seen at bikeasia08. (san marco zoncolan)

this is the new selle san marco flagship model for this year
i believe it is very much in response to selle italia's
more aggressive looking product line which includes
the very fierce looking thoork
the manufacturers are creating more and more unique looking products
in their attempt to differentiate their product
but the new designs have pretty nifty features
and a common ground is probably the extra long nose of each model
this zoncolan has a huge nose to cushion the blows
when the rider is sitting forward in the saddle

seen at bikeasia08. (WH-7850-CSL-TU????)

this is the first look at the shimano low profile carbon tubular
the deep section is called WH-7850-C50-TU
wheel/model range/carbon50mm/tubular
the low profile aluminum clincher/tubeless
is called WH-7850-SL
so combining the two should give u
WH-7850-CSL-TU
or
WH-7850-C24-TU
or something along those lines
i dont know the product number obviously,
so if anyone knows u can enlighten me.
the babies have the same red anodized nipples
just like the alu version
damn fierce.

seen at bikeasia08. (thor hushovd's stem)

thor hushovd's stem

VIBE 7S OS Road Thor Hushovd series

this is a limited edition by the shimano pro series
pro is actually the accessories arm of shimano
which is managed by shimano europe
strangely, many of the pros are using alu stems
when most bike companies are rolling out their highest end bikes
with huge oversized carbon stems

as seen on his bike.

thor hushovd's look 595

seen at bikeasia08. (MagicOne = Prowell)

two brands, one helmet
the first picture is the magicone,
it is now brought in by rodalink
note the "locwell" symbol at the back
is exactly the same as prowell's (second pic)
in fact, locwell is proprietary to prowell
and the last pic is of course the f-38r
in exactly the same matt black
dont know the price of the magicone
but if its more than 40bucks (prowell's price)
then u know where to go and vice versa

this whole thing was pointed out by paul
who uses the f-38r

seen at bikeasia08. (the holy grail)

this my friends
is the distributors-only yellow pages
to all thing cycling in taiwan
from frames to components to accessories
if anyone can get a copy of this
PLEASE TELL ME
but most of the info should be available online
but then this is like the most compiled comprehensive guide
its as thick as the yellow pages btw

seen at bikeasia08. (cinelli "best of")

most notable were the mavic r-sys wheels
carbon tubed spokes for extra rigidity
on an aluminum box rim
there's also a "fake" integrated seatpost
but the real beauty was in the ram integrated bars
"best of"

seen at bikeasia08. (solar powered torchlight)

remember that old joke about a solar powered torch
and its total impracticality?
well...
they made one!!!
in the form of a bike blinker
the panel is that black rectangle on the top
haha but its not that impractical
in fact its much friendlier to mutha earth
and well,
it doesnt need direct sunlight to work
but then u already knew that when you made the joke.

seen at bikeasia08. (dura ace carbon crank)

dura ace carbon crank (fc-7800-c)

this is the only piece in south east asia
definitely a MOST SHOCKING DISCOVERY
considering i only saw it as a product prototype on cyclingnews
its not even on shimano's website yet
not suprisingly, its very very limited edition
considering the new shimano 7900 thats due soon
but its claimed to be 180g lighter than the current one
which is 740g with bottom bracket
that brings the weight down to a feathery 560g
just a comparison, fsa k-force light is 660g
orgasmic.

happy twentieth.

wishes do come true, but you have to have the will to wish.

its the show we've all been waiting for
finally...
ta-daaaa! at the expo till this sunday.

bikeasia oh-eight

Dong Tianzhao, The Straits Times, April 10, 2008

bean curd tart
le cafe confectionery & pastry
264 Middle Road S188990

these little tarts are unique pretty much to this shop
they keep em in the fridge as they can get pretty soft
but if kept properly
they will most probably be the smoothest "egg" tarts you have ever eaten
but what really stands out to me is the pastry
its not to sweet and really gets that right amount of saltiness in
also what i like is that right balance of pastry and filling
which is usually never done right
most of the time there's too much pastry
but this one's just right
the centre is like silken tofu custard
as you can see from my photo, the light is literally glistening off its smooth surface
light, not overwhelmingly sweet
it so light that i bought the box of eight that it comes in
all for me myself and i
hahaha
selfish right?
too good to share.
heh.

phoney pho pronuns.

