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[slideshow][/slideshow] Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for us to put in our first order of the latest and greatest Brompton folding bicycles. So, for those of you looking to get on a made-to-order Brompton this year, now is the time to commit.  Unlike the rest of the bicycle industry, Brompton does not have a warehouse full of fresh new bicycles from which we can select all year long. Rather, we receive Bromptons in shipment windows throughout the year. That means that if you don't get pre-order your Brompton before we place the order for our first shipment of bikes, you'll have to either choose one of the floor models we stock or wait several months for the next window to get your custom Brompton. So order yours now! We are giving you from now until January 19th to place an order for your 2013 Brompton. We will include your specifications as one of the bikes in our first shipment, which means that your Brompton will arrive with the first shipment of 2013 bikes. Yes! If you don't know already, Bromptons are the world's greatest folding bike. Seriously. Stylish, practical, and British -- what more could you ask for? You can create your very own custom Brompton, from paint scheme to gears, tires, saddle, handlebar type, and on and on. The end result is your very own personal traveling machine. The 2013 models come with a number of upgrades since last year increasing the smooth-osity of your Brompton: - New crankset with a 130-BCD compatible chainring. - Toolkit attached to bike, hidden inside tubing. See it to believe it. - New waterbottle mount that goes behind the handlebars. - New double-walled rims - New aluminimum brake levers adjustable for your hand size. And every year, Brompton offers a few paint colors for free. This year those colors are: black, white, cobalt blue, and orange. So here is how this works. There is no online Brompton-ordering system that we are aware of. So we will be happy to wlk you through the process of creating your Brompton. Give us a call at 415-484-6575 or e-mail us at info@huckleberrybicycles.com. We will walk you through the process of ordering a custom Brompton, and you will be among the first this year to practice the fold with your 2013 Brompton! In the meantime, check out this smooth bonus video -- the Brompton factory in London:

The Dashing Bicycle Show came and went. We had an amazing time, and we are pretty sure everyone in attendance had a great time as well. We were very lucky to have Grant Peterson of Rivendell Bicycles give an interesting and hysterical talk to the crowd. Thanks to everyone who came out and supported the show! And big thanks to Melissa at Bike Pretty for taking photographs and writing a great wrap-up of the event on her awesome blog. You can read her full review here. And while you are there, sign up for her newsletter, you won't regret it!

Congratulations to Rush for being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2013. Many would say that the nomination was years late, but with a masterpiece still 100 years ahead of its time, it can be argued they were inducted a century early. We listen to all sorts of Rush at the shop. Pop on Permanent Waves and start air-drumming to The Spirit of Radio, or better yet move on to Moving Pictures and play the air bass and the air keyboard while singing with your most majestic falsetto. Keep at it and you might be the next Geddy Lee! Speaking of that falsetto, my favorite Rush moment at the shop must have been when our dear friend Bjarmes Baltimore was rocking out to Rush. After moving onto the second side of the record, Mr. Baltimore exclaimed, "this lady has an amazing voice!" Beat that Robert Plant.

So we congratulate you Rush. Even though there were some fashion mishaps along the way....

LIKE THIS

AND THIS

OK, THIS DUDE IS PRETTY COOL

  In celebration, we invite you to travel 100 years into the future to the year 2112. Will you be prepared to defend humanity against Priests of the Temples of Syrinx?    

All Brooks Products 10% // Non-Brooks Bags  30% // Lights 25% // Apparel 10-60% Shoes 30% // Helmets 25% 

Well, we were listening to Phil Spector's creepy Christmas album, trying to make our inventory melt with our eyes, and we thought maybe a Holiday Sale would be a better way to move all of our amazing products. So we are going to pass along some great savings your way on the best bicycle-related gifts in town. The sale will last for a few weeks, before and after the holidays are over.  Here are just a few ideas of what we have to whet your appetite: In the bags department, we are fully stocked and fully stoked-- Chrome, Mission Workshop, Ortlieb, Wheelmen & Co., and Brooks England. Boom. The best baggage in town. Why leave your stuff at home when you can bring it with you.

$235 $210 The Pickwick Bag by Brooks England.

 

$208 $145 Wheelmen & Co's Babylon Backpack.  Waxed beauty!

$170 $119 Ortlieb's Mini O-Bag for your Brompton Bicycle

Handlebar tape and bike lights make for great stocking stuffers, and we carry the best of the best.  In the bar tape department, Brooks Leather Tape feels good, looks good, lasts forever, and comes in a variety of colors.  Guess what, we have most of them in the store (and on our Web shop!).  And as for lights, the USB-rechargeable, waterproof Knog Blinder is a bright delight!

$75 $67 Brooks Leather Bar Tape in Turquoise

 

$50 $37.50 4-LED Knog Blinder

On to shoes. We carry all the shoes you need for cycling; performance shoes by Sidi and Giro and lifestyle shoes by DZR and Chrome. For the commuter or cyclist who wants performance without sacrificing style, DZR is making some of the coolest cycling shoes around. There newest shoe, the H20 is a waterproof hightop.  Best part, no one loses a finger -- the sole is finally pre-cut to accept your SPD cleats.

$160 $112 DZR H20 -- Waterproof SPD-compatible Shoes

Did I mention pants?  I think we sell more pants here than anything else. I'm not surprised since we stock the best brands in cycling pants:  SWRVE, Cadence, BetaBrand, and now... Levi's!  We have sizes in all of the 511 Levi's Commuter pants -- black/grey, denim, and khaki.  Full of slick features including water de la resistance, stretchitude, and reflectitude, the Levi's Commuter pants are a steal.

