Bike shorts, as with any kind of exercise clothing, the need to be comfortable and do the job you need them to do. Not only should the right bike shorts not pinch when you ride, they need to conform to your body and not shift during the movements you’ll make while cycling. Unfortunately, the best way to find the right pair of shorts will ultimately be to try them on and test them out. This is because everyone’s body is different, so everyone will have a different preference of brand, size, and fit. However, here are a few tips to keep in mind so that the process doesn’t seem so hit or miss. [Read more…]
Stories
Magnetic Bicycle Seat Boosts Male Fertility
A lighthearted look at 3 completely fictional cycling headlines we’d like to see in 2014.
Doping continued to be the top cycling headline in 2013, with the fallout from Lance Armstrong still trickling through the ranks of elite cycling. The year kicked off with Armstrong sitting down with Oprah Winfrey to share a candy coated version of his career as pharmaceutical guinea pig. If all the bad news in cycling makes you want to cancel your RSS feeds, wait. Here are 3 cycling related news stories we would really like to see in 2014.
Magnetic Bicycle Seat Boosts Male Fertility
Baltimore(ATP)- Researchers at John Hopkins Medical Center have released results from a study of the potential health benefits of a new magnetic bicycle seat developed by scientists at Japan’s Superconducting Magnetic Levitation Institute. The revolutionary saddle system uses special bicycle shorts incorporating rare-earth magnets and a small wheel mounted generator to enable virtually frictionless pedaling. Anecdotal reports of increased libido and performance by male test riders led to medical researchers at the John Hopkins Sexual Performance Center to launch a study of the new technology’s potential benefits for male fertility. “The faster I rode, the harder it got, amazing!”, reported one study participant.
Center spokesperson, Harold Newsworthy read from a prepared statement, “we are pleased to announce that preliminary results found significant benefits for members of the study group in multiple measurements of fertility and performance, including sperm count, motility, vascular response, and testosterone levels”. Study participants also reported significant improvements in their 10K time trial results.
Federal Lawmakers Pass Major Tax Credit For Bicycle Commuters
(Associated Cycling News) – Federal lawmakers today passed sweeping tax reforms aimed at encouraging energy conservation and the use of environmentally friendly transportation alternatives. People that bicycle to work were the big winners. Cycle commuters will earn tax credits equal to the cost of bicycle equipment, maintenance and repair, as well as a 47 cents per kilometer mileage credit. Tax expert, Tex Vader estimates the average annual credit could be as high as $10,000.
Environmental activists and urban livability lobby groups have both applauded the move. Vision Green director, Sam Ting and Better Urban Resources Board (BURB) spokesperson Chloe Dupé both congratulated the government for it’s positive vision and proactive initiative. Funds for the credit are being generated from a new $10 a month tax on parking stalls.
Beer Rates As #1 Cycling Workout Recovery Beverage
Munich (Beer News Network) – In a groundbreaking study from Munich State University sponsored by the Bavarian Brewers Association, researchers have found that beer provided the most rapid restoration of electrolyte and blood sugar levels following intense cycling workouts. The study compared various popular exercise recovery strategies including sports drinks, energy drinks and milk thistle mixed with buttermilk and lemon juice. Beer was a clear winner for exercise recovery while the milk thistle mix did perform well on the following day’s hangover test.
Researchers described the test results as promising but added that a larger study was needed to better define the optimal fluid replacement regime. Volunteers for the expanded test are actively being sought. Interested participants will be required to relocate to the study center in Munich, Germany for the month of October.
