Cycle Safely!

DISCLAIMER:
In the following few tips on riding safely with automobile traffic, it might sound like we think bicyclists are the ones usually responsible in a bicycle-automobile crash. Far from it! We know that bicyclists tend to be more alert than automobile drivers--they have to be.

And that is just it. A bicyclist, like any individual, must be conscious of the fact that s/he is responsible for his/her own safety. The bicyclist must control their part of the road, so that--like any vehicle--they can scan the road ahead and make their way along in a straight line. Don't weave in and out of your "safe zone" in traffic, and don't bet your life that car drivers will be good citizens. With defensive riding habits, you can stay safe!


Here it is in three rules:

-Be as visible as possible.
Wear lights at night, stick your hand out, wave it around, do whatever necessary so that you know that you are clearly visible to bored, distracted automobile drivers.

If there is ever a car behind me and I do not think it is safe for them to pass, I stick my left arm out at a 45 degree angle and point at the ground. It is unfortunately a not-quite turn signal, but it lets drivers know that I consider that area my space.


I have found that even the most aggressive drivers will come only as close to my outstretched hand as they otherwise would to my body. Just like that, my worst-case scenario for a car coming from behind and passing me on the left has gone from them squeezing me off the road or hitting me, to them hitting an outstretched hand. Don't play the odds that a driver will have good judgment, make sure drivers are aware that you expect them to follow the law in Kentucky: three feet to the side to pass a bike. If you are anywhere in the lane, they should basically be changing lanes to pass you.

-Ride predictably, signaling violently where appropriate.
Only move out of the lane and to the right if you have enough future open space, and traffic is light enough, that you will be able to move back into the flow of traffic without having to ask a new car behind you to yield and let you in. It is great that you consider yourself a bicycle ambassador. We want to win the hearts of automobile drivers, but do not let your considerate nature get in the way of your safety. Better to just stick well in the lane and try to go as fast with traffic as possible than to weave in and out of traffic and get squeezed to the right.

-Know your "safe zone."
At least one and a half feet away from any obstructions to the right, or in the same position relative to any potential future obstructions, based on your knowledge of the type of road you are on. If the obstructions or potential future obstructions to the right are parked cars, then the bicyclist should be a full car door's length away from those cars/potential future cars. Do not compromise on this basic principle; the lane is your birthright as a vehicle!


Remember, know the law! If you use your good judgment, chances are the law will be on your side, although you might have to remind the police.

For those of you interested in better, more comprehensive instructions, see this great page on bicycle safety, with cartoons that show how bike wrecks occur and how to avoid them.


Remember, stay out of bike lanes if there are parked cars to the right of them!



by John Wade

Vic Attacked by Pack of Wilding Youths!

I arrived at my shop in the Highlands about 9:15 this morning looking forward to getting out for a 20 mile ride before opening the shop at noon. After taking care of a few chores, such as walking the dog, checking email, etc and I was out the door on the fixed-gear bicycle before 10:00am.

This ride takes me west on Christy to Barett, then a block north to pick up Breckenridge and continue west towards downtown. After passing under the railroad overpass on Breckenridge and continuing a few blocks through stop signs and lights, I was traveling slow at 5 to 10 mph. At about Shelby Street I noticed a group of 6 to 8 youths (late teens, early 20s) spreading into the street ahead of me.


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Their attention seemed maliciously focused at another youth on the other side of the street heading away from them. I heard some raised voices and shouting and things were looking like a disturbance of some sort.

I wondered if I should turn and avoid the street in front of me. I decided to veer to the left side of the street away from the group and proceed. As I crossed the intersection at Shelby, the attention of several in the group turned towards me and I heard one say,

"Get the guy on the bike!"

The young man closest to me was 2 or 3 strides away. At that instant I put everything I had into accelerating, veering to the left and ducking my assailants blow. He lunged and attempted a close line type manuever towards my throat. I ducked so the main force of the blow hit me in the helmet and sun glasses, and I felt him against my side trying to get a grip.

He caught on and was able to pull my new iphone from my hip.

As I broke free of him I heard several shoes hitting the ground just behind me as the pack gave chase. I suspect that if I had been on a geared bike instead if a fixed-gear, I might not have escaped.

I continued on at full speed looking for a policeman. At about 3rd street, I saw a city inspector getting into her truck. I told her what happened, she called 911 and soon there were 2 patrol cars there and a report to file.

I went back to the shop, got the car, and was off to Verizon for a new iphone.

All in all, a harrowing experience...I am lucky to be writing this from my shop and not a hospital bed.

Victor Miller

Ironwoman!

Mey Tseng has ridden our 50cm Surly Pacer instead of our Nishiki to victory in the 2011 Louisville Ironman!



Mey raised money and traveled to Louisville to compete, as an amateur, in her first-ever Ironman. She successfully completed the three stages in under 17 hours, making her an Ironwoman!

Unfortunately, the Nishiki's new "brifters" just would not work perfectly. After going so far as to call Shimano, Vic just was not satisfied with the performance. The Tuesday morning before the Ironman, he ordered a Surly Pacer and then built it up by Sunday.

