Every other biking blogger in the world will blog about this, so I might as well join the herd. Dateline NBC reported tonight that "a cruise ship sinks with 1200 people aboard. Also, some bad personal news for Lance Armstrong."
Ohhh-kay. That puts some interesting perspective on it. Anyway, in case you haven't heard or figured it out yet, Lance Armstrong and Sheryl Crow have called it quits on their two-year relationship and wedding plans. "After much thought and consideration we have made a very tough decision to split up," a joint statement by the couple issued to People Magazine said. "We both have a deep love and respect for each other, and we ask that everyone respect our privacy during this difficult time."
Friday, February 03, 2006
Tour of California television schedule
Update: 2008 Amgen Tour of California video coverage details here. Below is old 2006 info.
Summary: Tour of California TV Schedule: ESPN 2 will broadcast recaps of the Amgen Tour of California each evening of the race at 1 A.M. Eastern Time / 10 Pacific. Watch for video updates online at Cycling.TV, Steephill.tv and at The Steeps. See the links below or Cyclelicious for updates.
ESPN2 is the "official broadcast partner" of the Amgen Tour of California. This means EPSN provides zero mention of the Amgen Tour of California on their Cycling news page, and they provide one hour of television coverage each night of the tour begining at 1 AM Eastern Time. Yay for the inauguration of this premier American professional cycling stage race.
Steephill.TV plans to provide daily recaps of each stage with video and photos from the day.
Simon at Cycling.TV tells me he's working on permission to provide live coverage of the Tour of California, and cycling.tv will be in California working with CSC and T-Mobile during the Tour of California. Cycling.tv are also planning to cover the 2006 Tour de Georgia.
Amgen Tour of California Television Schedule. Nightly, 1 AM to 2 AM EST, February 20 - 27 on ESPN2.
Bike shops, get your broadband Internet, test your feed from Cycling.TV, and get the correct hardware to show the Tour of California on the bigscreen for your customers. Do it TODAY because you WILL need to order parts. If you need help or have questions on how to do this, leave a comment below.
Summary: Tour of California TV Schedule: ESPN 2 will broadcast recaps of the Amgen Tour of California each evening of the race at 1 A.M. Eastern Time / 10 Pacific. Watch for video updates online at Cycling.TV, Steephill.tv and at The Steeps. See the links below or Cyclelicious for updates.
ESPN2 is the "official broadcast partner" of the Amgen Tour of California. This means EPSN provides zero mention of the Amgen Tour of California on their Cycling news page, and they provide one hour of television coverage each night of the tour begining at 1 AM Eastern Time. Yay for the inauguration of this premier American professional cycling stage race.
Steephill.TV plans to provide daily recaps of each stage with video and photos from the day.
Simon at Cycling.TV tells me he's working on permission to provide live coverage of the Tour of California, and cycling.tv will be in California working with CSC and T-Mobile during the Tour of California. Cycling.tv are also planning to cover the 2006 Tour de Georgia.
Amgen Tour of California Television Schedule. Nightly, 1 AM to 2 AM EST, February 20 - 27 on ESPN2.
Bike shops, get your broadband Internet, test your feed from Cycling.TV, and get the correct hardware to show the Tour of California on the bigscreen for your customers. Do it TODAY because you WILL need to order parts. If you need help or have questions on how to do this, leave a comment below.
Bike box
Tags: cyclelicious, oklahoma, mailbox, bicycle
Photo info: Speedy Delivery by FreeWine.
Thursday, February 02, 2006
Cellulosic ethanol
The media and blogosphere has made much of President Bush's acknowledgement during the State of the Union speech that the United States is "addicted to oil." In the past, Bush has pushed for increased domestic drilling to reduce American dependence on foreign oil. In his latest SOTU, Arctic drilling wasn't even mentioned, instead promoting cellulosic ethanol as an alternative fuel.
To reduce imports from the Middle East by 75%, Bush pushed alternative fuels, especially promoting cellulosic ethanol as a replacement for petroleum fuels. Cellulosic ethanol is made from agricultural waste products: wood chips, stalks, and lowland weeds such as switchgrass. Currently, most ethanol is produced by fermenting corn or sugarcane. The hope is that using "waste" biomass reduces the cost of ethanol production.
