Bikes for Kids

Spoke-N-Sport Had the opportunity to help provide over 30 new bikes for kids at Laura B. Anderson Elementary School last week. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers bought the bikes and with the help of Giant Bicycles, and Spoke-N-Sport. The parents were almost as excited as the kids. We need more kids on bikes.

What are you looking for?

Recently I was fortunate enough to visit Portland and attend the North American Handmade Bicycle Show. I think I posted about it last week if the title of this blog is correct. When I was there I visited w/ a friend of mine that relocated to Vancouver, WA over 10 years ago. Even though he is not a cyclist but loves macs I still consider him a really good friend. It didn't take too long before I had to bring up cycling and how cyclists seemed to fit in to traffic very well. They do have bike lanes but even in Portland, OR there are places that don't have bike lanes. He said that it took awhile but after a couple months he began to realize cyclists were just another part of traffic. It wasn't car against bike, motor against human power but everyone fighting to get to work on time or get their kids to a soccer game or cello lessons. Bikes, cars, motorcycles, semi-trucks, Fords, Chevys and even 1996 Buick Roadmasters are all part of traffic. We all move as one. After time he realized that he had to look for all traffic. Not just motorized vehicles but everyone that is on the road. We all have the right to use the roads. As cyclists we don't have any more rights than a motorist.

North American Handmade Bicycle Show 2008

The second week in February was the North American Handmade Bicycle Show in Portland, OR. I was fortunate to be able to go this year. It was certainly not what I expected. I had never been to Portland but if you haven't heard already, this is an excellent town to bike in.

At the show I was able to see a Sioux Falls native (Eric w/ GroundUp) with some of his latest creations. I also got to see one of my favorite custom frame companies (IF bikes). There certainly were a lot of companies that were new to me (Jones Bikes) as well. One thing I really liked about the show was seeing builders use a wide variety of color. Colors were even accented with misc. colored bike parts. I have put together a gallery for you to see all the pictures I took. You can get to that here.

Sheldon Brown

Baseball players have Babe Ruth, golfers have Tiger Woods, bike mechanics have Sheldon Brown. I have never met Sheldon Brown but I have seen him at various trade shows. He's one of those people that you just can't miss even in a crowd of people. He will alway be one of my favorite mechanics.

NEWTONVILLE, MA (BRAIN)—Sheldon Brown, who could explain the intricacies of 40-year-old Sturmey Archer hubs with the same patient clarity with which he would explain suspension or integrated shifters, died from a sudden heart attack Sunday night. His death was unrelated to the progressive multiple sclerosis that had kept him off his bikes since September 2006. Most bicyclists encountered Brown through his technical writing on the Harris Cyclery Web site, www.harriscyclery.com, where he was webmaster and general tech guru for the West Newton, Massachusetts retailer.

Read the rest of the story over at www.bicycleretailer.com.

Bike then Work

"You can't learn difficult material while you're exercising at high intensity because blood is shunted away from the prefrontal cortex, and this hampers your executive function. However, blood flow shifts back almost immediately after you finish exercising and this is the perfect time to focus on a project that demands sharp thinking and complex analysis."

“Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain” Dr. John Ratey

In his book, Ratey cited a 2007 study that showed cognitive flexibility - our ability to shift thinking and produce a steady flow of creative thoughts and answers (as opposed to a regurgitation of the usual responses) - improves after just one 35-minute treadmill session at either 60 percent or 70 percent maximum heart rate. The researchers had 40 adults (age 50 to 64) rattle off alternative uses for common objects like a newspaper. Half of them watched a movie and the other half exercised. They were tested before the session, immediately after and again twenty minutes later. The movie watchers showed no change, but the runners improved their processing speed and cognitive flexibility after just one workout. “So if you have an important afternoon brainstorming session scheduled, going for a short, intense run (or ride) during lunchtime is a good idea” Ratey wrote. Other studies also showed that exercise will reduce stress, lift your mood, and fight memory loss.

The impact of this research is potentially huge. Just think, some day it may be commonplace for businesses to encourage even top executives to ride to work so they are sharper and more creative when they get there, or when kids diagnosed with ADD ride to school rather than take Ritalin. Every bike we sell is making someone’s life better.

We Want You

Spoke-N-Sport is now hiring. We are looking to fill several positions. Most of the positions are 10 - 15 hours a week. You don't have know everything about bikes. You just have to love them. We are also looking to add another full time mechanic. For more information and an online application click HERE.

21st Annual New Year's Day Bike Ride

led DoWhat a day it was. The temp started at the very beginning at roughly 8 am this morning (0 degrees). As hard as it tried the temp only moved up a couple of degrees. However that didn't stop over 100 cyclists from taking to the streets and riding in Spoke-N-Sports 21st Annual New Year's Day Ride. Although it was cold this certainly wasn't the coldest ride that Spoke-N-Sport has done. Ride veteran Rick Ahler has been at most of them and he remembers one that never reached the single digits. For those that helped, a big THANK YOU. For those that rode I hope you come back next year and do it again. HAPPY NEW YEAR.