Macgyver on a bike?

I've seen some inventive repairs in my life, both in my bicycle work and theatre work, but yesterday a fella came in off the trail with an improvisation that really surprised all of us. Alas, I was unable to get a photo, but I'll try to describe in words what he did.

Apparently, somewhere along his ride, or perhaps over the course of several rides, 4 of his 5 chain ring bolts (chain rings are the big sprockets attached to the cranks that you turn with the pedals) had worked loose and fallen off the bike. When the rider realized this, he figured he needed a temporary fix to get him to the nearest shop, so he turned to something near at hand... grass stems! Seriously... he used a number of strong, fibrous grass stems to TIE the chainrings in place! The amazing thing is, it worked. I'm not sure how far he rode that way, but any distance is pretty remarkable.

So, next time you have a mechanical problem on your bike... maybe you don't have to reach for your cell phone first!

Progress: Riding Bikes to School

    This Spring we have tried to support parent and school administrator efforts to promote children biking to school.  This photo is of two of our Event Bike Racks being used at Cunningham Park Elementary School.  We have had three racks at Wolftrap Elementary since their Bike & Walk to School effort in May.  What we see at these schools and at the Vienna Farmers Market is strong interest in being able to use a bike for transportation.  The presence of a bike rack makes this more convenient and increases the participation.

Budgets are tight everywhere.  A demonstration project like the one depicted in the photo can show the use and need for placement of a bike rack.  Think about where a bike rack could improve the use of bicycles as transportation.  Perhaps we can work together on a test to prove the need for a permanent rack.                                                                                                   

Appreciation for Charlie Strunk

This article is directly from the Sun Gazette Newspaper:

Bicycle Coordinator Receives Transportation Achievement Award

(Created: Thursday, June 24, 2010 6:59 AM EDT)

Charlie Strunk has been honored with Fairfax County's annual Transportation Achievement Award.

The Fairfax Transportation Advisory Commission presented its 2009 Transportation Achievement Award to Charlie Strunk during the June 22 Board of Supervisors meeting.

Strunk is the bicycle coordinator for the Fairfax County Department of Transportation. He was selected based on his efforts planning facilities to allow non-motorized or bicycle transportation options.

In 2009, Strunk managed the following projects:

* Creating 10 new miles of bike lanes on Gallows Road, Westmoreland Street, Lawyers Road and other streets.

* Completing the bicycle and pedestrian bridge on Wolftrap Road near ilmer Middle School, providing non-motorized access between Tysons Corner and the town of Vienna.

* Supervising the purchase of 150 new bike racks for locations across the county.

* Securing a $104,000 federal grant to create the Sully District Historic Sites Bike Map, a guide to family-friendly bike routes that highlight Civil War and historic sites in western Fairfax County.

* Leading the effort in winning a Virginia Department of Health grant to buy and give away 200 bike helmets to children.

Since 2006, Strunk has served as the county’s first bicycle coordinator, where he oversees efforts to incorporate bicycle facilities as part of the county’s transportation infrastructure.

Bromptons in, Bromptons out!

Well, it's quite a couple of days here, Brompton-wise! Thursday we got in another shipment of four bikes:

M6R in Flamingo Pink/Black
M6R in Yellow/Black
M3R in Orange/Black
P6R in Artic Blue/Black

And today (Friday) we've sold the M6R Flamingo bike that just came in, as well as a M6R in British Racing Green, a P6R in Turkish Green and a P6R in Black.

Four out, four in, in 24 hours!

Don't worry, we still have about a dozen of them in the shop, in various flavors, such as the Orange P3R you see here!

Basic Maintenance Class

Hey folks!

Mark your calendars! Our next Basic Maintenance and Repair class is being offered Sunday, July 11th, at 7 pm. Learn how to fix a flat tire, and how to do a basic gear and brake tuneup, all for less than you would pay in labor charges for a gear and brake tuneup from us! AND you get a free tool kit that retails normally for $22.

We ask that folks sign up and pay in advance, so we have an accurate idea of how many people are coming. Sign up now, we still have spots available for July 11th!

Bromptons in Stock!

