A Kite flying teaser, and new reads.

First things first:


daaaamn! Singular Cycles Kite cyclocross prototype.

Reynolds 853 main tubes, 4130 stays. Investment cast Henry James style drop outs. Center mount brake posts. Its got all the right things going for it. This is a 60cm version, and built up as you see, its all of 21lbs. Lightest bike I own. I took it out for a spin this morning at La Riviere. You'd think that there wouldn't be all that much of a difference between two high end steel bikes, but there sure is between the Kelly, which I've owned now for......5 years I think, and this new Singular.



Thing is, there was. Its not that the Kelly felt dead on the last ride, its just that this Singular felt sprightly on this ride. I rode the same wheels on both bikes, so it sure wasn't them, it had to be the frame materials. The Kite was an easy, eager climber. It got up to 'sprint' readily. Changing direction was a simple matter of thought and movement. I've got high hopes for this bike on Sunday at CamRock. Look out 4's! Sam has got another hit on his hands here.

And since I know I"ll be getting the question; I don't know when, and I don't know how much. But its likely next season as my best guess. If you have questions, keep and eye out for the Singular kit at the WI races this fall. Hey, I may even make a MN race or two as well.

On the reading part, I was directed to a new blog by my friend Jason. He has thsi cool blog focusing on two of my favorite passions, bikes and photography. He's been getting awesomer at image making, and finding neat blogs out there in the web-o-sphere, including the Adventure Monkey. I've been reading it this morning and am quite impressed with his photographic style, and his choice of riding. Gravel is good! I look forward to keeping up with him, and maybe take some inspiration from him too.

The other is EcoVelo. Its kind hard to tell you what its all about with sounding like a cheesy rip off of their about me page. So I'll just quote 'em:

Welcome to EcoVelo. This site is the public expression of our personal commitment to reduce our impact on the environment by employing bicycles as our primary mode of transport. By sharing what we learn from this endeavor, while also providing an aesthetically pleasing experience that celebrates the beauty of the bicycle and the joys of everyday bike riding, we hope to inspire others to make a similar commitment.

Its a well laid out page, with what is becoming a common thing here, beautiful photos. This will be interesting to follow their adventures too.

Lisenting to: The Current, Minnesota Public Radio. Drinking; rich dark coffee and feeling good.

Fall Sale! There's stuff here I don't want , you NEED!

Stuff that no matter how cool it is, I just don't really want in the store any more!

Item #1:
Bontrager Rhythm Elite wheels. 29" of course, offest spokebed, tubeless ready. These are brand spankin' new! Includes skewers and rim tape.

From store

$375, shipped.

Item #2:
Easton XC-1 SS 29" wheels. Super nice, highend wheels for your SS 29er. Incredibly smooth bearings, surprisingly stiff straight pull spokes. These are great for an XC race weapon. Again, these are brand new, in the box. I have three sets.

From store

$650, shipped.

Item #3:
Surly Mr. Whirly crank set + Race Face bb. Both items are used, though not heavily. Cranks are 185mm long. Yeah. one hundred and eighty five millemeters! They're huge. If you're tall[like, really tall], or want tons of leverage on your SS, these are what you want. There is a bit of heal rub, though nothing bad. Ring pattern is 104mm, 4 bolt.

From store

$200, shipped.

Items #4, #5:
White Industries ENO cranks. One Polished, one black. Both 180mm, both have a 32t ring. Both just unwrapped from shipping.

From store

From store

$180 each, shipped

Item #6:
Thomson Seat post, 32.4x367. Yeah, 32.4mm. Black in hue. Talk about a weird size. No picture on this one. Its a Thomson post, y'all know what it looks like.
$60, shipped. I know, really. $60 is a killer deal. If you or a loved one needs it, let me know.

Welp, that's about it. weather here has turned to rainy, wet crap, we're losing light quick, and I'm not getting out enough to ride. I gotta change that. May be time to shift hours around.