Phở

just a bit of pre vietnam trivia
in any case,
the beef noodles which i have so blasphemously
been calling pho (as in pho-ney)
are actually called "fuhh"
as in sounds like fur, but longer
think of a huge furrrry cat and yeah
thats it
which then makes
"what the fuhH?!!??"
make more sense.

cheers!
kopitiam sucks!
give me low cost campus food NOW.

the nature of the bike.

its a sad day when the doping controversies have repercussions on a corporate level. But i guess it shows the relations between the events of the protour and the reputation of a company. The protour and its sponsors and riders share a complicated relationship. Here you have a brand like Trek which prides itself as being an American brand sponsoring a team from Kazakhstan (borat anyone?). But then again, Alberto Contador is a Spaniard, Levi is American. So the nature of the team's sponsors have absolutely nothing to do with the team's riders. Cycling, at least on a protour level has always retained a small level of hostility and competition. But i would say from an onlooker's perspective, that the relationships and sportsmanship of the riders are on better terms than their management's. Cycling is a poorly managed sport, with massive egos and full of scandals.
I propose we distance ourselves from the world of professional bicycle racing, and go back to basics. We should focus on the bigger picture of how to bring cycling to the masses, how you can solve envronmental/transportation problems via cycling. How to make roads safer for cyclists. How to make cycling a sustainable form of transportation. How to convince entrenched bureaucracy on the benefits of cycling. In the light of all these issues, the small teething problems of the protour seem awfully insignificant. Its really easy to get caught up in a world of performance machines and fast aggressive riding. But i think its time for a cycling revolution. And we should be at the forefront.

biking team shirt sample two.

+

+

II


my attempt at work escapism.

btw, the background is supposed to be pink
but due to the monochromatic nature of this blog
i had to export with grayscale

cycling in the large scheme of things.

these are the cycling initiatives proposed in the latest copy of the
Land Transport Masterplan.

1. Better Bike Parking facilities at MRT Stations and Bus Interchanges (2009)
2. Allow foldable bikes on trains/buses on a trial basis (March 2008)
3. Implement safety signs along commonly used cycling routes such
as Thomson and West Coast (March 2008)

look, while i admit its a step forward,
ITS NOT FUCKING NEAR CLOSE ENOUGH
singapore is not a cold country like amsterdam
you cycle for like ten minutes here you're going to be sweating pools
the problem lies not only with the lack of parking facilities
but the lack of practicality of cycling altogether
as much as i hate to say this
i wouldnt cycle to school
it is not nearly enough for you to allow people to take the bike up buses
when the person reaches his destination
he's going to have to find a place to park
a place to wash up
so its not just about parking facilities
So, what are results of the Tampines pavement trial?
are we allowed to cycle on pavements?
is the government going to follow the bogota example?
park connectors are a limited part of the road network
they dont allow access to most places
the lta people definitely have a problem with cyclists
they cant implement a system where cyclists would flood the road
otherwise it would be inefficient to close one lane for cyclists
but now they're stuck with a problem that needs too much money to fix
what now?
I really dont need so much
just make sure the penalty for making contact with a cyclist on the road is high
its not to punish
but to make people aware

happy mugging guys.

cape epic.

a rider rides without his rear tire after losing it
super retarded
he should've taken off his front tire and put it to the back
that way at least the traction will allow him to go faster
but of course steering becomes a problem
i would think thats the lesser evil

biking team t shirt.

yay, done.

biking team shirt sample one.

pre-work on the biking shirt design
i think i like it like this already
its a little sloppy though

to all who believed the carbon wrapping story

happy 1st april.