Well, I figured it was time to post a list of what we have in the way of Bromptons currently. A quick primer on model nomenclature:

S - straight bar, which you see on the far left of the photo, the raciest position.
M - the traditional Brompton bar, giving a comfortable, upright position.
P - a "butterfly" shaped bar, giving multiple hand positions, sort of the best of both worlds.

You can see the bars, in the order listed, pretty well in the photo below:


The number in the model indicates how many gears the bike has... 1, 2, 3, or 6.

R indicates a bike with rack and fenders, L indicates a bike with just fenders.

The "extremities" are the front fork, rear frame, and handlebar stem.

So what we currently have is:

M6Rs in the following colors:

Arctic Blue/Black Extremities
British Racing Green/Black Extremities
Apple Green/Black Extremities (3rd from left in photo)

M3Rs in:

Red/Black Extremities (2nd from left in photo)

P6Rs in:

Apple Green/Black Extremities
Red/Red Extremities
Black/Black Extremities
White/Black Extremities (4th from left in photo)
Turkish Green/Black Extremities

P3Rs in:

Red/Red Extremities
Orange/Black Extremities
Black/Black Extremities

S2L in:

Turkish Green/Black Extremities (1st on left in photo)

Supporting Mike Hamlin in Fighting Muscular Dystrophy

Our customer Mike Hamlin sent us a letter this week asking that we help publicize the formation of a team to ride on the Seagull Century and raise money to fight Muscular Dystrophy. 

"Miles for Muscles" is partnering with "Stone Circle of Friends" to raise awareness and provide research funding for Myotonic Muscular Dystrophy (MMD) through our cycling team. Mike Hamlin, a one time avid cyclist with Myotonic Muscular Dystrophy, is inspiring folks to join him on this 100 mile ride. Mike is no longer able to ride a bike, so he is riding a recumbent trike instead. Join Mike on this adventure.  Together we can cross the finish line for a cure.

 http://milesformuscles.com/seagullcentury.html

Come Meet Ian Sims of Greenspeed on Monday, June 14

The cycling industry is filled with interesting people and Ian Sims of Greenspeed is a person of creativity and vision.  We are pleased that Ian will be visiting bikes@vienna on Monday, June 14.  We like to invite you to meet him and hear about his work in developing Greenspeed trikes and growing an international business from his home in Austrailia.

We'll have a social gathering at the store from 7 PM to 8:30 PM.  It will be a meet and greet with Ian taking questions about his work, his products, and his vision for the future of cycling and tricycles.

We anticipate that this could become a good sized event so we'd ask that you email us if you plan to attend.   Please send your email to john@bikesatvienna.com.

TerraTrike Rover Delivery Is Delayed

The dealer newsletter for TerraTrike says that the delivery of the first container of Rover trikes is delayed until mid June.  TerraTrike says they are repainting the frames,  The initial samples did not meet TerraTrikes standards so it is back to the paint booth.

I have been telling callers for two months that the trikes would be arriving the last week of May.  I'm sorry, but we're waiting together for this trike which sets a new price point for the recumbent trike segment of our business.

I'll report the news as I get it.

First Ever Brommie Yummie Ride!

You may remember back in March when I (Tim) rode in the first Brompton US Championship, a wacky race in Philadelphia modeled on the Brompton World Championship, where folks in "business attire" (jacket and tie) race Brompton folding bikes. Well, at the BUSC, Steven Huang, graphic artist (he did the graphic for the 2009 BWC and 2010 BUSC shirts... that's him standing behind all our bikes before the ride) and employee of Bfold Bikes in NYC, was passing out fliers for a "Brommie Yummie Ride". What he had in mind was a ride around NY with a group of people on Bromptons, stopping and eating at a variety of dining establishments... a sort of "progressive meal by bike". I was intrigued, but not sure if I could make it.


Well, John was kind enough to give me the day off, so off I went on a bus to the Big Apple, with my trusty Brompton P6R safely (I hoped!) stowed in the cargo bay. Based on a suggestion from Steven, I covered the bike with the standard Brompton "slipcover", and then tucked that package inside a cheap tote bag, the Dimpa bag from Ikea. I would ordinarily have used the wonderful B Bag from Brompton, but it really is too bulky to carry around on the bike all day, so the cover and Dimpa seemed a good choice. All in all, it worked out just fine, but I was glad I could "supervise" the loading and unloading closely!


