The Radavist

It’s been spring all winter long in Texas and the heat has already picked up. Every day is a sweat-filled adventure and helmet pads are sponges.

Photo by Tony Fast

Man, it’s been a while since I’ve heard or seen anything from Tony. He’s been undergoing a cross-country move from Philly to Santa Barbara over the past few months. Tom LaMarche rode with him in his car to keep him company on his drive across the US and the resulting photos are great. We’ve all done a move like that before and if you haven’t, these shots give you a sense of what it’s like to experience a new environment. Fresh eyes…

See the full set here.

Flying into Far West Road / Portra 160NC Yashica T4

There’s a great story on Williamsburg Greenpoint News+Arts called “How I Learned to Ride a Straight Line“. Where the author, John D. Eustice (you NYC racers should know that name) relates his years of racing in Belgium to everyday cycling practices. Advice like “steer with your belly button” and “relax your jaw” are things we’ve all heard but the punch-line is a story about how an old Belgian woman taught him how to ride a straight line. It’s worth the read, especially the part about not riding like an asshole down the bridges of NYC…

Thanks for the heads up Affinity!

Photo by Jake Ricker

I was talking to a few people at NAHBS this year about how Seattle doesn’t have many builders, especially when compared to Portland, its arch enemy. There’s what? Davidson and that’s about it? Then I saw this beast. Todd Hunt Bertram builds custom bicycles under the name Viana Cycles. His shop is based in Seattle and this particular frame utilizes a rather unique wishbone seat stay bridge. What else would you call it? Take note of that downtube diameter, the sleeved and cleaved seat tube and the bright-ass color. The list just goes on. Check out more at Jake’s Flickr!

For more information on Viana, head to their site and their Etsy profile. That’s a first!

Photo by Terry Barentsen

I really dig the Full Frame Collective contingency, especially with photos like this popping up on Terry’s Flickr. Kanin needs a Balhogs Grip Strip!

Aaron from 44RN just sent me a link to Ant Bike Mike’s Flickr, with a gallery from the old Fat City Cycles in Somerville. This building is where Fringe now stands in Olive Sq. There’s a lotta history there. For more photos, head to Ant’s Flickr.

Photo by Terry Barentsen

I wish I was in NYC right now for Monster Track and this photo ain’t helping. Thank you Terry for making me miss my old home town. Full Frame Collective is on it.

Photo by Dylan Bigby

I love taking shots like this. They always provide much more information than a full body photo and on a track bike, you can feel the momentum. Dylan had some lens time with Chas (the winner of 2012 Monster Track), resulting in two great photos. Check the other one out at Full Frame Collective.

It’s that time of year again, where I flip the switch into production mode. Last year’s NAHBS coverage was by far the most work I’ve ever done for the blog. This year, I’ll be doing my thing again, but a bit differently. I’m not going to go into it too much, but the content will be much easier to digest and easier to access.

For last year’s coverage, check out the 2011 NAHBS Category Archives and my entire Flickr Collection here. For this year’s coverage, I’ve added the 2012 NAHBS Category link to the top navigation bar.

Is there anything you’d like to see differently this year? Drop a note in the comments.

Jake Ricker’s photography has been featured here countless times on the site over the years. His 35mm snapshots have finally made their way to a printed publication:

“I am very proud to announce my first photography book is now for sale. A wider and slim version of the same 70 page book is available. Hard cover and soft cover option in both sizes. Look for the preview button on Blurb to see 30 pages of the book. If you would like a copy but don’t want to go through Blurb I can take preorder payments and place a mass order myself. I will ship them out as soon as I get them in.