Applications for Best Friend Being Accepted...

Sole Qualification:
Don't tell my wife which piece of furniture I used to spread the Rockfish dropouts to fit the Sachs 3x7 wheel.

Yipeeeee!

Having a hobby that allows me to get cool toys in the mail is great! It's exciting like Christmas was when I was a little kid.  I want to give a special thanks to Brian over at http://kmxtornado.blogspot.com/ - he sold me his old Sachs 3x7 hub laced to a 20" wheel! It used to be on his tadpole trike recumbent... but no longer! It is mine:

Three gears internally and 7 on the cassette. Laced to a 406mm 20" wheel.

The OLD (Outside Locknut Dimension) on this bad boy is 135mm. My Rockfish F-1 BMX frame has dropouts spaced at 126mm, so I'll need to coldset the frame a bit. I gave it a quick shot today, but didn't get too far without the right tools. Additionally, it didn't help that the seat stay and chain stay bridges are so close to the dropouts on this 20" wheel frame. Between that and the solid construction of the frame, I only managed to squeeze out a few millimeters in spacing on attempt one.

Spreading the frame slowly, with a garden tool.

Not super successful, as you may be able to tell from the caliper reading.

I'll try spreading the frame again later this week with a less flexible lever- most likely a 2x4. I'm hoping that it will not be too apparent on the seat stays after all is said and done. Only 7mm to go!

I've been looking high and low for one of these things. I've seen them on eBay, but usually incomplete, at scary prices, and on wheel sizes I can't use. I'm glad I finally found a complete one on an appropriate wheel size. It was worth the money. The next big task is finding a suitable fork for that Rockfish...

These mechanical pursuits are a great break from the job hunting, here in Dallas, TX.

Recently Awarded...

So back in June there was a great cycling party in Charlottesville, to support Double the Wheels. The point of the party was to bring non-cyclists and show them how cool the cycling community in C-ville is. Turns out, it was pretty hard to find someone I knew that was a non-cyclist. All of those I asked to attend were busy or out of town. Too bad! They missed a great party with DJ WesternFront, the unveiling of Squid Logistics, and beer brewed in Richmond, VA at Legend Brewery.

But most importantly, there were some cycling superlatives for the local cycling community... and I won... most die-hard bicycle commuter! Check out my sick bling and super moves:

Photo stolen from Chris's facebook.

Now THAT'S a title I know you're jealous of!

Free Cassette Spacer featured on Bike Hacks!

Recently submitted a post to Bike Hacks... they published it today!

Flywheels on Bikes?!

Flywheel technology being tested on bikes for more efficient automotive transit:

Max says it himself, the goal isn't to redesign the bike, but to use it as a testing ground for flywheels on automotive vehicles.

Remember, the folks that brought you powered flight were bicycle mechanics.

"Shotgun Wedding"

...that was the name I gave to the New Belgium Saison clone at my wedding last week. It went quickly and was hands down the favorite of the crowd, due to all that orange peel, cardamom and coriander! Definitely wish I had brewed more of it, though I'm sure I'll brew it again once relocated to Dallas with an all-grain setup. I named the Fat Tire Amber clone "26 x 2.95" for all those bike nerds that attended. That clone definitely had some off-flavors, but was still enjoyable. Matt said we had an airlock malfunction with that one, apparently because the Better Bottles aren't rigid enough to prevent airlock water from getting sucked into the fermenter when they're moved. It's definitely the small things that can make or break a beer.

Bride, Brewer & Beers

The beer was very successful, so a big thanks to Matt Lockaby for the brewing equipment, brewing help, and showing up to set up the dispensing! I need to also thank a good & crazy friend of mine, Charles Locke. He piloted our post-ceremony bicycle rickshaw ride!

Look at the creepster in the car taking pictures of us!

That rickshaw ride was great. Charles and I used to work for Happy Rickshaw together and wrench side by side over at Charlottesville Community Bikes. Well, the Rickshaw fleet in Charlottesville was slowing down and was eventually sold to a group in Delaware, so Charles ended up buying a bike shop (Syklo) from Ken Margolius. Charles closed doors about a year later, and instead joined Will Canup in a local bike rickshawing venture. Oh, hey, Will, are you going to be back in town soon so we can do another beer tasting with my sick new glassware?! (Check out Will's blog from Italy: romestrong)

So needless to say, I've been busy. I'm hoping to actually start working on the Rockfish F-1 BMX in a meaningful way before the end of the year. I've been giving it some serious thought, and I've determined I need a Sachs 3x7 hub on the back. Yep, that's three gears internally and seven externally. Unfortunately, they're going for top dollar on eBay these days...

Currently drinking a Saranac Summer Ale out of a new Lenox Brandy glass!