Archive for the ‘Natooke’ Category

Happy New Year

Sonntag, Januar 1st, 2012

First of all: Happy New Year!

It has been many months since I last regularly wrote blog entries. Because some friends and some fans complained about that I decided for the year 2012 I will try to update my blog.

Natooke shop has been very amazing last year and I hope we can continue the same way in 2012. I am happy to have met so many interesting people that just walked in either by coincidence or because they had read about us or seen us on TV. Let us have lots of fixed gear riding fun together in this year.

Beijing Fixed Gear Ride on New Year’s Eve 2011

New Year’s Eve we had a Natooke fixed gear bicycle ride to end off the year 2011 and greet the New Year while cycling along Beijing’s streets. We waited for the countdown on a huge clock near Xidan.

Natooke Riding on Beijing Streets

Recently we have some really enthusiastic girls come to rides and events. Keep up the hard riding!

Doudou Riding her Flying Banana Fixed Gear Bike

Suan Suan Riding her Flying Banana Fixed Gear Bike

Beijing is getting colder and there are not many people on the streets at night. That made for a huge space for us cycling especially on the extremely wide bicycle lane of Chang’An Boulevard that goes right through the center of Beijing.

Riding Fixed Gear on the wide bicycle lane of Chang’An Boulevard

The remaining group did a very brief stop on Tiananmen Square before the guard came to tell us to keep moving on.

Natooke Fixed gear on Tiananmen Square

Then we went to get some early morning food at a small Chinese restaurant. We just stacked our bikes outside of the restaurant. Unfortunately a drunk driver in a SUV drove past and drove too close to our bikes so his car must have touched the most outside bike and the drove over that bikes‘ back wheel.

Bike Pile in Beijing

But we figured a bent wheel in the first hours of the year brings good luck. More pictures are all in this gallery.

Natooke and Ines Brunn in „China Today“ Magazine

Samstag, November 26th, 2011

There is a nice German article on „China Heute“ about Natooke shop, fixed gear events that we organized in Beijing, bike tricks and me in the German edition of the online magazine called „China Today“. Read it here.

I also saw the printed article in the Spanish version of the magazine called „China Hoy“.

Ines Brunn in China Hoy Magazine

BJ Bikeboy Alleycat Videos

Montag, April 18th, 2011

Here are some amazing videos from the April 16th Beijing Lining Bikeboy event.

The first video is done by Shannon who had his camera mounted on the fork of his bicycle and got some amazing shots.

The second video is done by „Niurenku“. There team had come to film during the event. I like that they went to 4 of the 5 stations and filmed there too as well as of course the beginning of the race. But I need to improve my Chinese.

Natooke and Bikeboy

Lining Bikeboy Party

Sonntag, April 17th, 2011

After the Beijing Bikeboy Alleycat race Lining organized a fixed gear bike party with MC hotdog, DJ Sam Lee and 24 Herbs boy band. And of course us fixed gear riders. Mitchell and me representing the whole Team Natooke got to stand around on stage for a long while.

Mitchell and Ines from Team Natooke

Ines Brunn on the Bikeboy Stage

After a while Mitchell and I started to get bored and started track standing:

Team Natooke Mitchell and Ines Track Standing

Then was our moment where we were given 60 sec to show some tricks on the tiny stage. Mitchell and I did synchronized backward circles.

Ines doing Backward Circles

The fixed gear party included the fun STC JisuPK. It was setup on stage and Sara and me from Team Natooke raced against the guy from Japanese T19. It was a long 500m race and I actually won!

STC JisuPK system at Bikeboy

Team Natooke wins against Team T19

Ines and Xiao Ou

We took some pictures with the different crews. Here is me and the American FTC team with the famous skateboarder John Cardiel.

Ines and John Cardiel from FTC

Here are Mitchel and me with the Taiwan Nabiis guys.

Ines and the Taiwan Nabiis Guys

And here is me and a guy from the Japanese T19 team

Ines and Japanese T19

Here are more pictures of the Lining Bikeboy Party.

Our fixed gear bike friend Peter Carney had set up lights and taken shots of the various fixed gear rides during the event. At the end when he and his partner were starting to pack up the Natooke staff started goofing around in front of the camera. That was so much fun!

Natooke doing the Fred Jump

Doing a wild Jump

Funny Jumping

Cycling without Bikes

More goofy pictures here.

Video of Natooke for Bike Boy

Sonntag, April 17th, 2011

Before the Lining Bike Boy event there was filming of the different fixed gear bike teams. So they came and dressed us up in Lining clothes and shot this short clip about our NATOOKE fixed gear cycling team. Click here to see the video.

