I’m trying to fix the maps section; Google has finally released the maps for Israel with street names but apparently there’s some sort of copyright problem with using the street names on websites with the google maps API.  weird; typical though.

The weather is getting cool (for Israel) so it’s a good time to ride.  Some riders in Jerusalem are night riding to explore the city which is always an exciting way to cover a city.  I don’t enjoy riding in Jerusalem because steep hills and track bikes don’t really mix too well.  But when I lived in Jerusalem for a bit it was a pleasant way to see the outskirts of the city and areas I wouldn’t have normally gone.

Tel Aviv is a much more enjoyable place to ride; the streets are flat and fast and there’s always something interesting to see.  Plus, riding in traffic is always a pleasure.

Now that I have my bike back and am riding 5 days a week again I’ll try to be more attentive to the site and make some much needed updates.

I updated the contact form so it no longer requires an email client to send the mail.   Just fill in the comment, press submit and it’s sent.  Please comment freely about site design, suggestions, and any bike-related questions.

And the bad news.

So my bike frame is finally kaput.  My Cannondale Track frame has gone from merely being a frame with an increasingly large crack in it to a frame whose top tube is severed at one end.  And to make things worse, my replacement track frame was supposed to be in my hands on September 8.  Clearly this did not happen.  I’m not really sure where the frame is.  It’s some problem with the importer but I should get the frame by the end of September.  It’s Israel so I’m guessing I won’t be riding for quite some time.  September 2009 maybe.

The Horror:

First, some background: For those who don’t know, tall bikes are part of the nebulous bike culture and residing somewhere in the subculture scene bordering the hipster and fixie lifestyles.

Part of the philosophy of the tall bike movement is to recycle and reuse old bikes and parts and recapitulate them as useful, if unreliable and totally impractical, bikes. The philosophy borders on the preachy when the corporate culture tries to incorporate the insular tall bike culture.  Tall bike riders form clubs and drink a lot and talk about individuality and yada yada but if you want to join their clubs - Black Label or C.H.U.N.K. 666 to name a couple - you must pass a vetting process and conform to their norms.  Sounds great.

Listening to the Best Show on WFMU’s archives, the host Tom Scharpling read a Village Voice article about vandalism in the hipster capital of Bedford Avenue.

Some disgruntled tall bike rider objected to Brooklyn Industries’ use of tall bikes in a window ad campaign and proceeded to scrawl (sponge?) “Bike Culture Not for Sale” in acid on multiple Brooklyn Industries’ outlets.

Despite most of the tall bike clubs unwilling to talk to the press, the Village Voice meets “Darko”,  a member of C.H.U.N.K.,  agrees to meet and shed light on the situation.  The most striking element in the entire article is that Darko is the creative director for the Ralph Lauren website,  a bastion of capitalism and excess.

How is it that directing advertising using all sorts of ploys and gimmicks to sell clothes is acceptable but using a tall bike is not and is seen as sacrilege?

This fad, too, shall pass.

Tom Scharpling dissects the paradox of “Bike Culture Not for Sale” and debates a tall bike enthusiast. Listen here. (tall bike discussion from the 25 minute mark to about minute 60)

I’m working on fixing that.

But in the meantime, perhaps it would be worthwhile to check out one of the browsers that actually render code correctly:  Firefox 3, Opera, or even IE8 (still in beta but much better than IE7).

Next update will be the maps section which I can hopefully get through at least part of this weekend.

According to the ad blurb under the Capo 2009, “with the grit and mettle for counterculture acceptance, the Capo…bleeds the fixed-gear lifestyle.”   I’m not really sure how the track bike became a symbol of the counterculture and I don’t really know what the so-called “fixed-gear (shouldn’t that be fixie?) lifestyle is, but this bike screams desperation and cookie-cutter fad more than any counterculture rebel cry.

The 2009 Capo certainly isn’t a track bike in the traditional sense of the word; it’s hard to envision this mutant bike being seen racing at a track.  It’ll be seen outside of the Turkey’s Nest or being walked along Bedford Ave or careening out of control towards Brooklyn on the Williamsburg Bridge (but it would be called the Willy B). I guess that’s the fixed-gear lifestyle; the bike becomes a fashion accessory for a conforming subculture.

