Another Bike Polo match is set for tonight at the Bicycle Authority! More people are starting to show up and see just how much fun this game is. Come on down to play or watch.
When: Thursday, June 23rd, 6:00PM
Where: Meet at the Bicycle Authority, 1501 N Carson Street
Disclaimer: Although we just play for fun, it’s not unlikely for a spill or contact. Play at your own risk, both body and bike.
A bike polo tournament has been setup for tonight, June 9th! Come down and play or just to watch. Either way you’re going to have fun. Pretty much any bike will work, but there’s a good chance of contact, either with another bike or the ground. Don’t bring your favorite bike if you’re afraid of taking a little damage. Also, since the mallet must be in the right hand, a bike with 2 brakes or a foot brake is preferable. If your bike only has a rear brake, you can also move it over to the left side. We rotate people on the teams, and everyone who wants to play gets to.
When: Thursday, June 9th, 6:00PM
Where: Meet at the Bicycle Authority, 1501 N Carson St. We’ll probably take the game around the corner to the Pioneer High School (formerly Corbett Elementary) at Corbett and Fall Streets and use the basketball court. So if you get there a little later and don’t see us, this is where we’ll be.
Bonus: Some of us will visit The Tap Shack for a pint after the game if you’d like to join us.
Disclaimer: Although we just play for fun, it’s not unlikely for a spill or contact. Play at your own risk!
We had our first bike polo tournament on May 26th! A few of us gathered at the Bicycle Authority after work, and went over the rules and setup the arena. Only one of us had played before, so we really didn’t know what to expect.
Polo Mallet
Chip Mohrman built us a bunch of polo mallets, made from old ski poles, pipe, hockey tape, and some other finishing materials. The only other items we had were cones for the goals, and a few street hockey balls.
Jason Gardner takes it out
As far as bikes, we all rode something different. We had a mountain bike, a dirt jumper, a couple big wheeled BMX bikes, a road bike, and even a fixie. I’m not sure any one bike was an advantage, although toe straps were definitely not good unless you enjoyed bruises.
Dan Turner takes the ball down the field
We started off with 2 man teams, but as more people showed up, we went to 3 people on a team. Three on a team was much more fun. This gave you better defense, but also added to the chaos. There is contact in the game, sometimes accidental, sometimes intentional. Only same-on-same contact is allowed though. Mallet on mallet, bike on bike, or body on body. We were all riding nice bikes though, so we tried to keep the contact at a minimum. Still, it was sometimes hard to decide between getting a shot or not mowing somebody down. Stripping somebody of their mallet was also fun to try, but it seems like I always lost mine instead.
Jason picks himself up
While the game is in play, riders are not allowed to put a foot down. A rider that touches the ground has to “tap out” by riding to the edge of the court and touching a designated area, temporarily taking them out of play. Using your mallet on the ground to help you balance is permitted though. Using the side of the mallet to get the ball around is ok, but your goals only count if the shot is made from the ends of the mallet.
Teague Strekal goes in for a shot
One of the challenges of the game is that the mallet has to be in your right hand. Since I’m left handed, this posed a challenge to me. I’m not real coordinated to begin with. Some of the other riders had to move their brake lever to the left hand side of the bars, since they were running only one brake.
Chip Mohrman and his SE OM Flyer
We played until the sun started going down, and reluctantly stopped. A few of the guys went home with bruises and cuts. We had so much fun though that we plan to do it again real soon. Stay tuned for the next tournament, and come give it a try!
The Bicycle Authority is hosting a Bicycle Polo Tournament this Thursday evening! The details are being finalized, but the date and time are firm. Expect food and drinks and mayhem.
Bike Polo Mallets
When: Thursday, May 26th, 6:00 PM.
Location: Bicycle Authority, 1501 N Carson St
More info about Bike Polo: legitbikepolo.com
Having grown up in Carson City, I have known Dan Turner, owner of the Bicycle Authority, for many years. My neighborhood BMX gang would often run into his BMX gang out at the jumps in an empty lot somewhere around town, and he was always out at the BMX track too. When I got my drivers license at 16, I gave up on bikes for a few years. I’d be driving down the street in my chick magnet, a Datsun B210 station wagon with a dented up driver’s side, and there would be Dan, riding his BMX bike down main street. He’d be bunny hopping, jumping off curbs, and I remember thinking, “Who would be caught riding around town on a bicycle? How nerdy!” And now look at me today…
Dan Turner – Photo by Cathleen Allison/Nevada Appeal
The Nevada Appeal recently did a “Meet Your Merchant” feature on the Bicycle Authority. Here’s a snippet of the article from the Nevada Appeal:
Dan Turner said his post-secondary schooling wasn’t spent buried in books deep inside a library, but toiling away in the back of a bike shop.
“That’s all I had done was work at bike shops,” said Turner, 44, owner of Bicycle Authority. “I got to learn from owners of bike shops … that really helped getting my foot in the door. That was my own form of college.”
Turner is a one man show at his North Carson City bike shop, spending six days a week inside his spacious store that is covered in bicycle paraphernalia that includes posters of the Death Ride, a 129-mile trek along the California Alps, to former rides mounted on the walls.
