South Side Ride

and a surprise
3 mins, 36 secs in...

from Aaron Bussey
on Vimeo

South Side Sledding

gravity's
a bitch!

What a better way to celebrate the arrival of BikeWinter as well as the New Year but with a bit of sledding? On Monday a bunch of us headed down to join this month's South Side Ride. Of course gravity and a slippery slope can and will conspire against you at the end of the run ... especially if there's a fence waiting for you!

Merry Xmas!

another vid from
the Vulgar Lad

Bike with a little extra somethin'

whether you
like it or not!

From
Chicago Craigslist...

Shoppers Beware...

cycling Santas
are coming
to town!

The Windy City's Annual Santa Cycle Rampage
Plows into Tenth Year

The tenth anniversary Santa Cycle Rampage will roll out from Twisted Spoke Bar and Grill at noon on Saturday, 12 December 2009. Several dozen cycling Santas will make their way toward the magnificent mile in a boisterous, spirited procession, and descend on holiday shoppers in a blitz of toasted holiday cheer to remind one and all of the joy of human‐powered travel. The Santa Cycle Rampage is an annual event promoted by Chicago Bike Winter as part of a campaign to promote the bicycle as year‐round transportation.

According to Martin Hazard, 2010 Bikewinter co‐chair, the ride is intended not to befuddle bystanders, but to send a clear message that one does not need to buy a large, expensive, emissions‐heavy vehicle in order to tank up for the holidays. Hazard reports that, under the influence of the Chicago Santa Cycle Rampage, other cities such as Milwaukee have wasted no time in starting their own Santa Cycle Rampages, and that this year’s ride has been carefully tweaked in order to make sure its message is hammered home to holiday shoppers.

Participants will meet at 11 A.M. at the start venue to slop up for the ride; anyone with a working bike and a Santa suit is welcome to participate. In past years rogue Dreidels, Elves, and Reindeer have also ridden along.

Contacts/info: Chair@bikewinter.org
773/710‐4143
www.bikewinter.org/events/rampage

Space cowboy?

a little
Thanksgiving blessing!!!

I did my usual Thanksgiving dinner in Ohio on UffdaDave's farm. Sharing my love for all things Firefly, his son, Nate, turned me on to this wonderful snippet from Castle. It's the show Nathan Fillion landed in after playing Mel in Firefly! I just love how he drops into character ...

Full Moon Fiasco XII

Silent Night...
My Ass!!!

Whether snow, sleet, rain, flood, or just cold as shit:

Wednesday, 2 December 2009
Gannon's Pub @8pm

Though sometimes late, we never cancel a ride.

Bike panache?

'nuff sed...

Originally posted by Tina Roth Eisenberg over at Swissmiss, her NYC-based design blog and studio.

Everything you wanted to know about Cricket

...but were afraid
to rap!

Thanks to San Francisco Tweed, here's the latest track from a new album from the chap-hop sensation. On the mean streets and cricket pitches of Surrey, Mr. B, the Gentleman Rhymer, reveals the strength of his cricket knowledge.

Oprah's not famous in Europe

so the Olympics
won't be in Chicago

As you know, lots have been going on with me over the past few months. I haven't had time to comment of recent events ... like the Windy City's lost bid for the 2016 Olympics. So here's a funny mash-up of Downfall that brings us into the Mayor Bunker to reveal just how disappointing all this has been for The City that Works. Especially hilarious is the line 53 seconds in:

Everyone who has already been indicted for something, leave now.

Remember, remember...

the 7th of November

Well, it's supposed to be on the 5th when the Brits captured poor Guido, AKA Guy, in the cellars of Parliament. But that's a school night so we're doing it on Saturday, when he finally admitted to The Gun Powder Plot after some extreme interrogation methods. In any case, Viscount Wallace has submitted preliminary details here!

Remember, remember the Fifth of November,
the Gunpowder Treason and Plot,

I see no reason why Gunpowder Treason should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, t’was his intent to blow up King and Parliament.

Three score barrels were laid below to prove old England’s overthrow;
By God’s mercy he was catch’d with a dark lantern and lighted match.

Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!

Hip hip hoorah!

A penny loaf to feed the Pope
A farthing o’ cheese to choke him.

A pint of beer to rinse it down.
A faggot of sticks to burn him.

Burn him in a tub of tar.
Burn him like a blazing star.

Burn his body from his head.
Then we’ll say ol’ Pope is dead.

Hip hip hoorah!
Hip hip hoorah hoorah!

The proper anti-freeze...

for Chicago
Bikewinter!

