Because it's made by Chrome

Pawn

I'm a fan of Chrome Industries bags. The iconic bags that for many define messenger bags at large, many imitators but rarely are they matched in quality and service. At $170 bucks the roll top "Pawn" back pack doesn't seem like a bargain but given that is waterproof, built like a tank and comes with a lifetime guarantee on parts and workmanship, it shows up best when viewed as a long term investment.

I made a madcap ride out past Point Reyes a couple weeks ago, putting my unfortunately not so healed knee to a test it sort of failed, and putting my Chrome bag to a test it didn't weather so well either. Not one but two buckles failed and I rode the last 50 miles or so yanking on my straps and tying knots to keep the thing where I needed it. Granted I probably over loaded it but one of the buckles held no problem and the bags don't come with a weight rating or any sanity inducing disclaimers. First lesson being no rational person will take on a ride that poorly thought out and overloaded and admittedly on a whim. Lesson learned, pack better and keep a bag ready to do those spur of the moment 80-100 mile rides that really do just come up when the weather is good. It was a worthwhile ride in spite of the challenges. Lesson two, Chrome bags are pretty bullet proof for 95% of the crap you will put them through bu they have their limits.

Bravo (the loaner bag)

Now the good part and why you ought to buy Chrome. I rolled in to the Chrome shop in SOMA today, the much bigger shop and show room they currently occupy and told them what had gone wrong with the bag. Not only did they not give me a hard time about it or ask how the buckles had failed in an attempt to avoid fixing them, they gave me a loaner bag to use while mine is being repaired free of charge. I know the bags don't fail often, my other two never have, but it's nice to know if they do, Chrome stands behind their product and isn't simply hyping things or throwing out marketing copy. I ride everywhere and rely on my gear to get me and all the things I lug around wherever I'm going and while I do have other bags I like, I have newly vetted reasons to trust my Chrome gear. Next problem is that now I want the Bravo as well.

100 years! Machu Pichu in National Geographic

100 years ago this month National Geographic published the first photos and written story of Hiram Bingham's discovery of Machu Pichu. It was one of the most significant archaeological finds of all time and remains a world landmark in science and culture.
I've been fascinated with the site for as long as I can remember, likely because of things like old National Geographics around our house. I even have a copy of the April 1913 edition, need to get around to framing that thing.

In these photos we see the explorer himself posing next to a tent, possibly his. He doesn't quite conjure images of Harrison Ford running from tumbling boulders but he was obviously quite capable. The next photo is the cover of the article itself with all it's 100 year old gravitas. The final image is one of Bingham's assistants in front of a sacred stone, one of a number at the site carved to echo the shapes of mountains in the distance, letting us know of both a connection with those far off peaks as well as a high degree of reverence for them.

There is a lot to be impressed by with regard to Machu Pichu from the massive stone construction to simply being able to build something so immense at such an altitude and then go on to maintain and actually use it. The whole thing is such a great piece of human accomplishment. I've been fortunate to see so many things in my life but if there is one far off thing still on my list it's Machu Pichu. So, yes if anyone needs a photographer for their expedition I'm in and if someone just wants to sponsor a guy on a bicycle with some climbing gear to haul himself up there, I'm game for that too. The only thing better would be getting to sink a test pit or two with one of the preservation crews.

Here's to Hiram, National Geographic and the spirit of adventure that is in all of us.

(All images are photos I shot of my original copy of the April 1913 edition)

St Patrick's Day Massacre, a fundraiser ride.

View from the top

I recently had the honor of being the official ride photographer for a really well done school fundraiser ride recently, The St Patrick's Day Massacre. It was neither a massacre nor on St Patrick's Day but it was a lot of fun and raised critical funds for a school art program. 42 riders made the ride across San Francisco, over the Golden Gate and on up Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands. Most doing repeat ascents of the long uphill portion that represented about 580' (vertical feet) of climbing over the course of a few miles. The weather was perfect for riding and the views were spectacular for the great turn out of riders and supporters alike. 

Slow going up 

In addition to being the event photographer I managed my own ascent of Hawk Hill on my recently acquired vintage Bianchi. Not the best choice of  bicycles to climb a giant hill but it did the job as I rode up with the others stopping to take photos at key places along the way. As irony would have it the scary part would be riding back down on vintage 80's hardware. It did just fine but I was definitely pushing the bicycle in the direction of it's reasonable limits. 

Event organizers at the top of hawk Hill

All in all it was a great day and definitely demonstrated another fun way to raise money for education and a fantastic job for a first time event, or any event really. We could use more with this kind of well planned organization. Even the t-shirts looked good. (Bonus points for getting to combine my efforts as photographer, art educator and bicycle enthusiast.)  

Fast descending

Good job everyone!

Bianchi Sport SS

In the rack at Rapha

I keep getting excited and dig in on new projects forgetting to take "before" pictures. The most recent, and one of my favorites so far, has been a mid 1980's Bianchi Sport rescued from a literal rubble pile in a friend's art studio. It'd been sitting there neglected long enough for the tires to turn to crumbling dry rot that came off in chunks, many years.