;)

this will blow you away..

you'll never guess wth this is.

haha... wicked.

taken from freewheeling spirit

wonderland shopping list.

my current wish list

1. Zipp 404 Tubular Wheelset

the wheelset that i can only lust for, with its glorious dimples and cx-ray spokes.these babies are legal performance enhancers

2. Canon Powershot G9
as i venture deeper, i find myself to be limited by my sucky 299 dollar camera. which goes out to any photo enthusiast, if u want something good, spend more money, dont buy some bargain 299dollar camera with crappy features, i rather pay twice the price and more for one good cam than have the two subpar ones i have now. I was doing some reading, and found that the manual features for this baby are pretty close to your low end slr, but the price is like 400bucks cheaper. while i would love the flexibility of an slr and its high shutter speeds, i also would like something i can carry around without a huge ass bag and not look like some amateur reporter, after all, all i take are mostly still shots, so i cant justify an slr, plus lenses.

3. Jack Purcell V-4s
four straps, high cut, black, just what i need for a staple sneaker. although i love the look of this, im really tempted by some of the more comfy and relaxed textile ones.

4. Manhattan Portage NY Bike Messenger
i need a new bag, my bag is falling apart and i have no replacement for it, i've decided i want something functional. which lately, that means huge storage capacity. I need to put in, my macmonster, my cable & acc bag, my charger, my mouse, my diary, my water bottle, my umbrella, my pencil case and if i have to gym that day, my shoes, my change of clothes, my towel, my toiletries. omg. thats like my whole house inside already. needless to say, i need something at least 1800 cubic inches and larger.

saigon here i come!

move your eyeballs apart.

this is the area outside my room
and thats me in the right of the mirror
i was bored so i decided to play around with panoramas
i cant wait to use this feature out in the field

im thankful you're here.

im fucking disappointed with my result today
it was an absolutely crap ride
i think i've been doing too much recreational cycling
my standard is no where now....
fucked up benedict..
you better buck up
now you better study
then during summer you better be owning on the bike
otherwise you're pretty fucked up

crows and bald burgers.

watched this movie today
theatre was super empty
i guess not many people would pay money to see this
haha thank goodness it was free
but that being said

it was a seriously cool movie
the fight scenes were awesome
while the makeup was pretty fake at many points
i find the whole jap poseur thing super hilarious
they just look at you and dont blink
take a pull of their cigarette
and stare again
haha
it doesnt get funnier than that
but manga silliness aside
i think this show stood for many more things
it was about friendship and trust
they have a word called "nakama"
and it means close friend, but the meaning
is deeper than even a sense of brotherhood
so most of the time, it is used on its own
because its meaning is irreplaceable
the cute guy's name is called shun oguri
hahaha and of course you know that i find this guy
to be so much more entertaining

here's another super act cool scene
with both of them




it was pretty fun gawking at the giraffes
just the kind of chill out thing before work

when i got back, me and dad went to botak jones
to eat
and omfg
we had damn alot of stuff to eat
im still full and bursting at my seams

these were the sauces they provided there
not bad
colman mustard!!
horseradish!!!
its really rare to find horseradish
in a heartland shop

i had the cajun chicken

dad had the triple stacked patty burger
with extra
cheese
mushrooms
sauteed onions

after which we decided to share an apple pie

we did however come to the conclusion that
their slogan
damn good food, damn good prices
is a whole load of bullshit
dinner tonight
while being huge
also cost us 37quid
plus, it was so heavy and oily that i feel
my heart clogging up already
the amount of msg they used was also rather significant
im still thirsty right now
and no amount of water seems to satisfy my thirst
the quality of the meat is also highly questionable
the fries didnt have that hot feeling
they felt like they were left out in the open for a while
you would think that with the high turnover rate
the quality of food will be better
because it decreases the exposure time of the food
overall, while the images look good
i really think his prices are pretty rip off
the chicken set i ordered cost 13 bucks
and dad's burger cost 14
so even with all the frills like good cutlery
good sauces
the profit margin is still extremely high
but their labour cost is considerably high as well
they had about 3 cooks
1 order controller
2 washers/helpers
2 servers
If you think about it,
miss clarity's cafe offers roughly the same prices
and the food is much more professionally done and prepared
plus their rental costs and overheads are much more considering their location
when i reached botak jones,
there were at least 10 people in the queue
and this continued for the next hour or so
it was a good chance to finally sample
the taste of hype
and i must say
it was highly overrated.