Have a few front Aerospoke wheels and a couple of rears up for grabs, check the web store or come by. My retired Bianchi Pista is in a photograph that made it onto the Brooks Saddles home page.

We should be open regular hours this weekend with a slight chance of closing a little early on Saturday evening. Come out to the Wolf Pack Hustle Drag Races this Saturday at 11:00PM

So, we got in a new personal delivery bike by Batavus - those Dutch make some great bikes!!!
(All pictures in this entry courtesy of the gorgeous Rebecca J. Long.)

It'll hold lotsa stuff...and people.

So, I'm stoked on this bike these days...
Also, I just got into town from traveling cross-country, and it was a blast! I got a chance to ride at Ray's Mountain Bike Park in Cleveland, Ohio. I would really like to thank those guys and gals for their hospitality and an amazing time! Click on the rest of the post for more photos.

Continue reading "New Bike!!!...and pics from RAY'S MTN. BIKE PARK!!!" »

Hey!! If you want to come to the shop Saturday or Sunday, DON'T!
Friday Night, we're closing early, (about 6 pm) for the BladeRunner alleycat, stop by 4th and Flower at 7 pm for some replicant fun! Afterward, stop by basswerks for beer from New Belgium and gold sprints!
Saturday, come to Encino Velodrome
Registration starts at 12 pm, racing as soon as we can get people on the track! Match Sprints, Scratch Races, Free Stuff For EVERYONE!! Racing is free and Fun!
Sunday there's a BLOCK PARTY in front of our shop, 2pm-8pm. Food, Music, Track Bike Silliness, Debauchery and MORE!!
Thanks to SWARM! , check it out for more info!

First off, we have succumbed to popular opinion, and we are going to be CLOSED on Easter Sunday - March 23rd.
Secondly, April 11th, 12th, and 13th will be extremely exciting here in LA! We've got Jimmy Lizama, from LA, organizing the BLADE RUNNER Alleycat, and Squid, from NYC, is bringing the VeloCity Race here to the Encino Velodrome with the help of the SWARM! crew and some very dedicated individuals! (Messengers competing in the VeloCity velodrome races will be eligible to win tickets to the Cycle Messenger World Championships in Toronto this year!) The alleycat is Friday night, Saturday is the race at Encino, and Sunday we'll be closing the street in front of the shop (Heliotrope Dr.) and throwing down!

We'll be posting more info as it's available... (You had better get your training on!)

It's still a work in progress, but you can get back on the site. Here's a photo of Kyle w/ some folks up in Portland:

There's always a ton of stuff going on around here, and we're doing a horrible job of keeping you informed... There's been a lot of traveling lately, and that's been screwing up my computer time. We'll be doing our best to update you more frequently... Right on.

We're working on restoring it, but it may be a few days. In the meantime, you can always call and find out what we have in stock.

We are also just get settled after getting back from Portland and the Handbuilt Bike Show. I'll put some photos in the rest of this post. Portland was a blast - they have the highest cycle commuter ratio of any major city in the states, and they've developed a really comprehensive bike route system. We spread out - Kyle drank coffee, Omar shot pictures, and I went mountain biking. It was a blast!

Continue reading "Well, our online shop CRASHED..." »

The North American Handmade Bike Show (NAHBS) is coming up this weekend in Portland, and it is gonna be rad! The US is home to many of the world's best bicycle frame builders, and this is their show. Organized by Don Walker and started in 2005, this event showcases the work of some of the industry's most innovative and influential independent builders. This year's event features 150 exhibitors, the largest to date - the first show only had 23! We're packing up a van to make the trip, though TJ and Jack may be staying back to keep the shop open. Please call us to check that we are be open before stopping by this weekend! Right now, we are planning on being open the entire weekend; however, we were shooting for the same schedule last weekend while we were understaffed, and a fried computer forced us into limiting our hours last Sunday...

