Sunday, January 20, 2008

55th Surfman Award: Surfman's Bicycle


Yesterday I bought a brand new bicycle, and I am so excited. I can't wait to ride it when the nice weather arrives. I have a winter bike that is very simular to my new bike but about 50 years older. My new set of wheels is made by Electra Bicycle Company in California and it is called "Amsterdam". It has an enclosed chain guard, generator light that runs off the front wheel and a rear rack for my saddle bags. It is also about one fifth the weight of my trusty winter steed, which I must give a good cleaning to, I have neglected it for far too long and there is rust everywhere - eek!!! My new bicycle is such a smooth ride and it is very quite unlike my old trusty workhorse. Now I'm sure it sounds like I am comparing the new to the old, with the new being superior and more highly advanced, however my love of all things ancient has a warm place in my heart. My hercules bicycle is exactly what I need for the long winter months, this bike is steady and heavy and wades through any snowstorm that I have faced. Its winter tires are tired yet true and have kept me safe in our fair city, I would be lost without this gentle giant of bike. However, just the same, I can't wait to test out my new Electra "Amsterdam" this spring.

Sunday, January 06, 2008

54th Surfman Award: Bikefamily


Recently I designed some art from an old photo of me and my siblings on our sweet sweet rides. We were a 4 bike family that rode all over our old hood. My brothers and sister taught me how to ride w/o training wheels and was I ever proud of that first solo trip. To this day, I am the only one of my siblings that still rides a bike, in fact I don't like driving a car. I used a photo of us from many a decade ago and made a silk screen of the image and with some help from the computer produced this image of old times biking. I have recently entered the image in the bike week poster contest to see if it could be used as poster to advertise bike week, but I am not too confident that it will be choosen. Afterall, paticipation is what its all about, not whether we win...too much pressure in the in the world already, and biking is the perfect way to get "zen".