$78 $70 Levi's Commuter Pants

 

$84 $67 Cadence Raw Denim Cycling Jeans

And for those of you who are still wondering whether this is a bike shop:  Yes, we sell bikes.  You can't be the smoothest bike shop around without having a huge selection of bikes.  We still have dozens of 2012 bikes by Cannondale, Felt, Pinarello, Masi, Civia, Redline, and Salsa that are on closeout.  Amazing savings on the best bikes around, including this lovely black bike, complete with a Kitt:  

$3300 $2950 2012 Cannondale CAAD10 Dura-Ace

  Remember folks, we are open everyday and we are oh-so conveniently located on historic Market Street.  By bike, by foot, by car, by BART, by Muni -- no problem. We are your Huckleberry.    

These are the photo-chronicles of a cycletourist. one Gregory Joseph Barnabas "Try Again" Tissi--cycletoursist, good guy, friend. Tissi, having just set out on a great adventure by bicycle has been firing photographs Starting somewhere in Vietnam Tissi, plus long-haul trucker, will be cycling vaguely westerly--I think ultimately to Paris or somewhere in Europe--for several months, perhaps years.  We'll see how it goes.  I have the privilege of sharing with you photos and wisdoms of

the daily

And now without further adieux -- tissi on tour

We take bicycles pretty seriously over here at Huckleberry. When someone walks into the shop he or she sees bike after bike and enough apparel to clothe an entire village. Surprisingly, many visitors are more impressed by our turntable setup and wide array of records than our fleet of rides. Just like bicycles we take our music quite seriously. We all bring in a bunch of albums every week, and then take turns playing them, trying to convince everyone else that the music being played is the be-all, end-all of whatever genre or subgenre the band is purported to represent. I am probably most guilty of this. (Ed. note: yes, you definitely are!) When chatting with customers sometimes I realize I am talking more about the record being played rather than what component should be replaced or how wiping off excess chain lube will increase the lifespan of a drivetrain. If we marry our passions at the shop then why not do the same on the blog? So welcome to the first of many reviews of our Shop Music -- our favorite records spinning at Huckleberry Bicycles. One entry may include an artist or band releasing its first limited run EP, another may be a long lost gem. The music we play runs the gamut from ridiculously silly to ridiculously awesome. Some mornings we will play some greasy organ jazz from Jimmy Smith and then, in the afternoon when the sun is beating down and the store is alive with energy and commotion, who better to provide the soundtrack than the Pointer Sisters? I want to kick this series off with the masterwork: Fragile by British progsters Yes. To many "prog" is a dirty word. If prog is a dirty word, then uttering the word Yes would probably earn you a lengthy disciplinary sentence. Whereas Rat Scabies could only privately confide to Phil Collins that he actually dug Genesis, we here at Huckleberry are comfortable in waving or prog freak flag high!

ONE KEYBOARD ISN'T ENOUGH FOR YES'S RICK WAKEMAN.

Yes kicks off the album with Roundabout -- a perfect microcosm of what Yes is capable of. The song blends nylon string classical guitars with Rick Wakeman's howling organ lines. Jon Anderson's multi tracked vocals soar and the mid-range growl of Chris Squire's Rickenbacker bass form a battering ram with the immortal Bill Bruford's drum work. The song is sprawling, but unlike the A-side of Yes's Close to the Edge or the entirety of Tales from a Topographic Ocean, Roundabout keeps the work concise. The listener is so engrossed in the piece- focusing on the stereo vocals, the slippery electric guitar playing and powerful rhythm section- that it is startling when the reintroduction of the classical guitar work closes the song just as neatly as it set the wheels in motion. Every song on this record is a tour de force with intricacies enough to necessitate an entire dissertation, so we will forge ahead to the song that bookends the album with Roundabout. Heart of the Sunrise is a workout in ascending and descending bass lines coupled with locked in drumming and virtuoso guitar playing. What makes this song stand out is Yes's ability to engage both the machine-like quality of the introduction with the loose rhythm work that follows. Squire and Bruford are allowed some space to find a groove and stay there. Little by little, pieces are added. Mellotron adding atmosphere, a faint guitar panned to one side, all until the band re-enters the breakneck speed of the technical intro. All groove is lost.

CHRIS SQUIRE CAN'T CHOOSE WHICH NECK TO PLAY ON.

Once the vocals come into the fore, the band re-examines the groove that they introduced earlier in the song. Being a prog band, Yes could not stay locked in for long, as off-time fills are added seemingly at random. A piano enters and the song starts to hit its climax. Anderson's vocals increase in intensity until the crescendo is reached. "I feel lost in this city!" he wails. The band follows with one more musical workout before the song and album reaches its conclusion. We hope you dig this album as much as we do. If you are spinning any music that you think we should be checking out, swing by the shop and let us know or leave a comment below!

  "Elitism is a code sharing flight into the world of culture, design, fashion and everything inspiring.  Our ideas come from a gentle breeze, our attitude, (towards things and people we write about), is everything but a swirl." Elitism is a web magazine about culture, art, architecture, fashion, and, yes, bicycles. One of Elitism's contributors, Valentina Matelli, recently featured Huckleberry Bicycles in her Ride Here Ride Now style column. Thanks Valentina!