It's raining here in LA - hallelujah! I love the rain - it reminds me of the east coast. It's always sunny and warm here in LA, and it can make a person feel guilty when they're not 'taking advantage of the nice weather'. So, sometimes I feel like I'm being lazy. (But I also miss playing in the rain a little, too!) And, if you want to hang out in front of the boob tube, catching up on some couch time, rain can be all the excuse you need.
We've got an answer to your 'what to watch now' dilemma... That's right, bike porn! We've got copies of Bootleg Sessions for all you trick stars on track bikes; Summer of Fit, Stoked on Being Pumped - filmed in high def, Etnies Grounded, Rodeo Peanut, and many more for the BMX heads; for the huckers and mountain riders, we've got New World Disorder 8, Trials is Dead, the Chain Reaction box set, Roam, plus a few more action flicks; and for the roadies, there are copies of Stars and Water Carriers/The Impossible Hour, the '07 Tour de France, the '07 Paris-Roubaix, eat!sleep?bikes! - a short by local filmmaker Sasha Perry, and a couple more titles.
If you're looking for a free video online, it's amazing what you can find on the web these days. In addition to "Nowhere Fast" listed in the last post, I also found Primo's "Made in Taiwan". It came out around the same time as "Nowhere Fast" and featured a couple of the same riders. (I used to lose to Chad DeGroot every time we competed against each other. Thank goodness his riding style is so awesome... Nowadays, he runs a rad shop and park down in Florida, Mesh Skatepark.)
And to leave things on a light note, here's a picture from the Brew Tour this past summer - Craig from Boston and Noah from San Diego showing us that technique and beer aren't the only things that matter in a proper game of Bocci...style is key, too! Photo courtesy of the amazing Aussie, Mike Makatron, at the Bocci Cellar in Santa Cruz.

I will be out of town through Tuesday, the shop WILL BE OPEN, so I want to get a couple more posts up before I leave. Here is the latest shop news: we've got some new bags, frames, and bikes making their debut in the shop this week! We just got our first shipment from PAC Bags, and they look great! (Just click on their name to check out their website...) Pat from PAC bags is responsible for many messenger bag "firsts" including: 'D'-ring adjusters, suspension straps designed to 'hug' the load to your body, and the 'X'-shoulder strap - a second shoulder strap on traditional, single-strap messenger bags that stores itself on the flap of the bag when not in use! Pat's PAC bags are some of the most-prized and sought after pieces of equipment in the bike messenger's arsenal.

(And if I could find the camera, then there would be photos in this post, but it's been hiding from me all week...so you just have to stop by the shop - or wait - to see all this rad stuff!)

Also new this week, we've got 4 frames fresh from Japan with one more still to come! So far, we've unwrapped a blue Panasonic with super track ends, a red Umezawa, a sparkle-blue Samson, and a sparkle-white Vivalo; and all of them look great! The frame sizes, by seat tube (center-to-center), run from 48 - 53 centimeters, so if you are looking for a smaller frame, these should definitely be on your radar. Come on by and check them out.

And finally, we should be seeing the new Cutter completes from Volume Bikes any day now! Volume Bikes was started by pro freestyler and all-around shredder Brian Castillo, so you know the Cutters are designed to withstand some abuse. (Check out Brian Castillo's link to see his part in one of the most influential and ground breaking street/BMX movies of all time, 'Nowhere Fast'.) And no, the bikes were not named after Chad Rathbone's dog or the 'Warriors' crew from SF...it's a throwback to "Breaking Away". (Heal up quick, Chad!) They only did a limited run of 75 bikes for the Cutter production model, and we have only been able to guarantee 3 for the shop - one 52, one 55, and one 58. (We may still be able to get a few more of the larger sizes; however, the 52s are all sold out...) This complete will retail for $800 - $50 more and a few months later than they originally expected, but they look pretty damn nice. Hopefully we'll have one together by this weekend!

Just want to let you know that Robert and Ozzie are putting together the BLOOD IN BLOOD OUT alleycat February 2nd. The flyer is below, but in case you are having trouble reading it: the start is at the bridge at 4th and Flower, 2p.m. on Saturday, February 2nd, and it's gonna cost you 5 bucks to race. Come on out and explore east LA... Hope to see you there.