Happy Wednesday

Yeah, when I'm home I spend a bit of time gawking at people's builds. I know you do too so don't judge me! Oh Flickr, how you've changed my life. Each bike shows character and a reflection of the rider. Christina's bike is unique in it's own right. Don't think you'll see a build like this anytime soon. Here's Christina's profile and bike check from our friends down at Bmorefixed.

Bike Check:Frame: Milwaukee Bruiser xs
Fork: Milwaukee Bruiser fork
Headset: Mixture of Cane Creek and FSA headset parts
Stem: Atomlab
Bars: Blkmrkt
Grips: Animal Hamilton
Tires: Schwable Marathon slicks 1.75
Rims: Velocity Chukkers 26’s
Hubs: Formulas
Cranks: Sugino Messengers but getting some Profiles soon!
Sprocket: 44t Sugino Messenger RD
Pedals: Animals Hamilton’s pc
Straps: Holdfast!
Seatpost: Kalloy
Saddle: Odyssey

Hey Christina, let's get the basics out of the way: Where are you from and what are you doing in Baltimore? Originally I’m from New Hampshire but I’m finishing school in Baltimore

When did you first get into FGT?

Summer of 2009 when I was challenged to bar spin at the shop I worked at in Charlotte NC.

How has your riding style changed since then?

I started with fixed specific tricks and have progressed since then to tricks that you can do on all sorts of bikes.

What has influenced your style and how are you looking to progress?

Bootleg sessions was a big inspiration, I’d like to do more combos and stairs

Where would you like to ride that you haven't before?

Greece, Japan, and Switzerland

Any shout outs/thanks?
Shout outs to the Bmore crew, Philly Crew and everyone else who supports!
Thanks to Hold Fast, Profile, and Milwaukee bikes!

Christina BmoreFixed Edit from Keith Teket on Vimeo.

Pretty sweet Christina! Thanks for the shout out. Your lines are looking great. Looks like the Bmore Fixed crew is having a good summer!

Earl

Heavy Duty

All-City Sheriff Hubs

Velocity 26" Chukker Black 36H

Pretty impressed with the new All City Sheriff hubs. Great construction and design. A lot more surface contact to your dropouts or fork ends. We'll see how they hold up to trick riders out there. In lieu of Sun MTX 26" rims being out of stock, we also picked up some 26" Chukkers. These rims and the Sheriff hubs; now that's a burly combo.

Keep it real.

Earl

TOAD Series - Downer Classic

Brats? Beers? T-shirts? Bikes going in circles? I'm no math major but that's a formula for some good times. Come join us for the Downer Classic this Saturday at the corner of E Park PL and Hackett Ave (near Cafe Hollander). Festivities start around 11am and goes past 9pm.

Earl

p.s. All proceeds go to the infamous Ben's Cycle Super Prime! Last year our prime gave over $6000 to one lucky rider!!!! So come on down and support cycling!

Fresh

Sucks being sick in the summertime. It's been awhile since I've been on the bike. Well, boo hoo for me but some great new things for you! Here are some freshly added items in our inventory...

Euro-Asia 40 Hole Hubset

Perfect for a polo wheelset, check out the listing, we have some great rims to match them up!

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Nitto RB-002 In Black and Silver

This bar combines a lot of Nitto styles into one. They remind me of a pair of Syntace bullhorns I had awhile back in the day.

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Kalloy Alloy Track Bars In Black and Silver

These are awesome! Very reminiscent of Major Taylor bars. They are light, shallow, and won't break the bank. Since we're on the subject, check out this video. Thanks Kyle!

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Panaracer Ribmo 700x23c White

The great Ribmo is now available in White! Only 23c for the time being.
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Gilles Berthoud Soulour Black

New styles from the company that's known for their handlebar bags. I'll be reviewing one of these saddles in the next couple of weeks; I'll let you know how it rides. I've said it before...these are some hot saddles.

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Primo Aneyerlator White

We've had these for a bit of time now but I just love the lines! I just had to take a closeup shot.

Be sure to check out our New Products page from time to time. A lot more new items to peruse!

Earl

Slayer!....Pinball!....What!!!!!

You can't be riding your bike all the time. So when I'm doing the inevitable "waiting"; I know I'll have this time passing metal game to keep me from going crazy! or help me get there...

Kind Words

I received this email a few minutes ago from The Mark$ter that made my day...

"Man oh man.

