Urban Adventours

Do you ever wonder…

Parker — Tue, 15 May 2012 22:41:02 +0000

…what’s inside your copper heating pipes?

These guys.

We were wondering the same thing and decided to investigate. Okay, actually, we’re putting the finishing touches on our new Santa Fe Room/The Urban Cycling Institute (stay tuned, folks) and had to rip some down off the ceiling. And that involves draining them…

Here’s what we found…

This stuff was simply GUSHING out of the pipes. I wish I could’ve gotten photos of the deluge but I was too busy holding the pipes over the bucket. It got EVERYWHERE, but fortunately didn’t stain anything, and didn’t smell too bad.

But a 50mm lens makes everything look prettier.

Now if you’ll excuse us, we’re off to the scrapyard to cash in on this copper…

Keep it wheel,
-Craiggles

…And now for something completely different.

Craig — Mon, 14 May 2012 17:37:29 +0000

(h/t to Monty Python, of course.)

Behold, friends, the Audi Wörthersee Concept bike.

This prototype, built for the Wörthersee car show in Austria, is an electrical-drive trick/sport bike. Does this represent the future of cycling? Perhaps, but certainly not for everyone, perhaps even the majority of people. It certainly does have a unique look to it, and an ingenious feature for versatility: instead of having a fixed seat height, the seat drops down and pops back up with a simple button push much like a dropper seatpost.

Also, it’s not just a concept: it actually rides, and from the look of it, pretty sportily. Check this video of Julien DuPont tearing it up:

All I know is that I’d like it a lot better without the battery and motor. That carbon frame looks beautifully light.

(via designboom)

Keep it wheel,
-Craiggles

Bike Week Re-Up!

Craig — Sun, 13 May 2012 15:48:30 +0000

Bay State Bike Week is nearly upon us! Literally, it starts tomorrow. Below is a comprehensive rundown of events coming up in this glorious week, so you’ll know exactly where to be to maximize your fun quota.

Monday kicks it off with a truly one-of-a-kind event: the Liveable Streets Rush Hour Race. Join us in Kendall Square as a cyclist, a driver, and an MBTA rider face off to decide which is the fastest way to get from Davis Square, Somerville to Kendall Square, Cambridge.
The race starts at Redbones in Davis, and ends at Genzyme in Kendall. We’ll be there at the finish line, ready to congratulate the cyclist as he crosses the finish line first. Heh, heh, heh.

Then on Tuesday, enjoy a free pancake breakfast courtesy of Broadway Bicycle School! Starting at 8AM, mechanics will turn line cooks as they serve up some grub for anyone who stops by the shop. Come for the food, hang out for the bikes!

For your Wednesday, enjoy a screening of the new video Strength in Numbers, from Anthill Films. You don’t have to be a downhiller or even a mountain biker to appreciate the cinematography, skill, and incredible amount of work that went into this gorgeous feature. Our crew will definitely be there – join us! It’s at Jerry Remy’s in Fenway, and starts at 7 o’clock. There’s a $5 cover, donated directly to NEMBA, so they can keep their trails all pretty and stuff.

Things get a little more serious on Thursday, as MassBike holds their first Bike/Walk summit at the summit (see what we did there?) of Beacon Hill – the Massachusetts State House. Anyone is welcome to come by and voice their concerns, suggestions, or praises about cycling and walking in the city. For more information, check out MassBike’s website. We’ll certainly be swinging by as well!

On Friday, join us bright and early on City Hall Plaza as we kick off a growing summer tradition: Bike Fridays! Join one of the rides into town, or just swing on by and hang out. We’ll have a tent there to greet you all with, there’s free food from Boloco, and tons of other fun folks to chat with. Come by and say hey! You might even see our Mayor mingling with the crowd.

Finally, on Sunday there are a whole slew of events!

Things get started early in the AM with the Boston Brain Tumor Ride. We’ll be delivering up to 30 bikes straight to the starting line for this perennially excellent charity event. Bill Coffman, one of the ride’s most perennial participants and this year’s #2 fundraiser, will be riding one of our bikes! Will you? There’s still time to register and fund-raise!
A little later in the day, we’ll be kicking it at Amory Park in Brookline for the fifth annual Brookline Bikes Beacon Street Parade! Come show your support for the social, environmental, and physical benefits of cycling with hundreds of other folks from Brookline, and the neighboring communities. We’ll be there with a mechanic’s stand for pre-ride checkups and with in-ride mechanical support provided by our mobile repair bike. Come say hey!
If you’re not in the mood for an organized event, check out Bikeyface’s Bikenic on the Boston Common. It’s not wild or anything, just a bunch of bikers coming together to hang out and eat food. You’ll probably see someone you know there, or at least some people you’ve seen riding around the streets of Boston. Sign up on Facebook and bring your friends!

