bicyclehabitat

Bike Month: Bike Expo, Bike Jumbles and more

bicyclehabitat — Fri, 03 May 2013 12:30:50 +0000

May is Bike Month and here are a few ways for you to get involved.

Bike Expo, May 3-4, Manhattan: The largest consumer-facing bike show in the country is this weekend, at Pier 39 in Manhattan. We’ll be there, along with brands like Trek, Specialized, Bern and others, offering special last minute deals – plus, panels and even a fashion show. Entry is FREE.

Bike Jumble, May 11, Brooklyn: Get your spring cleaning on. Buy, trade or sell old bikes, parts and accessories.

Bike to Work Day, May 17: Bike to Work week is the week of May 13. But TA has events going on all week…

Bike share

bicyclehabitat — Thu, 02 May 2013 18:14:47 +0000

Change is hard, and anytime the neighborhood changes, people are disrupted and someone is bound to disagree with it.

That doesn’t mean that change isn’t GOOD.

We strongly support bike lanes and bike share in the city. Our Community Board is meeting tonight to explore the arrival of bike share stations in our SoHo neighborhood.

Unfortunately, we’re not sure we can attend. We have to set up a booth for this weekend’s Bike Expo, and our staff is busy helping you, our customers, as our stores are open until 8pm.

But we take to the blog to reassure our opinion is heard: Bikes are good. More people on bikes is good. Bike share is going to be good for the city.

One day in the not so distant future, we predict that more streets will be converted to bike and pedestrian-only lanes. A street like Broadway, or Park Avenue. And oh boy, it will generate Community Board meetings. It will mean disruption. It will mean change. And will be good.

After all, look how happy this guy is riding a bike:

Sign up for the Bike to Work challenge

bicyclehabitat — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 12:13:52 +0000

Do you ride to work? Sign your company up for the “Bike to Work” week challenge, the week of May 17th.

T.A. is offering lots of prizes …

bicyclehabitat — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 22:30:41 +0000

This weekend: Trek and Specialized bikes are on sale!

Madones and Domanes, Ruby and Roubaix … all kinds of savings on carbon bikes

> See the sales

On sale now!

bicyclehabitat — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 21:57:45 +0000

Just announced: Our spring sale event from Specialized. Valid on 2013 carbon bikes such as the Ruby and Roubaix… see details here!

Share Your Opinion with Trek Bikes

bicyclehabitat — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 14:47:44 +0000

Stop by: Saturday!

Do you ride in the city, for recreation or commuting? Trek wants your input. Stop by our store on Saturday to help Trek’s design team with new prototypes!

10am-2pm, 244 Lafayette Street, SoHo

Source Two, give one.

bicyclehabitat — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 13:31:27 +0000

The power of the bicycle is real. It can increase an individual’s carrying capacity by five times, allow an individual to travel four times the distance of someone walking, and save valuable time and energy.

That’s why both of our major brand partners, Trek and Specialized, are devoted supporters of World Bicycle Relief.

As part of their support this year, Specialized Bicycles has partnered with World Bicycle Relief on a limited edition Source Two WBR bike. For every purchased, a bicycle is donated to an individual via WBR.

WBR knows the roads. They don’t just donate any bicycle. Right now, they focus on the Buffalo Bicycle, a carefully-crafted, universally-fit steel bike built for big loads on tough roads (sometimes as much as 400 pounds of corn or melons or wood.)

Stop by and check out the Source Two.

PS Other ways you can get involved in WBR? Create a personal fundraiser, give a one-time donation, or join our World Bicycle Relief team. Or, contact Claire Geiger.

Old look, new digs.

bicyclehabitat — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 12:22:29 +0000

Spring cleaning = finding old business cards and a look back at one of our old logos. Now we’re updating our newer cards to include our newest Chelsea location…

Pure Joy: We’re all just kids on bikes

bicyclehabitat — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 18:06:17 +0000

I’m sure most of us remember the first time we rode a bike. I know I’ll never forget riding without training wheels for the very first time down my driveway, my grandfather running alongside me, making sure I didn’t fall off. I remember the feeling of YOU’RE DOING IT! when he let go and I somehow kept moving, all on my own. I also remember the feeling of hitting the ground when I got so excited that I forgot to pedal and tipped over, right onto the pavement. But I got up, brushed the dirt off, and kept riding. And now, decades later, whether I’m bombing down 5th Avenue hoping for all green lights, sprinting up the West Side Highway with friends, or simply riding through Brooklyn to get to work, I still experience that same sense of pure joy I got when I was six. Pure joy just from going to and from work every day? That’s a lot of joy.

