Some reminders

3-speed class:
This Saturday, February 13, we will be holding our 3-speed overhaul class, 8AM-Noon. Cost is $60 at time of registration, and we have room for two more. You don't need to supply your own hub or any tools. Just pay the $60 and then show up to learn something that will astound your friends!

Rivendell pre-order incentive:
Order your Rivendell Sam Hillborne or Betty Foy THIS WEEK (thru Saturday, Feb 13) with a $200 deposit, and get $100 off the final tally of frame + parts + labor. We are expecting the frames to come in May, but we need to order now, and it will be nice to have some pre-orders so we get the right sizes.

We have one Hillborne in stock, and we're willing to make the same $100 off deal (discount on the complete bike) on this one, this week.


The word from Rivendell is that the forthcoming Hillbornes will be set up for extralong-reach caliper brakes, and I'm pretty sure they'll be orange. It's possible that some sizes will still be available, for at least a little while, in green (see above) and with canti/v-brake bosses (see above).

Finally, the Twin Cities Bike Swap:
The Swap will be this Sunday, February 14, 9:30 am - 2:30 pm at the National Sports Center in Blaine. We will be there with our table of bargains, so come early and find some deals, then go home and romance with your special lady or special gentleman or whatever.

Larry

I had the chance to ride one of Surly's new Larry tires over the weekend, designed specifically for their infamous Pugsley. This wasn't an exhaustive test as I only rode it about 20 miles, but it was over a variety of terrain including plowed roads, snow covered fields (12-18 inches) and trails packed down by hundreds of happy campers.

I installed it on the front as they recommend, and I am using the narrower 100mm wide fork.

Compared with the original Endomorph tire, the Larry definitely has a "lighter" feel to it. On twisty trails, it tracks easier and requires less effort to make corrections. On deeper snow, it grips as well as the Endo. Even on ice, I could make turns with confidence.

If the Larry has one significant difference from the Endo, it has to be the importance of matching tire pressure to the conditions. Matching the correct Psi to the conditions was certainly important for the Endo, but I always felt that, as long as you were in a range, say 8-12 psi, I could generally ride over a variety of surface conditions.


Not so the Larry. It needs you to pay attention and dial the tire pressure in a little more accurately. Given the varied conditions I rode in this weekend, I tweaked the psi a few times. For example, 8 psi on soft oatmealy snow was just right but on the packed stuff, 10 felt better. The ranges are just narrower.



So, if you're on the fence about whether the Larry is worth the extra money or not, I say go for it. It really does provide a more "lively" ride, something the Pugsley could always use more of.



Cheers

You should have a bike like this

Forget all your biases, if you harbor them, against 26" wheels. This bike made it's HC showroom debut yesterday, and it has been getting a ton of attention from employees and customers alike.

It's a stock Surly Long Haul Trucker, 58 cm frame with 26" wheels. We added some Tubus racks, Planet Bike Cascadia fenders, MKS pedals, a Brooks saddle, King bottle cages (plus Klean Kanteen), and most importantly, Schwalbe Marathon Supreme 26x2.0 tires. The best thing about the 26" wheel option on these new LHTs is that it allows for a much fatter tire than is possible on the 700C variant. With a 2" (50 mm) tire and fenders, there's still plenty of room in there. Why should you care? Because a 50+ mm tire will roll over mushy sand and gravel and other questionable surfaces where a 35 mm tire will falter. And, with decent tires (like these Schwalbes), this will be pleasingly fast on pavement and hard-pack dirt/gravel surfaces. More comfort and traction and flotation, with no discernible loss of speed or handling! It's a win-win-win-win-etc-situation! Bonus: if you ever find yourself in Mongolia, Mozambique, Montreal, or some other exotic place, spare 26" wheels and tires will be found growing on trees thereabouts, while 700C bits will be unavailable at any price. At least that's what I hear.

This bike, as pictured, will be around $1550, but numerous equipment options (and prices) are possible. The base bike with stock parts (no pedals) is $1095.

hard-to-categorize

At HC, we have a stack of old cycling periodicals. My favorites are the Bicycling Magazines of the 1970s. Here's one cover from October, 1977.

For the life of me, I can't understand how this fellow managed to keep his polyester bell-bottoms out of the chain. But, damn, does he look good!

If we look past the haute couture, which isn't easy, we see the depiction of a cyclist carrying his bike through the woods. I can only assume that he was out riding trails, and portaging the bicycle from one trail to another. Looks like my kinda cycling! This is actually a fairly typical cover shot from 1970s Bicycling. Somewhere I have another cover showing a guy pushing a rod-brake Raleigh roadster in some mountainous offroad terrain. And then there's the kid riding a homebrewed mixte-turned-cargo-bike on a wooded path...

