October « 2009 « Spoke Fiend

Race Across the Sky

An exclusive one night event. In theaters nationwide October 22nd.

Check out the HD Trailer.

Greg Hill set to launch new RISEN BMX racing forks.

Tony over at IMBMX contacted me today to check in on my GHP PRO XXL he sold (at a killer price) and put together for me. The ride is sublime, and I probably have mentioned it before, but I'll say it again...I will never be as good a rider as that bike is. I'll never need another. Tony also mentioned that he'll be carrying the new RISEN BMX forks. I have to be honest, I was out of the loop on this one. So, I did some research and here is what I found care of BMX ULTRA.

by bmxultra.com
There are some new race forks by Risen BMX that will hit the market around November and if they look suspiciously like Marzocchi Sinister forks, that's because BMX legend Greg Hill is behind these forks as well. We asked him a couple of questions about the forks and Risen BMX, here's the scoop.

bmxultra.com: Tell us about Risen BMX and your new forks

Greg: My wife and I started Sinister Steering Systems about 10 years ago, after a year we were getting traction and then I met the guy's at Marzocchi, we entered into a business deal where we got the short end of the stick, sold our interest and walked away..Bad situation for sure...I left the sport for a few years as a result of that and regrouped, got back in and ultimately it led to the return of GHP BMX in 2005. So about 1 year ago my wife said "hey, we should finish what we started with the fork project" I said let's start looking at the market and see what is going on. We decided the aftermarket fork business needed some new blood and started Risen BMX, we now have an LLC corp, all our business is layed out with a 5 year plan and we just got our first sample 20" Risen BMX forks about 4 days ago. They're on my bike and I have to beat them up for about 2 weeks. The fork legs are made of 6061 T6 aluminum extruded and CNC'd, the crown is 7005 aluminum as well as the steer tube. They weigh about 30 ounces and look like the stealth plane, very cool looking for sure.

Risen BMX will be sold as direct marketing to the end user right off our website www.risenbmx.com and the site will be fully operational within 6 weeks. Made in the United States. In regard to the Sinisters, Risen BMX is from the same family tree just a different branch and much improved, were going after the fork market with everything we have. The company is formed and founded by myself and my wife Liz Hill. We have been friends for 35 years and married for 16, have 4 kids Gregory 25, Loren 23, Christine 22, and Jeremy 12, also have a 4 year old grandaughter and 1 year old grandson. It's all family and BMX 24/7 lol.

bmxultra.com: Why alloy? Why not carbon, cro-mo or some other material?

Greg: The reason for aluminum extrusion is simply by design it is simple and aircraft quality looking. If you examine most carbon forks they are just carbon wrapped around aluminum, all carbon forks I have seen are not very light considering they are carbon. The GHP cromoly fork is 28 ounces and is lighter than most every carbon fork I have seen. I believe the Answer Scythe fork is 27 ounces however you probably cannot find one lol. I like to forge our own path with new and different things.

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Wii makes it official: Cycling is in.

From Wired Magazines' Gadget Lab

Exercise bikes are dull. Unless it is raining, there is no excuse not to just go outside on a real bike: it’s both better exercise and way more fun. There would be one exception. Say you were playing a video-game so good you didn’t want to stop, but at the same time felt the need to get the blood pumping. That would surely be the ideal time to use this stationary bike controller for the Wii and its companion game, Cyberbike.

Sadly, the game itself looks horrible, little more than an afterthought tagged on to justify buying a giant plastic bike to further clutter your home. In it, according to the gamers at Kotaku, you save the planet, cleaning up pollution by flying your bike over things. Wake me up when you’re done.

The controller is at least compatible with Mario Kart. Alternatively, go down to the basement and dig out the exercise bike you already have and sit on that while playing Mario Kart with a normal WiiMote. The price of the Cyberbike has yet to be announced ahead of its 2010 launch, but you can be sure that it will be more than the zero dollars my solution will cost you.

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Nike Livestrong Air Tiempo

I can remember riding around in my beat up Kestrel indoor soccer cleats and thinking I was a genius because I had found a way to protect my laces from a hungry chainring. Turns out I was onto something. Nike is launching their Livestrong/Mellow Johnny Air Tiempo this month. I wonder if they will be SPD compatible?

The Air Zoom Tiempo Austin Texas will be available at select Nike Sportswear retailers; Mellow Johnny’s and 21 Mercer on October 24th, 2009. Three more shoes, collaborated with cyclists from Paris, Berlin and San Francisco will be available in early November.

Nike-Sportswear-LIVESTRONG-Air-Zoom-Tiempo-TZ-LAF-Texas-Austin-1

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Dean Duke Softail Titanium MTB frame

This past weekend was a bike filled bonanza for me. I logged some serious hours searching the internet for deals on a new MTB frame for my upcoming race. And I put two of the bikes I love up for sale (DK PRO and Tommaso fixed gear). At one point I had a deal worked out with a guy in Philly for a rootbeer colored 2009 Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo. But, when I hadn't heard from him in a while, I got nervous and went back to tracking an auction I seriously thought I had no business even watching. The auction was for a DEAN DUKE SOFTAIL. These frames retail for easily over 2k. I couldn't believe that with less than 8 minutes to go, this frame was hovering around $350. To make a long story short, the frame is mine for under $600. That's an astonishingly good deal.

Here are some specs and some photos.

Specifications

Dean Duke
3Al/2.5V Titanium construction
Matte Satin Finish
Rim and Disc (51mm IS) compatible
Rockshox SID Race (Dual-Air) Rear Shock with 1" rear wheel travel; adjustable rebound dampening
Bi-Ovalized Shaped Downtube
Breezer-style hooded dropouts
S-bend shaped chainstays and seatstays
Replaceable rear derailleur hanger
Top Tube Cable Routing
Seat collar included

Geometry

19.5" Center to Top Seat Tube
23 1/8" Effective Top Tube (Approx)
4 5/16" Head Tube
17" Chainstays
68mm Bottom Bracket Shell; Standard (English) Thread
1 1/8" Steerer Compatible
27.2mm Seatpost
31.8mm Front Derailleur (Top-Pull)

duke1 duke2 duke3 duke4 duke5

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My new best friend

Have you ever walked into a gym and seen the guy on the stationary bike with what looks to be a small kiddie pool of water beneath him? Well, today that guy was me. I had sweat dripping off my fingers, elbows, ears, nose...you name it and it was dripping sweat. It was one of the best workouts I've ever had on a stationary bike and I owe it all to my new best friend – the heart rate monitor.

I picked one up yesterday after reading Chris Carmichael's book The Lance Armstrong Performance Program. Chris is a big believer in 'zone' training, and lets be honest, it's hard to argue with the results.

So, I went out and purchased a heart rate monitor, (two if you count the piece of junk Sigma PC14 that froze up while trying to program it) and gave the workout a shot. There is something incredibly motivating about it, hearing that alarm go off reminded me of a coaches whistle. Any time I felt like slowing the alarm would deter me.

The Sportline 1025. So far – so good.

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Tommaso Fixed Wheel

So, I finished my fixed wheel build. Turned out great if you ask me. Problem is, I'm desperate for a lighter MTB bike, so I'm already selling. Only asking $450 for it, so I suspect it won't make it through the weekend.

tommaso1 tommaso2