HANDMADE BICYCLE SHOW GALLERY • ENCINO VELODROME • R.E.LOAD’S ROLAND BURNS URBAN VELO.ORG www.somafab.com the TRADESMAN: AVAILABLE IN SLICK Great for picking up BLACK OR CREAMCYCLE ORANGE groceries for the family or delivering delicious gluten-free bread SOMA FABRICATIONS MAKES STEEL FRAMES FOR ROAD, CX, MTB, TOURING, AND NOW CARGO! the PICK UP ARTIST: New! More capacity. More game. PHOTO: VANESSA CHRISTIE/BREAD SRSLY Issue #36 April 2013 Brad Quartuccio Editor [email protected] Jeff Guerrero Publisher [email protected] ”It’s better to see them rolling spokes than rolling joints.” –Gerd Schraner The Art of Wheelbuilding On the cover: Monster Track 14 took place on the streets of NYC on March 16, 2013. See more on page 74. Photo by Urban Velo is now available on the Takuya Sakamoto, www.newyorkbikedreams.com App Store so you can view issues and subscribe with your iPad. Co-conspirators: Mikey Wally, Andy Singer, Krista Carl- son, Kurt Boone, Albert Yee, Joshua Siebert, George Olden Urban Velo has always been designed and Frank Barbella with a page size roughly the same as the iPad screen, and we are now able to Urban Velo, PO Box 9040, Pittsburgh, PA 15224 take advantage of the iPad’s display and magazine browsing capabilities to deliver a high resolution digital version of the Urban Velo is a reflection of the cycling culture in current magazine to you. This is as close to print day cities. Our readers are encouraged to contribute their words and art. as it gets, with the addition of links and navigation. Urban Velo is published bi-monthly. That’s six times per year, on the even months. Issues are available for free download as they become available. Print copies are available online Available through Apple Newsstand and at select bicycle retailers and coffee shops. on the App Store, issues are currently available for download at $1.99 each, Bike shops, check out urbanvelo.org/distribution and recurring subscriptions are $17.99. Printed in Pittsburgh by JB Kreider - www.jbkreider.com All contents © 2013 Urban Velo, no unauthorized reproduction (online or otherwise) without written consent. URBAN VELO.ORG contents In the pre-dawn hours of March 17, 2013 hundreds of racers set forth to vie for a set of coveted Wolfpack Hustle Marathon Crash dog tags in the world’s largest unsanctioned, un-permitted race. Photo by Mikey Wally, www.mikeywally.com contents 8 Editor’s Statement Brad Quartuccio 10 Publisher’s Statement Jeff Guerrero 12 I Love Riding in the City Readers share their tales of city cycling. 20 Product Spotlight A look at the Abus test facility. 24 Track of Ages Krista Carlson The Encino Velodrome is the heart of Southern Cali- fornia track racing.. 34 Roland Burns Kurt Boone An interview with the co-founder of R.E.Load bags. 38 Gallery: NAHBS 2013 Brad Quartuccio 44 Product Reviews Surly, Crank Brothers, Light and Motion, Chrome and more. 54 Alexander Montsenigos and the Unwinnable Argument Joshua Siebert Why there’s no point in arguing with a motorist. 60 Building Bike-Friendly Cities of The Future George Olden The future looks a lot brighter thanks to bicycle ad- vocacy. 70 Ramps And Pins Brad Quartuccio 74 Outro Takuya Sakamoto Monster Track 14. Editor’s StatementBy Brad Quartuccio n the past few years I’ve grown a renewed interest compromises. Some ideas remain forgotten to the in old bikes. It’s always been there to some degree, ages, others yet doomed to the “tried it, didn’t work” II dragged home my first vintage bicycle long before scrap pile. Certain pieces of old design are undeniably I could drive. Regard for old technology was burned in beautiful, even if impractical today. It can take some early—countless weekends spent shuffling the aisles prodding of old timers at a swap meet or just opening of hardware stores with both of my grandfathers led a book, but there is a lot to be learned from ideas that to a lot of tales of the way things used to be. New may not have worked the first time around. technology is almost invariably better than old, but not It’s a safe bet that most all of the builders at the every good idea always makes it to the next genera- North American Handmade Bicycle Show each year tion. Perhaps just a sign of my times as the mountain are well versed in bicycle history, with some builds bike parts I grew up riding are now considered “vin- showing more outward reverence to the past than tage,” I’ve come to a new appreciation of long gone others. Shin-ichi Konno of Cherubim Cycle comes bicycle ways. from a family of frame builders, Ben Farver of Argo- Design usually outpaces manufacturing technology, naut Cycles is using the latest in carbon fiber to