This company has turned the functional Pannier into an object of beauty, consideration and design. The attention to detail and use is incredible. Guu-Watanabe are based in Kichijoji, Japan, and make all of their bags to order. Each line is set as a limited edition of 999 pieces, each customer order being numbered. They use locally weaved grade six cotton which is treated to be water repellent and take about three weeks to make. If you are interesting getting some Wallbike stock them here in the US. The other thing that becomes pretty apparent on reading their site is the shear love and dedication they have for doing this. Check out their photostream where they have put these on a Pinner and a Willier. Very cute. Love these guys
Been playing around with some cycling and music theme brand extensions. Since we all have our own personal Head Songs, we started thinking of playlists for different types of riding. This lead to a nice progression into some visulaizations for these. I would love to get back into some screen printing and thought of doing these large scale two color prints to be framed up. Maybe 48″ x 30″ in size. Each season or theme would have its own color (Giro – Pink, Worlds – Rainbow) and its own playlist to express it. Will get around to printing these one day, if anyone has interest in getting hold of one, I am sure we can sort you out.
Rafael are a very interesting company based in Heidelberg, Germany. They seem to have built a very good relationship with the Formula 1 racing industry, allowing them access to very high-end carbon fiber material and molding machines. Working with these very flexible molds allows them to do create bespoke custom carbon frames for their customers. Their philosophy is “Sensible, Reduced, Usable”. These frames may look futuristic, but they are built to ride. Their R-oo8 road frame comes in two colors, raw carbon and Rafael white. It looks fast. Features include an integrated seat post (which also includes a very interesting removable post design) and two types of integrated cable systems. The frames are super minimal and demonstrate a fantastic understanding of aerodynamics. (Photos from the Rafael site). I would love to see what they do with a climbing frame.
It doesn’t look like much from down in the village of Bedoin. Honestly. There are no snowy peaks or winding hairpins. It just looks like a big rolling hill with a tower on top. But believe me, what looks like Ventoux flicking you the bird and saying come and try if you think you are hard enough, is a stance it can carry off. Tomorrow the tour will enter the corner below and in the 22km it takes to get to the top a lot is going to be decided that couldn’t be sorted in the previous three weeks of riding. We hope Wiggo is inspired and can get on the podium, on the mountain where Tommy died. That maybe “Monkeydor” will bonk and Andy Schleck will slip into yellow. I even wouldn’t mind Kloden slipping into third as a rider who seems to have found his form again and why he rides his bike. More than anything I would love to see someone like VDV or Cadel win the stage just to say “next year guys, next year”. I will be up at 6.30. This might be the best days cycling you will ever see.
We all knew that this was going to be the start of a four day showdown, out of which would emerge the winner of the Tour (probably). We all expected it to happen on the last two climbs of the day. What we didn’t expect was the story of the day to be a sprinter on the queen mountain stage, and for Astana yet again to perform tactically like a team that aren’t riding as a team. Thor Hushovd spurred on by the big mouth comments of Mark Cavendish went off the front on a descent, to show that the Green Jersey is won on the road and not on the finish line. There would be no tainted win, Thor was set on proving that he was a worthy winner through his own efforts and quashing any “opinion” Cavendish might have. It was very strange to see the Green jersey lead the field over two Cat 1 and a Cat 2 climbs, solo. A day where he spent most of it off the front by himself displaying some pretty amazing descending skills all but guaranteed him the green jersey. An amazing solo effort, a classy rider and a gent.
On the flip side Astana enter the last climb with the yellow Jersey. A group of four containing Kloden sitting Third on the road. All they had to do was not get dropped by the Schleck brothers and they would end up 1st and 3rd on GC. But oh no, “Monkeydor” Contador had to go jumping of the front to prove what we all already knew, he is the best climber in the Tour. Unfortunately the only one who suffered was Kloden, his “Team mate” who got dropped, loosing his 3rd place overall and gifting it to Frank Schleck. I don’t know if the Astana team car was saying anything in Contadors ear, but I would loved to have been listening in. Dinner at Chez Astana must be great. That being said the Schleck’s rode a perfect stage like team mates and brothers helping each other all the way up the climb. All that was missing was the carbon fiber tandem. An amazing team ride, classy riders and brothers.
I have being mulling this over for a few days since watching it and I still find it hard to say – but did George really do all he could to take the yellow jersey? I have now watched the last 10km three times and the more I watch, the more I ask why wasn’t he drillling it on the front – especially after Ivanof had gone for the win. All he had left was the jersey. No time bonuses on the line, means it was all down to riding, regardless of place. It looked more like he was still playing out tactics of chasing wheels for the win. Of coarse the other teams could have helped him, but given the benefit of hindsight I am sure he would much rather have won it without the other teams having anything to do with it. Why wasn’t Aldag telling him to drill it when he saw Garmin come to the front? Isn’t that what radios are for afterall? All this being said I still am gutted he didn’t make yellow. Apart from being one of the finest athletes I have ever met, he is just one of those guys you want to see that happen for.
Sports photography rightfully focuses on the action, but often at the detriment of the quieter and sometimes more emotional moments. This shot says it all. A young pro (Robert Gesink) captured for De Telegraff, in the team car after a stage that saw his tour hopes end. A crash saw him hit the ground hand first, breaking his wrist. Months of preperation done, and a seasons focus over. Yet he still got up and rode on to the finish with the broken wrist, already diagnosed by the in-race doctor probably in the hope he was wrong. But as the adrenaline of the crash wore of it was pretty obvious the wrist was broken and the tour was finished. Same thing happened to Levi Liephiemer a few days later, and his comment says it all, “it is pretty hard to watch the Tour leave you behind”.
Independent Fabrications have done a beautiful custom paint job on their steel frame SSR for Rapha. Understated design with minimal pink bands as a nod to the Rapha brand palette and an exposed polished steel rear triangle. Would love to know the weight of this build. The SRAM gruppo and and Edge Comps (we love these wheels) have to make it a pretty competative build. Check it out on the Indy blog.
