Critical Mass Hallows Eve edition..

Break out your best costumes and met up @ Loch Haven for a special CM. The ride takes off a little later today (6:30pm) but the met up is at the same location. Costumes are highly encouraged.. I wont be able to make the ride today (working late unfortunately) but I hope to catch up with everyone later on..

BTW if anyone has pictures of this or past CM rides, hit me up..


ez!

Flier is out...

This is going to be massive! Check out www.myspace.com/orlandoratrace for more info...

ez!

Go ride!

The weathers been kind of funky but you must admit the break in temperatures has been rather welcome.. Even though it's overcast and rainy with spots of sun here and there, the temps make it perfect to get out and ride....

In order to help you get out and enjoi your bike, here's a couple of videos meant to inspire on this gray day (or depress as the case may be). :)





The second one features Tom Lamarche; who rides for Cadence and Brooklyn Machine Works.. He took first place at the latest Battle of the Banks comp and IMO brings a whole new dimension to fixed gear riding. Regardless of whether or not you like this style of riding, the guy is a serious bad ass..

Carpe diem! (seize the day!)


ez....

That ish is gangsta dawg!

Here's a few pictures of the Brooklyn Machine Works Track Bike, the Gangsta. Looks like a wicked frame..





Check out the BMW site for more info...


ez!

Critical Mass, last night and other assorted bizness...

Had a blast yesterday afternoon as usual; seeing that many people riding their bikes always makes for the warm and fuzzies.. A good amount of people showed up and it was nice seeing all the new faces that continue to show up every month. The ride was pretty uneventful besides for the usual crap (irate/aggressive drivers getting heated etc). What was nice this month is that there was a big variety of bikes this time around. Cruisers, BMX bikes, road bikes and even a custom bike. The coffin bike got tons of looks and had the local yokels pointing and staring. Too bad they didn't seem to get the point he was trying to make as many just assumed it was a Halloween thing. We all hit Stardust at the end of the ride and people milled about for a while drinking a few beers and socializing. Nick gave Kyle a ride in the coffin bike and some underage girls crashed the parking lot trying to bribe someone in to buying them booze at ABC Liquors. This months game of foot down in the parking lot got a little rough with no one person dominating it even though dude on the BMX bike with pegs had everyone nervous.. ;)

Afterwards there where all sorts of shenanigans going on.. Some people went to the country slashers show and I was supposed to met up with a group to have a few brewskis in the park which we would then seqway over to the back booth. As is usual per my M.O. I got seriously side tracked, ended up spacing out and lost track of time (My bad guys, next time for sure). I ended up at Wallys with some friends who happened to be in town from Jacksonville and rode home from there. I must say, the ride at 2:45am was nice and peaceful which made for an excellent way to cap off a great day..

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of the people who make Critical Mass in Orlando such a great event. Metha, Nick, Adrien and all the countless others that put their personal time in to organizing this, we appreciate it. I also want to thank the peeps that read this blog on the daily. The support and the encouragement I received from those of you I spoke to regarding this little project is truly appreciated. Lastly, AJ the cigs are on me next month!

I also want to take this opportunity to introduce a new contributor, shablack. Since he's laid out and without a bike, he's got a little spare time to post some ramblings on 407 fixed gear. He's going to be helping out with content and just generally contributing to the blog. Hopefully he'll be out and about on a new whip in the very near future..


ez!

smashed

i got creamed by a cargo van on tuesday the 16th... still recovering. my bike is history- check out my myspace page to see the pics (michaelocalypse). woo hoo.

Hey ho, let's go!

Staging up for the ride, get on down here!

I honestly just wanted to try the mobile posting out. :)

Ez!

Critical Mass 10/26/07

The usual bizness every month.. Meet up @ Loch Haven Park around 4:30pm, ride starts at 5:30.. Last month it ended at stardust where some beer drinking, impromptu skid throwdown, foot down and track stand shenanigans broke out.. Here's to more of the same...

www.orlandocriticalmass.org for more info



ez!

Riding in the 407....

Those of you that ride around here know how rough things can be.. For those of you that don't, here's some visual proof of just how nasty it can be..




My boy shablack just got clipped last week by a cargo van while riding home from work. This is what his bike ended up looking like after the encounter. Except for some sprains and road rash, he came away from the accident all right.. The best part is, the driver tried to bail but didn't make it too far because he suffered an anxiety attack right after the accident.. AMAZING!

He posted pics online for us to gawk at of his once bangin' Moth now looking like something out of a war zone. For the full carnage, check out his velospace profile.


ez!

One Got Fat....

Found this one on Mess Magazine. A 1963 bicycle safety video complete with happy music, a picnic, tasty sammiches and monkey masks. Oh yeah, there are 8 rather nasty deaths en route to the park... :)



Watch out for them steamrollers s0n!


ez!

Defend the Orlando Weekly Rally Oct 23

Not trying to get political here nor am I trying to push a particular view but if you live in Orlando, you realize what an important voice the Orlando Weekly provides. They are one of the few critical media outlets in this community and their reporting often covers issues most of the local media often ignore (or jump on the band wagon well after the Weekly covers it). Last Friday, 3 of their employees where arrested on what appear to be some rather dubious racketeering charges brought against the publication and 3 employees by the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation. Many feel these charges are being leveled against the Weekly as a way to silence the paper due to the numerous hard hitting investigative journalist pieces the paper brought against the secretive local police agency. If you have lived in Orlando for any period of time, you are by no doubt familiar with the MBI and it's brand of police investigation. There have been several instances of where this agency has over stepped it's bounds and this latest instance against the local paper is just another example of their brand of law enforcement. IMO, it is indicative of their attitude and the methodology the use in order to silence critics in the community that don't fall in line with their approach..

