February Was Frostbike Time

 In celebration of the twentieth year of this blog, I have a few tales to tell. This post is one of them. This series will occur off and on throughout this anniversary year, I hope to illuminate some behind-the-scenes stories and highlights from the blog during this time. Enjoy!

February was always the month for several years that I went to the Frostbike event in Bloomington, Minnesota. Frostbike was the dealer-only show put on by Quality Bicycle Products, one of the, if not the, largest bicycle parts distributors in North America. Originally this event was called an "Open House" where the idea was that QBP would invite dealers to come up and see their operation, explore opportunities to do business with QBP, and basically get a bit of wine-and-dine, schmoozing to woo the dealers over to the QBP way. 

Attendees were invited to explore the facility where you could see the latest in warehousing technology. QBP offered a lunch as well during this open house. Later on vendors started appearing on the floor showing off their latest wares. This expanded in time until Frostbike became a de-facto trade show replete with more various brands distributed by QBP. Many were showing off their latest product introductions, and with the addition of the QBP brands like Salsa Cycles and Surly Bikes showing new stuff, it was a show not to be missed.  

Later on there were dealer education and mechanic seminars offered. Then QBP shifted all the Salsa and Surly product intros to Summertime with their "Saddledrive" event, which took some of the steam away from Frostbike. Finally, the seminar/education part pushed out the trade show part until Frostbike was essentially a conference and then it petered out. This ending was hastened by the management that clamped down on the partying and extra-event offerings some of their brands were doing which were more social get-togethers and really did not enhance the company's bottom line. However; they were attractions to dealers to show up to the event.

Mike Moyer of the former business in Northfield, Minnesota, Mike's Bikes, holding my old Gryphon Mk1 frame.

I probably started going to Frostbike in 2003, for sure by 2005. Somewhere in there, and it was always because I was a shop rat at the shop I used to wrench for in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Back then I was still pretty much a nobody. But then Trans Iowa, this blog, and the whole 29"er thing swept me into a different part of my life. 

Frostbike became something quite a bit different for me. I became friends with Ben Witt, who at the time was the owner of Milltown Cycles, a shop in Faribault, Minnesota. Through Ben I was invited to visit Mike's Bikes in Northfield, the shop where Ben cut his teeth in the business under the watchful eye of Mike Moyer, who just happened to have been a life-long cyclist and bicycle mechanic. 

Greek pizza and beers at Mike's circa 2010.

Mike had a lot of surprises up his sleeve. The uninformed person would have taken Mike for an ordinary shop owner with a super laid-back attitude running a shop that was an eclectic mess. And I mean that with all the love I can give behind that description. There really was no other way to describe Mike's Bikes. 

The sharp-eyed cyclist with a mountain biking background might have soon started picking out some oddities about the shop. Old vintage pieces could be spied in corners, up on racks in unassuming places, and if you were allowed to get into the back room, your mind would have been blown away. 

See, Mike was an OG of the Marin klunker group. He was right there, in the thick of it all, during the birthing of what we now know as the modern mountain bike. He knew all the principals involved and had even laced up wheels for many of them. But Mike wasn't about those tales and he never really was one to trot out stories or drop names. I loved that about Mike. He was as real as it got. 

Some promotional shot at Frostbike for the Fargo. I think that is me!

I adored and cherished every moment I spent with Ben Witt, Marty Larsen, some of the old employees of Mikes, Stuart, Mike's son, and Mike Moyer at Mike's Bikes. Those were some of my very favorite and most fun experiences in life and in cycling. I reported on Frostbike, and Mike's Bikes, every time I went there, here on this blog.  I wish that I could have brought all of you there to Mike's at least once. I don't know if any of that ever came through in my postings, but I truly felt that way and still do. We lost Mike last year in May. I have to say, this time of year will never be the same for me again, but I thank Mike Moyer for all that he did, because without him, my life would have been much less rich. 

Having a chat with Ben Witt, then of Salsa Cycles. Image courtesy of M Larson.

Then there was the whole "media" thing and my attendance at Frostbike. I never went to Frostbike as a media dude, as I always tried to use my shop mechanic credentials instead. More stealthy and subtle under that guise! 

It was hard though, and adding in my status as the director of Trans Iowa, it usually meant I would walk into Frostbike and get stuck at the Salsa Cycles booth for hours. Then there were a few times I was able to get into places I shouldn't have been with the help of some QBP folks I won't name here. 

I was able to get into the cubicle farm on several occasions, a place I wasn't supposed to be in. Ironically Frostbike used to be an "open house" gig, but that ceased to be the case after awhile! On one occasion I snuck into a super-select group of high-end dealers which QBP was having a separate party for upstairs and where the plebians were not allowed. That was fun! 

I couldn't divulge all the details then, and I still probably shouldn't, so a lot of Frostbike did not get reported here, but I told the stories I could tell. Oh, yeah, and images. I've got tons that haven't ever been seen here. 

Frostbike was a thing on the blog for a solid ten years. My last trip was in 2015, and what a way to cap things off! That was the year I walked all the way from downtown Minneapolis to the 494 Interstate loop South of town in the snow with just a hoodie on. It was something like 17 degrees and I had on tennis shoes as well. Four hours and 12.2 miles that adventure was! Anyway, you can read about THAT here. 

I got a finger poked into my chest the next day by someone dear to me that once worked at QBP who was rather upset I didn't call for a ride. But that's the sort of shenanigans I used to get into there, and well, it is probably just as well those days are gone. I never got into any real trouble, despite some numbskull antics like getting a car impounded or nearly crashing in a blizzard getting to Frostbike, but I am sure my luck was about all used up. 

To have had the opportunities I had then are amazing to me and to have met all the people I got to meet was even more amazing. It is a part of my life in the cycling world that almost doesn't seem real, but it did all actually happen. 

Thank you to all involved in those times. 

This post is dedicated to Mike Moyer (Image by Marty Larson)

Gravel History With Guitar Ted: The Challenge Tires "Gravel Grinder"

Challenge Tires' "Gravel Grinder" model.

Welcome To Gravel History With Guitar Ted! This will be a random series here on the blog where I will give you my take on the history of gravel riding and racing in the modern era.* 

There may be a "Ted-terview" or two where I speak with those from the early days of the Modern era of Gravel as well. 

 In this episode of "Gravel History With Guitar Ted" we will explore the story of Challenge Tires' "Gravel Grinder" model and an a mutual agreement to not seek legal action. 

Back in the Discovery Era  in these times of the Modern Gravel scene, we would often use touring tires for gravel road riding. I remember the Schwalbe Marathon series of tires as being one of the more popular choices due to that model being available in 40+mm sizes along with a very popular 38mm size.

The Marathon Extreme model also had a very tough puncture protection quality that was prized by gravel grinders especially for doing the race in Kansas then known as the Dirty Kanza 200. Its cut resistance was phenomenal, but if you did puncture, they were a bearcat to dismount and replace a tube in. This and they were pretty heavy tires as well, which put a lot of riders off. So it wasn't a perfect solution to our needs.