It would be nice to see a longer version of this…

Natooke Beijing Bikeboy Alleycat

Samstag, April 16th, 2011

It was hard work organizing the Bikeboy alleycat with such short notice but it was fun and a huge success! All of the Natooke team worked very hard. I uploaded various pictures of the day. Here are some of the preparation and before the start of the race. Big thank you to all our volunteers and cycling friends also for setting up a small booth with Natooke products such as bike frames, rims, wheels…

Natooke Booth at Bikeboy 2

Preparing the Race

The start of the Beijing Bike Boy Alleycat fixie bicycle race was like this: We started running from inside the Iberia Center for Contemporary Art out to our bikes that were laid in front of the entrance. There were 85 registered racer and it was amazing that no one stepped on anybody’s bike. Alleycat Race Start pictures

Bikes ready for the BJ Alleycat Race

Running to our Bikes

Jumping on our Bikes

As Natooke team was requested to race and later asked to organize the Bikeboy alleycat we had to do it the way that the checkpoint locations are communicated in advance. There was a start and end location plus 5 locations scattered across the city to make more than 1 possible route. At each checkpoint there were Alleycat Checkpoint Games.

Turning around a Bike Fork

Rim Roller Racing

All racers of the Beijing Bike Boy Alleycat had to come to the Natooke shop checkpoint where there was a ping pong game. Some came running without shirt.

Mitchell Arriving at Natooke

Team from America Arriving at Natooke

Lining Bike Boy Alleycat fixed gear race through Beijing ended at the Iberia Center for Contemporary Art in the 798 art district on the North East side of Beijing. The racers came back sweaty, dusty and tired but happy. Alleycat Race Finish

Race Finish Table

By the way, we have all the manifests at Natooke now. So if you want your manifest back as a souvenir, just drop by the shop.

Pile of Race Manifests

Natooke as the organizer of this bike race held the prize ceremony for the Beijing Bikeboy Alleycat race. The categories were women living in Beijing – Ines Brunn (Team Natooke) won, men living in Beijing – Ben Wareham (Team Natooke) won and men not living in Beijing – Jacob Klink (Team Natooke) won. The prizes for the winners were all sponsored by Lining. Alleycat Prize Winners

Ben Wareham - Winner of men (BJ)

Jacob Klink - Winner of men (non BJ)

Here is a picture of all the April 2011 Beijing Bikeboy Aleycat winners. Congratulations!

All the BJ Alleycat Winners

Natooke – LiNing Bike Boy Alleycat Fixed Gear Bike Race and Party with JisuPK

Montag, April 11th, 2011

Soon will be the Beijing Li-Ning Bike Boy Alleycat Bike Race (http://www.natooke.com/en/home/coming-event-bike-boy). It will be held on Saturday April 16th starting a 2:30pm in the Beijing 798 art district at the Iberia Center for Contemporary Art. It will be a fun race through the city to 5 different check points and then back to the starting point. There will be prizes for male and female racers from Beijing as well as separate prizes for male and female racers from other cities. So if you have a fixed gear bike then quickly register (http://bikeboy.natooke.com) and come on out and have fun with us.

Natooke - LiNing Bike Boy Alleycat Fixed Gear Bike Race

After the alleycat bike race there will be a Li-Ning fixed gear party at the 798 Iberia Center for Contemporary Art. The party includes guests like Sam Lee, 24 Herbs from HongKong, Taiwan MC HotDog, Japan T19 Fixed Gear Team, American FTC Fixed Gear Team (http://t.sina.com.cn/liningbikeboy) and also the STC JisuPK race system http://stcbj.com/en/jisupk.

In preparation for the alleycat race let us do a bike ride on Wednesday April 13th starting at 8pm at Natooke shop (http://www.natooke.com/en/where-to-find-us). Natooke shop is one of the race check points. Let us ride to all the other check points so that we know where they are. If you do not have a fixed gear bike then let us know as we have a few for rent. But please book one in advance to make sure we are not booked out.

Alleycat race registration ends on Wednesday April 13th 11:00pm so please be quick to register: http://bikeboy.natooke.com

Looking forward to seeing you on your bikes! Let us blast around the city.

Ines and the Natooke team.

Beijing Alleycat Fixed Gear Race Spokecard

Natooke&李宁Bike Boy野猫赛与极速PK和派对


骑死飞的车友们大家好,
北京李宁Bike Boy野猫赛就要开始了(http://www.natooke.com/en/home/coming-event-bike-boy)。本次比赛将在416日星期六下午230分正式开始,起点是798艺术园区的伊比利亚当代艺术中心。这将是一次有趣的比赛,你要寻找市区内的五个检查点然后回到起点。本次比赛还设有本地组男子和女子奖项奖品及外地组男子合女子奖项奖品。所以如果你有死飞车的话,赶紧来http://bikeboy.natooke.com注册报名然后和我们一起玩吧。

野猫赛结束后,还会有李宁死飞派对,也在伊比利亚当代艺术中心。派对邀请了李灿森SamLee和他的朋友香港24HERBS,以及台湾MC HotDog热狗,日本T19车队,美国FTC车队(http://t.sina.com.cn/liningbikeboy)。当然还有比车牛的极速PKhttp://stcbj.com/en/jisupk

为给野猫赛做准备,让我们413日星期赛晚上8点在Natooke商店集合进行一次夜骑活动(http://www.natooke.com/zh/where-to-find-us)Natooke商店也是野猫赛的检查点之一。让我们一起骑车找到其他的检查点,这样我们就知道他们都在哪里了。如果你没有死飞车,我们也可以借给你。但是如果要借车请提前预约。

注册野猫赛的截止日期为41323点,所以请尽快注册哦:http://bikeboy.natooke.com 很期待在你的自行车上见到你!让我们在北京城里风驰电掣一下吧!

