Category Archives: Building

E082b – Travis Wittwer & Dave Feucht: TRANSPORTland



We met with Travis Wittwer & Dave Feucht of TRANSPORTland over soup and beer at Dave’s place to discuss cargo bikes, the Disaster Relief Trials event yesterday, transit and bicycle integration, improving the infrastructure or culture of bicycling, and many other things.  Powered byHopworks’ hefeweizen and 7 grain stout beers!

Tour de Clack is coming, led by our friend and former guest Matt Picio!  Tour de Clack is an inaugural bike ride in rural Clackamas County on July 7 2012.  It’s free, and to draw attention to water quality projects done by the ride’s sponsor, the Clackamas River Basin Council (CRBC).

Bike Safe Portland wallet-sized accident reports are available now in Portland bicycle shops near you!  Thanks to Josh Zisson from Bike Safe Boston and the Bike Safe Nation project. 

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)


E079 – Kick Ass Oregon Bicycling History



Vincent Caldoni sits in for Brandon while he’s gone, and we are joined by resident historian of ORhistory.com Doug Kenck-Crispin to discuss Oregon’s early adoption of bicycles into many parts of life, and how the past informs the present.

Brock’s 30th birthday party is coming up at CartlandiaBest Bands Ever 2012, a free music festival!

Bike Safe Portland wallet-sized accident reports are available now in Portland bicycle shops near you!  Thanks to Josh Zisson from Bike Safe Boston and the Bike Safe Nation project.

The Sprocket Podcast is now available on Stitcher smart radio!  If you use the service, you can add us to your programming roster.

A list of Brock’s sources for the history discussion:
Eric Lundgren on Governor Geer
Eric Lundgren on Bemer Pague & Portland’s early cycle paths
Sheldon Brown defines: Scorcher
Eric Lundgren’s detailed essay on early Portland bicycling
Stewart Holbrook’s “The Three Sirens of Portland”
Jonathan Maus reports on author Sue Macy’s presentation of early women bicyclists
her book: Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle To Freedom 
Jonathan Maus compares 1890s & 2000s fixed gear riders

Headlines
RowdyKittens & The Path Less Pedaled on L.L. “Stubb” Stewart State Park
BikePortland celebrates the return of Portland OR to the #1 city for cycling

Mailbag
Anonymous: http://gutterparty.com/no-2/

Carl from CA: “Hey guys – just bumped into this on the inter webs on the FB… AN XTRACYCLE  SIDE CAR! Imagine tour with this rig?.”

Blayne from BC: “Thanks for the re-tweets for my blog [http://thecynicalcyclist.blogspot.com/]. Summer can’t get here fast enough. I am preparing for my first solo trip, a four day trip on Northern Vancouver Island, later in August. If any Sprocket listeners are vacationing on Vancouver Island this summer I would love to hear from you. Contact me through my blog. Have a great summer and “Find Adventure.”

Dan in MN in response to the Disaster Relief Trials sponsored by TRANSPORTland: “When I worked in public health I had asked the EMS program if they would consider getting on bicycles. Getting them on bicycles to respond a first responder situation quicker and easier.”

Donations from Blayne in BC & JohnnyK in FL! Thanks!  If you’d like to donate, you can do so using the donate button in the right-hand sidebar.

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)


E074 – Adam Clement: Retroshift



We welcome Adam Clement from Retroshift to talk about cyclocross, manufacturing and sales in a complex financial world, and his innovative new method of changing gears!

Bike Safe Portland wallet-sized accident reports are available now in Portland bicycle shops near you!  Thanks to Josh Zisson from Bike Safe Boston and the Bike Safe Nation project.

The Sprocket Podcast is now available on Stitcher smart radio!  If you use the service, you can add us to your programming roster.

Mailbag
Rory from Kalamazoo commutes to school 5 days a week now that it’s warmer, and is curious about our suggestions for merino wool clothing companies.  Also suggests Bell’s Brewery Oberon Ale!

