Shades of Green

Not unlike others, Vancouver is a great city for promoting "going green." We have a curbside composting where you can throw all your compost scraps in with your yard trimmings and the city picks it up and takes care of them. We have recycling for most things so in theory, your garbage consumption can be next to nil.

Lies, Kermit, lies! haha

If you want to see a rad film about zero garbage consumption, check out The Clean Bin Project, created right here in Van City! It's pretty neat.


At Mighty and OtR, we also try to do our bit. Most of us walk, take the bus or ride our bikes to work whenever possible. In Vancouver, it's almost faster to dodge traffic than be traffic to get anywhere even with all those Cat-6 racers. Plus, it's a nice limbo between home and work that I personally enjoy having.


We've also got the Eco Rangers dropping by to take care of our metal, paper, cardboard, and plastic recycling. They're a nice resource to have because alot of our packing stuff is either cardboard, plastic, or paper. They also pick up Mighty's metal scraps, which is nice.

Like a lot of other stores around town, we've decided to go without bags, instead using the bags that our products get shipped to us in. I get some weird looks but most people are okay with it or just opt out at that point. Most of the time, people either don't want a bag or have brought one of their own so there's no real reason to have extra bags kicking around.

They're Heeeeere: Fizik Shoes

The newest baby of the On the Rivet shoe family is the Fizik shoe line.



We got them in just after Christmas and we're pretty excited to show them off.


Handmade in Italy, the Fizik shoes are built for comfort and speed with leather upper, straps made from sail cloth, and either aluminum or carbon buckles.


The soles are also thermomoldable to give you an even better fit.



With both a male and female version, these shoes are sure to be a popular pick in the coming year.

First thoughts include:

"Wow! Woooooow!" - Ed Luciano, Mighty Riders

"These don't fit my arch." - Ryan Golbeck, who I'm sure was disappointed

"Is this packing tape?" - Nick Berry on the sailcloth straps

"I didn't want to like them... but I like them." - Pat Beckstead, Mighty

No Glove No Love...

Here's a few true and obvious statements:

1. Gloves are warm and cozy fuzzy slippers for your hands.
2. Gloves are useful in Vancouver.
3. Gloves are necessary when rainy, cold, gross winter sets in.
4. Gloves are awesome at keeping your hands from getting that gross crocodile feeling as they dry out and chap and crack.

AND YET I see people running around with no gloves or gloves that don't stand up to the conditions people are riding in.

Gore does a sweet commuter glove called the Countdown.
With soft leather palms, a velcro clasp at the wrist, and Goretex outer, these gloves are bombproof. They can be a bit bulky but for an everyday commuter or for a rider who's tried everything and still gets cold hands out on a training ride.

If you're looking for a lighter glove and aren't really worried about insulation, the Mistral is perfect for you. Though it's not a waterproof glove, I don't think you'd want one anyway since you heat up while riding and would probably sweat too much. The windstopper is a nice touch though since it keeps the glove pretty water resistant to a certain degree but also keeps out that pesky wind.


If you do get cold hands, a glove liner is like adding an extra blanket onto your bed on a cold winter night. Even if you don't think you get that cold, a pair of liners are essential in the "just in case" department. They're light and stuffable into any bag/pocket and very good at adding that extra bit of warmth when you need it. The thing about winter is that even covering up skin from the elements is going to warm you up considerably.

Icebreaker makes great liners. They have a 260 weight and a 200 weight to keep any chills away.


Sugoi also has a great line of gloves - the Firewall series. They're water and wind resistant and run the same range as Gore - from training to commuting. The commuter is a sweet lobster glove that is completely waterproof.





So, without sounding like an infomercial, treat yourself this winter... grab a sweet pair of waterproof gloves and get out into the wet. Grab some windproofing and sail along those bike lanes. Cuz it's going to last for another couple months and your hands might as well be cozy.

Thumbs Up for Rock and Roll!

via Cima Coppi. <3

Shoe Sales!!

You asked for it and now you're gonna get it. After months of people asking if the the DMT and Diadora shoes are the only ones on sale, we can finally say, "NO, they're not the only ones!"


We're putting all models of discontinued shoes on sale in time for the 2012 season.


This means Shimano's men's and women's road and mountain are on sale.


Sizes are limited so git yo' butts down to OtR and check 'em out.

Item of the Week: The Buran Messenger Bag

New to the scene is the Buran messenger briefcase bag. If you were to google what a Buran was, you would see that the bag is named after the Russian space shuttle and/or program or a line of wristwatches assembled by Voltex. I do want it to go down in the books that I did not make a connection between this bag and the phrase "out of this world."





Some of the highlights of this all business messenger briefcase are:

- The integrated laptop sleeve - now at the back of the bag instead of earlier versions where it was at the front. Being in the back ensures that there's going to be a flat surface against your back when you throw all sorts of stuff into your bag, even if you overstuff it.

- A handle on the top gives the user the ability to sling the bag around without having to reach for the shoulder strap every time.

- Lots and lots of compartments so you have a pocket for everything you want to carry.

- Keeping with their tried and true material, the bag is waterproof - perfect for Vancouver or any other rainy conditions.

- It still uses the Chrome strap system so there is a stabilizer strap coming underneath your armpit to keep the bag, and all your important docs + laptop, in place while you're riding.




Come down and check it out. If you're looking for something different, we also carry lots of other Chrome bags as well as Mission Workshop.

South Surrey Cyclecross Race

Check out the South Surrey Cyclocross race going down Nov. 12th! Hosted by Daryl-Evans and Mighty Riders at the South Surrey Athletic Park.

All the deets are HERE.

The poster is pretty rad:


Aaaand we think you should go... Cuz it's going to be a pretty awesome time.