伊泉和Natooke团队

An Inspiring Ride with Ines Brunn

Montag, März 28th, 2011

My friend Berta had worked for a while on getting enough footage with her Canon 5D Mark II digotal SLR for this video project. She accompanied me to different performances and had to cope with bad lighting and strange strange backdrops. But I think it came out really nice.

Here is the beautiful video on vimeo and on youtube.

The best thing about it is the music to it that was all played by Zac Courtney with his drum sticks hitting my trick bike and nothing else.

Zac Playing on Trickbike

Zac and Berta during the Filming

And here some websites and blogs that featured it:
Locked Cog
Fixed Gear Hungary
Takeover LA
Pedal Consumption
Froots Fukuoka
Mad Motion Track
Cyclonesia

Natooke on CRI

Donnerstag, März 17th, 2011

China Radio International (CRI) is doing more and more news on video. They had come to do a feature about Natooke shop and me doing tricks on bicycles. Here is the feature on their site.

But I cannot see the video on their site. The video is also uploaded here.

CRI Article – Natooke on Wudaoying

Mittwoch, Februar 9th, 2011

Just yesterday a reporter passed by our hutong and caught Fred and me when we were just about to leave for lunch. She writes for the travel section on the China Radio International website. And yesterday she was looking at the up and coming Wudaoying Hutong. Below are some extracts from that article. To read the full article and see all the pictures please go here: Original full version article on CRI website

Wudaoying: New Life in An Old Hutong
2011-02-09 16:26:32 CRIENGLISH.com Web Editor: Duan Xuelian By Angela Pruszenski
Wudaoying Hutong near Beijing’s Lama Temple has undergone a rapid transformation, establishing the alley as the city’s newest trendy hangout.

A part-time employee at Natooke fixed-gear bike shop, shows off his ride. [Photo:CRIENGLISH.com]

By Angela Pruszenski

Hutong shopping streets offer a unique getaway from Beijing’s plentiful, modern shopping malls. Until recently, Nanluoguxiang was the only legitimate location for shoppers seeking this unique atmosphere. Over the last year and a half, the Wudaoying Hutong near Beijing’s Lama Temple has undergone a rapid transformation, establishing the alley as the city’s newest trendy hangout.

Leading the way for the alleyway’s new life is the Vineyard Café, which opened 2006. For a long time, the café was the only reason for most people to visit the alleyway, and many of the café owner’s neighbors were skeptical of his vision. „They couldn’t understand how a western restaurant would possibly work in a hutong like this in Beijing. Obviously, we chose this spot because it’s a great hutong and because of its location, near the Confucius Temple, the Lama Temple and ease of access, compared to Houhai and Nanluoguxiang,“ Vineyard Cafe’s owner, Will Yorke, explained. „Other people have since realized the quality of the street and moved in as well.“

The charming, renewed hutong spans the distance between Andingmen subway station and Yonghegong subway station. While much of Nanluoguxiang has been taken over by souvenir-style trinket shops, Wudaoying has a refreshing variety of businesses, including a tanning studio, clothing shops, home décor shops, specialty stores, restaurants and bars. Shopkeepers are engaging but not pushy, and many of the business owners can be found tending to their shops.

Anchoring the unique atmosphere of Wudaoying is Natooke, a shop specializing in custom-fixed gear bikes and juggling equipment. When owner Ines Brunn, opened the shop in 2008, she sought a hutong location. After searching Beiluoguxiang and the Gulou area, she settled on Wudaoying. Natooke is the only fixed gear bike shop in Beijing, opened to serve the needs of the growing crowd of bicycle enthusiasts in the city. „We had the group, but no shop,“ she says of her decision to launch a fixed gear bike shop. „It’s really a niche market.“

Aside from Mandela and Natooke, other specialty stores include Save As, which stocks vintage keepsakes and vinyl records. Argo, a Greek restaurant, and Saffron, which serves Spanish-inspired cuisine, stand out among the street’s dessert cafes and Western eateries.

Shoppers can easily spend an afternoon exploring Wudaoying, and all that its unique, easy-going culture has to offer. Most of the shops are closed on Mondays, so visitors should plan trips accordingly.

A „hutong“ refers to an alleyway surrounded by traditional courtyard homes. Having once dominated Beijing, they are now facing the challenge of staying relevant in the modern era.

The Beijing municipal government has taken notice of the struggle, targeting the Wudaoying Hutong for special development and designating it as a pedestrian street. To help with redevelopment, the government offers subsidies for renovating traditional homes, and taken on the bill for renovating state-owned buildings on the street.

I also found this article on People’s Daily Online