Gravel Grinder News header circa 2011

Along about 2011 or so, some tire manufacturers were looking into making a tire for gravel which, in all likelihood was sparked by the insider knowledge of Salsa Cycles development of a gravel racing bike at that time. One of those companies was Challenge Tire.

Challenge Tire was, and still is, a small company with few employees. Their niche was mainly cyclo cross and road racing tubulars and "open tubulars" which are Challenge Tires' version of their tubular tires in a clincher format.

Challenge decided to utilize their expertise in cyclo cross and use a model they had developed for grassy CX courses, fatten it up to 38mm, and rename it the "Gravel Grinder". Whether or not Challenge Tires was aware of my little site at that time, I don't know, but it soon came to their attention that there was a website using the same name. This could have gone pear-shaped, but fortunately, nothing of the sort happened. 

What did happen was that I ended up meeting the head of Challenge Tires operations at a Quality Bicycle Products "Frostbike" open house. We chatted, and ostensibly, I was only there for tire news, as I had heard Challenge was making a play to release a gravel tire. When the head man showed me the Gravel Grinder, he acknowledged that the name could be a stumbling block, since my website had the same name, unless, of course, I would be okay with that coincidence. He stuck out his hand, and stated, "There will be no legal ramifications to this situation from our side, how about you?", and of course, I said it would be fine and shook his hand. 

And that's how you get things done without lawyers getting in the way! 

Meanwhile, we had a lighter, capable choice in a gravel tire. Clement (Donnelly now) wasn't far behind, and the gravel gear choices only got better from then on out.

Gravel History With Guitar Ted: The Challenge Tires "Gravel Grinder"

Challenge Tires' "Gravel Grinder" model.

Welcome To Gravel History With Guitar Ted! This will be a random series here on the blog where I will give you my take on the history of gravel riding and racing in the modern era.* 

There may be a "Ted-terview" or two where I speak with those from the early days of the Modern era of Gravel as well. 

 In this episode of "Gravel History With Guitar Ted" we will explore the story of Challenge Tires' "Gravel Grinder" model and an a mutual agreement to not seek legal action. 

Back in the Discovery Era  in these times of the Modern Gravel scene, we would often use touring tires for gravel road riding. I remember the Schwalbe Marathon series of tires as being one of the more popular choices due to that model being available in 40+mm sizes along with a very popular 38mm size.

The Marathon Extreme model also had a very tough puncture protection quality that was prized by gravel grinders especially for doing the race in Kansas then known as the Dirty Kanza 200. Its cut resistance was phenomenal, but if you did puncture, they were a bearcat to dismount and replace a tube in. This and they were pretty heavy tires as well, which put a lot of riders off. So it wasn't a perfect solution to our needs.

Gravel Grinder News header circa 2011

Along about 2011 or so, some tire manufacturers were looking into making a tire for gravel which, in all likelihood was sparked by the insider knowledge of Salsa Cycles development of a gravel racing bike at that time. One of those companies was Challenge Tire.

Challenge Tire was, and still is, a small company with few employees. Their niche was mainly cyclo cross and road racing tubulars and "open tubulars" which are Challenge Tires' version of their tubular tires in a clincher format.

Challenge decided to utilize their expertise in cyclo cross and use a model they had developed for grassy CX courses, fatten it up to 38mm, and rename it the "Gravel Grinder". Whether or not Challenge Tires was aware of my little site at that time, I don't know, but it soon came to their attention that there was a website using the same name. This could have gone pear-shaped, but fortunately, nothing of the sort happened. 

What did happen was that I ended up meeting the head of Challenge Tires operations at a Quality Bicycle Products "Frostbike" open house. We chatted, and ostensibly, I was only there for tire news, as I had heard Challenge was making a play to release a gravel tire. When the head man showed me the Gravel Grinder, he acknowledged that the name could be a stumbling block, since my website had the same name, unless, of course, I would be okay with that coincidence. He stuck out his hand, and stated, "There will be no legal ramifications to this situation from our side, how about you?", and of course, I said it would be fine and shook his hand. 

And that's how you get things done without lawyers getting in the way! 

Meanwhile, we had a lighter, capable choice in a gravel tire. Clement (Donnelly now) wasn't far behind, and the gravel gear choices only got better from then on out.

Frostbike Remembered

(L-R) Jason Boucher, GT, Ari Andonopouolous. Image by Ari.

As this probably would have been the traditional weekend for Frostbike, I thought it might be fun to share some things I remember about this event. 

Of course, it was an industry thing. You had to be a bicycle shop employee, owner of a bicycle shop, or related to the industry through a brand that Quality Bicycle Products carried to attend this deal. It was something a lot of us in the Mid-West looked forward to every year during the long, cold, mostly slow business days of Winter. Frostbike represented a marking of Spring soon to come, better times, and most importantly, a chance to see some people you wouldn't have seen otherwise the rest of the year.

Ostensibly started as an "open house", Frostbike used to happen on the same weekend that Island Bicycle Supply Company held their open house. You could hit both in a day if you were from out of town. That was a nice example of two competitors cooperating for the benefit of both entities. I attended a few of those "concurrent events" back in the 1990's and that was an amazing time to be a bike shop employee. If you had ever been in Island Supply's warehouse, as I had been from basement to attic, you know just how amazing and crazy that place was.

The original Vaya was presented as a touring bike, but it was quickly adopted by gravel riders. Seen here in 2010 at Frostbike.

The location where QBP was before their current location was a smaller place by a LOT, but I do recall going there and marveling at the then cutting edge rotating shelves. The parts picker would enter a computer code into a machine at the end of an aisle and then the whole aisle of shelving would rotate to bring the bin with the desired part to the parts picker, eliminating a lot of legwork and saving time.

Then J&B Importers bought Island Supply, rolled it into their nationwide network of warehouses, and that ended the era of concurring bicycle "open houses". QBP didn't take long to open a big new place, (where they are currently located in Bloomington, Minnesota), and their deal quickly took on the airs of a trade show with vendors putting up booths inside the warehouse to show things QBP was going to be carrying for dealers to order. 

The opening night of Angry Catfish's shop concurred with Frostbike so we went to the party.

The "trade show" aspect of Frostbike weekend grew in the early 2010's, but along with that a social aspect grew as well. Often times I would head up on Friday afternoon, stop in Northfield, Minnesota, and gather at Mike's Bikes for tomfoolery and fellowship. Then attending Frostbike the following day, and on Sunday. Usually there was some sort of social gathering planned for the Saturday evening that Frostbike was happening. Surly used to have this bonfire thing on the grounds of QBP, which I never made it to. However; I did get to a few "Cutter's Ball" events and the opening of Angry Catfish was another cool event that happened back then. 

Making laps inside of Mike's Bikes in Northfield, Minnesota is something I'll never forget.

