Wheelgirl

Greg From Brooklyn, New York Wins The Wheelgirl 2008 T-Shirt Design Contest and Brings Home the Phils

Greg from Brooklyn, NY USA wins the first Wheelgirl 2008 T-Shirt Design Contest and receives the prize of a set of Phil Wood high-flange track hubs in the color of his choice plus more. Greg's Wheelgirl design will be available on t-shirts in the Wheelgirl Bike Shop as well as online. Make sure to check out all of the wonderful designs that artists from all over the world created and entered in the contest.

If you live in the continental USA and want to order Greg's Wheelgirl design printed on an  American Apparel t-shirt, send $22.00. If you live outside of the continental USA (Europe, Asia, Hawaii, Alaska, etc.) send $30.00. The prices include all shipping and handling. Make sure you tell us if you want a men's or women's t-shirt and if you want size small, medium, large, or extra large. Send your payments via PayPal to service@wheelgirl.com.  Greg's Wheelgirl t-shirt should arrive by mail to your home and be available for purchase in the Wheelgirl Bike Shop in 4-6 weeks.I haven't picked the color ways yet. But rest assured, there will be one color way for crazy hip fashion cats and one color way for calmer cats who prefer to make subtle fashion statements. (Jump to read more.)

First photo by Wheelgirl of the Wheelgirl  apparel room in the bike shop. Next photos of Greg's winning graphic design for the front and back of the new Wheelgirl bike shop t-shirt. Congratulations, Greg!

Wheelgirl 2008 T-Shirt Design Contest Winner Gets A Set of Phil Wood Track Hubs & More

Do you want to win a set of PhilWood 120mm Fixed/Free high-flange track hubs in the color of your choice shipped to your door anywhere on planet Earth?  Want to make some coin when any item with your design on it is sold in the Wheelgirl brick and mortar bike shop and on line at Wheelgirl.com? Enter and win the Wheelgirl 2008 T-Shirt Design Contest. Enter your great t-shirt design, and maybe your dear fixed gear or single-speed bike will be sporting some new Phils this summer. All of the contest details are here. The deadline for t-shirt design entries is August 1, 2008.   

Given the level of creativity in bike communities, and the continued growth of Wheelgirl.com, which is now read in 78 of the 192 countries and territories said to be on the Earth, we should get some truly amazing designs from all over the planet. If you are not into making art, make sure to forward this post to some one you know who has the graphic design talent and a true passion for all things bicycle to bring home the Phils.

Creative cats, make sure to read all of the submission guidelines before designing. If you work as a graphic designer all day behind a PC or Mac, maybe eat your lunch at your desk a few days this week, and design the Wheelgirl bike shop t-shirt you want to see worn by those who love to ride bikes.

Chrome Dually Messenger Pack Because You Don't Cycle in Cut-Off Jeans Anymore and Most Man Purses Weigh A Ton Empty

If you don't want to over-dress your bike in accessories or you simply don't have braze-ons to put a rack and panniers on your bike, the Chrome Dually messenger pack, which we sell in the Wheelgirl online store, is a comfortable way to haul your gear while commuting on your bike. More importantly, the Dually makes my back and neck feel much better than the one-strap messenger-style bike bags. Now, you carefree cats who wear cut-off jeans while riding across America on a bike that is two sizes too big and still  go dancing at night until 4 am, heck, put forty pounds of groceries in the no-name messenger bag you found in the luggage bin at the Salvation Army for $2.00, and laugh aloud--for now. But, later my friends, if you become a day-time desk jockey, the Chrome Dually, which looks good and has great features, may save you from the eventual neck and back bonsai caused from sitting all day and then carrying the bulk of the cargo weight in your bag on one shoulder. Chrome calls it their small messenger pack, but it holds a ton of gear for the average bike commuter.

My favorite thing about the Dually is that it is light when it is empty. Yet, your cargo feels supported and stable on the bike when the Dually is filled to the brim with serious weight. The breathable back pad works well with the straps, and you can cinch it all down comfortably and keep the pack's weight really balanced and close to your body. You can haul tall and awkward items in the backpack, since you don't have to close the flap for your cargo to stay put. It is water-proof, so your electronic and paper cargo is safe when riding in the rain. There is a zipped compartment for your wallet, keys, money, phone. There are three inside pockets for quick access to daily items. You can abuse the Dually, and it lasts. Oh, and you can completely clean the inside waterproof floating liner if you spill Pad Thai and half-and half for your coffee during a combination dinner and grocery run.

