Latest EntryDec 31, 2008Comments
A guide for the new year, three times three (= 09)
Three key words
Simplicity, resilient communities.
Three blogs to understand what is going on
Naked capitalism
John Robb
Slope of Hope
Three assets which will preserve your capital
Gold
Farmland
Renminbi
… and finally 3×3 wishes
Thank you velorutionaries,
ride in peace,
Happy New Year.
Poster by Nick Dewar, via ReadyMade
Dec 30, 2008 Comments
Emptying the bookmarks:
Theft
Cycle Parking
Transport Policy
Bikes and accessories
Beautiful
… and the silly corner
Pole Dancer - on a cargo trike [BikeHacks]
Dec 27, 2008 Comments
Stainless steel, copper, zinc or brass. Get them now before prices of commodities shoot up again. In stock at £30.00
Dec 23, 2008 Comments
Our thoughts go to the beneficiaries of the charities, whose trustees foolishly gave money to Madoff; to the millions of Asians out of jobs because there is a limit to how many toys one can buy on credit; and to the millions of children who die every year because we can spend trillions to save bankers but we are unable to build enough clean toilets. Our wish is that people understand that wealth is created by work, peace and long-term investment and not by a mortgage.
Dec 15, 2008 Comments
Colours
From 1st January 2009, all Brompton bikes will be painted in a matt finish. The switchover from a gloss finish will offer higher consistency in terms of quality, reduce the number of rejected frame parts, eventually remove the need to undercoat the frames and lend the bikes what we feel is a more modern look.
Tempest Blue, Kew Green and Ivory will be discontinued, as their similarity to other colours makes them superfluous; Silver will also be discontinued as it only works as a gloss colour. Three new colours – White, Desert Sand and Purple Haze – are being introduced.
In the image, clockwise from top left we have Black, White, Orange, Yellow, Cornflower, Blue, Purple, Turkish, Green, Sand, Pink, Flamingo, Raw Lacquer, Red, Apple.
Brompton Wide Range Hub
The new configuration for 6-speed Bromptons will feature a wide-range hub, designed in-house, manufactured by Sturmey Archer; the present 6-speed arrangement, employing a SRAM hub, will be discontinued.
The Brompton Wide Range Hub [BWR], together with Brompton’s derailleur system, offers an evenly-stepped gear range (302%) that is comparable to the leading 8-speed hubs but weighs almost half as much and is considerably more efficient.
New Saddles
Both the standard saddle and the Vitesse are being replaced by a new Brompton-designed saddle, which combines the best aspects of the two saddles it replaces. The design is sporty and light, but offers a comfortable level of padding that will not intimidate new or casual cyclists; the functionality is improved overall but perhaps the most useful feature is the moulded grip to make it easier to carry the bike. The new saddle comes fitted with a Brompton Pentaclip, allowing truly stepless adjustment for all Brompton owners.
The Brooks B17 Special will be retained and be accompanied by a female version of the same saddle; as with the male version, the B17 S Special, will feature hand-hammered copper rivets.
Lightweight Front Wheel
A new front wheel is fitted on the Superlight models, saving further weight. The new wheel features double-butted spokes and a completely new Brompton-designed front hub with an aluminium axle and high-quality sealed Japanese bearings.
New Non-Folding Pedal
The non-folding [NF] right-hand pedal will be replaced from January by a new Brompton-designed lightweight aluminium pedal that offers improved grip over the plastic model, better durability and integrated reflectors that will not break off.
Luggage
The Cloth Pannier is being replaced by the C Bag, a larger messenger-style bag with a Velcro- and buckle-fastened flap, a comfortable, stowable shoulder strap, pockets finished with water-resistant zips and a bright lining.
Dec 14, 2008 Comments
Please note that we sell Special Edition Pashley Paramount and Provence with matching metal mudguards, only £20 extra.
Dec 11, 2008 Comments
From the designer who has brought you the reflective cape, a tweed cap in Lumatwill. £55
Dec 6, 2008 Comments
Handbags, messenger bags and panniers; here are our recommendations:
 Cyclodelic BraBag £85.00
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 Zwei Handlebar Bag from £48.00
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 Basil Mirte £40.00
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 Bagaboo Messenger Bags from £90.00
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 Ortlieb Zip-City from £64.50
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 Knog Frank £86.00
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 Berthoud Panniers £180.00
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 Brooks Roll Up Panniers £150.00
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 Basil Blossom £40.00
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Dec 2, 2008 Comments
Two bikes from Europe.
Right in the middle of Germany a worker’s co-operative, set up when the owners threatened closure, is producing an attractive range of city bikes, well equipped, strong and well priced, appropriately called Strike Bikes:
In Denmark, the famous designer Georg Jensen has commissioned bicycle boutique Sogreni to design a limited edition model of its typically Danish city bikes.
Nov 28, 2008 Comments
The BBC reports that a survey by a motoring body has found British zebra crossings the best designed in Europe.
The president of the Automobile Association, Edmund King, says:
“This strongly suggests that any problem with London’s pedestrian crossings has to lie with their users rather than their design.”
Is he saying that if pedestrians get killed at zebra crossings, they need to blame themselves? Why doesn’t the BBC quote someone from the Pedestrian Association saying that in spite of the best facilities in Europe, British motorists still manage to kill tens of pedestrians every year on zebra crossings.
But the real scandal is what happens away from the zebras: a previous report by the same body reveals the stark truth: the UK is the most disrepectful European country as regards to pedestrians safety: one out of five road deaths is a pedestrian, compared to a European average below 12%.
If one looks at the number of pedestrian deaths per population, the most dangerous countries are Spain, the UK and Italy. One cannot fail to notice that these countries are at the bottom of the league for bicycle usage and top of the league for rubbish on the streets. These statistics seem to be correlated by the principle of civility.
