Two Seasons From Now

It may be in the 90s today, but it's never to early to start thinking about winter. And winter biking.

Erich said if this bike were a noise it would be the sad trombone. I think it would be the circus song. Either way, it wouldn't be a normal noise.

BYDTWM

It's 'Bring Your Dog To Work Day Morning'. 

(She doesn't like kids or cat people, so she's not really cut out for retail.)

Summer Special

Happy first day of summer! We've got a sweet, sweet deal for Bicycle Benefits members (one sweet is enough- I don't want anybody getting too excited). Today only- free sunglasses with purchase!

Just show us your Bicycle Benefits stickers when you check out and we'll toss you a pair of shades (until we run out). They even fit over other glasses. I know- I've been wearing them the last couple days and I only look slightly more nerdy than usual. Why free sunglasses? Because I know you don't need another water bottle, that's why.

Not a Bicycle Beneficiary? We've got the stickers here! They're $5, and they'll get you deals all over town. So stop in, enjoy some AC, and grab some shades.

Visitor

I get into the shop real early these days, as there's tons of work to do. The shop is usually a little stuffy first thing so I prop the back door open for a little fresh air. I propped the door this morning and as I went to put my bag away I heard a fluttering behind me. A black-capped chickadee had followed me in. She/he flew around the shop for a while and then found a perch on the wheels in the front window.

Hanging out on the hand-built 29er wheel. This guy/gal has good taste.

I did the only thing I could think of- left my helmet on and waited for her/him to find the open door again.

QR SkewR

Quick release skewers- Great for tool-free fitting your bike into the back of your two door's trunk, or easy flat fixin'. But with great convenience comes great responsibility (sorry, that was terrible). There's a right way (safety first!) and a number of wrong ways to use these babies. Using them the right way isn't rocket science, but they can be a little confusing, especially if they're new to you. If you only know and remember two things about quick release skewers let it be these two:

One! What the crap are those little tornado springs that fall off when you take the QR apart? Well...There are three parts to the QR skewer. 1). The skewer itself- A lever on one end, threaded for a nut on the other. 2). The nut- to go on the threaded end of the skewer. And 3). two tornado shaped springs.

The springs seem to be confusing to many folks. Their only job is to keep the QR centered inside the hub axle, to make installing the wheel easier (a QR can function just fine without them). If they aren't installed properly, they can make it difficult/impossible to get your wheel to line up in your bike's frame. The trick is the little end of the tornado has to be facing the center of the hub. Why? The big end covers up the end of the hub axle- which is the part that actually comes in contact with the frame, specifically the dropouts. If you cover up the end of the axle, it won't fully contact the dropouts and wonkiness occurs. Check it out:

Two! Most QR levers say "open" on one side and "closed" on the other. Look at your bike right now. If you can read "open" on the QR lever- don't ride that bike!

The lever is not designed to be used as a wingnut. You need to tighten the nut just enough to allow you to flip the lever to the "closed" side, with a little resistance. Take a look at this video (complete with sweet background jamz) if you'd like to see the QR in action.

Now you know.

Bike Party!

Redbones Bike Party! This Monday (June 4). POSTPONED until Monday June 11... We're going to close up at 4:30 so we can join in the BBQ and mayhem. We'll be there giving out free advice and stickers! See you there! (So many exclamation points!!!)