Kurt
I ride therefore I am. Cyclocross, Mountain or Road, geared or single-speed, trail advocate, bike blogger, business analyst. I am a co-conspirator to this little place called talkingtreads.com. Thanks for checking us out. Reach me directly at kurt*at*talkingtreads*dot*com
Behind THE Barriers S. 2 Ep. 16
Posted in cyclocross, video on February 1, 2012
@JeremyPowers takes the U.S. Cyclocross National Championship title on this episode of Behind THE Barriers. Congrats J-Pow! If you haven’t watched Behind THE Barriers, you can catch all the seasons and epidsodes on their site here.
Rudy Project Hypermask Sunglasses | Review
Posted in reviews on January 31, 2012

Rudy Project has brought to the sport eyewear scene sunglasses that are not only impressively light weight but also very durable and good looking. I introduce the new for 2012, Hypermask. Rudy Project wanted us to see what the Hypermask touted and sent over a pair in the Frozen Ash frame with Multi-Laser Red lens.
The Hypermask first and foremost are light, weighing in at a stated 28 grams. Even with being light, the Hypermask do not sacrifice durability. The ear pieces are firm, not flimsy and hold well against the head with the grip on the ear piece tips. Hinges of the Hypermask are covered so as to protect you injury in the event of impact during a crash. Fitting of the glasses are comfortable and not tight and sit well on your ears and nose. Frame are available in three choices, Frozen Ash, a transparent grey, black gloss and cystal, transparent clear.
The nose piece is adjustable to adapt to different nose placement. This is one area I would like to see improved. The nose piece actually moves too easily, a simple slip while wiping your glasses could push it out of place. Sure, it easily moved back to where you prefer, but can be a slight nuisance.
Lenses are replaceable, with four to choose from, one being smoke and three Multi-Laser (red, purple and green). The smoke lens has 22% light transmission and the Multi-Laser, slightly darker at 21% light transmission. For the Multi-Laser lens the reflective coating is well muted, but can scratch easily so do take care. But rest assured, Rudy Project has an lifetime replacement guarantee, in which you scratch them, they will replace for a nominal shipping and handling fee.

The Hypermask’s are a great pair of light weight sunglasses. I did find that I would once in awhile push the glasses back up, a better working nose piece would solve this. I appreciated the lack of weight though, you do seriously forget you are wearing them. I found the glasses to have great protection from the sun, as well, great airflow to avoid fogging on those cold, crisp air rides. Included with the glasses are a hard and soft case and will cost you $204.99 for the Multi-Laser and $179.99 for the smoke, paired with Rudy Project quality and lens replacement guarantee, they will last for years to come.
one for the kids…
Posted in cyclocross, kids, video on January 26, 2012
Strider World Championships 2011
Veloshine Wipes | Review
Posted in reviews on January 10, 2012
Does your bike or you ever get dirty after a ride? Veloshine wipes have you covered or I should say cleaned with their bike wipes. Veloshine sent over a sample to bring light to the fact that after a ride, whether you want a clean bike, a visit to the local burrito joint, or head out to an event, you and your bike want to be clean.
When I am in a hurry, as we typically all are, I neglect my bikes a little. Sure I put some chain oil on and occasionally pivot points but I don’t have time to clean it all of road grime, oil or sweat every time I go out or comeback. As well, I have long used baby wipes after rides for myself, which typically are small and leave a powdery residue. So for the most part, we are both succumbed to neglect. Veloshine changes that.
First to say, Veloshine Wipes are not a degreaser, so do not expect them to clean your drivetrain. For everything else, they are your new best friend. They work very well to clean your bike parts of most residues left from a great ride. If you do hit some tar and it lands on your bike, Goof-Off or a similar product will remove it and wipe it clean with the Veloshine wipe. The wipes are large at 8.5″ by 11″, so one sheet will easily clean your entire bike. Another nice thing about the wipes that they are 100% biodegradable so they won’t be caught in a landfill for the rest of eternity. The cleaner that is used in the wipes is as well safe for Steel, Aluminum and Carbon-Fiber bicycles. I found the wipes to clean well and not cause any discoloration or fading to any of my bikes. One obvious recommendation for mountain bikes, if it was a super muddy ride, hose of your bike first prior to using the wipes.
You would think that being a bike cleaning wipe, we could just stop there, that is not the case. Veloshine Wipes are non-allergenic and are safe to clean you face and body. I really found this handy after a destination ride or just coming home and not having time to jump in the shower. The wipes clean away the sweat/salt and muck super well and don’t leave any powedery residue or perfume smell. I was really impressed with the Veloshine wipes. You can either purchase as a single item at $8.99 with 18 extra-large wipes or purchase in bulk, 24 packages of the 18 wipes, for $180, that is saving you $1.49 a package. The only qualm I have on the wipes is the price, you could buy a large package of baby wipes from a warehouse store for far less, but would have to use multiple wipes. If the price were to come down a bit, this would be great and would seal the deal. Next time you finish your ride, try a Veloshine bike wipe and look good.
Happy New Year!
Posted in 2012, announcements on December 31, 2011
From all of us at Talking Treads, we hope the new year will bring you many safe miles, crazy climbs, awesome views and great stories!
Here’s to 2012, Cheers!
~TT’s
Urban Tree to Bicycle
Masterworks Woodworking in San Jose, CA, salvage condemned city trees, then build beautiful bicycles out of them. Read more here from Spots Unknown.
Ryders Eyewear Seeker Sunglasses | Review
Posted in accessories, reviews on December 28, 2011

Ryders Eyewear got their start twenty-five years ago in 1986 when neon was everywhere. Those times have passed, but Ryders is still bringing to the scene eyewear for cyclists, skiers and snowboarders a like. Ryders eyewear sent over a pair of their photochromic and polarized (polarphoto) Seeker sunglasses for our review.
The Seeker sunglasses are available in a multitude of options. First, frames are available in either black, white or red. Lenses are available as either standard, polarized, photochromic, polorphoto (polarized and photochromic) and interchangeable. Keeping connected to your face, the thermoplastic frame is aided by hydrophilic (non-slip) nose pads and temple tips, which essentially provide the grip and work better when wet. Weight of the Seekers are not bad at 32 grams. Seekers provide a larger lens coverage area and most likely would be a bit large for a smaller faced rider, front bridge measurement is 135mm. The photochromic grey lens offers 34%-12% visible light transmission, which for my review I barely saw the difference, I would have liked to see the lens move slightly darker for middle of summer sun. The polycarbonate lens offers 100% UV protection, is shatterproof and as well has a scratch resistant coating. The lenses held up very well to the “Kurt test” (I occasionally drop my glasses), I didn’t see any scratch from my fumblings, but they are not completely scratch proof so do take care.

The Seekers are great for either road cyclist or mountain biker that is looking for a higher-end, but affordable sunglasses. They stayed well connected to my face without the need to push them up during a ride. The design and look is fitting both on and off the bike. Being someone with light sensitivity I appreciated the lens coverage and while I would have liked to see the lens have a slight darker end point, they worked well for the partly cloudy to full sun rides. At a $89 price point for a photochromic and polarized lens, they are affordable, which I see is because the frames, very-slightly, are more flexible than other higher priced similar glasses. My only issue with the frames is that the ear piece tips would occasionally come into contact with my helmet head basket, so on next versions if they were shorter, this would be an improvement.


