Thursday, March 5, 2015

Upstart Rad Bicycle Company Offers Affordable Hand-Built Frames

What do you get when you mix a lifetime of automotive manufacturing, years of bicycle racing experience and...



from Bike Rumor http://ift.tt/1Bb7Itq

On Review: Scott Genius 930

The Scott Genius 930 fits squarely in the “trail” category of mountain bikes. Simply put, this is a bike that’s designed for all-around trail riding, while not getting too crazy on either end of the spectrum. It might not be the fastest XC sprinter or the gnarliest of descenders, but the 930 should be a …






from Singletracks Mountain Bike News http://ift.tt/17Vlbvh

Thursday, June 20, 2013


Bike shop owner sees lots of potential in Orleans as tourist draw
Photos by Tom Rivers
Chris VanDusen opened Trailside Bicycles on Canal Road in Hulberton on June 3.
By Tom Rivers, editor Posted 17 June 2013
HULBERTON – Chris VanDusen has pedaled his bike through Germany, Quebec, France, the Adirondacks and the Finger Lakes. They all have great bike trails with interesting towns to explore.

VanDusen thinks the Erie Canal Towpath and the communities along the journey have tremendous potential to draw cyclists. The canal already pulls in many cyclists, but it could attract more touring riders with better promotion, including bike loops of nearby attractions.

VanDusen on June 3 opened Trailside Bicycles at 16271 Canal Rd., a stone’s throw from the Hulberton lift bridge. He has spent two years working on the 4,000-square-foot structure. Many of his friends wondered why he’d pick rural Hulberton for the business.

“People say you’re in the middle of nowhere, but I’m in a strategic spot,” VanDusen said today. “I’m the only cycle shop between Buffalo and Brockport.”

VanDusen sees cyclists stop and ride by the business every day. Some of them are on long-distance self-guided trips.

VanDusen can repair bikes and sell parts. He has snacks, beverages and ice cream for sale. He wants to expand the business, renting out kayaks, planning bike loops, and leading tours of local sites.
The building was constructed in 1890 as a boarding house for quarry workers. About half of the building has been mostly untouched from those early days. VanDusen wants to clean up the space and turn it into a hostel, preserving the historic integrity of the living quarters.

He wants to develop loops for the Kendall barn quilt trail, local cobblestone homes, and Medina sandstone structures, as well as other local historical attractions.

“This county is a diamond in the rough,” VanDusen said. “It has the history and it’s along a fantastic corridor with the Erie Canal.”

His address should be on some of the bike loops because of its history. VanDusen researched the abstract detailing the property’s past. The building was put up in 1890 by the Medina Sandstone Company. The building was originally a boarding house for immigrant Italian quarrymen. That portion of the house is largely unchanged. VanDusen wants to clean it up, preserve its historical character and turn it into a hostel for traveling cyclists.

“We’re going to keep it authentic,” he said.
The Medina Sandstone Company built the site at 16271 Canal Road as housing for the Italian immigrants who worked in local quarries. The small partitioned rooms haven’t changed much since then.

VanDusen has had a love for bikes since he was a kid, learning to repair them when he was 8. He worked at a Brockport bike shop beginning at age 16. He has stayed in the industry since then, leading guided bike tours in foreign countries and in New York.

The cycling business is on an upswing, he said.

“The Baby Boomers are putting away the golf clubs and picking up bike riding,” he said. “They want something that is more active. It’s good for their health.”

The county could better capitalize on the canal with maps, trails and more businesses close by with lodging, cafes, outdoor seating and art, VanDusen said. The travelers want an experience that includes the local flavor.

“The corridor is right here,” he said. “It’s just giving people a reason to stop.”

Trailside Bicycles is open seven days a week. For more information, visit VanDusen’s web site by clicking here.

Sunday, April 21, 2013

This is why I do what I do!

Original post from Crazyguyonabike By Ryan Conaughty on Fri 18 Mar 2011

About a week ago, I find myself after class (as usual) at the Stoneyard Lounge in Brockport, NY for a drink with fellow grad students. There's a guy with a Trek jacket on and we start talking bikes and he says he's worked in a bike shop for most of his life, manages tours, has been on tour and is now thinking of building-
"Wait," I say, "you tour?"
"Yeah, man," he says, and he tells me about his own tour: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/3113
"I did the TransAm a few years ago," I say.
He puts his beer down he looks at me somewhat intensely and his eyes wince a little and he says, "Oh. So you get it."
I'm just chiming in here because something happened at that exact moment when we realized we were connected through bike touring. We spoke of the philosophy tourers adopt and adapt to with being on the road, being in the moment, just being in the "now" of life and the adventure it brings. The conversation got pretty meta and a little nostalgic for me but I'll just relay one quick story I remember Chris telling me about how bike touring has made a difference how HE views the world.
So Chris is opening the bike shop in Brockport on a Friday in the late 80's. It's 9 a.m., he's pouring his cup of coffee about to get the store in order when he hears, on the front door, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM on the window. He opens the door and there's a stout man, beard down to his stomach, thick glasses cracked and dirty, and his clothes have obviously been worn for multiple days or weeks.
"Can I help you?" Chris asks.
"Are you Chris?" the guy asks.
"Yeah."
"The Preacher sent me," the guy says.
"What?" Chris assumes this guy is crazy.
"The Preacher," the guy says again, pointing down the road, "he said you could help me."
"I'll do my best, man," Chris says, "but what is it I can-" and that's when Chris sees the bike. It's a ragged little Huffy. The pedals on it are broken, the teeth on the chain ring don't exist anymore and there's four feet of stuff, blankets, clothes, water jugs, pots, hats, all piled on about three feet high on the rear rack.
Chris takes the bike in the shop and basically determines it is theoretically impossible this guy could be riding this disaster of a bike. There aren't even any ball bearings left. Chris asks where the guys riding from.
"Alaska," the guy says.
"You rode here from Alaska??" Chris asks. But the man answers no, that he rode down the West coast, through Texas, to Florida, up to Vermont and is riding back to Alaska. On a single gear Huffy bike with no teeth left on the chain ring.
In telling the story, Chris said that from that day on he realized that no matter how hard something is, how shitty everything can become and how terrible things might happen to turn out...you have to remember to not give up. To push, to survive. To try.
Bike touring reminds us how to live.
Chris fixed the bike for free while the the guy danced around to The Grateful Dead playing on the radio sitting on the counter.