the original hardcourt blog
Urban Velo: Issue 21
Sep 2nd
Some good stuff in this issue. A pretty photo set of bike polo and an I Love Riding in the City from Capt. Jake!
Look for it as you flip thru.
Focale 44: the Polo Bike aka “better than nothing”
Sep 2nd
Focale 44 is proud to introduce one of the first (if not the first) polo bike so far : the Polo Bike. Yes, the bike name is so obvious that you instantaneously know what it is all about.
The attached picture is the only we have now. A kind of spy shot from Eurobike show, taken by La Finca Distribution, our distributor in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
That Polo Bike has been developped in cooparation with a bikepolo team from Toulouse, France. Mainly with one of the crew : Théo Guerry. Starting from a Full Moon bike (Focale 44 first bike of the range), we changed the following parts to make it polo-ready :
- short and raised stem
- laidback seatpost
- confortable seat
- 28/16 gearing
- 2 chainguards
- 700×28c tires
- and last but not least 48-spoke wheels.Retail price should remain under 600 euros in Europe. Available in november 2010.
Final word : We know that this Polo Bike may not be perfect. However, it exists, which is better than nothing.
That post title sounds super critical, sorry, I’m not real clear where this bike takes on it’s polo bike heritage. It looks like a starter fixed gear that has a set-back post and a spinny gear. It does have 48 spoke wheels, plastic pedals, and a chain ring guard. But none of those things are frame features. Anyway, I got mass emailed about being a blogger and could I post this. So here it is. I wish there were more photos. I’d like to know the geometry. And wondering why there are not brake mounts.
More info: focale44bikes.com
NYC’s 10th Anniversary BFF alleycat – Race Against Time
Aug 26th
BFF 2010 10th Anniversary alleycat Race Against Time from crihs on Vimeo.
Good race! Not as many alleycats this year as when I first moved to NYC, seems like styling and polo have gained some of that popularity. But this race did have a good turn out. The BFF does attract some people. Anyway, I got 5th, again. I’m cool with that because top 10 get into the BFF messenger shorts program free. And they do prizes on stage before the show. I got made fun of because I borrowed a nice road bike from an old sponsor, Brad Baker, and didn’t win. And some because I had Crihs and JT believing I was going to run a completely alternate route, but that was not the case. We all took the same route, give or take some turns.
Thanks for the edit Crihs!
Velocipedboll
Aug 23rd
Again from the book Idrotten i Finland (1906). This time rad ball or “Velocipedboll”. Just more proof that this is all much older than the Pacific North West wants us to believe.
Previously:
Old Helsinki bike polo
England vs. Scotland 1910
Aug 23rd
Via twirlingtails.blogspot.com
In 1910, Saltburn was the venue for an international fixture, England v Scotland at bicycle polo. The match was part of the town’s carnival, the English side all being members of the Tykes Cycling Club. England won 6-3, the team being ( left to right ) Robinson (captain), Tudor and Randall.
Old Helsinki bike polo
Aug 20th
According to Lefa at cyclingnsht.blogspot.com this photo was published in a book titled Idrotten i Finlad (1906) by Ivar Wilskman. Idrotten i Finlad translates to Sports in Finland. Kaisaniemi park is in Helsinki, Finland and H.V.K. stands for Helsingfors Velocipedklubb.
Looks to me like they are playing bike polo in the street, or at the very least not in the grass.
