Bike Month Round-up

 

A new bike, new territories, and new things on the horizon this Summer all started this month!

For Mothers Day, we welcomed a new bike to our family; Hermie!

This whole month its been me and The Herm, rolling through the familiar and the strange, getting to know each other. Its been pretty great! I showed him off around the neighborhood, riding the routes I’m oh-so-familiar with, to see how he differs from Sandra Dee.

..and let me say, the difference is just…WOW. Alas, that is for a different post!

1st weekend in May was a ride to the City College for a play followed by riding along Riverside Drive and the Upper West Side,

Just the Bee’s and the bikes on this journey

The 2nd weekend of Bike month, was a trip through Queens, my home-borough :)

1st time on the 7 train

Its been a long time, Corona.

We did the whole 2-3mile route, wrapping around the Hall of Science, The Farm and petting zoo, and of course the Unisphere

 

 

He’s this badass in real life..in case you’re wondering.

After spending the night in Queens with my friends, this day in Queens moved over a Borough to Brooklyn.

I can’t even remember the last time I picked Regg up from work…he had his bike, I had mine..so why the hell not? Awake for 24 hrs, running on basically fumes(and coconut rum shots), may not sound like the best time to cross the Brooklyn Bridge..but we did!

Oh to be young and live in New York City<3

On the 3rd week; it was the 8th Annual Bicycle Fetish Day Festival down in Willysburg. 8th?? Where was I for the other 7?!

There were bikey-related things everywhere and familiar bikey people such as Bitchcakes and Kimmy! Not only was it great having my Bee there, but meeting great bikey gals such as Laura and Shelma, two of the raddest peeps part of the WE bike and Local Spokes movements! Thanks to them, there will be plenty of bike posts this summer :)

Great music was playing, contests and races were ensuing, cupcakes were being eaten, and of course plenty of photo-ops..

BikeNYC photogs such as Jim Kiernan and Dmitry were there and snapped some great friggin shots! Check out Jims Flickr here, and Dmitrys here.

After the rad festivities(and before the rain came pouring down) our little bike clan crossed a new bridge to us all; The Williamsburg

The (wet)faces of accomplishment.

Last, and very far from least, the last weekend of bike month is the biggest of all..I got invited on my 1st social ride, first LocalSpokes meeting, and rode my 2nd tour, the Tour de Brooklyn!

BOOTD for the Garden Party and Social ride includes a dress that you can wear as a skirt(Route 66 $15)!

The garden party was cute fun and informative. Attendees scored some cool freebies too; like bike bells, maps, and water bottles.

*LS’s plan is to get protected bike lanes all over the LES(including Chinatown) for a smoother and safer environment for all commuters*

There is a great community of Lady Bikers here in NYC :D

After snacks, business card exchanges and a bike raffle—Its time to ride :D

While unlocking our bikes, I grab this hot pic of some of NYC’s ladyBikers..including @Bike Peace NYC!

a small and lovely bike group. but what made it better is one lovely rider(Faye) is the owner of a Wayfarer..the Male frame! As a matter of fact, there was three Schwinns on this ride :)

SD’s Brother!

Managed to only snap one pic throughout the whole ride..and here it is;

W34th street near Penn Station

My new awesome Bikey pal Raquel schedules weekly rides through Meetup.com or The Social ride FB page! THANKS FOR THE AWESOME INITIATIVE RACH!

At the risk of making this post drag on, I’ll be blogging about the Tour de Brooklyn(and it being on my one year cycle and blogiversairy!) in a later post, as well as blogging my outfit over on my Skorch blog.

Best. Bike Month. Ever.

June’s shaping up to be just as fantastic. Stay tuned.

 

CC x

Hermie; A simpler bike.

 

Not sure there’s many women who have gotten two bikes the past two Mothers days…not sure there’s many who’ve even asked! I am the kind of woman to want a bike instead of brunch. Go for a ride instead of going to a movie or play.

I like to think I’m one-of-a-kind :)

This is Hermie, My new Single Speed Schwinn Coffee

He’s a big boy y’all. 28” wheels, longer frame(it’s the L/XL model for heights 5’10”- 6 feet) and that seat…I’m up SO high! I tower all those I pass! I was veryvery reluctant about his size, which is why we stood in the bike shop for over 2 hours, and if I were going to be able to ride him successfully.

We adjusted the handlebars a few times, as well as the seat, sat on it, got off it and repeated the whole process about 7 times(maybe I have slight OCD? I’ve toyed with that notion for years). After discussing, testing, adjusting, and asking, The Hubb convinces me that this bike should be mine..as always, I rarely fight with him when he seems so sure. We ring him up, add a water bottle cage, had the bike shop guys inspect it for any loose ends, and just like that…HERMIE IS MINE!

Walkin’ Herm home :D

Mad with happiness apparently.

I have already answered some questions(since I asked myself the very same upon purchasing Hermie) that anybody may want to ask me about the newest member to our bikey o’hana <3

Q: ONE-SPEED?!

A: Yep.. a One-speed. In New York City. Right off of Castle HILL Avenue.

Can’t lie, I was doubtful and intimidated at first. Would I be able to pedal a 1 speed? What about hills? What if you can’t keep up with other cyclists? Keep reading to find out how, in retrospect, that these doubts were just plain silly

Q: Uh…isn’t that a Mens frame?

A: Yep..sure is. Never seen a chick ride a guys bike before?

Q: Where’s Sandra Dee?

A: She’s in the backyard! I could never get ride of her! Truth be told, SD needs a complete overhaul…and I needed a break from all the dings on my legs from constantly getting hurt by her. But that’s for another blog post.

