New Soft Helmets From Japan!!

We just hooked up with an old artisan in Tokyo who's down to make these soft helmets for us on a permanent basis! I've often thought about making these myself over the years, but every time i'd get set to start, something else would pop up that made the project unreasonable at the time. Really, it's just as well, because I doubt my stuff would have been anywhere near as slick as these things...



I have no idea how he gets the seams so tight on this thick foam. The material is thick synthetic "pleather-y" stuff, and he takes full advantage of the fact that it won't fray by leaving the seams outside. Most old-school soft helmets have doubled-over seams running down the middle of each foam column. These have seams on the sides, placed strategically to keep all surfaces smooth where they touch your head. Genius small touch.



There's a reflective patch on the back for the safety set.



If that don't beat all, Seiya's daughter Aika (yes, the Aika bag namesake) did up custom patches for the inside!!! Love from Japan. Now tell me you don't feel like throwing one of these on for a nice summer ride. We're working on ordering these things in a TON of colors (including custom orders!), so check out the website in the clothing section for what we have now and what we might have later.

things that I'm currently excited about

It's Saturday morning, and i just got an email from Seiya at Depot. You gotta check out this footage of his daughter in the trackstand comp during Tokyo's Mixpression Alleycat: Yume


Falling squarely in the "Good god, I can't believe technology these days!!" category is Salling's amazing "Clicker 3.0.1" program for bluetooth cellphones. It's so ridiculous that I had to go off topic on the blog to talk about it...basically, it allows you to control all functions in iTunes, DVD Player, and a slew of other programs on your computer, through your cell phone. The interface is amazing; for instance in iTunes you can go through all your playlists, search via different criteria...visually it's pretty much the same as an ipod gui. The best part is that you don't have to be in the line of sight of any reciever; you can go up to about 50 feet away (i walked around in the store basement using it for the stereo upstairs, so this is a conservative estimate). One catch: it currently doesn't work with motorola phones on Cingular or T-Mobile. Download it for free, go through the trial period to make sure it works for your phone, and if you like it register for $23.95. Check it out here.

Tour De LeMond: The Prize Bag

So I'd told John of the Demoncats that i'd deliver a prize bag for their raffle giveaway for the Tour de Lemond. And i had all of these ideas swirling around my head: a bunch of little tour jerseys (you know, the world champ, sprinter, climber, etc.) spelling out the name of the event, a crazy abstract line drawing (similar top what chika did for the pedal:reloaded show), and some other stuff. I'm really best under pressure, so of course i didn't even get started on this thing until thursday. On thursday, I had a bunch oif computer work to do, and some packages to deliver, so thursday night i finally started to seriously set up the graphics. My parents wound up stopping through philly on a day trip, and i made plans to grab some dinner with them. Then Stewy calls...and i realize that my team riders are leaving for D.C. on Friday afternoon instead of Saturday morning!! So the "friday all-nighter" plan was put to rest.

Friday morning i woke up at 6am and went to work, finishing up at about 6pm (including an hour for lunch). This is what i came up with. I know I say this a lot, but i think it's one of the better custom works to come out of this studio. That's the best part, to me, about making bags: I'm always getting better, even after almost 9 years. The bags themselves can get a little stale, but the custom work never does. If you look at this bag live, and step back more than a foot, it really looks like a silkscreen...and, for once, i think i matched the font pretty well with the overall theme (Lemond back in the day). Note the "Z" team logos on the jersey and shorts too!!

Coney Island or Bust!

The Trackstar crew is putting on a race in NYC. We're one of the sponsors. Check the flyer for info, or go to their website.

Tour De LeMond

John from the Demon Cats is pictured above (i'd put a pic of Kevin too, but he's always the one behind the camera!). Anyway, the Demon Cats are throwing possibly the illest event of the summer in D.C., on Saturday July 22nd. I would write all the info here, but wouldn't it be much, much easier for you to just click on this link? Yep, thought so. By the way, team R.E.Load is gonna take this one, but you can still have a chance at winning a super-custom Deluxe R.E.Load bag by entering the raffle. So you won't feel so bad about our Philly cats riding circles around you. AND, the race benefits the Bicycle Messenger Emergency Fund!! Go down, race or watch, party, and register with Stewy for the NACCC's - all in the same weekend!

Party in Brooklyn!

This has almost nothing to do with R.E.Load, but i'm gonna be dj'ing a party for my friend Gonzo on Saturday (7/15). Gonzo designed the back end of our website a while back, and is a former member of Space 1026 who moved to NYC recently. He's got some crazy space in Brooklyn; Weez from Marketeast.com and I are coming down to play music with a little squad from Philly. If you're around 27 Arion Place and wanna swing by, go for self....BYOB.