I did 100 gravel and singletrack fixed miles on that Bruiser last weekend up in VILAS county on the U.P. border. Unreal. So so fun. No smoke up your hoo-hoo Drew, but that's the best bike I've had for what I love to do on a bike EVER. Who'd have thought something so simple was what I was looking for all along. I have two customs and neither leave me feeling as comfortable as Ol' Purple. I can do whatever I want on that thing - ride trails and keep up with the cross bikes on pavement. Perfect, seriously.

I'll post pictures from the trip on Bike Jerks in the next couple of days.

Say hello to Earl and Matt and Kremin when you get the chance.

Hope to see you sooner than later.

Mark "

John, I hope you're as proud as I am. Thanks a ton Mark.

Big Truck and Tiny Wheels

Yup, we painted our truck. Don't know if a truck party is in the works but you never know.

Apparently it was a busy weekend for a lot of people. Riders from across the country convened in NYC for some good times. Looked like a fun weekend! Anyways, here's a shot of MBC rider Antonyo rockin' his new Raw Bruiser. Photo via John.

Some smooth lines in this one!

Speaking of sweet rides, here's Chris's (fellow Ben's mechanic) BMX whip. Rode this sweet thing around the new MKE bike polo courts. If you haven't checked their new spot in Washington Park, drop by! Man, it was a good weekend.

Earl

2nd Place Socks

This weekend's WEMS race at John Muir was a blast! Ben's employees/Team Haymaker took 2nd place in the 12 hour 4-person team category. We were neck n' neck with Team Kill Joy but at the end they trailed by a minute. Great group of guys/gals, we chatted with them for a bit after the race. It was great to see Russell, Lenny, Dan and other members of the Hayes/Sun Ringle crew. Unfortunately, only one member of Pegasus showed up, way to rep it up Djonn! Pumped for Thunderdown.

In the works for Ben's/MBC...
Mission Workshop bags have shipped; will arrive soon!

Earl

Light Up

(Sorry so blurry)

So a couple of us did a bit of mountain night riding at the John Muir trails on Wednesday night. I've only done one night ride before and have to say that it's both thrilling and terrifying going full blast downhill not exactly knowing the terrain ahead. A couple of us took some nasty diggers, nothing serious but a lot of 'oh crap' moments. It made me think how important having quality lights are not only for off-road night riding but also on the street. Always good to be seen than not.

New Knog Boomer

So speaking of quality lights...we just received a new shipment of Knog Boomers! It seems that Knog has redefined their light line with new designs. Around mid-end of July we will have their new Frog Strobe so keep an eye out for that.

I'll post some more new items we have in stock, so keep watch!

Earl

Guess What...

...That...just...happened. Bike Snob will have a field day with this one.

BTW, the music is wretched. Highly suggest you create your own soundtrack for it. Be sure to watch the kicker at the end. Pretty sweet.

Earl

Quake City Rumble

Click photo to enlarge

Looks like a blast, 3 days of racing! More from their Facebook page and list of sponsors. So if your in the SF area check it out!

Earl

Cheer Up Charlie

Bummer...it's been raining hard for the last week and my mountain bikes are not getting the trail time that they are so used to this time of year. I still can do road rides but I really miss the trails. Bleh, I'm sure 90 deg scorching temps will be around the corner. Don't worry, I'll complain about those days when they roll in, ha!


Well, hopefully it's not raining for this week's Bike In Movie! I've sadly never seen Rad, so now here's my chance. Hope to catch some of you there!

Earl

Lab Coats

Speaking of Milwaukee Execs (check out last post), here at Ben's Cycle we hire top scientists that work round the clock to create the best products out there. Here's a highly top secret photo of our lab.

photo via repartopista

Well, ok, not really, but maybe I'll wear a lab coat to work one day to feel special. So we may not have Bunsen burners around the shop but here's what's been cooking in our inventory...

MKE Polo Kit

On top of our Polo shafts and mallets, we now offer a high density ball from Franklin.

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Franklin Street Hockey Gloves - 10"

So we haven't tested punching each other with these yet but Matt highly recommends them for Polo. Some reviews of this glove as well as more product in the near future. Size 11" available as well. Check out our new section on all-things Bike Polo!

Earl

Business Casual

Ha, yes! Our Bruisers are not only going cross-country but they are now used to sell communication products. Maybe KFC can use one for a double-down commercial, then all Ben's employees can get a lifetime supply. Oh man, I dream real high.

Regardless, this guy is killing it on our frame. To me, that's all that matters. Thanks again John! (check out the comments, Milwaukee executives...ha!)