And that’ll about do it for Bike Week! But stay tuned, there’s plenty more coming in the final week of Bike Month.

Keep it wheel,
-Craiggles

Mayday! Mayday!

Craig — Tue, 01 May 2012 19:15:04 +0000

No no, calm down, we aren’t going down. It is May Day though! Once you get done dancing around your Maypole, you can join us for Bike Month, and the long series of events to come in it.

Things get started early this Thursday with MassBike’s “Beyond the Spandex” Fashion Show! While it might not be as intense as this fashion show, it’s sure to be an awesome evening, showcasing the latest in functional yet fashionable cycling wear. Don’t have your tickets yet? You cans still get them here!
Event organizer Greg Allen gave us a tip-off, too: use code SBS2012 to get your tickets for 60 dollars instead of 75, and then call MassBike to choose your meal for the included dinner! Don’t delay, though, while ticket sales have been extended through Wednesday, they could still sell out at any time – rumor has it there are less than 20 left!

Saturday May 5th: Urban AdvenTours Saturday Ride series! Come join us for a moderately paced group ride, going outside the hustle and bustle of the city and onto some open roads. The ride goes from 9am-12pm and meets at Urban AdvenTours’ headquarters at 103/109 Atlantic Avenue.

Wednesday, May 9th: National Bike to School Day. The National Center for Safe Routes to School, in partnership with the League of American Bicyclists, is pleased to be organizing the first-ever National Bike to School Day on May 9, 2012. Let the bike bells ring–event registration is now open right here!

Saturday, May 12th, 9am-5pm: Massbike’s National Train Day Ride. in Celebration of National Train Day, come follow the routes of parts of the Old Colony and New England Railroads south of Boston. Meet at 9:00 AM at South Station. Make sure that you leave enough time to buy your ticket and get onto the train to Walpole by 9:15!
For more information contact Dick Bauer. 857-540-6293

Sunday, May 13th: Christina Clarke Genco Mother’s Day Memorial Ride. A fitting kickoff to Bike Week, the CCG Memorial Ride will take place in Newton. For more information, check out their Facebook event or their website!

Lastly, May 14th through the 20th is Bay State Bike Week! Be sure to sign up for the Mass Commuter Challenge, and stay tuned here for a full rundown of all the splendiferous events that will be happening during that fun-filled week.

Keep it wheel,
-Craiggles

A Rainy Day at Urban AdvenTours

Craig — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 14:41:32 +0000

As I write this, it is currently pelting down rain against the shop’s windows. The first real storm of spring brought weather advisories and treacherous roads all over the state. After an absolutely gorgeous day on Saturday, the rainy, slow day was a welcome relief here at UA and allowed us all to get some serious work done while the Chief Wheel Officer took a well-deserved day off. Enjoy this peek into the (fortunately dry) workings of Urban AdvenTours:

Ralph makes sure you can check your reflection in your saddle when you come into the shop.

Chris got busy disposing of some shirts we found in the front pouches of rental bikes (just kidding – they were willingly donated). He also finished off every single repair in the shop!

Bill got a whole new batch of Kona Fire Mountains up and running, and had some fun doing it, too. You should come check these machines out, they’re an amazing bike for the price.

Eddy, enjoying his new contact lenses and the improved visual acuity they bring, while wowing customers with his guns of steel.

What was Craiggles doing all this while? Not too much, mostly just preaching to the congregation of bicycles in the Crow’s Nest. Aside from that, he made sure our Zerve site, and our Facebook are all up to date and fresh.

Looks like the rain is stopping soon! Good thing, too – we’ve got a tour booked for this afternoon. Stay dry, everyone!

The Atlantic Avenue bike lane – now in technicolor!

Craig — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 14:52:01 +0000

We arrived at the shop this morning to a very welcome sight – the bike lane on Atlantic Avenue being painted bright green!

Hair dryers have nothing on these guys.

