Archive for the ‘China’ Category

Beijing JISU PK tomorrow night! 明晚极速PK 活动

Mittwoch, Juni 16th, 2010

请参加我们本周四(6月17日)为点废为绿举办的筹款活动。

我们将组织极速PK, 在Acupuncture的DJ的音乐伴随下你可以尽情蹬车。

门票20元, 直接捐给点废成绿。 每场比赛10元,也捐给点废成绿,最终胜者将得
到一杯伏特加红牛鸡尾酒。

极速PK 活动 时间 晚 9点- 11点。
地点: Lantern 三里屯3.3地下
关于点废成绿的信息可上网站那儿见。

Join us on this Thursday June 17th at Lantern in Sunlitun Beijing for a fundraiser event for Greening The Beige.

We will be running the Jisu PK goldsprints bike race system for anyone interested in pedalling to the tunes of DJ’s from Acupuncture Records.

Entry fee is 20 rmb which goes directly to GtB to help fund its activities for 2010. Each race is 10 rmb and the winner receives 1 free ice cold Redbull soda cocktail !

The Jisu Pk will run between 9.00 and 11.00 pm.
Location : Lantern Sunlitun 3.3 Basement, More details on GtB’s website

Beijing Jisu PK Goldsprints Bike Race

Flying Banana Fixed Gear Bikes

Sonntag, Juni 13th, 2010

This is the last day before my trip to New York and of course it was very busy. We had to take some bike parts to the international post office and because that included rims we decided to take the taxi. What a stupid way to get around in Beijing. Because it is mostly traffic jams. It took the taxi 20 minutes to get from my shop to where I live. By bike it only takes me 8 minutes. And then we found out that the customs office was already closed because tomorrow is the start of the 3 day holiday. So we had to take the taxi back too.

Traffic Jam on North Second Ring Road in Beijing

And I had some fixed gear friends drop by the shop to change a saddle and cog. Will had bought an Aerospoke front wheel for his Natooke bike.

Will’s Natooke Bike

This is a beautiful Flying Banana track bike with chrome front fork.

Flying Banana track bike with chrome front fork

And this Flying Banana has a nice color.

Light Blue Flying Banana Track Bike

And with 2 customer ordering very special Flying Banana’s at Natooke store I hardly had time to finish the bike for Thomas. So he had to help me put it together. I like his choice of the lugged steel Flying Banana in black with a BMX style front fork and fixed gear.

Lugged steel Flying Banana in black

Thomas Flying Banana from Natooke

The special Natooke brand „Flying Banana“ track bicycle.

The Flying Banana by Ines Brunn

At night there were huge thunderstorms that seemed to never end. So Fede who was trying to fly back from Inner Mongolia got delayed until very late. And when it stopped raining there were huge puddles everywhere.

Wudaoying Hutong making Zongzi

Samstag, Juni 12th, 2010

Today I was surprised by a „you have to come to a meeting a 2:30pm“ by our friend of Wudaoying Hutong, the small alley that has been selected as one of the special streets of Beijing and its development is being pushed by the local government. I was alone in the shop today so I had to throw out customers to make it to the nearby community center. Even though I was there at 2:40 I was still early because the „meeting“ did not start until 3pm. I was one of the 6 foreigners that had been asked to come. We also had some elderly people, local worker as well as disabled to participate.

On May 5th of the moon calendar which this year is on June 16th of the sun calendar is Dragon Boat festival. Last year the Chinese government decided this to be again a public holiday after many years of not being so. If companies decide that Saturday and Sunday is a work day then the employees get Monday to Wednesday off. And most local companies do it that way.

And following a legend there is special food which =will be prepared and eaten on this holiday. It is Zongzi. So the local Wudaoying Hutong community ladies taught us how to make Zongzi using a special rice that gets sticky when cooked and dates folded in bamboo leaves.

Community Ladies teaching how to make Zongzi

Foreigners Making Zongzi

Then we all received a package of already finished Zongzi to take back home. And of course there was the obligatory group photo with us foreigners and the disabled.

The shop was not too busy. A Chinese guy that had only bought wheelsets, cog and lockring and cranks at my shop came by to show me his built up fixed gear bicycle.

Fixed Gear Bicycle in Beijing

Brendan at Natooke

Freitag, Juni 11th, 2010

Brendan came back to give back the bike he was loaning from Natooke. We took a picture of him with the bike polo mallot he made yesterday.

Brendan Allen at Natooke in Beijing

Later Max dropped by with his new handlebar on his Flying Banana track bike.The track drop bars were too narrow so he switched to road bike drop bars.

Flying Banana With Road Drop Bars

Work that Pigu

Freitag, Juni 11th, 2010

Today there was an article in the Global Times. They had interviewed Fede and Shannon while I was in Germany. The full article is here.

The title is „Work that Pigu“. Pigu mean ass. They had different sports sections, one of them being cycling. Here an excert of the original article:

Cycling

For those who prefer to pedal, the city is always open for biking. Bicycles are available in a variety of colors, styles, and price ranges on practically every street in Beijing. Cyclists have unlimited control over pacing and routes. And bike rides are free!