New Features and Pricing

Here at R.E.Load, we're constantly looking for ways to make our bags easier to use, longer-lasting, and more expressive of the individual wearer. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it - we like to think of this stuff in a positve light), this means that our product line goes through more changes in a year than most companies' do in five. Case in point: our newest catalog was rendered outdated within a month of it's print date!

Anyway, so we've gone out and made some MAJOR changes this time. Things that will take a minute to update on our site...I'm computer literate enough to deal with this blog, but not really enough to do what needs to be done for a professional [seeming] site. We've been operating with these changes for a few months now, as anybody who's contacted us recently will know, but I thought I'd use this space to put them in writing.

First up: Each and every shoulder bag we offer, with the exception of the Aika bag, now comes standard with an extra cordura base layer. The purpose for this is two-fold; it not only extends the life of the bag by reinforcing the corners (usually the first place to show serious wear after some years), but it also provides a stronger stitch area for the bottoms of our our bellows-style single and double-outside pockets. Happily, it also adds some color to even the most basic bag; you can choose any available cordura color for the base.

Second: We've changed the sizing on a couple of models to try and eliminate some of the huge variances in size, specifically between the Courier/Deluxe and the Civilian. This became and obvious course of action as we watched the 5,000th person struggle to decide between the two sizes only to finally go with a custom-sized option. The new dimesnions for the respective models bring them much closer to each other, which should keep most people from having to go with either "a little too small" or "way too big!". The Civilian is now 13" H x 18" W x 7" D, and the Courier/Deluxe is now 15" h x 19" W x 10" D. The Small Civilian has grown a bit, too, and now stands at 13"h x 15" W x 6" D. This makes the Small Civilian a great "average cargo" choice, with the Civilian getting a promotion to the "i've got a lot of stuff to carry" category, and the Courier/Deluxe still holding down the "who needs a refrigerator delivered?" crown.

Third: Little D-rings. We'd been thinking about this for a while....in fairness, let me first say that this is a feature that has been on Pac bags for a few years. Anyway, so we've replaced the metal hardware on the ends of the base compression straps (shoulder bags) and side/base compression straps (midpack and backpack) with sewn-on plastic d-rings. This is cooler than you think, because it allows you to compress your bag with an incredible amount of ease. (***author's note: we've gotten some emails from people thinking that we are replacing the metal d-rings currently on our main straps with plastic....FALSE!!! We would never do this. we are replacing the thin metal "webbing ends" on the base compression straps with the new plastic d-rings. We chose plastic for tow reasons: weight and noise. There should be no problems as far as durability since this is a low-stress application).
Fourth: New Models!!! We've got the brand-spankin' Minipack



This guy's got two flat front pockets (like the DJ Mini it takes it's inspiration from), an inside front pocket, and a big flat pocket on the inside back wall (good for papers). Retail is $160.

Next up is the slick new Macro (so far this name is leading the competition, but it's far from set in stone)




This baby's a souped-up Messenger Mini with a single outside pocket, two big bellows side pockets (perfect for water bottles or...other liquids in containers...), a flat outside rear pocket (for papers), and a two-part inside pocket that spans the width of the bag. Retail is $130.

Fifth: Our laptop lineup changed a while ago too, and is reflected on the website, but just for good measure i'll mention it here. Check out our accessories page to take a look at our three revamped and completely protective sleeve options, available for any size laptop you might have.

Sixth: Slight changes to the celly holder and the strap pouch: we've squared off the flap of the celly holder -not for any real reason except we think it looks better - and we've changed the attachment straps so that they velcro on and off instead of being slid onto the main bag strap. This means you no longer have to disassemble your whole strap to add them to a bag, and they can finally be used with the mini straps (on our Mini bags). To top it all off, we've added a loop on each respective accessory so you can keep a pen close at hand.



OK, so now to the nitty-gritty...the new pricing scheme. We have been forced to raise our prices a tad bit - which we haven't done in years - due to the rising costs of materials (especially U.S. made goods) and materials transport. And of course due to the aforementioned additions to the bag features.


Shoulder bags are now priced accordingly:
Aika: $35
Micro Mini: $75
Messenger Mini: $80
Macro: $130
DJ Mini: $80
Small Civilian: $95
Civilian: $100
Courier: $105
Deluxe: $168
Executive: $233


Add-on options are now priced accordingly:
Ballistic Base: $5
Double Outside Pockets: $30
Single Outside Pocket: $25
Divider: $15
Handle: $15
Messenger Pad: $16 (regular), $13 (small)
Reflective Tails: $6
Pen Slots: $3


Thanks for bearing with us during this period of transition!