Mey says it worked out great, and she loved the bike!

by John Wade

Cruisin'

Recently I bought this bicycle with a matching woman's bicycle at a picnic. What a great place to buy a bike! It is a "Deluxe Sports Tourist" with a coaster brake! Remember the coaster brake from your childhood bicycle?

To set it up, I bought an extra-long quill for the extra-small diameter steerer tube, fixed the fenders and tightened the chain.

Bicycles are great because they are such efficient, simple machines. I like this bicycle because it doesn't have a whole lot of mechanisms and wires running all over it.

Also, it is not necessary to replace the drive train (chain and rear cassette) often, as is needed with geared bicycles that see a lot of use. It has fenders for the rain and will make a great, dependable commuting bicycle for under ten mile trips.

by John Wade

Steel for the Ironman

Vic is proud to announce that he has completed the bicycle build for Mey Tseng, who will compete in the Louisville Ironman on August 28.



He took the triathlon frame from a Nishiki Tri-A-Equipe' :

and put on the modern Ultegra components from his Mark Nobilette:


The Nishiki frame was built by Kuwahara, the "Carlton of Japan" (in that, like Carlton, they did a lot of business building bicycles for other companies, and had some bicycles released under their own name as well. This frame was obviously built by Kuwahara for Nishiki). You might recognize the Kuwahara built and branded BMX bicycle from the movie E.T.!


As far as components, Mey specifically asked for "brifters" (brake and shifter combination), so we put these on:


She might want a triple chainring with a "granny gear" for any hills around Louisville. Apparently, it is important in the Ironman to save yourself during the bicycling and the swimming portions so your body doesn't shut down for the running portion. I mean, I guess that is just pacing yourself writ large, but I can imagine that it takes a heck of a lot more calories to run 42.2 kilometers than it does to bike 180.3 kilometers, as you have to do in the Ironman (yes, I did just convert to metric, it is easier, but more on that in a later blog post).

GOOD LUCK IN THE IRONMAN MEY!!

by John Wade

Bicycling Across Generations

Jonathan Capps found his Dad's old bicycle in the barn. He thought he saw a diamond in the rough, and he was right!

At Vic's Classic Bikes, we love it when quality bicycles see multiple generations of riders. Unfortunately, many consumer goods today, even high-end consumer goods, are not built to last nor to be repairable. This Raleigh Super Course was both!

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This week I went through a pile of old bicycles at my uncle's house (or more properly, his garage) and came out with these two bicycles for my cousins, who just left for college yesterday. The one on the right is a Trek 820 hybrid bicycle with 700 wheels. It actually has a sweet enough steel frame.


The male cousin will be riding Mom's old bike while the female cousin will be riding Dad's.

A friend of mine from the Netherlands lived in California for a year. A story he would tell me that was supposed to illustrate something about America was how, in California, he bought a used woman's bicycle and thought he got a great deal because it was only fifteen bucks. In the Netherlands, if a bicycle can move forward, it costs real money. Everyone cycles, so there is kind of an infinite demand for working bicycles. He soon learned a valuable lesson; in America, males will be made fun of for riding a woman's bicycle. He has never forgotten being constantly harassed for his purchase.

Real men can take it.

By John Wade

Ironwoman? Triathalon Build for Mey Tseng

Vic’s Classic Bikes is proud to announce that we are building a triathlon bicycle for Mey Tseng, who is competing in the Louisville Ironman competition.

In a couple weeks, on August 28^th at 7:00am, athletes from around the world will gather in Louisville to begin the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, and 26.2-mile run that is the Ironman!

Mey is coming from Hawaii, the birthplace of the Ironman competition. If she can finish the three part competition in 17 hours, she will earn the title “Ironman,” which would be a highlight of any athlete’s career.

Crawling for fourth at the Hawaii Ironman, 1997.

Mey has been a commuter biker on and off since 1998. She has also competed in the 2009 and 2010 Honolulu Tinman competitions, and participated in the 2008 and 2009 Great Aloha Runs, the 2010 Honolulu Marathon, and the 2010 Northshore Swim Challenge as training for the Ironman. While getting her masters in Taiwan in 2000 and 2001, Mey won the two National Chung Cheng University 10 kilometer races.

She first started dreaming of completing an Ironman when she participated in her first Aloha Run for charity and signed up for information from a local triathlon and marathon training group. She went to their info session and decided that she wanted to do a triathlon, but wasn't ready to commit to the paid training.

Mey has been riding a Raleigh 500 bike she bought off Craigslist from a local triathlete in June before her first triathlon at the end of July 2009. The Kentucky Ironman will be her first Ironman. She used to be on her high school swim team, so swimming is the easier part of the race for her.

Look for a post in a couple days with details about the bicycle we are building for Mey Tseng, Ironwoman!

by John Wade

Bentley, Shop Dog

A little over a month ago Bentley became a member of the Miller household. With Laura off for the summer she has taken care of him through the day. But with the aproach of a new school year Mrs. Miller is back in the classroom getting ready for this years students. Well it just would not do for Bentley to spend all day at home alone. So off we go to Feeders Supply. Bead, collar, leash, Nylabone; from the basement a rug and a couple bowles for food & water. Then off to the shop.

