Highflange » Bike Shops

Really creative bike mechanic business card.

James — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 19:49:08 +0000

I am immensely amused by the creativeness of this business card. It’s a shame giving these out would be prohibitvly expensive. But to be honest I’d be willing to pony up $5-10 for one up to keep in my wallet since you can never have too many tools.

via Creativebits

If only people knew how much fun it was to ride a bike.

James — Mon, 24 May 2010 21:29:51 +0000

And I’ve got to agree.

Via Twitter

The big B.M. makes a visit to SXSW/Mellow Johnny’s in Austin

Milin — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 21:58:20 +0000

via MellowJohnny’s (youtube channel)

Bill Murray is the man. From his early role in Caddyshack, to the more recent Sophia Coppola film “Lost in Translation” (a personal favorite), he has delivered. In Zombieland, Woody Harrelson even confessed to an obsession with Bill, who had discovered the secret to living amongst the zombies was to dress like one.

It’s pretty great to see a star not only advocating bike riding, but hitting up Austin’s SXSW and actually using a bike! Perhaps it was not only the festival, but the ease of traversing it on two wheels that attracted the celebs. South by Southwest is a great place to not only hear up and coming bands, but also to see famous people walking amongst us normal folk.

“Don’t get hit” is the advice he leaves us with. Is it possible that more celebrities not only riding bikes, but actively doing so in the public eye will make it safer and less “fringe” for the average rider to participate in this growing sport?

Pre-Season Upgrades

Milin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:52:05 +0000

As the season approaches and begins, Highflange does a few upgrades to the race machines. James is stepping into the ring with a new lightweight stem (Thor Hushovd edition) and I stepped in with a set of carbon tubulars (Reynolds DV46KT). I took them out for a spin and realized that I had totally forgotten how amazing tubulars cornered.

The tires we decided on were a set of Continental Sprinters with a kevlar sidewall.

I finally had a chance to test them out: my verdict: Aero is real. It might be really placebo-like, but I noticed a difference above 20 mph increasing exponentially. As the wheels spun faster, they seemed to accelerate more easily. At this stage, I have been off the bike for over a month traveling around the world (more on that later!) however the cornering on tubulars was also something to be reckoned with. I was able to approach corners that before caused the michelin pro race tires I was on (in clincher form) to deform with confidence. The tires may not actually corner better, but the confidence they inspire in their stability will have you turning faster as soon as you put them on. I didn’t expect this to be as drastic, however I will definitely be using tubulars in criterium races this year!

Sadly, I am not going to do any training on these wheels, so back to the case they go and back on go my training wheels. They sure do look pretty, though.

What you know about them Texas Boys?

Milin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:37:26 +0000

Busy? Didn’t think so. If you’d like to check out what Texas has been doing in representing the “trick-track” scene head on over to John Prolly’s blog at Prollyisnotprobably and see what the crew from Houston and College Station has been up to in Milwaukee.

I think the usage of fixed gear bikes is growing in the trick scene and you can clearly see it in the availability of “tricktrack” specific parts for their stunting. No longer are you confined to make retrofits of bmx parts. The frames are also more and more resembling BMX bikes. Highflange team member “Emo” James pointed out yesterday that the frames really were starting to resemble the rigid 29′er Mountain bike style with skinny tires.

Personally I’m interested to see where things will head in the frame design. I remember when even being able to clear a barspin required retrofitting tiny 650c wheels to about every frame on the market. Having had a tiny bit of seat time on a Volume Cutter, I am intrigued that pretty much all their frames at that time could clear a barspin. It was very different from the velodrome bred fixed gears I was used to seeing.

At first I was just glad to see that 3Renshos weren’t being used to pop wheelies and take drops, but now the movement has taken it’s own momentum and become something unique, and that’s a good thing. Keep riding!

Source: Prolly is not probably: Midwest Mayhem Recap

The Pneumatic Testicle Crusher

James — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 13:18:03 +0000

Yesterday I had the pleasure to talk mountain bikes with a sales rep at the local bike shop. He had mentioned on his downhill bike he had a pneumatic, adjustable seat post. As a weight weenie the thought of something like this blew my mind and I had to do some more research. The concept is that when downhill riding you can drop the seat post to put your weight way behind the tire. The downside is when you return the saddle to its original position and you are not sitting on it you get your nuts turned into peanut butter. Allow this YouTube video to demonstrate:

Amazing coffee shop.

James — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:43:14 +0000

Take a look at this completely amazing bike themed coffee shop in Minneapolis, MN. From the huge number of bike racks out in front to the tasteful decor inside it appears that the owners thought everything through and created a cold bike commuter’s dream stop.

More photos after the jump…

You can check out the rest of the photos here.

Houston, We have a (bike) problem: Highflange

Milin — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:45:52 +0000

The cycling scene depends upon a few key community organizers. If only these few people really knew how crucial they were to the fate of the cycling hobby in the city. Still, each of these organizers represent different disciplines in cycling: Road, Track, Mountain, Fixed, BMX. They are often unknown outside of their discipline and area of expertise. To a Mountain rider, the Road racing star is just another leg shaver in spandex. To the Roadie, the Fixed gear freestyle master, featured in videos internationally is just another kid with technicolor wheels and no helmet.

Stop. Wait. Step back for a moment: Each of these riders is different, but to the outsider, they all together represent cycling. They are all members of a two-wheeling, human-powered collective. But to each member, they are practiced disciples of their trade, separated by canyons. Out of these islands, Highflange was born.

What is Highflange? A type of bicycle part. A hub. A device from which spokes are laced to the rim. Though each spoke laces far away from the opposite spoke at the edges of the flanges, and reaches even farther away to hold the rim, the fringe, they are all connected at the hub. Highflange will cover all aspects of bike life, starting from its birth city in Houston, TX and radiating outwards through collaboration efforts in the cycling community. We are all members of the same sport. We are all connected at the hub of bicycle life: High Flange.