Archive for June, 2008
King Kog Winter Riding Jacket
Jun 22nd
Gina over at King Kog asked me to swing by with my camera to get some shots of a new product she is taking pre-orders for. Here are a couple photos that made it up on her site.
King Kog Winter Riding Jacket made by Champion System.
High collar. Wind proof. Thin inside fleece layer. 3 rear pockets.
Dark gray, Hot pink, and light gray.
King Kog
38 Marcy Ave 1-R
Brooklyn, NY
11211
info@kingkog.com
CMWC XVI Belt Buckle
Jun 21st
One of the things I brought back from the Cycle Messenger World Championships was a pretty nice belt buckle made by Idle Hands Machineworks or maybe it was designed by them and made by impression.ca? I’m not sure. I was at the bike polo courts, standing under the tent while it was raining and a guy rolls up and shows a few of us that he had belt buckles for sale. He said they were numbered and I asked for number 44 (my courier number) he handed me a little box with “044″ on it and asked for 20 bucks “Canadian or US”. Also in the box was a self made card that read “Idle Hands Machineworks – David Sorenson” with an email (Lucky13dave-AT-hotmail-DOT-com) and phone number. I don’t know how many he had or if there are any leftover but I’m glad I got one.
For me, I prefer the western style buckle over the conventional style buckle. And the CMWC buckle goes great on my Jon Wye custom ESPI3 prize belt.
The CMWC originated in Berlin in 1993, in 1995 Toronto was the first North American city to host it. And in 2008 Toronto was the first city to host it for a second time.
All Photos © Doug D 2008
RVA Slash 'Em All
Jun 20th
SLASH ‘EM ALL, originally uploaded by harriszg.
Just had to repost this Richmond, VA Bike Polo logo I spotted on Flickr. When is RVA gonna call an east coast tournament? I guess they have a few months to decide, 2008 is kind of full but I really hope to go to RVA sometime next year. Maybe even for a friendlies style game day, but with a logo like this who’s gonna believe it’s anything less than a jump in the fire.
more press
Jun 19th
So, when will the media stop labeling this “urban”? That word sounds so bad and really doesn’t even describe the sport. The sport is played on a hard court so players call it hardcourt bike polo. It’s not that hard to do a little more research than googling “bike polo” and only looking at the first two listings. By the way, if any media people are to read this, Wiki has no idea what bike polo is because it sure as hell isn’t called “urban cycle polo”.
The Western Front
Under humming street lights
by Stephanie Castillo
Monday, July 14, 2008
They play late at night and into the early morning.
Players listen to loud, rhythmic music from an old portable stereo that serves as a backdrop against the rattle of bikes and the scraping of mallets against concrete.
Bikers turned the Bellingham High School parking lot, illuminated by overhead street lights, into a playing field for a rough and tumble game called bike polo.
Yells of “Get it! Get it!” and “On your left!” along with playful trash talking can be heard from the players, an assortment of Western and Whatcom Community College students, graduates and other Bellingham citizens.
Urban bike polo is a variation of bike polo, which is played with players mounted on bikes instead of horses like standard polo, Western junior Soren Dahlgren said.
Western junior Jordan Bright said anyone could play bike polo whichever way they want to.
“You can make the game as intense and as relaxed as you want it to be,” he said.
Bike polo may sound like a hobby or recreational activity, but the game has become an international movement with strict rules, tournaments and country-to-country bragging rights, said Bill Matheson, a bike polo veteran of 38 years and vice president of the American Bike Polo Association.
Bike polo, or “cycle polo” as it is internationally known, was created in Ireland by a former polo player more than a century ago, but the game didn’t become well-known until the last decade. Bike polo can now be accounted for in nine different countries, Matheson said.
In bike polo, four people play on each team. The teams play on a grass field with two goals on each end. Any bike can be used, and each player has a mallet to strike the ball, Matheson said.
A player can only touch the ball with the mallet and his or her body from the elbow to the hand. Players cannot dismount the bike or touch the ground with one of his or her feet for any reason. The team that scores five goals first wins the game. Referees and line judges call games in official leagues and tournaments, Matheson said.
Bike polo and urban bike polo have different sets of regulations. In urban bike polo, there are only three rules, Matheson said.
“You can’t touch your foot to the ground, you usually play to five goals and you can only score with striking the ball on the head of the mallet,” Matheson said.
Urban bike polo in Bellingham is not played in a league or tournament-style. It is casually played on concrete or another hard surface, as one would play pick-up basketball.
“I ride bikes and play polo because it’s always been the one thing that is constant,” Dahlgren said. “No matter what kind of a day I have had, or what kind of a mood I am in, getting on my bike has instantly made things better.”
Kulshan Cycles employee Patty McDermott said she hopes bike polo will continue to pick up in popularity.
“I hope bike polo will eventually become a spectator sport and not shunned upon like skateboarding frequently is,” McDermott said.
Dahlgren said he makes it a point to play urban bike polo at least two times a week.
“We play a lot because it’s fun, but our rules are loose,” Dahlgren said. “It’s more about playing than it is about playing by the rules.”
Bellingham urban bike polo players have truly developed their own style of play, said Paul Robbins, Whatcom Community College student.
Dahlgren said his group of bike polo friends play with hand-fashioned mallets made out of ski poles or hockey sticks and plastic tubing for the head.
There is no out of bounds, and the goal is one bike-length long on either end. The goals are marked with bags or other objects the players have with them.
The group plays 3-on-3 late at night in closed parking lots and tennis courts, Dahlgren said.
If anyone causes an accident or puts his or her foot on the ground, he or she immediately has to place his or her bike on the ground and run around it three times as punishment, Dahlgren said.
“It’s funny when you have multiple people randomly running around their bikes at the same time,” he said.
Dahlgren and Bright said one of their favorite bike polo games was played two months ago in Red Square.
By the time the group started playing, even the library was closed because it was so late, Bright said.
“It was a humid night and we couldn’t see much, but we played with more people on each team, and that’s what made it great,” Dahlgren said.
Bike Polo People at CMWC XVI Flickr Set
Jun 19th
I have eighty one photos in a flickr set titled Bike Polo People at CMWC XVI. Here are a few more, follow the link to see the rest. Thanks again to all that let me photograph them. I may try this again sometime. And if you haven’t seen my first set it’s called BBQ Players.
EL MALO – Los Marcostan
Ali – DC
Braley – Chicago
Kev – Madison
Sea Bass – Portland
Bruce – DC
Shay – Milwaukee
Alexis – Ottawa
Jake – Milwaukee
Ben – Chicago
All Photos © Doug D 2008
Toronto, Calgary, Berlin, & Helsinki
Jun 18th
Hardcourt bike polo on YouTube.
CMWC XVI Toronto 2008 Bike Polo
Calgary Bike Polo
Urban Cycle Polo Berlin
Urban bike polo, Helsinki
Bike Polo People at CMWC XVI
Jun 18th
This is the first few. I have 81 total, not everyone but most. Check back for a link to a Flickr set that is not yet finished.
Brian – Ottawa
Joe – Chicago
EL GIGANTE – Los Marcostan
Fiona – New York
Jonny – Madison
Meg – Milwaukee
Dennis – Toronto
Al – New York
Roquette
Angelo – Ottawa
All Photos © Doug D 2008
Toronto at Night
Jun 17th
I’m working on getting the photos from this weekends Cycle Messenger World Championship up.
Thanks Sasha for letting us have a nice place to sleep Saturday night, took this photo before I went to sleep.
Photo © Doug D 2008