Did You Ever Have One Of Those Days?

I'm having one.

Again.

Anyway, just some quick hits:


1. Brian Castillo's new bike is up on the Volume site:


Mighty sturdy seatstay brace ya got there. Seeing that Volume reps Cali, I'm guessing it's a UCLA Bruins B rather than the Bosox or the Brooklyn Dodgers (all of whom use a similar typeface), but I'm probably wrong. (I know his name starts with a B.)

EDIT: I just noticed that, in the little news thing where he talks about his new ride, Castillo linked to the photo of my old STA that I posted a few days ago. Silliness.

EDIT 2: Since I finally DID read said news item, now I know it's a Biz signature frame. Which means that B is for Boston, bitches.



2. MirraCo crossbar pads, as seen on Dig:


Pads are cool, but these look like they belong on a 12". Someone get the rights to Play and put out some triceratops joints. Or resurrect Zap Pads. Chrome with lightning bolts, how can you go wrong?


3. Animal LM-R rim:
Yeah, yeah, I've been sitting on this forever. The best joke I could come up with was "wow, look at all the potential lacing patterns!" Lame? You bet!



4. Odyssey iPedals:


Obviously their next sprocket should be called the Zip Drive. (And hell, putting the "i" prefix on anything damn near assures it'll sell like Arizona 99-cent cans.)


Told you it was one of those days. I can't even summon the energy to put in all the proper links. Go read something good.

Word to the Wise

Still playing around with a full-length post on the Kevin Robinson high-airstravaganza in Central Park. In the meantime, here's another photo, though. Practice session flair at height:


So for today, here's a couple shots of Rob Wise's new setup featuring his signature Volume frame, the Assault, as seen on 5050 BMX. Hm. Apparently the Eastern influence is spreading.


I love that the frame weighs a "respectable" 4.5 pounds. As opposed to a "disrespectable" five pounds? Personally I don't respect 4.5 pound frames at all—in the morning or otherwise—but maybe that's just me. At least the cutouts are in "non-high-stress areas." Thats a, um, relief.

Never thought I'd see a frame that made the Eastern seattube cutouts look good, but this one does. Can you say "homemade"? What I'd really like to see is a complementary seatpost with spring-loaded studs that pop out through the holes (old-school tent pole style), thus making a seatpost clamp—integrated or not—unnecessary.


Drilling out the caps on the stays is possibly THE dumbest thing I've ever seen in my life. So, of course, this frame's got that, too. (I get it, it's stronger than uncapped stays and lighter than regular capped stays. Still looks stupid.)


Then there's the usual stuff—laser-cut seatstay/chainstay braces—and the unusual—removable chainstay AND seatstay brakemounts. Not sure whether that's just on the prototype or not.


Also, calling a 4.5 pound frame the "Assault" is like naming a poodle "Chopper". I'm sorry, I know Rob Wise is a badass and all (Left/Right is incredible), but a drilled-out, laser-cut, butted frame isn't an "Assault." Given the state affiliation, why not name it the "Jazz"?

UPDATE: Rob talks about the frame, which has apparently been re-named "The Machine" (after this guy?), on Volume.