Eventually all good things come to an end. Frostbike did as well. Once QBP opened regional warehouses the need to gather at one central location was lost. Then a leadership change at QBP signaled a more "business summit" take on Frostbike. The trade show aspect died, and along with that, the folks that used to attend stayed home. There was no good reason to go any longer, and so Frostbike just kind of faded away. 

Mike's Bikes closed up, and people moved on with Life and with the times. Since that period will never be replicated, I am really glad I was a part of those times. There were those 'races' inside Mike's, the Greek pizza, the laughs and the serious talks. The camaraderie felt amongst those in the cycling business at Frostbike. Seeing things I never would have seen. Hiding amongst the office desks upstairs in the office area at QBP to sneak into an invitation only party.  Being the guy that got Jason Boucher's Honda towed because I didn't understand Minneapolis' aggressive parking and towing policies. Hiding in shame in the famous One On One Bicycle Studio's basement in their original location. Driving to Frostbike and home from it in crazy blizzards and through ice and snow. 

And of course, the last time I went to Frostbike when I walked all night long through Minneapolis because my partner was too drunk to drive me to my motel room in Bloomington. That pretty much capped off a decade or so long run of craziness and was the end of going to Minneapolis in the Winter for a cycling related affair for 13+ years over the span of the 90's to the mid-2010's. 

Frostbike. I miss those times, and I'll never forget them.

Frostbike Remembered

(L-R) Jason Boucher, GT, Ari Andonopouolous. Image by Ari.

As this probably would have been the traditional weekend for Frostbike, I thought it might be fun to share some things I remember about this event. 

Of course, it was an industry thing. You had to be a bicycle shop employee, owner of a bicycle shop, or related to the industry through a brand that Quality Bicycle Products carried to attend this deal. It was something a lot of us in the Mid-West looked forward to every year during the long, cold, mostly slow business days of Winter. Frostbike represented a marking of Spring soon to come, better times, and most importantly, a chance to see some people you wouldn't have seen otherwise the rest of the year.

Ostensibly started as an "open house", Frostbike used to happen on the same weekend that Island Bicycle Supply Company held their open house. You could hit both in a day if you were from out of town. That was a nice example of two competitors cooperating for the benefit of both entities. I attended a few of those "concurrent events" back in the 1990's and that was an amazing time to be a bike shop employee. If you had ever been in Island Supply's warehouse, as I had been from basement to attic, you know just how amazing and crazy that place was.

The original Vaya was presented as a touring bike, but it was quickly adopted by gravel riders. Seen here in 2010 at Frostbike.

The location where QBP was before their current location was a smaller place by a LOT, but I do recall going there and marveling at the then cutting edge rotating shelves. The parts picker would enter a computer code into a machine at the end of an aisle and then the whole aisle of shelving would rotate to bring the bin with the desired part to the parts picker, eliminating a lot of legwork and saving time.

Then J&B Importers bought Island Supply, rolled it into their nationwide network of warehouses, and that ended the era of concurring bicycle "open houses". QBP didn't take long to open a big new place, (where they are currently located in Bloomington, Minnesota), and their deal quickly took on the airs of a trade show with vendors putting up booths inside the warehouse to show things QBP was going to be carrying for dealers to order. 

The opening night of Angry Catfish's shop concurred with Frostbike so we went to the party.

The "trade show" aspect of Frostbike weekend grew in the early 2010's, but along with that a social aspect grew as well. Often times I would head up on Friday afternoon, stop in Northfield, Minnesota, and gather at Mike's Bikes for tomfoolery and fellowship. Then attending Frostbike the following day, and on Sunday. Usually there was some sort of social gathering planned for the Saturday evening that Frostbike was happening. Surly used to have this bonfire thing on the grounds of QBP, which I never made it to. However; I did get to a few "Cutter's Ball" events and the opening of Angry Catfish was another cool event that happened back then. 

Making laps inside of Mike's Bikes in Northfield, Minnesota is something I'll never forget.

Eventually all good things come to an end. Frostbike did as well. Once QBP opened regional warehouses the need to gather at one central location was lost. Then a leadership change at QBP signaled a more "business summit" take on Frostbike. The trade show aspect died, and along with that, the folks that used to attend stayed home. There was no good reason to go any longer, and so Frostbike just kind of faded away. 

Mike's Bikes closed up, and people moved on with Life and with the times. Since that period will never be replicated, I am really glad I was a part of those times. There were those 'races' inside Mike's, the Greek pizza, the laughs and the serious talks. The camaraderie felt amongst those in the cycling business at Frostbike. Seeing things I never would have seen. Hiding amongst the office desks upstairs in the office area at QBP to sneak into an invitation only party.  Being the guy that got Jason Boucher's Honda towed because I didn't understand Minneapolis' aggressive parking and towing policies. Hiding in shame in the famous One On One Bicycle Studio's basement in their original location. Driving to Frostbike and home from it in crazy blizzards and through ice and snow. 

And of course, the last time I went to Frostbike when I walked all night long through Minneapolis because my partner was too drunk to drive me to my motel room in Bloomington. That pretty much capped off a decade or so long run of craziness and was the end of going to Minneapolis in the Winter for a cycling related affair for 13+ years over the span of the 90's to the mid-2010's. 

Frostbike. I miss those times, and I'll never forget them.

Reminder: You Could Walk

Tweet from Richard Masoner corroborating my feat of walkmanship

I suppose had I not been bitten by the cycling bug in my childhood years I may have become an advocate for walking. I don't talk about it much on here, but I've walked some pretty long distances in one go during my lifetime. This all came to mind this past week on Twitter when a cycling advocate I follow on Twitter was bothered by the lack of cycling options from McCarren International Airport in Las Vegas to the Strip. 

This prompted my memory of going home from Interbike the last year it was held at The Venetian Expo, which if you are at all familiar with Las Vegas' Strip, is about halfway down that lit up circus show of the city. Anyway, I decided to walk from where Interbike was to the airport, and that route I chose was along The Strip. Not the shortest route, but definitely the most interesting one! I figured it was about five miles or so. Oh....and I did this after dark. Which only added to the adventure. 

But that was not the only time I walked several miles in one go. The first times were probably on some of my old paper routes which would snake around my home town as I delivered the newspapers. Then later I was out checking the mail for a rural family who were friends of my family while they were on vacation. My car would not start, and I walked about seven miles home. Then there was the time I forgot my keys in a Cedar Falls restaurant and had to walk from where I lived in Waterloo to Cedar Falls and back again, probably about 16-17 miles. 

West 50th and South Vincent during my long walk at Frostbike in 2015.

Then there was the infamous walk in 2015 during Frostbike. I walked around 90-ish city blocks, (approximately 12+ miles) in the middle of the night, severely under-dressed in 17°F temperatures in about 3-4" of fresh snow. 

So, yeah....I'm not afraid of a 'long walk', and I realize that other folks walk much longer distances, but most folks won't even walk across a parking lot, and instead they choose to be fighting for the closest parking space to the front door, so they can avoid walking as much as possible. 

