Report from Minneapolis

Verna, Steve & I went to Minneapolis last weekend to take in the Quality show, Frostbike. We had a great time, got lots o' shwag, and made some contacts that may benefit the BL in the future.

After we left the fabulous new LEED certified building where QBP lives, we made a quick stop at Hiawatha Cyclery in south Minneapolis.

Hiawatha is a small shop that specializes in cyclo-touring and tasteful transportation. They've got a lot of style, the kind that comes from earnest reading of the Rivendell Reader. While I'm not the type to think the RR is a guide to life and the universe, I do agree with the well-deserved attention being given to sensible, everyday bicycles and gear.

There was a fine arrangement of built bikes on the floor. From a freshly built Salsa Casseroll with a thousand-something price tag to a simple, 3-spd Breezer Freedom commuter for the smaller budget, $450. Handlebars, fenders, rims, stems, pedals, racks, baskets, and all those things we get excited about were well organized in the available space in plain view.

In the front window were some built-up classics, like this one:







1963 Freddie Grubb; Black in color; 56 cm C-T; Sturmey Archer 4 speed FW hub; Nitto stem and Northroad bars; B5N Brooks leather saddle; Perfect for the Lake Pepin 3 Speed Tour; Complete bike; $600













Hanging proudly over our heads was a beautiful Jack Taylor with a custom pink paint job executed by one or another of those wacky Taylor Bros once upon a time and, of course, a lovely Stronglight crank.

The owner, Jim, was riding this ANT with porteur rack:



And, his singular employee (or co-owner?), Kevin, was riding this well modified Stumpjumper:

Get a FREE bike if you don’t bring a car to college!

Ripon College, a small liberal arts college in the middle of a central Wisconsin cornfield, is giving a Trek 820 mountain bike (plus helmet and lock) to every student who pledges not to bring a car to campus for the 2008-2009 year. link

Pretty sweet. I'd actually prefer to have some store credit at a local bike shop, but hey a "free" bike. How cool would it be if the University of Iowa started a free bike program?

Iowa Lawmakers Consider Bike Rider's License

So, it looks like Iowa is considering a bike riders license:

"A bill introduced Monday to the Iowa Legislature would require all bicyclists, adults and children, who ride on primary or secondary roads to have a bicyclist's license.

Under the proposed bill, the license would cost $10 and would be good for five years."

link to story

link to the bill

I'm pretty sure this license thing is partly in response to the Crawford county mess. $10 isn't that bad compared to what you have to pay for a car registration. I would probably pay it as long as I know that it truly goes to improve cycling. I just don't know if the true purpose is to improve cycling or discourage people from riding on county roads. What do you guys think?

Cheers!

VOLUNTEER PARTY!

WHEN: Friday, January 11th at 7:00 pm.

WHERE: At the Sanctuary.  (We might migrate to Sam's Pizza?)

WHY: Come raise a glass to celebrate the BL's great success in 2007 and to gear up for 2008!  Viva la BL!

From a summer long ago...

I'm not sure what this has to do with the BL, but... I found some long-lost pics from my summer cycling tour of Europe (1987) and thought I'd share one. The pic was taken late in the afternoon and I was just outside of a village on the Italian coast - somewhere between La Spezia and Genova. There was no road for cars into the village, only a train. I was riding along a path overlooking the shore. A few minutes after this picture was taken, I rode into the village. The approach was downhill through an archway that led to a stone courtyard next to the church. The local kids were in the middle of a soccer game in the courtyard when I came through the archway. I ended up in the middle of their match. I remember a seething assemblage of screaming ten year-olds shaking their little fists at me. While at the market, I met a German fellow who was vacationing and sampling the acclaimed local white wine grown on terraced vineyards along the coast. We made dinner, drank wine and camped on a scenic vista along the cliffs. The ride out the next day was over some pretty rough terrain. Anyway, it was a great summer adventure from long ago.

Wear your helmet

Just a quick public service announcement: Wear a helmet when cycling.

The city of Austin, TX recently completed a year long bicycle helmet study. "According to the data so far you're about 65 to 88-percent less likely to get a head injury if you're wearing a helmet while you're riding a bicycle."

Innovate or Die Pedal-Powered Contest

The bike library should totally enter this contest next year:

Innovate or Die Pedal-Powered Contest (be sure to check out the the current entries.)

So, who out there has a cool idea for a pedal powered machine?

WINTER BREAK

The Bike Library is closed for Winter Break until January 21, 2008.  

If you are a patron who needs to return a bike during that time, please e-mail iowacitybikelibrary@gmail.com to make arrangements.

Home Made Studded Tires

Looking for something to do this week? How about creating your own set of studded tires. My dad made a set about 10 years ago. I stuck one on the front of my mountain bike. It worked great. I skipped the back tire just because the tires are so heavy, but I'm sure it would be even better with a rear tire.

I don't remember where my dad got the instructions for the studded tires. I think someone at the bikeshop might have helped him. Anyway, the icebike site has a section on home made studded tires:
http://www.icebike.org/Equipment/tires.htm (you will need to scroll a bit)

Just be careful mounting the tires. Those screws are sharp.

Winter riding tips

Well, looks like winter is here. I thought it would be a good idea to publish some tips for riding in the winter. Here are a few winter biking links:

http://www.icebike.org/

http://www.allweathersports.com/winter/winter.html

http://bikewinter.org/tipsAndResources/ginstips.php

What we really need is a list of Iowa City winter riding tips. You know, good routes, places to avoid, and any other general winter riding tips. So, go ahead and reply to this post with some winter riding tips.