|
|
Tuesday, Mar 24th, 2009 @ 03:44 AM
Ve-Low #18 down at the shop. Get yours.
Speaking of LIncoln Ve-Low, it has been brought to my attention that there has been some confusion regarding the proper, or at least intended pronunciation of said zine. If you have ever read Ve-Low, then you know of my fondness for the "-" in my writings, so it only seemed appropriate to have a "-" in the name of the mag. The presence of the "-" would seem to suggest that the word is pronounced 'veeloe' which if you are one of the veelowers, you aren't alone. However, my intention was for the word to be pronounced the same as 'velo.' I spell it the way that I do to set it apart and insinuate some self depreciating humor. So the intended pronunciation is 'leenkun veloe' - but you can call the mag Sports Illustrated for all I care. BTW- Lincoln Velo was one of the names on the table that eventually lost out to the name of the bicycle shop for which this blog you are reading belongs to. So not only is the name Lincoln Ve-Low spelled funny, it's also stolen.
thad
|
Thursday, Mar 12th, 2009 @ 05:05 AM
man, i remember when i would make multiple posts on this thing every week. i'm kinda tapped out writing in two different mags. doesn't leave a lot of time, energy or thought for blogs and such. at the same time, i miss rambling to everyone and no one on the mwc blog. i miss you blog, i miss you.
i don't really have much to report - just wanted to visit the blog i used to visit all the time.
spring is just around the corner and me and my joints and my gut are experiencing cabin fever to the nth degree. it's been a long winter and i'm ready for it ot be over. you? right before thanksgiving was the last time i stepped foot, or rolled rubber (huh?) into the park. long time. time off is good though- gives you the opportunity to miss what it is you love to do. and i love riding bikes and i officially miss doing so.
hope to see folks out and about soon.
thad
|
Saturday, Dec 20th, 2008 @ 12:43 AM
i'm a frezzing frozen frosted over frost bitten guy. man it's cold out. warm up with the new Lincoln Ve-Low. It's down at the shop and has Jeff Bonsall on the cover. if the mere thought of that doesn't warm you up then you're hopeless.
i hope everyone has a great Christmas and sappy neu! year. buy all the cyclists (and even those who aren't) something nice from monkey wrench cycles.
happy birthday skip!
thad
|
Tuesday, Nov 11th, 2008 @ 04:57 PM
hello? hey mitch, this blog doesn't have a picture feature and i've got some pictures of stuff to share with the folks, well, assuming anyone looks at this thing anymore. Nate
|
Tuesday, Oct 7th, 2008 @ 02:04 AM
Lincoln Ve-Low #16 down at the shop. Get it.
|
Sunday, Jul 27th, 2008 @ 01:41 PM
i just got back from the week long standard dropping, bourban gulping, pedal-fest across the great state of iowa known to you and i as RAGBRAI. what a time. the transition back to reality is a steep one and i can't say i've quite made it yet. what a great time. to much to report here but i'll type (what's left of) my brain out for the next issue of Lincoln Ve-Low. i will say this, if you have never been to the above stated event, do what ever it takes to get there next year. sell the farm, give blood, whatever...just don't sell your bike - you'll need that. sooper props go out to one Ms. Emily Broderson who pedaled more then the rest carrying more on her bike then the rest. she wins!!! can't wait for next year. in the mean time....back to work. boooo.....
thad
|
Sunday, Jun 29th, 2008 @ 11:47 PM
lincoln ve-low number fifteen at the shop. dk wrote some stuff as did conrad and so did wills. i conducted an interview as well as write some other blah-blah. it's a doozy. don't get left out in the cold. get your copy today! buy it. read it. re-read it like your gonna be tested because you just might be.
so with wilderness submerged, where have you all been riding? me? a little here, a little there. a lot of urban fixie riding has been doing the body good. made my first trek to seward for work commute last week and that was fun. big, fat 32's on my geared 'cross bike sure are comfy rollin' down highway 34. i saw a hipster fixie in the haymarket last week that had 20's on it. i bet they're fast. i bet they're not comfortable.
speaking of rollin' down the 34 towards seward---in cvo's absence, will anyone be doing the above mentioned activity this july fourth? does anyone miss cvo? i do. he was the good natured jack of all trades adhesive that seemed to keep the scene together, alive and going with no other motivation to do so then just to do so. wadda guy. i wonder if mexico knows what it's got with him.
well, i guess that's all i got. tues night ride? will you be there? will i? route? who knows--- maybe something other then the mopac to eagle?? be there and find out boy scout.
thad
|
Monday, May 5th, 2008 @ 09:40 PM
Ohhhhh boyyyyy....what to say? seems that the days get longer but the time seems less and less. So, so....so it goes.
It's bad news the passing of Bryan Backhaus. I personally didn't know Bryan but he was one of us. passionate about the right things. i don't know that i have words that would do justice. lincoln has lost an individual that cared about the right things. RIP Bryan.
it seems like sometimes everyone that is into bikes is on the same page and sometimes they are not. i suppose it's that way with anything. however, i assume with a fair amount of confidence that the majority of you reading this out there in the digital abyss are into bikes so i'll stick to that. i'm not gonna preach but i'll say this- bikes are bikes are bikes. we all have our preferences and that's fine. i know i have mine but in the end, despite all the different frame materials and intentions for said frames (road, mtn, track, whatev) all the different bicycles have more in common then not. i mean, in terms of devices intended to transport humans from point a to point b, you have to admit that a mountain bike and a track bike have more in common then a mountain bike and say.....oh, i don't know- a Cadi Escalade. speaking of gas guzzling cadillac escalades, and continuing with the theme of assumption, i bet more owners of escalades are at odds with each other then are hand-holding friends. like there isn't an unspoken bond between escalade drivers where they wave at each other when they pass each other burning 7 gallons of gas for ever three inches that they move. call me naive but that's my guess. however, my dear monkey wrench cycles blog reader, that bond does, or at least has existed among cyclists for years. sure, there has been the minor squables between "roadies" and "mountain bikers" but that (at least in my mind) seems like a thing of the past--- or it should be. all of it should be. for me, i personally don't really care if you are on a road bike, a mountain bike, a track bike or a big kids trike- ride on my brother or sister! i think minimizing and criticizing what our various preferred methods of pedal powered transport is is stupid and juvenile. whether your bike has gears or not or whether your bike can coast or not is really beside the point. whether you wear lycra or slim fit levi's is even more beside the point. ok, i take it back- i guess i am gonna preach. so get comfy my congregation. just kididng..... i'll stop. bikes are good- no matter what. how can you fault someone for riding a bicycle? it's great no matter what.
so there you go.
thad
|
Wednesday, Apr 9th, 2008 @ 05:13 PM
please buy our new clothes.
thanks
nate
|
Saturday, Mar 29th, 2008 @ 12:22 PM
dear thad,
it's Trumble, and he did work for rick about 5 years ago in the shop. He is now the head mechanic at the bicycle trip in santa cruz and has been for about 5 years now. great guy, one of the originals around here, and one that tought me a lot about the early frame builders and there importance to the over all.
nate
|
Wednesday, Mar 26th, 2008 @ 03:38 AM
another tnmwr and we actually made it to the park though there were some pit stops. at the first bridge- two flats. it must have been new-29er-idis as both were on donk's and JT's new 9ers. made it about 500 yards and JT had not one but two more flats- one of which was caused by a thorn the size of a yardstick. i decided to split at that point- had to work and i figured once we started moving again- JT would get another flat. i think i was wrong as from what my good friend the internet has told me, the rest of the ride was a success.
in other JT news- check his interview out in the new Lincoln Ve-Low which can be had down here at MWC.
new bike for me. i'll be steamin' and rollin' on my new Steamroller. look out! set it up hip messenger style- narrow bar and all so i can zig and zag in and out of traffic so as to get those packages delivered fast! in a not-up-to-the-minute-messenger-hip fashion, i did put on the front brake. booooooo! i have knees and i think i want to keep it that way. thanks to N8 and Wills for getting it rollin.'
here's a funny side note regarding the bike that probably no one will care about but me. years and years and years ago, for my 19th birthday, my then girl-y-friend and now wife bought me a Sakae "Powerbuldge" (save the jokes) Ti flat mtn bar. She bought it from Nate Trumble who I believe now works for Rick Hunter. Anyway, it was the first and few Ti pieces i've ever owned. And let me tell you, in 1994, i thought i was pretty hot shit having something....anything made out of titanium. with it being 1994, as you can imagine, the bar was chopped narrow, narrow, narrow. i had Control Tech bar ends on it- so with those in place and the grips and shifters, there was no room left for a light, or anything else for that matter. needless to say, the bar has sat, and sat, and sat some more in my garage for years. i more then once almost threw it in the garbage but always hesitated due to sentimental and nostalgic value. good thing i did because the thing works perfecto emulating hip urban culture that is me.
a few weeks ago, donk bought a tube preamp from this guy who lives in Walden. i went out there with him to pick it up and we ended up staying at this guys house for a couple of hours listening to records and talking about high-end audio. the guy had a couple of his buddies there as well, all of which belong to a little club focused on tube audio gear. so we were there and made some mention of bicycles. one of the guys piped up and said "We used to be friends with a bike jock- and then he tattooed every inch of his body and moved to California. his name was Nate." to which i said "Nate Trumble?" and all three said "Yeah!" see how it all ties back together?
thad
PS- is it Trumble or Tremble?
|
Wednesday, Mar 12th, 2008 @ 04:35 AM
been a while---
TNMWR 2008 numero uno (i think) is now part of history. thanks to perfect weather and day light savings time- numerous folks found their way down to the shop for the unusual 6:15 sharp departure that included an urban trip out of town. we rode past wilderness which was an odd feeling as that park is typically the destination. past we went into the country to what appeared to be the hour of power route but EP took us further west then north instead of south. back in on van dorn then through pioneers park which is where i said goodbye and headed home. a great first ride of the year which got me excited for what the upcomming spring/summer/fall has in store. mw, mg, hoss, kw, jp---- where were you?
thad
|
Monday, Jan 7th, 2008 @ 03:11 AM
so mother nature graced us with temps above freezing. they were above 7 degrees for that matter which would have been good enough for me- but in typical NE fashion the weather took a dramatic turn, and in this weekends case- for the better. so what did you do? i rode bikes. it was fun. the frigidly cold weather pretty much kept me off the bikes for a bit, and i think it was a blessing in disguise as it saved me from burnout.
hope everyone had a good Christmas and happy new year. i got the shaft this year and had to work pretty much every holiday. on and on and so it goes. regardless- got to see the fam and do the whole nine yards so it was fine.
the next installment of lincoln ve-low- which is lucky #13 should be down at the shop tuesday- so get after it. and get one of our new long sleevers while your at it. they'll keep you toasty warm.
thad
|
Wednesday, Jan 2nd, 2008 @ 01:17 PM
happy 2008, you know what's weird about the 08'? it feels just like the 1994. not much has changed in the world. still not flying around like the Jetson's. another bush is in charge they are at war. sweet.
you know who rules? zach and holly blume rule, that's who.
now you all know.
nate
|
Wednesday, Dec 12th, 2007 @ 03:30 PM
VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND! VAMPIRE WEEKEND!
-thad
|
Wednesday, Nov 28th, 2007 @ 04:55 PM
my head is now dizzier and my chest hurts, the bank will be the death of me.
i wonder what EP's doing now?
|
Wednesday, Nov 28th, 2007 @ 04:54 PM
some things of interest at the MWC today.
Today is eric's first day of vacation in 3 years. In case you can't tell, EP is one amazing friend and the best mechanic this town has seen in well, quite some time, and the shop will miss him. he is on a plane bound for thailand to visit our silent partner. He will be gone for about 2 plus weeks, so if you really like to deal with him and can't much stand the sight of me, he'll be back soon. I hope that he has a rad time over there, and that the silent partner shows him a good time, and that he doesn't forget my shrunken heads and elephant tusks i asked for.
perfect timing if you ask me,for EP to leave cause the bank that shares the east wall with us just got new carpet, and the glue stinks like well, you know, and the stripper that took the glue off was worse. the front door has been open for 2 hours trying to rid the shop of the stink, plus it makes you dizzy and i might get sick. all for you people though, don't worry i'll be here tomorrow, stench or no stench.
Gersib's aunt Kathy brought me my very own homemade pecan pie today, all for me, baked by her, she has always been one of my all time favorite customers, but now, probably the top of the list. She knows that i don't drink the alcoholic beverages any longer, so i get the baked goods, hence, i win. thank you aunt kathy.
well, i have a headache now from the banks new carpet and glue, so i might leave for the evening, luckily i made it the whole day.
i wonder what EP's doing right now?
|
Tuesday, Nov 6th, 2007 @ 04:57 PM
ok, so a real blog, well, a bit of info perhaps. There is an abnormally large amount of Swobo gear in here, please come by to check it out, and after you've checked it out, proceed to the checkout.
in other news you can use, MWC factory racer Jose' Petersen proved that you can race a hybrid bicycle in the Cat1/2/3 cross category and produce good results as he piloted his Salsa flatbar rig to a super impressive 2nd place finish behind shad smith.. The riverside Cx was phenomenal this past sunday and the Myself and the Jose' enjoyed it. It was a true mountainbike CX course and not a RoadieCX course, yeah for us.
uh, well, that might be aboot it, as the canucks say.
i gotta go ride my cx bike now as we still have a long cross season to go.
ok, stop by and see the new shop hand turkey.
nate
|
Tuesday, Nov 6th, 2007 @ 04:58 PM
it is dark out. it's only 5:30. why. nate
|
Tuesday, Nov 6th, 2007 @ 04:58 PM
tuesday night ride is over, i know this because today is wednesday. nate
|
Friday, Oct 26th, 2007 @ 08:31 AM
we have returned from the 2007 version of the Homie Fall Fest in the wonderful city of MPLS MN. It was another HFF of epic proportions, and i'm convinced that no other group of rider/city is more welcoming than the friends there. I always come back trying to remember how i feel when i'm there in hopes of spreading the good vibe back here at home.
Jesse the Body and myself on sunday raced in the Mill City CX race in powderhorn park. We lined up with 89 other B racers for what was my favorite cross race to date. The course was rediculously fun, long and had jumpable barriers(lefler are you reading this) that seemed like fun for all. Next to the jumpable barriers were mounds of dirt with would planks connecting them, north shore style, so if you didn't want to do the barriers you could get yer north shore cross on, but it was slower. The Body was sticking it to the other racers, hanging out in the number one position until his last lap when he took a beer hand up from number one super fan Zito, chugged it, and then promptly wrecked in an easy corner to get relegated to 3rd. I came in 16th overall and 3rd in the Singlespeed class. ok i guess. pictures can be viewed at skinnyski.com .
Many thanks to Emily R. (not emily b, whom is hopefully recovering nicely from her own feat of strength, don't kid yourself that chic is tougher than you.) whom put up with the body and myself at her new place, top notch accomodations and only one block from the cross race, perfect for the neurotic racer in me. '
The Homie is necessary every year to reconnect with the kindred folk from across the land, you all know who you are. thank you.
|
Friday, Oct 19th, 2007 @ 09:39 AM
so the shop will be closed on Saturday the 20th due to the poor showing of Husker football...Nah, i'm just kinding, we went cross racing and homey festing in MPLS MN. THe shop will be open like normal? on monday the 22.
So, been thinking about something i heard today.A friend was in the shop this morning and asked if i was going to the cross races in Omaha this weekend, and i said no due to the Homey and Powderhorn CX race in MPLS that i'm attending. Then i got the response "so you're not supporting the local scene", this set me to thinking. Well, i guess if you mean i'm not doing the local races in favor of a conflicting schedule than nope, i'm not supporting that scene that day. But, i think the whole idea of supporting the scene is interesting. We here at the MWC support the scene locally on a daily basis monday through saturday, week in and week out.It's not just us, it's all the shops, all the riders and friends, and really we're the new shop on the block, the others have set in place a history that we just try to expand upon. We'll be a sponsor of the Lincoln Cross weekend next month, and we're always at the MTB races in the summer. There are about 20 of the local scene in the MPLS right now, bonding showing the locals there what the locals here are like. I guess what i'm trying to get at is that there are a myriad of ways to support the local scene. Ride a bike, have an event, go to a race, wherever that may be and show them how the 402 gets down.
nate
MWC
out
|
Monday, Sep 10th, 2007 @ 10:12 AM
head north young man! this years homey fall festival will be held in the lovely town of minneapolis on sat oct. 20. get there. details as they unravel-
lots of bicycle riding was apparently accomplished this weekend and vast distances were covered. me, myself and crook bathed in dust as we rode through the park yesterday. it was fun.
thad
|
Wednesday, Aug 29th, 2007 @ 11:47 PM
Lincoln Ve-Low #11 @ the shop. Get it.
thad
|
Tuesday, Aug 14th, 2007 @ 02:38 AM
no tues night ride- at least not for me. as The Specials once sang, this town is to hot. nate and ep are having a tuesday night ride of their own- just in a different state. that said- no mechanic on site. so, don't show up at the shop w/ broken bicycles. this offer is valid throughout the week.
thad
|
Tuesday, Jul 31st, 2007 @ 10:40 PM
about a week ago, i got back from three and a half days of riding (among other things) across iowa on the annual ragbrai circus. i'm gonna have a full report int he next lincoln ve-low so stay tuned for that. however, the long and short of it is that ragbrai is an amazing, absurd amount of fun and whether or not bicycles are your cup of whatever, i think you would be hard pressed to not find some element of smile inducing behavior on the journey. i'm already really, really excited for next year.
second- as much as i love music, i can tend to feel a bit jaded from time to time as far as all the sing-song, ho-hum goes. lately, i have found stuff that penetrates even my concrete exterior. what would the ruckus be? seems like a lot of attention has been given in print and otherwise to The National with their Boxer record. i ignored it for as long as i could- but what a great record. its really great, and when i say that, i think it would appeal to a wide range of ears.
the white stripes and cold war kids are playing here in october. i have never really thought the white stripes were all the rage though their new record impressed me. however, cold war kids are the band i'm holding my breath for in terms of that show. the more i listen, the more i like.
isn't this a bicycle blog? i missed out on the lincoln-eagle-lincoln tues nighter. donk and i headed out a bit later for a pedal around town. it was weird to hear one of my best friends talk about working late in order to get the stuff he needed to get done after all his co-workers had gone home so he wouldn't be bothered. the donk i knew five years ago is a different donk then he is today- and he's better for it. he's a good guy that all of us could learn a thing or two from.
ok- heading back to the sweet spot for more National before my head hits the pillow-
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Monday, Jul 30th, 2007 @ 10:15 PM
...and speaking of rock stars- check out the new Dirt Rag to see a photo of rockandroller Dave Averill.
thad
|
Monday, Jul 30th, 2007 @ 04:54 PM
I think that i'd like to add at least one blog entry to this summer's lineup. The Shop has been super busy all summer long, and by far the most successfull to date. Thanks to all of you who make the time to stop in and get something worked on or maybe who have purchased bicycles. We appreciate the business and getting the opportunity to help you all out.
What's been up? well, lessee. I personally (nate) have been going to a lot of really good rock shows as of late. The new venue owned by Saddle Creek has opened in Omaha called "Slowdown" and i'd have to say that it has quickly become one of my favorite places to see a good show. We saw Built To Spill there a couple of weeks ago, man, what a lot of Guitar trickery going on with those guys, much better live.
Locally the old Chatterbox venue change owners and is now called "Box Awesome". The shop's favorite band and friends Ideal Cleaners played there on Saturday, nothing short of another amazing show by the trio. If you haven't seen the Cleaners play, and you like really good rock, then check them out. Other friends "Strawberry Burns" opened up the night and had a slew of new material and as always were just a good, not to mention nice friends.
Lots to do in Nebraska, just go looking.
Road bikes? yep, been riding those things quite a bit lately, especially on Sundays, our one day off. Having a lot of fun exploring around the area for the better part my Sunday afternoons, it's fun to go fast eh?
welp, that's a bit of what's up around here.
all for now
nate
|
Thursday, Jul 12th, 2007 @ 03:24 AM
what appears to be yet another cool, hip film about messengers and fixed gear bikes has been made. its called MASH. i wonder if hawkeye and clinger are in it. check out the site for lots of video goodies: http://www.mashsf.com/#
thad
|
Wednesday, Jun 27th, 2007 @ 09:56 PM
happy birthday Nate.
happy birthday Joy (as in division)
happy birthday Bonsall.
thad
|
Monday, Jun 18th, 2007 @ 03:03 AM
the new issue of Lincoln Ve-Low- which would be issue #10 is down @ the shop. bonsall writes on the transiowa, wills on the kanza and skip on the branched oak 12 hour. tt on bikes vs. cars and me on an anti-race rant and the tunes to listen to while doing so. $2.
among other things, part of my father's day was spent pedaling through wilderness with my good friend craig. it was fun. the park offered the perfect element of shade to balance out the heat from the sun. rode out to the ep bridge then took the jamaica trail back. everything was fine and dandy until we got the genius notion to stop and eat ice cream. uhhh! by time i got home, i think said ice cream was beginning to curd up in my stomach. maybe it was the peanut butter in the ice cream that was the culprit. anyway- happy belated father's day to all those out there that qualify. hopefully your super sugar treat of choice caused you no pain as did mine.
in other news- my wife amy and i just celebrated our ten year anniversary (is that how you spell it?). so sat night night we did a little celebratin.' we went out and had dinner at a good resturaunt then, well....we didn't know what we were gonna do. we just knew we weren't going home. having a dedicated baby sitter for our four children for the evening is a rarity so we were going to take advantage for sure. so we twiddled our thumbs and asked each other countless times, "what do you want to do?" we went and washed the car and filled it up with gas then did some more finger twiddeling and question asking. we eventually found ourselves over at ep's house immersed in a three person game of cribbage. the evening was topped off with coffees from the mill. what ragers we are! actually the whole night was really relaxing and i suppose the icing on the cake was cribbage game- that was fun in and of itself but both amy and i were a bit hesitant to play ep as he is a seasoned player. i guess we were a bit intimidated. the good news (for us anyway) is that ep came in last. i guess the anniversary gods were smiling on us. or was it the cribbage gods?
anyway- tues night rides are in full effect. pedal, pedal, pedal....
