Sunday, 30 November 2014

The great Vincita Sightseer Giveaway

As we mentioned before we received a 2nd Vincita Sightseer to giveaway to a lucky reader, in case you missed the review here is the link Legend gets a brand new bag, Vincita style

YES, You heard right, one of these bad boys will be helping you & your Brompton  as you travel around the world.



Now to enter all you have to do is use the contact form on the right side of this blog and make sure you only put the words: "Sightseer Giveaway" (no quotes) in the message box, NOTHING more.


The only way I can do this is with a random draw:

ENTRY INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Entries are only VALID using the contact form using the words Sightseer Giveaway in the message section, nothing more. (if anything else is in the message it will be NOT be entered)
  2. This give-away is open to anyone with a shipping address in the UK. (Will be too expensive for to send outside of the UK)
  3. GIVEAWAY will END on the 6th December 23:59 (GMT) & draw will take place on the 7th December
  4. Make sure you use a valid email address that you can reply to (Email address will only be seen by myself for the purpose of this giveaway)
  5. Entries will be assigned a number & a random number will be chosen/generated.
  6. Email will be sent to winner regarding shipping address. (Remember only shipping to the UK & will be sent as soon as humanly possible.)
  7. After 48hrs if no reply then another number will be selected.
Well that's about it, Good luck to you all.

ENTRY IS NOW CLOSED

Saturday, 29 November 2014

BumbleB gets a brand new bag, Vincita Style

Over a week ago I received a pretty big package which was sent by the very nice folks at Vincita in Thailand. They sent us their new "Sightseer: The foldable transport Bag" for us to review.

The "Sightseer" consist of B132B Soft Transport Bag for Brompton & B206B Garment Bag. We shall be reviewing and giving our thoughts on the bags for transporting not just any Brompton, but a living LEGEND.


So lets see if this "Sightseer" is up to the job eh?

B132B Soft Transport Bag for Brompton
B206B Garment Bag

Take the journey
Not so sure about having a logo of a bike on the side but you can get a version of the bag without the logo if you wished. Nice to have that option if you don't like anyone knowing what's inside for your peace of mind.

Cool logo

The materials used in the construction feel tough, hard wearing and able to withstand the riggers of travelling with a legend.

Nice big snap straps to keep the package in shape and contents safe from movement.

Big  snap straps

Good placement for "dragging" the package around stations/airports.

Pull Strap & snap
For the times you have to lift it some handy shoulder straps that come out of little hidden pockets to keep them from being lost of tangled up. Would be bulky to carry all the time like this but would only be when going up stairs or a very rough surface

Long shoulder straps
Silver padded inner lining & hard bottom to keep everything protected on the inside as well as straps to hold BumbleB in place.

Protective inner lining, hard bottom & more straps
Robust looking roller wheels for easy rolling.

Large robust wheels for rolling

As you can see BBB fits right in. Was a little fiddly at first getting BBB in there but its not like I've ever put BBB in a bag like this before. With practice it will get easier & faster. If you got extra bits on your Brompton then you may have slight issues but this is designed with the standard Brompton in mind.

Even with my 2litre Carradice Zipped Roll Bag still attached with the B206B Garment Bag with my cycle clothing its a good tight fit. If anything I would give a little more protection for things that are protruding like (the in my case clip-less) pedals & the hinge clamps or just completely remove them and placed in a plastic bag inside just to make sure they don't get broken from being accidentally dropped etc. For my peace of mind, I'm VERY protective of my BBB.

Snug as a bug
I have to say I'm liking the idea of travelling further in the future, maybe even cycling weekends and this would be perfect for that. Just single bag to deal with. When the transport bag is not carrying BBB it has been designed to be folded & strapped to the Brompton rear rack so you can basically step off the train/plane/ship, unpack your Brompton, fold the transport bag with garment bag inside & strap the package on and off you go. Currently BBB doesn't have a rear rack but maybe in the future I may well install one if I'm going to be totally independent traveller.

No Taxi, No Buses, No hassle, simples.

So now I hear you ask, how much?

Well its $159 (excluding taxes & shipping) so just over £100 at the current exchange rates at time of posting. Remember you may have to pay import tax if your getting this from overseas, so be aware of that unless you can find a local dealer. I'm currently unaware of any UK dealers.

Disclaimer & Giveaway:
Vincita sent us "Sightseer" at no cost and for us to review how we saw fit. They also sent us a 2nd "Sightseer" set to give away to a lucky reader of our blog. We shall be doing another entry soon regarding this so please stay tuned.

Wednesday, 19 November 2014

"Let there be light" Part 2

Last month we converted to a dynamo system for lighting.

Got the SON XS hub wheel, SON Edelux II LED Headlight (Gold) & B & M Toplight LineTec Brake Plus Rear Dynamo Light for BBB.

"Let there be light" Part 1

But what I didn't know at the time of ordering was that BBB needs a 50mm fitting for the rear bracket for rear lights and had ordered the wrong size. So I had to exchange it for the proper size which took a little while.

In any case I finally for it today and couldn't wait to fit it on BBB. So now BBB is fully dynamo powered lights.
B & M Toplight LineTec Brake Plus Rear Dynamo Light
The B&M connects directly to the Edelux with the wire supplied with it so its just a case of routing the wire to allow for the fold and pushing it on the connectors. Setting the Edelux to automatic and the B&M will also come on. 
Designed and built in Germany the Toplight LineTec Brake Plus is very small - 16mm thick, 90mm wide and 44mm high. It fits into many spaces that previous lights would not fit! It has good all round visibility and is very light weight. 50 or 80mm fitting for pannier rack mounting.