Earl

Temptation

Milwaukee 29er - 17.5

Ok, you have to understand how hard I'm trying not to buy this bike. Oh it is so sweet! It doesn't help that I walk pass it at least 20 times a day. But hey, I have quite a bit of bikes in my stable so I'll pass on this amazing deal to anyone who is smart enough to buy it. Great parts group on this thing and I like that all the white bits match pretty well. Pick it up and hope to catch you at WEMS John Muir race next week! 12 hours of single-track heaven.

Earl

Demolicious

Demolition Medial 2.0

Just ate some delicious pizza so I have food on my mind. Oh sweet sustenance. Anyways, we just restocked some Medial 2.0 cranks! At the moment, we only received flat black 160mm and 165mm in addition to new white 160mm arms. Colored cranks and other sizes will be available towards the end of summer so stock up on what is still available!

Earl

Bruiser Going the Distance

Coast No Coast - Quote edit from Brock Mitchell on Vimeo.

Postal Service! Oh man, that brings me back to college. Speaking of epic rides, here's Coast No Coast. Three countries, 1000-ish miles, one-gear, and seemingly no brakes! It is official, we can soon add our Bruiser to the cross-country bike category, ha! Looks like they are having lots of fun, which is what it's all about. Can't wait to see the whole thing. Thanks John!

Earl

Burd Phillips Web Edit

Burd Phillips has been there from the beginning and I'm bummed to see Bootleg go; but as you can see he's not stepping behind the curtain.
The silver lining... it does make time for him to showcase his riding more frequently through these smaller web edits that we would normally have to wait for!

Shop Humor

Yehuda Moon & the Kickstand Cyclery

This one is for Matt and Eric. Most likely bike shop hooligans are the only ones that can appreciate this comic strip, but you never know. Regardless, I find it quite enjoyable. Whether you're a Rivendell fanatic or a Carbon road warrior or anything in between, hope you can get a chuckle out of it. Enjoy!

Earl

Rainy Days

Ok, this rain is relentless! What started as a ride-to-trails then slay single-track and back home this morning turned into a road ride with our fendered steeds. We ended up discovering some trails around the Cuduhay side of the Oak Leaf Trail and decided to do a bit of off-roading on our 23c slicks (shown in the sloppy 'action shot' above).

Photo by Showers Pass

On the way back, the rain got a little heavier. At that moment, like so many moments in my riding life, I regretted not purchasing proper rain/weather gear! There is a lot of active wear companies out there and you can get a headache just filtering through them. Amidst all of them, we just picked up a relatively new line out of Portland named Showers Pass. Their products seem like a great fit to our sometimes heinous Wisconsin weather. There will be more to come but for now, check out some pieces that we are currently carrying.

Men's Elite Pro 2.0

Oh I wished I had this jacket this morning! If you are like me and ride year round, it is a smart investment to get some good durable clothing for the elements (I should probably take my own advice). A little rain or snow shouldn't keep us from our saddles!

Earl

Sunny Monday

Well well, welcome back to the work week. Hope you all had a great weekend, I spent most of it trying to plan epic rides having them end up with torrential downpour. Yesterday's road ride attempt failed miserably; got rained on and I couldn't stomach riding around in wet socks and a soaked chamois. Ugh, however, members of team Haymaker and I tore it up at the Camrock trails on Saturday. It rained on us too but it ended up being really fun. The single-track flowed like streams; 80 deg and just a wall of rain, it was quite peaceful. Then we hung out at my old shop Revolution Cycles in Madison for a bit, always a good time. Anyways, back to the grind. Here's what we have new on our shelves...

Endzine Velo leather Tape - Black or Honey Brown

Another leather bar tape option other than Brooks without the Brooks price tag.

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Monkey Lite Shiney 15mm Kryptonite U-lock Socket

A great accessory to have around if you don't like carrying a 15mm wrench with you. Unobtrusive and ready for use! Also, that's my Kryptonite Mini U-lock pictured, I've had that thing for 5 years now. Locks up without a problem and still super strong!

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Continental Gatorskin Hardshell Wire Bead in 700x23c, 25c, and 28c

More tire options! Continental went on to create an "urban" version of their very popular Ultra Gatorskin series. It's the same classic tire with a bit of more rubber added for flat protection. I'm currently riding the Ultra Sport Hardshell (series lower than the Gatorskin) version on my single speed and I'd have to say that I don't feel the extra rubber. No feeling of sluggishness or loss in tire pressure through the week. Another great tire for hitting your city streets on!

Earl

MKE @ CHI

MKE Visits Chicago from Sam Erickson on Vimeo.

Looks like a nice day in Chicago! KFC?

WINNER! Twitter Bruiser Giveaway Contest!

Congratulations to Kelli J (@restlessKelli) on your new Milwaukee Bruiser!!!