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Friday, May 25th, 2007 @ 07:58 AM
well, if your a racer, then your stoked as there seems to be more races- then well, just about anything. this sat-sun is the annual 12 hour grule-fest @ branched oak for all you owls, bats and mountain lions. should be fun- but for crying out loud, behave! we mountain bikers have a clean cut nice guy/girl reputation to uphold.
but-if pedaling with your eyes closed isn't your cup of whiskey, then head down to Duffy's sat night to see rockandrollstud john taylor and co. make your ears bleed. they will be playing w/ what-used-to-be lincolnites head of femur and some other band that is on tour with them. it will be my first visit to duffy's since they installed an elevator. wtf? maybe they'll be giving out free rides.
lets see- what else? with gas prices being what they are, a fellow co-worker wants to get a bike. he lives in lincoln but we work in seward. last night i was trying to convince him to ride to work. that sell was hard enough. when he began complaing about poor shifting on bikes, i suggested a single speed- or better yet- a fixie. ha! he wasn't having one iota of the crap i was dishing. not that that was the first time i've tried to pontificate the merits, value, efficiency and pure simplistic pleasure of riding a fixed gear- but it once again reminded me of how hard a sell it is to someone who has never tried it. who cares? i would be stoked to see the guy on a bike- any bike really. but i bet he would be stoked even more on a fixie. i just bet....
but i don't gamble.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Tuesday, May 1st, 2007 @ 12:10 PM
hey! listen up you folks. we've been around now for a whole 3 years, can you believe it? It sure flies by you know, time that is. We are truly thankful (as opposed to untruthfully thankful) to all our customers for the support and encouragement for the past three years, and hopefully many more to come.
To celebrate this newly aquired 3 yearness, we are having the first ever SALE at MWC. For the entire month of May, all instock singlespeeds and fixed gears are on sale, basically anybike with no shifting mechanisms affixed to it. Stop in and see what's available.
The new Swobo bikes should be here on friday, and no, since they are bran new to the shop, they aren't on sale, unless you bring us cookies for a week.
ok, back to working on bikes.
nate.
i wanted to say this earlier but the blog mainframe was down, Happy birthday thad, you sure are looking good for a guy with 4 children.
|
Sunday, Apr 29th, 2007 @ 10:24 PM
i'm 32! whoooptee-wooo-hoooo!
to help me celebrate, why don't you swing on into the shop and get yourself a brand spankin' new copy of Lincoln Ve-Low. our gb and austin correspondent len conducted a kick-ass lengthy interview w/ mr. 29er wes williams that is in the new issue. also are toth's thoughts (say that fast 3 times) on his new two-wheeler. joel smith offers installment #2 of his re-launching the Tomac brand of bicycles right here in stinkin' lincoln. there is also music, macho and more. dig it!
thad
|
Wednesday, Apr 25th, 2007 @ 09:50 AM
Thad will be older than myself on friday. hah.
|
Wednesday, Apr 18th, 2007 @ 09:03 PM
these are crazy times we live in. this nonsense that happened at virginia tech is enough to make anyone cringe- as did i. its crazy, crazy, crazy-
my heart, thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected.
on a lighter note that hits closer to home but is still crazy is seeing our good buddy nate on a pink, 14 lb road bike? huh? whowouldathought? not me! but, tonight as i was riding over to donk's, i saw a lone nate woodman ahead of me riding said bike. watch out wed night riders- your gonna be eating a sworn mtn bikers dust. just you wait.... once we stopped and i had a chance to notice the odds and ends, i went to lift it up and nate stopped me because it had a pump, two full water bottles and mtn bike pedals on it. ha! as if it mattered. i still lifted it off the ground feeling little to no resistance. bikes like that see me comming and if i look like i'm gonna try and ride it, they just lay down and die.
other then that- spring has sprung, the park is good and the shop is busy. get out and enjoy---
thad
|
Wednesday, Apr 11th, 2007 @ 09:43 PM
Kurt Vonnegut- RIP.
thad
|
Tuesday, Apr 10th, 2007 @ 09:19 AM
in this past Sunday's Lincoln Journal Star was a story about Lincoln's own Tomac bikes. i think it was fairly well done and i even learned a thing or two. there was a big photo of our GB C. Dalton sprinkling his magic on a mean, green Tomac downhill machine. check it here:
http://journalstar.com/articles/2007/04/07/news/business/doc4616b4646dbcf981174451.txt
in other news- i think it's a big weekend for racing- though mother nature may very well put an end before it begins to all of that. good luck to all you raceras if she doesn't.
other then that...it's my dad's birthday today. happy birthday dad!
that's it.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Monday, Mar 19th, 2007 @ 03:39 AM
on sunday- nate and i headed out on two wheels for a bit. checked out the park. probably needs a few more days of dryness- which i don't think we are gonna get. patience, patience. we hit the jamaica trail- into the wind all the way to the south end. it hurt. nate was running big gear fixie (42/17) 'cross bike while i was rollin, rollin, rollin' on ss (34/16) 29er w/ fat tires. the gear difference plus the tire difference plus our weight difference plus the wind plus my yapper flappin' in the wind a mile a minute made for some hard work for yours truly. was worth it though. rode all the way to the end and saw an area that had a bunch of snow. it wasn't shaded either. how do you have multiple, consecutive days that approach 80 degrees outside and still have snow lurking about? got me. so the above stated nasty wind was at our back as we returned to civilization- and it was worth it. saw a number of folks out enjoying the day on their bikes- most of which neither nate nor myself recognized. we saw some poor, lone schmuck on the highway headed towards beatrice. he was going nowhere, quick. we did see maria, and recognized her. stopped and chatted for a bit- which she made me laugh more then once. got home and ate some tortilla chips. it was fun.
what did you do?
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Saturday, Mar 17th, 2007 @ 02:05 PM
hey thad? where you at? i hope all of you are out on a ride, cause indoors just isn't as much fun, unless you're a video game playing Generation Y-er. happy st patrocks day everybody. now where's my green KoolAid?
|
Thursday, Mar 1st, 2007 @ 10:58 AM
hey!
so, winter marches on and for once we have real snow and weather. the snow has been fun, and a pain, but without the change would you really appreciate the ease of "regular" riding?
I was thinking of this while this morning riding down the right lane of capital parkway, as they hadn't cleared the bike path yet. I don't think i've ever ridden down that street in the the street. kind of fun, and definetly faster than the 7 inches of wet mush on the bike path.
I've been ridding the 29" Matt Chester Mutinyman Utility snow Fixie and have to say, it's fun. I ditched the fancy hippy bars and put some upside down Nitto Northroad bars with an upside down Deore right lever on the left, for a full mr. magoo setup. it's perfect and bothers Eric to no end, also perfect.
have you all been riding? it's easier for me to get through the winter by embracing it and being happy for the change of scenery, with all the snow the normal ride to work becomes less mundane and more of an adventure.
last years tallly for me driving to work in the year 2006 was 5 days total to Eric's ZIP. i was sick i say, then again so was he every once and a while didn't stop him.
I was talking to a good friend this morning and she said "why did you ride? Why not just drive?"
well, i guess i ride because i can. so can anybody as long as they want to.
ride your bike, it's that simple.
nate
|
Friday, Feb 9th, 2007 @ 10:07 AM
Lincoln Ve-Low numero ocho down @ MWC for your reading plasure. biggest issue ever- and i mean ever. Smith on re-launching Tomac, an article on a weekend spent riding/drinking/freezing @ Land Between the Lakes park in KY, Toth on consumerism and an 11 page photo spread of the '06 cycling season, music, mayhem and more. its dope. get it while the gettins' good.
thad
|
Wednesday, Feb 7th, 2007 @ 02:08 PM
i was on your street. i was gonna go rob you blind until i got to the door and heard a ferocious beast on the other side ready to rip my limbs off, so i decided to pass. your lucky day nate.
thad
|
Tuesday, Feb 6th, 2007 @ 03:15 PM
thad, i agree, your mag is a complete waste of time. and, word on the street is that you went on a bike ride today, and actually went down my street. i will be checking my home for misplaced items.
|
Tuesday, Feb 6th, 2007 @ 11:38 AM
i quit that stupid waste of time/waste of paper. no one cares about it- most of all me.
just kidding its all in my head...and on my hard drive---and soon to be on paper. 24, 48, 71.5 hours???? we'll see.
thad
|
Tuesday, Feb 6th, 2007 @ 10:58 AM
it is cold out thad, now you must get over it. where's the new lincolnvelo?
|
Tuesday, Jan 30th, 2007 @ 03:50 AM
its cold out.
thad
|
Sunday, Jan 21st, 2007 @ 12:37 AM
my riding habits have remained a tad bit stagnent. no good- but what's a guy to do? so our fearless leader cvo posted a thing on his very own blog stating that he would be heading out today (sat) around noon for a jaunt around our fair city's bicycle paths. i read said announcement and committed in my mind that i would be going- which i did. got to cvo's a little after noon and was told by his lovely wife that he had already left and to call him- which i did. he was @ the 'd' st hotel so i cruised on over and met up w/ him, dk, cornbread and jim and headed out. a few miles in- we met up w/ eb, mm and jt and rolled about some more. it was about at this time that i began yearning for coffee. crossed paths w/ some other cyclists and later saw millhouse who joined the ranks. got back around the 27th and highway 2 area and decided that my need for coffee had to be met- so decided to head on home- but not before seeing mw, mg and jb. for a cold day- there sure were a lot of folks out- especially at the same time. i guess it was the most pleasant day this week. it was good to get out.
spent the eveing w/ donk, nate, jl, mr miles and cj watching loudQUIETloud which is a new film about the pixies. if you are a fan of the band- you need to see this film. its really good- and puts the band and their apparent conflicting personalities into perspective. we then watched pedal which is a documentary on NYC bike messengers. it was good- but not what i expected. both films, really, were a bit depressing- but educational at the same time.
all in all- a really great day. rode my bike- spent time w/ my family and friends consuming some art. it was good.
what did you do?
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Wednesday, Dec 27th, 2006 @ 11:12 PM
so Christmas has come and gone. what a whirlwind. hope santa brought you what you wanted. its now time for me to kick my ass into gear and dust the cookie crumbs from my shirt. entirely to much holiday cheer for me. for about the past six or seven years- around early november, i tell myself that it is possible to go through the holidays and enjoy tasty food and drink w/o completely over doing it and every year for the past six or seven years, i fail miserably. i'm beginning to wonder why i set myself up for failure. so it goes. finally got out on a ride today. donk and me and my holiday gut set out through the park then gravel. it was good- surprisingly good considering how little i have been riding. hopefully i'll get the big wheels a-spinnin' more in the very near future.
thad
ps- and if i don't see you before- have a happy new year.
|
Wednesday, Dec 20th, 2006 @ 10:32 PM
allright all you last minute holiday procrastinators. been riding bikes in the nice weather instead of gettin' your holiday shopping done? look no further my friends then MWC world hq for all your stocking stuffers and then some. who wouldn't be stoked to wake up Christmas morning and find some fine Swobo gear under the tree for them? and if your gonna wear Swobo stuff you gotta be riding a bike- and when your on that bike, your sure-as-you-know-what gonna get thirsty and are gonna need something to hold the h2o- so hows abouts a new fancy-pants mwc water bottle? hows abouts 20? we got 'em. then of course there are the new Lincoln Ve-Low t-shirts designed by yours truly and ho-ho Hoss. NE represent! so get on down to the shop and get the goods while the goods are worth gettin.' over and out.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Friday, Dec 1st, 2006 @ 04:47 AM
went for a ride last night a lil' after 7. it was cold. fun- but cold. headed east to the homes lake dam. didn't check the direction of the slight breeze before leaving my house and didn't think much of it. i thought much of it on top of the dam. that 'slight' breeze is anything but when its freezing out. it was fun nonetheless. before heading home to get the freeze out of my skin, i swung by city spirits to pick up a bottle of crowney for my work Christmas party exchange gift. let the games begin.
hey nate- is MWC gonna have a Christmas party?
so i'm (w/ the assistant of a 3-digit initaled monikered mastermind) still ironing out the details for some mid winter two wheeled goodness capital city style. bring your legs, your lungs and what you have left of your liver. not sure where or when- yet. keep your ear to the ground.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Wednesday, Nov 22nd, 2006 @ 12:57 PM
hey, happy day of eating food to you all. not much to say today, or rather, i've got plenty to say but no desire to type it, and really, why would you want to read what i have to write anyhow? that's just it, you wouldn't.
but, i will leave you with this, a link to something that i agree with, from our friend Tim Parr at Swobo.
Relax, enjoy tomorrow and friday, take advantage of the good weather, and by all means, don't spend it indoors our at some super overcrowded store just because they are having a sale.
http://www.howtoavoidthebummerlife.com/weblog/
eat food and ride.
nate
|
Friday, Nov 17th, 2006 @ 09:11 AM
that was suppose to be my line.
but really, swobo stuff everywhere, more to come. better hurry or Zach will have all of it by next month.
nate
|
Thursday, Nov 16th, 2006 @ 04:48 AM
SWOBO stuff everywhere.
thad
|
Tuesday, Nov 7th, 2006 @ 10:35 AM
issue #7 of lincoln ve-low down @ the shop. homey fall fest report, tt 'sker fan, beansprouts in amsterdam, music and more. oh yeah- sweet cover shot by mitch kline. $2 from your wallet to mine. OK?
thad
|
Sunday, Nov 5th, 2006 @ 02:34 AM
bikes bikes bikes bykes. i sure love bikes. look for some good bike action here in the next couple of months. really- i'm not foolin.' there are good things in the works. be in the know- now...just don't take any photos of you or anyone else for that matter knowin' anything. trying to take away blogging and all its goodness at this point is like prohibition was. what the hell am i talking about? leenkon vehloe will be out soon. 48 hours i hope. dope.
thaduh
|
Friday, Nov 3rd, 2006 @ 01:49 PM
uh, hello?
ok, check, we're back to semi irregular unscheduled bloggings on this here r2 unit, and let me tell you not much important is going to be said thats for unsure. What is for totally sure, like, really, is that we will have a whole pile of new SWOBO duds for you hipsters to purchase on wednesday or so unso of next week. We have pretty much everything you see on the site becoming available, even the new waxed cotton jacket that cost's quite a bit, but you all are not fooling me, i've seen you all in your Patagonia gear, so i'm sure you can figure out a way to get this stuff, it's really nice. What else is up? well, lessee. the front door to the shop is open and it's November, so nice. Thad was in here this A.M. and said the next issue of his world renown zine LincolnVeLOw will be available next week, and no, there won't once again be my article, why? because i'm taking the half a year plan to completion, just ask thad. i should think that all of you will have the good sense to get out there and ride this weekend as it's suppose to be beautiful.
remember, buy some SWOBO.
MWC
|
Friday, Nov 3rd, 2006 @ 01:48 PM
uh, hello?
ok, check, we're back to semi irregular unscheduled bloggings on this here r2 unit, and let me tell you not much important is going to be said thats for unsure. What is for totally sure, like, really, is that we will have a whole pile of new SWOBO duds for you hipsters to purchase on wednesday or so unso of next week. We have pretty much everything you see on the site becoming available, even the new waxed cotton jacket that cost's quite a bit, but you all are not fooling me, i've seen you all in your Patagonia gear, so i'm sure you can figure out a way to get this stuff, it's really nice. What else is up? well, lessee. the front door to the shop is open and it's November, so nice. Thad was in here this A.M. and said the next issue of his world renown zine LincolnVeLOw will be available next week, and no, there won't once again be my article, why? because i'm taking the half a year plan to completion, just ask thad. i should think that all of you will have the good sense to get out there and ride this weekend as it's suppose to be beautiful.
remember, buy some SWOBO.
MWC
|
Monday, Oct 30th, 2006 @ 09:48 PM
SHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
|
Friday, Nov 3rd, 2006 @ 10:02 PM
Thus begins radio silence.................
|
Tuesday, Sep 26th, 2006 @ 08:50 AM
we're out of here! Hoss, Eric and myself are about to get fired through the sky in a tube all the way to Lost Wages to body slam clarke dolton into the nevada dirt...i mean go to interbike.
So, stop into the shop and hello to the replacement us's. Thad,Maria,The Cheet and others.
Eric can't wait to get on the plane, he loves to fly...
all for now
nate
|
Monday, Sep 25th, 2006 @ 03:12 PM
Hey.
heres the lowdown for this week. Eric and I will be leaving for LostVagrants Tuesday at noon, to attend the International Bike show, and thanks to the kindness of friends, the MWC Global Headquarters will be open everyday.
BUT:
THERE WILL BE NO MAJOR MECHANICAL WORK BEING DONE UNTIL THE FOLLOWING MONDAY, NO EXCEPTIONS.
Feel free to come in check things out, purchase something if you like, Thad, Maria, The Cheet, and maybe a guest mechanic or two will be here to help you. Please take it easy on these Folks as they are here to keep the doors open, but all tricky questions or work will commence the following monday.
We are going to learn about new technology and products that we will then pass along to you, the customer, that' right, we do it all for you.
thanks and have a good week.
nate
|
Thursday, Sep 21st, 2006 @ 03:35 AM
i got a new bike. pete got a new bike. you should get a new bike too.
thad
|
Friday, Sep 8th, 2006 @ 07:00 PM
new mwc t-shirts down @ the shop so get one. they rock harder than sabbath.
thad
|
Friday, Sep 1st, 2006 @ 05:13 PM
welp,
happy friday, or if your eric and myself it's technically thursday. finished SweetSteve's new Moots 29"er and man, that YBB with the Bigwheels sure feels like a lot more than an inch and three eigths of travel, dang bike is really nice. SweetSteve was so stoked today after the initial ride last night that he couldn't talk earlier today, and that's the stuff that makes this job so enjoyable, good people stoked on bikes. we are honored to build these bikes for good people.
Eric's custom Steve Potts 29"er with TypeII fork should be here by the end of next week and if not there will be no working with him, so if you come in next week do me a favor and not ask him where it's at, thanks.
new MWC shirts should be here by the end of next week as well, all super cool and done by MWC head designer and super friend HOSS. get one soon cause i only ordered 50, hey we're a bike shop heading into winter.
oh, we also built up really cool and affordable (for a custom frame) Rick Hunter fillet brazed 26" single speed with a Rock Shox Reba and white industry's rear hub and freewheel for $1650, which is actually a good deal, so if you really like 26" and SS's check it out, it's an 18" frame.
SHOP IS CLOSED ON MONDAY, the goverment loves us and gave the working man a day off, cool. huh?
for the record i just heard that showin has never seen the movie Red Dawn? what the heck was he doing as a kid watching Strawberry Shortcake cartoons?
sorry showin.
Homie Fall Fest in MPLS is october 21st, get there, and if you don't know what that is, go anyway and be stoked on good folks and bike riding. don't kid yourself that city rules and the people up there are the best.
well, that's it. oh, and Lincoln Ve-Low issue five will be at the shop tomorrow.
ride a bike, experience freedom like no other.
nate
link for the day:
www.redbarnbicycles.com
good buddies of ours doing it right in Montana.
|
Thursday, Aug 31st, 2006 @ 08:37 AM
so, i have to get back to building SweetSteve's new Moots MootoX 29"er and all, but i had a thought regarding the first NU FOotball game of the season. So, UNL is a dry campus, but if you have enough dough to purchase a slab of concrete for tailgating on the campus, the cops will look the other way when it comes to the Beer drinking and boozing going on, right on their property which clearly states no boozing. Have more money and all of a sudden the rules are malable. interesting.
back to building one of the raddest Ti 29" bikes to come out of the MWC World Headquarters.
look for the shop to go Global in the upcoming months.
back to the trenches and wrenches.
nate
Oh, lots of new Swobo goods in the shop for you hipsters to purchase, thanks for the support.
|
Friday, Aug 18th, 2006 @ 02:42 AM
its 4:15am and i'm sitting @ work trying to type this blog. its tough though when you're interupted by hitting the ceiling every thirty seconds by house shaking thunder. boom. so it goes- and so we will not be going through the park anytime soon. time to hit the gravel or hit the pavement or hit the couch an cozy up w/ the new issue of dirt rag which seems to have a lot of NE stuff in it. there is a half page write up on the re-launch of tomac that is happening from here in stinkin' lincoln. and then a few pages later kent mcneill has a write-up on platte. crazy. I guess one and a half pages does not constitute "the nebraska issue" but its more then is usually in a mtb rag. isn't it?
there is some mtb race this weekend- i think its the state championship- so good luck to all those racing. be careful and wear your helmet- unless your cvo- or showen- who will be standing on the side- yelling @ CVO- to wear his helmet.
october 21, i'm told, is the date of this years homie fall fest up north in minneapolis. ever been? if not- your missing out. super fun bike rally event. a day filled w/ bikes, beer and debauchery. you should go.
i hear downtown lincoln has some designated bike lanes now. thats a good thing in my book.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Wednesday, Aug 16th, 2006 @ 05:41 PM
hey!
sometimes you forget that the big guy has a lot of pull, so you have to resort to the original reasons for doing things, because of love and heart, just like in the 82 classic RAD, if you haven't seen it, the movie RAD, my GB jesse has a copy that he rents out for $5 a night so contact him and you'll be stoked.
ride, desire, and Passion.
ride for the Passion, bikes are freedom, and like GeneO! says, get some.
all for now,
Nate
big guys 1, small guys 0.
nate@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Wednesday, Aug 9th, 2006 @ 02:31 PM
This is officially my blog again, and to those of you who think it's thad's, well, your just plain wrong. Eric and I have been super busy lately which is a wonderful thing as the other options don't look so good, like not being busy. Thanks to all the customers and friends who have come in for tunes or just to say hello. Lessee, what's been going on. well the other day eric and i cleaned for 4 hours to get this place in better shape, not to mention being able to see the floor in the bathroom was nice, organization helps the mind or something like that. Swobo will be making some cool new urban bikes, and Tim alerted me that we'd be in the loop on that, so stay tuned, but i guess it's going to be awhile. Sky yeager formally of Bianchi is now in charge of making Tim's dream of an urban bike come true, can't wait. another CD player has bit the dust here at the MWC world headquarters, i think in the past two years we've killed like 5 of those things, must be the super dust and dirt in the air or something.
Eric's going crazy waiting for his new full custom Steve Potts Ti 29"er to get here, and as of today Steve said it should ship on this friday, if so next week will be exciting. We also had two customers place orders for steel Potts 29" frames and forks, very exciting. If you know me at all you'd know that it makes me very happy to see customers get turned onto Steve's work, he's an original for sure, and about the nicest person you could hope to meet in the bike industry.