Take care.

Listening to: Explosions in the Sky radio on Last.fm. And watching a three year old ride her strider OVER boxes saying "Sweet jumps!"

Wheels are turning...winter race style...

Prairie Pugsley Parade?
Chilly Coulee Cruise?
Hellish Hills of Ice?
Wookies of Wisco drinking Wiskey?

I'm thinking February sometime. Gomez is working on one in January. JP in Menomonie is also getting one going.

Beginnings.

That is all.



Listening to: Morning Edition, Minnesota Public Radio - and coffee ingestion! Mmmmm coffee...

A month. Already? Really?

Geez. I didn't think that I was THAT busy. Guess I was.

BRAVE ride, SidieFest, standard shop business, USGP Cyclocross in Madison. Seems like everything comes to a head in September. And I didn't even do everything I wanted to. Too many other commitments. Oh well.

Singular updates! Gryphons and a few more Swifts will be coming middish October. Peregrines will be coming in mid to late November. I know lots of you out there are chewing your nails off waiting for the Peregrines. Stop doing that. Its not good for you! If you want to garuntee your spot in line on either of these bikes, drop me a line, and put a $100 deposit in paypal to theprairiepeddler@gmail.com Be sure to let me know what size you need, and any other pertinent information.

In other news, Sam went to Italy a while back to talk with Nevi, makers of fine Italian Titanium bikes. What they talked about is the much rumored Titanium Swift. It sounds as if an agreement has been made to come up with a production Ti Swift. No pricing has been arrived at yet, but rest assured, it'll be in the $2k range. There won't be a regular production run either. If you would like in on this, be sure to let me and Sam know. More details will be forthcoming. In the mean time, dream over Sam's personal Ti prototype. Nice stuff!

Ok. Off to work. I know many come for photos here besides my random verbage. I've been shooting lots, and will have a photo post soon. For now, a shot from Sundays USGP Cyclocross race in Madison:



Listening to: the wind howl around the house. Sure feels like autumn is here today...

Singular T's

So you want to pimp out the Singular brand? Hey! I can help you with that! Just arrived, I have a bunch of T's available for your back. $15 and they're yours. I have Medium, Large and XLarge ready to go.

Singular Stock update!

Due to the DirtRag review, I've been getting lots of questions on the Frames. No surprise there, really! Good reviews drive business! So I went to the basement there, and did an inventory. These numbers are good for today, August 24.

Swifts:
XL - 19
L - 18
M - 6

Hummingbird:
S - 2
M - 3
L - 3

So there you have it! If you're looking for a M Swift, better get an order in soon! Once these are gone, I won't be reordering till mid winter or so. The Gryphons and Peregrines are being made as I type. We should be seeing these in October or so.

Just a short, business-like update today!

listening to: Boot Liquor;Americana roots music for Cowhands, Cowpokes and Cowtippers.

Dirt Rag review is in!

And boy, was it good. Not glowing as in "this is the best bike in the universe" good, but more of a "dang, this bike just flat out handles really well".

I've already seen a small uptick in traffic because of it. Looking forward to more soon!

If you are looking to buy this, or anything else from me, i've got a nice stash of parts laying about. White Industries SS cranks. Thomson stems and seat posts. Avid BB7 brakes and SD7 levers. A complete silver Shimano Alfine system. Origin8 bars. Titec Hbars. Continental Tires. A list of nice stuff for sure. I'll acutally be working on putting together a parts package over the next few days for those who want a complete. I'm getting more requests for that than I thought I would.

Since I've had the Singulars here, I've sold about 12 of them. Two just went out yesterday, and probably another today. I've gotten a few pictures of built up rigs. Figured I'd post 'em here for your pleasure.

From Swifts Customer

From Swifts Customer

From Swifts Customer

From Swifts Customer

The cool thing is that these are all over. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, California, Illinois, and soon to be everywhere.

Its gonna be a good day here. Hope its the same where you are.