(Jump for more photos and to read about my experience with my Dually; view a typical man purse dialog and Chrome's great guarantee; see why lady cycling cats might like the lighter Dually messenger pack, and test on your backpack cargo capacity with an item that everyone has in their home.)

(Photos by Wheelgirl. The black-on-black Dually is often sold out. I can usually get any type of Chrome bag in any offered color combination. If you want to buy something not on the site, send an email.)

King Kong with Fixed Gear T-Shirt

Need to dress up for upcoming graduations and weddings? The Wheelgirl Online store has your new Spring T-shirt of an orange King Kong heaving an orange fixed gear bike above his head. The shirts and design is from Elevation 42. (The elevation of Oakland, California is 42 feet above sea level.) This American Apparel 100 percent cotton t-shirt in Asphalt gray, men's size large, is available including shipping for $25.  (We currently have men's size large only. Sorry, not large cats.)

(Photo by Wheelgirl)

Axiom Laptop Pannier Not Hip, and That is Just Fine

Here are a couple of ways to get your laptop to work via your bike:

1. Put it in your messenger bag, and lug at least 6-to-10 extra pounds of electronics and power cords on your back.
2. Put it on your bike in a rear pannier. Then remove the fat pannier and lug it into an business office via the usual short, sever-the-skin-on-your-hand handle. Oh, and have the metal rack clips dig deep into your leg as the awkwardly weighted bag bounces against your flesh.
3. Use the Axiom laptop pannier that converts with a strap into a shoulder bag, and carry your laptop to work with little fanfare.

I talked with Frank at the Axiom booth. Axiom is a Canadian company, and the bag I like is on the Canadian (English) site. The Transition Weatherproof Laptop Pannier Single Side 8 Litre is nothing super special. It just does what it is supposed to do at a reasonable price ($80 Canadian). It's made of 1000 - 800 denier waterproof nylon. The seams are sealed waterproof compartments. It contains a padded water-resistant laptop holder. The outside corners are protected with black plastic wear guards. And it has a slim profile. You stow your laptop and attach the pannier to your rear rack via the hardware attached to the pannier. When you park you bike, you remove the pannier. Then, you zip the nylon flap that covers the rack attachment hardware; pull out the shoulder strap, and carry what appear to be yet another unflashy laptop bag made of synthetic material into your place of business.

It is not cool or edgy fashion statement. There is no fanfare or seasonal colorway about which to get excited. It is a decent choice for those who commute by bike with a laptop and don't want to look like they are about to go on a cycle camping trip every time they get in an elevator. (If you hate the color gray, the only color available, spray paint is inexpensive.)

Photos taken by Wheelgirl at Interbike in Vegas 2007, except for the last two lifted from the Axiom site.

Nalini's Cap and Cycling Casual

I roamed around the Nalini booth at Interbike and saw a few clothing articles that I liked. Nalini had a bunch of new cycling casual clothes for 2008. The Pro 70 cap for summer 2008, in the photo, I am going to order for the shop. And it looked cool enough to ask the kind stranger, Jason from Utah, who was also visiting the booth with his friends, to model it for a photo.

A few of the major cycling clothing corps. are working toward making fashionable, lifestyle cycling-associated clothing lines. It is kind of like snowboarding company t-shirts and warm-up jackets for those who live in LA, and hate the cold. You can't really comfortably wear a non-insulated cotton warm-up jacket in the snow, but you can go clubbing in it. Yoga togs have made it from the floor mats into the board rooms. And the entire service industry wears golf shirts with corporate logos.

Cycling lifestyle clothing, for example, means you can buy a pastel-colored non-wicking fabric bike jersey that has a silver embroidered logo on it and three back pockets. If you wear it on a 40-mile mountain ride, your sweat will freeze on you, and you will curse. But after your training ride and shower, you could work the sporty look at dinner and a movie.

I'll keep my eyes open when I visit the local mall and AMC theatre and report on the health of cycling casual. It could be good, or it could go the way of weight-lifting casual. Remember those neon zebra-striped loose cotton warm-up pants that the weight lifters used to wear in the 1980s?  When they stopped wearing them in the gym, where the guys looked kind of weird but strong, and started wearing them to dinner, where they just looked weird with bad hair?

Ask your close friends and think hard before deciding that you are stylin in something that successful athletes avoid wearing when they are not working.

Photos by Wheelgirl at Interbike in Vegas. (Thanks Jason for being a good sport and a great cap model.)