What would you like to read about in 2014? Comment below:
Why We Love Cycling
Cycling… Our Drug of Choice
Cycling is our therapy
You can’t help but smile
The more you ride, the more you get to eat
The feeling of flying
Wind blowing in your hair
Staring at peoples butts in spandex
Your butt looking good in spandex
Ride more, feel better
The inevitable endorphin kick
Beautiful people inside and out
The RUSH
The freedom you feel
The first spring ride after a long cold winter
Wiping away the tears because you are going so fast
Going all out
Blowing your first successful snot rocket
Group rides
Dropping someone
Waiting at the top of a hill for everyone to catch up
The energy that surges through you
Mode of transportation
Family rides
Racing and suffering with your friends
The mental ecstasy
The friendships it creates
Clean energy
Winning your first race
The challenge
Being absolutely gutted after a climb
Tailwinds
The feeling you have just before you take a drop that is out of your comfort zone
Pushing over 1000 watts (even if it is only for a second)
Suffering never felt so good
Jello-y legs
Being a part of such an amazing community
This is why we love cycling! Why do you ________________ ?
The Most Expensive Bikes in the World
Maybe the economic crisis cooled off the appetite for conspicuous consumption for a few years, but bling is back in a big way. Custom finishes, exotic alloys and cutting edge technology are combining to create some awe-inspiring machines with equally jaw-dropping prices. Here’s a countdown of the World’s 5 most expensive bikes.
5. Tall Boy
Before we look at glitzy Hollywood bling bikes, bicycles as art and the heady world of custom road and track cycles, let’s take a look at mountain bikes. The Santa Cruz Bicycle’s Tall Boy 2 Carbon XX1 is arguably the best production mountain bike available, and at $9,153 one of the most expensive. At a shade over 10.5 kg it is also surprisingly light for a rugged piece of pedal power to knock around in the dirt. As with all high-end bikes, you have the option of having it built out with a vast array of components but the complete bike comes with Maxxis CrossMark tires, SRAM XX1 drive train and Shimano XTR brakes.
4. 20th Century Icon
For antique bicycle lovers, the rare Tiffany & Company silver mounted ladies bicycle is a beautiful example of some of the exotic objects d’art that this renowned jeweler created during the 1800s. Built around 1890, this bicycle features carved ivory handles and a Brooks leather saddle. Only a handful of these bicycles were ever produced. The last example that became publicly available was auctioned by Bonham’s Auction House of New York in 2008 for $70,000.
3. Great Concept
The Trek Yoshitomo Nara Speed Concept bike was developed by Trek and decorated by renowned Japanese pop artist, Yoshitomo Nara. Nara was one of 20 artists that were invited to create bikes for a special Sotheby’s auction held on November 1, 2009 to support Lance Armstrong’s Live Strong foundation. Combining, what is considered by many, the fastest time trial bike in the World with Nara’s original artwork, the bike drew a winning bid of $200,000. In total, the auction raised 1.25 million for the foundation.
2. The Butterfly
Long before Lance Armstrong became the poster boy for doping in professional cycling he was generating cries of outrage from other concerned citizens. On the final day of the 2009 Tour de France he rode his custom finished Trek Madone, named the Butterfly, along the Champs-Élysées. The bike had been adorned by controversial British artist, Damien Hurst with hundreds of actual butterfly wings. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) called it “barbaric”. The bike fetched $500,000 at the 2009 auction to benefit Armstrong’s Live Strong foundation, becoming the most expensive in the World.
1. Extremely Fat
Forget carbon fiber vs titanium, how about solid gold? While it won’t put you in front of the peloton, at $1,000,000 The House of Solid Gold’s 25K Extreme Fat Bike will be sure to turn some heads. Topping a long list of blinged out bikes, THSG’s bike uses a list of quality parts from makers like Salsa, AMC, Shimano and 3.8 inch wide Surly tires. Each metal component is electroplated with solid gold. It sports a chocolate brown alligator saddle and one of a kind gator skin wrapped water bottle. So as to leave no doubt that this bike is nothing less than the ultimate pedal powered status symbol, the maker’s logo is encrusted with 6 carats of black diamonds. With a production limit of 13, each bike is custom made to the owner’s specifications and engraved with artist’s signature.
Think you’ve got a better one? We’d love to hear it. If you’ve come across a bike that would make the list, leave us a comment.
