Readers may recall that we had a story on the blog earlier this year about three Tasmanians Scott, Craig and Gavin, and their highly entertaining attempt to ride Paris Brest Paris on vintage bicycles from the era of their compatriot Sir Hubert Opperman. It would seem that the experience has left them none the less hungry for heavy mileage on European roads…
We mentioned in a post recently how, after the past few years of Researching and Developing, our Brooks line of bags for cycling with was beginning to approach a state of completion. We now have a range of pieces produced in England and Italy, running the gamut from spacious to slimline, designed for and by cyclists, yet which do not require the tandem accessory of bicycle to make aesthetic sense.
As most will know, there are Brooks rucksacks and holdalls built with a specially treated and extremely tough canvas, but in most cases (no pun intended) our bags are made using leather of the same grade we take for our saddles.
One such bag is the newly arrived Brooks Piccadilly Knapsack.
Emily Chappell got in touch with us some time ago while putting together plans for a long distance bike tour of the world. The former cycle courier now finds herself over a year in on her trip, currently racing through China with 14 days left on her visa to reach Tianjin.
Bike V Design from Design Museum on Vimeo.
It was very much a case of Aesthetics cordially sitting down at the table with Aerodynamics, when Brooks Works Manager Steven Green was coaxed south to the capital from Birmingham recently for a speaking engagement.
Earlier this month, the Design Museum London put on its inaugural installment of Bike v Design, a show exploring Bicycles and… their Design.
Small World! Nick pictured with one of our WCR Grand Tour riders, Simon Hutchinson.
Late in 2011, Nick Soucek contacted us in regard to a holiday trip he was planning for spring-summer 2012. It involved putting down several thousand miles by bike across Western Australia, punctuated by stops for voluntary farm work along the way. While perhaps not everybody’s immediate notion of relaxation, we certainly couldn’t fault Nick’s sincerity, his intentions or his enthusiasm.
City folk simply prefer a gritty, unmuddy urban backdrop for their Cyclocross. Photo Damian Talese.
We’ve talked about Cyclocross before, and the notable surge in popularity of cyclocross-specific bicycles in recent times.
Cyclocross has lots going for it, and not just for those in search of an actual pastime, but also for those simply in search of a way to speedily and efficiently drain off their disposable income.
A close-up of the debossing plate used for our leather bag production in Manchester.
Most readers will be aware that Brooks has once again started producing all sorts of bags for the Discerning Cyclist. Given their varied materials, styles and technical details, it may not come as a surprise to learn that the provenance of our range of satchels, rucksacks, holdalls and panniers has also been necessarily varied.
Triple Tandem riding enthusiast Andrew Payne was in touch with us recently. He was keen to enhance the travel experience of his wife and daughter in the two stoker positions of his machine. Andrew himself rides a Flyer but decided on something else from our selection for his ladies. A pair of Brooks B67′s wound up being the final choice. So far, so good…
2012 European and World Champions! Polo, Greg & Will of Call Me Daddy. (Photo Caroline Pauleau)
Call Me Daddy have achieved an unprecedented Double. The recently crowned European Bike Polo Champions managed to add to their laurels recently by coming away winning finalists of the 2012 World Championships, held earlier this month in Geneva, Switzerland.
It’s also the first time a European team has won the Worlds. North Americans have traditionally constituted a large majority in the latter stages of World Championship tournaments, with only a handful of non-American or non-Canadian sides having even reached quarter finals in the past.
