp to increase the volume of the record they had managed to build a working prototype where the speed of the record was determined by how fast you ride. So if you're a fan of Barry White it might slow down your commute to work.

The video below shows the guys bringing over the bike to London to show at a pop up exhibition at Dezeen. At the moment they don't have plans to get the bike into a mass production by they would like 'every city will have at least one Feats per minute biking around.'  And maybe a few DJ battles along the way.

The bikes of Siracusa

Some pictures of a few of the cool bikes we saw on a trip to Siracusa in Sicily.

Italia

by Barry Khan

Talented photographer and Web designer Barry Khan has put up a few of his pics from a recent trip to Italy on Flickr. We are off to Sicily soon and I can't wait to immerse myself in their wonderful culture and stylish people. Hopefully we'll get to do some riding as well and if we can look as chic as these guys I'll be very happy.

by Barry Khan

                 

Bikeminded - Just can't get enough

This video is a promo for the Bikeminded campaign which is run by Kensington and Chelsea Borough council. And as you can imagine from such a smart borough they have kept it very stylish, and no hi vis or helmet in sight.

Cool couple

Saw these guys cycling through Cannon Hill Park on their way to the park, wish I had got a better shot of them from the front as they were both looking pretty stylish. Have to start getting more confident in asking to take peoples picture.

Time for a nice jacket

Sitting here looking at the piles of rain which seem to be falling in Birmingham my thoughts are turning to the idea of getting a decent jacket to handle the British Autumn and Winter. Unfortunately most brands seem to think you have to be in a day glow colour to ride and stay dry but there a few nice ones out there.

These are my five favourite, a few you might need to save up a few pennies first though. They are all short to avoid getting in the way when pumping uphill, waterproof and pretty darn stylish. That way you'll arrive at work warm, dry and still looking debonair.

1. Surface Aquaphobic - from £79.99



2. Burton Fisherman's Jacket - £65

3. Rapha Tweed Softshell - £400

4. Brooks Criterion - £869

5. Asos Multi Pocket Jacket - £60

Portland Design Works Cupholder

Not sure why it's taken me so long to find out about Portland Design Works but I managed to pick up one of their Bar-ista Cupholders for my commuter bike this week. As the colder mornings and evening draw in I think this is going to be one of my best buys ever. It works very well and holds the cup very firmly in place.


The product inspired me to look into PDW a bit more and it turns out they have a whole host of awesome bike accessories. They set up business to produce 'beautiful, simple products for urban cycling' and seeing as they work out of one of America's best cycle cities they seem to be flourishing. I'm really interested in getting one of their 'Little Silver' pumps, just need to find a UK stockist.

Birmingham Bike Trains

Birmingham Friends of the Earth are organising 5 bike trains to run into the City Centre on September 22nd to celebrate World Car Free day. Along with Sustrans and Birmingham based Pushbikes they aim to provide a safe and fun environment in which to ride to encourage more people to commute to work by bicycle. They have some more info on their site along with a map of the routes and a registration pack.

Plus, Craig from the awesome 6/8 Kafe will be there to warm you up with a nice cup of Joe once you reached Victoria Square.Unfortunately I don't work in town but it sounds like a great excuse to ride in to work in style and at a leisurely pace.

Two generations of stylish cyclists

I went to Cambridge for a stag do over the weekend and amongst the drunken antics I was happy to see so many cyclists around. The whole place feels very European in its approach to cycling with all ages of people on bikes doing everyday things, and barely any Lycra. I'm still trying to figure out why cycling is so much further forward than other British cities in cycling uptake. It can't just be because it's flat.

Artcrank London

More cycling and art related goodness, Artcrank are making their annual trip to the UK in a couple of weeks and will be co-hosting their opening night with the launch of the new issue of Boneshaker.


Display and selling cycling posters (all for under £30) by UK artisits 'ARTCRANK uses creativity to change how people look at and think about bicycles, and grow the cycling community.'


The opening party is on August 19th at the apparent mecca of London cyclists, Look Mum No Hands, and the exhibition will run till September 9th. I'm hoping to pop along at some stage to add to my ever growing collection of cycling related prints. Plus the print by Milltag will feature some of my own handy work which you can see here.