Every Day Adventurers

Several years ago we had this customer in San Francisco who kept calling to order another FreeRadical. We ourselves have the luxury of enjoying quite a fleet of longbikes for every forseeable fashion event, but a customer who orders more than two for himself (eventually five, I think) raises eyebrows. Turns out he was trying to live car-free in the City, with a family. He soon started fiddling with electric modifications to his SUBs. He seemed to try them all, having one or another problem with each, and eventually deciding that no one was making an electric bike or kit for a “serious” cyclist, i.e. one trying to carry cargo up hills while pedaling in the 60-90 rpm efficiency zone. So he, Todd, the Clever Chimp, started making his own kit. It’s called the Stokemonkey, and it’s been creating many a zealous afficionado out of “serious,” i.e. fun loving load and family haulers, cyclists for the past couple of years. Now he’s really gone off the deep end with this whole cargo bike thing and has opened a dedicated store in Portland, OR, home of much of the cool bike stuff happening in this country right now. (I was at a fancy dinner there last year and the local US Congressman tried to recruit Xtracycle: “We already have more than 50 bike manufacturers in town, why not come join us?”)

Tim rode his bike most of the way around the world. When not pedaling, he paddled and “cheated” a little by sailing. I just read a well-written, fascinating, inspiring account of the part where he crossed the Darien Gap in the latest issues of the print magazine Wend. Highly recommended for the armchair adventurer.

There’s a new rag for people who use or want to use bikes as tools. It’s called Practical Pedal, and you can get a free subscription.

This year’s mild winter certainly conspired in helping my dome dreams come together. While many talked about global warming, I at least felt some warming in my heart knowing that I was contributing few greenhouse gases in the process of making my dome. To my knowledge, it is the first dome to be constructed utilizing Sport Utility Bicycle Lifestyle Technology (SUBLT). All of the materials had to be transported by hand, dolly, wheelbarrow, or SUB out to my ridgetop retreat via the challenging single track trail that we built.

I also charged up 2 large batteries on our solar array and carried them out to run saws and charge tool batteries through an Outback inverter.

I hereby launch the Xtracycle Diaries, recalling back to my first Xtracycle Ride. I can’t recall the year, but I suspect it was in 1998. I arrived late in the day to the old Xtracycle HQ and the gang was in full preparation mode: Operation Secret Spot. We were off in no time, all four of us, heaps of gear, tons of food and two bicycles, the original FreeRadical in action. I had Murray in toe and Kipchoge, Amber. I was mildy concerned, but Kipchoge’s certitude that what we were embarking on was quite reasonable instilled a similar sense of doability…”steep single-track with 170 pounds of cargo…why not?” I thought, particular as the more sketchy turns appeared, with no time to stop and think…memory being what it is, I don’t remember much else from that trip down to the river, but I did learn something that day that I will not soon forget…this bike, this Xtracycle, Hauls Ass!