Bicycle Authority Memorabilia – Skyway BMX
One thing that makes Dan’s shop unique is all the memorabilia displayed throughout the store. Most bike shops tend to live in the now, dazzling the senses with the latest and greatest. In the Bicycle Authority, though, you will take a walk down memory lane. There are a lot of old bikes and other items throughout the store that aren’t for sale. Brian Duggan, the writer of the NV Appeal article, looked around the store and noticed the old Death Ride posters. I suppose everyone’s eyes focus on something different. For me it’s the old Skyway BMX frame up on the wall. It stirs up memories of the endless summers back in the 80′s when my friends and I would just sit on the lawn, talk about BMX, and think of what kind of trouble to get into next. There was so much free time back then! A Skyway just like the one on Dan’s wall was the last bike of my childhood, the bike that led me on so many cool adventures.
Continue reading the Nevada Appeal article, Meet Your Merchant: BMX kid at heart made bicycles his life’s work over on the Nevada Appeal website.
More info:
What: The Bicycle Authority
Where: 1501 N. Carson St.
Hours: Weekdays 10 a.m. to
6 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m. to
5 p.m. Closed Sundays.
Contact: 775-884-1555
Online: www.bigdansbikes.com
Wow! What a week full of events, and what a great turn out! I’m going to need a few days to recover.
Flat Tire Clinic at Comma Coffee
On Thursday, Dan Turner from the Bicycle Authority did a flat tire clinic at the Comma Coffee courtyard. The outdoor setting, warm spring evening, and raised stage made this a fun event. This hands on clinic allowed students to pop and patch tubes.
Team Wonderbike
We had our Bike to Work Week party on Friday night at the Firkin and Fox. We started setting up a little before 5 PM, and then people started rolling in. New Belgium’s Team Wonderbike was there to greet the party goers, where many a rider pledged to drive less and ride more. Jen and Cody provided plenty of New Belgium swag for the pledges. Just around the corner, Fat Tire Ale and Mighty Arrow Pale Ale were being served. I believe I had the honor of the first and last glass of Mighty Arrow!
Hick’ry Switch
The raffle ticket station was hopping! Everyone wanted to win the two cruiser bikes. I wish I could’ve been like Oprah and given everyone a bike, but there were only two. Mel and Teri were the lucky winners of the night. Thanks to your generous contributions, we raised a lot of money for Muscle Powered to further bicycle advocacy in Carson City. Luckily, many of you won some other great prizes and drank a few delicious beers along with your donation!
Amanda – Injuries sustained on last week’s Full Moon ride
A big thanks to the three musical acts that performed. Hick’ry Switch, a few members from Anouaze Beat, and James Wilsey kept the crowd entertained until after dark. A very eclectic selection of music for sure!
Chris and Leslie
Jeff Potter, Jason and Tasha
Mel wins a bike!
Keith demonstrating wheelies on the Ute
Who would’ve thought you could ride a wheelie on a utility bike? Leave it to Keith to teach us how! The Kona Ute was a party favorite that night. A few people took a ride on the back, and Scott R even got shuttled down to the Carson Nugget at the end of the evening.
Kristy, James, and John
Another special thanks to Jim and John at the Firkin. The back parking lot was the perfect spot for our event. Thanks for helping to make it such a nice evening!
Me and the boy
Brent, Scott R, and Sandie
Dropping Scott R off at the Nugget on the way home
We had one day to get caught up on the chores at home, and then my family joined other riders for the Bike Habitat’s 2009 Tour of Carson and BBQ. The ride was a 28 mile loop around the outskirts of Carson City, beginning and ending at the Bike Habitat. To celebrate the Bike Habitat’s 2nd Anniversary, there was a tasty BBQ waiting for all the riders when they returned. Congratulations on your Anniversary, Denis, and thank you for all your support during Bike Month!
Tour of Carson pre-ride
My Stoker
Jodi
Views of the mountains above Carson Valley
Once again, Keith Conrad setup a sports drink stop on King Street for us. It was getting hot when we rolled up, and the cold drinks gave us the energy we needed to make it back to the Bike Habitat. Thanks, Keith!
Chatting somewhere north of town
28 Miles on Tandem!
I volunteered to ride sweep at this year’s Tour of Carson, but as it turned out, I would’ve been back there anyway! My son and I rode the juggernaut of all bicycles, our KHS tandem. I wasn’t able to get the slicks on the fat rims, so I put the lightest mountain tires I could find on it. Charlie and I made it though, flying down the descents and crawling up the climbs. We were both excited to complete the whole course. It was Charlie’s longest ride ever, and my longest ride of the year!
Post Ride BBQ at the Bike Habitat!
Stay tuned for Jeff Potter’s Corporate Challenge results. We have lots of exciting data to share with everyone, and the results may surprise you. I was shocked!
Once again, thank you to all Bike to Work Week participants, planners, organizers, and sponsors. It was the biggest bike event Carson City has ever seen, and we all made it happen.
Also, don’t forget that the Bike Habitat is doing two more bicycle clinics on the remaining two Tuesday’s in May. See you there!
What caused my flat tire?
On Thursday night at 6:30 PM, Dan from the Bicycle Authority will be hosting a Flat Tire Repair Clinic at the Comma Coffee courtyard. Learn how to change a tube, one of the most important repair tasks that will keep your bike running. Learn how to patch a punctured tube. Most punctures only need a simple patch. Save your money! Don’t throw away those perfectly good tubes. Bring your flat tires and punctured tubes down for some hands-on training.