Help Save Odessa!

Odessa is an essential part of the burgeoning art scene. Located on Broad Avenue it has been home to some of the hippest art shows and wildest parties Memphis has seen in a long time. Before they outgrew the space, Electrocity raged monthly. I consider them an integral part of the Broad Avenue Arts District, and Odessa has been especially generous to the bike community, allowing us to show films, host a swap meet, and party our tires off. We're planning some future bike related projects with them and I would hate to see those not come to fruition. So please, give what you can.

First Alliance Bank Bicycle Rack

If "wtf?" is going through your mind then I'm right there along with you. A Jill Turman Memphis Rack at a bank. WTF? But kudos to them anyway. I know my bank would be so much better with a bike rack. As it is now I have to lock up to a tree and one location (I almost said branch...) or the handicapped railing at another location. One day I was locking up to the tree and my friend Ben rode up and locked up to the same tree. At least I knew him and it didn't turn in to some awkward situation with one of us waiting for the other person to finish. Does your bank have a bicycle rack?

Here's how it racks up:

Form - Artistic
Function - Pass
Environment - Green is the color of money!
Points of Interest - First Alliance Bank

Missing the Mayonnaise

How's your May shaping up?

Bikesploitation - The Bike Project

In the lead-up to Bike To Work Day Live From Memphis has started posting pics and interviews with local Memphis riders.

Check it out here.

If this had happened last year I probably could have told you an interesting story about each of the people featured but ridership has increased so dramatically that when The Bike Project culminates I will probably only know about 2 or 3 people. That fact makes me proud to live in Memphis. Any urban area our size should be filled with cyclists, and that's where we're heading. I was riding the Tuesday night Peddler ride with a gent named John from Shreveport and he praised Memphis for the connectivity and the number of people we saw out riding around their neighborhoods, something that he doesn't see at home.

So kudos to us, and for the everyday people featured in the Bike Project. With their help, we'll hear more good comments like John's.

Seen in the Shop - Caribe Basso Loto

One of the cool things about being in a bike shop most days is that every now and then (this prob happens more in other cities) a sweat-worthy bike comes in for maintenance. Not that I have anything against carbon, but it hasn't had enough time to "age". By that I mean the lines of carbon bikes have yet to considered classic, the paint schemes are mostly annoying (flames? come on!), and they just haven't been around long enough. Hopefully in the future we'll see some carbon frames turning up on CL for a hunny or two, but until that day comes I'll take a steel frame over anything. Like this one: a 1990 Basso Loto in the Caribe color scheme:


Check out more pics of this beautiful bici on my flickr.

Now read more about Basso and see the catalog from 1990 with the different color variations of the Loto here.

Memfixed - a fixed gear forum for Memphis

I saw this over at Gritty: Memphis now has a fixed gear forum - memfixed. Started by transplant Rem, he's Daniel's cousin and will be helping him out in the shop downtown. Head over there to the forum, log on and join the discussion.

Lofts At South Bluffs Bicycle Rack

The Lofts at South Bluffs are river-side of the South Main Arts District so this harp-shaped bicycle rack fits well into the area. Of course this rack was also created by Jill Turman. The rack is tucked away on a back street that sees mostly residents of the lofts and employees of Contemporary Media (Memphis Flyer, Memphis Magazine, etc...). I'm pretty sure it sees it's fair share of usage but was unfortunately empty on the day this photo was taken.

Here's how it racks up:

Form - Artistic
Function - Pass
Environment - We ARE the birthplace of Rock'n'Roll. And you can totally rock out with your harp out.
Points of Interest - Lofts at South Bluffs, Memphis Flyer

Tiger Lane Crit Series

Red Ant Racing has hooked up with the Young Avenue Deli to bring a crit series to Memphis. The Tiger Lane Crit Series has had a few reschedules due to inclement weather but now that it's looking nice outside again the race is back on. It's a wonderful time to hang out with a lot of people involved in the cycling scene and watch some pretty fast racing. At race #2 there was a guy from the Trek U23 (under 23) team who just blew the 1, 2, 3's away; to the point that he was 30 seconds away from lapping the pack. "The only one in the photo" as the saying goes.

Not only do you get to see some good racing you get to see some beautiful bicycles. For instance this custom Speedvagen dressed in Record 11:


I've always been a fan of Sacha White's frames, specifically the cross stuff. Always race quality that doesn't sacrifice aesthetics. Really, he just piles the aesthetics on. Check these:


The next race is Wednesday May 18th at 5:30pm. Check http://www.memphiscrits.com for photos and info.

University of Memphis Law School Bicycle Racks

I'm a little troubled by this bicycle rack. I mean, this rack really has everything you want: created by a once-local artist (yeah, you guessed right, Jill Turman), it draws on its environment and offers plenty of parking. What's troubling is that there are no bikes parked here. For some reason they (they being, I'm assuming, University of Memphis) put another pair of bike racks near these. The Jill Turman Scroll Racks are in the upper left corner of these racks:

You know the three most important factors in real estate and retail? Location, location, location. The wave racks are easier to access: curb level parking vs. carrying the bike up 5 steps. I think it would be nice for the U of M to remove the generic wave racks and replace them with the scroll racks. If not, I'm sure there's a book store or library in town where these would be more appreciated.

Here's now they rack up:

Form - 1 artistic, 1 wave
Function - both pass
Environment - 1 works, 1 doesn't bring anything to the table
Points of Interest - University of Memphis Law School, Confederate Park, The Little Tea Shop

Our Moving Dilemma: Walkability, Rideability and the Old Kind of Convenience

CP and I are looking for new digs to habitate so we can save money for several reasons: to buy a house of our very own, purchase a new car and travel more and far-er. The last time we moved, which was only last year, it was a hurried decision. We had a very hard time finding a cute place at a cute price and landed our awesome house fully equipped with a "cat"io (y'know, for the cat)and backyard. However, those amenities come with a price.

The conversation started and we began looking. In the beginning, we said we'd consider Downtown and East Memphis in addition to Midtown. Our first prospect was housed right smack on the greenline, an obvious bonus we thought. Well, it took us a minute to drive there and once we started thinking about places to eat/go, we figured out we might have to drive part of the way. Then i thought about how i would probably have to drive to work and while Cort was accepting of that (thank you, baby), I didn't like not having more options. So no-go on that place. It even had a pool.

Our second and third looks were both very cute and in Midtown, but with a catch; they were caddy cornered with East Parkway and Union. One even had a washer/dryer. While we liked them, I wanted to be able to walk to dinner or the movies or the park. Living near such busy streets limited this option and quite frankly made it less romantic; dodging cars while holding hands is only sweet the first few times.

We tried several other places that were too small for too much money, really dirty or falling apart (our budget is not huge). We have another month to find a place and now with clearer criteria, I think we'll find a perfect pad. It will be close to my work so I can walk or ride, it will be central to local restaurants so we can walk or ride to eat and it will have a washer/dryer (please)! I didn't anticipate having these standards, I feel like I don't walk or ride nearly enough, but apparently I do. Seriously, me and my (oh my gosh my impulse was to say husband!!!) fiance love walking to dinner or riding to eat. It is really easy and fun-I almost can't believe I'm saying this. We run into people we know all of the time and can have a quick convo at a red light or passing by a restaurant. I don't want to drive everywhere anymore. Hm. Imagine that.<3