Welp, if you're like Eric and myself you can't wait for the cooler temps of the fall to hit, means good riding to be had.
hope everyone is riding more than me and having a fun summer.
all for now
nate
|
Friday, Jul 28th, 2006 @ 08:54 AM
maybe I spoke to early when I said “way to go floyd.” maybe not. i hope not. sometimes I think the general public is naïve in how we perceive our professional athletic heroes. don't get me wrong- I’m not accusing floyd- or anyone of anything. But when you think of baseball- think of how many of those guys have been busted. and if you apply the slightest bit of common sense- when you look @ how some of those guys seemed to bulk up overnights once they got into the major leagues- perhaps its not such a big surprise. again—not trying to ruffle anyone’s feathers- just merely suggesting that my position is that the problem is way more widespread and common then we are lead to believe. At the same time- i hope he didn’t do it. man- if I had won the tour- my testosterone levels would be through the roof as well- but then they usually are. just kidding…or am i?
thad
|
Sunday, Jul 23rd, 2006 @ 06:16 PM
way to go floyd! i'm sure others had this one predicted- but not me. man- now those your-oh-pee-uns are really gonna hate us.
thad
|
Monday, Jul 17th, 2006 @ 03:42 PM
congrats to mwc rider matt gersib on his gold medal win at the nebraska state games. i was made aware of said info on the ch. 10/11 news last night. weird. how you guys made it through the heat is beyond me. to hot- this town is to hot.
i need a 29er.
thad
|
Thursday, Jul 6th, 2006 @ 06:24 AM
issue #5 of Lincoln Ve-Low is now available down @ le shop. Donk wrote something, Wills wrote something, Toth wrote something as did I. Also an interview w/ Jon Kendziera of Jonny Cycles. 2 bucks.
getting up @ 3:30am to pedal out to seward turned out to be not so painful afterall and actually was a ton of fun. good idea cvo. had my first beer at about 4:30. purdy good. we were in seward by about 6:45am. by 9am it felt like it should have been 2 in the afternoon. was a really great way to spend the first half of the fourth. the second half was spent taking a small cat nap then eating dinner w/ the fam and donk then blowing stuff up like any good american does. hope you blew stuff up too.
thad
|
Sunday, Jul 2nd, 2006 @ 05:26 PM
hope everyone has a safe and happy fourth. if your not feeling sleepy enough to stay asleep in the wee hours of the morning on the 4th, cvo, myself, vic tong and a few others are gonna pedal out to seward leaving at, uh, 4am. sounds painful? i'm sure it will be- but fun once the blood starts flowin' it should be good. be @ cvo's @ 4am if you wanna go- or the bridge by haymarket park @ 4:30. boom!
thad
|
Thursday, Jun 8th, 2006 @ 03:46 AM
happy birthday donk.
thad
|
Friday, Jun 2nd, 2006 @ 09:48 PM
You should all head to the rad city of minneapolis in the super rad state of minnesota over the dates of july 6-8. why? because you would be able to witness/participate in the Bicycle Film Festival 2006. sure to be a good time. find out more here: http://bicyclefilmfestival.com/films_min.html
been hitting the park fixed gear style and it rules. comming out of corners is the best. there is this weird sensation ofalmost being shot out of the corners since you lose so little momentum going through them. fun fun fun. and rad. its also neat to have the ability to reeally micro-manage your speed just using your legs.
donks on the warpath as well. if you have the means to ride fixed off road- i highly recommend it.
thad
|
Friday, May 26th, 2006 @ 10:23 AM
12 hours of madness tomorrow night starting @ 6pm @ branched oak. be there. hope to snap some photos and maybe even ride. there's a concept. its kinda hard to do when you are coughing like there's no tomorrow. no good.
thad
|
Thursday, May 18th, 2006 @ 06:37 PM
k.
here's what's been going on at everyone's favorite cramped and crowded bike shop in the last couple of weeks...er so. Super busy, that's about as creative as i can be to describe the conditions around here, EP and I are running wide open from 8:45 til right about 6pm and it's very satisfying and tiring all at once. When i first opened i didn't think i'd ever have this many customers, so to all those that have been coming in thank you, and if we are short or sound grumpy, pay us now attention, we're just trying to get the work done, and feel grateful people want our help.
somewhere around the first of this month the shop celebrated (basically a muffled "yay" between the two of us, and back to work) our Two year anniversary, and i know that i said we were to have a proper celebration, but it might have to wait until a later summer date. stoked none the less. on that very day, may 1st to be exact, we had some hooligans from Quality Bicycle Products (our biggest supplier) out of MPLS minnesota stop by on their way back from the Fruita Fat Tire fest. Brauer, Zito, Chief and Blake, all who work there came in, had a beer, skidded the beer bike, wheelied the Pugsley and bought stuff, looked around and said until you come up to MPLS again, good work, thanks and have a great day. nice to see those fellars again. Zito and Brauer always have a big hand in the Homie fall fest up there and was nice to see them outside of their normal surroundings. Without QBP, our shop wouldn't function very well, they are flat out the best suppliers in the industry (don't shit yourself Trek) hands down.
and what else? well, Clarke Dolton, manitou king mechanic and my good buddy from way back is in town so expect some fun times to be had. he and i have worked together at many a bike shop not to mention he's a rad buddy to have.
There's a Vanilla in the shop so come on down and check it out, not to many chances to see a bike like this in person (vanilla bicycles out of Portland, not some dumb rear shock for a full squishy).
thanks go out to Conrad for the help this last month, he just comes in, checks to see if EP and i are busy, and if so, starts helping customers. He might not ever know how truly helpful that is, thanks man.
well, cant' think of much else, except maybe that today was my last day paying off the Snap-On tools man, yeah, now i'm rich...uh..wait.
stop in, say hi, go on the tuesday night ride, just have fun on a bike.
nate
|
Wednesday, May 3rd, 2006 @ 02:15 PM
ha! june 6, 2006 is national day of slayer. check it out: http://www.nationaldayofslayer.org/
reign in blood!
thad
|
Wednesday, May 3rd, 2006 @ 10:37 AM
man- what a great ride last night. as many as 22 folks all rolling down the mo-pac. only one stop before eagle where we went to the one eyed dog saloon for burgers, fries guiness and lies. oh yeah- a bunch of flat tires too. at 84th street, comming back into town, me, crook and jt departed from the group and headed for south street which we took all the way west. was sweet b/c there were no cars so we had the street to ourselves and we were flying. weather was perfect. i thouhgt i would be home around 8:30 or so. was surprisesd to walk in the door and see the clock read 11:28pm. it was all worth it though. quote of the night goes to conrad, which none of us can seem to remember word for word, but was something to the effect of "i cover more area on my bike then from my house to the mill." conrad=funny guy. anyway- super fun time.
thad
|
Monday, May 1st, 2006 @ 01:10 PM
happy b-day MWC! 2 years- who-woulda-thunk?
lincoln ve-low ish #4 done and ready to read. interview w/ mike ferrentino- editor of BIKE mag, a scene perspective from bellingham, wa, vic tong revealed!!! and averill talks about an old bike- and music/art and such. oh- as much as i wish the zine was free- they aren't- so pay to play punk. 2 bucks.
tuesday night shop ride- the whiskey loop- walton trail to 127th north to the dietrich (sp?) trail and back in. its a good one. see you there.
thad
|
Saturday, Apr 15th, 2006 @ 10:11 PM
hey everyone- happy easter.
all's good- not to much to report. nate almost sliced part of his body off- but didn't. thats good. the park has been fun and fast and in good condition. donk got a promotion and is now the head donkey in charge. new job w/ a new bike to match- another kogswell. i've been told i need to be @ the shop more so i think i'll do that. speaking of working @ bike shops, kirk's heading north to do just that. good luck buddy. i hope you'll be my montana connection. i gave up coffee for lent so now w/ it being just after midnight and it is officially easter- i am drinking some primo coffee. to be honest, at this point- bottom of the barrel 7-11 sludge would be primo. i missed you coffee.
well- all for now- look for more later.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Thursday, Apr 6th, 2006 @ 12:27 PM
got home from work and couldn't sleep so headed out on a fixed gear road ride. headed south out of town on 14th street. rode past wilderness and contemplated stopping to see the trail conditions but by that time i was half way through my battle w/ the wind- head on. got to a little relief when i hit saltillo road and started heading east then to 27th st and back into town which was a snap. the wind was pushing me faster then i was pedaling which on a fixie is a good sensation. got home from a cool ride to a cool shower and now, i thought it only appropriate to listen to miles davis's "birth of the cool." are you cool?
thad
|
Friday, Mar 31st, 2006 @ 09:40 PM
there's an elementary school a half a block from our house so this afternoon me and my two oldest daughters headed on over for some derby action which quickly changed to me chasing them around the playground while they screamed their heads off. the younger of the two eventually pooped out and went home so her older sister and i rolled around the 'hood for a bit. no real point here other then it was good to get out and the girls made me feel like a kid for the afternoon.
as a side note, i have a passive curiosity/fear of mountain lions. that said- i find the following link fascinating as these people apparantly have a live in pet mtn lion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xi9PAAJogHc&search=Tigur
thad
|
Wednesday, Mar 29th, 2006 @ 03:35 PM
another stellar tues night ride is now history. mud, mud, mud, broken spokes, broken hearts and bob's tavern. what more could you want? or not want? i guess i didn't want the snapped spokes but what are you gonna do? i guess i could go on a diet. nah.
bicycling mag? who would have thought....
thad
|
Tuesday, Mar 28th, 2006 @ 09:23 AM
game on.
thad
|
Tuesday, Mar 28th, 2006 @ 09:20 AM
hey!
yeah you. tonight is tuesday, yeah i know you know it's tuesday, but you know what that means? you better show up for the mayhem of the Tuesdaynightrideofsorts.
listen up, it's going to be sloshy so get yer wet gear on, find the fenders, and be ready for some all over town, you follow me cause i said fun. iffin you don't want to follow me tuff, it's tuesday and it's our ride, you don't like it, start yer own ride and i'll follow you. so there. les all see if Thad can ride the stairs again tonight on the fixie without his bars giving out on him and hitting the concrete, me too for that matter, no more fixie/wheelie loopouts.
i think the big question here on everyones minds at the MWC Corporate Takeover Headquarters of The World, is this: will super Hoss show up with his new found Skills and lay the patch down?
we will see.
Nate "taking this blog back over one post at time from dear old Thad" Woodman
|
Monday, Mar 27th, 2006 @ 03:09 PM
donk sent me this link for some video footage of monster track '06: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1183066290461977597&q=monster+track
watch out for that bus!
roller derby!!!
thad
|
Saturday, Mar 25th, 2006 @ 09:04 AM
stopped into the Mill this AM before showing up to work 2 hours early for no good reason at all, just like to sit in the shop with the lights off staring out the window i guess. Had a great conversation with Dale from the Mill, always fun to talk with him for sure. he remembers all the original French manufactures and probably has one of each of their bikes somewhere in his house. The Mill, lincoln landmark for sure. Thanks to Jamie Y. for a great Latte as well. been a while. i think i even saw a whole pickup load of vintage cruisers in the back of Scott Johnsons pickup, your wife know about those?
this has been a fun winter for sure, it really was never that slow, shop rides were great and continue to be more fun each week, Eric still hasn't become totally fed up with me and my daily antics, Thad needs to work more, just excited for the spring rides after work and seeing more of you coming into the shop, and to those that made this winter work, my deepest thanks.
well, ride on.
nate
|
Thursday, Mar 23rd, 2006 @ 02:30 AM
check out this short doc:
http://www.current.tv/studio/media/1845000
tuesday night shop ride was a scorcher- well not a scorcher, i guess as that word seems to suggest some element of heat. but it was fun. more folks then i assumed showed up as we headed over to campus for some follow the leader and fall on your butt action. i had my first experience riding down steps on a fixed gear and my first experience flipping over my handlebars going down steps on a fixed gear. no harm, no foul. nate demonstrated that doing wheelies on a fixie w/ no rear brake is a new challenge. new-commer alter-nate was in full effect representing the next generation hanging w/ the old geezers. vic tong was even there! the evening ended w/ belly's full of pizza and beer @ yia yia's and my blurry ride home. good enough.
thad
|
Monday, Mar 20th, 2006 @ 01:01 PM
so, road down to work this morning, pete road as well, and i have it on good measure that Hoss made it to work by bicycle. You know, we haven't had any sort of winter really at all, so what the heck right? i mean, as long as we're all still alive why not embrace the weather and ride your bike. Eric was interviewed by the Weather Channel in front of the shop for riding in the so called "storm", but he failed to look the camera in the eye, so they didn't use him. The lady at one point even asked "so do you ride in the snow to feel tough", uh no lady, we do it cause it's a hell of a lot more fun to ride a bike, and that's what we sell and work on, so instead of supporting Bush's efforts to drill in Alaska, why not pedal the bike.
ride a bike, feel alive.
all for now
nate
|
Friday, Mar 17th, 2006 @ 04:04 PM
hoppy St.Patrocks day,
where are all of you? the standard crows on the wire are nowhere to be found, not to mention nobody bringing in free StPat's beer to eric and Eye. boohoo for us. one nice customer did leave us with two Harp's for a tunemeup Eric did, yeah for him, great way to start off. great show tonight at Knickerbockers, Ideal Cleaners are set to play somewhere in the neighborhood of 10pm and as usual, will probably rock. Super Hoss,JB and maybe JC will be going. the rest of you should show up. prerock get to get ther at YIAYIA's. you know the drill.
ride yer bike, keeps the fuzz at bay.
your indentured servant
nate, oh and eric too.
|
Saturday, Mar 4th, 2006 @ 04:52 AM
this taken from bluecollarmtb.com:
Around 5:30 Thursday morning, an Athens cop was making the rounds near the center of the Ohio University campus.
He soon came upon a bicycle with a sticker that read “this bike is a pipe bomb” chained outside the school-owned Oasis restaurant.
Taking the sticker at its word, the cop blocked off the area and called in the bomb squad from the Columbus police 65 miles away.
The bicycle was first blasted with a high-pressure spray of water courtesy of the fire department.
Next it was dismantled using the “jaws of life.” Inside the wet shredded metal they found nothing.
thad
|
Tuesday, Feb 28th, 2006 @ 09:13 AM
round up! shop ride tonight- usual time, usual place. and according to the inturdnet at 6pm its gonna be sixty glorious degrees. so if your not there, well then, i just don't know.
thad
|
Monday, Feb 27th, 2006 @ 10:59 AM
a pretty big group showed up yesterday afternoon out @ branched oak. was a good ride. did 2 laps which was about all i was good for. it was fun though and my legs are sore today.
donk sent me a link to a new documentery comming out called "pedal" about NYC messengers. you can watch it here: http://www.petersutherland.net/Pedal.mov
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Thursday, Feb 23rd, 2006 @ 10:35 AM
i can't believe Thad skipped the ride which was alley's all the way and ended in a cornfield to the east to sit inside and listen to speakers that cost more than my house. crazy. plus he drove there. but i better quit now or he'll not come by to see us today with the latest instalment of Lincoln Ve-low, which has an interview with someone you might like to read about.
hey, one of these showed up to the shop today.
http://www.philwood.com/Price%20List/SpokeCutting&ThreadingMachine.pdf
i don't know if this link will work, might have to do it like back in the 82 and cut and paste.
as many wheels as Eric has been building, even through the winter, this will be super beneficial.
we survived Minnyapplepuss and the QBP gathering.
thanks to Todd and Susie for the hospitality and to Hurl for the Coffee and to GeneO for being GeneO. also got to meet Gary that owns Gaansari cycles. check em out.
www.gaansari.com
back to work.
nate
|
Tuesday, Feb 21st, 2006 @ 02:54 PM
shop ride tonight. 6pm @ the shop. be there. i won't be though. i'm gonna be off torturing myself by listening to audio equiptment that i can't now or probably ever be able to afford. but its fun to listen...like it is to pedal- which you should do- down to the shop @ 6pm tonight, dude.
thad
|
Monday, Feb 6th, 2006 @ 05:07 PM
tuesday night alley cat scramble, show up and see what it's all about. E.P. found a 2 miler so we're golden.
make it.
nate
|
Wednesday, Feb 1st, 2006 @ 02:23 PM
Another tuesday night shop ride in the books, and also the first dirtball alley tour. with wilderness park more than likely muddy after the rain we decided to take the ride to the streets, or at least the Alleys. made our way from downtown over to the prescott area and behind union college for a rowdy ride through the better alleys in this town of ours. Eric and i have been wanting to do this for quite some time and last night worked, it was super fun and actaully faster than our rides through wilderness. lots of people showed up and i think everyone had fun. Showen kept getting thirsty but we worked it out.
probably doing the same thing next tuesday so get ready.
nate
|
Monday, Jan 30th, 2006 @ 09:25 PM
tues night shop ride. 6pm @ the shop. urban alley assault. be there...
thad
|
Thursday, Jan 26th, 2006 @ 02:08 PM
cool unit 29 fixie @ the fixed gear gallery: http://fixedgeargallery.com/2006/jan/ChrisPloch_2.htm
thad
|
Friday, Jan 20th, 2006 @ 11:32 AM
in the "Get Fit" section of the Lincoln Journal Star today is a full-page article written by a Minneapolis journalist on winter riding/commuting. check it.
thad
ps- now that Conrad got a san jose, is showen next?
|
Thursday, Jan 19th, 2006 @ 03:45 PM
i thought of something else. any of you folks with some extra cash laying around ought to think about getting a Willits Brand 29" frame made by Wes Williams as he is now back in the business, and you have him to thank for getting the 29" nanoraptor made. He was in Crested Butte but has moved back to Austin Texas, which i didn't really care for until Len moved down.
anyhow, i'll put up their website when it's done, and like that, i'm done too.
nate
|
Thursday, Jan 19th, 2006 @ 03:24 PM
www.swobo.com
get it there or get it here.
so conrad was the first to buy a Bianchi, and it was the San Jose. he also wanted you all to know that. so now you know, and man we appreciate the business for sure, even though it has been a super busy week for labors, the nice temps have folks all messed up.
anybody interested in a used set of Jones H-bars let me know, i might be willing to let go my set that were on the Chester as i want another set of curved units and these are cut down straights.
oh, maybe around $115, down from $165.
anyone riding this weekend? maybe sunday morning or later, possibly L&C?
all the nuze i have
till later.
nate
|
Monday, Jan 16th, 2006 @ 09:20 AM
man- its hard to go wrong w/ 60+ degree weather on 1/15. rode throught the park w/ nate, hoss and showen. ran into jt and later c-rad, jb and his wife jb. thats confusing. about a quarter of the way into the park i stopped and took off my arm warmers and still managed to sweat. it was sweet. also rode fixed sat and sun through thte park. it was super fun- way less sketchy then i anticipated though i wasn't riding at mach len mason speeds either. hope you all got out this weekend. but, if you didn't then make sure you make it out for the mwc tues night ride. 6pm @ the shop. yep.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Tuesday, Jan 10th, 2006 @ 09:56 AM
First get yer Swobo gear hear.
Next, tonight is the first unofficial official shop ride of the O6'. I suppose the park will be sloppy due to the fact it's going to be warm today, so we are going to ride the slopack from the shop to Walton, then over north to the dietrich trail, then back into the town.
what does this mean? it means that Showlin Master can go on the ride since it will end up by his house on the way back and he doesn't have to worry about gettin home in the dark all alone from wilderness. so no excuses Showin, we made a friendly route for you and Hoss, after moving out to friggin waverly with jose'.
buy swobo goods.
The first phase of reconstruction here at the MWC world fredquarters is upon us. Dan,josh, and the other conrad dropped off the legs for the new rack to hold the vintage bikes, to free up space in the front of the shop for bikes that are actually for sale.
word. good to have friends with means and a really big Laaazer.
thanks to the buddies.
nate "no funny moniker today" woodman
|
Saturday, Jan 7th, 2006 @ 05:07 AM
another cool link sent to me by donk: http://www.idearealm.com/video/RCP_12-27-05_at_Night.mpg makes me miss riding @ wilderness.
the crazy limb swinging len mason is back in stinkin' lincoln this weekend so watch out!
thad
|
Friday, Jan 6th, 2006 @ 08:42 AM
here's a cool link my buddy justin sent me: http://www.pandora.com/
you can enter in a band or musician or whatever and it will custom make you a radio station based on that band and band's that are "like" them. technology.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Sunday, Jan 1st, 2006 @ 10:19 AM
get your fix and listen to styx in 2006. sappy new year.
thad
|
Friday, Dec 30th, 2005 @ 02:19 PM
oh yeah- and the shop will be closed on Monday, 1/2. word--again.
thad
|
Friday, Dec 30th, 2005 @ 11:59 AM
on sat, 12/31, the shop will only be open until 3pm- and no labors will take place. word.
thad
|
Thursday, Dec 29th, 2005 @ 11:42 PM
man. bummed. if you are looking for bicycle related stuff, look elsewhere for the time being. derek bailey- a hero of mine- musically or otherwise- has perished. what to say? i don't know. he was an inspiration to me both as to how to approach playing music and listening to music. he was an innovator. he was inspirational. he was truly a genius. man... i wanted to see both him and johnny cash prior to their deaths and lost on both accounts. still hoping for willie nelson- but thats neither here nor there. what derek bailey did was not for everyone for sure. but he touched my life as being an outsider and at the same time re-inventing the guitar. what a guy. check it:http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/news.php?id=8386
thad
|
Thursday, Dec 29th, 2005 @ 12:29 PM
bee on kees in the shop. you read write- i spelled wrong. yes-sir-ree bob- we here at mwc are now proud dealers of the bianchi brand of two wheeled goodness. and boy are we stoked. i think bianchi's are sweet. not one but two fixed gears? who does that? bianchi- thats who. single speeds- you betcha. come into the shop and check 'em out. vic tong rides a bianchi- you should to.
thad
|
Friday, Dec 23rd, 2005 @ 12:28 PM
"y control" by yeah yeah yeahs. hoss wins.
thad
|
Friday, Dec 23rd, 2005 @ 10:52 AM
ok- last post- i promise. well, i won't promise but i will tentatively schedule this to be my last post of the day. so to anyone who watches the messenger vid- someone, anyone- please tell me who that first song is by. its driving me crazy. i know i know it but i can't place it. i think i still have some old style floating on the brain from last night that isn't helping. so if you know- contact me at the adress below. please!
