commuting

My commute to the Rock the Bike workshop takes me past the Embarcadero, where, if I'm lucky, I'll see flatlander Pete Brandt practicing his latest 'links', or sequences of moves.

Snowy commute

Originally uploaded by Jeff Youngstrom

You go Jeff.

Why don't 'they' make bike clothing that is more stylish? 'They' do.
Originally uploaded by Rock The Bike

Do you wonder why they don't make clothes for bike commuters with more subtle style, less spandex, and fewer bright logos?

Click the photo to see his notes on the various safety products
Originally uploaded by RJL20 RJL20 is one of our Flickr friends. I saw his picture of his Xtracycle commuter rig this morning.

Been pushing really hard lately at the workshop and left tonight after 10. I'm entertaining tomorrow at Specialized's holiday party. We'll be doing a cruiser ride with employees and apparently lots of cool kids. I wanted to finish up as many Down Low Glow shipments as I could tonight so I don't have it hanging over me this weekend.

We bid adieu... on Flickr
Originally uploaded by Rock The Bike

Mike's been a member of our West Berkeley workshop community since 2001. His devotion to bicycle advocacy and mechanics, and high quality worksmanship has been a great example to the rest of us.

Our commute home.
Originally uploaded by Rock The Bike

When your new assembly and shipping employee has a hernia, and he's carrying a heavy messenger style backpack with the used mountain bike frame you gave him strapped on it, and he's on the cell phone with his father as you ride home to West Oakland BART together, telling his dad he has back pain that shoots down his left leg, and you know he doesn't have health insurance and is fighting the system to schedule his surgery, you don't just keep riding. You stop, take his pack, and strap it to your Xtracycle, even though you're already carrying your own stuffed messenger bag, 8 DLG's, and a box of Schwalbe tires that the Ginger Ninjas need for their tour. Because you can.

Does that thing fit on the bike shuttle?
Originally uploaded to Flickr by Rock The Bike.

We often get this question from peope who use BART and the bike shuttle. And I'm happy to say, yes. An Xtracycle fits on both BART elevators (tipped up) and on the bike shuttle. It takes a little finesse to go on Caltrain with an Xtracycle, because it exceeds the 80 inch length limit, and many conductors are strict. City buses can work if you remove the front wheel, and place the hook over the top tube of the bike.