These 1970s covers were shot before anybody had any inkling of the concept of the term "mountain bike". Since there were no mountain bikes yet, there were no road bikes either. Bikes were bikes. Of course, 10 years later, mountain bikes were all the rage, and the idea of riding a 10-speed "road bike" on trails suddenly seemed like something only crazy people would do. Since then, road and mountain bikes have evolved into increasingly specialized machines, each model optimized for one specific type of riding. The idea of a do-it-all bike was marginalized to the low-end of product lines, and marketed to uncommitted novices with demeaning names like "hybrid" and "comfort bike" and "city bike".

At HC, we fancy ourselves to be a small part of what seems to be a growing wave of a return to bikes that are suitable for all-around cycling. I am frequently asked by customers to categorize the bikes we sell. The educated consumer needs categories to make informed decisions supposedly, but I fail miserably at categorization. I feel silly talking about "mountain bikes" in Minnesota, since we have no mountains within 1000 miles. And the term "road bike" is worthless as a descriptor, since any bicycle can be ridden on roads. A Surly LHT is marketed as a "touring bike", but it's a great bike for lots of people who have no aspirations of loading up with 75 lbs of crap and riding across the continent. So I hesitate to use the term "touring bike" because I don't want to alienate non-tourists who should be riding a LHT. Grant Petersen at Rivendell, who, I assume, is as frustrated with inane categories as I am, coined the term "Country Bike", which paints a nice picture in my mental landscape. But it turns out that Grant's Rivendell Country Bikes make wonderful City Bikes, and, let's face it, we at HC are city dwellers who ride bikes in the city. Of course, the term "City Bike" has a whole 'nother connotation, which I'd rather not discuss... And on top of all that, how the hell am I supposed to define the Pugsley!

Stereotyping bikes is about as useful and as dangerous as stereotyping people, so I'm going to try to stop doing it. No more categories!

Some special deals

This has been one weird Winter. It started early in October, relented with a truly beautiful November, followed by December and January freeze/thaw/snow patterns have produced some of the worst street conditions we've seen since last Winter, at least. Believe it or not, it has been less snowy and had fewer truly cold days than the average. But for some reason, it still seems harsh. Rest assured, however, it won't last much longer. January, our coldest average month, is almost history. The long-term forecasts show warmer weather ahead. In three or four weeks, stuff will likely be starting to melt, and soon the sweet, sweet aroma of thawing dogshit piles will fill the air hereabouts!

We have some inventory to clear out, which means you can get some good deals just in time for Spring!

Bikes:
Surly Long Haul Trucker, 58 cm, Olive green (a now discontinued color) - this one was sold to a customer who rode it for just a few days before deciding he wanted a different size. We took the parts off the bike and put them on a new frame. Then we built this barely used frame up with more or less stock LHT parts that we had in our inventory. Compared to the stock build from Surly, this one has a more expensive crank (Sugino XD600) and headset (FSA Orbit XLII), but a less fancy rear derailleur (Deore). But since the frame is technically used (barely), the bike could be yours at the outstanding price of $975! (plus tax, pedals not included)

Redline Metro-9, 56 cm: This is a wonderful 3-season sporty city/commuting bike for a great price. Smart 1x9 gearing, fenders, and just a nice looking bike! Was $679, now $459.

Redline 9-2-5, 54 cm: Similar to the Metro-9, but a single speed. Was $579, now $379.

Note: The Redline bikes fit a little bigger than the stated size; add 2-4 cm to get an idea if these are your size. For example, I usually ride 56-58 cm Surly or Rivendell bikes, but the 54 cm Redline works for me.

Parts and accessories:
Tires: we have a lot of different tires, different sizes, different price ranges. Whatever we have in stock is 20% off until Feb 13. Come and find some that work for you. Get the same deal on tubes.

Pitlocks: These are probably the best anti-theft wheel skewers money can buy. The price usually fluctuates with currency exchange. Right now, the going rate on the internet for the set is $90. We have a couple sets left for $65/set.

Service:
Get our standard $75 tune up for only $50, IF you drop off your bike between now and Feb 13, AND you pick it up within a week of us calling you to tell you it's ready.

Everything else:
10% off any in-stock item(s) until Feb 13.

Twin Cities Bike Swap, Feb 14

The Twin Cities Bike Swap (TCBS) is a wonderful event that we've been attending almost every year since 2006. This year it's on Valentine's Day (make it romantic; bring your sweetheart) at the Schwan Event Center on National Sports Center Campus in Blaine. Judging from past experience, it will be worth the drive up to Blaine.

Believe it or not, I regard the TCBS as a sign that Spring is right around the corner. More than once, snow has been observed to be melting on the day of the swap or shortly thereafter. Get up to Blaine, find some deals, see some friends, and then count the days until you can ride in a t-shirt. Won't be long!

Pedal Pub Crawl map and itinerary!

Just a reminder that the Pedal Pub Crawl is this Sunday, January 31. The first stop is the Muddy Pig, Selby and Dale in St Paul, at Noon. The map is here:


All are welcome to ride from HC at 11, or to catch up with the crawl at one of the stops. Understand that times are approximate.

I recommend weather-appropriate clothing, and whatever bike equipment you deem appropriate for riding St Paul's icy streets.

More suggestions on Lanny's blog.