Bike Lane Bummer.

From my commute last Friday:

The bike lane had cones in it for the entire stretch of the Venice Blvd. bike lane that I use.

I believe it was in preparation of some construction that was going to be happening over the weekend.

It made for an interesting commute. Sometimes I had to ride to right of the cones and sometimes to the left depending what was happening in the door zone and in right lane traffic. Sure kept me on my toes!

Surly Pop Physique.

Pop Physique is a new exercise studio in my great neighborhood of Mar Vista. It's sort of a fusion of mat pilates, barre method and light weight training. It's a great workout in an hour. I went on Sunday and my abs still hurt today on Tuesday.

As I was locking up my bike I spotted this lovely Surly Long Haul Trucker at the next parking meter. With it's small size, swept back handlebars and practical basket it seemed decidedly girly to me. It turned out the owner of the bike was indeed another woman who was in the Pop Physique class. I didn't get a picture of her hopping on and riding off because she was so quick! Maybe next time.

Creative Solutions.

At the Farmers' Market last Sunday I spotted this father/son duo.

Check out the clever storage solution for their Farmers' Market goodies!

Dad checking on his kid and cargo.

As I was snapping pics I overheard the gal in the booth asking the dad about their bike. It's definitely an attention getter!

I recently picked up this milk crate for my own bike (in red) but I haven't installed it yet. I was thinking of zip-tying it to my rear rack and trying out the idea of just throwing stuff into the crate instead of my current two-pannier storage system. I've never been able to find a front basket that I thought looked right on my bike, but I've always longed for the ease of a basket you can just toss your stuff into. 

For those of you wondering why I actually bought one and didn't just grab a milk crate from behind a restaurant, there a couple of reasons. These crates from The Container Store are smaller than the kind found at restaurants and grocery stores and seem more appropriately sized for my bike and my rack, and at $10 I thought it was a bargain on-bike storage solution. But more importantly taking a dairy crate from a restaurant is stealing, no? I'm not sure if it's stealing from the restaurant or the dairy but either way I'd rather just plunk down $10 and have a clear conscious.

Bikerowave and Breakfast.

Today my boyfriend and I went out for breakfast in the neighborhood and decided on our way to stop by the amazing bike co-op Bikerowave. Wow!  For only $7 an hour you can learn bike repair from an expert and have access to all the tools and space you need to repair or build up a bike. The guys in the shop were as cool as can be, the place is not-for-profit, and is staffed by passionate volunteers. It's really special.  I have a dream of finding a little vintage mixte frame and building it up as a single speed like this, and once I find the frame I'll be doing all the work at Bikerowave. I have a lot to learn about bike maintenance, repair and building, but the idea of being self sufficient and being able to fix or build up my own bike is really exciting.

Breakfast was at this great place The Curious Palate.

Our bikes patiently waiting for us to finish breakfast.

Both these places are just a couple of examples of how great the neighborhood of Mar Vista is.  I've only been living here for a few months and I'm really loving it.  It has a nice, neighborhood feel and it's incredibly walkable or bikeable.  New great places are popping up all the time, the bike lane on Venice Blvd. is great, and we're just 2 miles from the ocean!

Mar Vista Turkey Ride.

My boyfriend and I enjoyed our first group ride on Thanksgiving morning.  The Mar Vista Turkey Ride includes eight impressive hills.  After conquering them, we felt better about filling our bellies with turkey.

Preparing for the ride.

Topping off the tubes.  My boyfriend's ride: a Masi Speciale Fixed (2009)

The cyclists begin to gather.

Pre-ride chit chat.

Ready to take off!

Here we go.

The finish line.  I got back before my boyfriend (center), but I think may have skipped a hill!

Feeling good after the ride!

We did it!

The reward!