The Duke City Classic kicks off this weekend with the Regional Bike Polo Tournament, featuring teams from all over the Southwest – NM, AZ, TX, CO, even CA! If you’re not playing, come kick it courtside and cheer on the action. It’s always more fun with a crowd and there just might be giveaways for spectators. The Railrunner departs downtown ABQ at 9:30, 11:30, and 2:30 on Sat., 9:30 on Sun.  We will all be riding the 6:30 train back from Santa Fe. There are directions to Herb Martinez Park here. Bring booze, food, etc. This is a public park so we want to be discreet with our drinking – brown bags, novelty coozies, flasks, nalgene bottles, etc. Come spend the weekend in Santa Fe with us – the last time we rolled north it was drunk madness and fun times all around…

BAXTER, IA (BRAIN)—Phil Wood, the man responsible for sealed hubs and bottom brackets, died this week on his farm in Baxter, Iowa. He was 84.

He started the Phil Wood Company in 1971 as primarily a hub maker, though he offered other components. He sold the business to Peter Enright and a group of investors in 1991.

“I feel so lucky to have talked with him about a week before he passed away, and he mentioned again that he was so lucky to sell the business when he did,” said Enright, Phil Wood Company’s president.

“We talked off and on over the years, usually to catch up on news about his friends in the bike business. But he was quite happy to return to the farm after selling the business to help raise his granddaughter,” Enright added.

Wood was a problem-solver working at Food Machinery Corporation. Had he not been bothered chasing bearings for a hub he was rebuilding for his daughter, sealed-bearing hubs might have taken years to hit the bike market, Enright noted.

“He was complaining to Spence Wolf about why no one offered a sealed bearing hub and Wolf told him to make his own hub. A little while later he asked Spence how many he should make. It took Spence a bit to remember what he was talking about. He said make 50 hubs and the business was launched,” Enright said.

Wood’s family is deciding on funeral arrangements at this time.

“I’m glad he and I were able to have that last chat. He was a little bothered he wasn’t as ambulatory as he once was but he was content to move on,” Enright said.

—Matt Wiebe

text from Bicycle Retailer, seen first on Tracko.

In an attempt to let the world know how committed they are to their footwear line, Chrome announces their Turds For Gold Shoe Exchange. For two days only, Chrome will be slinging a new pair of shoes to anyone that sends them a worn-out pair of kicks.

“There are a lot of great shoe brands out their but few, if any, are made to handle the harsh demands of riding in the city,” says Chrome Marketing Director, Matt Sharkey.

“Our shoes are built to hold up under the toughest conditions and are designed 100% to address the needs of the everyday city cyclist. Not only did we want to build a shoe that was durable and functional, but we also paid close attention to overall fit and timeless style.”

The exchange begins on Wednesday, March 17 and ends promptly the next day on Thursday, the 18th. Packages must be post marked by 3/18 to qualify and should include a return shipping address and shoe size info.

Please ship all packages to:
Chrome Industries
Attn: Turds for Gold/Sharkey
580 4th Street
San Francisco, CA 94107

Need some new kicks?  Better hustle… seen at Pedal Consumption.

Once again, its Cinema Velo time. This weekend we’re showing the classic 1976 Paris-Roubaix documentary A Sunday In Hell. Come check out the carnage.

“You can see every bead of sweat on the cyclists and every smashed-up ankle. It really makes you never want to get on a bike again. But it is an amazing film.” – Nick Fraser, BBC commissioning editor

Beers, as always, are provided. They do go fast, though, so you may want to BYOB just in case. Doors open at 7:30, movie starts at 8. Come on out!

Your official mascot for the Duke City Classic. This rad little dude will be plastered all over spokecards, shirts, beer coozies, your girl’s boobies, whatever you got…

Full schedule, locations, maps, and sponsors coming soon.

how convenient…

Once again, Cinema Velo at Fixed&Free.  This week we have The Triplettes of Belleville, super awesome, creatively animated goodness.  And beer.  7:30 pm at the shop, movie starts at 8.  Hope to see you there!

Your favorite LBS got some national press… peep the whole article here.

Young Guns Change Rules of Retail

ALBUQUERQUE, NM—Imagine starting a bike shop in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression, without the help of bankers and as a young 20-year-old with little to no retail experience…