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First bicycle expedition to the South Pole

The last place you'd probably consider for taking a bicycle ride has been conquered.

The hostess of a children's TV show in England is being touted as the first person to use a bicycle as part of an expedition to the South Pole.

The adventurer, Helen Skelton, 28, also traveled 329 miles by kite ski and 68 miles by cross-country ski to complete the 500-mile journey across Antarctica in 18 days.

The bicycle she pedaled for 103 miles across the frozen continent was a US-built Fortune Hanebrink all-terrain bicycle …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/23/first-bicycle-expedition-to-the-south-pole/

Weather-related bike-riding conditions improve in Seattle area

This stretch of road might not be recognizable here, but many Seattle area recreational cyclists have no doubt ridden it.

This is a WSDOT photo of Route 202 between Fall City and Snoqualmie Falls taken Thursday after the ice storm swept through the area. (See a summer-time photo below.)

That icy coating followed a snowstorm that already had caused chaos on Puget Sound area roads. In addition to the slick road conditions, the freezing rain on top of snow weighed down trees that toppled across power lines and onto roads.

The conditions here led to the closure of Route 202 …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/22/weather-related-bike-riding-conditions-improve-in-seattle-area/

Giant problem — bike maker recalls 900 bicycles

Giant Bicycle is recalling 900 road bicycles because the carbon fork can crack, creating a dangerous situation for the riders.

The recall involves the Giant Defy Advanced and Avail Advanced model bicycles.

The company and US Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends owners stop riding the bikes immediately and contact an authorized Giant bike dealer for inspection and replacement …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/19/giant-problem-bike-maker-recalls-900-bicycles/

Making your bike snow-friendly

Snowmageddon. Snowpacolypse. Call it what you will, but this predicted snowstorm in Seattle is turning out to be the real thing, not SnowHyperbole.

I've ridden in the snow here in the past. It's nice. I threw the knobbies on my Rockhopper and went for a spin. No traffic. Really quiet. [No riding today, though. Wife's working from home and my daughter is home from school, so I'm minding the store, so to speak.]

Traction is an issue in the snow, even with the knobbies. I've gone down and lost grip with my rear wheel many times.

Short of buying a Surly Pugsly or other specially designed snow bike, here are a couple of ways to make your current ride more snow-friendly. Check out …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/18/making-your-bike-snow-friendly/

George Carlin: bike hater, lover, or just playing it for laughs?

George Carlin was one of my all-time favorite comedians, and I loved to hear him ridicule our institutions.

So I was seriously distressed to hear what he said about bicyclists in this short piece posted on YouTube a few years ago.

It wasn't the profanity that got to me, it was his apparent unbridled animosity toward bicyclists.

So I was …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/16/george-carlin-bike-hater-lover-or-just-playing-it-for-laughs/

Bicycle-riding Gene Hackman struck by car; he's “OK”

Noted actor Gene Hackman was apparently “rammed” by a car while riding his bicycle on a side road in the Florida Keys on Friday.

Hackman, who is 81, suffered non-life-threatening injuries to his legs and body. His publicist told the Daily News that Hackman is already on his way home.

It's good to know the actor survived the collision with …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/14/bicycle-riding-gene-hackman-struck-by-car-hes-ok/

Thule recalls 44,000 Chariot bicycle trailers

Check your bicycle trailer before you take it out for a spin with your children. It might be part of a massive recall of Chariot Carriers by Thule Child Transport Systems.

The Canada-based company is recalling about 44,000 bicycle trailers and 70,000 trailer conversion kits in conjunction with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The company is urging trailer owners …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/12/thule-recalls-44000-chariot-bicycle-trailers/

Road rage attack against bike traveler shouldn't give Kiwis a black eye

One never knows when a complete jack ass will step forward with designs on screwing up an otherwise ideal bicycle ride.

That's what happened on Tuesday to Russ Roca and Laura Crawford, the American couple whose bicycle-touring exploits are well known and documented at their Path Less Pedaled website.

They've been praising the virtues of summer cycling in New Zealand for the past few weeks until this short message on Tuesday at their Facebook page:

“Had a road rage incident….Russ got tackled off the bike and punched in the face…eventful day.”

Although they didn't go into great detail, there's more information …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/12/road-rage-attack-against-bike-traveler-shouldnt-give-kiwis-a-black-eye/

When is it time for a new bicycle? Not now for me

A tell-tale thumping sound from my bicycle's front wheel whenever I came to a stop this weekend was a clear warning that my front rim was about to come apart.

A similar thumping from my rear wheel last spring preceded the rim peeling apart. Years of road-grit grinding whenever I braked had taken its final toll.

As soon as that happened last year, visions of a new road bike danced in my head. I had the perfect justification — my bicycle was falling apart.

After I calmed down and took stock, however, I soon realized that I didn't need a new bicycle; a new rear wheel at a fraction of the cost would be just fine. …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/10/when-is-it-time-for-a-new-bicycle-not-now-for-me/

Chalking up another birthday bicycle ride

My 3-year tradition of marking my birthday with a “years-equals-miles” bicycle ride is in the books.

Actually, it's recorded on BikeJournal.com, where I jumped from 1,423rd to 605th in a single day. That could be my high-water mark for the year.

Unlike previous years, this time I couldn't get out of my head the thought that I should have started this silliness years ago, when the distance would have been a lot shorter.

With pleasant weather promised on Sunday, I headed over to Issaquah from Bellevue, then south to Black Diamond and home via Renton for 62.8 miles.

My destination was the Green River Gorge Bridge, above, a 150-foot-high span over a raging river that drains the Cascades. Whenever I visit the single-lane bridge built in 1915 …

Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2012/01/09/chalking-up-another-birthday-bicycle-ride/