Cellulosic ethanol also -- to a degree -- addresses the issue of agricultural land use. Natural gas is the feedstock for nitrogen fertilizer. Natural gas prices are rising faster than gasoline prices. Farmers are buying much less nitrogen fertilizer. In two or three years, crop yields will begin to drop dramatically. Corn ethanol, which is already expensive, will become even pricier, as will food and other products made from corn.
There are some technology hurdles to overcome in cellulosic ethanol production, distribution and use. Let's assume we'll overcome those hurdles. In the United States, we currently burn over 130 billions of gasoline to run our cars and small trucks every year. To grow enough biomass to replace that gasoline means we need to cultivate about 500 million acres. That's about one quarter of the land area in the lower 48 that needs to be converted to biomass production for fuel.
Cellulosic ethanol research is perhaps a needed step, but sustainable energy resources can provide only so much. Clearly we need to do much more than create alternative fuels if we wish to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. Although the current administration opposes conservation measures, curing our addiction to oil and transitioning to sustainable fuels means the U.S. needs to significantly cut back on the fuel that we burn for transportation.
To reduce imports from the Middle East by 75%, Bush pushed alternative fuels, especially promoting cellulosic ethanol as a replacement for petroleum fuels. Cellulosic ethanol is made from agricultural waste products: wood chips, stalks, and lowland weeds such as switchgrass. Currently, most ethanol is produced by fermenting corn or sugarcane. The hope is that using "waste" biomass reduces the cost of ethanol production.
Cellulosic ethanol also -- to a degree -- addresses the issue of agricultural land use. Natural gas is the feedstock for nitrogen fertilizer. Natural gas prices are rising faster than gasoline prices. Farmers are buying much less nitrogen fertilizer. In two or three years, crop yields will begin to drop dramatically. Corn ethanol, which is already expensive, will become even pricier, as will food and other products made from corn.
There are some technology hurdles to overcome in cellulosic ethanol production, distribution and use. Let's assume we'll overcome those hurdles. In the United States, we currently burn over 130 billions of gasoline to run our cars and small trucks every year. To grow enough biomass to replace that gasoline means we need to cultivate about 500 million acres. That's about one quarter of the land area in the lower 48 that needs to be converted to biomass production for fuel.
Cellulosic ethanol research is perhaps a needed step, but sustainable energy resources can provide only so much. Clearly we need to do much more than create alternative fuels if we wish to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. Although the current administration opposes conservation measures, curing our addiction to oil and transitioning to sustainable fuels means the U.S. needs to significantly cut back on the fuel that we burn for transportation.
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
Safety and clipless pedals
This video shows the importance of using pedals that strap, clip, or bind to your shoes. Platform pedals are a safety hazard.
Death of a bike shop
The Glenwood Springs, CO Post Independent has this article about the death of BSR Sports, an independent bicycle dealer / specialty sport shop in Glenwood Springs. The owners, Steve and Debbie Katers, took it in the chin with the nosedive of the tourism industry after 9/11 and the opening of several big box discount sports retailers within blocks of BSR Sports.
Glenwood Springs is located on the Western Slope of Colorado, just west and downhill of Vail Pass. It's a gorgeous city set in a beautiful valley, and many of its businesses depend on tourism dollars to stay afloat. The lack of snow for the past three winters killed the snowboarding business at BSR; summer forest fires killed the bike business. BSR pared down and retrenched, and then the big boxes opened.
The Katers are moving to Florida to operate their Mexico to operate their successful Mexico surfing vacation business. I feel sorry for them, but can't help but note the irony that the vacation industry will suffer this summer when fuel prices hit the stratosphere.
What does it take to succeed with a bike shop in a tourist town, especially when big box sport retailers open up down the street? See related: lbs, ecommerce, economy
Glenwood Springs is located on the Western Slope of Colorado, just west and downhill of Vail Pass. It's a gorgeous city set in a beautiful valley, and many of its businesses depend on tourism dollars to stay afloat. The lack of snow for the past three winters killed the snowboarding business at BSR; summer forest fires killed the bike business. BSR pared down and retrenched, and then the big boxes opened.
The Katers are moving to Florida to operate their Mexico to operate their successful Mexico surfing vacation business. I feel sorry for them, but can't help but note the irony that the vacation industry will suffer this summer when fuel prices hit the stratosphere.
What does it take to succeed with a bike shop in a tourist town, especially when big box sport retailers open up down the street? See related: lbs, ecommerce, economy
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