Microwaves Change Lights for Cyclists

Any cyclist will tell you that stopping at a red light is a drag. And when that light stays red because it needs the weight of a car to turn it green, it really puts a damper on your cardio workout. Most often lights that need to be triggered by cars are controlled by an inductive loop, a sensor embedded in the pavement that flips a switch on a computer to turn the light green. Cameras are increasing in number, but are subject to environmental conditions such as ran, twilight and wind.

Cycellicious reports that the city of Pleasonton, California is experimenting with the use of microwaves to trigger traffic lights to change. This method is more reliable than cameras, can distinguish vehicle types and give cyclists more time to get through the intersection than cars, and works with lightweight travelers such as cyclists. You may still have to wait at a few traffic lights, but the time will be reduced. About enough time to practice your track standing skills.

[Via Cyclelicious: Microwaves, bikes, and traffic lights]

Exercise Bikes Lead the Pack in Global Market Trend

In a sign that we hope means people will take fitness more seriously, Global Industry Analysts, Inc. is reporting that the global market for physical fitness equipment will exceed $10.5 billion (with a B) by 2015. Much of this will be spurred by a growing fitness mantra, and it won’t be limited to the United States – as developing regions including Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East will be looking to get toned as well.

The new market report further suggests that the despite an economic slowdown, fitness related gear will continue to sell – and hopefully this won’t be limited to products offering quick fixes and easy solutions. You need to sweat and burn to earn that weight loss after all. The United States will represent the single largest market for physical fitness equipment, with Asia-Pacific emerging as the fastest growing regional market. Continue reading Exercise Bikes Lead the Pack in Global Market Trend

Hands On: Check Your Balls

You might be a competitive cyclist who obtains new equipment each year, an avid cyclist who keeps their equipment for many years or a bit of both; but either way you roll, you would probably benefit from having your balls checked out. The balls I am referring to are the ball bearings in your bicycle – mainly the hubs and bottom bracket; but also the pedal, rear derailleur pulleys and headset bearings. Bearings are one of those items that is not sexy and is rarely thought about since they are out of sight; but often instead of being filled with grease, they can filled with dirt, water or rust. This in turn will reduce the results and efficiency of each of your pedal strokes. Continue reading Hands On: Check Your Balls

Shred in the Mall with Tony Hawk

While many shopping malls and other community establishments have banned skateboarding, this fall you’ll be able to grind your way with Tony Hawk during an upcoming tour. The Hawkman won’t be making personal appearances however, but this could be the next best thing as Activision is taking Tony Hawk: Shred on a national mall tour – but totally unlike those old mall tours with Tiffany and Debbie Gibson.

The 10-city Mall Tour kicked off this past weekend, and is giving fans a chance to jump on the game’s unique board controller and experience the thrill of skate and snowboarding. The best part is that no one will chase you away for being possessed to skate.

Upcoming dates include:

  • Rockaway Town Square, New York, NY – October 23 – 24
  • Plymouth Meeting Mall, Philadelphia, PA – October 30 –  31
  • Virginia Center Commons, Washington, DC – November  6 –7
  • Orland Square, Chicago, IL – November 13 – 14
  • Mall of Georgia, Atlanta, GA – November 20 – 21
  • Katy Mills, Houston, Texas – November 27 – 28
  • Irving Mall, Dallas, Texas – December  4 – 5
  • Brea Mall, Los Angeles, Calif. – December 11 – 12
  • Stoneridge Mall, San Francisco, Calif. – December 18 – 19

Shred will be in stores on October 26.

Tony Hawk Shred Official Website

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.

Bike Revolution

Losing Weight with Optical Illusion Dinnerware

As you know, there are various methods of weight loss, including exercising, diets, pills, and hypnosis. Now you can add optical illusion to the mix, with a product called Slimware. Slimware are plates with unique designs that help you maintain portion control with food placement. See those flowers on the plate? In addition to adding aesthetics to your dinnerware, the size of the floral pattern is the size of the amount of a particular food you should have on the plate (the larger flower should contain more vegetables, while smaller flowers contain proteins and carbs). According to Slimware, “We are psychologically and culturally programmed to ‘stay in the lines,’ whether on the highway or at the post office. Slimware applies that mental predisposition to help you become portion conscious.”

Of course, the theory goes that if you eat less, you gain less. But you still have to be concerned with what types of foods you are putting on the plate. It also doesn’t stop you from building mounds of food on the plate as long as you stay within those lines. So, we’re not sure if we buy into the idea, but Slimware does point out the important fact that portion control plays a huge role in weight control.

Slimware lists celebrities like Elisabeth Röhm, Tori Spelling, Judith Light, Kendra Wilkinson, Emily Procter, Kathy Griffin, Rene Russo, Ashlee Simpson, Jennie Garth, Faith Hill, and Kristin Chenoweth as fans. If a celebrity uses it, then it must be good! Right?

The product is available in various designs, all for $36.50 for four plates.

Slimware

Gates Takes CenterTrack

We’ve heard about the Gates Carbon Drive Systems and their new centralist position. And no, we’re not talking politics but something far more important, namely bicycle technology. This is specifically the CenterTrack System, which was invented by cycling innovator Wayne Lumpkin.