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Friday, Dec 23rd, 2005 @ 10:25 AM
blogs blogs- everywhere blogs.
donk sent me this link- super cool messenger video:
http://www.sketchspace.com/moviePages/evenTheGirlsDSL.html
thad
|
Friday, Dec 23rd, 2005 @ 09:24 AM
thad ain't messin around with his zine, it's here and it's cool. look how the "it's" almost line up in the previous two sentences.
so thad gave Eric and i rad flasks with the "MWC" corporate logo on them, not to mention some Makers Mark to fill them up with. watch out.
what a super good guy, not to mention he just let himself in after hours and placed them on our work bench's like a little Thad santa.
man, he's right, what's not to like about christmas, even if the kids would rather have XBOX360's and no bike, that's there problem.
merry holidays folks, and thanks to those who have been in and all the other folks who have helped us out this past year and a half.
nate
|
Friday, Dec 23rd, 2005 @ 12:55 AM
so-
the new issue of lincoln ve-low is down @ the shop. uno buck, shmuck. pay up.
but more importantly- went for a cruise w/ the donk tonight out to the ups hq so he could pick up a package only to have graced into my presence
a new swobo cap in the name of Christmas. holy moly! not to mention the "put the fun between your legs" t-shirt along with a super small super bright led light. man-o-man, whats not to like about Christams? whats not to like about the donk? nuthin! and i don't just say that b/c he gives me kick ass Christmas gifts. so then i rolled down to yia yia's to meet up w/ nate, joy a.i.d, hoss, clark, bonsall...even kw was there- not to mention katie and matt slaven in town for the festivities. good times for sure. went over to the bricktop for a bit to see cvo and dan. good times, good times.
point? i hope you have a merry Christmas.
thad
|
Monday, Dec 12th, 2005 @ 11:32 AM
man- not one but two consecutive days riding sat and sun. granted- just cruised about town- but who cares. it beat the previous two weeks of not once throwing my leg over a bicycle. going out here in a bit as well- its supposed to near 50 today. welcome to the tropics.
thad
|
Friday, Dec 9th, 2005 @ 03:08 PM
don't you love it when you find something you forgot you had? today i was doing laundry- during which time i took a shower. after getting out- all clean-like- i went to get dressed. when i got to the sock part of my dressing routine, i noticed i was washing all my socks that provided any sort of substatial protection from the cold. or so i thought. i dug in my sock drawer and found tucked way in the back a warm, comfy pair of "snap-on" socks that nate gave back when it was warm out. man- am i stoked. and so are my feet. thanks nate for making my day.
thad
|
Thursday, Dec 8th, 2005 @ 09:57 AM
man,
been riding the Pugsley everyday since last friday and it's super fun. you can ride over everything, on the ice in the creek along the path, until the ice breaks. super good traction and flotation.
i was warmer riding to work this am than i am right now in the shop. we don't have control of the temps in here as the bank next door sets it, and as of right now, were at 54degrees. yup, cold.
time to start sweeping and mopping to get the blood going in my fingers.
all for now
nate
|
Wednesday, Nov 30th, 2005 @ 09:13 AM
Alright,
first, this was my blog and i'm taking it back, well thad will eventually beat me again, but for now i'm going to keep on bloggin.
second, news flash! Karate Monkeys from the dynamic four at Surly are back in stock, both flavors, brown and black, but they are going fast, so if you'd like one, come in put 20% down and we'll order it. by default we'll have a couple hanging on the walls in stock, but you never now. 29" wheels are the best thing going and you wouldn't want to be left out in the cold, no would you? all the other kids are doing it...
third, speaking of the cold, it is, but not really and wouldn't it be nice if we actually recieved a royal dumping of snow? yup it would. and what better way to go out and goof around in the snow than, NO, not cross country skis, but rather by Pugsley. if it ever snows, demos on the shop Pug are available, so unless you tackle brent Hermes for his, this might be your chance to try the 4"ers, as in the tires. just don't get caught by Coach Burke riding the Pug on his Cross country ski trails and muffing them all up. you have been warned.
oh, still relating to the cold, Thad and i are making a limited, and what really around here isn't, Merino Wool full zip cool kid riding sweaters, more like a comfy not so racery tight top. they will be in three different solid colors and have the MWC Corporate Logo on the left chest all embroidery style. so, better get here quick, i think they will be $70 bucks, but don't back me into the corner on that one.
fourth, yup still typing, if you haven't figured out that it is more fun to commute to work by bike than the smogmobile than you might want to do some rethinking. it's never really too cold to ride, and after your going you usually end up on the hot and sweaty side not cold and shivery. just gear yourself up correctly and get out there and actually have fun on the way to work.
well, that's it, and has anyone seen E.P. i think WEEN absconded off to the next show and took my favorite head mechanic. oh well, least he left his Tools.
all for now
nate "back to fixing bikes, and not brooms" woodman
Fifth, "but you said you were finished", yeah well, i remembered something and until someone else is in charge, i'm adding this last note.
If you haven't picked up one of Thads copies of his zine "lincoln Ve-low" well then you should, i think he'll be bringing more down today, they are one buck, and fun reading, plus pictures of Hoss in there, that's good stuff.
|
Tuesday, Nov 29th, 2005 @ 04:29 PM
well,
you know it's winter in the bike shop when you have stooped to the standard bike mechanic low of hacking a mid 70's raliegh's front end off and bending the crud out of the rear triangle, and then attaching the comfiest of comfy bootleg saddles to it and calling it a stool.
yup, it happened, the first person not to realize it's tippy nature is going over.
ah, winter.
so what's that mean? anybody have that fun winter project that they'd like done? we've got the time.
all for now
nate
head chair maker and sometimes bike mechanic.
|
Tuesday, Nov 22nd, 2005 @ 11:35 PM
i have a few copies of my new zine Lincoln Ve-Low down @ the shop. covers the 2005 homie fall fest- gersib reviews the salsa dos niner and i interview the donk along w/ some thoughts on music and literature. if you live out of town and want one go here: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=ADME:L:LCA:US:11&item=7199043072 or contact me @ the below e-mail address and i'll get you one. this concludes my shamelss plug.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Tuesday, Nov 22nd, 2005 @ 01:45 PM
some cool photos from the 2005 fixed gear symposium can be found here: http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/2005symposium/photos/Rides/index.html
makes me wanna ride my bike...but then most things do. except for fried chicken. that just makes me wanna take a nap.
thad
|
Monday, Nov 21st, 2005 @ 05:22 AM
well, i'm sure if your reading this then you are probably already aware of this weekends 'cross races here in lincoln- and you know what a jaw dropper they were. if you weren't there- it went like this- tony wilhelm is a cyclo cross maniac. everyone, me included knew he was fast, fast, fast and has legs of steel. he was NE 'cross state champ last year which about sums that up. but to win the A's, two days in a row and on saturday by a minute- oh yeah- and on a fixed gear? wtf? who does that? he does apparently and pretty well. i wasn't present sunday but on sat- it was almost comical how much ground he would gain on each lap. half of us nutjobs on "hooligan hill" would all simultaneously shake our heads in disbelief on each lap and the other half would rub their eyes wondering if what they were seeing was for real. and the fact that he was on a fixed gear- i could go on and on about that one. nate and i were talking about that and i wondered out loud if perhaps being on a fixed gear somehow actually helped him. nate made the point that a good rider is a good rider is a good rider. after watching him saturday i'm convinced that tony would have mopped the floor on a tricycle---which would also be a fixed gear incidentally. anyway- it was amazing to watch. i think tony has good things in his future for sure.
other honorable mentions were mr. matt pewthers also rocking the fixed gear. since our good buddy cornbread couldn't race- matt took him along in spirit by adhering a piece of wrapped cornbread on his downtube. at first i though it was a twinky. yummmmm- twinkies. our man nate woodman was on single speed in full effect. nate has fun at races no matter what which is sweet. in years past- 'cross races have been pretty competitive- to competitive for my tastes. i suppose they are races and competitive by nature but i think some people were taking it to far by taking themselves a little to seriously. it seemed this attitude had been relaxed a bit this weekend which was refreshing. mr lefler needs a big thank you for setting everything up. lots of work goes into the behind the curtains aspects of races. but man, whether it be a ringing cowbell until you can't take anymore cowbell, shouting at the top of his lungs, supplying pringles, sunflower seeds and cookies to the idiots on the hill or just being an all around cool guy- that award goes to cvo. he is the head cheerleader and king media correspondent making real time photo and audio updates to the lincolnbiking blog. so say you are in tahiti- thanks to the efforts of our gb cvo- you could in real time know what was going on @ a 'cross race in lincoln. cvo is the espn of lincoln cycling- only better. espn never gave me pringles. or offered me a sweatshirt b/c it was freezing. cvo even made banners for the race- one of which was a firey hell promotion for his blog. well cvo- once again- hats off. you rule.
so if you missed this weekend- you have one more chance to see some nebraska 'cross action before next year. the weekend of dec 2-3 @ branched oak lake are the finals. be there or forever regret it.
thad
ps- i had kfc for dinner tonight.
|
Saturday, Nov 19th, 2005 @ 06:42 AM
nothing- and i mean nothing is better then fried chicken.
thad
|
Friday, Nov 18th, 2005 @ 09:18 AM
as thad said below in the longest,er shortest post in MWC history, it is cold. but it could be a lot colder. so this is a nice segway into my topic i want to right about and since this is technically my blog, i'm going to.
so, we are going to make a batch of Surly longsleeve Wool jerseys with the MWC logo on the front and back, embroidered style, but if you want one you need to come in and pay for it up front, why you ask? because it's winter and this is a bike shop. So, we need to know size and then take your money. they will be $115 including the embroidery cost, and this is a good deal why? because since you asked the regular Surly jerseys are $120 without bodging them with our logo. anyhow, get down and pay the man if you'd like to sport one.
my second cold weather bit is this: wouldn't you like to ride around in the cold with more comfy and useful leggings? i thought so, so how about some rad knickers from Hypnotic Designs? we've been a dealer, the first in the state, for about a year, and their Hankster knickers are just what you need. You can put your longjohns or riding tights underneath and go exploring. Thad has two pairs and think they are they are better than Pumpkin Pie, but not better than fried chicken.
so Hankster knickers for everybody, and they are going to be available soon. before christmas. we have a Large green in stock and a worn one time and returned medium green and a pair of womens in medium black. so, be cool like thad and go for a ride in em and still look nifty going into the Mill or the Coffee house afterwards.
http://www.hypnoticdesigns.com/'05hankster.html
your pal in the trenches
nate
oh, and bring in your winter projects because we can get them done quicker now than ever. beat the rush.
oh, and another thing, go to the cross races this weekend at Pintofbeers park (that's pioneers to all of you who couldn't get my real tricky play on words.)
out again
still nate
|
Wednesday, Nov 16th, 2005 @ 08:58 AM
cold.
|
Friday, Nov 18th, 2005 @ 09:11 AM
HEY!
everybody's at the red football game so we're having a sale, for the remainder of the day.
seriously,
if you read this and make it in here before 5pm we'll give you 35% off anything in the store.
get yer track shoes on.
nate
no, not really, but you thought so huh?
|
Friday, Nov 11th, 2005 @ 08:35 PM
hey,
life is weird man.
and by that i mean it's not always as it appears.
is a place more than a sum of it's means?
you fill a space with some product and some ideas come with it, but is it transmitted through the idea?
who knows.
i hope this is more than a bike shop, because if it isn't there're plenty of good ones.
that's it.
blog out.
nate
|
Tuesday, Nov 1st, 2005 @ 01:00 PM
Unit 29" frames are in at the MWC Corporate headquarters.
they are SS or Geared
Canti or disc
no i'm not making this up, they have mounts for all your pleasure.
come get'm
nate
|
Tuesday, Nov 1st, 2005 @ 03:23 AM
here we go. sat- nate and ep picked me up around 2:30 and we headed over to pick up the showen master and hoss. how five bikes, five guys and all their stuff fit into a chevy tahoe w/ a two bike rack i still don't know. lots of cramming and shoving and slamming and about 15 bungee chords. crammed but somehow still comfortable. nate gave the bounce test early on and all was set. off to minneapolis for the homie fall fest. rolled into todd and susie seiler's place where the wills fam was already at. drank some beers and threw some coins at vic's head before calling it a night. rise and shine sun morning to rain and a pounding headache that stayed w/ me the rest of the day. the rain did not. ate some bagels then off we went in the drizzle to liquor lyle's to meet up for the main event. had some beers sunday morning style then we were off for the heir and hound which got me and hoss good and lost for a bit. happened to see gene from one on one so followed him to the bonfire and the shenanigans. the rest of the day went like this- drank beer, port and some hot wine that i can't remember what it was called but was super good. participated in a relay race and damn near won then drank more of the above mentioned drinks along with hanging out w/ some of the coolest, most inviting and friendly people ever. watched showen assume the take no prisoners mode in the relay race as he was taken riders out. the mwc crew won longest traveled award scoring nate a sweet one of a kind t-shirt and me a tugnut which i have been needing for about two months. hung out in the trees until about 5:30 when we went w/ john form the now defunct kenwood cyclery and his girlfriend and one of their friends to country bar for some beers and dinner. once their, the cheet realized that he lost his digital camera which at that point had 120 photos from the day on it. he was bumned. super bumned. he was not talking and denying free shots and everything. we felt bad for our good buddy so we headed back to the place right outside the woods where we were and showen had wrecked going to the country bar. in about 13 seconds, ep found the camera--- in tact and working. well, needless to say- showen started talking and taking people up on their free drinks. since we were right there- we decided to head back to the fire and see if anyone was still there. right outside the woods we saw a few remaining souls including hurl who does cars-r-coffins and gene that runs one on one bicycle studio. urban assaulted it downtown to a bar that was nice and quiet and warm. the rain had ceased early on but it was damp and dreary out for the remainder of the day. somehow fitting for the days events but the warmth was welcomed...at least to me. hung out at the bar for the remainder of the evening and made plans to eat breakfast the next morning then go for a ride both of which didn't happen. sleep won out. long ride back to the seiler's but it was sweet. super foggy but the images stuck in my head from that ride are perfect. woke up the next morning and ate and said our goodbye's then headed down to one on one for a bit which is one of the coolest if not the coolest shops i have ever been in. gene has it dialed. hung out for a bit then headed back to neeebraska. the whole thing really could not have been any better and this is why- the people there absolutely rule. they are the coolest, warmest, nicest people i think i have ever met. i most of the time get certain vibes when i go to cycling related events- primarily races. i get that highschool- your not in my clique so beat it type feeling. there wasn't even a trace of that in minneapolis. everyone was just stoked to be there and see everyone else and that was that. there was absolutely no posturing or attitude. i think hoss said that it was more punk rock then punk rock and i agree. plus- minneapolis seemed to be a super cool town that is very bicycle friendly. downtown has designated bike lanes in the middle of the road. i could keep going and make this even longer but i'll stop. big thanks to the whole minneapolis mafia for having the event let alone being the coolest people in the world and to sov for organizing the whole thing. thanks to nate for taking us idots up there. biggest thanks to todd and susie for having above mentioned idiots at your place and for all the hospitality and to todd for riding to hell and back for us. super good time that won't be forgotten soon.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Tuesday, Oct 25th, 2005 @ 09:24 AM
KONA unit 29" frames are in!
alright, first batch was suppose to be SS only, but after they unboxed them, they found out they had Der hangars, but on the slider so if you want you can run SS or gears with one frame.
let me know soon, we've got some coming but most are spoken for so there might be 2 extras.
sizes right now are 16", 18" and 20" with 19"ers available later.
about $470 for the frame, a little more than they originally quoted of $420, but should be a sweet bike,
and we've got Rick Hunter suspension corrected rigid forks coming for these frames. Fillet brazed goodness, little more comfort than sticking a KarateMonkey fork on there.
for all the folks in town this weekend, get out to Platte for the race hoopla going on. Ride with Travis Brown the SS king of Trek and have a great time.
nate
|
Saturday, Oct 22nd, 2005 @ 04:54 AM
a while back i wrote about my fondness of the niche aspects of cycling such as 'cross racing, single speeds and fixed gears. part of what makes those things appealing to me is the fact that they exist below the radar of pop culture and the general public. that may be slowly changing: http://www.pumaville.com/downloads/book101.pdf
not sure what i think of this. kinda neat but kinda silly at the same time. it definitely feeds into some stereotypes. i would cringe if a messenger video game came out but i would play it at the same time.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Tuesday, Oct 18th, 2005 @ 02:55 PM
Welp,
all of you wishing to get in on the Kona Unit 2-9 frame order for the first batch let me know soon, and if possible come put down a deposit to secure your frame, they are going to go fast.
the first batch, which will be available later this next week, will all be SS only.
the batch coming in at the end of November will be SS or Geared, meaning it will have cable stops for ders and all, plus hanger.
so, to get a good idea on who wants what, stop down or give us a call, i don't want someone to miss out on a great frame at a good price.
thanks
nate
|
Wednesday, Oct 12th, 2005 @ 05:15 PM
thanks to Johnny Mohawk, Kris Sonderup, and Matt Pewthers. Sometimes without the assistance of Cycle Works this little box might not be possible. that's the beauty of a small tight-knit cycling community. so todays blog goes out to them. they are always willing to help and the same from us applies. fun being in the same town. that's where i started back in 94 in this town, so thanks again Kris for taking a chance on a scruffy kid from Gilligans Island, i mean Grand Island.
and tonights shop sponsor goes out to the generosity of Matt Pewthers. Thanks man.
your pal.
nate
|
Wednesday, Oct 12th, 2005 @ 05:01 PM
thanks to Johnny Mohawk, Kris Sonderup, and Matt Pewthers. Sometimes without the assistance of Cycle Works this little box might not be possible. that's the beauty of a small tight-knit cycling community. so todays blog goes out to them. they are always willing to help and the same from us applies. fun being in the same town. that's where i started back in 94 in this town, so thanks again Kris for taking a chance on a scruffy kid from Gilligans Island, i mean Grand Island.
and tonights shop sponsor goes out to the generosity of Matt Pewthers. Thanks man.
your pal.
nate
|
Thursday, Oct 6th, 2005 @ 01:29 AM
rode a solo fixed ride around town last night. shivered a lot and my toes were numb when i got home but it sure was fun. fall is here.
thad
ps- spandex rules.
|
Monday, Oct 3rd, 2005 @ 10:20 AM
monkey wrench 1
bike thieves 0
what the hell is the matter with people.
story to follow.
nate
|
Saturday, Sep 24th, 2005 @ 05:57 AM
nate and eric are off to the land of sin to look at all the new, shiny bicycle type stuff so i will be captain of the ship while they are away. due to this- next week the shop will have different hours. on wed and thurs, 9/28 and 9/29, MWC will be open noon-6pm. fri and sat will be regular shop hours though it will still be me there. that said, if you wanna come in and buy something, oh, like a bike or a water bottle or perhaps stock up on tubes or maybe you are in the market for a blinky light (it is getting dark earlier now) then come on in. i'm your man. or even if you wanna come in and talk about music or listen to some or talk about bikes or maybe wander on over to the cookie company and pick up some m&m cookies for me and you, that will also work. what will not work is me on your or anyone elses bike. i may tinker around w/ my own but thats neither here nor there. so, if between the dates of sept. 28 and oct. 1, you need work done on your two wheeled friend, it won't be done here. as long as there's room, you are free to leave your bike and nate or eric will work their magic upon their return to the cornhusker state. if we run out of room as there isn't a lot to spare, then i'll have to send you packin.' sorry for the inconvenience but we're all doing you a favor here by keeping my hands off your bike. perhaps one day i will be a bike mechanic but that day is not today.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Thursday, Sep 22nd, 2005 @ 03:31 AM
check the interview w/ NE 'cross director/promotor/inventor/drummer John Lefler @ cyclocrossworld.com
http://cyclocrossworld.com/News.cfm?Action=Edit&MenuKey=386&theKey=386&back2=home
there is even mention of CVO's Hooligan Hill.
thad
|
Wednesday, Sep 14th, 2005 @ 06:05 AM
got home from work in the AM and couldn't sleep so i decided to get up and go for a ride. rode through wilderness. paused for a bit at the end at the 14th street entrance and saw a guy pull up in a small two seater sports type car. he got out and walked to the other side and pulled out a big cage containing a badger sized animal that he walked over and released. wonder if he snuck in the guys house or something. i also wonder what riding in a small two seater w/ a caged wild animal right next to you is like. anyway, from wilderness i headed out and rode gravel roads for a about an hour then back through the park and home. it was really a great ride- just everything was right. super fun. later in the evening, donk, the fam and myself had some veggie burgers then headed out on the bike path to the park over behind the new-ish walt branch library on south 14th street. great day w/ great weather and great people.
last thursday the donk and i were riding through the park and my beloved 11 year old vandium railed (remember those?) selle italia flite saddle called it a day as one of the rails from the clamp all the way back to the back of the saddle snapped off. it was an awkward ride home. was pretty bumned until the next day when i contacted the us importer of selle italia who informed me that i can send in the saddle and for a small fee they will put in brand spanking new ti rails. i'm stoked to say the least. thanks to mr wills for the saddle contributions in the meantime.
weather is getting better but days are getting shorter. thats how it goes.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Thursday, Sep 8th, 2005 @ 02:12 AM
i am getting ready to finish the trek 420 fixed gear that i mentioned earlier and in the process took the track cog off of my cross-check to put on the suzue/mavic wheel until i get a replacement. so- that meant a few commutes to/from seward w/ a freewheel. uhhh...not the same. with plenty of time coasting down hills it gave me time to think about why it was so different and why, despite pedaling less, i felt more tired. despite my most intellectual efforts i could only come up w/ guesses at best as to why this was happening. then i stumbled upon this:
http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/articles/lee/lee.pdf
it all makes perfect sense to me. does it to you?
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Thursday, Aug 18th, 2005 @ 01:54 AM
commuted to work to seward last night on my fixed gear cross-check. I had been contemplating doing it but thought some of the hills would be sketchy both going up and comming down. didn't know if my legs could do it. weird thing was that i arrived in town about 10 minutes earlier then i usually do on a geared bike. and the hills? going up was a snap. comming down? though i said i wouldn't do it, there were a couple times where i unclipped and pretended i was superman while the cranks spun like crazy. overall, as dumb as it sounds, i thought it was easier then riding a geared bike. i guess my theory on it is (and my buddy Ed agrees) is that on a geared bike you have this mindset that you have to be riding @ a maximum rate at all times both climbing and decending. i mean- you have all those gears- might as well use 'em. also, on my geared bike i long ago put a computer on it which can be a curse. “what? below 10 mph? i won't have it!!!” so then you start cranking away. i think on my fixed gear i more readily accept the fact that the hills would slow me down and that was ok. i'm not racing anyone. funny that in the end i actually got to where i was going quicker and w/ less energy.
a few posts ago i made mention of my buddy Rob’s documentery about Omaha's Saddle Creek Records. going sun night to see it in Omaha @ the Dundee. kinda excited to both see the film but also to go to the dundee as i have never been. perhaps i'll rub shoulders w/ some rawk royalty while there. i'll let you know what i thought of the film next week.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Friday, Aug 12th, 2005 @ 02:08 PM
Short and sweet. That's what I'm going to repeat to myself.