I find that to be 'anti-human' actually. We were made to walk. Not sit on our butts in a chariot of plastic, rubber, and steel hurtling down a paved causeway at breakneck speeds. But then again, I am probably the odd-man out here. Walking, to my way of thinking, is natural and as necessary as breathing air. More necessary than riding a bicycle, dare I say. 

So, I just wanted to put in a plug for the odd walk here and there. I hope that you get out for one soon...

UPDATE:  I forgot about another crazy walk I did once, but today I was reminded of it because I was walking in the same vicinity that this walk went through. So, a quick addendum....

This must have been the mid-80's, but it was New Year's Eve and I had gone out with friends to hit several parties. Instead of bundling up, I only wore a long, wool dress coat, a stocking hat, and I believe that was it. I didn't want to have to keep track of gloves or wear boots that evening despite the fact that it was windy and snowing heavily. 

My friends ended the evening by going to their apartment, which was all the way across town from where I lived, and they refused to take me home then, saying that they were too tired and too drunk to do so. I, being just as stubborn and drunk, decided I'd walk home. So, I trudged as straight a line back home as I could, which took me out into open country, and across a stream, which wasn't frozen over, by the way! I waded across this short crossing, getting wet up to my knees. The snow was flying, and the wind was out of the Northwest. I had an icicle form off my left ear lobe! When I got back to the house, an 8-10 mile walk, I am not sure about the distance, I had to kick my Chuck Taylors against the cement foundation to break off enough ice to get out of my shoes! 

Dumb, and I was very lucky not to have died, much less escape frost bite, so I get that. But it was another example of my willingness to walk. 

Reminder: You Could Walk

Tweet from Richard Masoner corroborating my feat of walkmanship

I suppose had I not been bitten by the cycling bug in my childhood years I may have become an advocate for walking. I don't talk about it much on here, but I've walked some pretty long distances in one go during my lifetime. This all came to mind this past week on Twitter when a cycling advocate I follow on Twitter was bothered by the lack of cycling options from McCarren International Airport in Las Vegas to the Strip. 

This prompted my memory of going home from Interbike the last year it was held at The Venetian Expo, which if you are at all familiar with Las Vegas' Strip, is about halfway down that lit up circus show of the city. Anyway, I decided to walk from where Interbike was to the airport, and that route I chose was along The Strip. Not the shortest route, but definitely the most interesting one! I figured it was about five miles or so. Oh....and I did this after dark. Which only added to the adventure. 

But that was not the only time I walked several miles in one go. The first times were probably on some of my old paper routes which would snake around my home town as I delivered the newspapers. Then later I was out checking the mail for a rural family who were friends of my family while they were on vacation. My car would not start, and I walked about seven miles home. Then there was the time I forgot my keys in a Cedar Falls restaurant and had to walk from where I lived in Waterloo to Cedar Falls and back again, probably about 16-17 miles. 

West 50th and South Vincent during my long walk at Frostbike in 2015.

Then there was the infamous walk in 2015 during Frostbike. I walked around 90-ish city blocks, (approximately 12+ miles) in the middle of the night, severely under-dressed in 17°F temperatures in about 3-4" of fresh snow. 

So, yeah....I'm not afraid of a 'long walk', and I realize that other folks walk much longer distances, but most folks won't even walk across a parking lot, and instead they choose to be fighting for the closest parking space to the front door, so they can avoid walking as much as possible. 

I find that to be 'anti-human' actually. We were made to walk. Not sit on our butts in a chariot of plastic, rubber, and steel hurtling down a paved causeway at breakneck speeds. But then again, I am probably the odd-man out here. Walking, to my way of thinking, is natural and as necessary as breathing air. More necessary than riding a bicycle, dare I say. 

So, I just wanted to put in a plug for the odd walk here and there. I hope that you get out for one soon...

UPDATE:  I forgot about another crazy walk I did once, but today I was reminded of it because I was walking in the same vicinity that this walk went through. So, a quick addendum....

This must have been the mid-80's, but it was New Year's Eve and I had gone out with friends to hit several parties. Instead of bundling up, I only wore a long, wool dress coat, a stocking hat, and I believe that was it. I didn't want to have to keep track of gloves or wear boots that evening despite the fact that it was windy and snowing heavily. 

My friends ended the evening by going to their apartment, which was all the way across town from where I lived, and they refused to take me home then, saying that they were too tired and too drunk to do so. I, being just as stubborn and drunk, decided I'd walk home. So, I trudged as straight a line back home as I could, which took me out into open country, and across a stream, which wasn't frozen over, by the way! I waded across this short crossing, getting wet up to my knees. The snow was flying, and the wind was out of the Northwest. I had an icicle form off my left ear lobe! When I got back to the house, an 8-10 mile walk, I am not sure about the distance, I had to kick my Chuck Taylors against the cement foundation to break off enough ice to get out of my shoes! 

Dumb, and I was very lucky not to have died, much less escape frost bite, so I get that. But it was another example of my willingness to walk. 

Remembering Shenanigans

From 2010's Frostbike 'show'- Back when Frostbike was cool.

 From about 2003 until 2015, I attended the annual Frostbike dealer open house, as it used to be called, every year. In the beginning it was merely a day-trip with my former boss to go see what was new for the coming year in components, mostly, from vendors that Quality Bicycle Products distributed. 

These first few trips to Frostbike were mainly boring affairs as my former boss wasn't very socially adept and really shied away from interactions with 'strangers' that weren't interested in giving him the limelight. Now on occasion he would find a willing subject which he would then assail with half-baked tales of 1980's era crit racing. That was always my cue to escape and ferret out new friends, new stuff, and to just generally poke around. 

Then things changed around about 2006 when I started attending Frostbike on my own. I got the shop invite and just drove up myself and did whatever I wanted. Blogging here and my association with Trans Iowa and "Twentynine Inches.com" gave me access to more people and places. During this time I met Ben Witt, Marty Larson, Jason Boucher, Mike Reimer, and several other QBP people. This was the start of the "Years Of Shenanigans" at Frostbike. And let me tell ya....it was insanity! 

Frostbike generally happened mid-February, so last weekend would probably have been about right, except this year that was Valentine's Day, so maybe this weekend would have been the weekend? I don't know, of course, as I haven't been to Frostbike since 2015. I'm sure QBP's legal and PR departments are quite happy that I no longer come up. Especially after that last year I went! 

Mike, of Mike's Bikes in Northfield, Minnesota, checking out my new Singular Gryphon in 2010

Of course, most of my shenanigans weren't at Frostbike at all, honestly. No, they happened in Northfield, Minnesota at a bike shop which no longer exists anymore called Mike's Bikes. Mike, the owner, was a former resident of San Francisco, (or that vicinity) back in the 70's and worked as a bicycle mechanic during the days of the early klunker experiments. He rode with Gary Fisher and Charlie Kelly and had a few great stories about them. He even had his own klunker which he grafted old Shimano disc brakes to! (I saw the pictures)

You may have seen that reproductions of these are available now. Well, these are The Originals! Seen at Mike's Bikes in 2009.

