BluesCat is a resident of Phoenix, Arizona, who originally returned to bicycling in 2002 in order to help his son get the Boy Scout Cycling merit badge. His bikes sat idle until the summer of 2008 when gas prices spiked at over $4.00 per gallon. Since then, he has become active cycling, day-touring, commuting by bike, blogging (azbluescat.blogspot.com) and giving grief to the forum editors in the on-line cycling community. As I perused the Website of Revelate Designs, a silly little phrase kept echoing through my head: Filling niches with niche fillers! That may sound silly, but I think it aptly describes the focus of the company's product line. In addition to the standard seat and handlebar bags, Revelate also makes a creative ...

BluesCat is a resident of Phoenix, Arizona, who originally returned to bicycling in 2002 in order to help his son get the Boy Scout Cycling merit badge. His bikes sat idle until the summer of 2008 when gas prices spiked at over $4.00 per gallon. Since then, he has become active cycling, day-touring, commuting by bike, blogging (azbluescat.blogspot.com) and giving grief to the forum editors in the on-line cycling community. Sooner or later, you're going to need a Wrench. No, not the piece of metal with the funny end that allows you to loosen parts on your bike which should really stay tightened. This type of Wrench is a guy or gal who has the knowledge to repair and maintain your bike; ...

And so it begins... National Bike to Work Week 2012 is officially underway. If you are a newcomer to Commute by Bike, then welcome. Did you find all the information you needed? For God's sake, I hope so. That's what we're about. Last week I received a message from the California Bicycle Coalition which began with the question, Want to try bicycling to work but not sure where to start? And my jaded mind asked, Seriously? Do some people really not know where to start? Let me Google that for you: how to bike to work (good) commuting by bicycle (better) riding a bike to work (same as the first one) bicycling to places for example to my job (not so good) how to get my bike commuting co-worker to ...

Vanessa Marie Robinson is a NYC-based industrial designer who’s blog For The Love Of Bikes covers her multifaceted interests in all things cycling. Having started commuting year-round by bike in Montreal, Canada 13 years ago, she currently enjoys here 22-mile, rain-or shine-commute along the Hudson River. Whether you commute by bike or just ride a lot you end up having to haul a bunch of stuff, be it a change of clothes for work, groceries, or simply an extra jacket. For the most part I opt for the default: a backpack. While there are lots of good options on the market these days for bags you can wear -- the downside is comfort. The more you carry and the longer distance you ...

Bike to Work Week is when we regular bike commuters hope to inspire new people to join our ranks. I hesitate to say "our ranks" because I don't feel as though I'm in a rank. Do you want to join a rank? I doubt it. I prefer to think of all of us as users of roads -- and that a bicycle is just one of the legitimate modes for using roads. If there's a single factor that inspires camaraderie among bike commuters, it is the systemic privileging of automobiles on the roads most of us need to use if we want to bike to work. Rank or no ranks, we tend to get a little excited when someone we know is warming ...

I have had a lot of backpacks in my life. Big ones. Small ones. Barbie-themed ones. Outdoorsy ones. Good ones. Bad ones. A backpack is my preferred bag for traveling away from home, as well as back and forth to school, work, and all kinds of other activities. I mean, why use a bag with one shoulder strap when you can have a bag with two? So when I find a good backpack, I have a great deal of trouble parting with it for a new one. I will use, abuse, and love a good backpack until the straps nearly fall off. I recently had such a backpack in my life, so when I got the opportunity to review the Banjo Brothers ...