I suppose I'll start with an introduction. My name is Hoss. I'm head letterhead creator here at MWC and I ride a hoss-delux (just plain co-inky-dink, honest). I certainly fit the bill for the clydesdale status the hoss-delux was created for, but when Nate hooked me up with it, it was the dirt brown color that I got all weak in the knees over.
So I've started a daily commute from home to work... Pretty good timing with the gas prices n' all. After a couple days of commuting, it struck me that a lot of semi-interesting stuff seemed to happen on my little commutes and that it might be fun to share.
So I'll end this now, and post some truly interesting stuff for you after you've rested your eyes.
Put on you blindfolds and get on your bikes.
-Hoss
|
Friday, Aug 12th, 2005 @ 01:58 PM
It looks like rain.
|
Monday, Jul 25th, 2005 @ 09:50 PM
so lance was able to pull off 7 times in a row- pretty impressive. i don't want to minimize what he has done b/c i think its amazing. however, if he is actually gonna quit- it will be a welcome change to see someone else win- at least to me. so he's contemplating politics? hmmm.... i think in terms of who is gonna win the tour- next year is more exciting for me then this one was- b/c we all knew he was gonna win. my two cents...
its been hot.
cvo and dirty and jp- i think- partied it up sat night then rode out to platte. their crazy. hey cvo- give me a call on your cell phone. speaking of crazy- there's a group heading out to ponca- on bikes. their leaving saturday morning at like 3am. uhhh... don't know about that one.
anyone that is up for a good/quick read re: bikes that doesn't fit the usual mold- check out "need for the bike" by Paul Fournel. a great little book that any bike geek could relate to but written in such a way that i think about anyone would get something out of. thanks to donk who's got the connections for hooking me up w/ it. another really great book that documents the messenger lifestyle is "the immortal class : bike messengers and the cult of human power" by Travis Hugh Culley. good read that strips the glamour of messengering and sort of exposes it for the torture that it apparently is. there is an interesting chapter in there that describes an alleycat that the guy took part in. so read.
louis armstrong was/is amazing.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Wednesday, Jul 20th, 2005 @ 07:43 AM
So tonights wednesday, and that means somebody besides Factory Rider better show up to ride, or it's going to be me by myself. I'm calling out showlin master, so don't show up scott at 5:30 on a cross bike with roadie tires, or i'm sending you home, or you're riding the roadie tires in the dirt.
oh yeah, if you find yourself really bored in the moring or don't have a job, you can stop by and watch some fellow from texas on a plastic bike manipulate the Tour coverage.
buddy mark janike gets married this weekend in Portland and EricHeadMechanic will be gone until Tuesday of next week so expect to see Thad back in the shop for a while, which should mean that things will be clean and organized.
And for the other news. The new Surly Pugsley snow bike will be here at the shop later today so if you really want to ride the snow or on the beach at Branched Joke stop by and check it out. we have an 18" and the first batch is all sold out.
all for now the floors are calling my name.
nate
|
Friday, Jul 15th, 2005 @ 12:09 PM
Was driving home from dinner last night along highway 2 and noticed how many people were out on bikes. Everyone from the “serious” cyclist- at least indicated by their investment into loud colored, very form fitting clothing- to the average joe/joesephine shmoe cruising along. Not sure what had me take note and perhaps there were no more people out on their bikes then usual but I was stoked nonetheless to see everyone out. Made me want to ride even more then I usually do.
MWC web guy Mitch Kline is starting a discussion board for one speed bikes. Go and register and start some drama @ http://www.onespeedbikes.com/phpBB2/
Also, my buddy from way back Rob Walters has completed a documentary on Omaha’s Saddle Creek records and is being released soon on dvd. You can check the site and watch a trailer here: http://www.plexifilm.com/sc.html
Its gonna be hot this weekend but get out and ride anyway.
thad
|
Friday, Jul 8th, 2005 @ 07:41 AM
Just got back from an almost week vacation in Colorado. Was good- really good. stayed w/ my wife’s aunt who lives right outside of Loveland. There’s a place called Devil’s Backbone that is about a five minute ride from her house that was really fun to ride. Single speed friendly but some hills that still had me gasping by the top. Super fun 7 mile loop. Had to watch out for rattle snakes which added a new element. Rode there twice. Stopped in a little shop that was between DB and the place we were staying called Mountain High Cyclery. Really small place which I think specializes in service as there weren’t any complete bikes- just a few frames. The guy was really nice though. Went to boulder and visited university bicycle which in the past I had never noticed their collection of vintage track bikes which I took pictures of. Also went to Vechio’s which was good. Kona aside- they sell the same stuff we here @ MWC do. While there, there was no fewer then six dogs in that place- and its not that big. Was weird as we walked around boulder I was surprised at the # of fixed gears that I saw. Had never noticed that before in places like that. Also in boulder- or in the mountains above boulder, we ventured up to Mike and Nelli Davis’ place aka Audio Federation (http://audiofederation.com/) to here some crazy high-end audio stuff. Listened to the Acapella Triolon Excalibur speaker which is a german made speaker that Mike and Nelli are one of seven dealers in the world for. the big horns will set you back $145,000. my pockets aren’t deep enough for that. The main reason for going to CO was that my wife’s cousin got married this spring in Mexico so they had a reception for them back here for everyone. Was a really good time at which I learned the fine art of playing beer pong.
So we got back and I went and rode through wilderness. wasn’t quite as fun but at least I could breathe.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Tuesday, Jun 28th, 2005 @ 02:27 AM
i stole this form the surly blog. couldn't help it- funny b/c its true:
thad
Reasons to abandon single speed riding (in no particular order):
-30 gear drivetrains. I'm sorry, they cost how much? Whatever, your knees will cost more to replace than that, and at any rate the maintenance can't be all that bad. Can it? 50 miles of variable winds make gears seem almost necessary.
-The whole SS thing was a fad.
-As a cyclist, you profess to like all types of riding, but on your SS you're not at the crest of the wave anymore; its glory has passed. To those who are cyclists, it is now obvious that you are completely ex-post-fashion and definitely the wanker they suspected you of being all along, only moreso. To non-cyclists you always looked like a wanker anyway. Better to cut your losses.
-Gears on mountain bikes let you get up and over more stuff because you have leverage. It's nice to know that 28 tooth is there when you need it. And as for road, well who wants to ride a century on a SS? Remember how often when riding your SS you bitched under your breath (or maybe not so under your breath) that you needed something just a bit easier?
-Every hipster riding around town has 3 main accoutrements to show off his/her uber-hipster stylings:
1) at least one visible tattoo, likely on the theme of mis-interpretted chinese characters ("someone told me this means 'strength'". It doesn't.); 2) excitingly retro glasses, more than likely bought at a fancy shop specializing in rummaging through relatives' basements for old junk then selling this junk at high mark-up in same shop; 3) a single speed bike, often times a fixed gear.
-What were you thinking? Single speeds aren't easier. They weigh almost the same as your geared bike, and cost almost as much to set up.
-You just want to ride, man. It's too much to think about.
Reasons to abandon riding geared bikes:
-30 gears? What's the point? Geared right, and properly fitted to your bike, you're not going to blow out your knees. Geared bikes have tons of weight-adding, pointless gear overlap, and anyway who has the patience for fiddling with that stuff every 100 miles?
-Sick of all this trend-heavy technology. Geared bikes are based on trickle-down race technology and therefore are far more faddish than SSs ever were. Simplicity, man.
-As a cyclist, you profess to like all types of riding, but at least on a SS you are not a slave to the fancies of fast changing technologies and non-standardized component compatibility (um...). On a single speed you look to 'cyclists' like a 'cyclist' ...until they get close to you, and to non-cyclists you look (at least you think) like a normal person just out riding your bike. Except for your shoes. Not much you can do about that.
-Everyone rode fixed gears once, even in The Tour. You need something you can take downtown and not worry about getting ripped off, and that you can crash more than once before being denied warranty. Offroad, you can rip the rollers faster on a SS because they teach you how to pick a line better and how to maintain momentum. Remember how often when riding your geared bike you bitched under your breath (insert clever rejoinder here) because your derailleur couldn't find the gear you needed when you needed it?
-You'd rather get lumped in with the hipsters than look like one of those fools who think that if they dress like Lance they'll ride like him too. Overpriced retro glasses still look better than one of those logo-festooned 'kits'.
-What were you thinking? Geared bikes aren't easier! They weigh almost the same thing as your SS and cost a bit more to set up.
-You just want to ride, man. It's too much to think about.
|
Tuesday, Jun 28th, 2005 @ 02:22 AM
Joy A.I.D. aka J-O-Y 22 has now graduated to J-O-Y 23. Happy birthday. Birthdays, birthdays- everywhere birthdays.
thad
|
Friday, Jun 24th, 2005 @ 10:45 AM
nate, nate.
you sure are great.
and now you are 30.
happy b-day dude.
thad
|
Wednesday, Jun 22nd, 2005 @ 10:21 AM
Purple Surly Disc Hubs.
you want a pair, let me know, we've got a pair for the shop and they won't ever do them again,
super limited edition.
they really look rad, but they do say i live to much back in the 92.
oh, and Surly Nice racks will be here friday, let me know if you'd like a set for yourself.
support Surly, they build nice stuff.
right arm.
nate
|
Sunday, Jun 19th, 2005 @ 11:30 PM
Happy father’s day to all you who are fathers out there. I’m one. Yup. To celebrate I went w/ good buddy and MWC web guru Mitch Kline to platte. I haven’t been there for a year and a half. Pathetic, isn’t it? Mitch and myself and a fellow named Rick- Dr. Rick I belive (seemed like a really nice guy) - rode a lap and a half. I was ready to call it quits after one lap but they talked me into another half. It was really fun though I was sort of re-learning that place. It was also my first time on a single speed there which proved to be great. at this point I’m not really sure what the apprehension to ride ss is--- those climbs are gonna hurt no matter what. You just make it up quicker on a single speed. So it was really fun and I hope its not another year and a half before I go back.
Donk and I rode down to duffy’s at night to see some bands- one of which was this band from Chicago called the Coughs. Holy crap. Best band I have seen in a long time- truly incredible. Six people making the best racket I have heard in a while. Two drummers sharing one set of drums, pots, pans, cymbals… check them out if you get the chance. They have a record out on Load records and though good- doesn’t do justice to what they create live.
In timely fashion w/ father’s day and all, MW and his wife brought a bouncing baby girl into the world today. Congratulations buddy.
Time for sleep.
thad
|
Wednesday, Jun 8th, 2005 @ 01:32 PM
Went out yesterday in the heat in my new mwc jersey for a ride. Went out to the park- it was rideable but on the mushy side of rideable. Just made it through the f-loop then to the other side of the road under the arches. That place is gonna get overgrown quick. Sort of already is. It was hot out but at least there was a breeze that made it bearable.
The donk turned 34 today. 34 years of donkey goodness. Happy b-day dude.
Listen to the shaggs. No-wave before there was no-wave.
Thursday is the len is back to defend his thesis so we should all go see him while wearing a tie party. Go there.
The jersey’s look good.
thad
|
Monday, Jun 6th, 2005 @ 04:08 PM
so.
the coelacanth was spotted today at the shop...
jerseys are here. they look nice, i think. Conrad the Mill Racer said they "needed more white". this could be true, to each there own. If you put down a deposit, yours is on hold and you only need pay me $20 more on top of the deposit.
i need to go mow the lawn and fold laundry so i'm done now with the blog.
more later.
nate
|
Sunday, May 29th, 2005 @ 01:58 PM
I think a good time was had by all who were at the annual branched oak 12 hour race last night. I had a good time while there. The donk and I headed out there around 5 and rode a couple laps- but no entry for me. It was a really good time just in terms of seeing everyone and hanging out. Nate entered solo and started off the race w/ 5 consecutive laps and 7 total for the race. Purdy good. Matt Pewthers (sorry dude- I’m sure the spelling is wrong) was in full effect riding fixed. Rad. To rad for my legs. I think the story of the evening goes to Corey Godfry who rode solo and did a total of 20 laps. Ho-lee-mo-lee. That’s…that’s just rad. One lap is six miles so you figure it out. Not sure on what the final results were but that guy takes the cake as far as I’m concerned.
So it was a good time for sure. The donk and I headed out around 10 to go home and play cards and drink whiskey sours. Lame I know. As far as branched oak goes- that place is sweet and I’m not quite sure why more people don’t ride there. You hear about people all the time going to wilderness and platte but never branched oak. I for one am going there more. Fun, fun, fun.
Hope everyone has a good memorial day weekend. The donk and I are gonna pedal out to Mahoney state park and meet up w/ the fam for a picnic and perhaps a solid game of woofle ball. The weather sounds like its gonna be good so get out.
Ride the lightning.
thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Thursday, May 26th, 2005 @ 04:31 PM
hello, words to follow.
it's been a busy week here at MWC world headquarters, and my hands are nice and dirty to show for it, erics would be super dirty, but i think in a previous life he was a doctor as he washes his hands about 25 times a day. as i sit here at 10 after 6 on a thursday night, the jerseys are still a no show, but i've got faith in Melanie that she will come through... soon. thanks everybody for being patient.
more later
nate
|
Tuesday, May 17th, 2005 @ 03:51 PM
welp,
todays blog is here, not mucht to say, except that if you get here by 6:25 we'll all go on a ride. rad. eric the happy mechanic, gersib, jesse, show-lyn-master, myself and whom ever else shows up. weird, no more carp or Len, bummer day. ride through wilderness until the swamp effect takes over.
not sure if any of the rest of you who read this know, but i wanted to give an "atta-Boy" to my buddy Gersib, aka Factory Rider, for placing second in last saturday's Cycle Works Battle Royale Marathon race at platte. In a four hour race, held at one of the toughest courses in nebraska, Factory raced for 4 hours, on a 5mile plus course, and completed 9 laps. dang that's rad. I'm super stoked for him, he had an amazing race, only getting bested by Cameron Chambers, pro for GF. So man, good work, i'm stoked your riding for me, as a pal. Definetly the fastest Kona out there that day. nice work.
me on the other i could barely complete my three singlespeed laps, let alone 9 in four hours, yeah right.
nice work gersib, i'm stoked for you.
can't type and talk to Manitou Clarke at the same time so all for now.
nate "head broom builder" wooodman
|
Tuesday, May 10th, 2005 @ 04:59 PM
yeah, thad is thirty. ha. er wait, i'll be thirty in june, dangit.
onto more important news, as in jerseys. they should be to the shop on friday of next week, that's what melanie the rad jersey lady in Santa Cruz says. thanks for being patient with me on that one, she's a one woman show and does great work, not to mention being a cool person. they will be totally different than all the other ones around here. oh, and we did get the Dickies, Thad made MWC knickers in, so if you want them, they are $38 and neat, Eric the happy mechanic won't wear them, but he use to be grouchy and only recently became happy, so give him time, he'll come around.
oh, i had a prototype Wool Spot jersey done with the MWC logo and it turned out sweet so if you want a short sleeve let me know, or will just wait and do a big batch of long sleeves for the fall cross season.
everybody go race at Platte on saturday for the Cycle Works race, it'll be rad, Jesse and the crew have been busy making a new re-route and thanks a ton, way more fun for the SS'ers. not to mention the big log ride, i'll be riding that during the race, always need to have a spot on the course to look forward too, and lets face it, i'm a slow shop owner now, might as well have fun during the pain.
oh, and you all should go get Coheed & Cambria, LIVE at the Starland Ballroom DVD, cause man, they are rad. if you like Rush and other creative nonsense, it ain't mellow thats for sure, kinda like me.
all for now
stop in and say hello to Happy Eric and myself.
nate "where'd my broom go" woodman
|
Tuesday, May 10th, 2005 @ 01:25 AM
maaaan- everyone is leaving. newly made dentist Carp is on his way to South Dakota (or is it North?) to fix teeth. crazy limb swinging Len is off to Texas to hydro-plan...or something. i think martha is back to Alaska. i can't seem to get a hold of her so that is what i'm assuming. why do all the cool people have to leave? no good.
thad
|
Wednesday, May 4th, 2005 @ 02:10 PM
after taking way longer then it should have- thanks to me- the mwc knickers are now available for consumption. they look pretty darn good. some are in tan and some in black. get 'em while the get-uns good.
thanks to all that came out for the party and consequential destruction. was a good time- to good. see ya at 40.
thad
|
Thursday, Apr 28th, 2005 @ 03:20 AM
a twelve year lust has been satisfied. back in the day...well, twelve years ago, i first saw a brown selle italia flite saddle propped on our good buddy mark yaniky's (sp?- sorry dude) wtb phoenix. i liked flite's from the first moment i saw one- but a brown one? holy moly- i had to have one. well, it took twelve years but i finally got one thanks to gb and all around good guy nate. he made my 30th birthday end on a good note contradicting the earlier part of the day when i dropped and stepped on my grado gold stylus (the needle for my turntable). $90 mistake. oh well, at least i have a brown flite to put on my unit. white ind. eno 180's w/ a green chainring are on the way. being an old geez aint so bad.
thad
|
Tuesday, Apr 26th, 2005 @ 01:23 PM
i'm back.
so if you had more fun with just eric here, tough.
nate
more later.
|
Sunday, Apr 24th, 2005 @ 06:18 AM
Man around town Tony Toth is off to the left coast to work for Manitou- working for Clark. He’s leaving Cycle Works to head to California which is where he will call home but he’ll be traveling all over the place fixing suspension devices. Its really weird to me how many people form NE end up in the bike industry. I mean, NE doesn’t really lend itself to the whole terrain ideal associated w/ mountain biking. Whatever, I suppose its all just a frame of mind as to how you interpret things. Anyway, good luck Tony.
Speaking of California- all of you that have been asking for Nate, he will return from CA on Monday.
Who knows when the park will be rideable again with all the wetness falling from the sky- and I think there’s more to come. Oh well. Moisture is good.
Got two new Hunter frames in the shop this week- though one is spoken for. Its a sort of drab green color w/ a black decal on one side and white on the other side of the downtube. Purdy pimp.
Been contemplating my next Unit upgrade. I’m thinking White Industries Eno Cranks- 180’s or a Jones Bar. What do you think? MTBR has some super secret “spy photos” of the Kona 29’er frame. It’s big and pink and called the Package. Ha.
Gonna be 30 this week. Yes-sir-eee. Old as you know what. Having a party- know the time and place and be there. Or be square- like a lame-ass 30 year old.
The soundtrack of this blog provided by John Coltrane, Bobby Jaspar, Idrees Sulieman, Webster Young, Kenny Burrell, Mal Waldron, Paul Chambers and Art Taylor all belting it out on vinyl.
Thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Tuesday, Apr 19th, 2005 @ 11:07 PM
Uhhhh….so it has been brought to my attention that I haven’t been diligently attending to my blogging duties. So as to continue w/ tradition- the weather has been pretty good, I like to ride bikes, Showen is a dork and I have some good records I could recommend to you. Right on.
Nate has been in Cali getting ready for Lance’s (not that Lance) big day of I do’s. So mostly Eric and a little of myself have been holding down the fort @ MWC. Watching Eric work I have come to the firm conclusion that if you bring a bike to MWC and he or Nate can’t fix it- it can’t be fixed. Eric had a birthday on Monday. Happy birthday dude.
Speaking of Lance- I saw in the paper today that the Lance we all know claims this is his last tour. Hmmmm….I’ll believe it when I see it. I think he loves the spotlight a little to much to call it quits.
Speaking of people that ride bikes really fast, watch out for our own Factory Rider’s NE video representation on the IMBA site. The IMBA folks were here last week and helmet cammed MG @ Platte riding super smooth and fast. No handed wheelie? It’s in there. Watch out for it on the IMBA site. If you can’t wait- come to the shop- we have it on the computer.
What else?
Thanks to my good buddy MW for hot rodding my Dynaco ST-70 w/ a new input board. Sounds good. And what to play through it? The new Bloc Party “Silent Alarm” has had my ass shaking the last couple of days. The newest The Great Redneck Hope record- which has a title that is funny yet unsuitable to mention here- is rocking hard in a 11 songs in 9 minutes sort of way. ZZZZ has caught my attention lately as well.
I Need new tattoos.
I noticed last night that a British company is now making cars-r-coffins jerseys and they look really good. I wonder if they are available for wholesale shop consumption. Check it: https://secure.thecyclejersey.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=30&osCsid=dd4b24ff9858e1e640f83ea94650ab42
Frame builder and all around good guy Matt Chester recently took a bad spill on his bike. Nothng broken but I think he’s hurtin’ pretty bad. Get well soon buddy.
