Pedal on Parliament Edinburgh

pedal on parliament was amazing. Came across from Glasgow on the train

best kind of luggage

and then joined up with another Brompton rider who showed me a nice way down to Leith on the cycle path (old railway)

Joined up with a feeder ride in Leith

small leith feeder ride

then on to the park where the crowds got bigger and bigger

an hour before the start and already 1000 bikes

then a wait for the off

clogged meadow road

then down the royal mile

clogged pt2

and eventually to parliament where we could barely hear a word of the speeches on a feeble PA … but message to holyrood is strong if a bit silent …

FROM Pedal on Parliament SITE Just wow. When PoP thought of this we wondered if we might get 300 riders out. Then we raised our sights a little and started to hope we’d see a thousand. As we stood at the top of Middle Meadow Walk and saw the bikes come pouring in from all directions we began to think we’d started something big but we didn’t know how big until the head of the ride reached Holyrood while the back was still leaving the Meadows. The police’s conservative estimate was that 2,500 of you were out there pedalling on Parliament and we suspect it might be even more. In fact, we think that more people turned out to ride with us than have even signed the petition, showing the depths of feeling that was out there among people to see safer cycling.

There will be more as we digest all the great photos and videos, blog posts and testimonies that have been pouring in since the moment the ride started to assemble in the Meadows. We’d like to thank you all who turned out – not just for turning out but for being such a great, good natured and patient crowd. We’d like to thank the police for their assistance at a ride that turned out to be up to ten times larger than they were expecting. And, with a few grumpy exceptions we’d like to thank the people of Edinburgh for allowing us to have our moment in the sun – and in many cases, cheering us on.

Please, keep posting your pictures on our Flickr group and adding your stories on the Facebook group, keep tweeting them your videos and blog posts, and keep signing the petition(which will be up for a few weeks yet before we formally lodge it with the Scottish Government. And keep watching this space – we need to keep in contact because, for all the warm words from our politicians at Holyrood today, changing government policy to bring about the real changes needed to make Scotland a cycle friendly country. We’ll let you know what happens next soon, but for now the (exhausted) people who brought you Pedal on Parliament are going to have an early night…

The joy of cycling

Reblogged from John Buno Adventures.com - Your Travel guide on Cycle Tours and Backpacking Trips in the Philippine Islands:

‎”the joy of cycling is when you go to a new place and discover more about yourself than actually where you’re going”- johnbunoadventures

who wouldn't smile on a brompton

Brompton touring on a folding bike

Saw this pic on http://www.loadedtouringbikes.com/ – amazing and a very brave man to tour …. But it does make so much sense. A dynamo light hub would perfect the setup.

Small wheels big difference – brompton bikes lands end to John o groats

On brompton bikes no less – please go to site and donate £1 or £100…..
Whats more you can join them in the adventure …. Have a look at their site http://www.smallwheelsbigdifference.org/

When:

Starting at Land’s End on Saturday 16th June, arriving in John O’Groats a fortnight later on 30th June 2012.

———————————————

How:

“Nothing gives the English more pleasure, in a quiet but determined sort of way, than to do things oddly!”

Bill Bryson hadn’t heard of our project when he wrote that but if ever he needs evidence to back up his opinion, he need look no further than our website…

Though traditionally considered better suited to nipping around the road of London and folding neatly alongside your train seat, we think Brompton fold-up bikes are a brilliant way to take us the 1000 miles up the British Isles. Made in England, Bromptons are built to be durable and comfortable, and we’re looking forward to taking ours to pastures new!

Where:

Land’s End to John O’Groats; from the most south-westerly to the most north-easterly points in the British Isles. Almost 1000 miles, it is widely recognised as one of the most challenging long-distance bike rides in Europe. From the rolling hills of Cornwall and Devon, to the stunning views of western Scotland via the speedy flats of the Midlands, the route we have chosen will be as varied and interesting as possible.

