Black Eye Bikes Pistola BMX reviewed
Can you get a decent BMX bike for $350 bucks? That's what we wanted to find out when we checked out the Pistola from Black Eye bikes. While the basic set-up is good, Black Eye went the low route in a couple of places to keep costs down. Find out where when you read the whole review, and see if this is a decent entry-level BMX bike or something to stay away from.
Check out the whole review: Black Eye's Pistola BMX bike.
"Bring Your Bike Inside"
Don't you love signs like this? Friar Tuck is a higher-end store that carries liquor, wine and beer. They've got this big sign hanging out back of their shop, where a bike path goes behind their strip mall location.
Leadville 100 Movie -- "Race Across the Sky" -- Announces Second Showing
A couple of weeks ago, I blogged about the movie, "Race Across the Sky" which is the story of the Leadville Trail 100 mountain bike race that took place in August. The LT100 is the event that Lance Armstrong entered after his retirement from road racing that made him decide to compete again. He didn't make much of a showing in 2008 but came back with a new determination to win in 2009, including taking on six-time winner Dave Wiens, who had smoked him the year before.
The movie tells the story of this epic race and it was presented in a one-night only event last month. I saw it, and it was great. It's not a "racing" movie, only about Lance, Lance, Lance with one action shot after another. Rather it's the human element, the profile of the competitors -- both those who make it, and those who don't -- that will have you both cheering and crying before it's all done.
If you missed it the first time, the good news is that an encore, one-night showing has just been announced for Thursday, Nov. 12th. Check out the Race Across the Sky website for more information. Tickets are available at participating theater box offices and online at www.FathomEvents.com, where you can find a complete list of locations showing the movie.
- Race Across the Sky website - featuring a five minute trailer preview
- Tickets and locations where the movie is playing
- Leadville Trail 100 website: information on both running and cycling events
Fort Collins Bike and Brewery Tour
Like beer? Like bikes? Then you'll love the tour laid out for you in Ft. Collins, Colorado, where you can spend a happy afternoon pedaling from one microbrewery to another on this fabulous beer tour. Starting in the town's historic Old Square district, this happy bike ride takes you to three different microbreweries in relatively close proximity to each other before the final stop at New Belgium Brewery. You probably know New Belgium, which --while still technically a microbrewery, I suppose -- has taken its Fat Tire Ale to beer lovers across the country and beyond, and is well known to cyclists for the great events they put on in cities across the U.S. which include the Tour de Fat, the Urban Assault Ride plus their Team Wonderbike group.
Located 50 miles north of Denver, Ft. Collins is easy to get to from just about anywhere in the U.S. They're so set on making this fun and workable for visitors, free loaner bikes are available in the town square. In addition to the bike/brewery tour, the area features lots of great road riding and mountain biking.
Links
Halloween Rules
Wore this home during my commute. Got lots of waves and thumbs up.
Review: Word-Lock Cable Bike Lock
The Word-Lock cable bike lock uses letter combinations instead of numbers to open the lock. Create an easy-to-remember word that means something to you as your combination and never be stuck unable to open your lock. But is it strong enough to deter potential thieves? Read our review of the Word-Lock bike lock and find out.
Etnies Cranks Out New BMX Video - "No Bikes Allowed"
Even if you don't consider yourself a fan of BMX, you should still check out this great new video created by Etnies. It's just a cool sequence of footage featuring guys riding their bikes inside Etnies excellent indoor BMX training facility in Lake Forest, California. Backed by some subtle and low-key music that totally complements the flow taking place on the bikes, the best thing about this video is the lack of X-Games type commentators yelling about what's going on.
Etnies makes clothing and shoes for BMX and other action sports. Riders in the video include John Poval, Brett Walker, Nate Moroshan, Nathan Williams, Corey Martinez, Brian Kachinsky and Aaron Ross.
43% Increase in Bike Commuting Since 2000
According to a recent release from the US Census Bureau, 0.55% of American workers use a bicycle as the primary means of getting to work.
Yes, this is still a tiny fraction, less than one percent, and yes, many more American could be and should be using bikes for pratical transportation. But the great news, however, is that as a percentage, that's significantly higher than it has been.
This is an increase of 14 percent since 2007, 36 percent from 2005, and 43 percent since the 2000 Census. If you're interested in how the numbers of people riding bikes to work for your area was reported, you can look up this and lots of other interesting information using the American Fact Finder.
Percent of Americans who bike to work
- 2000 Census: 0.38%
- 2005: 0.40%
- 2006: 0.45%
- 2007: 0.48%
- 2008: 0.55%
Bike Commuting Links
Michelob Ultra Signs Lance as Spokesman
Last week in front of 5,000 Anheuser-Busch distributors, Lance Armstrong made his debut as pitchman for A-B's Michelob Ultra beer. The brewery recently announced that the seven-time Tour de France winner signed a three-year agreement to become the brand's new spokesperson and ambassador.
As part of the agreement, Lance will be making commercials, including one called "Little Bumps," scheduled to roll out in 2010, potentially as part of the brewery's traditional crop of Super Bowl ads positioned to capitalize on the attention garned by the event's advertisements.
You'll also see Lance in print ads, outdoor media, product packaging and at point-of-sale marketing as part of the deal.
He should make the perfect "spokesman" for A-B. Get it? Har har.
Lance Links
Etnies Number BMX Shoe
Whether you're a serious BMXer or just need a shoe for casual wear and/or riding around town, you'll want check out the Etnies Number shoe. Designed by X-Games and Dew Tour rider Aaron Ross, the shoe is smartly designed in lots of ways for cyclists. Plus it looks cool too. Check out our whole review here.