The new drive train technology has the promise of being the lightest, strongest and cleanest – not to mention best performing belt-drive system – yet created for a bicycle. So what does this mean? For one the CenterTrack should offer up 20 percent greater tensile strength while still offering a slimmer profile. The whole belt-drive thing is pretty innovative and CenterTrack could be a major leap forward, offering a clean, quite ride and now with a greater level of performance. The CenterTrack utilized front and rear pulleys that feature a narrow track that runs around the center of their circumference, rather than the raised flange that we traditionally see with belt-drive bikes. Continue reading Gates Takes CenterTrack

London Calling: New Bike Show for January

After the surprise announcement that Interbike would be staying put, comes word that the Cycle Show, the former London Cycle Show, would move from London’s Earls Court to NEC area in Birmingham. Our friends at BikeRadar.com reported that the organizers are looking to make this move as Birmingham will allow for a “significant expansion.”

The event, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary will take place just weeks after Interbike, and run from September 29 to October 2. Meanwhile BikeRadar also announced that London Town won’t be without a bike show.

In a (confusing) twist, the London Bike Show will take place from January 13-16. We can hope this will mean lots more bicycle tech for us to report on, and for all of us to ride on next season and beyond.

London Bike Show

Withings Goes from TMI to Weight Game

The scale that tweets your weight and BMI now has a game on Facebook. “GuessMyWeight” is a Facebook app created by Withings. When you do your weigh-in, your friends can guess your weight on Facebook. Really? What are the two things you don’t ask a woman? Age and weight. And now my friends can laugh when I gain a pound?

It’s helpful that Withings can send your latest stats to pages such as Google Health, RunKeeper and DailyBurn so you can chart progress. But tread lightly when a friend on Facebook challenges you to guess his weight. Withings co-founder Cedric Hutchings said the idea of GuessMyWeight “started as a joke amongst our team.” He says it’s a “playful and an entirely new way to take the drama out of your weight.” Though we think it has potential to add some drama.

Withings

Rocking and Driving With the RockyMounts DriveShaft

RockyMounts, based in Boulder, Colorado, has been making bike and ski mounts that fit Yakima, Thule and other roof racks for years. They offer the same quality as the two big names, but at a lower price point and with a vast array of colors. New for 2011, RockyMounts has introduced the DriveShaft, which is not a complete bike mount, but rather an adaptor to fit bikes with 15mm and 20mm thru axles to the standard 9mm bike mount. They are not the first to introduce this type of mount, but the RockyMounts model offers a level of security that the others do not. Continue reading Rocking and Driving With the RockyMounts DriveShaft

Glow You On Your Way

As any cyclist knows you can’t count on the guy in the car to see you. While reflectors and even blinky lights can help provide some illumination, it isn’t always enough, especially for those who commute. As the sun begins to set earlier, and dusk comes by rush hour, getting a little more light can help make the ride home all the safer. Bike Glow Safety Lights are a new way to light up the way, whether it is low light or even complete darkness. The waterproof, battery operated light system can be completely wrapped around the frame of a bike, and unlike pedal reflections or blinky lights, the Glow lights can be seen from multiple directions and angles and at much greater distances.

“Cyclists have been in need of a product that makes them visible from the side for years,” said Bike Glow CEO Chris Cobb. “Our Bike Glow safety light provides riders with a lightweight and inexpensive solution. Cyclists who use Bike Glow can ride without fearing they will be struck by a vehicle on early morning or late evening rides.”

The Bike Glow Safety Light system utilizes a ten-foot flexible light tube. The system’s electroluminescent technology provides bright colors for increased visibility from all angles, while the flexible tube can be used in any weather condition. It is powered by just 2 AA batteries, with up to 120 hours in flashing mode or 50 hours in constant illumination. And if you ride in a pack you can guide the way and be a point of light for others on their night ride home.

Bike Glow Safety Light

Hands-on: Boo! Freighting Good Ride With Bamboo

While visiting the Gates Carbon Drive System booth at the 2010 Outdoor Demo in Boulder City, NV, there was one bike the jumped out as being completely unique from all of the other manufacturers using the belt drive system. That manufacturer was Boo Bicycles from Ft. Collins, Colorado. The feature that really made this bike stand out was the use of bamboo as the main tubes and stays of the frame. Bamboo is one of those materials that has picked up steam as a building material in the mainstream recently due to its beauty and more importantly its sustainability as a building material.

Unlike traditional lumber, bamboo can be harvested for use as a building material in a few years as opposed to a few decades. For centuries, Eastern cultures have used bamboo for everything including building shelters, weapons, food and textiles. Boo is certainly not the first manufacturer to use bamboo in a bicycle frame, but they are one of the few to use the material in every single frame they produce. Continue reading Hands-on: Boo! Freighting Good Ride With Bamboo

Running Gets a Boost with Karhu Fulcrum_Ride

Stability is an important feature in shoes for those of us runners who overpronate. That’s when your feet tend to roll inward when you walk or run. The fulcrum_ride from Finland-based Karhu addresses pronation in a new way.

An asymmetrical footbed allows for appropriate pronation during the gate cycle. The center of pressure moves along the natural path from heel to toe. Traditionally, running shoes tend to jar the foot’s natural path, creating braking forces and pressure shifts back and forth. The path of energy tends to move from the heel to the arch, then to the outside of the foot due to pronation.

Continue reading Running Gets a Boost with Karhu Fulcrum_Ride