The rally is set for Tuesday Oct 23rd at 5:30pm. The location is outside the newspapers headquarters on 100 W Livingston in Downtown Orlando. People are encouraged to bring signs and banners.

Thanks for your time..


ez!

New URL!

Our DNS routing kicked in and we can now be accessed via the following URL: www.407fixedgear.com. We also have mobile posting capability so expect on the street reports from some of the upcoming events..

BTW, just wanted to say thanks for the support and your readership. Things are looking up in the 407 and this will only get better as the word continues to spread!


ez!

This is so shitty......

NYC bike messenger almost gets run over by a van...

Courtesy of the Messenger Institute for Media Accuracy

{run rant}
Having had a few close encounters of the vehicle kind myself, I can relate with the range of emotions this messenger was dealing with. I myself don't quite understand the callousness some drivers exhibit when driving.. The lack of consideration riders endure on the daily sucks and IMO, is indicative of the larger narcissistic tendencies exhibited by bad drivers in general. Since I went ahead and ran down the generalization road, aggressive SUV drivers tend to be the absolute worst of the bunch. Both of my close encounters where with Escalades and both times the driver didn't seem to be overly concerned with the possible consequences of their inability to follow the rules we all agreed to. I guess in their mind might makes right and they are the 6800 lb gorilla on the road....
{end rant}


ez!

MASH SF dvd release on Nov 15th...

The MASH SF crew has set a hard date of Nov 15th as the day the dvd will finally ship out. This has been quite an anticipated project and so far news from the various premiers have indicated that this is one bangin' film.. From what I've been able to gather, the dvd contains the 1 hour feature film as well as 1 hour of bonus features. It also includes a 120 page hard back book featuring the production of the project. Here's a brief trailer for the film:



For more info: MASH SF

Reader HOYLESDEAD posted in the comments section that local boutique Beta will also have the MASH dvd on that date and there are plans for a local screening of the dvd in the works.. Keep it locked for more info!

ez!

SE Bikes gettin' in on the FG game...

The new 08 fixed gear line from SE Bikes.. If you don't remember, this company was responsible for such 80's BMX classics such as the PK Ripper and the Quadangle.. I loved my ripper and quad back in the day..

What do you think? Good stuff or just another company trying to cash in?

700c Draft
700c Lager
700c Premium Brew
29" Stout (Fixed Gear Mountain Bike)


ez!

FBM Sword..

Those of you coming from the BMX world are all ready familiar with the company Fat Bald Men.. Those of you that may not, just know that these guys have been building quality BMX bike frames for quite sometime now.. Recently they announced their first foray in to fixed gear bikes with the planed release of the FBM Sword, their first hand built fixed gear frame. Initial reports say they plan to release the bike in 08 and will sell both a frame and fork set in addition to a complete bike package and will come in two colors (black and a pewter)..

Editors note 12.5.07: Turns out this is incorrect information and was unfortunately based on hearsay and speculation being passed off as fact back when this frame was first announced (look at the date of the original post). Seeing how we like to give you guys the straight dope regarding this kind of shit, we have humbly corrected our mistake. This excerpt was yanked right off the fat guys blog:

There's a decent amount of incorrect information floating around about the Sword, some of it you can find on this Blog. It's available as a FRAME ONLY, and comes in Trans Black and a lovely Trans Aqua. It is designed as a simple commuter frame, if you think you can rip the head tube off doing sick fakie tree rides, we won't be all that impressed. If you are towing someone on the bars that's holding so many cases of beer the head tube shears off, that's impressive.

So there you have it.. I'm posting the link to the Sword site in order to avoid spreading any more dis-information regarding this frame.




ez!

** OTown Bicycle Weekend Nov 30-Dec 2nd **

From the people who brought you the first Orlando Rat Race:

THE ORLANDO BICYCLE WEEKEND!!!!
November 30th-December 2nd

Schedule
Friday- CRITICAL BLAST!
this will be critical mass at the same time and place, but it's going to be a little bit more exciting(you'll see). we are also going to have great after parties to celebrate the start of the weekend. (venue tba)

Saturday- ALLEY CAT RACE!!
(theme to be announced)
The second orlando alley cat race! this time will be a little different and will have a theme that we announcing soon enough. It will be followed by another party with live bands, catered food, beer, WATER, and all sorts of fun. (venue tba)

Sunday- BICYCLE BONANZA FUN DAY!!!
This will be a very special day for the whole community. We are going to be having a all day bicycle bazaar/fun-day. We are having- Tents with local shops and groups selling/giving things away, Workshops throughout the day discussing and teaching skills. food, drinks(alcoholic and non), live music, raffles, Games(footdown, skid contests, sprints/races, freestyles, etc.), riders doing tricks, and much more. all agesare encouraged to come. bring your kids/younger siblings/nieces/nephews/parents/uncle/aunts/ dead family member/whatever. (venue to be announced)

*this would be a good day for younger kids to come learn how to take care and fix their bicycle.

There will be more and more updates this week. hope to see you all come out again!

Adrien, Metha, and Nick

contact Adrien at shredsofadrien@gmail.com

Critical Mass rides for October..

This month we are lucky enough enjoi the standard last Friday ride on Oct 26th as well as a Halloween ride scheduled for Oct 31st. Costumes are highly encouraged for the Hallows Eve ride and from the sounds of it, it looks like it's going to be a lot of fun.. Check http://orlandocriticalmass.org/ for more info....

Maybe I'll put on some tight leather pants, get some fake devil locks and do my impression of an overweight Glen Danzig.. Talk about fukin scary...

"we walk the steets at night, we go where eagle dare!"

ez!

Sup peeps!

Introductory first post! Keep it locked for bike happenings in the 407 as well as bike related ramblings from our group of contributors!

ez!


>tbm