That’s it.
thad
|
Monday, Apr 4th, 2005 @ 05:01 PM
alright, not enough time to write about record stores and all like Thad, and man, he covered it, So: the news is, "the italians are coming" is true. the first Torelli made it to the shop today, and man, it's sweet. should be built up by Thursday, and the rest of the 7 frames should be here in a week or two. they are really well crafted, and even better, they are all Faced and Chased by Steve at Torelli so they show up ready for installation and build. thanks steve.
oh, and for anyone that hasn't been in to the shop for a while, Eric has started here as the other mechanic. this is a good thing, and i can't tell you all how amazing he is with the wrench, and how fortunate i feel to get to work opposite the stand of him again. stop in and say hello to old eric, he's a good guy. we spent years together at Bike Pedalers working for Rich, and things have just moved along to where we are now, it seems like we spend half of the morning reliving funny BP stories and how much fun it was to work there, thanks Rich.
need to split and walk the overgrown shop dog.
nate
|
Monday, Apr 4th, 2005 @ 12:17 PM
Bad news for Lincoln- long time indie/underground record store Spindle, formerly known as Zero Street, is closing its doors. No good. No good at all. The shop opened I believe over 10 years ago under the ownership and guidance of Garth Johnson in a dinky shop right to the west of Yia Yia’s. I spent many an hour and even more dollars there. I worked there a couple of hours a week for a while as well. When Garth decided to head to Florida I believe to attend grad school, the shop switched hands to Kevin Chasek who ran it for a couple of years before Mike Garber took over. He ran it for a long time and moved the shop to its current location that’s on the opposite side of the alley from Homer’s downtown on 14th Street. John (I forget his last name) took over the shop shortly after starting Drop Bay and made the addition of DVD rentals to the shop. Well, for whatever reason, John has decided to call it quits. Its risky times to be running a record store, let alone an indie record store- that’s for sure. A little over a year ago, Mike had made the offer to me to buy out his new inventory and run the new music part of the shop. Though having my own record store seemed like a dream job- and it was for many, many years- I just didn’t think I could swing it financially. Like I said- risky times. Just think of the landscape in terms of record stores in Lincoln over the past decade. Ten years ago- there were 4 Pickles, 4 or 5 Homer’s, Zero Street, Recycled Sounds and a few smaller specialty stores. Oh yeah- a little over ten years ago there was Feedback which was a great place. Anyway- now there are two Homer’s, no pickles, and soon to be no Spindle. The reasons for this shift are complicated and currently I think its easy to point fingers at the whole file sharing thing as the culprit but ten years ago that didn’t exist. Back then, I think it was Best Buy who put the first nail in the coffin. Times change but it still bums me out. I am guilty of supporting the things that are most obviously putting the indie record stores under- I think we all are in some way. But now I guess I’m feeling a bit guilty as buying music via independently owned record stores has always been my preferred method. Anyone who is familiar w/ The Antiquarium in Omaha’s Old Market- that is my ideal record store. Plus, if you are a vinyl enthusiast like me, it further sucks as bigger chain stores typically have little to no vinyl in stock- and when they do, the prices are inflated. I remember having a conversation w/ my dad about 7 years ago where he said it would be in the very near future that people would be acquiring the majority of their goods and services via the internet. At the time- we were in Colorado on a record shopping trip so the conversation was based around music consumption. My argument was that part of the experience for me- one who regularly acquires pre-recorded music- is the human interaction of going into a record store- hearing something new or having something I was previously unaware of introduced to me by the person working or a fellow patron- and the internet can’t do that. Well, it can do the whole- “…if you like this, you will like this.” But no intelligent conversation regarding music follows. Well, needless to say, in terms of my dad’s and my conversation 7 years ago- the future is now. And it sucks. Who knows what the future holds but I guess it looks a bit bleak. At least it does to me. Anyway- until next Saturday- everything except for the DVD’s are on sale. Most records are $3 a pop and if you buy 10- they are $25 for all ten. I went down Saturday and in typical fashion walked out with more then I anticipated- but I couldn’t pass it up. I’m listening to Ciccone Youth’s (Sonic Youth) “The Whitey Album” as I type this which was one of the records I picked up. Just got done hearing Kim Gordon’s rendition of Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love.” Amusing. I was also able to find a copy of The Primitives “Lovely” LP which is something I have been looking for since junior high. Well, I have wanted it since then- I wasn’t looking all that hard. So, if you are wanting to get some music- and get it for cheap- head on down to Spindle. Days are numbered.
It seemed to be the weekend of landmark birthdays. Friday night was my neighbor Julie’s 30th b-day. Partied it up 30 year old style. Saturday was MWC metal fabricator Dan Moore’s 40th birthday. Headed out to his place for a while to congratulate him on 40 years of roaming around and making cool stuff out of metal. I’m gonna be turning 30 here in less then a month. Have been dreading the day my whole life but now am sorta excited for some reason. Who knows. Sunday, myself, Nate, the Showen Master, Matt S. and Joy- as in Division- went out to the park. It was Joy’s first time riding two wheelers off road and she made it like a champ. We started at the fitness loop- then rode all the way through the park to 14th Street- and she rode it all. Watch out kids- we may have a new dirt convert. The other highlight of the ride was the fact that the Showen Master didn’t get a flat. It was a good ride.
Well, my 8 month old is still to little to sit in a Burley so I think I’m gonna take her and her older sister for a walk as its to nice to be sitting inside writing blogs.
Peace out.
Thad
thad@monkeywrenchcycles.com
|
Saturday, Apr 2nd, 2005 @ 09:57 PM
Happy birthday Dan.
|
Wednesday, Mar 30th, 2005 @ 10:56 AM
Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain. Man, made it through the park at least once on the two day stint of summer weather at the end of March in Eastern Nebraska before it all came pouring down. Rode w/ the Donk, Showen master and Nate through the park last night- well part of it. I was feeling so great and the weather was perfect. The whole night was perfect really. I’m super stoked on my Unit as well. The bike just feels right, it fits right, it handles right. Dope. So we rode for a while and felt happy about it then Showen master took off as he had to ride all the way home. Nate, Donk and myself cruised to the pyramid and hung out for a bit before cruising back through then back to my house for bean burritos and Spanish rice toped off with a bunch of Easter candy. I had a stomach ache after that. Last nights ride has definitely given me spring fever.
A bunch of people are heading to Fruita over the next couple of days. Hope you all have a good time.
thad
|
Friday, Mar 25th, 2005 @ 03:04 PM
If you are a frequent reader of the blog- you know that we here @ MWC are avid fans of Coheed and Cambria. So, we were ecstatic this last Tuesday when the CD/DVD "Live at the Starland Ballroom" was released. If you like the band, even a little- I would recommend picking yourself up a copy. And, if you have ever had the slightest curiosity of wanting to see the band live- the DVD will shove that curiosity into hyper-drive. They’re rad. A bit hokey both lyrically and musically but it makes them that much more loveable. Also- they rate a zero if not in the negative digits on the sex appeal meter. Anyway- for a measly 15 or so bucks- you get a DVD that has a whole live show filmed in New Jersey, a few other live songs, all (3) the videos they have made- that are pretty funny- and some interviews. You also get a CD that has the whole live show form New Jersey on it. Its dope.
Speaking of dope, the adjective- not noun, nate’s potts is all built up. its sweet. And dope. To bad the weather hasn’t offered an opportunity to ride it.
I think as I type this, the MWC shirts are present for consumption @ the shop. Knickers are soon to follow.
Happy Easter everyone.
thad
|
Sunday, Mar 20th, 2005 @ 10:29 AM
While I would assume the majority were up @ platte riding new kona’s, len and I I were at wilderness pedaling around. The park was great though- all the mush is gone and though it was a bit chilly heading out there due to the wind- once inside the park, all the trees kept the chill away. It was definitely an inspiration riding w/ len. The only bike he has been riding for months is his fixed gear cross-check. Though wilderness is pretty tame, it still seems sketchy to me to ride fixed through there. Len has it about mastered. There is definitely something artistic about watching him ride. He’s even getting jumping down which seems double sketchy to me. Anyway- super good ride- rode to rokeby then crossed over and rode on the eric p bridge side. 6 deer ran in front of us- that was kinda neat- never seen more then 2 or 3 together out there. Hope everyone had a good time @ platte.
Picked up a disc on a whim yesterday by a band called Old Crow Medicine Show. Glad I did. Anyone who is a fan of Flatwater Boys- carp’s band- would dig this stuff. The new Crooked Fingers is also really amazing. Yes, yes it is. I also have been digging Murder City Devils lately- more so now then when they were still a band which kinda bums me out as I had multiple chances to see them when they were still together but always passed. Oh well- that’s why there’s records.
thad
|
Wednesday, Mar 16th, 2005 @ 07:54 AM
listen up!
anyone interested in riding some fun bikes for free at Platte River this weekend should come on out Saturday and Sunday.
Trevin and the boys from the Bike Way in Omaha are having a Kona Dirt Demo each day, you can come test out most of the new Dual Boinger bikes, like the Coilers, Dawgs, and Kikapu's, maybe even a Stinky. Either way, our shop will be there with the grill and food and most likely some refreshments. YOu can come out and challenge Factory Rider to a wheelie contest.
So the scoop:
Saturday and Sunday 9 or so Until 4PM
RIDE FREE BIKES FROM KONA, pop wheelies, have fun, chat with Cory from Kona about all the new cool stuff and probably get talked to by said Cory about Industrial music and it's place in american culture. i know, i know, Industrial? give him a break, he's from St. Louis.
all for now
nate, king of sweeping and stocking tubes.
|
Tuesday, Mar 15th, 2005 @ 06:45 PM
i lied- my new ritchey's are 2.35's.
thad
|
Monday, Mar 14th, 2005 @ 12:00 PM
I got my new Unit (insert joke here) this weekend. The man in brown brought it Fri, me and Nate put it together Sat and then Sun, myself and the Showen Master cruised through the park- me a top my new bike. I really like it- like it a lot. Feels fast and responsive. I’m not much for techno bike mumbo jumbo- and even when I try to be, Showen puts me back in my place. I left it pretty much stock except for some Ritchey Z-MAxx 2.1’s, an Easton carbon riser bar, a Flite saddle (my favorites) and I put on one of the White Industries Eno double freewheels. I plan to get a Jones h-bar at some point and swap out the seat post and stem but I’m super stoked on the bike as is.
So we cruised through the park- it was pretty ideal conditions. Rode all the way to the end then back through. We didn’t really see that many people which I thought was kinda odd since it was pretty good out- maybe a little chilly but it was still good. When we were almost done, we ran into CVO, Emily and Factory Rider who were out helping w/ the park clean up. We later ran into Rose, Wills and Jose. All in all- a great day riding my bike. It’s good to have a single speed mountain bike again.
Listen: Yume Bitsu
Watch: Burn to Shine
Ride: a bike
thad
|
Friday, Mar 11th, 2005 @ 10:03 AM
New stuff, new stuff, neat stuff, new stuff. Got a package from White Industries full of stuff I want. Probably the coolest thing we got in is a couple of the new WI eno double freewheels. Its pretty much like their regular eno freewheel but it has two cogs on it so you no longer have to take off your wheel- or your freewheel for that matter to switch your gear ratio. All you have to do is loosen your rear wheel and move the chain over. I think they come in two tooth sized increments- like 17/19 or 16/18. The cogs are spaced really close so I don’t think that chain line will become an issue. I believe that the aim w/ these was to give riders who run disc brakes the same options as those who run flip-flop hubs. However, if you do run a FF, you now could have up to four gear ratio options w/o having to take off any freewheels. Dope. Also, these are like the regular eno’s in that you can take them apart and clean and rebuild them or if you are like me, lose and break parts so that you have to buy a new freewheel. Yess-sir-eee.
Also from WI we got a set of their eno cranks which are sweet- they’re really light. They come w/ the chain ring which is…well I’m not gonna try and explain it but the way it connects to the crank is neat and I don’t think I have ever seen it done like this before. Oh- yeah, the cranks are square taper which is rad. Square taper seems like it is becoming a thing of the past- but like vinyl records- I’m not quite sure why.
Also got some eno hubs from white. For those of you that don’t know what these do- they are an eccentric hub that allow you to run single speed or fixed gear on conventional, non-horizontal drop outs. It eliminates the need to use a tensioner like a Surly tug nut.
Also got more bags and some t-shirts form Chrome as the last ones disappeared like the flu vaccine. Their stuff is super useful- I would recommend their bags to anyone who commutes as you can fit about anything you would need for the day if not week in their bigger bags. We got one of their Sultan water proof backpacks. I swear I could fit my whole family in one of these and take them for a ride w/ me. And they would be water proof.
New Brooks stuff showed up as well. Some saddle covers and some saddle bags along w/ a tool set that you can strap under you saddle. Neat-o. I think some more saddles came in as well.
Nate’s Potts is nearing completion. Wheels are built, cranks are on as is the bar, stem, seat post and saddle. Its sweet- wish it was mine but it would have to be bigger, or me smaller.
I got my new records from Dischord on Tuesday. The new Evens is all that I thought it would be and more. Mr. Mackaye can do no wrong. It’s a really great record that’s only major fault is that it’s to short and I rarely say that about records. It sounds like a stripped down, quieter version of Fugazi w/ female vocals, which compliment Ian’s wonderfully. The new French Toast on the other hand is well, its so so. I mean they do clever things at points but over all… Prehaps I need to listen to it more but the first two times through were, well, so so.
Watch out for old CVO. He’s back and he’s gonna be faster then ever. He always talks about how I’m faster then him now which is a load of crap and everyone knows it. Anyway- I’m just excited to ride w/ him this summer. He’s definitely a fun guy to ride bikes with. He seems to have a contagious, fluid riding style. Like I feel like I ride better when I ride w/ him b/c I watch how he rides. Make sense? I think along w/ some others he is gonna be out at wilderness this weekend doing some clean up work so head out there if you can and pitch in.
I’m working on getting the MWC knickers done but its taking loner then I anticipated- which seems to be how things usually work out.
Ava, my 7 month old daughter is chewing on my shoe laces so I better go feed her lunch.
Over and out.
thad
|
Monday, Mar 7th, 2005 @ 11:20 AM
well, looks like as usual, old PT..er Thad beat me to it and put up the first blog of the week, nothing shocking there. First, saturday was nice at the shop, not to many customers, hopefully they were all out riding and enjoying the sunshine, cunsumption and repairs can talk place when it's not nice out. Dave and two of his buddies from omaha stopped in to talk about the good stuff late in the afternoon saturday, always nice to chat with good folks and meat new people, hopefully they liked the coffee.
Sunday rode through the park like thad said, and man did if feel good after 6 days straight in the shop. saw J Thomas from LBC/Trek stores riding a super rad looking Fisher Paragon with XTR and Carbon Bonty bits, not to mention the new Rock Shox Reba 29" fork, looked super racer-y. had a nice chat with him while fixed showens flat, working on a sunday. Nice to see more people out riding the the 29" wheels, they just flat out work.
keep your eyes peeled for the battle ship grey Hunter 29" racing couch that was boosted from campus this sunday evening. she's grey with yellow decals, cooks cranks, red marzocchi fork and fried Paul hubs. Setup SS style, very odd bike fer sure. so if you see someone riding it, they shouldn't be, and lock it up for us. free tune-up or just some beer to the finder, unless you're underage, then you get root beer like conrad.
found an old propaghandi tape yesterday before the ride, then quickly remembered why i liked those guys.
oh yeah, back to thads hip hop MWC gear. the answer from me would be a resounding NOPE. not while i write the checks.
well, just remember to pop wheelies while you ride and to have fun, bikes rule.
gotta get back to the wrenches, those bikes aren't going to tune themselves.
all for now
nate "thad's assistant"
__________________
Factory was here on the MW blog. I've got Nate tied-up in the back, and have taken his PC hostage.
My deep thought of the days is:
I LOVE WILDERNESS PARK! It's so fun right now! All y'all need to get 'yer butts out there and CHECK IT OUT!
That's about it for my deep thoughts, so I guess I'll go back and untie Woodman so he can finish this post...
Cheers,
Factory
___________________
|
Sunday, Mar 6th, 2005 @ 09:02 PM
I was experiencing an absolute blizzard of creative energy this weekend and had some of the best ideas that I have had in a long time- primarily that MWC needs an offshoot urban/hip-hop type fashion line. There exists no such thing that I am aware of in the cycling industry. Strike while the iron is hot I always say. So I was thinking that we should start small- kinda get our toes wet first and see if the consumer would be receptive. I thought t-shirts would be a good place to start- two different designs. I thought one could say “so much drama in the MWC” and the other could say “what’s the wheelie-o?” I thought it a great idea. Nate thought differently. I still may pursue this.
Hope anyone who had any desire to be outdoors this weekend made it there. I cruised about town running errands on Saturday. Myself, Nate and the Showen Master rode through the park today. Stopped @ CVO’s on the way but there was no talking the boy into a ride- even though he publicly stated on his blog that he would be heading there today. Lots of people at the park- saw a number of fellow cyclists- it seemed that c-r-c socks were the common theme today- w/ the exception of Showen- always setting himself apart. It was beautiful out though a bit windy. I was suffering through the park- zero energy. I think I was paying the price for partying like a rock star and staying up ‘til 3:30am Sat night but it’s a small price to pay to have a good time w/ great people. One of my younger sisters is back in town as she is on spring break so a little debauchery was in order. Anyway- the park was good- still some slow spots but rideable for sure. Looks like rain and snow are in our near future so it was good to get out.
Listening to Chin Up Chin UP- pretty good stuff. Sorta post-emo (is there such a thing? there is now). Lately I have also been listening to this comp I have had for over 10 years called “If I were a Carpenter” or something like that. It consists of bands covering Carpenter’s songs. It seems I stumble over it every couple of years and give it another couple of listens. The highlights are Sonic Youth doing “Superstar” and Cracker playing “Rainy Days and Mondays.” Hope to get my discs form Dischord tomorrow w/ the new Evens and French Toast records in it. It will be a good day if I do.
My new bike should hopefully arrive this week as well. I don’t know how I feel about this whole gears thing. I’ll be happy to have a ss mtn bike in my possession again.
I believe Nate and Hoss have finalized the real, non-bling MWC shirts. I think they may be ready for consumption by the weeks end. They’ll be purdy.
I think there were some road races this weekend. Don’t know who won- or who lost for that matter. Do you?
Time for bed.
thad
|
Tuesday, Mar 1st, 2005 @ 05:59 AM
i went for a ride last night- really no big deal. just rode around town for about an hour- rode like 12 miles. i guess that means i rode 12 mph. uh...anyway. i know a lot of people don't like the cold but i guess i don't mind it. i mean, i do- its not ideal but at least its not wind. thats the one thing that would have kept me at home last night. last fall, like every fall, i feel this sense of urgency to sieze every opportunity to ride when there is warm weather as i know that the days are numbered. but then, unless we have an early winter, i begin to take the pleasant weather for granted even though i know that its only a matter of a couple of months beofre i'm praying for that same weather. well, i guess i have come to that point. like i said, i don't necessarily dislike the cold weather, but...well, its not like its 65 and sunny. so, thats what i was thinking about last night as i was pedaling around with part of me cold and part of me dripping in sweat.
moozik- i am eagerly awaiting next monday, march 7 as that is the release date for the new evens record. who are the evens? the evens are a new band consisting of ian mackaye (fugazi, minor threat, egghunt, etc.) on baritone guitar and vocals and amy farina (warmers)on drums and vocals. its obviously a toned down version compared to anything the two have done in the past. i have never been disappointed in anything that ian has done in the past. i can't wait, can you? march 7 is also the release date for the new french toast record. FT is another duo also on dischord consisting of james canty (nation of ulysses, make up) and jerry busher (all scars, fugazi). i have an ep of theirs that is pretty good. its weird to see "punk" bands widdled down to duos. lastly, i am hoping to pick up a copy soon of the new airborn audio disc. airborn audio is yet another duo that is priest and sayyid that were in anti-pop consortium who were absolutely amazing. airborn audio is a hip hop band that like us maple- nate loves.
speaking of nate, he has a new shiny toy courtesy of steve potts. its eye candy for sure. i'm excited to see it built up as i'm sure is nate.
shop- monkey wrench knickers should be on the racks soon. they will be available in two colors. which 2? can't tell. also a lot of people have placed their orders of jerseys which is great. the more the merrier. so- if you want one, or more then one, come into the shop and let us know quantity and size that you desire. a lot of people have also been inquiring about t-shirts. those should be done soon as well. and finally, those that asked me about pint glasses, we can sell you one.
ok- bye.
thad
|
Thursday, Feb 24th, 2005 @ 04:16 AM
its 4:30am and the moon is really, really bright.
well, i've had a bit of the scar art...uh, i mean tattoo bug as of late. got two new ones in the past month or so. i had four previous ones but all in the ankle area- i made the vertical leap to my arms. the first is a simple side view of a track bike. i actually stole the image from the old skool track site (http://www.oldskooltrack.com). the second- well, i'm not gonna try and explain because it would be difficult and i don't want to. i'll just say that it has a dual meaning but is primarily a tribute to some art that has amazed me for the past decade or so. my point in bringing this up is not to brag about my new tatoos, though that is fun as well, but to say that if tattoos are your thing, or are gonna be your thing at some point, then head on down to the fine folks @ Iron Brush (http://ironbrush.com) here in lincoln. Tyson has done two of my tattoos on my ankles and Ed did the two most recent. they really do an excellent job and i immediately recommend them to anyone when they say they are getting a tattoo. some may think that a tattoo is a tattoo is a tattoo. thats like saying that a bike mechanic is a bike mechanic is a... without going on for to long, i'll just say that those guys do amazing work and are true artists and craftsmen. amen.
had a pleasant surprise tuesday. around 4:30pm there was an unexpected knock on my door. usually when this happens, the person doing the knocking turns out to be a door to door salesperson. in this case, i always politely yet promptly send 'em packing. so i approached the door w/ a certain amount of dread. that said, it was a happy relief to see my long-time buddy Martha Christensen on the other side of the screen door. since graduating college, Martha has become a bit of a globe trotter- splitting the majority of her time between alaska and antartica. crazy. anyway, she is back in town for a couple of months which i am stoked about.
sounds like nate and eric had a good time in in minneapolis over the past weekend. wish i could have been there- hope to make it there sometime. nate reported that all the people there are really friendly and have a great bike scene. sounds like lincoln- only colder. those guys throw cool events that draw fools as far as, well, lincoln. i think we should get our collective heads together and throw up something to get those fools here. capital city alley cat? hmmmm......
looks like fri and sat are supposed to be great weather-wise. the paper claims nearly 60 on sat. would it be possible that wilderness could be rideable? go get a tattoo then ride out to the park and see.
thad
ps- anyone who knows anything about the workings of vintage dynaco st-70 amps- get a hold of me.
|
Thursday, Feb 17th, 2005 @ 05:09 PM
alright folks,
some stuff you should or should not be aware of.
first, if any of you are interested in Monkey Wrench Cycles jerseys, well then come on down and give me a deposit as we have them in production as we speak. they are made by a cool lady in Santa Cruz and will be two colors, with our logo, very simple two colors and full zip.
They'll make you look all retro and that sort of business without even being old! Can't complain about that now... can you? Hoss is ordering up a massive XXL so, don't get left in the cold.
colors are weird green with a horizontal blue stripe going back into green. logo in the blue.
should be rad.
2nd thing everyone should know or not, is that the shop is all Thad tomorrow and Saturday, so if you need something fixed or worked on, i'll be back on Monday morning.
take'r easy on Thad, he's my only employee and good buddy so i don't want him to run off.
