Bicycle time in a vintage way. Classic hints and tips to ride it right!

Well the rains have stopped for the most part which means us fair weather cyclists are dragging our bikes out of the garage, airing up the tires and starting our riding season again. 

I have been riding a bicycle since I was 5 as have most of us, give or take a few years, but aside from the basic safety tips taught to us by the parent or elder who gave us our riding lessons, most people (leaving out the serious cyclist) have no idea there is a proper way to ride a bike..... besides not falling off or running into a parked car.

Campagnolo Vintage Coventry Eagle 10 Speed Bicycle 60s Brooks saddle

.... you can find this at funkomavintage....we love vintage bicycles. 

There are a few easy techniques and adjustments that will make cycling less of a chore and they have the added benefit of making you look like a pro while riding.

Vintage Motobecane 10 Speed Bicycle Mixte 70s Ideale saddle Mens Womens blue bike

A mixte has the center bar placed low and is perfect for men or women, and is quite popular in Europe. Find this Motobecane at funkomavintage. 

A very vintage Edwardian bicycle seat.... ;-)

Rule #1.......The bike must fit you and be properly adjusted for your height. 

First ---Adjusting the seat height correctly will gain you more distance for your energy output plus you won't look silly with your knees splaying out at a funny angle if the seat is too low.  If you do this ...or  you see someone's ones leg see-sawing back and forth, swaying their "behind",  if it's too high. 

Proper seat adjustment is 1.09 % of your inseam measured from the top of the seat to the spindle of your pedal at the bottom of the stroke of the crank with the crank arms lined up with the seat tube.

Measure your inseam of a pair of pants that you wear with flat shoes, and multiply by 1.09 and you will get the correct height. If you need some help take your inseam measurement and your bike to your local shop the they will be happy set things right. 

Did you know you pedal and how much you pedal are very significant factors in how far you can travel before you wear yourself out?

The proper way to pedal is to use the ball of your foot and never the arch. If you are clipped in with toe clips on your pedals, you have no choice! This technique is called ankling.

At the top of the stroke, point your foot slightly up as you continue on the down stroke point your toe down. 

With your seat adjusted correctly this will feel quite natural.

Vintage Schwinn Varsity 10 Speed Bicycle 60s Purple Pink bike

Everybody loves a Vintage Schwinn. The classic American bike made in Chicago for years and years. 

How much you pedal is referred to as "cadence". The trick of covering long distances easily is by having steady cadence.
The gears on your bike are there to help you achieve this. If you think this way about the gears rather than using higher gears to go faster like you would in a car, you will find cycling to be much easier.

Keep to nice easy pedalling that feels comfortable, and you will save your energy, and go the distance!

Drop bars also allow you to use more muscles when pedaling than flat bars, that's why you see the racers using them.
They come in a varity of styles so you should be able to find a pair that's comfortable.

I should add that keeping your tires inflated to the maximum pressure will reduce roll resistance and make pedaling easier.

Keeping the bike lubricated and tuned is a big help too.

This pre-war bike needs a lot of work to pedal smoothly...but it does have a basket!

Just remember, on a bike you are the engine and the less resistance against the engine, then the easier life is for that engine! So get out there and enjoy that summer!

Random Notes: Vodka, Portland, Tacoma....

1. Vodka. always OK with me. I wonder if SevenOhWonder down below will trade vintage for vodka...the 3 dollar Martini.....Marketing Genius! We've dined there 2 times because Derek/X133 gave a recommendation......and he was right. Super excellent food, swell waitress...with just the right amount of sass (Liesel)...and besides...the view...and oh, 3 Dollar Martinis....

2. Went to Portland last week...stayed at the Mark Spencer...they love Dogs !!(word up Tacoma, you suck in the pet/hotel department)...So we got settled in and walked around the Pearl and the fringe of the Pearl...yes, the Pearl is sometimes too polished for my taste, but never fear, Portland hardly ever screws it up so bad, that it alienates the very people that make Portland so beloved....
ergo: Within blocks of our hotel, is Ace Hotel, and The Joyce Hotel, and The Kent Hotel...Ace is space deluxe, but downbeat on the decor...spare,indie and a bit too polished.

The Joyce, and the Kent.......oh yes. A hotel from my childhood. Shabby, decrepit and the place for the poor, the adventurous, and the traveling youth to stay. All great cities have these flophouses because not everyone at every time wants/needs/can afford a deluxe stay/place.
oh, and I get a big kick outta Joyce/Kent...my big brother's name is Kent...his wife is named Joyce!!!


2a. Here is Mark, Tigger and our new friend, Alexander, sitting in front of the Half and Half...drinking coffee on the fuckin' sidewalk (Tacoma, take notes!). Alexander was all about vintage photography and vintage bikes.

He is gonna ride in the 42Ride, a cross-country bike ride to promote bike-riding (duh) and 42Below Vodka. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. a street view. vibrant,eh? yup. Bicycle Film Festival website...




3. Tacoma. BEST Monkey Party ever. Who was in the Bell Tower? Who was on the roof and flipping you off? That's for me to know....and you to find out......

the zeit bikes are so pretty......

and......so friendly.
and completely understandable.
And pretty. And kinda weird.
They are "gettable" immediately.

I told Mark his entry was too hard...too subtle ......it's Art in the big city sense.
If I would have had time to make a zeit bike I would have covered it in fur and made it an animal of some several types.
Get it? Bike as a throwback to organic renewable grabbable transportation.
If I'd have covered a bike in easy to get materials, just some random crap I found in the alley, maybe I'd have been chosen.
But the idea that a bike is an instrument of torture...that it might be quite painful to ride........
...is an unpopular concept.
Since I had it displayed in front of the shop , every single person that saw it commented on it.......and were confused.....but all comments centered around the idea that riding a bike would be hard and painful......and inconvenient........
Yes, that's right. But changing patterns of modern urban and rural and cul-de-sac living.....
is Hard.
Changing our nasty ways isn't as easy as changing lightbulbs. It will require more thought, and a revolution in the way we think of the planet and what we want and why we want.
And ....Trailblazer.......
Be A Trailblazer.
Think outside the moss.