London Singlespeed Society

Posted on LiveLeak, a video of some people “freeway cycling”:

What interests me is not the sports metal soundtrack accompanying what appears to be fairly banal footage of some cyclists riding down the gaps in near-stationary traffic (something most of us would simply refer to as “commuting”), but the comments. “These guys are roadkill waiting to happen”, “crazy”, “insane” and of course an obligatory “I wopuld of hit him just for fun…asswipe bike on a freeway…fuckin moron.”

It never seems like a good idea.

Thank you, FAIL Blog.

I had originally believed that the problem of stupidly placed brake levers had been hitherto confined to New York and other North American cities at the cutting edge of fixed gear trendiness. But I am sad to report that London has fallen foul to this latest craze. While wandering through the trendy East Central area of the capital I came across this:

It’s highly possible that there’s a good reason for this, which I can’t think of. Having fallen foul of poorly adjusted brakes on a number of occasions (mostly off road mind you) I am a bit worried about whoever rides this. If you’re reading, please stop the craziness!

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.

Courtesy of Mr. Crud, we’ve been testing a couple of prototypes of the 2009 Raceguard.

The first Raceguard was invented in 1994, an innovative seatpost-mounted rear mudguard, and it rapidly became the market leader among mountain bikers and commuters alike as the simplest and best-looking way to avoid that “wet stripe” up the back of your clothes.  It was a great design, simple to fit (although to do so you had to remove the seatpost and slide shims on and off), easy to adjust and once fitted it stayed in place and was hard to break.  I bought one in ‘95 and it’s been in intermittent use since then and is still going strong.

For 2009 Mr. Crud’s been challenged to redesign it, chiefly so you don’t have to remove the seatpost to fit it.  Other manufacturers (SKS, Topeak, Cycraguard) have recognised the Raceguard’s popularity and produced similar offerings, some of which fitted straight around the seatpost, so after 11 years it was time for an update.

So what’s new?  As you can see from the photo above, the mudguard itself keeps the familiar (and very effective) shape of the recent “RacePak” incarnation, but the main thing that has changed is the clamp.  It can now be fitted straight around the seatpost and with a very British, very CRUD-like conciseness of design.

The pack contains two rubber shims, one seatpost clamp, one nut and bolt, the arm and the mudguard.  It’s all made out of flexible plastic that feels pliable but hard to break.  It weighs a lot less than it looks like it should.  It’s very simple to fit in less than a minute.  The shims mean it will suit seatposts from 25-33mm and, once everything’s in the right place, a few turns of the one bolt mean it’ll all stay put.

…and that’s just what it did.  Over lumpy rattly stuff and in soggy mud and rain, it kept our backs (and saddles) dry and free from The Stripe.  Neither branches nor not-going-to-make-it faceplants managed to shift it.  We’re impressed.  I’m sure that the 2009 redesign will be even more popular as its predecessor.

Mine’s going to stay on my bike.