Thursday, June 25, 2009

on vacation

tourbikes
Me & Cole just got done doing a small tour from Chicago IL, to Muskegon, MI. 3 days, 200+ miles later, we made it. I'm back home, and Cole is still on the road, and on vacation. we'll be back next week with stories, reviews, and more!

Thanks for checking in and stop back next week when things will be back to normal!

Til then, ride safe & get aggro...do what ya do & have fun doing it!
Brandon

Thursday, June 18, 2009

review & tour news!

this week we reviewed Stone Cold Outdoor's Cooler Bag / Pannier



Stone Cold Outdoor sent me their cooler pannier to review along with a couple of their "square bottles", and I'm pretty impressed- I'm really surprised the price is so cheap!



It doesn't look very big, but my girlfriend and I had it packed with 2 tallboy Starbucks frappacinos, lunch, plus snacks for later...and there was still room left over. It would hold two of their bottles (they're really more of a rectangle than a square, but the shape makes them super easy to hold onto) as well as enough food for a day. READ MORE...


Cole and I are also leaving for tour Sunday, on a 300 mile journey from Chicago to Muskegon, MI. Hopefully we'll be reporting from the road! We'll try to get everything out before we go, but will be out of the office for a week or so...but when we get back we'll have a good story and more reviews, so stay tuned bike fans!

SAME BIKE TIME!
SAME BIKE SITE!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

This week in reviews, I reviewed the 2nd Boneshaker Almanac (42-200), and the first issue of Bicycling Times Magazine. Cole did a handful of updates this week!

He updated his reviews of IRD's disc brake, Jones Wares' Base Layer, Lake's Winter Boots, Portland CycleWear's Messenger Pants, and Swobo's Merino Wool Mens Short Sleeve Jersey (and i threw in a couple cents here and there...).

For One Less Car, this is Brandon...signing off. enjoy!

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

bianchi san jose pro

bianchi was kind enough to send us a san jose pro! we will let you know what we think.

Sunday, June 07, 2009

pedicab regulations

Sometimes I don’t know how I get myself into the stuff I do.
Last night I found myself at a fundraiser for a very important
Alderman here in Chicago.
Why you ask?
Well, the city is trying to regulate us pedicabbers (see article
below) and the Alderman spoke up in our defense in a city council
meeting. My boss wanted to say thanks but was out of town, so he asked
me if I would go in his place.
It was fun! I had never been to a fundraiser like that. I spoke with
the Alderman and he was really a great guy. I guess there's something
new out there every day.

Wrap-around advertising on rickshaws stalls pedicab licensing
Comments
June 3, 2009
BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter

A demand for wrap-around advertising on rickshaws has stalled Mayor
Daley's plan to license as many as 200 pedicabs in downtown Chicago.

With bicycle-powered taxis already operating around Millennium Park,
Navy Pier and Wrigley Field, Daley proposed last month that the city
license and regulate them to guarantee public safety. But, the
ordinance is stuck in the City Council's License Committee, despite a
lengthy hearing on the issue earlier this week.

On Wednesday, Norma Reyes, commissioner of the city's Department of
Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, explained why: Pedicab
owners want to wrap their rickshaws in advertising, but the mayor's
ordinance expressly forbids advertising.

"Without advertising, they said they would not be able to exist," the
commissioner said. Reyes noted that ads are prohibited on horse-drawn
carriages because they're required to post fares, identification and
contact information. The same would be required of pedicabs "so people
know who is operating the business and how to contact them for
enforcement reasons," she said.

"It's a space issue. Where is the advertising going to go and still
have all the information that is required for public safety concerns?"
the commissioner said.
Reyes said she plans to meet again with pedicab operators to try and
find a middle ground.
But, she said, "We have serious public safety concerns. That is first
and foremost for consumers to have the information they need if there
is an issue with a rickshaw. For a police officer stopping them, maybe
it would be easy. But what if there is a traffic situation and a
driver in another vehicle wants to file a complaint?"

The mayor's ordinance would require pedicab operators to purchase
liability insurance and a $400 license. Operators would have to be
fingerprinted and pass both drug tests and criminal background checks.
They would have to be licensed Illinois drivers, doctor-certified and
at least 18 years old.

Equipment would be strictly regulated, with battery-operated
headlines, tail-lights and seat belts required.

The city would not set pedicab fares, but haggling that now goes on
routinely between driver and passenger would become a thing of the
past. The fare schedule would have to be clearly posted. Drivers would
be prohibited from charging more than that amount.

Pedicabs would be confined to city streets -- not sidewalks -- and
limited to the downtown area roughly bounded by Oak Street, LaSalle,
Roosevelt and Lake Michigan. To avoid rush-hour traffic conflicts,
they would not be permitted on the streets before 7 p.m. Monday
through Friday.

Passengers would be limited to three per rickshaw.

Wednesday, June 03, 2009


so it's 1 in the a.m., but the reviews are up. This week we're taking another look at the PBR Ringleader from Traitor Cycles, and a couple products from Axiom- their Monsoon Panniers and QR Urban Rear Grocery Basket. A great bike, and a couple of great products to help you on your commute!

We've got lots of rad things coming up...can't wait!!! crazy stuff....