June	Start	End	Miles	Difficult
16th	Lands End	Padstow	56	*
17th	Padstow	Barnstaple	77	*
18th	Barnstaple	Weston-S-M	79	*
19th	Weston-S-M	Ross-on-Wye	67
20th	Ross-on-Wye	Shrewsbury	70
21st	Shrewsbury	Liverpool	63
22nd	Liverpool	Lancaster	70
23rd	Lancaster	Keswick	58	*
24th	Keswick	Dumfries	66
25th	Dumfries	Ardrossan	74
26th	Ardrossan	Lochgilphead	56	*
27th	Lochgilphead	Fort William	78	*
28th	Fort William	Inverness	64
29th	Inverness	Brora	63
30th	Brora	John O’Groats	63

Nb/ We continue to optimise the route as we complete more research and consult experienced riders therefore the above is subject to change subtly. Our current plans are included, however, so that anyone interested can work out when/where to join in, and so that experience riders can offer any advice on our chosen path.

A new very special brompton

broken news on road.cc

London folding bike specialists Brompton have sneak peeked a Special Edition for the forthcoming London Bike Show coming up in only 36 hours. There will only be 500 of the black London Bromptons made and apart from unique graphics designed and installed by Clerkenwell artist Vic Lee, each bike will come with a signed print by the artist as well as some unique parts including the flap for Brompton’s unique front bag featuring the same London-inspired design, black mudguards and a Brooks leather saddle and matching grips.

Vic Lee is the very same artist who hand painted two Brompton prize bikes won by the Rachael Elliot and Michael Hutchinson, the Brompton World Champions at Blenheim back in the summer and he’s obviously developed a taste for the work because 500 of these beauties will be more of a challenge.

According to Vic Lee, “I initially worked with Brompton on a one-off, hand-drawn design for the prize bikes for the 2011 Brompton World Championship. These got a lot of attention so we started to investigate if there was any way we could do something similar on slightly large scale. I have been creating this style of London-inspired schemes for a couple of years now; it is great to see this translated into the London Brompton.”

Brompton’s Sales and Marketing Director, Emerson Roberts says, “In a year when the world’s eyes will be turned on London, we wanted to come up with something really special to celebrate the personality of this great city. We’ve been fans of Vic’s work for a while and he was the obvious choice for this limited run of London Bromptons. Vic lives and breathes this city and that was important to us as it’s where every Brompton is made and assembled.

“The final result looks fantastic, and it was no surprise to me that every one of the 500 was snapped up by our trade customers within two days of the factory reopening last week; consumers wishing to buy a London Brompton will have to be very quick.”

And they have to come up with £1,475 which reflects the extra work and Brooks saddle. Otherwise at Excel Brompton will be showing off a new ‘H’ format handlebar “along with a number of other developments .”

Details: http://www.brompton.co.uk

Brompton Bikes in Madrid

Gotta love this video – especially the guy in a Leopard Trek skin suit …. only the Spanish and Italians could get away with that …

 

Brompton to Edinburgh

Annoying when Jolene decides that she wants to ride the brompton. Off to Edinburgh to chat to a creative agency.

the brompton bike video

Friday is cleaning day

Got home and cleaned the Brompton today for the first time in ages. Used some of the Muc Off I use on the mtb and the bike cleaned up real well. I sprayed the bike down first then left Muc Off on for a while – then a quick scrub down with a brush and weeks of oil and street grime were gone.

Waiting for the train with my Brompton

The Part you don’t see is the tut tut of mothers as we cycled through the park to the school with ruby on the lowered seat and me cycling her at 20km/h to get her there before the bell. This is my first foray onto the train and it was fun.

Team Brompton in DA House

Watch the video – team clonc rulz …… as the young kids say. They do things on their brompton I would do on mine …. or my mtb …… this will be up as I huff and puff my way around  75km 50km of hopefully dry Wales

Very good

Howies T shirt BROMPTON

Have been reliably informed by my better half that at over 40 I should refrain from wearing slogan t-shirts.

But this one from Howies is worth a punt

£25

Travels with my Brompton

Recently traveled back from the middle east and used the brompton hard case to transport the bike back. I must be paranoid because I always think baggage handlers will see the case as just a problem to be broken (quite literally). FRAGILE stickers almost seem to be an incentive for them to add on afterwards ‘….. Yes it was’ but still I thought it may help so I got a few extra stickers and plastered them all over the case. This bag actually has to two locks and a velcro strap which helps strap the case together. I never bothered locking the case just in case the customs people wanted to join the Break-a-case crowd.
So one small flight followed by 2 Emirates flights and I waited by the carousel in glasgow to pick it up. I also picked up my emails and read as a colleague hoped that the case made it as he saw it in Kuwait…..
Luckily it had without too much scuffing. Now it’s back in glasgow and will go back to being commute bike for jaunts to work as well as my daughters school run when they cycle in. Will also know have the chance to replace the broken spoke and re-oil the brooks B17 saddle, as despite 1000+miles under my arse it is yet to indent properly to my sit bones. Yet another reason to buy a Brooks saddle secondhand. In fact have a spare SH brooks swallow I bought on flea-bay that I might swap out with.