"Where'd Thad go? he done R-u-n-n-o-f-t"
till monday.
nate
|
Sunday, Feb 13th, 2005 @ 10:41 PM
Well, I think the midwest premiere of Pure Sweet Hell was every bit a success. Holy moly- the whole night was a scorcher. Had a little gathering @ the shop prior to the screening. Quite a few showed up to talk about bikes and whatever else. Good time. Thanks to Kit for the mud- good stuff. And to Dan for making the awesome contraption complete w/ MW logos. Off to the film. It was so good to see so many people turn out for it. Tony Wilhelm came all the way back from KC to see it. The show itself was sold out and there were quite a few people trying to hunt down tickets up until show time. Sorry to those who didn’t get in- but you snooze, you loose. Well, the film itself- what can I say? It was great. It totally did justice to the sport of ‘cross racing w/o being unnecessarily romantic or tacky. Brian Vernor said a few words before the lights dimmed. He said his intent was to make a film that both accurately portrayed what ‘cross racing was really like as well as motivate the viewer to try it. Successful on both counts as far as I was concerned. I think it did justice to the agony that is ‘cross racing- in all aspects of the film. His use of super 8 film lent itself to the sort of primitive, bare bones trait of ‘cross as did the sparse commentary that was sporadic at best and sort of existed behind the images. What it wasn’t was a sort of WWF presentation that is loud, and flashy and appealing to the attention deficit disorder MTV generation. It seems that the majority of documentation that is being done these days in terms of action type sports fall into this category of music video style imagery w/ edits being done every half second. Whatever- it was just nice to see an honest departure from all that. The soundtrack was something else that stood out for me. I believe all the music was done by Oma Yang which is an instrumental band that reminded me of Explosions in the Sky or Six Parts Seven. Their brand of (post) rock lent itself to the film as well. Again- I think the typical approach would be to use some neo-metal band to portray the “brutal” aspect. And again, pitfall avoided. The whole thing was just really great. Seconds before the credits began to roll I though to myself that it would be a good place to end- and it did. One aspect that makes a good piece of artwork is one that doesn’t overstay its welcome. Another thing I really appreciated was the historical footage and photos that showed ‘cross racers on regular road bikes. I hope to see the film again- and if you were one of the unlucky ones who didn’t get to see it- I hope you get a chance to as well.
Following the film it seemed that all 250 people from the theater went to the Bricktop. Beer was drank, product was given away and music was played. In the raffle, I myself was made a proud owner of a circa 1993 DBR duffle bag. Perfect for slumber parties and camping trips. I also got an h2o bottle courtesy of the fine folks @ moose’s tooth as well as a hypnotic designs t-shirt form MW that Nate said I was ineligible to win. Hogwash. It was to small for me anyway which worked out fine as Brian Vernor offered a trade for a Pure Sweet Hell tee which I accepted.
Well, a good night for sure when it was all said and done. I arrived home a bit dizzy and cross-eyed and woke up sluggish and still cross-eyed. The price you pay. Thanks to Nate for the pre-show gathering and to Dan and Kit for the supplies. Big thanks to Kevin Wilkens for setting up the showing and to all the fine folks at the Bricktop for the after party. It was also great to see all the shops come together and donate product (which included two complete bikes) for the raffle. I felt very privileged to be at the premiere showing and have the two guys responsible for the movie present as well as Rick Hunter. Fun, fun, fun.
On to shop business- look out for some MW gear to be hittin’ the racks here in the near future. I don’t want to say to much as some details need to be ironed out but it should be good. Also- Nate will be @ frostbike this fri and sat (2/18 and 2/19) so no labors. Sorry, my hands are big and clumsy.
All for now---
thad
|
Saturday, Feb 5th, 2005 @ 04:53 AM
its 4:30am and i'm drinking coffee and eating cough drops. what are you doing? hope people made it out over the past couple of days- it has been fee-nominal for sure. i myself have been a tad bit under the weather and didn't make it out until about 5:30pm on fri. rode down to the shop on my cross-check and after fiddling w/ the fenders and lubing the chain- i decided to switch it back to fixed as i haven't ridden it that way for a few months. i was so stoked on the ride home. its so fun to ride fixed- its so efficient. i was a bit skeptical as i thought that since it had been a while- that it wouldn't be as fluid as i wouldn't be familiar w/ the whole pedal all the time concept- but it was just like riding a bike...or wait, it was riding a bike. anyway- i was stoked. now- if i just made my peugeot fixed- i would be so stoked- i would have a heart attack.
less then one week until pure Sweet Hell. i think i heard someone say that enough tickets have been sold to move the show into the big theater which is rad. i have been really looking forward to this and didn't think i could possibly be anymore excited until nate told me that rick hunter was gonna be there as well. that just makes the whole thing that much better. nate and i were having a conversation the other day that was sparked by PSH being screened in lincoln. one of the points i made was that in part what draws me to cycling in general- but more specifically, single speeds, fixed gears, 'cross bikes/races, etc. is the whole culture of it. anyone who knows me knows i'm not much of a racer. not much of one at all. comming from a skateboarding and later snowboarding background, i am not a very competitive person at all. i guess i am against my self but that's about it. to me, its always more about style, and developing your own rather then who is the fastest or who wins the most reaces. not that i don't fully respect those that can kick my ass riding- which is about anyone- but being the fastest guy just isn't my thing. watching crazy NYC bike messengers weaving through traffic w/ a huge, heavy messenger bag over them and a brakeless fixed gear beneath them contemplating every cars move and gracefully weaving in and out of them competing w/ no one but themselves- that's the stuff i dig. point being- i just like the culture or the aesthetic of it all. i love going to 'cross races as a spectator and enthusiast b/c it has a special place in the culture of it all and is actually spectator friendly. i remember skateboarding in the early 90's- it was going through a huge transition- the big companies were falling and a new way of skating and conducting business was being initiated. though in retrospect, mistakes were made it was still rad b/c it was a sub-cultural phenomenon that existed completely under the radar as far as pop-culture was concerned. the people who were immersed in it owned it and few others cared. if you said the name tony hawk to the average person, maybe 1 in 20 knew who that was - and only b/c their kid skated. now- who doesn't know who tony hawk is? more then 1 in 20- i promise you that. in a sense, i'm happy for people like tony hawk who have so much sweat equity invested in the culture they love that they are now reaping the financial rewards of it all- and for him- in a huge way. its also rad to see all the stuff that i grew up doing- on tv all the time. its so accessible now. but at the same time, its not the same. maybe it was not supposed to be so accessible. i think that was part of what drew me to it in the first place was it was something that you had to search out and not have it crammed down your throat like all other mainstream sports. it reminds me of a time a few years ago when i was driving in my car and it was a rare time that i was listening to the radio. i was listening to the local college station and the kid on there started this huge rant about how omaha's saddle creek records should have all this attention (more so then it already had) and its bands like bright eyes, cursive, the faint, etc. should be regularly played on MTV and top 40 radio. what? i couldn't take it. this guy went on for ever talking about this and then he invited people to call in and share their opinion, which i did. my point was that a big part of the whole point of punk rock and all the sub genres it created was the fact that it totally existed under the radar from mass culture- i.e. MTV and top 40 radio. you HAD to seek it out if you wanted it and that was/is part of the fun. anyway, i have taken the super dooper roundabout way of saying that what i was saying to nate was that its this same concept that draws me to the elements of cycling that i am interested in. single speeds, fixed gears and 'cross racing are things that the average person knows and cares little about and that's just the way i like it. so, the fact that PSH is being screened here and there is just enough people to support one viewing @ the local art/college movie house w/ a reception to follow is perfect. the people present will be there b/c they want to and not b/c their friend @ school told them its the cool thing to do. well, maybe that's why donk will be there. just kidding. i wonder if there will ever be a "Zdenek Stybar's pro 'cross- racer" video game in the future.
come down to the shop and see the new arrangement. the times- they are a changin.'
thad
|
Thursday, Feb 3rd, 2005 @ 09:14 AM
So,
is it a bad sign when the lift on the back of the Snap-on truck breaks down, and is unable to unload your new roll-cab work bench? maybe it wasn't meant to be.
something to think about.
well, today i just wanted to say thanks to all the friends that have helped me out with this shop, whether that be with support, friendship or lending their time to help the mathematically challenged mechanic hang his new maple slat wall.
Josh and Dan took over on saturday and singlehandedly changed the look of the interior of the shop in a matter of an afternoon. thanks guys. now you can walk into the shop and not feel as "contained" as there is so much more room in the old 13' wide area.
new lights go in soon, as well as a "Bat signal" well, actually its a "monkey wrench" signal, but works in the same manner. think Swanson Russell across the street will mind me using the face of their business to project my logo on? probably not, their nice folks. er.
all for now, watch for MWC worldheadquarter to be changing a lot soon.
all for now
nate
|
Saturday, Jan 29th, 2005 @ 12:22 AM
i assume most reading this own more then one bicycle-as most bicycle enthusiasts do. perhaps a bit self indulgent but whatever- I’m not here to discuss that. I have a tendency to ride one of my bikes for a while then switch to another one- as far as riding around town and such. For the past couple of months it has been my cross-check that I have been throwing my leg over mainly b/c of the weather- fenders, fatter tires, single speed or fixed. Plus, I just like the bike. The only problem w/ it is that its geared pretty high which makes it fast but makes snow/slush/ice covered hills that much harder to get up. whatever- I ride less in the winter so I always figured that it was better for me. Anyway- the other day I decided to ride a different bike. I have an old peugeot road bike that has been converted to single speed and also has fenders on it. Haven’t ridden that bike for quite some time- for no particular reason. So since a lot of the slippery stuff had disappeared, I decided to ride that bike. The thing that I was stoked about was that it was almost like riding a brand new bike- in the sense that it was new to me. Being so accustomed to the cross-check- the peugeot felt all new. So, over the past couple of days, I found myself not only getting excited to ride but also to ride that particular bike. Maybe a bit corny but whatever- I’ll take whatever I can get in terms of the little things in life to be stoked about- and at the moment- I’m stoked on that bike.
Speaking of that bike- my buddy Tony Wilhelm was the one who did all the work on it making it single speed and putting the fenders on last winter. If I remember correctly, the fenders were quite a headache to dial in. Tony has worked out at LBC since they opened. He is now leaving us here in to go down to KC to be the service manager at the trek concept store. I’m stoked for him as he’s a great mechanic but Lincoln is losing a gifted cyclist. I had the privilege of riding with the guy on numerous occasions and he was perhaps my first real introduction to what being a truly fast rider is all about. I have numerous stories to back this up but there are two that I immediately think of. One day last spring tony and I headed to wilderness- me on my 1X1 and he on his fixed gear lemond road bike. When he showed up at my house, I was sure were going back to his house so he could get another bike but I was wrong. Oh yeah- he was wearing key overalls and a pair of super birki clogs and the bike had road clipless pedals. Well, as I’m sure you have figured out by now- tony handed me my ass riding through the park. We didn’t make it that far into the park as it was still a bit muddy from the snow but that was fine w/ me as I was dying. Another time, tony and I and a couple of others were out riding gravel roads and it was in the summer. I just remember it being HUMID. So we are riding along, all of us sweating our asses off- except for tony who was wearing dickies pants and his clogs again and was on his fixed ‘cross bike that had spd pedals on it. So we are riding down a mellow hill on a gravel road, going maybe 14 or 15 mph when tony decides he is gonna practice dismounting and getting back on ala ‘cross. I was a bit nervous as I began to anticipate certain death as we were moving along and he was on a fixed gear not to mention he was wearing clogs. Well, like w/ most things on a bike- he pulled it off flawlessly four or five times. I’m still bewildered just thinking about that. Oh yeah- tony was the Nebraska state cyclocross champion this year. Well, good luck in kc buddy and thanks for all your help over the years- it has been greatly appreciated.
I believe there is a going away party this evening @ lee’s chicken for tony for anyone who would like to go. Not sure on the time but I’m sure the guys @ LBC would know. I gotta work so I won’t be there- but I wish I could.
A pretty exciting thing that’s gonna be happening in Lincoln on Friday, February 11th is a one time showing of Brian Vernor and Willie Bullion’s cyclocross documentary. “Pure Sweet Hell” will be showing @ 7pm @ the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center on the UNL campus. Brian Vernor will be present to introduce the film. I’m stoked- can’t wait. There will be drinks and a reception of sorts following the one hour film @ the bricktop and carp’s band flatwater boys will be playing. Big thanks to Kevin Wilkens who set it all up. Tickets for the film can be purchased beforehand at the shop and other lincoln bike shops and are $5. they go on sale Monday, Jan 31st. sweet.
After hashing out some details, we here at monkey wrench are happy to announce that we will soon have a road bike line…or three really. Yep- soon you will be able to feast your eyes on Torelli’s, Mondonico’s and Guerciotti’s. it will be good.
Other new things here @ the shop- we are now a hypnotic designs dealer. Good stuff for sure. I have two pair of their hankster messenger knickers that are sweet. We also got some sinister fz vests and some t’s. check them out on the web @ http://www.hypnoticdesigns.com/ or come into the shop to check out in real time. Also got some new race face jackets in- the quantum jacket. I also got one of these and its really great- you get a lot of jacket for the money- it retails for about the same price as a long sleeve jersey. raceface.com also got some new salsa gear in- one of their new 100% merino wool short sleeve classico jersey. its so sweet and it would be mine if I could only squeeze my fat gut into it. We also got some of their new winter riding gloves- the N’agua’s and the Los Motos which are their full fingered warm weather riding gloves. New stuff, new stuff, new stuff.
Listening to the new bright eyes- “I’m wide awake, its morning.” I disagree w/ a lot of connor’s stances but he sure makes good records. This is no exception.
Dope.
thad
|
Friday, Jan 21st, 2005 @ 02:19 PM
been riding the past couple of days- and felt comfortable (temp- wise) doing so. its been nice. rode wed night and it was about as perfect as one could have wanted it for this time of the year in this here part of the country. it was great. rode thursday for the better part of the afternoon. carp and i rode out to pineers- through the park then back to mwhq. again- it was great though i sypmathize w/ any poor sucker who rides in this weather w/o fenders. hopefully i'll get out for a bit w/ donk tonight for a bit- though the temp has dropped a bit but thats ok.
a certain big chain fashion store has full front zip 100% merino wool sweaters on clearance for around $12. i have 2. they fit pretty much like a non-race cut relaxed long sleeve jersey. rad. start scouring the malls to find yours- they only have a couple left.
frostbike is comming up- hope to make it but we'll see.
ride your bike.
thad
|
Thursday, Jan 13th, 2005 @ 05:22 AM
cold cold cold cold cold. what did i expect? the NE winter has definitely set in but i guess thats fine given the great weather we had this fall. speaking of it being cold- i got my first pair of winter specific cycling shoes yesterday- answer kashmirs. at about 7:30 last night i needed to run to the store to get my daughter some medicine so i rode my cross-check there in my new shoes. it was a short ride- 15 or 20 min but long enough to make your feet cold in normal cycling shoes. i'm happy to report, as are my feet, that they were comfy if not a little hot upon my return home. man, what a relief! money well spent. my toes are always the first thing to frost out on a cold ride- even w/ booties over my shoes. and it seems that once my toes lose feeling- the fun begins to end. our buddy len has these crazy windmill looking techniques that are supposed to force blood to your limbs when they are cold which sorta works but it looks funny- really funny when len does it. plus, you have to get off your bike to do it. the way its been around here lately, you would spend more time doing crazy calisthenics then you would in the saddle. i guess that the point i am trying to make here is simply that i'm stoked to have gotten these new shoes and that in a world that is filled w/ a bunch of gimiks that claim to do something that they don't, its nice to have a material object, or two in this case, that do what they claim to. so, to anyone who rides in the winter that doesn't already own a pair of cold weather shoes- i highly recommend them. ok- enough.
ok - movies. i'm sure everyone has heard of this movie by now but if you haven's seen napolean dynamite- you need to- twice. i saw it once in the theater and left feeling not quite sure what had just been shown to me and actually felt a bit cheated. then i watched it w/ my family over Christmas and laughed so hard i cried. admittedly not a film for everyone but if you think its funny- you will think its really funny- but probably not until the second go 'round. the film's concept was initially pitched to mtv who funded the project for a measly 20 grand which is pennies in hollywood. those are my favorite kinds of movies. one of my all time favorite movies is bottle rocket. i have never lauged so hard as the first time i watched that. anyway- its wes anderson's (rushmore, royal tennenbaums, life aquatic) first film and it shows owen and luke wilson long before they were movie stars. the film is brilliant for a number of reasons- one of which is that it does so much w/ so little as it, like napolean dynamite was made w/ next to no money. technological bells and whistles are fine and all but to many films these days rely to heavily on them. isn't this blog supposed to be about bikes?
well, if you follow my advice, you now have two films to watch and a warm pair of shoes to wear while doing so.
thad
|
Tuesday, Jan 4th, 2005 @ 03:53 PM
sheeoot. made it back to the MWC world headquarters last night thanks to Jose' peteresen, captain of the black melinium falcon, with our trusty sidekick HOSS. we all went to summit co. colorado to see how they get it on for the new year, and it was fun. hung out at a bar in Frisco called the Moose Jaw, and had tons of fun. Jose' didn't fair so well as somebody Forced him to drink lots, then he had to sleep a while.
Whats the point of all this you might ask? well it brings me to the point i wanted to make, and it is as follows: Thad is the greatest part time shop employee any shop could hope to have, and i have no clue as to why he continues to show up here. He ran the shop while i was out ignoring my duties, and i came back to a totally dialed in desk and shop, papers magically filed, invoices in chronologicall order, and man what a great help. you see, i have a nasty little habit of tossing all the invoices in a drawer in a attempt to get back to working on bikes, then after quite some time of this reckless behavior, have to spend Forever, filing. Thad is from here on out, all time Business Advisor and Manager. That way i can go back to doing things that i'm qualified for such as: taking out the trash, ordering parts, and all things associated with being the Mechanic. If any of you see Thad, tell him thanks or pat him on the back, because he lowers my stress level a ton with all the help he is. Thanks Thad.
on to bike related stuff and the like. Thanks to Dan Moore at Metal & Art for making the radest stainless steel coffee maker stand. Soon the shop will have Fresh coffee available for your consumption, also totally in part to Dan and Dale at The Mill for the industrial coffee maker and fresh Bean.
This entire Blog goes out as a thanks to all the great friends that have lended a hand and made serving them through my shop a priviledge for myself.
The shop has made it 9 months so far and i feel so lucky to have such great friends and customers, so thanks to all of you, i can't believe this is my job.
hope you all have a great '05.
nate
head monkey
|
Monday, Jan 3rd, 2005 @ 09:38 AM
well, the holidaze are officially over. as i wrote earlier- i like Christmas and new years. family friends- good times. what more could you ask for? that said- when the first day back after the whole ordeal is over, i always get a bit bumned as to me it represents two months submerged in nebraska winter doom and gloom. then when i wake up to a day like today- it doesn't help. it rained over night then it turned to sleet. the roads were iced over- no bike today for me. oh well, i have lived in ne all my life so none of this should be anything new but every year it still sucks and it seems to get worse every year. sorry for the not so happy blog today. oh well, i'll try and stay happy.
last night was pretty good. went out w/ my family and extended fam to this new mongolian grill place here in town that was pretty good. came home and listened to music then amy and i played galaga for a bit. fun.
guess thats all- stay warm...and happy.
thad
ps- like the last entry said- the shop will close @ 5pm today- 1/3/05. sorry if that messes things up.
|
Sunday, Jan 2nd, 2005 @ 09:15 PM
last minute i know but the shop on monday 1/3/05 is gonna only be open from 10am-5pm. sorry for any inconvieniences this presents.
thad
|
Friday, Dec 31st, 2004 @ 08:33 AM
wheeeew! it was a nippy ride @ 7:50am to the shop this morning- but who's gonna complain? i rode down here yesterday @ 2:30 in the afternoon in shorts and a t-shirt and was completely comfortable. what schizo weather. its all good though- i'm happy in an empty bicycle shop with a warm cup of coffee and john coltrane. yes.
have a happy new year everyone.
thad
ps- get better donk. JHs wasn't at all the same w/o you.
|
Thursday, Dec 30th, 2004 @ 04:02 AM
well, i knew it. my days were numbered. i finally got sick on tueday and it was no fun. i got the flu flavor of sick. at least it only lasted about 24 hours. my wife got sick for 24 hours- got better then got sick for about another 15 hours. no good, no good at all. hopefully we're all better now.
well, i don't know what my deal is but i sold another bike of mine. weird. this time it was my 1X1. actually, i had been contimplating selling it for a couple of months but just didn't want to deal w/ the whole e-bay circus. lucky for me that the person i sold it to actually asked me if i wanted to sell it. works for me. the bike will be replaced by a unit shortly after the new year so all is good. i assumed i would be feeling more anxiety of the departure of the bike but i guess not. maybe i'll turn into the guy who is always getting rid of bikes but....don't hold your breath on that one.