Strava Art
Strava Art
Chris Phipps has created some amazing Strava Art:
People often ask if I plan these out or not. When the piece includes words I don’t plan because the letters are pretty easy to make, especially since I learned the trick of doing diagonals. However, for pictures such as the Nyan Cat and the Lagunitas IPA 6 pack, I first do a sketch on a printout map of San Francisco, mostly to make sure I don’t run into any parks or schools that block the grid.
It started on January 14, 2012. I was listening to the 49ers vs. Saints playoff game on the radio while riding laps at the polo fields. The 49ers were underdogs, but scored 2 touchdowns in the 1st quarter to go up 14-0, so I was inspired to ride out to the Richmond district and do this.
I received a lot of comments and kudos on the ride, so I did this ride before the NFC championship game vs. the NY Giants the following week.
…But they lost & didn’t make it to the Superbowl, so I didn’t do anything for that.
I didn’t do anything for a while, but during the Tour de France, I was inspired to write“SAGAN” after his stage win on July 3rd.
On the 4th of July, I tried to do a flag, but had to have the stripes go north to south due to the grid layout in the Sunset (a neighborhood in San Francisco, California).
The ride that got me the most kudos and attention was my tribute to David Millar’s win on July 13. Millar replied to my tweet and started following me on Twitter for a while.
Recently, I’m just training in the city and if someone asks me to try something such as Nyan Cat I will. Or if something else inspires me, I’ll do a ride. Last Thursday I found out it was National IPA Day, so that led to the Lagunitas ride. As for future plans, I’m having fun with this and definitely want to try some larger and more elaborate drawings, but probably not until my racing season is over with Masters Nationals in Bend next month.
Strava Art from Others:
Thanks to Strava for providing the story above
Top 10 Cyclist Pick Up Lines
Top 10 Cyclist Pick Up Lines
1. I WHEELIE like you.
2. Your pace or mine?
3. Want to get anaerobic?
4. I believe in riding with protection. (looking at a helmet)
5. Want to come over and borrow my chain whip?
6. Can I make you a recovery drink? You are going to need it.
7. Want to go for a ride?
8. I’m an endurance athlete.
9. I bet we could do some good interval training together.
10. I like your frame.
What have you got? Have you tried any of these? Have they ever worked? Leave a comment below:
Cyclist Dating Guide
Cyclist Dating Guide
If you are a cyclist then dating another cyclist can seem like the ultimate win-win situation and it definitely can be. However, there definitely some potential drawbacks worth considering before you start asking for numbers at the next race or group ride.
Riding Together (+/-) 
One of the biggest potentially positives or negatives of dating a fellow cyclist is riding together. If you are both recreational riders that are not stressed about power zones, training programs, or winning races then being able to ride with your partner could be a huge positive. Similarly if you are both stressed about power zones, training programs and winning races then riding together can be really enjoyable. This works because you will only ride together when the training situation permits it, and nobody will be offended if someone has to sprint away on the climbs. The problems arise when someone is stressed about power zones etc. and someone is not. This leads to the classic “can I come” and “are you sure” situation which rarely turns out well. I personally remember one such situation that resulted in a 110km gravel road ride around a lake that contained a lot of pushes, two frustrated people, and an arrival home well after sun down.
Same Cycling Goals (+)
The situations described above lead to this important conclusion: the smoothest cyclist-plus-cyclist relationships tend to happen between cyclists with similar cycling goals. If you’re a committed, serious cyclist looking to climb the ranks, the best potential boyfriend/girlfriend is likely someone in a similar situation. You will better understand and support each other’s commitment and challenges. I have seen this work for many cycling couples and it usually has a positive impact on both athletes’ results. Any cycling couple with similar goals can find this type of synergy. You don’t have to be struggling racers; from simply biking to lose weight or to be on the national team, having similar goals helps.
Your Ex (-) 
Cycling relationships happen, riding along looking at each other’s butts in spandex it is no surprise cyclist often end up dating. The downside is that after you stop dating a cyclist they will probably keep riding, they will look at other riders in spandex who will look back, and ….. it happens. The bottom line is that if you date a cyclist and then breakup they are probably going to date another cyclist which could be your friend, teammate, or arch rival. You need to be ok with this going in, or the local cycling community is going to start to feel really small really fast.