Federico Moro is the director of Natooke, a bike shop that specializes in fixed gear bikes and juggling. Moro praises Beijing as a city designed for bikes: completely flat, dry, and loaded with big bike lanes. He said of course there are individual health benefits for riding a bike, but, really, „everyone benefits: more bikes means less cars, less traffic.“ And, of course, less traffic means less pollution for us all to breathe while we’re outside exercising.

Moro urges beginners to „get a bike and start to pedal. And get a helmet and a mask.“

Moro’s friend, Shannon Bufton, runs Smarter Than Car, a platform for promoting biking in the city. On the last Friday of every month, the group of about 50 riders hit the streets for a social ride set at a relaxing pace. Bufton agrees that biking is good for the environment, but also good for health. He said, simply, „It keeps you fit and keeps your weight down.“

Bikers looking for a challenge beyond the Dongzhimen interchange could head to the Laoshan Mountain Bike Course in west Beijing’s Shijingshan District. The 4.6 km Olympic course was made available to the public post-Games.

For serious mountain bikers, the thrill of riding in the paths of Olympians should outweigh the potential anxieties of getting a bike to west Beijing. And, for less serious cyclists, the trip to and from the course could be considered a full work-out in its own right.

Beijing Bike Polo

Donnerstag, Juni 10th, 2010

Back in Beijing I first need to get used to cycling in Beijing traffic. And the traffic jams are getting worse. And there are more cars in the bike lanes. Like this black BMW without license plate. He thinks he is the king of the road and does not need to follow any traffic rules.

Black BMW without license plate

A cycling friend from Oakland is visiting Beijing. Brendan loves playing Bike Polo and came to the shop to make two more bike polo mallots. Then we headed out to the Beijing CBD to an open space in midst modern office buildings together with some Chinese Fixed Gear riders. It took us a while to start a real game as most of us were playing for the first or second time and we were missing a mallot, then a guy fell and when we finally had 6 mallots it was already dark. It was still fun to hit the ball in the dark. And we had most people on fixed gear, Brendan on a freewheel, and later a guy on a fancy Flying Pigeon.

Beijing Bike Polo

Playing Bicycle Polo in Modern Beijing

Bike Polo at Night in China’s Capital

Natooke Fixed Gear Bikes

Mittwoch, Juni 9th, 2010

During my travel in Germany Fede and Samantha took care of the Natooke shop and actually built up many fixed gear bikes for customers. Until now we have never built up to identical bikes. Every bicycle is unique and reflects the customers personality. That is one thing that makes fixed gear bikes so attractive around the world. It is not just a bicycle. It is special. Here are some pictures.

Duncan’s stylish black Flying Banana with green hubs and retro tires.

Duncan’s Fixed Gear Bike

He even wrote some blog entries about his first ride from our shop at Lama Temple to Wudaokou as well as a 50km ride he did on the second day. It is great to see people enjoying cycling through the city. Beijing is perfect for that.

Black Flying Banana and Duncan

Charles decided for a cheap aluminum frame a nice rims matching the hubs.

Charles Aluminum Fixed Gear Bike

Mark also chose the aluminum frame and choose nice Velocity rims and expensive but classy seat post, stem and handlebar.

Mark’s Urban Bike

James wanted to stay with the black and white on this aluminum frame, even though he came back to change his tires to the full color DURO tires in red to match his grips. Here is the picture before that change.

James Fixie from Natooke

This is a nice lugged chromoly Flying Banana frame and crown fork in a very light blue color with Halo tires and Modolo stem and handlebar.

Lugged Chromoly Flying Banana Fixie

Happy Fixed Gear Rider

Kickstand for Fixie

Dienstag, Mai 25th, 2010

Wow, I have my first customer that asked how to attach a bottle cage to the frame so that he can carry water bottles when he rides. He is not a person focuses on the simplicity of the bicycle. Because what did made me laugh was the kickstand that he had now mounted onto his Natooke fixed gear bike. At least it was not a real Flying Banana but just the cheaper frame.

Hard to Steal Fixed Gear Bikes

Dienstag, Mai 25th, 2010

A friend of mine sent me the link to this great cartoon called Yehuda Moon & the Kickstand Cyclery. It is all about urban cycling and life owning a bike shop. The strip of yesterday is about fixed gear bikes and that there is no need to worry when they are stolen as many people cannot ride them.

Fixed Gear Bike Thieves need to be careful

Here are some more cartoon strips that I really like:

Well there are many other good ones. I love Yehuda Moon, Joe, Thistle and the Kickstand Cyclery!
Creating a Hang Out area in the Kickstand Bike Shop
Engineering Degree for Bike Shop

Birthday Party

Samstag, Mai 15th, 2010

A friend Hacene threw a great birthday party in a huge amazing design studio where he has his office. His friends decided to make lipstick kiss mouths on the birthday cards. But not from girls.

Getting Lipstick

Kissing the Birthday Card

Other guys were pretending they were busy so that they did not get any lipstick.

At the Design Studio Party