Traveled anywhere with your bike lately?

Strange Commutes on my Brompton – continued

Not a normal commute to work when it is 40 degrees and the route goes past a prison and a stretch of American Hardware including M1 Abrams tanks

Brompton Rental – sadly only in Guilford …

rental cages

The UK’s first self-service Brompton rental scheme has launched at Guilford station. If only this was nationwide ……

South West Trains has joined forces with the folding bicycle company ‘in a bid to encourage passengers to cycle as part of a fully integrated low carbon journey combining bike and train.’

Rental costs from £1.60 per day and users are required to register and purchase a smartcard online from http://pilot.bromptondock.co.uk/pilot.php

The 80 bikes are available to South West Trains season tickets holders and members of the public and are stored in lockers on just one car parking space, powered by solar-panels, manufactured in the UK and made from 95 per cent recycled material.

“In the last 10 years, bike journeys have increased 10 fold,” said Brompton managing director Mark Antwis. “This is the first Brompton dock in the country and we believe this will make bike journeys even more attractive and set people free by providing a ready to ride high quality Brompton bike to rent.”

 

’5 Secrets to the Brompton’s Success’ NYCEwheels

From NYCEwheels

There are a million folding bikes out there. Some smaller, some larger, but all of a similar design. The are only a few that break the mold and start out in a new direction. The Brompton was one of the first to defy convention and approach folding in an entirely new way. This fresh approach, born of a struggle for acceptance with Britain’s cycling industry of the late 1970s, set a new standard for lightweight and compact folding bicycles which has yet to be bested. The simplicity, practicality, and sheer genius of the Brompton’s folding mechanism developed over the course of several long years of experimentation.

Brompton breaks the folding bike mold
Traditionally, the folding bike has been an adaptation of the regular bicycle. Most early folding bicycles were simply a regular bicycle with a hinge upon which they would fold in half. This simple and straight forward approach certainly reduces the size of these bicycles considerably, but the folded package is often too cumbersome to be handled easily and not quite small enough to be carried by hand.

Enter the Brompton. Andrew Ritchey, finding the folding bikes of his day to be all too complex and unsatisfactory set out to create the best folding bike possible. His goal was to create a folding bike with the dimensions of a normal bike but of a weight and size which could be carried on a bus or train with ease. This was no simple challenge; it meant abandoning the old and starting with a fresh approach. Luckily, Ritchey had a few tricks up his sleeve. To start he would throw all of the old rules of folding bikes.

Bromtpon’s initial folding bike innovations
The perfect compact bike would fit into cars, trains, and busses without tiring out the rider or getting fellow passengers covered in chain grease. The first two Brompton innovations made short work of these problems. Instead of adapting the traditional 2 piece folding design where a bike folded in half on itself, the Brompton would fold in 3rds. This seemingly impossible task was achieved via Ritchey’s 2nd great idea: a rear wheel which flipped under the bike, rather than folding horizontally. These two strokes of genius allow the Brompton to fold with its two 16 inch wheels next to each other, neatly hiding the chain in between and reducing the folded bike’s height and length to only a few inches greater than the wheels themselves.

More fresh approaches to the folding bicycle
While there were many incarnations of the Brompton over the years, the final product incorporated several more innovative approaches the folding bike. Handlebars had long created problems for folding bicycle engineers. The Brompton yet again approached this aspect of the folding bicycle in a new way. Instead of long curved handlebars which wind-milled out and down to meet the front wheel the Brompton was designed with a skewed hinge which allowed a single handlebar stem to fold flat against the front wheel, saving a crucial inch or two in the process.

