More Stolen Bikes MPLS Hello God It's Me Johnny and his lovely wife had their rides lifted recently. Be on the lookout. He writes: "My wife and I just had our bikes stolen from 24th St. and 5th Ave S tonight. This is a big bummer mostly because my wife finally had a bike that she was in love with and was commuting to work on. You will be taken care if you lead us to our steeds. (612)245-4095. Thanks, Johnny Hers: Surly 1x1, Black, 14" Frame Ritchey flat bar, stem and seat post Avid BB7 disc brakes Truvativ Stylo Gigapipe crank set WTB saddle, Speed V Front Wheel: Hutchinson Python tire, XT hub, Mustang disc tubeless rim Rear Wheel: Continental tire, Surly hub, WTB rim His: Surly Karate Monkey, Black, 16" Frame DT Swiss 240 hubs, DT Swiss 7.1 rims Cromoto stem Motoace bell lap bars(wrapped in red tape) Sachs Ergo Power 8 speed levers Avid BB7 disc brakes" XTR 952 rear derailleur XTR 970 from derailleur XTR 900 crank set 2 chain rings 34/46 XTR 959 pedals Selle Italia SLR white saddle" Bummer. Perhaps Johnny should try contacting this guy. ************************************************************************************* IN OTHER NEWS, there seems to be a lot of misunderstanding surrounding the lurking dangers of toe overlap. T.O. is one of those subjects that we receive questions about fairly often, as do most bike companies big and small. Dave Moulton wrote a good bit about it that I think is worth a read. I won't repeat all he has said so well already, but I would like to emphasize that T.O. seems to concern people in a manner disproportionate to any actual cause for concern. I know some of you will disagree, and I'd wager that at least one of you reading this is already frantically typing me an impassioned email in which you share your personal toe overlap horror story, but in my considerable experience both riding and working in the bike biz I have found that most people are smart enough to stop pedaling during the incredibly brief window of opportunity when T.O. can occur. And I can already hear some of you shouting "What about fixed gears, genius?!" Well, what about them? If T.O. was a big deal on fixies this industry would surely by now have been deluged in a tsunami wave of medical bills stemming from T.O.-induced crashes by urban hipsters. T.O. is all sound and fury. ************************************************************************************* And as if on cue, pal Sven sends this: Now go for a ride. -----

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In the mailbag from Cornbread: What up Andy! Got the LHT built up and took her out for a spin this past weekend. Several of my buddies and I rode from Lincoln, NE to Ponca, NE (155 miles) and camped. Then four of us rode back the next day. It was....oh pretty good! The LHT is super comfy and is quickly becoming my favorite bike. Got some pics of the LHT and the Ponca ride here ---> http://cornbreadblog.blogspot.com/ Thanks again! Corey Cornbread won the frame in his pursuit of glory in the TransIowa. He's right, you know. The LHT is a kick ass bike. First you get on and you're all "It feels weird. Low. Heavy. I don't know guys." And then you put a bunch of crap on it, bags filled with your clothes and a tent that you bought for car camping but you don't want to buy another one just for this so you'll live, and a bunch of other stuff, and then you try to lift your bike and you're all like Woah, I can't pedal this much weight. And then you try. And you can. And it doesn't feel that much different to ride than it did without all the extra stuff loaded up. A bit more effort up the hills, but not that much. And that's when the light goes on and you go Oooooohhhhhh....I get it now. But I don't need to tell you. Or do I? -----

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Hi there. Xtracycle has improved their Freeloader bags so they now attach to your Big Dummy or Freerad frame more easily and securely. We've added new braze ons to the Big Dummy frame to accomodate. Good idea found here, and also at the top of Spew #19, creatively entitled Big Dummy, found on the right side of our blog page. ************************************************************************************* Eric Parsons of Epic Designs (remember him?) is as great a nutjob as you could hope to meet. Plus his bags rock. When he sent me the link to his next adventure, I asked, "Is this trip a bigger version of the one you just did?" and he replied, "Yes its hugely bigger, 300 miles and about 18 days. The big one. The other trips were for learning and practice." For the record, the practice trips were not exactly strolls to the candy store. In the immortal words of Steve Swobo: Get action, honky. Updates as events warrant. ************************************************************************************* The Johnsonator sends this link from Defgrip. You think your bike sound system is dope? Get in line, Joe Cool. ************************************************************************************* Evi-dense from the United State of Phaty that bike jousting is not just for the Black Labels anymore: Did that guy take a spear to the throat? Ouch... ************************************************************************************* Oh, and How's Luby? Luby's going to be just fine. ************************************************************************************* ...And it just keeps rolling in. Hello God? It's Me Johnny sends a link that reads in part "we can paint your bike like a zebra, any colors." Awesomeosity. That is all. -----

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A brief aside today as we take time to bid a fond adieu to Reid Gosmire III, friend, cyclist, and consumate superfreek. He will be moving soon to pursue a career in the body ink industry. MPLS will miss him. Find below his recent birth announcement. Just born, and he's already on his way east to seek fame and fortune. Poor Reggie. That must have been painful. "Please take a moment to congratulate Reggie. He is now the prowd(ish) father of two. His second, Reid Malcom Nabors III was born last night. Everything went smoothly, The baby weighed in at a whopping 43 lbs and was 31 inches long." Photo and announcement cred to Reid. Cred for patience and good humor to Reggie. Cred for being an opportunistic jackass to yours truly. Now take your flunky and dangle, patsy. -----

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