I finally got my bike up off the floor using a proper storage solution with a Stolmen Bike Rack (via Ikea Hacker). I bought all the pieces to do this months ago, but just now got down to brass tacks with it. I couldn’t find any 20x20mm aluminum stock anywhere, so I ended up cutting up an ol’ car-mount for a video camera I had lying around that utilized the same square tubing. I wanted the bike to sit completely parallel to the wall, but I found that if I mounted everything just right (slightly off-center, with the bike at a slight angle) I could retain full swing of both doors. I’m sure if I ever build a second bike up (trick bike?) it will end up on here as well… but for now it makes a good place to keep my bag/lock/helmet.

I’m definitely excited how this turned out… and best of all – no more scuff marks on the walls from the tyres and handlebars!

Averaged Motion Tracking. from Andy Sapp on Vimeo.

A short clip I made while experimenting with averaging track points in After Effects to create solid, precise tracks. In the past when I have motion tracked… it always seems slightly off. I have now learned that if you track several times over, and average that data together – you get a rock-solid tracking point.

I then created some quick motion-type pieces to follow the these points. It took several layers of compositing to create the illusion of depth caused by things passing in front of one another. I added a light-streak to the back of Tyler’s light to see if I could match the live video with an object in 3D space (the particle emitter for the light).

This video clip was shot using a Flip Mino HD, which was not the best to try and track with. The motion blur made it incredibly difficult to find solid track points. I’m sure I will try more of this using my XL-H1.

This was a fun experiment that I learned a great deal from. I’m excited at some new possibilities that will come of this new workflow.

This logo underwent a TON of revisions. Overall, I’m quite happy with the symmetry and overall balance of the final iteration.

I picked up a new wheelset for the Peugeot. In lieu of my envy for the ability to do track stands and pedal backwards, I’ve decided to give the fixed gear a go. I kept finding myself gaffling my friend’s fixed bikes at every stop so I could get my trick on. I went ahead and removed the old brake levers and eliminated the rear caliper. Eugene gave me a new long-reach caliper for the front, so I have a lot more stopping power than before.

All-in-all, I think this wheelset really gives the bike an aggressive look. Kinda like a beefed up street-rod – it keeps it’s vintage style, but with a bit more muscle to it.

For many many weeks now, the dM fam has been meeting up in Cabbagetown on Monday nights for some killer all-city midnight rides. We chose Monday nights because the streets are literally dead across Atlanta, so the rides are much safer. Some nights we pedal until the sun rises… as far as 20 miles throughout the night, spanning various routes around the metropolis. These rides are a BLAST, and further proof that it doesn’t matter what we’re all doing – we bring the riot with us whenever we are together.

Alex lugged his newly acquired 5D MKII out to snap some pics of the evening’s events. He even shot some HD footage with the camera’s dreamy DOF and awesome low-light capabilities. You can check out more of his snaps at his Flickr set from the ride.

All packed up and loaded down for the DM Chitown Invasion. Panda and I are shooting media for Motor Mavens at round 3 of D1GP USA at Soldier Field… and something like 10-12 other DriftMechaniks are heading to Chicago as well. Hopefully we don’t burn the city down this time. No promises though.

Panda and I spent the last couple days putting wrench time in on my Dad’s old Peugeot road bike. There is a good story behind this bike. It has been neglected for many many years. Since I want to get to doing something more active than one sit-up a day… I wanted to resurrect this thing from the depths of the basement. This bike was so much fun to work on. Maybe now I understand the fixed gear craze a bit more… because I really had a ton of fun working on this with Panda.

This was how the bike started. It is hard to tell in the photo… but it is hella dirty. Someone sprayed it with a fire extingisher… then it molded over. Tires are rotted out, brakes didn’t work, etc.

Here you can see the fire extinguisher grossness… and some insulation. The grip was all sorts of rotted/torn away.

Crank detail. Hella dirt.

The seat was falling apart.

Simplex gear shift paddles… and… some mold.

More mold, and cool emblems.

My Dad got this bike when I was 1 year old.

First night of disassembly and cleaning. Panda was shining up the chrome on the wheels. I was working on cleaning and polishing the frame.

Got some new bits from Cycleworks.

Panda working on the brakes.

Cycleworks sold me the wrong tyres… so Panda is letting me use an extra pair he had. <3

Panda finished the brakes, we got the wheels all mounted up, and re-gripped the bars… and viola: so fresh and so clean, clean!

We decided to make it a single-speed. I don’t want to go with a fixed gear because I will hurt myself, hahaha.

MEGAAA THANKS to Panda for all the advice and help. This really was a blast to fix up… even more-so since this bike has family history.