For 30 years, MOOTS has been creating hand built bicycles that seek to strike a balance between liveliness and stiffness. This spring they will add a full suspension 26-inch and 29er to their collection. The MX Divide is a 100mm (4-inch) front and rear travel bike. At Interbike 2011 in Las Vegas, we got a first look at this new bike and Jon Cariveau from MOOTS talks about the main features on the bike. The MX Divide production models will be available in March 2012 and as of Interbike 2011 in September, the price had not been determined.
Category: General
Google: Moving Sustainably for Commuting Employees
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt5sMxYMkGs&feature=player_embedded
Google has long been thought of as an innovator in the high tech industry, but most people who do not live in the San Francisco Bay Area are unaware that they are also innovators when it comes to their employees commuting to work. With 1000’s of employees, Google has grown what was a grassroots van pool in 2006 to a 70 vehicle fleet with 275 daily departures which can all be tracked online by the waiting employees. This program alone has reduced their yearly carbon dioxide emissions by 5,400 tons or the equivalent of almost 2,000 cars off of the road a day.
Realizing not everyone can or wants to take the shuttle, Google also encourages their employees to use other modes of transportation to commute to work. Along with reducing the carbon footprint and getting some exercise, employees who are part of the Self Powered Commute Program (ie. cyclists) also earn a charity credit for each day that they ride. In addition to encouraging employees to use alternative transportation to commute to work, Google also has 1,000’s of bicycles around that Mountain View campus that employees can use as needed.
Brendon Harrington, Transportation Operations Manager at Google, talks about alternative transportation and says that 40-percent of Google’s Mountain View employees commute via non-single car driving.
Though Google has not completely achieved the goal of being ‘carbon neutral’, they are making a valiant effort. What is your company doing?
Inspired by the USA Pro Cycling Challenge to Climb Some Colorado Mountain Passes?
After watching the great coverage on Versus or NBC of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge (UPCC), you may be inspired to come out to Colorado and tackle some of the highest, paved passes in the country. One of the great cycling experiences in the state of Colorado is climbing in the mountains, but it is difficult to pick your routes with just a road map. The state has a tremendous selection of canyons, passes and mountains to ascend with some of the most breathtaking views imaginable. Over the years my wife and I have been drawn to climb many of the passes and “classic climbs” in the state. We started in the San Juan mountains of southwest Colorado climbing Coal Bank, Molas and Red Mountain.
(Video after the jump)
Continue reading Inspired by the USA Pro Cycling Challenge to Climb Some Colorado Mountain Passes?
Happy Fourth of July
KineticShift says to have a safe and Happy Fourth of July
iBike Cruises into the Apple Store
Velocomp LLP, the makers of the iBike Dash and iBike Phone Booth line of iPhone/iPod Touch cases and cases that convert your iPhone into a cycling computer, is pleased to announce that Apple Computer views their products worthy of selling in the Apple Retail and Apple Store online. On May 9th, they announced that Apple has decided to offer the iBike Dash Cycling Computer, iBike Dash Cycling Computer Deluxe and iBike Phone Booth online and at all of the retail locations. As you might expect, this is big news for a company breaking into the iPhone and iPod accessory market – especially with the recent news that Apple is now considered the most expensive brand in the world. Personally, this is no surprise as the representatives at the iBike Dash booth eluded to being in ‘talks’ with Apple during the 2010 Interbike tradeshow in Las Vegas last September. The surprising part is that it took eight months to get this existing product into the Apple Stores.
You maybe unfamiliar with the iBike Dash and iBike Phone Booth – they are rugged cases designed to work with all generations of the iPod Touch, the iPhone 3/3GS and the iPhone 4. The iBike Phone Booth is strictly a hard sided plastic case that iPod Touch or iPhone device slips into then the user is able to securely attach it onto their bicycle. It offers some of the best weather protection on the market while still allowing the user to operate the device while riding their bike. Continue reading iBike Cruises into the Apple Store
U.K.’s NHS Wants to Combat Tiredness
There’s an acronym, TATT, which stands for “tired all the time.” Does that sound like you? Or do you have strategies to combat tiredness? Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) wants videos from people, presumably residing in the U.K. explaining or demonstrating how to combat tiredness. It’s for use in a video wall.
The social media outreach is asking for user-generated videos that are factual, funny or professional. All content welcome. They’re asking for videos to be uploaded to the NHS Healthy Living Facebook page. The first video submitted is of a woman filming herself running up six flights of stairs to get a boost of energy rather than eating a bar of chocolate. It will be interesting to see what others come up with, and whether this helps those of us who are TATT.
Helmet That Senses a Crash
There’s been a lot of attention given to head injuries on the football field and the development of better helmets that can prevent concussions and other injuries. But that’s on a field with other players, coaches, spectators and plenty of people who can dial 911. What happens if you’re biking alone and crash?
In the case of cyclist Leigh Fazzina, she posted messages to Twitter to get help after not getting a signal for voice. That’s just not always possible with a head injury. That’s why we’re looking forward to the release of SenseTech, a helmet-mounted sensor that connects to your phone via Bluetooth and contacts emergency services in the case of impact. “Ours is a device which would help the athlete and his (or her) family to be better informed on the level of impact they are taking, and which oens are of concern,” said Biju Thomas, designer of the SenseTech.