Speaking of the front wheel, here is another case where Ritchey’s mastery really shines. Yet again defying conventional wisdom, the Brompton’s front wheel remains facing forward when folded. This simple yet mind boggling feature once again pulls the whole package closer together and makes for a more compact folding bike. The final touch to the Brompton design, one which was part of the design from nearly the beginning is a retractable seat post which when fully lowered locks the frame together. This is what makes carrying the Brompton so practical. No matter how much it is jostled or shaken or bounced the frame will not unfold itself with the seat down. That means a lot when your running to catch the next train in the morning.

Brompton design works miracles
There’s no mistaking the work of a master engineer and genius designer in the Brompton folding bicycle. Standing alone among countless redundant and copy cat designs, it remains unchallenged as the most compact and truly practical folding bike. It’s incredible folding mechanism is so simple and elegant that once you’ve seen it you can hardly understand why anyone would do it differently. Yet this is a folding bicycle which defied convention, striking out boldly into new territory and laying down a new standard. The Brompton is by far the most well thought out and incredible folding bike to date. The secret is all in the design.

Boris Brompton Bike

Keeping on the Friday Brompton theme … I see Boris made a trip to the factory that a lot of commuters are glad exist …. the only thing that could make Brompton better is a belt driven version but that is a post for another time …..

 

LONDON, UK – To promote the UK capital’s business successes outside the Square Mile, and to see the role businesses like Brompton play in supporting London’s economy, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, visited the Brompton Bicycle factory in West London.

 

Boris Johnson is known in the UK and abroad as the bicycling Mayor after the introduction of the Barclays-liveried “Boris’s bikes” rental system last year.

 

After paying Fuller’s Brewery a visit in Chiswick, the Mayor rode on a Brompton bicycle with Brompton’s Managing Director, Will Butler-Adams, for the short ride to the factory in Brentford. Here he met several members of Brompton’s staff and the manufacturing facility.

 

Boris said of the visit: “Here Brompton are building their bikes by the Great West Road; it’s just a great example of the diversity of manufacturing found here in London.”

 

Will said: “It is fantastic to have the Mayor of London visit the factory and see what we are doing first hand. We take great pride in making a quality product here in the capital, and getting Boris in the saddle was a great way to demonstrate the product. We had a lot of fun on the ride from Chiswick; I think he really liked the bike!”

 

The Little Magic Bike – from EcoVelo

I love EcoVelo – here’s a story – I have similar machine love for my Brompton

I had an amazing day on my Brompton today. It was a typical work day but I had a meeting scheduled for after work, and because I needed to get across town from the office to the meeting, the little Brommie came with me all the way in on the train instead of staying back at the bike locker.

Wow, what an awesome little machine for multi-modal commuting and city riding. I hadn’t ridden it in the city for a while and I’d almost forgotten how well-suited it is to urban traffic. It is so precise and responsive at speed, yet it handles wonderfully at walking speed for threading through pedestrians or snaking through narrow alleyways. Just perfect for a crowded city.

Where it really shines is on the train though. If you’ve ever taken a bike on a busy commuter train with too few rack spaces for the number of bikes, you know that entering and exiting the train while everyone is jockeying for position can be more than a little nerve-wracking. The cool thing is that because the Brompton can fit even the smallest rack space, or better yet, fold up and stow behind a seat, you can just stand back, relax, and wait until everyone is finished before boarding. What a difference.

When I arrived at the meeting location, I folded the Brommie and brought it in with me. I placed it along with my C-Bag next to where I was seated and waited for my appointment. It was cool to think that such a tiny package enabled me to get across a sprawling suburb, onto a crowded train, then across a dense urban area with so little fuss, all the while carrying a computer, camera, food, water, a change of clothes, and other personal items. Pretty incredible technology.

The best thing is simply that the bike is so much fun to ride. It’s a cool looking machine that gets lots of comments and starts conversations wherever it goes. Just today I folded it for a half-dozen curious people who were wowed and amazed by what one person dubbed “the little magic bike”.

In praise of the Brompton Raw Laquer

Saw this article and had to spread it – check him out here

Raw Lacquer Folding Bikes and Kick Scooters

by PETER on APRIL 8, 2011

What is it about a clear finish over hand built steel bicycle and kick scooter frames that is so enchanting? Here at NYCeWheels, we’re a bit obsessed with this color scheme. Bert, Mark, and I all ride Raw Lacquer Brompton folding bikes and our custom built kick scooter, the KickPed, shares this flat clear finish.

