On Bucket Bikes

The new Madsen bucket bikes debuted today!  It's worth checking out.  There are many improvements and new features, some of which I've hacked or wanted to hack onto my own bucket bike.  One of my biggest issues with our original model has been the kickstand.  Here's my final fix using a piece of 5/16" all-thread and some nylon lock nuts.

The solid rod not only fixed the kickstand so that it stays in place when deployed, but it also keeps it from bouncing around as much on bumpy terrain.  And Madsen has confirmed via Twitter that their new model kickstand is "upgraded and improved, [with] new factory, bolted-on rubber feet, [and a] solid rod stop pin."  Along with the new parking brake feature, this sounds like a rock solid way to load rambunctious cargo.


In other news, TBR fabricated rain cover v2.0 for a neighbor to the north.  Brynnen Ford and her kids use their e-assist Madsen year-round on the hills of Seattle.  (Thanks for sending these photos, Brynnen!)

This one is a bit taller than our original and incorporates hi-viz fabric and a Scotchlite-trimmed porthole on the back. The passengers love it!

Any other thoughts on the new Madsen model and accessories?  I'd like to see that rear rack in my stocking at Christmas!

Support the Troops

Today's Frost Park Chalk-Off theme, "Support the Troops", warranted a bicycle and a big 'ol flag.

Kyler and I used it to get there and also as a shadow template for our drawing.

We rewarded ourselves with a Made-in-Washington ice cream bar from Jeff's Ice Cream:

Here are a few other drawings that we saw:

You can view more photos from the event and vote for your favorite at Feed Tacoma.

Fiets of Parenthood - Seattle Style!

We finally made it to one of the many community bike events in Seattle!  The good folks at Car Free Days and Totcycle organized Fiets of Parenthood, a huge gathering of family cyclists of every age who rode in on nearly every kind of bike and bike-combo you could imagine. The Xtracycle went in the minivan for the first time and we still had plenty of room for my sister and her borrowed Peugeot folder.

FoP was nothing short of awesome!  There was something for everyone and we stayed busy for a solid three hours with the bicycle decoration station, a huge walk-thru/bike-thru sprinkler, slow bike race, family bike obstacle course, helmet fitters, and the kids' favorite: a Madsen bucket bike full of free gelato.  The playground was a cargo bike explosion of Xtracycles, Big Dummies, tandems, trail-a-bikes, kick bikes, trailers, bakfietsen, a tall bike and even a Larry vs. Harry Bullitt.  One lucky attendee won a Globe Haul 1 through a raffle benefitting Bike Works.

Not only were there tons of cool bikes, but there were many enthusiastic parents and kids, eager to show off their cycling skills and talk about how they use these bikes in their daily lives.  Many thanks to Julian, Tim, Anne, Chris and everyone else who helped to make this event a fun time for the rest of us.

If you'd like to see more, there's another write-up here, a great video here, a bit of press here, and a Flickr group here.  The wheels are already in motion for a TBR Family Fiets event in Tacoma next summer.  Who wants to help?!

MOB Ride: Pedal to Peril

Via lordrocktober

PEDAL TO PERIL 2010

Bicycle Booze Cruz

Saturday, August 28th

7:00pm

Meet up at: THE RED HOT

We'll be stopping at various watering holes throughout the night. 

We'll be there wet stuff or dry and clear. 

21+ and biking is at your own risk so don't fall down

Spread the word!  -  We Own the Streets!!!

Free Bike Parking in Downtown Tacoma!

Today I saw this advertisement for the soon-to-be-installed parking meters in downtown Tacoma.

It compelled me to ride down to the Frost Park Chalk Challenge and draw this response:

If you like it, you can vote for Matt and I might win something!  

I'm actually a supporter of metered street parking in downtown.  As it is, most street parking is free, but limited to one hour.  I don't find this enough time to get lunch or shop, especially when I have kids in tow. We often park at the T-Dome P&R and take the Link Rail, or ride a bike.  Either way, the parking is free.  And for those times when I need to feed the meter, I'm happy to pay for the right-of-way for my vehicle.

More info at http://downtowntacomaparking.com