Bikejuju

“The Spokesman” A Great 3-Minute Video About Bikes

Tom — Thu, 16 May 2013 04:41:05 +0000

This is a lovely little video piece. You must spare 3 minutes for this quirky character study about bike history.

The Spokesman from dean saffron on Vimeo.

Major bonus points if you can name that bike he is riding in the last shots.

Most Bike Friendly States Over Time

Tom — Mon, 06 May 2013 21:09:04 +0000

USA Today has posted this neat interactive map graphic showing League of American Bicyclists list of bike-friendly states (go Washington!), with the ability to change between the last few years, giving a nice visual of the change over time.

(Not being a USA Today reader, I learned about this from Artcrank. Thanks!)

Freak Bike Friday: STUPIDTALL at LA Ciclavia

Tom — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 05:55:16 +0000

This video makes me a little dizzy. Wow. Check out that shadow at 2:48 in the video (and the photos at the end!)

As the YouTube video says,

14.5ft at the Seat
Built in 12 work hours
One Huffy beach cruiser, 2″ square tubing, 3/4″ round tubing, and 1″ round tubing
26″ single speed coaster brake wheelset
6 1/2 single speed bicycle chains (32.5ft of chain)

To bend the pipe i used an upside down shopping cart and a split log. Ghetto, i know, but hey – IT WORKS.

My last tallbike was just under 10ft tall at the seat and you can see us featured in 30 Seconds to Mars’ music video, “Kings and Queens” – http://youtu.be/hTMrlHHVx8A
STOOPIDTALL, is the inbetween from that one (Kafourki) and the world record tallest bike that i’ll be building next this year.

Thank you to all the Angelopes who guided STOOPIDTALL through the sea of fellow cyclists!

And thanks to all the photographers and videographers who documented STOOPIDTALL’s Maiden Voyage!

Much love, Richie

Amazing Bike Part Kinetic Fish Sculpture

Tom — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 08:46:00 +0000

Amazing new kinetic fish sculpture “Delmar” constructed from bicycle parts by Oregon artist Chris Cole (@ChrisColeArt)

Chris Cole creates moving creatures and surreal images of avian and aquatic life that are inseparable from the industrialized and mechanical world we live in. Smooth plant-like shapes are connected with heavy bolts; tendons, seed-pods, and seaweed seem to be screwed to washers and bearings; fins and wings are animated by bicycle chains and motors, melding nature with the mechanized world.

Recycle Those Election Signs! (Into Panniers and Fenders)

Tom — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 13:05:04 +0000

Ready to put the election behind you? Kent Peterson has a great blog post on how to recycle all those political signs made of coroplast into functional bike fenders and even panniers!

Learn more on Kent’s Bike Blog here.

Special Election Day Juju

Tom — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 06:54:35 +0000

Need I say more?

Art by Mike Joos

Life Magazine 1948: Chicago Family’s Mutant Bikes

Tom — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 19:00:25 +0000

I love this Life Magazine gallery of mutant bikes built by members of the Steinlauf family in their Chicago bicycle shop more than 60 years ago!

(Yes, look closer. Caption from LIFE: “Only springs connect rear of Maurice Steinlauf’s bike with roving front wheel.”)

What a wonderfully wacky family! According to Life Magazine, December 27, 1948:

“By artfully applying welders’ torches to metal tubing, the chapter’s members transform ordinary, utilitarian bicycles into traveling monstrosities. By far the most outlandish ideas have come from the Steinlauf family, who produced from their bicycle repair shop most of the oddities [shown in the article]. They are hazardous; generally at least one member of the clan is to be found in the hospital.”

Via Archie McPhee’s Endless Geyser of Awesome.

French Freak Bike Friday

Tom — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 06:34:39 +0000

Freak Bike Friday:

Continuing the recent Bikejuju trend of vintage images, here’s one from the Linus Bikes Facebook page (cough cough sorry I guess I mean “Timeline.”)

Seattle: Inaugural Pedaler’s Fair This Weekend

Tom — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 05:29:20 +0000

My friend Ryan at GoMeansGo is co-sponsoring (with Swift Industries) a new Seattle cycling event, happening this coming weekend: the Pedaler’s Fair. Just like the poster says, there will be cycling arts and crafts. And if I know Ryan, there will also be beer, and good times. The kind of good times you hope don’t get tagged on Facebook with your name.

The first annual Pedaler’s Fair will be hosted in Seattle on April 21-22, 2012. It’s the first of its kind- a fair with vendors from across the state of Washington bringing their cycling related products to a quaint studio in Ballard. There will also be free workshops, music, food, a beer garden and other pleasant surprises.

See? Beer! I knew it!

Seattle Western Union Messengers, 1937

Tom — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 06:25:42 +0000

Love this photo from Seattle’s Museum of History and Industry.

This 1937 photo shows six Western Union messengers and their bicycles in downtown Seattle. They are standing on the sidewalk in front of the telegraph office at 113 Cherry Street. The messengers are Tom Chaffee, Abbott Van Hise, William Riley, Ralph Weller, Everett Olds, and Charles Biggs.
Photographer: Seattle Post-Intelligencer Staff Photographer

Just 75 years ago the quick way to get information was to have a bicycle delivery man bring you a telegraph. Today you can Google Street View this exact spot from the comfort of your couch!

(And there used to be free one-hour parking in downtown Seattle? Boy, those were the days!)