LineTec is a very clever concept developed by B&M. Before LineTec cars approaching a bicycle from behind could only see a single rear light spot without being able to judge the distance very accurately. To judge distance the human eye requires spacial relation - especially in 'spaceless' darkness. B&Ms lights with the LineTec light strip emit 'spatial' light. With LineTec other road users can estimate the distance to a cyclist much more accurately.

BrakeTec - How does it work for bicycles?

Motorised vehicles signal braking with bright shining red light to following traffic. This style of function is now available for bicycles. The new BrakeTec technology is integrated into rear B&M light. Unlike vehicles no connection is need to the brakes. Simply exchange your existing rear light for a BrakeTec rear light. This new function is approved by German road traffic regulations.

How does it work? Firstly your dynamo system needs to be operating. A processor inside the rear light analyses signals from the dynamo. If the velocity of the bicycle decreases significantly the processor registers deceleration and the rear light shines noticeably brighter.

- Patented lighting technology - Made in Germany!
- Extremely bright light exit at 320 degree all round visibility and glass protected red reflectors
- With plug contacts (central) for power and mass connection
- Beam shape helps motorists gauge your distance more easily
- Very light weight approximately 53g
- Switch for standlight deactivation

Other good news we finally got our Dynamo rear light. #cycling #dynamo #lights
Fitted and ready to go
Here is a little video I made demonstrating the "BrakeTec" function & how bright & wide the beam actually is in real life. The standlight I've noticed actually stays on much longer than the Edelux II.

Tuesday, 18 November 2014

Traveling without moving

A few days ago when I was ready for my commute home after a hard day at work and I found that I had a flat rear tyre. I did notice that BBB felt a little odd half way though my morning commute but thought nothing of it.

Well I had to take the bus home as I was abit too tired to fix it at work and I've never tried the CO2 canisters and didn't feel confident with them. I may get a good hand pump that I can push into my Mini O bag at some point. The Brompton pump is good but how I got my cadence/speed sensor it won't fit.

Ready to commute home & found a flat rear. Busing it home 😞 #cycling #puncture #bus
BBB on the bus back to HiVE

But once I got home I checked again and found that my tyre looking like this...

PAD: 15th November 2014
Sliced tire
Yup pretty bad eh and the Schwalbe Marathon tyre is only a few months old. Looks like a razor or something just as sharp sliced though the tyre, the puncture protection and grazed inner tube.

So BBB is currently off the road till I get a replacement which should be delivered in the next day or so. Actually I may have just missed delivery as I got a "Something for you" card from the Royal Mail to say they tried to deliver something this morning, I was awake and waiting and no one actually rung my doorbell *growls* Don't you just hate when that happens? So now I have to wait till tomorrow and pick it up. Today I did plan to kinda stay in and catch up on some stuff so it kinda works out.

So the last 2 days I have been waking up earlier to take the bus into work. I so missed my Brompton "Bumble B"its not even funny :(

I miss my @bromptonbicycle BBB even when it's raining. #bromptonlife #publictransport #bus #commuting
Commuting without my best bud :(

I have been planning to get a second B at some point next year but with Brompton Bicycles discontinuing the yellow colour I'm not so sure about it now :(

Monday, 10 November 2014

#YearoftheBus Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park trail with the Legend

I was feeling a little "Cabin Fever" today so I had to get out and then I remembered about the "Year of the Bus" Sculpture trails. I know one was pretty close to where I lived so BBB & I headed out trying to beat the rain that was due to come to London in the afternoon.

"Presented in partnership with Wild in Art, the Year of the Bus Sculpture Trails have brought businesses and artists together to create a series of free and accessible public art sculpture trails across London's streets, parks and public spaces.
The bus sculptures have been painted and adorned by well-known and aspiring artists to showcase the vital role that London's buses play in the life and economy of the city and the UK as a whole.

The sculpture trail is part of our celebrations to mark the 2014 Year of the Bus in partnership with the London Transport Museum and the capital's bus operators.

The first three trails will be installed for the public to enjoy from Monday 20 October with a fourth following before Christmas.

Following the display, the artworks will be auctioned to raise invaluable funds for three charities: Kids Company, Transaid and London Transport Museum."
This is similar to an event Transport for London did a few years ago but with cows.

There is even an iPhone app. You can use the app to follow the trails and mark off every sculpture you find with a handy barcode scanner. Search for the app called " Bus Art"

Code to scan into the Bus Art App


On the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Trail there are 11 sculptures, here they are....Enjoy


Bus Art: Ding! Ding!
Ding! Ding!

Bus Art: Moquette
Moquette

Bus Art: Journey to Anywhere
Journey to Anywhere

Bus Art: Time Travel
Time Travel

Bus Art: English Herbaceous Border
English Herbaceous Border

Bus Art: Hold Tight
Hold Tight

Bus Art: The Paralympic Bus
The Paralympic Bus

Bus Art: Union Jack
Union Jack

Bus Art: Invisible to The Environment
Invisible to The Environment


Bus Art: Dazzler
Dazzler


Bus Art: CumulonimBUS
CumulonimBUS

Was a nice ride and was great to see all the great pieces of art work. Will be doing the other Bus Art Trails soon.

To find out more check out the link here on Transport for London's website Year of the Bus

Maybe you have something similar happening in your own city, go find out.

Strava Data:Year of the Bus: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park