Overall though, it wasn't in bad shape. Minimal surface rust and a straight frame made it a good candidate for a great daily rider that doesn't inspire panic stricken work interruptions to make sure its still there when I need to work somewhere I can't bring a bike inside. (People are just plane relentless when it comes to bicycle thievery.)

Maiden voyage to the bridge

After replacing tires, saddle, pedals, cables, chain, repacking headset and bottom bracket, scrubbing for many hours and touching up the paint, its turning out to be a great vintage bike. The 27" wheels aren't ideal but there are alloy wheels available and a solid half dozen choices for tires. Even at that, its a step up from the Schwinn Le Tour I rebuilt last year with its even more antiquated brakes and wheel set. With each of these rehabilitated bicycle projects I'm learning more and more how far the technology has come in the last thirty years or so. Wheels, saddles, gearing and all manor of alloys and frame materials have been drastically improved. That said, older bikes with steel frames, a mere ten speeds and heavy wheel sets are still some of the best riding bikes around.

Piaggio

I love my Globe Roll single speed but I ride every day and much of my commute is up hill. Combine the need for gears and lugs for a racks and fenders and the Bianchi ends up being a welcome addition to the stable. Now I just need to decide if the Bianchi gets the  rack and pannier treatment with lights and a full long range commuting and touring set up or if that goes to the Le Tour. At this point I really want the Bianchi to be as broadly usable as possible and having a a couple bikes to choose from to suit different needs, or even moods, can be a useful thing when you are on them seven days a week. I'm still on a quest for a decent(budget) randonneur bike but this is a lot closer than I've come so far.

 

Corsaro

I seem to be turning up a lot of bicycles lately, some "better" than others, all of them interesting in one way or another. This one is a really decent 90's vintage bike from the defunct Corsaro bicycle company. Not a lot of info on these but there are a fair amount of them around. Solid bikes with reliable steel frames a couple sources say were made for them by Giant. The only real issue with mine is that it is about one frame size too big for comfortable standing height over the top tube. Other than that it would make a great daily rider I would enjoy rolling and not panic over locking up outside from time to time.

I was holding out on it for a while but with the impending arrival of a vintage Bianchi, I'm up to five velos and out of space. The 28" wheels are a hassle, a minor one and still reliable, but combined with the frame being too tall for me it'll be the first on my list to go and make room for new projects.

Having had a tough time finding info about the bike I'll do my best to post something with enough info and photos to be useful for others who may be looking.

Anton Beder project

I generally like most stringed instruments, even finicky ones like my problem child banjo. So, recently when I got an interesting old Anton Beder in need of some repairs I was excited for the project and prospect of another violin to play with.

It needed new strings, a new cord on the tail piece, some clean up if the finish and an adjustment to the sound peg. It also needed a new bow as the old one was shredded and I've yet to learn how to re-hair them.
I added a fourth fine tuner to make it easier with my admittedly limited skills. I have a newer unlabeled but presumably Chinese violin,  a US made model sold by Sears that has been in the family since the 1930's and another from the late 1800's. They've all been OK to tune but the Beder is proving to be a challenge for me, even if it sounds nice out of tune. It's a 3/4 which may be why I'm having a hard time with it but again, it's probably me that's the problem and not the violin.

This is the third violin I've repaired and sounds as good as the others excepting the oldest one that did ironically sound the best, though I'm blaming that on coincidence rather than some magic of age or quality. It's also nice to have a German made instrument in the mix assuming it's not a fake. If it is a fake it's at least not a new one as the rosin in the case is old enough to have retailed for $.45 and simply looking at it, the patina and finish is consistent with instruments from the 1930's and 40's. It was a fun find but will most likely soon find a new home with an aspiring young violinist.

1970 Schwinn Breeze

After a fair amount of scrubbing, polishing, rerouting cables and removing copious amounts of mystery wire, this fun little Schwinn made its maiden voyage down the hills to Chrissy Field. Manufactured in August of 1970, it rides as well as many modern counterparts and moves along nicely on 26" wheels with its venerable Sturmey Archer three speed hub shifter. It has some interesting quirks like the 26 inch wheels that take 597's rather than the typical 590 tires and believe me 7mm makes a big difference. It's also all in American nut and bolt sizes so if you ride mainly Japanese bikes or even just modern bikes in general you may need a couple new wrenches to work on these old Chicago bikes. I've had visions of English roadster style riding since the last couple were stolen. This is a great budget move in that direction. I even picked up a wooden clam crate for the back, similar but somehow seems more appropriate than a wine crate and more useful than the bare rack for my needs.

Coming at it with low expectations probably helped but its a fun bike to ride now that it has new brake pads and actually slows down when you squeeze the levers. I'll at least be hanging on to it into the summer or until I find something nicer or at least a little more solid. It's an adequate bicycle but being a budget bikes for the ladies in 1970, it's not exactly built to handle a heavier male rider or the demands of getting around San Francisco. Either way it's a classic I'd probably hang on to if I wasn't at capacity for bike storage. It's looking better with each cleaning but it will keep much of it's well earned patina.

Chain guard and stylish crank

Complete with vintage rack and  comfortable saddle

A decent looking bike