fixed impressions

Yea! Initial straw polling has the disco’s getting scorn widely. All of the (3) interviewees have come out clearly against this technology. Yours truly couldn’t be happier with the results so far. Of course I should point out the inherent bias in the initial interviews. I’ll get a more representative selection over time I’m sure. But for now its a landslide against the rotors, praise the almighty rim brake (or none at all! -ed.)

I’m excited that I’m beginning the documentary phase of making the “Fixed Impressions” feature. I’m starting with Ralph Eames. Ralph is a Raleigh mounted scorcher rider. And yes, he rips! 29′r with 44c tires mostly. He also races an Indy Fab fixed-specific crosser in the fall. I think it weighs like 15 lbs. (kidding). I will be doing a series of interviews with fixers with a “fixed” set of questions. A study of a sort. Investigating commonality. What thread if any binds the fixer to her/his kin. What words can describe the fix. The way you learn to ride it. The way it lets you know its personality. The sensations of ripping rollers like no coaster ever could. Why do we love this stuff? Most people consider us beyond fringe. For some of us the first fix took us and we knew immediately where we were going with it. For others it may have been more gradual, possibly through single speeding, but they coasted into fixing anyway. You’re here now, so it probably doesn’t matter what got you started anymore anyway. Have fun with it. Back to the flick. I really try to plan out this stuff, but I haven’t actually “rehersed” the queries yet. I have a list. I plan to wing it from there. We get 6 minutes. I’m hoping to capture something good. Maybe really good. And then not screw it up in the editing.

There I put it out.

Scorcherer.

Phat Nat! That’s That!
Vulture Kit! Culture
That’s Phat! Thanks Nat!

I am publicly acknowledging the scorn and ridicule I will soon receive. Extensive reflection on the subject has led me to a hearty simmer. I am ready to taste.

I will say this: use what you like on your bike.

Now, that said: I use rim brakes and currently can’t get excited about anything related to disc brakes. I know they seem to essential to existence for some. But for me, another way to piss off a large amount of cash for something I try to never use anyway.

Look for more rant and no facts in my next larger installment on this hot topic.

G

After Joe Montana won the Superbowl he went to Disneyland. When Lance Armstrong won the last of his seven tours, he went to the French Riviera. He said he and Sheryl and the Kids would play on the beach, eat bad food, and drink. No worries. Word.

Back when I wasn’t riding fixed, I thought I could trackstand pretty well on my coasting bikes. At least I could stay upright without pedaling much at traffic lights and sometimes on mountain bike rides when I needed to. Reverse required a combo of brakes and english. Doable in a pinch.

I’ve been riding almost exclusively fixed since May. Now I can’t even approximate a trackstand on a coaster to save my life. And reverse, forget it. The fixed gear trackstand has become like an asana to me. I try to relax and just hang out there in balance with the least legwork possible. I’m upto a few minutes now. I think with some hard work and meditation I will be able to go 5 or 10 minutes. As you probably have figured out, I’ve been working fairly intently with reverse. The trackstand is the place you pass through when going from regular to fakie (reverse.) So it really deserves some practice.

Today, I’m home sick with a crappy sore throat and a bit of a fever. I hate being sick in the summer. So, I’m trying to use my imagination to practice, the only thing that seems to be working right at the moment.

I’m “visualizing” the calm, relaxed trackstand and wondering how I ever could do it on a coaster.

I’m speechless. LA is looking good for the BACK-to-BACK-to-BACK-to-BACK-to-BACK-to-BACK-to-BACK!

But then by George!

Ripped.

6 Pyrenean peaks and nonetheless the hip-hopper “classics” man wins the hardest mountain stage of the 2005 tour.

I’m ridiculously happy about it!

READ ALL ABOUT IT

I’ve known in the back of my mind for a long time that I would end up at this point. I’ve made some short videos and edited them with iMovie. It’s an amazing program that I have enjoyed for its simplicity. Unfortunately, one of the primary expectations I have for simple, well designed things is that they are robust. I demand that they work solidly. I lost some work a few times on this last project. No more than 15 or 20 minutes worth, but when I feel compelled to hit save every 3 minutes that’s not good.

I feel the same way about blogging in a form-based editor. Accidentally close your browser window and…oops! Gone!!! I have come to using TextEdit. Or Notepad. These programs may not look like much, but they embody robustness. If people really knew how much work actually gets done all or in part in this way, hey wouldn’t believe it.

Anyway, for video editing I’m going to Final Cut Pro. I’ve worked with FC Express and expect the jump to be a bit of a challenge like going from the Kodak Instamatic to a Nikon F3 (hopefully you know this comparison.) I’ve been training with FCP for a month. Would’a could’a should’a. I was advised to do my Fixed Impressions trailer in FCP from the beginning, but I insisted on doing the trailer in iMovie to make it “easier”. Lesson (hopefully) learned.

I’m working on encoding a reasonably sized .wmv for friends who can’t or won’t use quicktime. This project was done on Apple Mac so getting it to .wmv is a bit of a challenge…and you know I can’t pass up a good challenge. I should have a good .wmv version fo the trailer in a day or so.

Instantly, the amazing feedback loop of the internet informs me that the new videos require Quicktime 7. If you’re on mac, just run software update. For windows, you can get it here: QuickTime 7. I have been getting great feedback on video. It’s kind of funny because none of the “story” is in the trailer. Hell, I haven’t shot most of it yet anyway. But it was a good “last” iMovie project. I am switching to Final Cut Pro. A labor of love/hate and a long term project for sure. And I promise to include more out-takes in the future.