Travelling entirely by bicycle, carrying all of their instruments, accompanied by a two person film / support crew (with Buzz the travelling cat for company) and funding the trip entirely by playing concerts along the way, the Oregan based band Blind Pilot are touring the entire West Coast of the USA. Their blog Instruments Alone gives the scoop on the band’s progress, some great video footage and a photo gallery devoted entirely to Buzz. Particularly amazing is the upright bass trailer - surely proof that with a bit of ingenuity and some effort, an awful lot can be achieved using the humble bicycle.
The entire journey will eventually be turned into a film - we can’t wait. London Singlespeed wish Blind Pilot the best of luck on their incredible tour, and sorely wish we could be there to support them.
Well we’ve just got back from a tour of the Annapurna circuit, a commonly walked, but rarely cycled route through the Himalayas in Nepal. And no, of course I didn’t do it on a singlespeed, don’t be daft. The route is nowadays ridden as an annual race called the Yak Attack, but we were there as tourists. Despite falling ill, falling off the bike, smashing my rear derailleur clean off on a rock (an instant reminder of why singlespeeding is so great) and some altitude-related unpleasantness, the trip was unbelievable and I would highly recommend it to anyone. There’s a lot of un-rideable sections, mostly very steep rough staircases cut into the mountains, but when it’s rideable, it’s breathtaking. Despite mountain bikes and components being impossibly expensive in Nepal the country has some very skilled, and very strong mountain bikers, so if you ever go, expect to be humbled by the locals.
Marco crosses the landslide on the way to Tilicho Lake, the highest lake in the world:
Tenzing and Marco wait to cross the Thorung pass - 5416 metres above sea level:
Marco, Calden and Tenzing descend from the Thorung pass:
Check the London Singlespeed Flickr account for some more photos from the trip and if you want to know a bit more about it, do get in touch.
The Bristol to Bath cycle path is under threat. Having lived there for some time (though not now, obviously) I’d like to see the path survive so would hope everyone can take a couple of minutes to sign the online petition here.
Happy New Year singlespeeders!
Here’s a hilarious and very instructive article about the finer points of wheelbuilding - hopefully this will get you all excited about all the cycling you’re going to do in 2008…
While wandering the internet looking at bike stuff (as I all too often find myself doing) I came across this quite special bike sticker…
Anyone seen something that can top that?