About eighteen riders (including four of us from the DC area, including Ollie Brock, bikes@vienna customer and top ten finisher at the BUSC) gathered near Penn Station at noon. After some getting acquainted and the obligatory taking of photos by everyone with a camera (myself included), we set off for our first destination... Babycakes, a vegan bakery which had some truly amazing treats for us. My choice was a cinnamon bun sweetened with agave... amazing! Here's a shot of riders and bikes outside, enjoying the treats.




Despite being issued cue sheets, I don't think any of us realized that our next stop was a matter of a few blocks away, at the Doughnut Plant. I never knew there was such a thing as "artisanal doughnuts, nor that there was a "trend" of such things, but apparently this place was/is at the forefront of that movement. And they did have some truly delicious offerings, although I preferred the cinnamon roll at Babycakes.


While feasting on doughnuts, we were joined by an "interloper" of sorts... a fellow on a Dahon who had dropped in at the start of the ride, and mysteriously appeared later along our route at Doughnut Plant. Coincidence? I don't know. But here's his bike peeking out behind the multicolored Brompton ridden by David Lam, owner of Bfold Bikes.




Lest you think this whole day was about nothing but eating, we actually did do a fair amount of riding, about 10 - 12 miles through parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn. We had a fun ride across the Manhattan Bridge, stopping to admire the view, while I also took some time to look at the structure of the bridge. I've always been fascinated by bridges, and the design and engineering behind them, and New York has plenty to look at.




Once in Brooklyn, we stopped and picked up our lunches at The Chip Shop, which features food with a British theme. My lunch consisted of a delicious Wild Mushroom Shepherd's Pie, Mushy Peas (an odd British twist on peas), and of course, a heaping pile of chips, known to us Yanks as fries. The restaurant was small and crowded, so we remounted our bikes and headed to a park on the Brooklyn waterfront, adjacent to the Red Hook Ikea, located in what used to be the Todd Shipyard, apparently.

After that, it was a free water taxi ride back to Manhattan, with some great views of the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge. It was pretty funny seeing all of our bikes clustered on the foredeck of the boat. We drew a lot of attention everywhere we went, but I think the "show" of us all carrying our bikes off the boat and unfolding and riding off was the best.



All in all it was a great day. While the DC area got a pretty heavy downpour, we didn't feel a drop of rain all day, and enjoyed good food, fine company, and Steve's wonderful commentary as we rode along. He told us lots of fun information about the sights we saw, and really set a positive, fun tone for the day. It was a great way to explore a part of the city and meet new people with a common interest. More rides are planned later this year, and Steve even talked about working with the DC contingent to organize a similar event in the future. We'll keep you posted!

Meanwhile, more of my photos can be seen here:

Brommie Yummie Ride, May 23, 2010

And Steve's site about the rides is here:

http://www.brommieyummie.com/This final photo is Steve, doing the crane stance from "Karate Kid" surrounded by all of our bikes on a compass in the old shipyard. One of many delightful moments in a great day.

Now Appearing at bikesvienna: Daniel Nanovic

We are pleased that Daniel Nanovic has come in to help us in the store. Daniel is a college student. His father, Roy Nanovic, has been a long time recumbent rider and customer of bikes@vienna. Roy rides a Barcroft Dakota. We're working on Daniel.

Brommie Yummie

Folks gathering for the ride!

Jeff Heil helping us be better

I snapped this photo of Jeff Heil on Friday morning.  Jeff is working at bikes@vienna three days a week (can you see that logo on his bandana?).  Note his W&OD Trail Patrol jersey because he volunteers to help with the trail patrol. Jeff writes articles for Spokes Magazine.  He has a blog you can visit http://yellowbiketales.blogspot.com  It is a joy to have Jeff helping us in the store.