Clear out a spot under the work bench and Bentley has made himself at home. Stop by and allow him to introduce himself.

Long Distance on a Surly

My Surly Long Haul Trucker, with knee-high rubber boots and stand-up bicycle pump strapped to the back. 200 pounds all together.

The thumbs-up is really popular in Colombia. I think they are on to something.

Since I discovered road bicycling after high school, I have always ridden steel racing bicycles from the 80s (during high school I rode mountain bikes around, slowly). High in quality and low on price, chromoly cycles are made to last.

Unfortunately, many consumers today purchasing new low to medium-end aluminum bicycles might find themselves paying more than twice what I would spend on a bike that will only last a few years. Trek, Raleigh, Schwinn…these are companies that people associate with quality because at one time they made a popular quality product, but most popular brands today make the bulk of their money selling low-end, overpriced, poorly manufactured (that is, Chinese) bikes.

For instance, Schwinn is now owned by a Canadian company charmingly called Dorel Industries. They got it a few years ago from a company called Pacific Cycle, Inc. who had acquired it during bankruptcy proceedings a few years before. Pacific Cycle, Inc. also owns Mongoose, Roadmaster, InSTEP, Pacific Outdoors, and Powerlite (story). These are NOT bicycle enthusiasts.

Surly is a company of a different breed (whose bikes are at least made in Taiwan). A solid bike with great, practical components. I bought my Surly Long Haul Trucker new in September 2010, and have since ridden it from Amsterdam to Turkey, all over Colombia in South America, and then from Miami here to Louisville.


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Through the sometimes terrible roads of Hungary, Macedonia, and Turkey, the landslides and flooding in Colombia (that even four-wheel vehicles could not get through), and carrying the extra weight that comes from touring with one’s girlfriend (yes girls, it is worth it to travel with you, but you do tend to pack more but carry less), I have had no problems with the bike at all.

Tourers aren't the only ones who rave about Surly; heavy people love them too because they can handle weight. I am not heavy, but I am tall at 6'2" and I like a big frame. Extra long and made from 4130 chromoly steel, the Surly Long Haul Trucker can take whatever you throw at it.
(Scroll all the way down for more pictures from the road)

When I finally made it to Louisville and walked into Vic’s Classic Bikes, I couldn’t believe my eyes when there were my favorites old and new: rows of quality used lugged steel racing bikes and also new Surly bikes. Heaven does exist…

MORE PICTURES FROM THE ROAD...

Carrying two people, milk, and food. Way to make it work in Colombia.

Lived here, in Manizales, Colombia for about two months.

From inside Manizales--the white peak you can see in the middle of the picture is a volcano that erupted in 1985 and over 23,000 people were killed, making it the fourth deadliest eruption in history.

Mom and daughter out and about in the Netherlands.

Kids all bicycle to school, and no one wears a helmet, ever.

Awww. Bike together, stay together.

by John Wade

Schwinn Pixie Restoration

Restoration of vintage bicycles is a rewarding endeavor. Transforming an undesirable cast-away into a prized jewel is very satisfying - restoring a precious heirloom even more so.

Recently, a Cincinnati customer brought her own childhood vintage Schwinn Pixie for restoration. Though she might have found a new or better condition Pixie elseware, she wanted this specific bicycle restored for her daughter.

The Pixie needed a lot of work. The frame needed a deep cleaning, fenders and all other bright metal needed to be re-chromed. The saddle and grips would need to be replaced. The heavy hard rubber tires needed to be replaced with new wheels that used lighter modern tires & tubes.

To satisfy my own curiosity I started to clean one of the fenders and was surprised to find the original triple-chrome plating still in good condition. What a testament to American quality in the 1960's! It took plenty of chrome cleaner and elbow grease, but the the fenders started to shine. The underside of the fenders required a coat of silver zinc oxide paint to keep any future corosion at bay. After a thorough cleaning of the entire bicycle, I was ready for reassembly. The Pixie now looks and handles beautifully, and the integrity of the personal value of this bicycle was maintained.

Louisville Bicycle Maps are in!

THE Louisville bicycle map. Wondering where to ride? Want to know about the secret underground bike path that connects city hall with the river? Ok, that one is purely imaginary, but separate illusion from reality with a free map from Vic's Classic Bikes.

It's produced by Bike Louisville, and even includes a diagram (in picture below, lower left corner) on riding properly (in a straight line and at least four feet from parked cars or other obstructions) and gives all the local bicycle laws.

You can also see the maps here.




by John Wade

Double Tandem and Paul Newman!

Yesterday, at the latest free movie night at Iroquois Ampitheater, we spotted TWO tandems. This alone would have been enough to make this the coolest place to be on a Monday night in Louisville.

When you consider the fact that Cool Hand Luke was playing on a projector screen outside, we can definitely be sure that there was nowhere better.

Here is Luke after eating fifty hard-boiled eggs in only one hour:


by John Wade