The Radavist

Red and yellow, kill a fellow, red and black, venom lack. Growing up in Southeastern North Carolina (what snake hunters call the tin fields) and spending a lot of time collecting pet snakes, you quickly became familiarized with this saying. While the exact wording differs from place to place, the message is clear. If a snake has red bands, touching yellow bands, steer clear.

I didn’t have much of an option to “steer” anywhere last week on the Greenbelt. Instead, I hopped off my bike like my excited 15 year old self would have done and contemplated picking up this gorgeous Texas Coral snake. Instead, I pulled out my Yashica and took this photo. Handling venomous snakes isn’t anything new to me but disturbing the wildlife on a trail is something I try to avoid, even if it’s a beautiful creature like this.

The Texas Coral is closely related to the Eastern Coral, the snake that I grew up catching in NC and these rear-fanged snakes pack a powerful neurotoxin, akin to cobra venom. Corals are nocturnal hunters who usually feed on other snakes like earth or worm snakes (it’s very rare to see one during the day). They’ll also feed on lizards, frogs and even baby Coral Snakes. There hasn’t been a reported death from a Coral Snake bike in the US for over 100 years, but there are dozens of bites reported.

Unfortunately, the rest of my riding buddies weren’t as enthralled with “that fucking snake” as I was, so I let it be.

The 2012 Bike Minimalism awards have been announced. I want to thank Mikko for putting this together. I’m honored to be in the list and stoked for all the companies involved! Check out the 2012 Bike Minimalism Awards here!

Oh man. Thanks for the email Jeff! This might be slightly NSFW.

This video is too good. What else would you expect from Defgrip:

“I recently had the opportunity to travel to Japan with Brian Yeagle, KC Badger, Joseph Frans, Broc Raiford, Chad Kerley, Alex Magallan, and Greg Illingworth. They went over there to do demos, but afterwards Brian, KC, Joseph, and I rented a car and took off on our own with the goal of seeing as much of Japan as we possibly could. It was much more of a recreational trip than a riding trip, and we had one hell of a good time. I put together this little video with bits of footage I shot while shooting for a Ride UK article and some footage Joseph shot with his GoPro. Nothing beats exploring interesting and unfamiliar places with your friends.

– Walter Pieringer”

With blizzards and super storms plaguing the rest of the States, it’s very evident that we’re still in the middle of winter. Keeping your hands warm when you’re out in the elements isn’t something you can leave strictly to gloves and conventional warming packs lose their heat too quickly. Luckily, The Albion’s thinking of you and in just the nick of time with these branded Peacock Handwarmers:

“The Peacock Hand Warmer works by platinum catalysis, which causes neither air pollution nor occurrence of waste. The newly developed re-usable platinum-catalysed glass fibre burner offers quick and sure lighting and gives constant warmth for a full day with just one fill of fuel. The warmer is useable even in extreme cold -40c and produces five times as much heat as disposable warmers. Perfect for those days digging at the trails or out in the city in the freezing cold looking for something to chink. A photographer/videographers new best friend as you’ll be able to keep your hands warm when you’re out working in the cold. Inscribed with the magical Albion trifecta-logo you know you need one of these.”

Pick one up, in three sizes at The Albion.

I have no idea what’s going on here and my best guess is, that’s the point. Stinner Frameworks designs, fabricates and rides their bikes in Santa Barbara, California. They’re one of the builders I’m looking forward to seeing at NAHBS, especially if they’re into trippy shit like this.

In 2012, PiNP’s content was like a pinball machine. It seemed like every other month, I’d find myself in another city. Some familiar, some new, but I traveled everywhere with my bike and camera in hand, ready to see what was out there. Throughout these travels, I formed a lot of strong friendships with a lot of incredible people. Some of which have become my best of friends. We rode hard, we partied harder and somehow, I managed to keep the year in focus.

Here’s the PiNP 2012: A Year in 55 Photos…

It’s a New Year and while you’re making your resolutions, remember you can always ride more. For 2013, I’ll be focusing more on what you want to see, just like in years past. Over on the PiNP Facebook, a good discussion is brewing about the site’s content and honestly, I agree with most of it. The new year is a great time to set goals and to reflect on the previous year. I always want the readers to have a voice in the content I provide here.

So far, all the feedback makes sense. PiNP has always been a cycling blog that has always posted about all forms of cycling. During cross season, there will always be more cyclocross videos and photos. Sometimes there will be a lull in fixed freestyle videos and photos, or track bike videos. But just because I haven’t posted about them for a day or two, doesn’t mean they’re falling off. I’ll never post a video for the sake of posting one. With only 10 posts on the front page, I have to be mindful of what’s presented on the site.

I’d also like to thank the advertisers. Without their support, I wouldn’t be able to do what I do. I know ads are a sensitive subject, but most media survives on them. Look at magazines, or television. I pay for everything out of pocket and supporters of PiNP make that a possibility. I’ll never have pop-ups or annoying gifs, or anything that distracts you from the content. And unlike other sites, I do not take money to post videos or products. I always try to be fair to the readers.

This isn’t meant to be defensive, I just want to use this opportunity to say that I care about what you guys want to see. It’s my job! This year, I’ll continue to listen, so email, comment or submit. If you have thoughts, either hit up the Facebook thread or leave a comment below.

I hope to meet more of you this year! Thanks and don’t forget to ride!

Right about now, I’m kicking myself for not having my bike here in Hawaii. So do you and me a favor by putting in some saddle time this weekend. Or, if you can’t ride because you’re stuck in blizzard 2012, I’ve uploaded some more photos to Flickr as well…

This week, I’m in Kaua’i visiting Lauren’s parents for the holidays. I’ll still be posting (mostly this time of day) but since this is a family vacation, my days will be spent hiking and doing tourist stuff, not sitting at the computer.

I’ll be posting photos up at my Flickr periodically and on Instagram, so check them out and I hope everyone has plenty of time to spend with friends and family.

I came across this late Monday night last week and figured I’d just hold onto it for a week. Perhaps you remember that Merckx illustration for Rouleur Magazine #14? Well, British artist Richard Mitchelson translated his original artwork into a vinyl, 6″ figurine. You can pre-order this pocket-sized cannibal for £35.00 exclusively at Rouleur.