A Terrific Bike To Work Day

It was a day of sunshine, smiles, and miles of pedaling as cyclist throughout the Washington Metropolitan region made their way to work by bike and trike.  In Vienna there were 350 riders registered.  For the second year the Vienna Pit Stop was held at the Town Green.  Whole Foods provided beverages and bananas.  Spokes Etc had a number of employees helping and again Jeff Palmer of Spokes was the Pit Stop Manager.  Tim Fricker and I plus Hunter McCleary of Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling had the good duty of handing out the coveted BTWD t-shirts.

As someone wondered aloud ......... why can't we do this several times a year?

From left to right, Jeff Palmer of Spokes Etc, Cathy Salgado, Director of Parks and Recreation for the Town of Vienna, and Tim Fricker of bikes@vienna.

Riders waiting for the crossing light at Maple Ave. The traffic on the W&OD Trail was busy most of the morning.

Our customer on the Catrike Expedition waved just as I snapped the photo.  His arm is hidden by the bollard.  The impression is that the bollard is topped with a realistic looking hand.

Coming Up This Week

Jeff Anderson has signs up in the Wolftrap Elementary area as he
promotes cycling and walking to school. We took event bike rack to
the school to support their bicycle school bus on Wednesday.

If you have an activity which could promote better health through
cycling and you need bike racks ........call us

New Dahon Expresso

On Friday we received a new Baltic Blue Dahon Expresso. It has an
impressive list of upgrades from last year. On the improved list are
the Big Apple tires, Altus rear dérailleur, plusher saddle, MRX
shifters, and now magnets to hold the bike when it is folded. You
should come test ride it.

May 8th Plant Sale/Ride There

A visit to the store or following this blog tells you that we are interested in the health of Mother Nature.  An example is the sugar snap peas growing in the large green pots put in front of the store.  Yes, yes, we do like to graze on the fruit of the plants as we watch customers test ride bikes and trikes.

The Ayr Hill Garden Club will hold their Plant Sale on Saturday, May 8th.  It is a wonderful opportunity for you to purchase local plants.  We have a suggestion for you.  You need to get there early.  Saturday mornings are the Vienna Farmers Market in that same area.  We set out the bike racks for the Farmers Market and we'll provide bike racks for the Plant Sale.  So riding your bike is a good thing.   If you must drive then come park in our lot and walk or ride your bike the block and a half to the activities.

How about coming to see us this weekend to buy a basket or pannier so you are ready for this season of Farmers Markets?

TerraTrike Rover Announcement Spreads Excitement

Today's announcement from TerraTrike of the 3 speed ($799) and 8 speed ($999) Rovers has the trike enthusiasts communicating on the web this morning.  This trike seems to fit a need for individuals interested in a tadpole trike and a lower cost.  With the raised seat it solves problems for people like me with bad knees who are challenged by getting up from many tadpoles.

You can read a review about the Rover at bentRider on line.  Just click on 'BentRider

bikes@vienna has Rovers on order.  The last report was that the trikes would arrive in mid May.

Even Greater Comfort for a Carbon Seat

Our customer, Dave Krovetz, sought even more comfort for his
recumbent. He contacted the folks at Alaska Leather and they custom
produced a sheepskin seat cover. Actually they produced a couple.
Dave sent me one and so I'm mugging with it. soooooofffffffffttttt.

Advertising in the Georgetowner Newspaper

Today the Georgetowner Newspaper is being distributed with a quarter page ad featuring our folding bikes.  This ad shows a Brompton in Apple Green.  We chose this color Brompton for two reasons; it's a good color for Spring and we just got a P Model 6 Speed in Apple Green  to sell.

The Brompton compact fold and the rear suspension on the Brompton bikes makes it a good choice for folks living in Georgetown.  The bike will fit in the back of a vehicle, in a closet, or behind the couch for storage.  It can be used as a cart for shopping trips to the grocery as our own Tim Fricker does when he goes to Whole Foods.  It is quick and makes trips to Metro stations at Foggy Bottom or Rosslyn easier.  Why hail a cab when you can zip across town on your bike?

We've been spacing our orders of Bromptons to have "fresh" models for you to consider.  Come see us.  If you're coming from Georgetown ride Metro to Vienna Station.  Use your cell phone to call us when you reach East Falls Church and we'll pick you up Thursdays through Monday.