Mike's Bikes was the Center of Shenanigans. Ben, Marty, myself, and usually a few others would gather there on the Friday evening or Saturday evening of Frostbike weekend. Greek style pizzas and lots of beers were brought in. Old collectable bikes were brought out, and a 'track' of sorts was set up. We could speed through Mike's from the front, retail area, through the shop, up a ramp, make a hard left into the storage/office/back room, another hard left through a doorway, down a ramp in a hallway, through another door that was propped open, and then down a longer hallway to the final hard left and back into the retail space. Mike's was all concrete flooring, so grip wasn't an issue and carpeting wasn't going to hold us back either. 

Food + beers + bicycles + inebriated riders going waaaaay too fast = mayhem sometimes. You wouldn't believe how fast we'd get going! It was a blast! Between sessions we'd repair to the back room and drink and yak until we'd all had enough and we would wander off to our beds, for far too little sleep and an early morning. This happened several years and was a big part of why I loved Frostbike weekend.

I got to attend the Grand Opening night of the Angry Catfish bicycle shop.

There were extra-curricular activities as well throughout those years. I was honored to attend several functions, like the opening of the Angry Catfish bicycle shop, and a few "Cutter's Ball" events which were held in various venues. One being the Peacock Groove headquarters. The final shindig was a big affair at a motel in downtown Minneapolis. I remember crashing one shindig for QBP's top dealers held upstairs in the QBP facility. I was snuck in and had to 'hide out' in the cubicle farm with some other "Q" folk until the coast was clear. Good times! 

There were late nights at bars in Northfield, walking around at night through snowy streets as we went from place to place attending affairs and parties. There was the infamous night when I illegally parked Jason Boucher's Honda Element across from One on One Bicycle Studio and got it towed, which cost hundreds of dollars to rectify. There was the assault on the parking ramp, where myself and several others were risking life and limb to short-cut a way to somewhere we thought we needed to be. All at the risk of falling several stories in a concrete jungle. There was the one year when Mrs. Guitar Ted and I ended up driving on a closed to traffic I-35 during an all-out blizzard. But the most notorious dumb deed has to be when I attended Frostbike the last time, and this one ended up being my swan song of sorts. 

About halfway back- I started on 7th downtown Minneapolis!

That would have been my infamous "walking tour of Minneapolis" which I undertook during a snow storm at night in 17° weather wearing nothing but a stocking hat and a red Raleigh Tamland hoodie besides my normal street clothes. 

The situation was that I was to meet Ben Welnak, my then new partner in RidingGravel.com, at the downtown Minneapolis motel where Frostbike was having a big dinner/awards ceremony.  My family came along and we had a motel procured near QBP just off of I-495 in Bloomington, quite a ways South of the 7th and Nicolette area where I was dropped off early in the evening. The family went back to the motel, while the plan for me was to get a ride from Ben after the evening's activities were done.

Well, drinking ensued and Ben had more than enough, and wandered off with a group of folks somewhere when I wasn't looking. I was left with a few acquaintances and figured I better stay put until Ben came back to find me. Well......that never happened. One thing led to another, 'bar time' came and went, people went to their rooms, and I was left alone in a lobby of a strange motel at about 3:00am with no Ben, and no way to get home without incurring the wrath of Mrs. Guitar Ted, who was most likely sleeping by this time. 

So, using my much clouded powers of wisdom, I determined by looking at my dying iPhone with its map app, that I could "easily walk that distance back to the motel!", and so I memorized a basic route, and set off a walkin' South on Nicolette Avenue. Snow, cold, and time to come to my senses eventually shocked me to the reality that I had gotten myself into quite a pickle. My tennis shoe clad feet were getting frozen, my body was in early stages of hypothermia, and the Sun was broaching the Eastern skyline. I was within about a mile or so of my destination by this time though, so I gutted it out and went as far as the infrastructure of interstate roadways would let me. Finally, I had to declare 'no mas!' and I called my wife with my last bit of battery power on the phone. She retrieved me, with a stern scolding,and I got back to the motel by around 8:00am and went directly to sleep. 

I missed the entire first day of Frostbike, since I slept in till about 6:00pm, and I went in on Sunday. People found me and I had several concerned folks giving me what-for and reminding me that I could call for help anytime. Jason Boucher being probably the most adamant in this regard as I remember him poking me in the chest as he admonished me for my previous evening's shenanigans. Word had obviously spread far and wide about "Guitar Ted's Walking Tour of Minneapolis", an approximately 12 mile hike of dubious wisdom overnight in the snow and cold. 

 Yeah, that was a good way to leave it. No more shenanigans at Frostbike for me!

Someday I'll have to do a more thorough retrospective of things I saw at Frostbike. That can wait for another time....

Remembering Shenanigans

From 2010's Frostbike 'show'- Back when Frostbike was cool.

 From about 2003 until 2015, I attended the annual Frostbike dealer open house, as it used to be called, every year. In the beginning it was merely a day-trip with my former boss to go see what was new for the coming year in components, mostly, from vendors that Quality Bicycle Products distributed. 

These first few trips to Frostbike were mainly boring affairs as my former boss wasn't very socially adept and really shied away from interactions with 'strangers' that weren't interested in giving him the limelight. Now on occasion he would find a willing subject which he would then assail with half-baked tales of 1980's era crit racing. That was always my cue to escape and ferret out new friends, new stuff, and to just generally poke around. 

Then things changed around about 2006 when I started attending Frostbike on my own. I got the shop invite and just drove up myself and did whatever I wanted. Blogging here and my association with Trans Iowa and "Twentynine Inches.com" gave me access to more people and places. During this time I met Ben Witt, Marty Larson, Jason Boucher, Mike Reimer, and several other QBP people. This was the start of the "Years Of Shenanigans" at Frostbike. And let me tell ya....it was insanity! 

Frostbike generally happened mid-February, so last weekend would probably have been about right, except this year that was Valentine's Day, so maybe this weekend would have been the weekend? I don't know, of course, as I haven't been to Frostbike since 2015. I'm sure QBP's legal and PR departments are quite happy that I no longer come up. Especially after that last year I went! 

Mike, of Mike's Bikes in Northfield, Minnesota, checking out my new Singular Gryphon in 2010

Of course, most of my shenanigans weren't at Frostbike at all, honestly. No, they happened in Northfield, Minnesota at a bike shop which no longer exists anymore called Mike's Bikes. Mike, the owner, was a former resident of San Francisco, (or that vicinity) back in the 70's and worked as a bicycle mechanic during the days of the early klunker experiments. He rode with Gary Fisher and Charlie Kelly and had a few great stories about them. He even had his own klunker which he grafted old Shimano disc brakes to! (I saw the pictures)

You may have seen that reproductions of these are available now. Well, these are The Originals! Seen at Mike's Bikes in 2009.