Raw lacquer Brompton, Raw lacquer KickPed, and Peters Raw lacquer bike frame

I think what attracts me most to a clear finish on a folding bike on kick scooter is the exposed construction. We tend to boast about the quality hand crafted workmanship of the Brompton bike and KickPed scooter and the clear finish really shows this off. It’s easy to stand by a product you can visually verify is well made.

This blog is entirely dedicated to clear finishes on folding bikes, regular bikes, and kick scooters.

The first time I saw a raw lacquer bike was when I started here at the shop.Brompton offers their folding bikes in a matte clear finish, showing off the fillet brazing and semi-lugged construction of their steel frames. I was mesmerized by the mix of deep green steel tubing and flashy brass joints. It gives the bike a raw, unfinished look, like a sketch roughly finished on an architect’s drafting table (I’ve always dreamed of being an architect).

It’s no wonder I ended up with a Raw Lacquer Brompton folding bike.

For a long time I figured Brompton was the only company offering their folding bikes in a clear finish. It seemed wonderful to me that they had enough confidence in the quality of their workmanship that they were willing to expose each and every one of their hand crafted folding bikes to the world if the customer desired. When Bert decided to custom build a kick scooter for the shop I found out there were other companies with this high level of quality and confidence.

KickPed, a Raw Lacquer adult kick scooter

The KickPed is one of our flagship type products. We love everything about it, from the rugged, extra-wide rubber wheels, to the one piece tubular steel frame. It has all the hall marks of great design: simplicity, functionality, and style. This kick scooter wears the raw lacquer paint job beautifully. The brushed metal mono-fork is one aspect I particularly enjoy. The frame of thiskick scooter is also hand built but instead of brazing it is welded. Another great product sporting a raw lacquer finish.

Taking Raw Lacquer to the next level

Raw lacquer finish on my road bike by Carter Spray

As you might have guessed, I’m a bit enamored with this color scheme (or lack there of). If the above discussion wasn’t enough to prove it you might like to know that I recently decided to restore my old steel road bike and give it the same flat clear finish I love on my Brompton bike. To do the job I visited a wonderful shop in Brooklyn called Carter Spray Finishing. These guys are great and Larry, my contact there, was very cool and very nice about everything. They powder coat everything from 3 ring binders to shelves and fittings. Usually in large quantity runs but as I found out, Larry also has a love for bicycles. You can actually get a quote for a bicycle paint job right from his website and drop your frame off the next day. His pricing is very reasonable and you can expect your frame ready to go in 2-3 days. If I ever need a bicycle painted I know I’ll be headed back his way.

That’s the scoop on Raw Lacquer. If you want an amazing bike in this finish definitely check out a Brompton folding bike. If you want an adult kick scooter, go for the KickPed. In both cases you get the best quality out there. If you have Raw Lacquer stories and pictures of your own I’d love to see them, stop by the shop to see it for  yourself!

Brompton – a cure for life

“That’s so cute,” exclaimed a non-Bromptonite upon spying my Brompton. “Make no mistake,” I countered, “this is a serious machine capable of establishing world peace.”

I had made my choice to cycle in a place where everyone drove big cars of at least 4 or 5 litres …. I was loaned one of these monsters but my soul was dying and crying to be set free … I wanted my bike (well truth be told any of them) but then plane travel and desire made me choose the Brompton

My world now consists of cyclist and non-cyclist and more specifically Bromptonites and non-Bromptonites. The Brompton can save our planet, especially for city dwellers. For starters you can carry it, folded, past British train personnel without irking their wrath, indignation or refusal to let you board. Once folded you can take it just about anywhere. Pubs, offices, trains, tubes, offices, restaurants, clothes shops, coffee haunts and even in the boot of a car.

In a Brompton future everyone will be fit and healthy – the maximum weight a Brompton can carry is 110 kg (242 pounds) – not many will fall outside of this category apart from rugby players, heavy weight boxers and the morbidly obeses with their personal feeders. Not many people break the ‘point one of a tonne’, 100 kg (220 pounds) or 16 stone, which means almost everyone could ride a Brompton. It is a beautiful and functional machine that may not have the best ride of any bike on the planet (Salsa Mutluk perhaps) but it is nippy, comfortable and a feat of engineering.

Expensive but worth it and a small price to save the planet.