build with some brilliant ideas never leaping from the nap- state of the art racing bikes. Everyone at the show kin. Others find their way into production but don’t is putting 100+ years of safety bicycle innovation to work as intended because of shortcomings or design work in different ways, history at work. We want your words. Send your editorial contributions to [email protected] 8 URBANVELO.ORG Photo by Brad Quartuccio www.bianchiusa.com publisher’s StatementBy Jeff Guerrero ntil recently, the New York City Police Depart- “Collision” is the new term that the NYPD has ment officially referred to the cause of traffic officially begun using. TheirAccident Investigation Squad Ufatalities as “accidents.” And while bona fide has been redubbed the Collision Investigation Squad, and accidents do happen every day, using the word as a advocates in New York and beyond herald this as a vic- blanket term seems to absolve anyone involved in the tory in their campaign to change the worldwide view of injury of another under the assumption that the “acci- traffic fatalities. Additionally, pressure from advocacy dent” was just that. But in many cases such occurances groups such as Transportation Alternatives has caused aren’t entirely accidental. Often times there’s an unde- the NYPD to change their investigation protocol. nialble reason for the incident—negligance, irrespon- Before the recent reforms, police routinely declined sibility, incompetence and even malice come into play. to investigate many collisions, and they’ve been notably And so while the motorist who inadvertantly struck a hesitant to press criminal charges in traffic fatalities. cyclist while driving and texting may not have intended Now it seems that the new protocol will be for NYPD to cause injury, it’s undeniable that the driver was at to investigate any collision that results in a critical fault. And depending on the local vehicle codes, they injury, not just in a “likely to die” scenerio. could be found criminally liable. And so it’s certain— These gains made in New York may give hope to accident is not the right word. advocates in the Twin Cities who are pushing for leg- islation in Minnesota to increase penalties for hitting non-motorists. The Vulnerable Road User Law would increase the maximum penalty for hitting and injuring or killing a bicyclist from $1000 and up to 90 days in jail to $3000 and up to one year in jail. Of course, even if that legislation passes, it seems like little more than a slap on the wrist for guilty motor- ists. In issue #33 I wrote about the hit and run death of James Price. After several months without justice, his killer was brought into custody and accepted a plea bargain of two and a half to five years in prison. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Jeffrey McClure pleaded guilty to “accidents involving death or per- sonal injury” and “accidents involving death or per- sonal injury while not properly licensed.” Again, the term “accident” hardly seems fitting. Jeffrey McClure collided with James Price and left him for dead. And then he hid from the law like a guilty murderous coward. I suppose as cyclists and advocates we have to take what we can get. At least justice has been served to some extent, albeit not to the biblical level of “an eye for an eye” that we might wish for. And thanks to the innumerous advocates working on our behalf, things continue to change for the better. Urban Velo issue #36, April 2013. Print run: 5000 copies. Issue #35 online readership: 55,000+ 10 URBANVELO.ORG i riding in the city NAME: Doobie LOCATION: Barcelona, Spain OCCUPATION: Bicycle Rental Shop Where do you live and what’s it like riding in your city? I’ve been living in Barcelona for the past three days that can’t be improved by a ride along the sea- years. It’s a very bike friendly city—lots of cycle lanes, front. Then there’s the Parc de Collserola overlooking chilled-out drivers, a good climate and stunning scen- the city, at 8000 hectares it’s the largest metropoli- ery. I lived in London before moving here so all of these tan park in the world and has a great network of bike things were a welcome change. trails. What was your favorite city to ride in, and why? Why do you love riding in the city? I would have to say Barcelona. It’s a compact city, For me there’s no better way to explore a new you’re never more than 30 minutes ride from anything place. You can access everywhere that you can on foot so its very accessible by bike. There’s an impressive but you can cover more ground, and being on a bike variety of scenery, from the ordered grid system of seems to bring out my inner 11 year-old.