Mike's Bikes was the Center of Shenanigans. Ben, Marty, myself, and usually a few others would gather there on the Friday evening or Saturday evening of Frostbike weekend. Greek style pizzas and lots of beers were brought in. Old collectable bikes were brought out, and a 'track' of sorts was set up. We could speed through Mike's from the front, retail area, through the shop, up a ramp, make a hard left into the storage/office/back room, another hard left through a doorway, down a ramp in a hallway, through another door that was propped open, and then down a longer hallway to the final hard left and back into the retail space. Mike's was all concrete flooring, so grip wasn't an issue and carpeting wasn't going to hold us back either. 

Food + beers + bicycles + inebriated riders going waaaaay too fast = mayhem sometimes. You wouldn't believe how fast we'd get going! It was a blast! Between sessions we'd repair to the back room and drink and yak until we'd all had enough and we would wander off to our beds, for far too little sleep and an early morning. This happened several years and was a big part of why I loved Frostbike weekend.

I got to attend the Grand Opening night of the Angry Catfish bicycle shop.

There were extra-curricular activities as well throughout those years. I was honored to attend several functions, like the opening of the Angry Catfish bicycle shop, and a few "Cutter's Ball" events which were held in various venues. One being the Peacock Groove headquarters. The final shindig was a big affair at a motel in downtown Minneapolis. I remember crashing one shindig for QBP's top dealers held upstairs in the QBP facility. I was snuck in and had to 'hide out' in the cubicle farm with some other "Q" folk until the coast was clear. Good times! 

There were late nights at bars in Northfield, walking around at night through snowy streets as we went from place to place attending affairs and parties. There was the infamous night when I illegally parked Jason Boucher's Honda Element across from One on One Bicycle Studio and got it towed, which cost hundreds of dollars to rectify. There was the assault on the parking ramp, where myself and several others were risking life and limb to short-cut a way to somewhere we thought we needed to be. All at the risk of falling several stories in a concrete jungle. There was the one year when Mrs. Guitar Ted and I ended up driving on a closed to traffic I-35 during an all-out blizzard. But the most notorious dumb deed has to be when I attended Frostbike the last time, and this one ended up being my swan song of sorts. 

About halfway back- I started on 7th downtown Minneapolis!

That would have been my infamous "walking tour of Minneapolis" which I undertook during a snow storm at night in 17° weather wearing nothing but a stocking hat and a red Raleigh Tamland hoodie besides my normal street clothes. 

The situation was that I was to meet Ben Welnak, my then new partner in RidingGravel.com, at the downtown Minneapolis motel where Frostbike was having a big dinner/awards ceremony.  My family came along and we had a motel procured near QBP just off of I-495 in Bloomington, quite a ways South of the 7th and Nicolette area where I was dropped off early in the evening. The family went back to the motel, while the plan for me was to get a ride from Ben after the evening's activities were done.

Well, drinking ensued and Ben had more than enough, and wandered off with a group of folks somewhere when I wasn't looking. I was left with a few acquaintances and figured I better stay put until Ben came back to find me. Well......that never happened. One thing led to another, 'bar time' came and went, people went to their rooms, and I was left alone in a lobby of a strange motel at about 3:00am with no Ben, and no way to get home without incurring the wrath of Mrs. Guitar Ted, who was most likely sleeping by this time. 

So, using my much clouded powers of wisdom, I determined by looking at my dying iPhone with its map app, that I could "easily walk that distance back to the motel!", and so I memorized a basic route, and set off a walkin' South on Nicolette Avenue. Snow, cold, and time to come to my senses eventually shocked me to the reality that I had gotten myself into quite a pickle. My tennis shoe clad feet were getting frozen, my body was in early stages of hypothermia, and the Sun was broaching the Eastern skyline. I was within about a mile or so of my destination by this time though, so I gutted it out and went as far as the infrastructure of interstate roadways would let me. Finally, I had to declare 'no mas!' and I called my wife with my last bit of battery power on the phone. She retrieved me, with a stern scolding,and I got back to the motel by around 8:00am and went directly to sleep. 

I missed the entire first day of Frostbike, since I slept in till about 6:00pm, and I went in on Sunday. People found me and I had several concerned folks giving me what-for and reminding me that I could call for help anytime. Jason Boucher being probably the most adamant in this regard as I remember him poking me in the chest as he admonished me for my previous evening's shenanigans. Word had obviously spread far and wide about "Guitar Ted's Walking Tour of Minneapolis", an approximately 12 mile hike of dubious wisdom overnight in the snow and cold. 

 Yeah, that was a good way to leave it. No more shenanigans at Frostbike for me!

Someday I'll have to do a more thorough retrospective of things I saw at Frostbike. That can wait for another time....

Minus Ten Review 2009-26

The Woodchipper Bar was officially released at Interbike 2009.

Ten tears ago this week on the blog I released details for the fourth annual Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational. The ride was going to be held in a completely different area and as it turned out, it was one of my classic courses. One of my all time favorites, and also one of the hardest 100-ish mile courses I have ever ridden.

I also was pointing out that a new drop bar for off road was finally coming. It was in addition to the two basic bars we'd only had a choice of for several years. those would be the classic Midge Bar and the Gary Bar v1 by Origin 8.

Back story: The original prototype for what would become the Woodchipper was shown to several of us Fargo riders at a Fargo Adventure Ride earlier in the year. I remember seeing it and being a bit taken aback by the weird bend to the drop section and the extra long extensions. It wasn't at all what I had been hoping for in an off-road drop bar.

My first impressions of what became the Woodchipper were spot on. While I held out with some enthusiasm and hope that I'd eventually come around to love it, I just never got on with that design. I tried it on different bikes with different levers in different ways, but to no avail. I have come to the conclusion that my first impression was correct. It wasn't what I would have done for a dirt drop.

But that said, the Woodchipper was popular, and still is, with many riders. Then Salsa came out with the Cowbell, a slightly flared (12°) degree drop bar with a very comfy radius. At Frostbike one year, one of the Salsa product managers tasked with coming up with a potential redesign of the Woodchipper, asked myself and Ben Witt for our input on what Salsa should do for a Woodchipper v2. We both heartily asked for a more flared, more swept version of the Cowbell. The product manager was pleased and stated that this idea could become a new bar and that perhaps the Woodchipper didn't have to go away after all. That new bar, of course, is the Cowchipper. Now maybe you can see why it got its name.

Minus Ten Review 2009-26

The Woodchipper Bar was officially released at Interbike 2009.

Ten tears ago this week on the blog I released details for the fourth annual Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational. The ride was going to be held in a completely different area and as it turned out, it was one of my classic courses. One of my all time favorites, and also one of the hardest 100-ish mile courses I have ever ridden.