After I repair/revamp her, she will be my grocery bike, my main tour bike, and my photo shoot bike. I will use Hermie for mainly longer rides, meetups, shows, and tavel.

Q: How is he different than SD?

He is way bigger than SD, so it took(and is taking) some time to get used to having to dismount at red lights. His handlebars are more like those of a classic cruiser bicycle, so they are wider, but still swooped back enough that I’m comfy with them.

I have a lot more leg clearance! I hate to admit it, but SD is a bit small for me. DARN THESE LONG LIMBS OF MINE!!

Q: What are your accessory plans for Hermie?

Minimal. I love him clean and sleek, just how he came. I have always wanted a Basil pannier, but the one I want wouldn’t have looked good on SD, it will with Herms lovely Espresso color! Until that lovely bag comes into my possession, I thought(and bought) a Pink bell and Pink grips would look good. If they look great, I’ll get some pink Fyxation pedals.

Q: Hows the ride?

Smooth like Velvet! I mean…DUDE. I couldn’t stop saying that with every bump I took, every bend we came up on , seamless. SD was never  this smooth. Not even right-off the floor.

His maiden voyage was a trip to City College, followed by an epic ride with the B thru the Upper West side

They were on a date :)

Somewhere on Riverside Drive

We like posing in front of signs.

first lock-up..W72nd

On the 6

If I hadn’t lost my bike computer, I could have given you actual mileage of the whole day, but here’s our ride in Riverside:

Upon further research, I learn that Herm is:

• A Schwinn Signature Series bike, and only bike shops sell it.
• He is last years model.
• There is not one bad review on him, and frankly, there shouldn’t be because he really is an amazingly simple bike.
• A commuter bike.
• Covered by the bike shop(if he gets stolen) and was priced wayyyyyyy under the listed price. PLUS, he gets lifetime adjustments for free!#supportsmallbusiness!

After such a successful maiden voyage, I’m looking forward to a long happy life with him. I must admit, I love my Schwinns!

xoxo

CC

Oh yes, it’s ladies night!

 

Know what’s kinda sad? I don’t remember my last girls night. Honestly. I’ve been consumed by other things, I suppose..but that’s not a good excuse! So after a long-awaited return to the night-life, Friday was the day to step on out!

My BOOTD(bike outfit of the day) pretty much are things you’ve seen before

Sandy D. on the 6 <3

Being the city-dweller I am, I often take my bike on the train. It’s an easy way to get away from your neighborhood, and tour all that the other four boroughs have to offer! Also $2.50 for a mini-getaway ‘aint too damn shabby :) Regardless of that, IT’S A PAIN IN THE ASS!!! And my long-time, back-to-biking, babe M found that out today!

Killin the “bike on train” strategy!

WITH them boots…haaaaawt

We take the 5 train to Borough Hall in Brooklyn, which is really the only area of BK I’m familiar with, and map out our bike ride from there to the event. We took the Dean Street Lane all the way there!

yes, we’re going the right way!

only one good panda was taken :/

After about a half hour of pedaling, we arrive, park our bikes, and headed inside this quaint total-DIY studio!

A little background on the straight awesomeness going on here:

Sue Rock is an amazingly generous and wonderful person who is doing something something so noble for the community-

Sue Rock Originals is an eco-fashion brand of "back to basics" separates which are flattering to every figure! Be a Sue Rock Original! Sue Rock Originals is a Brooklyn based green clothing line available at high end boutiques throughout the New York area.

There are classes on knitting, crocheting, sewing your own clothes all for women who were victims of domestic abuse, as well as the general public. But todays Ladies night was surrounded by sorting through BAAAAAAAAGS of bras/undies/nighties(ALL DONATED AND NEW!) in preparation for a lingerie sale coming up!

 

Dude…this wasn’t even 1/4th of the donations….

Sorting bras by number and size gets a girl thinkin’..women are more obsessed with boobies than men! Think about it…Aren’t you always looking at your own, seeing if they look good? Looking at other women's, in comparison? YEP YOU DO ;) Anyhoo, these were brand new underroos, either samples or completely tagged so its not like these donations were taken from just anybody. Besides helping a great cause, the night was filled with food, wine, and great people! Every woman there was just beautiful, inside and out!

O where to start?

how adorbs is Jess? GAH!

Jess, PJ, and Myrna <3 Finally got meet PJ, she’s been my friend on Facebook for the longest!

It was really good for my soul..to be helping a cause and hanging out with such cool women. It was just what I needed! Never again will so much time pass before another girls-only event! If you’d like to help out this fab place do some fab things and are a New Yorker here is the address:

1069 Bergen Street
between Nostrand and Rogers Avenues
Crown Heights North
Brooklyn, NY

Lingerie isn’t the only thing offered here either…but you wouldn’t know that by looking at what I scored for 20 bucks!

Mina-chan even likes what I scored :)

Other greatness I MUST mention:

I took part in the “I Stand against Weight Bullying” Campaign by author Marilyn Wann(of FAT!SO?) This is been a HUGE reaction to the Georgia’s fat-shaming ads:

Regardless of where you personally stand, I took part of this as the little girl growing up being teased and ridiculed back in school, who is standing up for herself and others like her. We are all people, and need to be treated as such…my sister-in-ink Melanie knows the deal. I cannot be more proud to have had this made and to be part of the backlash and revolt against this “Strong 4 life” BULLSHIT!

 

health, wealth and love at every size

 

xoxo

The Chubby Cruiser