Cut From The Same Cloth--Or Hide

A couple of years ago, to a lot of fanfare, Brooks launched its Cambium saddles.  The stated reason was that some cyclists were looking for something that was, shall we say, is moins d'une douleur a l'arriere than their traditional tensioned leather saddles.

(Pardon my French. There, I said it!)

Ironically, Brooks created the Cambium--which is manufactured in Italy--as their tensioned leather saddles are more popular, at least here in the US, than they've been in decades.

The Cambium uses a fabric made of cotton and rubber instead of leather.  If you started cycling, say, about thirty or fewer years ago, you probably have not seen, let alone used, a cloth saddle.  But they've been around, in one form or another, almost from the earliest days of cycling.

One of the most famous examples is the "Bummer", which was inspired by Dan Henry's DIY project:

From American Cycling, July 1966

If you started cycling arond the same time as I did, you probably first heard his name in refrence to "Dan Henry arrows" or, later, "Dan Henry markers".  For decades, it seemed that every organized ride here in the US was marked by painting the symbols he developed onto pavement.

It seems that every other decade, someone makes a version of the Dan Henry saddle.  Late in the '70's Bike Boom, they were marketed as " Bummer" saddles; someone else revived them during the '90's.  Perhaps they'll return, soon, to a bike shop near you.

I've been tempted to try one, but never got around to it.  Maybe if somene rides one and is willing to let me take a few turns on it, I'd be willing. But I really don't want to buy another saddle that I might or might not like.  That said, if I were to try a new saddle, the Dan Henry/Bummer would probably be the one.

Now, if I wanted a cloth saddle purely for aethetic reasons, this is the one I'd get:

This saddle is said to be more or less a replica of one that was fitted to a Dursley-Pederson bicycle of the Edwardian era.  Tim Dawson, the author of the blog Vintage Bicycle, wites, "I  can report that I find it just as uncomfortable as the Dursley-Pedersen saddle."

Perhaps he needs to re-tension it:

Orange Peel--Or Krush?

During my childhood and early adolescence, Schwinn made a line of bicycles called "Krates", which were really variants of their enormously popular Stingray bicycles.  They had "banana" seats, "stick" shifters and other features that were meant to evoke the "muscle" cars of that era.

Those bikes came in a rainbow of colors and went by names like the Pea Picker Lemon Peeler, Apple Krate and Orange Krate.  (As Tom Wolfe pointed out in The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine Flake Streamline Baby, young men involved in the culture of custom muscle cars seemed to have an abhorrence of the letter "C".)  

I never, ever thought about what an Orange Peel might have looked like.  But I found out while I was surfing the web after riding home just ahead of yesterday's deluge:

They Didn't Bike To Work Today

Today, as you probably know, is National Bike To Work Day.

On the whole, I don't care much for designated days for one thing or another.  Ideally, we should ride our bikes to work every day, or at least any day we can, just as we should honor our parents every day, not only on Mother's and Father's Day.  I feel the same way about office assistants, teachers, veterans and other people and the days dedicated to them.

Still, I guess it's better to have such days than not to have them.  Perhaps this day might help to make some people realize that cycling is a viable mode of transportation.

And, I must admit, I expected--and rather hoped--to see a lot of people riding to work.  I have several commute routes; the one I took today led me down Kent Avenue on the Williamsburg waterfront.  Being the main artery, so to speak, of Hipster Hood, I expected to see throngs of two-wheelers.  Instead, this scene greeted me:

Don't get me wrong:  I rather enjoyed having the bike lane to myself. On the other hand, I was disappointed to see no other cyclists on what has become one of the main arteries, so to speak, of New York cycling.

Perhaps the reason for my solitude can be seen in this photo:

More precisely, it's what you don't see:  the skyscrapers just on the other side of the East River.  Normally, they're as visible and distinct as the stars on a clear night in the country.



The weather forecasts are predicting a deluge this afternoon.  Perhaps some people didn't want to risk riding in it, so they left their wheels at home--or didn't go to work at all.

At least, I hope that's the case.