Christmas was good. now we are on to new years. always a good time in a where am i when i wake up sort of way. lots going on so i'm sure you will all find something to do. i'm gonna be at home w/ my fam and extended fam and some friends being festive and wishing dick clark was on the air.
i'll be @ the shop thurs from 3-6 and all day fri as nate is off to celebrate elsewhere. oh yeah- the shop is gonna close a couple of hours early on fri in honor of the new year. you have been warned.
thad
|
Monday, Dec 27th, 2004 @ 11:28 AM
as i did on thanksgiving, i rode to the fams house for Christmas this year. no new trails found or anything like that. just a good ride on a nice day that happened to be Christmas. this time it was to my parents who live out of town by malcom. evrything was good until right when i got on highway 34 past the highlands then this strong breeze came out of nowhere and i was riding right into it. people often say that wind is our mountains. well, for me they are tall mountains as i'm a big guy. yes, yes i am. it was a good ride for sure but the wind in combo w/ the all the holiday cheer that i have parteken in did me in.
yesterday donk and i rode through the park and it was super great- though a bit cold. i was ready to be done when we got home at about 4:30 as i was on the verge of having absolutely no feeling in my toes. good ride though. i hope this weather sticks around for a while.
seems like everyone is sick. i seriously think that everyone i know has gotten the flu and/or a cold. i have yet to get it though i think my days are numbered. we'll see.
thad
|
Friday, Dec 24th, 2004 @ 04:15 AM
ahhhhh, Christmas. its the most wonderful time of the year. well, to some perhaps. i personally love it and always have. i look at it differently behind 29 year old eyes as opposed to my mesmorized 7 year old eyes but such is life. everything gets more stressful as you get older- unavoidable. however, there are things about it that remain the same. i could go on and on, as i usually do, so i will try and keep it short. as our friend Emily wrote on another blog, "Whatever Christmas means to you, I hope you have a happy one." that about sums it up. i hope everyone reading this gets to be around people you love for at least part of the day. i think thats pretty important.
nater has been pretty under the weather as of late. he aquired one of those nasty colds that it seems like a lot of people have been getting lately- the ones where when you cough, it sounds like a wave breaking. anyway- nates a trooper and kept the shop open through his misery. sorry i couldn't help you out buddy. i think he's getting better now.
it seems that a sub-topic here has been the recommendation of artistic (or lack thereof) entertainment. so let me recommend both the film and the soundtrack to Big Bad Love. its a sort of Leaving Las Vegas movie w/ a bit more humor and a lot more redemption. i guess it has a lot of both as LLV was about as depressing as it gets. anyway- the soundtrack is actually how i was introduced to the film as i got that first. pretty good stuff- a lot of blues which isn't necesarilly my forte' but the score was done by tom waits whom i love and he has two songs on it that are amazing along w/ a great song by steve earle. r.l. burnside is also on there twice. its recorded beautifully and is a good representation of the mood of the film. sooo...
the weather has been COLD. i know a lot of us around here are into single speeds but man, if i wanna live in minneapolis, i'll move to minneapolis. i don't need this crappy weather here to prove i'm made of steel- 'cause i'm not. so i banish this frigid weather back to the north. props to those (donk, sam, tony, etc.)who don't own cars and actually live up to the whole c-r-c ideal. how's that go? when the goin' gets tough...
actually its supposed to be warming back up. the weatherman says its supposed to be near 50 on sun. i am hoping ot make it to the park w/ donk- perhaps i will see some other eskimos thawing out and attempting to rid the Chrstmas calories. so until then...
merry Christmas.
thad
|
Monday, Dec 20th, 2004 @ 04:22 PM
No Tuesday night Shop for me, and i'll be leaving directly after work, so you folks should, if you plan on riding meet up somewhere else.
seems like it might be a cold one.
nate
"no need for a light cause my nose is glowing red"
|
Monday, Dec 20th, 2004 @ 09:04 AM
so, got back to the shop today after spending the whole weekend watching my sister get married. man, that was a new expereince. saw friends, family, the entire town of Utica, and my crazy uncles. Super stoked for my sister and here new husband, who is a super rad guy. may everyone be as fortunate as them. Then i got sick due to all my cousins super sick little kids, so here i sit at the shop with bikes to fix, a soart throat and chronic dizziness and nauseua, or however you spell it. so if nobody comes in today they'd probably be better off. don't want to pass it along. Looks like Thad did a great job of running the place, and CVO did a good job documenting it, "you got those cables and housing on your time card"? I think we should take a vote, on who likes Thad to run the shop better on saturday, or myself running it. if everyone says Thad, that'd be fine by me, two days off.
welp, gotta go cough up some yukky stuff.
nate
head light bulb changer, as Thad stole my sweeping gig.
|
Thursday, Dec 16th, 2004 @ 10:12 AM
oh yeah, US Maple, i sure love that band, love them like the pleasure of accidentally hitting my thumb with a hammer, they're that enjoyable.
but, Thad likes them, so it's worth a listen.
|
Thursday, Dec 16th, 2004 @ 04:54 AM
continuing on w/ the music advice- another band that absolutely amazes me is u.s. maple. brilliant. they have a number of records available but the first three are the ones i recommend the most- 1. long hair in three stages 2. sang phat editor 3. talker. and anyone who is daring enough to follow my advice and seek out their stuff- realize that as you listen to sang phat editor- the singer is not actually saying any words- their are no lyrics per se but more of a new scat for the indie/drunk generation. also- at first listen- it sort of sounds like the guitars are just sort of improvising and messing around. they aren't. everything is intentional. i saw them live, finally, last spring and it was testiment to this. to me- that is the genious of this band. i have been into them for years and they are the type of band that every few months i return to. by the way, nate loves u.s. maple.
bikes. i haven't ridden much lately- though i have wanted to. been really busy. working more then i want to, sick children, less then ideal weather, blah, blah, blah. excuses. i know a group went to platte wed night- hope everyone had fun. i really need to get out to wilderness a couple more times while its still rideable. i have a cross-check that has a flip flop hub that has a freewheel on one side and is fixed on the other. i initially had it set up fixed then switched to free. i have been craving riding fixed lately so i think i'll switch it back. just got fenders on that bike as well so it will be good set up fixed for the winter months. i think sometime this winter i'm gonna get the parts to set up my old trek 420 so i have a dedicated fixed street machine. anyway...
our buddy mitch "butch" kline- the guy who designed this site takes some pretty sweet photos. he has a site of his own where you can see what i'm talking about: http://mitchkline.com
i'm gonna be holding down the fort sat so if you need nate specific services- come in fri or monday. word.
thad
|
Tuesday, Dec 7th, 2004 @ 02:47 PM
ok here's a quick one, and for those of you that come into the shop often, it's not for you, cause you've probably been beaten over the head by me about this band. so you needent' pay attention.
for the rest of you give these guys a listen as the folks at the shoe store and the bank on either side of me hear every day whether they like to or not.
http://coheedandcambria.com/home/
|
Monday, Dec 6th, 2004 @ 05:37 AM
speaking of matt chester, i just got done reading his new article on fixed gear off road riding. it can be found here: http://63xc.com/mattc/setup.htm
you should check it out even if you have no interest in riding fixed off road or otherwise as he touches on some subjects that i think are applicable to cycling as a whole.
thad
|
Sunday, Dec 5th, 2004 @ 03:37 PM
Ah ha. so today is the first Sunday i have ever had the shop open, due to a open house downtown kind of deal, and man, is it slow. tons of folks going to the movies and buying the fancy shoes next door as matt and jane are open, but nothing for the the bike nerd and his overgrown and very asleep hound.
so, thad has been doing a great job actually writing thoughts on this blog thing, and i on the hand, have not. it's weird, i usually have lots to say in person, although nothing of much importance.
oh, so have been thinking about my bike that i ride the most, probably 99 percent of the time, and it's been making me smile. about 2 and half years ago i gave this guy Matt Chester, who was living in a shack in Leadville a whole pile of cash in the middle of a snow storm, for him to build me a 29" SS frame. a little while later a frame showed up to my house and after i built it up and rode it one time, i knew it was going to be a fun bike. So that was a couple years ago, and i can easily say that it's the most fun bike i have ever ridden. i don't know how to describe it other than when i roll around on it, i'm just stoked.
Matt did a great job and has continued to be a good pal, helping out any way that he can with my little shop. So, if any of you are looking for a new 29" SS or a Fixie or SScross bike, and also happen to have time and some spare money, you should think about letting Matt build you the most comfy, and enjoyable frame. all built with passion and heart, and in many ways the bike came at the perfect time making riding and enjoying life fun again.
todays blog goes to Matt, many thanks friend.
take a look:
www.mattchester.com
|
Thursday, Dec 2nd, 2004 @ 01:10 AM
i sold a bike tonight. no big deal except that i have never done that before. the only bike i have ever parted w/ was my first mountain bike i ever bought. it was a '93 (i think) rockhopper. i bought it from deluxe on the second day of my freshman year at UNL at the ripe old age of 18. it was kinda a cranberry color and the logos were in yellow. kinda ugly but i really liked that bike. five years after getting the rockhopper i traded the frame for a klein rascal that was to small for me. however, in my younger days, a klein was what i yearned for. i chalk it up to the flashy paint jobs. nevertheless, me and my biker friends at the time always wanted a klein so i jumped at the chance to fulfill my childhood bicycle lust when given the chance. i rode the bike- complete w/ a manitou 2 fork for a while until i got my first 'cross bike then that got more riding time then did the klein. years passed and i decided/realized i needed a single speed so did what most do and converted the geared klein to ss. like i said, the frame was to small for me- i had the seat post maxed out and a 160 mm stem on it. i always called it the ron jeremy stem. the bike was kinda goofy looking but it sure was fun to ride, i was hooked on single speeds and the bike was light. so, being hooked on single speeds, i soon got a 1X1 and again, the klein was left to collect dust. some time passed then my buddy donkey and i decided that he needed to try single speeding. the saddle was lowered and ron jeremy went into retirement. donk rode that bike for months and liked it, i think. but he is more of a steel guy- as am i. so he eventually got a unit and the klein was returned to me. at this point, i really had no use for it. i tried to convince my wife that she NEEDED a single speed. she rode it and decided against it. besides, like all level-headed wives, she informed me that she has one bike and thats all she NEEDS. i have tried to adopt her sense of logic but something always gets lost in the translation. then my best friend who lives in kansas city was in town and we went and rode through the park and the klein fit him good. so i began to think that i would keep the bike around for him to ride when he was in town. but is it really worth keeping a bike around so someone can maybe ride it once or twice a year? i didn't think so. so, i decided to get rid of it. i told a few people and pretty soon a roommate of a friend said they were interested. well, tonight they came over, rode it, we made some minor adjustments to it- and before i knew it, the bike was out of my life. now don't get me wrong- i'm not getting sentimental over it. i don't feel sad- maybe just a little weird. hopefully it will get ridden way more now then it would have if it stayed w/ me. plus, its the new owners first single speed so hopefully they will be stoked on that. i don't know, i realize a lot of people buy, sell and trade bikes like they are baseball cards which is fine and all but i'm not like that. i'm kind of a pack rat- i get attatched to things. i have a hard time even getting rid of magazines. i still have boxes and boxes that have 15+ years worth of skateboard magazines in them- including the very first Thrasher i bought in 1985. i don't know where i'm going w/ this other then i sold a bike of mine tonight and i feel a little weird about it- not bad, not sad but just a little weird.
on a non-bicycle note- anyone interested in original, somewhat obscure yet strangely accessible music should check out a band called xiu xiu (pronounced: shoo shoo). they are truely amazing. i was first introduced to them just about a year ago. i acquired a copy of their newest album at the time "A Promise" and listened to it a ton. well, since it was around Christmas time, i now find myself returning to that album as it reminds me of the holidays. anyone who has heard xiu xiu knows how weird that is. anyway...
speaking of Christmas, nate has gotten festive and made the shop look all cheery w/ trees, lights and everything. cvo recently made a comment to the affect of that whenever he comes into the shop, he immediately gets a "fun buzz." he went on to say that he is gonna prescribe Monkey Wrench to all his depressed friends. its true. come in and get happy.
ok- i'm done. my blogging rights are gonna get suspended for writing way to much. bye bye.
thad
|
Tuesday, Nov 30th, 2004 @ 08:45 AM
no tues night ride tonight- nater is to busy and frankly mr. shankly its damn cold out. it sux though b/c as i type- fancy, silver fenders are being put on my cross check. oh well. so no show @ the MWHQ- for if you do, you will be shunned.
thad
|
Friday, Nov 26th, 2004 @ 05:56 AM
on thanksgiving i decided to ride to my in-laws as the rest of my fam drove- took the "kill two birds w/ one stone" approach. anyway- rode to the homes lake damn then across it- from the south to the north. i have ridden across the damn more times then i can count. i remember the first time was on an oct. night when my buddy m wills took me out there- it was kinda spooky b/c it was foggy out so you could see the path but then the sides sort of rolled off into fog- looked like some b-grade horror film trick...and it worked. anyway- i rode across it yesterday and as i said, i have rode it numerous times so i was surprised that i had never noticed that if you cross normal, the path sort of continues in a much less maintained manner. it goes for a bit then ends at a cross bar that forces you off your bike to go under. once past it, you are in a church parking lot that exits on about 68th and south. whats my point? well, nothing really. i guess i was sort of stoked to find some new little path that for some odd reason i had never noticed before and is not paved. i often cross the damn on the way to the mopac- and knowing that this path is there- its quicker, not to mention more fun to take then going up to 70th and across. thats my story.
thad
ps- listening to the wrens "meadowlands" as i type this.
|
Thursday, Nov 25th, 2004 @ 03:31 AM
happy thanksgiving. be nice to each other. eat.
thad
|
Thursday, Nov 18th, 2004 @ 04:51 PM
It's a short one, cause i can't concentrate with a whole shop full of hooligans, so this is it.
2005 cross-checks in stock. new color is kinda a dark forest-metallic-e green. oh purdy good, thank goodness no more red. in the land of "red-footballs" i have grown to dislike red quite a lot. yup i said. down with red, unless that's your deal, then its fine.
run your fenders kids, cause dang, it's wet outside. new CD player at the shop, so now we can rock with out having to pause the air guitar solo and wait for the old one to figger it out.
and as Scotty says, "6 is just never enough, we need 12".
watch out for Clarke P. Griswold next week as Hoss goes out to Cali to bring him back to the good life.
and remember, like thad says:
"we'll have you dead pretty soon".
head floor sweeper,
nate
|
Thursday, Nov 18th, 2004 @ 01:24 PM
another good ride last night- beginning to wonder if there will ever be a nebraska winter. i rode in a long sleeve jersey and shorts and wasnt't cold until the last 20 or so minutes. anyway a good group took off a little later then usual- not until around 6:50. headed for the mopac then the group splintered. i was w/ weirdman, jay-gee, dm, jb, and we ran into jl. rode to 112th then north to the dietrich trail...though, as i have always done when its dark- rolled right past the trail head and rode at least a half a mile. rolled back and found the trail head and headed back into town then home. only one flat in our group- good time. i rode this route- otherwise known as "the whiskey loop" numerous times this summer and i always thougt how great it would be to ride it on a fall night w/ a good group of people and last night was it. super fun. the weather man says its supposed to be rainy and cold the next couple of nights so i was stoked to get out last night for sure. good times.
oh, and by the way, if you could please:
Man your own jackhammer
Man your battle stations
We'll have you dead pretty soon
thad
|
Thursday, Nov 18th, 2004 @ 02:44 AM
good grief! what a great weekend! fri night got the ball rolling w/ the ween party. soooper good time w/ all the usual suspects. i knew it was late when i saw cvo and said "aren't you supposed to be bartending?" and he notified me that the bars were closed. whew! what a scorcher. saturday rolled down to monkey wrench and did some work on the 1X1 when scotty and jay-gee met up w/ me. hung out there for a while and scotty and i wallowed in our deleriousness until about 12:45 when the three of us cruised over to cvo's and met up w/ a good group of people. me, scotty, cvo, jay-gee, sci, sd, cornbread, jp and hawk-thorn...i think thats everyone- had some beer then cruised out to the park. met up w/ nate and dm @ the f-loop. we proceeded w/ our usual shinanigans and even ate pretzals until about 6pm. it was the type of day that you never wanted to end. the weather was unreal- 70 degrees in november in NE? huh? i'll take it. stopped at the usual places along the way and rode all the way out to ep's bridge and spent i bet almost an hour there. cvo had the mpu in full effect so we had a pretzal rave at the bridge. well, ineviatably the sun started to leave us so he had to get back. cornbread and i led the pack and took a little snappier pace on the way back. it was great. the trails were still a little gummy from the rain so it was a bit slower but super grippy. fun fun fun- it sucked getting back to old cheyney but i can honestly say i cherished every second that day- it was...i didn't want to use this word but it was epic. there- i'll never use that word agin. rode home- cleaned up then a-me and i met nate and jay-gee for some food then hit the town. the highlite of that evening was being in jimmy johns after the bars closed and witnessed two knuckleheads play wwf for a bit. testosterone. so sat was great for sure. thanks to everyone who came out and rode- it was a memorable day. would have been even better if donkey and len were around to add to the nonsense. where was crazy larry? recovering i suppose. ep? mw? butch? factory rider? next time.
enough w/ the past- on to the future. talked to nate about the tuesday night ride this week and i hope all can make it. the weatherman says that wed late afternoon is supposed to bring rain and possibly snow so it may be a couple of days before the park will be rideable again. also- since the weather is changing- unfortunately- we're gonna aim for riding through the whole park- or at least make it to rokeby and back through. perhaps a bit less stopping and a bit more riding but then we'll let the majority rule. usual details- meet @ the shop 6-6:30 and we'll be off like a dirty shirt.
thad castro
|
Friday, Nov 5th, 2004 @ 10:39 AM
its pt thad aka fidel castro commin atcha- w/ pt blog #1. i guess something that i have been thinking about lately is things that we humans get passionate about. i think the #1 thing that we should all be the most passionate about is each other. but after that we fill our time being passively to intensely consumed with various things. if you are reading this, i would assume that you are at least mildly interested in bicycles therefore can relate to what i am saying on some level. well, i'm 29 years old and in my lifetime, there have been three big things i guess that have really consumed me...again, besides people. they were/are skateboarding, music and bikes. beer is also up there but i would rather drink it then talk about it. where i am going with this is that when we get passionate about something, like bikes, we tend to develop some pretty intense opinions regarding said topic. single speed vs. gears or suspension vs. rigid. lycra vs. baggy or heres a classic- road vs mountain. on and on and on.... this totally makes sense to me b/c again- we get passionate and that passion can overtake us and apparently zero out any logic we may have. believe me, i am the first person to fall victim to this- ask anyone who knows me. so i was thinking about this and was also thinking about the tuesday night ride this past week. a bunch of guys (where's the girls? come on girls!) cruising out on the mopac. some were in proper riding/racing clothes and some were in sweat pants and sweat shirts. and the beauty of it was that it didn't matter. everyone was riding pretty nice bikes- especially nate on his new hunter but that was all beside the point as well. someone could have been on a k-mart klunker and it still would have been great. because in the end it was about sharing a passion w/ a group of like minded individuals- period. being into music and collecting music, i have somewhat inevitably and sometimes regrettably stumbled upon the black hole of audiophile land. well, in that group of people there is a neverending debate regarding the virtues of vinyl vs. cd's. i, in the past have tended to fall on the vinyl side of the argument but in recent months have asked myself how much it really matters. isn't it really about listening to music that you enjoy and maybe even turning someone else onto music that you enjoy? so, in the end- its really about the music and the medium that it is delivered on is a means to an end. i guess the same idea is what i'm getting at regarding bikes- they are a means to an end but we a lot of times never get to that end b/c we are so caught up on the means. i love seeing old folks and kids- anyone really out riding on the paths. i realize the virtues of nice bike parts vs. crappy stuff but i'm still stoked to see people out on huffy's and murray's b/c at least they are riding and maybe thats all they can get at the moment- if ever. oh well, i have overstayed my welcome. i could go on and on. this weekend is supposed to be superb weather-wise so get out and ride a bike-any bike- its a great feeling.
thad (fidel)
|
Wednesday, Nov 3rd, 2004 @ 01:13 PM
wednesday, middle of the week huh? well the Tuesday night ride that was formerly the wednesday night ride, changed for this week so old PT or Thad could join is in the books. usual band of characters showed up, and there was even a minor accident followed by some blood loss, but hey, it was dark and Larry or Russ, depending on what shirt he's wearing, almost made it through the chain barracade.
on to more serious matters. anytime i catch myself becoming all grouchy and starting to mope about, a customer will come through the door with some sort of personal struggle, wheter it be physically or mentally and they'll be so happy, kind, and genuinely thankful for whatever bit of work i do for them, it makes me stop and be thankful for physical health and being fairly "normal". sometimes i and or we as a collective take things like personal mobility for granted. it's good to be reminded that we're lucky to be fully functioning. So, the petty problems really don't matter in the grand sceme of things. i know this is an obvious and much talked about theme, but sometimes its nice to take notice.
sorry for the ramblings, but life sure is interesting.
no talk today of bike parts or the standard bike shoppity stuff.
be thankful.
i'm reminded daily down here.
your dirty mechanic.
nate
|
Wednesday, Oct 27th, 2004 @ 08:50 AM
Welp, been a while hasn't it. I've got some business to get off my chest this morning. First on the list is to publically apologies to super duper good pal Thad, i didn't make it to his house last night for the World series, cause i was helping my other good buddy Striker19er finish his new Birkenstock store. decisions, decisions. So again, sorry Thad.
some of you may have met Thad, he's the super Saturday go to guy, when you know who takes off sherking his duties. Thad is directly responsible for everything in the shop having a price tag.
on some sad news, the Kona Fidel "thad" Castro hats didn't show up today. instead they shipped me more thuggy dirtjumpity hats. oh well, Factory Rider got his new Kula Deluxe so watch out.
And lastly a fellow showed up last night for some work on his der about 5pm, so for those of you who know me, know that i was probably really calm about the whole deal. dude was riding a Litespeed with XTR/ultegra and Phil 48 spoke wheels. fellow was also wearing sweats and contractor style work boots! He is on his way back to Florida from checking out the big heads made out of rock in south dakota. anyhow, no water bottle cages or anything! said he just stops at a town when he gets thirsty! purty big fellow too, could have crushed me. not your typical cycling tourer, more like a big rig driver with a super sun baked face. sure was nice though, and by the time i was finished changing cables and housing, he'd told a ton of good storie and made the night. i think Len might have asked him over so he'd have a place to camp, not sure.
the things you see at a bike shop. all for now, don't forget the Wednesday night ride leaving from the shop. 6 or so. just guidelines mind you.
Iron Maiden on the shop stereo for all you indie heads.
nate
|
Friday, Oct 15th, 2004 @ 09:40 AM
Pink Chris King headsets showed up this morning.
what can you say, some of the proceeds go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, so that's a good thing. Most of them are sold, but there's at least one available, plus the Hubs will be here in December right before christmas.
funny comments about Pink being the new Black to follow by all the snickerers.
colors are good
nate
|
Friday, Oct 15th, 2004 @ 08:49 AM
welp, not too much to write about today, and i missed yesterday, too many repairs to do and i'm not the speediest, so wrenches and no keyboard time.
on a music note, i got the new CamperVanBeethoven album yesterday, sounds just like the old stuff, but nice music for the shop, gotta give the indie rock a break.
tomorrows the beer ride and i'm stoked, plus it's a celebration of Jose petersens birthday for the restufus.
i was thinking that i might have a couple folks on rotation for a quest blog spot in the future, specially when i run out of things to say. we'll see.
cross race sunday, got some new bars and stem so maybe i won't be so dang crunched over creating my back to real in pain.
welp, hope all the other folks out their today are having a good friday. look forward to riding with you all either saturday or sunday.
and thus ends todays entery- er diary.
nate
oh yeah, some links to check out. one you've probably all been to, plus i dig the guy, and the other is from Thad, thanks for the heads up buddy.
www.ahearnecycles.com
www.mattchester.com
|
Thursday, Oct 19th, 2006 @ 09:26 AM
ah hah! now you're all in big, big trouble, cause my buddy butch has this blog up and running, for me to ramble on and on about all things bike and shop and people related. thanks butch. so this is it, the first MWC blog entry to the site.
ok, rides and such you should all know about.
Tonight, meat at MWC for a night ride to celebrate Jose Petersens actuall 33rd birthday, happy b-day Jose. leave around 25 after 6.
friday, possible night ride at platte.
and Sunday, dust off the cross rig and go to the race.
welp, got get the wrenches out of the tool box and dig in.
all for now,
weirdman
|
1225 P Street , Suite A : Lincoln, NE 68508 : P/F: 402-477-4104 : nate @ monkeywrenchcycles.com
HOURS: M-F 9-6 • SAT 10-5 • SUN YEAH RIGHT!
|
|
