Written by: FOLLY

OH MY HOTNESS!!! This is it. This is the bicycle I want buried with me when I die. Everything I love and nothing I don’t. Great work Andrew!!

What’s that…? Yer drooling too?! Well you can win this frame AND grab a bad ass Team Supporter Kit / T-Shirt that will give you several raffle tickets to win it.

INFO TIME:

The Team:

LOW// is making its debut into USAC racing within the Northern California Nevada Cycling Association series. LOW// Factory Racing is an eclectic group of athletes contrived from local industry leaders such as Strava and Rapha Racing as well as originals who have been with us since the beginning. Sponsors and team roster to be announced soon.

The Kit:

We have opened up pre-orders for our #LOWFACTORYRACING team supporter cycling kits. All proceeds will go to aiding our 2016 road team in having an inaugural year full of stoke and podiums. These kits are designed in San Francisco and produced by the homies at Castelli Cycling. The order deadline is January 30th 2015.

The Raffle:

To aid in the fund raising efforts for a successful and competitive season, LOW// will be raffling off a 2016 MKi Road frame. This is a $2450.00 value. The winner will have the incredible opportunity to have this frame built in their given size. To enter the raffle, people will purchase a team supporter jersey, bibs or Factory Racing t-shirt. Raffle ticket allotment is as follows:

Team Supporter Jersey – $115.00 = 5 Tickets

Team Supporter Bibs – $180.00 = 5 Tickets

Full Supporter Kit – $295.00 = 11 Tickets – 1 point bonus for purchasing full kit.

LOW// Factory Racing T-Shirt – $30 = 1 Ticket

The winner will be announced via social media February 27th at NAHBS 2016 in Sacramento, California.

Go to LOW// and check out more info on this raffle and pick up your tickets. I hope you’re as pumped as I am.

DOODE. YES!! It’s that time of year again to start thinking about dominating The Great Divide or Pacific Coast with Blackburn as they start looking for folks to participate in the 2016 Ranger program.

Each year this comes up I go to instant daydream land imagining what it would be like to really get out there and experience what most, like me, can only image. Although I’ve been on plenty of exploration sessions in my day… nothing will top traveling across the coast or divide in this fashion.

“SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif, (January 6, 2016) – Continuing in the spirit of adventure, Blackburn announces its fourth installation in its ‘Out There’ Ranger program, opening up applications to all cyclists.

Blackburn will be recruiting 6 new brand ambassadors for 2016. Nicknamed ‘Rangers,’ these ambassadors will be the ultimate testers of Blackburn products, while supporting and promoting the core culture that Blackburn thoroughly believes and embodies. The program will continue to feature two of the most iconic cycling routes, the people who ride them, and the uncommon adventures they have along the way. The Pacific Coast Highway and the Great Divide Route will continue to serve as the pages that the Blackburn ambassadors will write their adventures upon.

‘We know that there is a great story around every corner once you are on your bike, and we want to be a part of that again,’ said Robin Sansom, Blackburn brand manager. ‘Enabling adventure through design and innovation was the reason that Jim Blackburn started the company 40 years ago.'”

Head to Blackburn Design and check out more on how to apply to be a Ranger as well as info on the routes.

Pretty dope new pack from Chari & Co. It comes equipped with a hidden zip pocket on bottom of bag to stowaway your basketball and/or to be used as a rain cover.

Go to Chari & Co. and check out their new “Ball Sack Backpack”. Looks fun.

RIDE in SEOUL – Hacheon Park for State Bicycle Co. from State Bicycle Co. on Vimeo.

Yup… I just got amped! Perfect mid week pick me up video showcasing the State Bicycle Co. Undefeated. Solid lightweight ripper for sure.

I didn’t shoot as much film as I wanted to while in San Francisco but I did capture a five shot panoramic of the city from the top of Twin Peaks, Matt Reyes filming me, and Massan’s LOW// between spots. I’ll call that a successful roll.

Dallas, TX has a lot of fun nooks and crannies to explore. When you get four doodes together that crave exploring and capturing the scene you’ll never not end up with something fun to capture.

