Hey, Iowa, wanted to let you know that the Ironweed crew will have a booth at the Iowa Bike Coalition Exposition in Des Moines this Saturday, January 25 - 10:00 AM to 5:30 PM - at the Iowa Events Center, 233 Center Street, Des Moines, IA 50309. 

Unfortunately, the IBC  Expo conflicts with the Madison bike swap meet - an annual event that I’ve missed just once in the last 10 years.  Nevertheless, I think it’s time to get the word out about Ironweed in Iowa. 

We do sell quite a few bags here in Iowa City through the friendly folks at 30th Century Cyclery, but beyond that, Iowa is pretty low on the leader board.   It’s well behind the likes of California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Washington, Colorado, Norway, and the UK.  

It occurred to me that we might be missing an opportunity to tap into a little home-state pride.  Anyway, we’ll be at the Iowa Bike Coalition Expo Saturday; stop by if you’re in the neighborhood.

It probably wouldn’t surprise our customers to know that we don’t have all the super slick corporate imagery that one tends to see at expos, trade shows and whatnot.  We do have a nice logo and a die-cut vinyl lettered banner.  However, back in December I got the notion that I wanted to get a couple of hand-painted signs done.

Some of us are old enough to remember the days before computer-designed, die-cut vinyl lettering and inkjet printers.  Back in the 80s, as a young neighborhood organizer, it was a real bonus if you had a professional sign painter in your ranks.  Well, I got it in my head that I wanted some hand-painted signs for Ironweed and set out in search of a sign painter to do the job.

Inexpensive vinyl signs have put the squeeze on the neighborhood sign painters.  Like the typewriter repairperson, they are becoming scarce.  I wasn’t sure if I would find one.  I started my search on the internets.   Even with getting sidetracked by the typical bright and shiny that is the internets, I discovered the name of a local sign painter and even found video of him working.

I tracked down his phone number through a mutual friend and gave him a call.  His name is John Downer and we visited for a while.  It turns out he does font design these days.  I sent him what I wanted on the signs and a couple of weeks later (today) I picked them up!  I am very happy with the results; three panels with heaps of soul!

I’m what you might call a hard-to-fit guy.  That goes for clothes as well as bike frames.  In particular I have long arms.  I’m about 6’6” with a sleeve length of 38-39 inches.  It’s not Manute Bol sleeve length, but it can pose a problem when purchasing any kind of top other than dress shirts.

So, long sleeve cycling jerseys have not really been an option for me.  Then I discovered Wabi Woolens.   They’re a Portland-based operation that makes Merino wool jerseys that come in tall sizes.  I must say - and other long-tall people can back me up here - sometimes apparel that is labeled as “tall” is not really long enough to fit me. 

Well, I was lucky enough to get a Wabi jersey for Christmas.  And I have to say, in addition to being an incredibly well-made jersey, the fit is remarkable!  The sleeves and the body are plenty long.  Nicely done, Wabi!  This is a jersey that I plan to use for many years to come.

While I’m on the subjects of fit and made in the USA, I recently picked up a pair of DeFeet Duragloves™.  These are really well-made gloves.  They’re the perfect weight and the fingers on the gloves are ample enough for my long skinny fingers.  They are a tightly knit Merino wool, which is important for warmth, and they offer a lot of dexterity.  They seem like a perfect CX glove.

Nice stuff and made in the good ol’ USA!

Here's a couple of interesting Japanese video commercials.  The first is a promo for a shop specializing in vintage American bikes and features three classic rides. 

It opens with a late 60s Stingray 3 speed Deluxe followed by a lemon colored Schwinn Breeze Deluxe. And last up is a Montgomery Wards Hawthorne which is a rebadged Monark Silver King.  This is an aluminum frame bicycle from the 30s or 40s,  I remember seeing one of these at a yard sale in the Belmont Shore area of Long Beach, CA. Who knew there were American made aluminum bicycles in the 1930s?

I converted the yen to dollars, and the prices seem fair.  The Breeze, which is the most common of the three, comes in at around $625 at today's conversion rate. The Stingray is about $1500 and the Hawthorne/Monark $2500.  

The next video is a heartwarming 1970s advertisement from Matsushita National (Panasonic) Bicycle of Japan.  It's a moving story of two brothers.  The older brother is an angry lad in short pants, resentful of his cuter and better dressed little brother.  He's charged with the task of teaching his younger brother how to ride this super terrific happy gizmonic bike.  Things do not go well.  But just when it appears all hope is abandoned, the older brother makes one last convincing threat which does the trick. They finally reconcile after the younger boy rides off into a brownfield site, a bit wobbly but upright. Great joy ensues. 

I love this bike... dual headlights, taillights, stick shift, front/rear racks.  There seems to be some sort of thumb shifter up by the right grip.  Not sure what that's about given the toptube stick shifter.  Whatever, this thing is busier than a blue fly on pie!  I added a couple additional pics of this style bike for your viewing pleasure.  

Thanks to all our friends, customers, retailers, and supporters for making 2013 a wonderful year!  We hope 2014 is good to you all!  Happy New Year!