Les bicyclettes...

de Belsize

The wheel's influence...

on dinner

This is casual bike wear? It is ... according to an 1896 column that appeared in the London Spectator. According to Megan Gambino, over at The Smithsonian, it seems that the empire's scribbling classes were rather vexed about the bike's subversive power to undermine the three most important pillars of British hegemony: spiffy dressing, dinner, and enlightened conversation.

The phase of the wheel’s influence that strike …most forcibly is, to put it briefly, the abolition of dinner and the advent of lunch….If people can pedal away ten miles or so in the middle of the day to a lunch for which they need no dress, where the talk is haphazard, varied, light, and only too easy; and then glide back in the cool of the afternoon to dine quietly and get early to bed…conversation of the more serious type will tend to go out.

I wonder what these self-appointed guardians of British good taste would've made of Clif Bars and the consequent abolition of even lunch. More interestingly though, I wonder if they would've applauded Vélopunk's revival of snappy togs. Or have we mistakenly overlooked the fact that fastidious Victorians considered breeches, knee socks, ties, and stout tweed jackets to be hopelessly proletarian ... if not pedestrian?

Pedal to Pierogis

Whiting, IN turns over
a new pierogi!

We're rolling south of the border today! Pierogi Fest is the one-of-a-kind festival that draws people from all over the Great Lakes. Although it revolves around the simple stuffed dumpling, it’s really a huge three-day celebration of Polish culture. With musical entertainment, kids activities, contests and a parade, there’s more to Pierogi Fest than just pierogies. Of course, you’ll find more pierogies there than you ever thought existed, but you’ll also be entertained and warmed by the hospitality and friendliness that the fest produces.

If I was a bicycle seat...

life could be
oh so sweet

When I was a little boy
My momma, she said to me
Son, When you get big grow up
What you wanna be
I said to my momma
Don't wanna be no doctorman
A politician, a movie star
All those things I can
There's one job I'd like to have,
You can never beat
To be bolted to a chrome frame and be a bicycle seat


Life could be oh so sweet
If I was a bicycle seat
Ride, ride limbo treat
sit on me, I'm a bicycle seat
No more hustles, no more deals
No more trying to sneak those wheels
No more cruisin' or cosmic raps
No more staring at ladies laps
No more eyeing little worms
No more chasing after bumms
No more would you like to dance
No more getting in their pants
Everything i really mean
Is riding right to the bumper seat
No more smelling good to waste
With you pressed against my face

Full Moon Fiasco VII

the FBC
presents...

Tuesday, 7 July 2009 Leaving from The Gingerman
3740 N. Clark St. @8PM

Hill climbing

with
Mr. Punch Awheel!

The Squire:

But I tell you, sir,
this road is private, and you shall not pass except over my prostrate body!

The Biker:

All right, guv'nor, I'll go back.
I've done enough hill climbing already!

Hints for beginners

from Punch

Most folks, today, forget that back of the turn of the 20th Century cages and bikes were BOTH considered the epitome of modern transportation. As each became equally ubiquitous on the highways and byways of Merry Ole' England, the venerable Punch magazine humorously observed their impact. Then in 1910, J. A. Hammerton compiled these observations in Mr. Punch Awheel: The Humours of Motoring and Cycling. What strikes me most are the similarities in the not-so subtle humor of this work and that of Yehuda Moon or Andy Singer. As the French would say, plus ça change, plus c'est la meme chose. Although it's unfortunate that the book is out of print, you can get a peek over at Project Gutenberg. Below is one brief example, Hints for Bike Beginners.

1. Insure your life and limbs. The former will benefit your relations, the latter yourself.

2. Learn on a hired machine. The best plan is to borrow a machine from a friend. It saves hiring. Should the tyre become punctured, the brake be broken, the bell cracked, the lamp missing, and the gear out of gear, you will return it as soon as possible, advising your friend to provide himself with a stronger one next time.

3. Practise on some soft and smooth ground. For example, on a lawn; the one next door for choice. A muddy road, although sufficiently soft, is not recommended—the drawbacks are obvious.

4. Choose a secluded place for practising. It may at first sight appear somewhat selfish to deprive your neighbours of a gratuitous performance which would be certain to amuse them. Nevertheless, be firm.

5. Get someone to hold you on. Engage a friend in an interesting conversation while you mount your bicycle. Do you remember Mr. Winkle's dialogue with Sam Weller when he attempted skating? You can model your conversation on this idea. Friend will support you while you ride and talk. Keep him at it. It will be excellent exercise for him, physically and morally. Also economical for you; as, otherwise, you would have to pay a runner.

6. Don't bike; trike.

If you can do the Bart

you're bad like
Michael Jackson

RIP