Let’s side track for a moment and talk about creativity. It can get EXHAUSTING quick. Not like the “omg I’m rubbing blisters on my heals” exhausting; more like in the “my brain is fried” type of way. There was no pressure to capture a great shot on this day other than that I put on myself. I didn’t have any deliverables, but I did want to create something I’m proud of and more importantly (in this case) something that Kyle was proud. I bring all of this up to say… it’s ok if you get the shot; it’s ok if you don’t. When I overpressure myself I tend to shut down a bit and that’s not where I want to be in my creative process.

This explore x shoot session just so happened to be focused around Kyle as this weekend marked 10 years of marriage with his wife Amanda. The event brought me, Brenton Little, and Nathan Michael in town to share in the celebration. When we all got in we hopped into a car and head downtown where Kyle knew of a fun rooftop access location; with the top floor of the building being renovated, we got to revert back to little children and go exploring.

WE FOUND THE LIGHT!!

Kyle and Michael were on the other side of the floor when Brenton whisper shouts (as if he wanted to keep it to himself for just a moment but got too excited and let his discovery be known) “light leak light leak”, and immediately darted over to this amazing laser beam of light as if he had just found a large group of Easter eggs and wanted to get there first. I follow suit only analyzing the scene and letting Brenton have his moment before Kyle and Michael come over to capture their version of the spot.

Shortly after Brenton and I have our moment Kyle and Nathan find us. Since Kyle was the man of the hour (or day if you will) Nathan directed him into place and away we went to snapping.

Lets stop here for second and talk about photographical direction. Nathan Michael is a pro at this! Figuratively and literally. It was very interesting to watch as he gave micro adjustments to capture his subject and how clearly he got the idea across to the person being shot. I very rarely direct, more so capturing what’s happening and do my best to envision where the shot is going to happen before it actually happens; so for me this was very educational. Cheers to you Nathan! Thank you for that.

SO… on this day our roles played out like this:

Kyle – Model

Nathan – Photographer

Me – Photojournalist

Brenton – Stage Manager

Kyle, Nathan, and myself are all self explanatory rolls. Brenton on the other hand…. he had the scene on lock! With pipe in hand… Brenton starts puffing away to get the spot nice and smoke filled! It was awesome… he knew what the spot was lacking and did his damndest to make it the next level! Shortly after everything is coming together his pipe runs out. But that didn’t stop Brent… he goes and finds a big ass push broom to conjure up some of the dust on the floor. Although we all probably have mesothelioma at this point… we got the shot. Thanks Brenton!!!

Here are a few shots from this day. I hope you enjoy.

DUDE!! YES!! My favorite #NoGarminNoRules tee yet! Simple. Black. SOLID!

Go to No Garmin No Rules and nab one while you can. I did. PUMPED!

Beautiful things are beautiful. Didn’t really pick up on how bad ass these were until I checked’em out at MASH. Super into the craftsmanship of them.

Go check out Spurcycle for more info on this Bell as well as other equally stylish/functional products they create.

Spurcycle Bell Craft from Spurcycle on Vimeo.

I’m just gonna leave this here for your viewing pleasure… yer welcome.

Speedvagen Family Racing: Laura Winberry from The Vanilla Workshop on Vimeo.

This is killer! and the first in a video profile series from The Vanilla Workshop. Looking forward to checking out this series as it progresses.

“Speedvagen is more than just a bike brand, it’s a family. The time spent learning a rider’s needs, and building a bike that exceeds those needs creates a special bond. The Speedvagen Family Racing (SVFR) team is an extension of those relationships we have built over the years. SVFR riders are a group of kindred spirits who are looking for a partnership, not a sponsor. Our riders go fast, but not at the expense of the enjoyment and camaraderie the cycling community fosters. Each member of the team is a friend first, and a racer second.

Our first video profile looks at Laura Winberry, who embodies the Speedvagen Family Racing ethos perfectly. Racing is her passion, but not her entire life. Laura is always looking for a creative outlet to express herself, and riding for Speedvagen is just one aspect of that.

In Laura’s words, “When I train and race I don’t go by numbers or data or watts, I go by feel and intuition and a little-big thing called heart. SVFR is an extension and an embodiment of the latter, the feel and the intuition and the heart. While racing itself is a huge component of why I do what I do, the experience and the individuals surrounding that experience are just as important. Really, there’s family of origin and there’s chosen family, and it’s about what you want to look back on, if you get the chance to look back. SVFR is part of all that, it’s chosen family and it’s part of what I want to look back on. It’s like Jay Z says: my brothers is my brothers like my brother is.”