Habitat has working been with CYCLE Kids to bring a little bit of bike joy to elementary and middle school kids since 2011 when they launched their Washington Heights program. Thanks to a fleet of donated bikes from Specialized, the school was able to incorporate cycling into their physical education program. 4th and 5th graders, many of whom had never been on bikes before, got the chance not only to ride but also to learn how bikes worked and how to properly fuel their bodies for riding.

This year, the CYCLE Kids program is coming to two new schools, both in Brooklyn. It has also gained a new spokesperson, New York’s own Evelyn Stevens (who just last week won the Merco Cycling Classic in Merced, California). Just a few years ago, Evie traded in her Wall St job for a racing bike, and she hasn’t looked back since. (Fun fact, Evie got started racing in the very same women’s intro clinic that a lot of our awesome local racers did!) She found out that it doesn’t matter if you’re a kid or an investment banker when you hop on a bike for the first time; it still feels like flying.

The first of the Brooklyn programs launches this Wednesday at PS 157 in Bed Stuy. Habitat and friends will be there to build the bikes with the kids and to help create a whole new generation of Cycle Kids.

- Emily, Bicycle Habitat Brooklyn

Growing with New York: from 1978 to Chelsea

bicyclehabitat — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 17:51:41 +0000

In 1978, we opened Bicycle Habitat in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. Subway fare cost $.50, and and there were only a handful of us true bike commuters throughout the city.

Thirty-five years later, I enjoy how things have grown and changed.

Our city: In 1978, there were no bike paths on the Manhattan or Queensboro Bridges. Cyclists and pedestrians didn’t have direct footpaths on the Brooklyn Bridge; we had seven awkward, bulky sets of staircases to climb and descend in order to cross from one side to the other. The Williamsburg Bridge bikeway was almost unrideable. The Staten Island Ferry cost a nickel. Bike messengers and food delivery guys on bicycles were nonexistent; the number of on-street bike lanes was zero. The number of bike lanes in Central and Prospect Park: zero – unless you count the few hours each Sunday afternoon when the parks closed to traffic.
Our bikes: Bike design has changed as well. Our most popular, entry-level models were the Zebrakenko Storm and the Silver Shadow, $275 and $225, respectively; our cheapest bike was just under $200. While MTA fares have increased five-fold from $.50 to $2.50, our least expensive bike today has only doubled in price to $430.Technological and manufacturing advances have played a major role in keeping bike prices reasonable. Today’s bikes are in many ways better than they were in 1978. They are lighter, significantly more comfortable, with much better stopping power and more usable gear systems. When we opened, ergonomics and fit were not yet on the radar of bike designers. Top tubes were much too long, making riders stretch to reach the bars. “Upright” positioning was a dirty word among our suppliers and almost impossible to achieve. Bike helmets didn’t exist. Actually, they did for racers – it was called a hair net and consisted of leather straps which did little to protect the head. Kevlar tires didn’t exist, so flats were fairly frequent. As for saddles, however, the iconic Brooks saddle hasn’t changed in years, it was and is fairly comfortable.
Our store: In 1978, we had one storefront, 1100 sq ft; “employees” were just myself and Hal Ruzal. Now, we have a great family of staff and friends, and a history with our customers. And very dear to my heart: Next week, I am happy to announce we will are returning to the west side to open a new location at 228 7th Avenue, in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. We are designing the store with an urban focus, to reflect the urban cycling evolution of riding in our city.

Lots has changed. Except for the five-fold increase subway fares, it has mostly been for the better. Thank you for letting me part of your ride.

Come visit us in Chelsea. We look forward to creating new memories with you and reflecting on those in the years to come. We open March 15th.

Charlie McCorkell
Owner, Bicycle Habitat