Still under development, the sensor’s designer is Biju Thomas, a team cook who has served meals to Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, among other pro cyclists.
The SenseTech is “a system of sensors embedded in the fused fabric (pad inserts), and a tiny sensor Bluetooth Relay, which transmits activity to a cell phone, which most every rider has in his pocket,” said Thomas.
SenseTech is currently in testing and will likely be released in the fall for use on the field and hopefully on the trail soon after that.
via [Medill Reports Chicago]
Nalini’s New Clothing Line Gets Your Blood Flowing
The Nalini Summer Collection of cycling apparel features Nalini Compression, which will promote increased blood flow and physical performance. The line includes bibshorts and jerseys. The line has additional attributes including reversible and convertible jackets and jerseys and apparel crafted from recycled plastic fabrics.
Nalini cycling gear is often seen in the team kits of professional riders. All garments are made in Italy from the fabric to each stitch of the seams.
The compression line includes Lambro Bibshort ($155) and Drava Bibnickers ($165) as a tight-fitting pant with a silicon gripper at the leg hem, reflective tape and a Nalini ECP Print pad. A contrasting 4-needle stitching on the seams add strength to the garments. The Full Season Man line includes a collection of convertible and reversible apparel able to be worn all four seasons. The Sorbo Jacket ((355) is a stretchable, reversible design that provides warmth and is windproof. The Vormano Jersey ($250) uses the brand’s Quick-Burst sleeve removal system so it can be converted from a long-sleeve to a short sleeve jersey on the ride. Think of the jersey as having built-in arm warmers so you don’t get that gap where the sleeve meets the arm warmer where wind finds its way to chill your arms.
For the Nalini recycling line, the company has the Insonzo Jersey ($120) and Fortore Bibshort ($100). The line is made from an eco-friendly Re-Pet fabric made from the recycling of Pet plastic bottles. The Pet yarns have the same characteristics as polyester yarns.
The Insonzo Jersey features a cycling fit, mesh insert, silicon bottom gripper and cam-block full-length zipper. The Fortore Bibshort provides a cycling fit, mesh insert, reflecting logos and silicon leg grippers.
Nalini’s summer line is expected in stores later this month. Nalini is imported and distributed by Albabici in the U.S.
CES 2011: GammaTech Gets Tough
There are times when the going gets tough, and in some of those times you need to keep the computer going. At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show GammaTech will roll out its line of military-grade rugged notebooks and tablet computers.
Among the line of products to be shown include:
* The D12C – 12.1″ mobile rugged, convertible notebook computer
* The D15C – 15.6″ rugged portable notebook computer
* The MT10L – 10.4″ Intel Health Mobile Clinical Assistant tablet PC
So move over iPad, you might be great for the living room. But for those who need to do more than sit on a couch, GammaTech is the name to beat.
Happy Holidays From KineticShift.com
We want to wish all our readers Happy Holidays, Seasons Greetings and Merry Christmas! We’ll be back on Monday as we gear up for the New Year and more!
aG Control Comes to aboutGolf
Indoor golf centers can take better control of their aboutGolf Simulators. And not just control, but aG Control, a multiple simulator management tool that is designed to help business owners remotely manage users and rounds on the simulators, as well as monitor rounds while they’re in progress. This provides active simulator screens, where users can send messages to the simulators, retrieve information, analyze usage and even remotely access the simulators and view and print scorecards.
“We are in the people business. We’ve got to know each one of our customers as they arrive,” says Steve Graves, owner of Play-A-Round Golf near Philadelphia and early adopter of aG Control beta. “With aG Control we can better identify and manage each customer and enhance their golf experience.”
This control should no doubt help indoor golf centers and in turn help players have been control on the course.
FDA Removes Implant After Admitting It Hastily Approved It
For anyone who has received treatment for their injuries from exercising or sports, you know the importance of getting proper medical care and you expect that whatever the doctors need to put inside you is safe. But what if a procedure done to you or device put inside you wasn’t properly approved by the medical community?
It looks like that is the case with an implant device called the Menaflex Collagen Scaffold from ReGen Biologics Inc. According to the Los Angeles Times, the device—used to repair and reinforce tissue that cushions and helps lubricate bones in the joint of the knee—had received fast-track approval in 2008 despite the objections of Food and Drug Administration scientists, who wanted more testing done on it. Continue reading FDA Removes Implant After Admitting It Hastily Approved It
Say You Wanna a (Bike) Revolution: Kryptonite and Bike Revolution Gear for Bike Registry ID
Last month during Interbike, we posted about the partnership between Kryptonite and Bike Revolution that provides a 2D barcode to register and identify bikes. The service, expected to be available soon, keeps getting better, especially for anyone who worries about their bicycle. Bikerevolution.com has now redesigned its site with more facts and included new pages of information on this helpful service. There are now detailed pictures and written steps that take you from going to the store to get your 2D bar code to registration and playing bike detective with your cell phone out on the street. There will always be bicycle thieves out there, but this is one way to help you get back your ride after the worst has happened.