While the Capo 2009 isn’t even the worst example of assembly-line fixie cliche it’s especially horrifying for me because - God forbid - this could be the replacement frame that Cannondale sends me.

I ride a track bike because it’s essentially utilitarian and functional.  It’s a very simple bike that can be disassembled and repaired with only a few tools; there are no cables and the ride itself is fluid and dynamic. In a word: simplicity.

This thing is function drowning in dross and excess.  It’s like dipping an apple, simple and functional, into a vat of caramel and cotton candy and calling the finished product “the essence of an apple.”

Without further ado, the 2009 Cannondale Capo:

Horror of Horrors: Cannondale Capo 2009

I admit that the frame colors - grey and white - aren’t terrible; the paint job is overdone and unnecessarily messy but not horrifying.

It’s the ghastly and superfluous purple chain.  How does that symbolize “gritty” and “the bare essence of a bicycle”?  It essentially says, “yes we know you’ll never ride this on an actual track, even though it’s the same frame we’ve been using for 10 years designed specifically for track racing.  It’s an accessory, we get it.”

The text accompanying the ad is dull and cliche; flat and repetitive, it tries to present the Capo as edgy and casual with (shockingly) a “visceral nature”.  There’s nothing visceral about this bike.  It’s every detail has been planned to appeal to the fixie counterculture  and this offering seems so false that it’s hard to imagine this bike being a success.

The Cannondale track bike is a good bike.  Strip away all the fluff and pomp and then you’ll have a “visceral” bike. If this is the frame I get, I’ll strip the paint before I ride it.

Go back to simple; go back to making just bikes.

I also rewrote the site from html to php; there isn’t too much functionality yet but the php should make the web pages load slighlty faster and provides for greater functionality in the future.

Let me know what you think of the design.

Comments and suggestions are always welcome.

DAA has been great and extremely helpful.  My new frame should arrive on September 9.  I’m not sure if they’ll be sending the exact track frame that I have or if it will be another model.  The new track frame from Cannondale is the poorly monikered Cannondale Capo.  It’s an attractive enough and simple enough design but the name leaves something to be desired.

For the curious, here are some photos of the crack in the frame:

Cannondale Capo Track Bike

Of course the name “capo” literally means “head” and signifies someone or something in the lead or in control of a situation. Unfortunately for me, I can’t but help associated capo with the Kapo of the concentration camp.

Capo Logo

This isn’t fair and I am certain that Cannondale did not intend to associate the Holocaust with its new track bike but shouldn’t someone have noticed the association and suggested a different name?  There are plenty of languages to choose from; plenty of ways to say “the head” or “in control” and appeal to the hipster fixie crowd without using such a loaded word.

Nevertheless, the bike frame is essentially the same frame that I have now except painted differently and branded with a horrible name.  Needless to say, if this is the replacement frame, I’ll be taping electrical tape over the logo.  Of course I do that anyway to keep the chain from getting grease on the bar.

Only a week until the replacement frame arrives.

So, I’m riding to work this morning and passing through Yafo down the main street that that leads to Tel Aviv.  I’m coming into work late and despite the construction, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the roads were clear and there little traffic to contend with.

Pleased with the empty lanes, the next instant something crashes against the front of my bike.  I thought I’d hit a pothole (not uncommon in Israel) but hear this cackle of laughter from the left.  This is when I notice the baseball-sized rock in the road and this demonic kid of 10 or so years laughing.  Realizing that he had thrown a large rock at me was frustrating and I let loose a string of invectives.

There wasn’t much else I could do.  He cackling and fingering other rocks on the sidewalk as I continued to ride.  Calling the police or yelling at the kid wouldn’t have accomplished anything.  There’s a chunk of carbon missing from my new fork that I’m sure seriously weakens the fork.

Years of couriering in New York and elsewhere and riding all over the world I’ve never had a rock thrown at me.  And for no reason.  If I endangered someone I could understand a rock thrown for self-defense but there was no provocation at all.  That’s the most infuriating part.  It was just some shithead kid who threw a rock.

I imagine if he continues throwing rocks at people, he’ll eventually hit someone not quite so reasonable as me.

I’m not really sure what “valid” ticket means but it’s a cheaper way to see Tel Aviv by bike. You can check out Bike Tel Aviv maps for some pleasant cycling routes through the city.

I’m trying to add new content as quickly as possible so check back often.  Suggestions are always welcome.