Brandon Chang, Co-founder of Greedy Genius dropped us a note with a preview of his latest creation– dubbed the Ocean Runner shown here. Nods to nautical inspiration, Brandon says it’s inspired through our travels.A mix of classic American, Asian and European style infused with independent street culture taste. Pretty classy.
My pals from The Buried Life just dropped me a note with a link to their new trailer shown above. If you missed the news, they’ve been given there own MTV show! Fantastic coverage of what they’re up to in this past Sunday’s New York Times
Four buddies set off across the country in an R.V., video camera in tow, to knock items off their “100 things to do before I die†list: kiss the Stanley Cup, get a tattoo, grow a mustache.
With plenty of high jinks and adolescent humor, “The Buried Life†seems like the perfect MTV reality show, except for one unexpected twist. At each stop the group helps deserving locals with their own wishes. In Idaho, for example, they took eight children with brain cancer on a shopping spree at Toys “R†Us.
Considering there are only two points of contact between your road bike and the engines (read: legs) that power it, pedals should be high on your priority list. I had a chance to try the KeO Sprint Laneo pedals from Look on a ride this past weekend. I scored a pair of last year’s high-end Shimano carbon shoes, and despite the irony, I decided to pair the two. At first, I was worried about the hole configuration, but here’s a little tip I learned- Look’s spacing is exactly the same as Shimano’s SPD-SL. The pedals also have a patented “memory” function which allows you to reinstall the cleats in the exact same position each time. This is a great idea considering how long it takes to get pedals dialed in.
I was a bit nervous on the ride since I was taking two new pieces of equipment out on the road at the same time, but once I hit my stride, the pedals performed flawlessly. There is a good amount of float which I usually don’t like but there was no slippage or real hesitation in the release. During climbs when I am standing and really powering down, the large surface area and glass fiber polymer body provided the perfect platform for the power transfer. Though it allows you to customize the release tension (9 to 15 Nm), I found that the factory setting was just perfect. I was able to test out durable the Sprints were when I crashed, landing hard on my left side. After dusting myself off, I checked the pedals and there was nothing some soap and water couldn’t have taken off. Weighing in at just 130g per pedal, this is not the lightest offering from Look but unless you are a weight weenie, I am confident these pedals would impress even the most enthusiastic riders. Lastly, as if cycling wasn’t clean enough, Look has been partnering with Laneo since 2007, promoting an environmental project worldwide.
San Francisco’s Rickshaw Bagworks (whose zero waste messenger bag was previously featured) is now creating customizable folios for Moleskine journals. The $50 folios include space for four pens and business cards and have a protected pocket perfect for receipts or maps. Each is made to order in the City by the Bay, and, should you feel stuck trying to pick a color combination, there’s a Flickr gallery chock full of customized fabrics to delight even the most hardcore Moleskinerie fan. Sustainable, awesome.
Literature and multimedia-loving San Franciscans will enjoy Wednesday's Pop-Up Magazine, a night of live presentations from contributors to Wired, All Things Considered, Harper's, et al. Award-winning artists and authors on stage at the Brava Theater will include New York Times Magazine contributors Michael Pollan and Peggy Orenstein; The Kitchen Sisters, Davia Nelson and Nikki Silva; and photographer Todd Hido. Lest you be upset that the Pop-Up Magazine is a one-night only event, This American Life Live will be shown at theaters around the country on Thursday to provide your smart independent culture fix.