Alternatives
Maybe based on the information above you are a little less certain about dating a cyclist, don’t despair there are alternatives. An athlete that does a different endurance sport has many of the positives and avoids some of the drawbacks, the biggest issue with this alternative is that it can be really hard to meet an athlete that does a different sport. Another alternative is a retired cyclist, if you are a serious racer then dating someone who was also a serious racer but is now only riding recreationally can work really well. They will still understand your commitment to training, nutrition, and recovery without the “can I come” issues.
About the Author: 
Craig Richey is a multiple time Canadian National team member, representing Canada at mountain bike World Cups and cyclocross World Championships. Having been involved in cycling for rougly a decade he has seen many cyclist relationships succeed as well as fail. Craig is currently doing an MBA in Boston, and recently launched SponsorConnected.com
The Pocket Drone
The Pocket Drone – Your Personal Flying Robot
Capture all of your amazing skills with your personal flying pocket drone that can follow you through GPS!
Yet another reason to own a GroPro, instead of strapping it to your helmet, now you can fly the camera in the sky.
This product was just launched on kickstarter and has reached its goal in under 24 hours. Quite amazing. Just make sure you use it in an open space… I don’t think it can see trees. Maybe that is the next generation…
“The world’s first multicopter that’s powerful enough to carry a high quality action camera and folds up smaller than a 7in tablet.
The Pocket Drone is the personal flying robot that enables anyone to capture amazing video and photos from the sky. The year 2014 is going to be the “Year of the Drone.” Personal and professional photography is literally beginning to take off. Everybody can already take great looking photos and videos with their camera phones and share them online, but they have been limited to what could seen from the ground. Now with the Pocket Drone, it’s never been easier to capture spectacular aerial images that open up a whole new perspective and insight that had previously been unseen.” – Kickstarter
Do you want your own flying camera? Go to Kickstarter to order your very own pocket drone.
Electric Mountain Bike
Electric Mountain Bike
All I can envision is hammering up a climb sucking wind thinking how I am about to slay this Strava segment when all of a sudden my little sister (who rarely touches a bike) silently sneaks up on me… blows my doors off and yells “eat my dust sucker!” Feels like a nightmare that may come true.
This 9 speed monster can go up to 50mph… and weighs a whopping 116 lbs! It is like a silent dirt bike humming along at 65 dB (as loud as a normal conversation).
This bike’s ideal for downhillers that usually shuttle, instead of driving to the top, they can rip up the hill with their 4500 Watts of power.
With a charge time of 2 hours and a cost of less than $0.01 per mile it is… no wait we didn’t factor in the $10,000 initial cost…
Interesting concept but I suspect it will have to come down in weight… and price to be more feasible. I think it looks sexy… but that is where my compliments stop.
What do you think of the bike?
SkyCycle
SkyCycle
Norman Foster has designed cycling paths above London;s railways in response to 14 cyclist deaths in the city during 2013. SkyCycle is a “cycling utopia” of approximately 220 kilometers of cycles lanes with over 200 entrance points that will be above the current train lines.
SkyCycle will be able to accommodate approximately 12,000 cyclists per hour and is an innovative idea to a serious problem in London.
Downside
This route will take approximately 20 years to build. Streets are already congested and the population growth is estimated to rise approximately 10% per year for the next few year. Can this possibly be the solution to safer roads? Will it come soon enough? What happens in the mean time?
Upside
It is unlikely with the new infrastructure that we would ever see 6 deaths in a two week span ever again. There would be increased health benefits and significantly less congestion. It is estimated that travel times would be cut down by approximately 30 minutes.
Norman Foster describes the plan as “a lateral approach to finding space in a congested city.”
“By using the corridors above the suburban railways,” he said, “we could create a world-class network of safe, car-free cycle routes that are ideally located for commuters.”