Logan in PDX points us toward the Global Database on Bus Rapid Transit!

And Chris from Arcata CA gives a positive review of the Levi’s 511 Commuter Jeans.  Brock also suggests the Swrve Cordura jeans if you want to support the little guy. 

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)


E065 – Dan Sorger: DBC City Bike Design



This has been perhaps our most controversial episode to date, garnering criticisms from listeners, guests, and others in the industry.  If we had heard a single voice of disagreement, we would take it with a grain of salt, but, after several voices from the bicycling industry have raised concerns about Dan Sorger’s professionalism and claims to innovation, we’re inclined to make you aware of those concerns with you before presenting this interview.  As always, we prefer that you listen judiciously and arrive at your own conclusions.  Thanks for listening, and enjoy.

Dan Sorger of City Bike Design and I sat down for a conversation last December to talk about his bicycle design company.  Sorger designs bicycles designed specificially for utilitarian users in the Boston metro area and is fervently passionate about making bicycles that work for the people that use them for local transportation.

we discuss: problems with dutch bikes, 10,000 moving parts & a guaranteed warranty, serious transportation & balance, focus on the customers, a staff that understands the mission of the company, the bicycle fills the niche, building bicycles for specific locations, designing to avoid fatigue, redesigning bicycles for today’s manufacturing technologies, designing lighting and aesthetic features, and much else.

Also, Brandon is out this week, and Brock’s old friends Billy SkiffingtonJordan Boldt, and Jesse Califf dropped by before the recording was finalized, so they added their voices to the mix to keep Brock from sounding like a guy alone with a microphone in a small room; nominal success can be assumed.  Jordan details his experience as the manager of a farmers’ market.

Mailbag
Ryan in Georgetown ON: “made a few Canadian Beer suggestions that I understand you can get at http://www.johnsmarketplace.com/Bottles/. Is this place close to you? I would be interested in your bike touring set up: What bikes do your tour with? Are they the same bikes as you commute with? Is the bike aluminum or chromo? 26 or 700cc? How many bags? Fenders? Drop Bars? The more detail the better.  I have been studying Bike touring and am gearing up for my first small venture out.”

Chris in Arcata CA: “I just wanted to remind everyone the importance of using a correct size saddle on your bike.  It’s important particularly in the back of the saddle that it is wide enough for your sits bones to seat properly on the saddle.  Though you don’t want the saddle too wide as that will interfere with hip rotation.  Why am I putting out this reminder?  I found recently a lump that had developed on my rear end near the “exit point” if you will.  Turns out I had a small external hemorrhoid.  Good bike shops have a device to measure your “sit bones” distance.  So just a reminder…be sure to have a properly fitted saddle for your ride!  Keep up the great interviews at sprocket headquarters guys!”

Donations from Ryan in Ontario & JohnnyK in FL, thank you!

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)


E058 – Tom’s Cargo Bikes



Tom’s Cargo Bikes builds all kinds of conveyances from repurposed bicycle frames in style and with finesse.  Tom LaBonty gives us the rundown on how he got into this pastime, how he cut his chops on the skills necessary, and what he’s done with the bikes he builds.  You can get yours, too, and for not as much as you’d expect to pay!  Check out tomscargobikes.com

We discuss individual builds, growing up in Montana and fixing up muscle cars, moving to the city and getting out of regular car use, massive snowstorms, cargo bikes at Alaska Air, learning the terminology, 50 bikes built, Spin Art Bike, Yolo Colorhouse, blender bike, the Xtracycle,Multnomah County Bike FairBikes for Humanitybake feets, proprietary steering systems, “it’s all in beta,” marshmallow roasting, bass player uses cargo bike, Dutch sperm cargo bike, an unwitting bidding war, Tom’s portland hotel bike serves beer & coffee, and environmental pragmatism.

Brock & Brandon also discuss the possibility of stickers, prom themes and sea foam, whipped cream and other delights, new years’ plans, and pensive adolescent habits.  Also: quad frame tallbike video! 

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)