The green, which has been popping up all over during the last year or so, is a welcome addition to the area, as it will surely remind drivers to keep an eye out for us cyclists while making their turns onto Richmond Street, or just while driving by.

Hey man, I think you missed a spot.

How many new bike lanes will be coming into the city this summer? Only time will tell, but maybe one day EVERY street in Boston will have a path for us on it!

Marathon Monday with UA

Marketing — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:16:06 +0000

Marathon Monday is almost upon us once again! This April 16th, over 26,000 runners will be hitting the pavement for the world’s oldest marathon. Whether you want to cruise the race course or avoid the madness altogether, we’ve got you covered.

The Boston Societies of Spontaneity is hosting its 4th annual Boston Midnight Marathon Bike Ride. We’ll be meeting at South Station to take the commuter rail to the starting line in Hopkinton, then ride the 26 miles back to Boston. Over 200 people showed up last year, and they are expecting even more this year.

This video is pretty cool
We found it here, which is also where you can RSVP to receive email updates on the ride: http://www.bostonsos.org/adventure/boston-midnight-marathon.html

Download our free iPhone app through EveryTrail to keep you from getting lost during the midnight ride and to provide you with fun marathon facts to impress your friends. Alternatively, use it to avoid the madness of the crowd or to check out the race on your own!

See you there!

Hail and Farewell: New Staff this Spring!

Craig — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 18:52:57 +0000

If you’ve been through the shop recently, you may have seen some faces you didn’t recognize. Here’s a cheat sheet of sorts to help you get to know our new shop staff!

Chris Jochem

When not posing dramatically the shop, Chris is our new mechanic here at Urban AdvenTours! Carrying with him a pedigree of experience from a variety of other Boston area shops, he performs spectacular work while fixing bikes and brightening the mood around the office with a sharp wit and wide smile.

Nick Salata

Nick commutes from the faraway land known as “Bevahley” every morning, and boy, are we grateful. He keeps the bike shop running smooth, rides tiny Cannondales, and smooth-talks customers all day…well, he has a knack for customer service is what I’m saying here!

Eddy Byrne-Maisto

Eddy joins us after a decade-long hiatus from Boston life, during which he spent some time on a farm in North Carolina and traveled around the US. Now he’s back and wrenching on bikes as our head mechanic, as well as helping keep the shop organized and, most importantly, pioneering our bike fitting program! If you need a new road bike, and need it fitted perfectly to your body, Eddy can take you from beginning to end and send you out the door with the most comfortable ride you’ll ever have.

Lastly…

It saddens us greatly to inform you that our longtime friend and mechanic Dan Barry will be moving away in June, as his wife has been re-deployed, and he’ll be continuing his mechanical career somewhere else. Look out for Dan slaying the Mountain Bike circuit this spring before he leaves – he’s sure to leave a lasting impression out there!

Stay tuned!

More staff introductions will be coming next week!

St. Patrick’s Day Parade Day!

Marketing — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 20:49:33 +0000

As we mentioned earlier this week, the Urban AdvenTours team was lucky enough to be a part of one of the largest St. Patrick’s day parades in the nation- right over in Southie!

We rocked our new ‘I bike Southie’ shirts. Caitlin bikes Southie- do you?

We’ve got more here at the shop- come get your own!

The BioBus came to celebrate too! He looks great in green.

Parker took a more passive approach to biking Southie.

We liked the people who came out to watch and the Tootsie Rolls from the guys in front of us best. Next year, remind us to wear sunscreen! Clover-shaped sunburns aren’t nearly as cool as they might sound. Guess that’s the luck of the Irish for you!

The Big Kahuna of St. Patrick’s Day Parades

Marketing — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:32:41 +0000

Aren’t we lucky!? The Big Kahuna of St. Patricks Day Parades is held right here in good ol’ South Boston! Urban Adventours will be joining 600,000+ spectators in one of the largest parades in the United States this Sunday, March 18th at 1 pm. We will be riding along in our big green Bio Bus – how appropriate! Keep an eye out for the Bio Bus and the UA Bikers behind it as they will be handing out freebies along the way.

*We will be passing out FREE “I Bike Southie” T-shirts to anyone who flags us down with their helmets* Make sure to tell all of your friends on Facebook and Twitter as well!

It’s our very first year riding in the St. Patty’s Day Parade, so we are super excited to be apart of it.

We hope to see you there!