I also was pointing out that a new drop bar for off road was finally coming. It was in addition to the two basic bars we'd only had a choice of for several years. those would be the classic Midge Bar and the Gary Bar v1 by Origin 8.

Back story: The original prototype for what would become the Woodchipper was shown to several of us Fargo riders at a Fargo Adventure Ride earlier in the year. I remember seeing it and being a bit taken aback by the weird bend to the drop section and the extra long extensions. It wasn't at all what I had been hoping for in an off-road drop bar.

My first impressions of what became the Woodchipper were spot on. While I held out with some enthusiasm and hope that I'd eventually come around to love it, I just never got on with that design. I tried it on different bikes with different levers in different ways, but to no avail. I have come to the conclusion that my first impression was correct. It wasn't what I would have done for a dirt drop.

But that said, the Woodchipper was popular, and still is, with many riders. Then Salsa came out with the Cowbell, a slightly flared (12°) degree drop bar with a very comfy radius. At Frostbike one year, one of the Salsa product managers tasked with coming up with a potential redesign of the Woodchipper, asked myself and Ben Witt for our input on what Salsa should do for a Woodchipper v2. We both heartily asked for a more flared, more swept version of the Cowbell. The product manager was pleased and stated that this idea could become a new bar and that perhaps the Woodchipper didn't have to go away after all. That new bar, of course, is the Cowchipper. Now maybe you can see why it got its name.

Friday News And Views

Remember those Spinergy PBO spokes?

Round Two:

Spinergy. Remember that brand? Well, they are still around and they still are selling wheels. The original carbon bladed models from the 1990's are, thankfully, not being sold. those things were super cool looking but were quite spectacular in their failure mode and presented quite a danger when they did blow up. Many of those also de-laminated from the hub shell, rendering them useless.

Spinergy left that technology behind in the late 90's and started using a fibrous spoke material covered in a protective sheath that they dubbed "PBO". This is the same basic technology they use today. Interestingly, I have actually rebuilt a set of those wheels, taking a couple sets and making one good one using the parts that I harvested from the bad set for a former local rider. I ended up tensioning them acoustically, because at that time Spinergy was defunct and parts were not available, along with any technical information. They actually turned out okay for what I had to work with. Then, I completely forgot all about Spinergy, unless my boss at work would bring around his old Cannondale road bike with the polished frame and Spinergy bladed spoke wheels. Then the old memories would come flooding back.

Recently I learned that Spinergy is back and selling wheels with the PBO spokes again. They have a set for gravel. Of course they do, and it looks as though a set might just show up for testing for RidingGravel.com soon. Stay tuned for that......

Viathon, a trade mark registered to Walmart, is a new bike brand selling direct to consumer.

High End "Mart"Bike?

The old joke about how bad "mart bikes" are has been hackneyed for decades. However; that may all be about to change with news that broke Wednesday that a new brand, whose trademark is registered to Walmart, is being sold now direct to consumer.

The brand is called "Viathon" and it sells a mountain, road, and gravel bike in various specs or as a frame and fork. You can check out the gravel bike here. What do I think? Well, the prices don't look fantastically under normal, but they are a pretty good deal. Much like a Canyon bike. The geometry on the "gravel bike" is not my cup of tea at all, so basically, I wouldn't be a customer no matter what the price was.

But some people don't care about such things and will buy the brand just because it under cuts traditional bike shop pricing, by a little bit, anyway. What people need to understand now days though is that bike shops don't charge that much more these days than direct to consumer brands. They can't. Sure- there is MSRP on websites, but that is meaningless. Real street pricing for LBS high end bikes leaves profits so low compared to ten years ago that bike shops don't really make enough to make such bikes worth selling. It's more a service to consumers now and not a profit maker. This will only accelerate to include almost all bike shops soon as the de-facto shopping method for bicycles changes to reflect these online presences. In fact, I foresee a day when there will be showrooms only in certain metropolitan markets where one could actually see and touch bikes while everywhere else will be forced to purchase online. The traditional bike shop will become an accessory peddler, maybe have low end, pedestrian level bikes, and their main source for income will be labor/service on all bicycles.

Walmart is rumored to be adding this Viathon line to their online shopping network instantly making 12,000 plus outlets places where you could pick up a carbon rocket like the gravel bike pictured. By the way, depending upon whose numbers you use, that's rumored to be anywhere from two times to three times the number of current LBS outlets. Interesting days for sure.

An old GT thermoplastic framed bike

 "Milk Jug" Technology? 

Carbon fiber is probably the most leveraged frame material in cycling today. R&D and marketing have spent more time touting the benefits of his material for all things cycling than any other material since the late 1980's. However; it remains very labor intensive due to the type of process used to make frames and parts and this is reflected in its price. What if the labor part could be lessened, or removed altogether? Well, it has been tried before, and now it is being tried again.

Before I get into the news, it is important to realize what the differences are that make one way of doing carbon cheaper than another, and why the "cheaper" option hasn't been used much. There are two different processes that are the main players here in carbon fiber production- Thermoset and Thermoplastic. What we know as "carbon fiber" in the cycling industry now is the thermoset carbon technique where patches of carbon fiber fabric are hand laid into a mold, then that is soaked in a resin to bond it all together, (or the fabric is pre-soaked), then that is all sealed up into a very expensively machined metal mold, put into an autoclave to cure the resin at high pressure and at a controlled temperature, then you have a frame, or part you can finish for use. Thermoplastic carbon is simply a type of "plastic" with carbon fibers in it that is injected into a mold, in the simplest terms, like any other plastic, dispensing with any human labor component. The entire thermoset process can be automated. It's obvious why it would be cheaper than thermoset processes, but up until now, the thermoplastic carbon hasn't performed up to the level of thermoset carbon in terms of weight, stiffness, and strength.

The process has been used for bicycles before, none-the-less. GT Bikes used it in many of their futuristic full suspension bikes of the late 90's/early 00's. Ross Bicycles also used it for a hard tail which was sold in department stores! However; frame failures pretty much shelved the material's use and it was long forgotten, until HYV, a Taiwanese company, announced it had figured out the process and will be producing frames in a fully automated way. What effect this has on future carbon bicycle frame and parts technologies, and more importantly, the marketplace for such items, remains to be seen.

Gene Oberpriller with the last haul from the infamous One on One basement. Image courtesy of Facebook

An Era Ends- One Begins:

Sometimes a bike shop is more than just a "bike shop". Sometimes certain shops define an era, or become culturally important to a locale. I think it would be fair to say that One on One Bicycle Studio in Minneapolis, Minnesota was one bicycle shop that fits those bills quite well. They made their mark on the North Loop Warehouse District of downtown Minneapolis and they touched a lot of people with their service, but more importantly, with the vibe and culture which they fostered. Now they have closed that chapter as they have moved to a new place in Minnehaha Falls.

