Bring the Light

Detail of “Good Company” by Frank Patterson, 1931

 

This winter solstice, bring some light to the darkest day.

On December 21st, from 5 to 7:30 p.m., we’ll turn off all the lights at the shop. The only light will be the light you bring. Bring your headlamps, bike lights, and holiday lights to illuminate and

Changing Gears at Hub and Bespoke

We are closing our doors at the Fremont shop on December 31st.

We did not make this decision easily. In so many ways, the Seattle storefront in Fremont has fulfilled our dream of contributing to the Seattle urban bicycle community. Sadly, after four and a half years, we have not been able to make the storefront viable enough to support us.

Our plan is to keep the Hub and Bespoke brand going via our website portal.

While the storefront focused on both men and women, Hub and Bespoke’s original mission was

Next Thursday: Reflectorize your bike wear

Wanna give your commuter apparel a little extra nighttime visibility? Join us next Thursday for a “Reflectorizing” event, where you can add reflective strips to your pants, jackets, or other favorite bicycle clothing.

We’ll have strips of iron-on reflective material available. $1 gets you

New at the shop: Women’s Cycling Jeans

Until now there hasn’t been much in the way of jeans cut specifically for the female cyclist.  Chandel Bodner, long-time rider and bike polo player, decided it was time.  She founded the Toronto-based RYB Jeans company with a jean designed to meet our needs.

The RYB jeans are made of US milled fabric — a durable cotton with

Live and Unplugged at Hub and Bespoke: Galen Erickson

On November 7th at 6:30 p.m., our friend Galen will be performing live at Hub and Bespoke.

There are many ways you might already know Galen Erickson. You may have seen him bike commuting around Seattle or competing in local bike races. You may even know him as the son of local racer, frame-builder, and R+E Cycles co-founder, Glenn Erickson.

Or maybe you just recognize him as one of Hub and Bespoke’s models. =)

Volunteers needed for Washington Bikes auction

Dear bike people: Letting you know about this fun (truly! we speak from experience) volunteer opportunity coming up. The 2014 Washington Bike’s Annual Auction and Gala will be held the evening of November 8^th.

They are still looking for a few more folks to help out on the night of the auction.

Washington Bikes works to grow bicycling statewide and to create complete and healthy streets. They do this by…

• Working for investment in a balanced transportation system with more facilities for bicycling
• Providing education
• Developing more inclusive communities for bicycling
• Inspiring and informing local advocates
• Promoting bike travel and tourism
• Building a coalition of organizations
• Seeking to make bicycling accessible to everyone

The Annual Auction and Gala is a vital part of keeping WA Bikes doing that important work.  It’s also a lot of fun!

Perks: Volunteers get fed, get to bid on all the amazing auction items, and get to team up with a group of interesting, like-minded folks (who tend to come back year after year to help).

If you’re interested in joining the festivities, please contact the Washington Bike’s Volunteer Coordinator here: baw.volunteer1@gmail.com and let him know you are available to help out.  He’ll fill in the details and get you working.  He’ll also say thanks!

Movie Night! Plus a thank you for our coat campaign.

Because I know you’re wondering: Yes, that’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Yes, he was in a movie about being a bike messenger. And yes, we’re actually showing this at the shop.

Fall is here, and that means it’s movie season! Join us for our first movie night of the year as we screen Premium Rush, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and the bad guy from Man of Steel.

This 2012 zinger was an obvious step-up for JGL following his appearance in the obscure film, Inception. In Premium Rush, he plays a bike messenger who, judging from the trailer, is unknowingly hired to deliver a (bomb? rotten pie? other scary package?), finds out, and then tries to get back at the evildoers. ALL ON A FIXIE.

Juliette said, “Riding with no brakes through traffic sounds terrifying. Maybe a good Halloween movie?” Yes.

Monday, October 27th, 6:30 p.m. at the shop. We’ll provide some beverages. Feel to bring your own munchies or dinner.

See below for the movie’s trailer, but first, a quick thank you to everyone who supported our recent coat campaign.

Final week to fund a coat that says, “Anyone can ride a bike.”

There are seven days left in our campaign to bring our riding coat design to reality. If you’ve already pledged, thank you so much for your vote of confidence. If you’ve been meaning to, now is a great time. But if you’re wondering why you should pledge, consider this:

This coat could get more people riding bikes.

There’s nothing else out there quite like this coat design (we looked hard!). Aside from all its bike-friendly features, however, this coat does something else: It wordlessly communicates that biking in the city isn’t just for the athletic few, but for anyone who wants to use a bike to reach their destination.

Imagine you are wearing this coat as you ride downtown. You pass someone who is interested but wary about riding a bicycle. Instead of thinking, “That’s not me. I couldn’t do that,” perhaps he suddenly envisions himself on two wheels, comfortably riding to work in a look that aligns with all his daily activities. Now think of all the people you pass on each day that you ride. By simply modeling a more accessible look, could you be sparking new ideas for people everywhere you go? 

This is the core of what Hub and Bespoke is all about, and what we’ve been working to communicate for the last 5 years. The way we look on our bikes can either invite or exclude, encourage or discourage, increase our numbers or keep us limited to the brave few.

It’s our dream to live in a city where bicycles are so numerous that they’ve altered the landscape into a quieter, more social space. It’s our mission to provide product solutions that invite and encourage others to join the fun. We believe this men’s coat is one of those solutions.

Thank you for all the support so far. If you feel the same way we do about the importance of getting more people to ride, I hope you’ll consider pledging, or simply sharing this campaign with others.

Here are a few frequently asked questions we’ve received over the past few weeks:

Q. Why did you go with a double-breasted coat design? 

A. Aside from referencing the classic look of a pea coat, the double-breasted cut affords a highly functional benefit on the bike:

Pictures from our Men’s Riding Coat party

Models brought their steeliest looks, and we broke out the fans and spray bottles to capture the Men’s Riding Coat in all its glam-shot glory.

Thanks to everyone who came to our Men’s Riding Coat kickoff party last week. Several stellar models met our request to hop on the stationary bike and ham it up for the camera. Check out the pictures below to see how they worked their magic.

By now you probably know that the Men’s Riding Coat has been designed but is being crowd-funded for production. If you’d like one, check out our campaign page. There are two new incentive levels!

Photo shoot award-winners: It was hard to pick just two models, but

Our Men’s Riding Coat: Crowdfunding Now. Kickoff Party Next Week.

We are very excited to announce our newest product: The Men’s Riding Coat. As mentioned a few weeks ago, we’ve launched a crowd-funding campaign to produce this coat, which is the latest product under our own label and the men’s version of the women’s coat we introduced last year. You can see our campaign video below and read about the kickoff party we’re hosting next week.

As with the women’s version, the Men’s Riding Coat is designed for the bike commute and styled for the city. Several features make it a functional outerwear piece for urban rides: