(bicycle) COMMUNITY

My life has been turbulent lately. Massive changes are going on; many good, some bad, but the bottom line is that everything is different. Thankfully, in these troubled times I've been able to count on the support and friendship of the many people I've met over the last few years of being involved in Austin's cycling community. Y'all being there and helping me feel comfortable with myself has enabled me to live through an experience I thought would rip my heart out and grind me into dust. Thank you.

To make it up to you somehow, I'd like to mention or highlight a few awesome things going on locally that make up this unique, vibrant, growing community of ours...

First off, I know there are several frame builders, bike shops, and other bike businesses that sustain themselves here in town, but few take on the total DIY ethic in the way that the folks of Psychlist: Subversive Cycling do. Not only do they print awesome t-shirts (on American Apparel, nonetheless!) but they make their own hats, "toob pads", and even perform the occasional custom skate-shoe-to-clipless conversion. I've added a link to their site in the sidebar, so if you're ever looking to buy a killer gift for that out-of-town biker in your life, hit 'em up. There are several retail outlets both here and in LA that carry their gear, but you can also order online through the website. Dope!

Another thing that's stood out to me recently has been the number of INCREDIBLE photographers showing up on our rides as of late. I've featured a lot of the badass work I've been forwarded lately (Chris, Daniel, Doug, James, Jamie, Jose, Kevin, I'm lookin' at y'all!) but earlier this week another photographer named Allen (of HeatedGroundPhotography) forwarded me a link to his bike culture gallery that completely blew my mind. Seriously, I didn't know we could look so badass:

Beyond the influx of incredible photographers, we've also seen a number of new blogs pop up, including ThyNeighborsBike (which actually started late last year) and Cycle Bum. Both blogs cover very diverse aspects of the local cycling scene and have been very interesting reads as of late. I know my views on stuff can sometimes be a bit off-kilter, so it's always great to read the opinions of the more level-headed members of our community. Daniel (of ThyNeighborsBike) is an accomplished photographer in his own right beyond being a blogger, and Cycle Bum even managed to expose the terror that is the Marshall of Candy Mountain in his latest entry. Go read what he has to say before venturing up to the top of the Auditorium Shores Park hill... you've been warned.

Finally, it's not local but it's definitely relevant to my interests. I've been spending a lot of time on the Girls on Bikes blog, which though it isn't Austin-centric still manage to include a couple locals in their photo archive. It's basically just a bunch of pictures of attractive female cyclists doing what they love, riding their bikes! What's not to love about that? Go check it out if you have a few minutes to waste. I liked the link so much I had to add it to my "Links of Awesome" section to the right...

Ok, enough rambling, my OS is done installing and I need to get back to doing what they pay me for. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm constantly thankful to be a part of such a vibrant, growing community of cyclists here in Austin, Texas. Featuring all the things y'all do is the least I can do to show you my appreciation. Without y'all I don't know what I'd do with myself. You rule!