One of the more famous, (infamous?) facets that made up One On One was their massive "bike pile" in their basement. It became a must see tourist attraction for bicycle nerds all over the world. I witnessed a few Frostbike weekends at One On One and saw international bicycle folks down there viewing the carnage of bicycles. Of course, there was a lot more to One On One than just that, but for outsiders, the basement was probably the most memorable facet of this shop's existence.

But I think the main heart and soul of the shop is most certainly "Gene-O", which is what they call owner/proprietor Gene Oberpriller. He's been there since the beginning of the current bike culture scene in Minneapolis and was a big part of its formative years. He's been a professional racer, and did you know? According to his LinkedIn profile, he is an expert marksman. Didn't know that myself until just the other day. Anyway.......

Best of luck in the new digs!

And that's a wrap on this week. Have a great weekend and ride yer bikes!

Friday News And Views

Remember those Spinergy PBO spokes?

Round Two:

Spinergy. Remember that brand? Well, they are still around and they still are selling wheels. The original carbon bladed models from the 1990's are, thankfully, not being sold. those things were super cool looking but were quite spectacular in their failure mode and presented quite a danger when they did blow up. Many of those also de-laminated from the hub shell, rendering them useless.

Spinergy left that technology behind in the late 90's and started using a fibrous spoke material covered in a protective sheath that they dubbed "PBO". This is the same basic technology they use today. Interestingly, I have actually rebuilt a set of those wheels, taking a couple sets and making one good one using the parts that I harvested from the bad set for a former local rider. I ended up tensioning them acoustically, because at that time Spinergy was defunct and parts were not available, along with any technical information. They actually turned out okay for what I had to work with. Then, I completely forgot all about Spinergy, unless my boss at work would bring around his old Cannondale road bike with the polished frame and Spinergy bladed spoke wheels. Then the old memories would come flooding back.

Recently I learned that Spinergy is back and selling wheels with the PBO spokes again. They have a set for gravel. Of course they do, and it looks as though a set might just show up for testing for RidingGravel.com soon. Stay tuned for that......

Viathon, a trade mark registered to Walmart, is a new bike brand selling direct to consumer.

High End "Mart"Bike?

The old joke about how bad "mart bikes" are has been hackneyed for decades. However; that may all be about to change with news that broke Wednesday that a new brand, whose trademark is registered to Walmart, is being sold now direct to consumer.

The brand is called "Viathon" and it sells a mountain, road, and gravel bike in various specs or as a frame and fork. You can check out the gravel bike here. What do I think? Well, the prices don't look fantastically under normal, but they are a pretty good deal. Much like a Canyon bike. The geometry on the "gravel bike" is not my cup of tea at all, so basically, I wouldn't be a customer no matter what the price was.

But some people don't care about such things and will buy the brand just because it under cuts traditional bike shop pricing, by a little bit, anyway. What people need to understand now days though is that bike shops don't charge that much more these days than direct to consumer brands. They can't. Sure- there is MSRP on websites, but that is meaningless. Real street pricing for LBS high end bikes leaves profits so low compared to ten years ago that bike shops don't really make enough to make such bikes worth selling. It's more a service to consumers now and not a profit maker. This will only accelerate to include almost all bike shops soon as the de-facto shopping method for bicycles changes to reflect these online presences. In fact, I foresee a day when there will be showrooms only in certain metropolitan markets where one could actually see and touch bikes while everywhere else will be forced to purchase online. The traditional bike shop will become an accessory peddler, maybe have low end, pedestrian level bikes, and their main source for income will be labor/service on all bicycles.

Walmart is rumored to be adding this Viathon line to their online shopping network instantly making 12,000 plus outlets places where you could pick up a carbon rocket like the gravel bike pictured. By the way, depending upon whose numbers you use, that's rumored to be anywhere from two times to three times the number of current LBS outlets. Interesting days for sure.

An old GT thermoplastic framed bike

 "Milk Jug" Technology? 

Carbon fiber is probably the most leveraged frame material in cycling today. R&D and marketing have spent more time touting the benefits of his material for all things cycling than any other material since the late 1980's. However; it remains very labor intensive due to the type of process used to make frames and parts and this is reflected in its price. What if the labor part could be lessened, or removed altogether? Well, it has been tried before, and now it is being tried again.

Before I get into the news, it is important to realize what the differences are that make one way of doing carbon cheaper than another, and why the "cheaper" option hasn't been used much. There are two different processes that are the main players here in carbon fiber production- Thermoset and Thermoplastic. What we know as "carbon fiber" in the cycling industry now is the thermoset carbon technique where patches of carbon fiber fabric are hand laid into a mold, then that is soaked in a resin to bond it all together, (or the fabric is pre-soaked), then that is all sealed up into a very expensively machined metal mold, put into an autoclave to cure the resin at high pressure and at a controlled temperature, then you have a frame, or part you can finish for use. Thermoplastic carbon is simply a type of "plastic" with carbon fibers in it that is injected into a mold, in the simplest terms, like any other plastic, dispensing with any human labor component. The entire thermoset process can be automated. It's obvious why it would be cheaper than thermoset processes, but up until now, the thermoplastic carbon hasn't performed up to the level of thermoset carbon in terms of weight, stiffness, and strength.

The process has been used for bicycles before, none-the-less. GT Bikes used it in many of their futuristic full suspension bikes of the late 90's/early 00's. Ross Bicycles also used it for a hard tail which was sold in department stores! However; frame failures pretty much shelved the material's use and it was long forgotten, until HYV, a Taiwanese company, announced it had figured out the process and will be producing frames in a fully automated way. What effect this has on future carbon bicycle frame and parts technologies, and more importantly, the marketplace for such items, remains to be seen.

Gene Oberpriller with the last haul from the infamous One on One basement. Image courtesy of Facebook

An Era Ends- One Begins:

Sometimes a bike shop is more than just a "bike shop". Sometimes certain shops define an era, or become culturally important to a locale. I think it would be fair to say that One on One Bicycle Studio in Minneapolis, Minnesota was one bicycle shop that fits those bills quite well. They made their mark on the North Loop Warehouse District of downtown Minneapolis and they touched a lot of people with their service, but more importantly, with the vibe and culture which they fostered. Now they have closed that chapter as they have moved to a new place in Minnehaha Falls.

One of the more famous, (infamous?) facets that made up One On One was their massive "bike pile" in their basement. It became a must see tourist attraction for bicycle nerds all over the world. I witnessed a few Frostbike weekends at One On One and saw international bicycle folks down there viewing the carnage of bicycles. Of course, there was a lot more to One On One than just that, but for outsiders, the basement was probably the most memorable facet of this shop's existence.

But I think the main heart and soul of the shop is most certainly "Gene-O", which is what they call owner/proprietor Gene Oberpriller. He's been there since the beginning of the current bike culture scene in Minneapolis and was a big part of its formative years. He's been a professional racer, and did you know? According to his LinkedIn profile, he is an expert marksman. Didn't know that myself until just the other day. Anyway.......

Best of luck in the new digs!

And that's a wrap on this week. Have a great weekend and ride yer bikes!