Pre-register for the NACCC's Please!!!

IN case you've been living in a cave, the North American Cycle Messenger Championships are going to be taking place right here in Philadelphia on Labor Day weekend!!! Um...that's September 1-4. Anyway, this is the 9th annual iteration of the largest messenger event in North America! We have a whole slew of events planned, big sponsors, huge parties, and lots of places to stay. Racers will be coming in from Europe and Japan as well as all points on this continent, so you definitely don't wanna miss it! We also have a very large police/street closing bill to pay for all of the street closures we'll need to run this thing, so NOW is the time to register!! It's only $40 to register from now until August 1st. After that, it'll get bumped up to $50. That includes all the parties, free beer from Pabst (one of our main sponsors), art shows, yadda yadda. There's also a huge neighborhood festival going on during the same days a few blocks away. It's gonna be utter madness!


You can go and register now via Paypal at the Philly BMA website. This is also a great event just to watch and be a part of! If you would like to donate anything - anything at all; money, food, beer, your time as a volunteer, whatever - please don't hesitate to email either me or Daily....


Hope to see you there!! Did I mention the bill is REALLY LARGE? So you're gonna go register now, right...? OK, cool.

Japan Reunion 2006 (Pt.2)

Asaksa is one of the many, many districts in Tokyo. I went there with my folks and Seiya and the fam during the first couple of days...this is just a pic of Seiya's daughters Aika (left) and Yume (right) in one of the plentiful, random gardens throught the city.





The family Minato at the steps of the Asaksa Temple.



Yume went to her very first day of kindergarten while i was staying at Seiya's house! I was so proud of her. She was so excited, and she didn't cry at all. It probably helps that she'll be in the same school as Aika. It was actually raining that day, and I went with Seiya and Mami to drop her off. There were a bunch of other crying kids being consoled by their moms and dads. Yume hung tough and ran around laughing.



Ok, so a couple of days after the big "welcoming" shindigs and all, my folks and I were slated to roll out to Kyoto, Osaka, and Hiroshima. For anybody who doesn't know, if you are planning to travel to Japan and would like to travel cheaply and efficiently from city to city once you get there, rail passes are available. The standard one-week pass is about $260 (depending on exchange rates), and allows you to travel on any JR trains, buses, ferries, for a week. That includes the Shinkansen (bullet train). but only the "fast" one and the "very fast" one. not the "insanely fast" one. In any case, you need not complain, because "very fast" for the Japanese is equivalent to "good god!" fast for us Americans. And...the bullet train is absolutely amazingly clean and comfortable. They have whole little crews that come out of elevators on the platform and clean the train right before it departs for its destination. This picture has nothing to do with the bullet train, but just so you know.


This pic is of Osaka Castle. It was built in 1615. That's before there was an "america". This ties into an overwhelming feeling that will no doubt bother you the entire time you're in Japan (or almost any other country, for that matter): America has no history compared to this country. None. Anyway, this castle is a small climb up a rocky slope, and touts an amazing view of the city as a whole.




This horrible picture is from Dotombori street. Basically, it's a really bright, tourist-y shopping street. Which is not to say you shouldn't check it out and maybe get some stuff and a bite to eat....you know, all in all, although osaka is pretty amazing in itself, there was more exciting stuff in Hiroshima and Kyoto. Which will be covered in part 3!!

Name Our New Bags!

If you actually keep track of our website, you probably know that we've been working on a couple of new models for a minute now. One is a downsized version of our backpack and midpack. We wanted a two-strap model that was big enough just for some essentials and hit at a price point of about $160 (our Backpack is humongous and is $250, while the Midpack still seemed a little big for some, and is marked at $200). We all brainstormed, and when the dust settled, Gerik had a design that won out. This is it:


It's basically the mutant offspring of a Midpack and a DJ Mini. Gerik made a few prototypes before we settle on the final version. The other model we're introducing is a bit of a specialized Small Civilian...we gave it an outside pocket and bellows-style side pockets (perfect for water bottles). We also switched the strap to a mini-style strap, which is softer and easier to adjust for the layperson. The final design was done by Chika in Seattle. Pictures to come soon...

Anyway, so we tentatively named them the "Minipack" and the "Carryall". VERY tentatively. Then I put the onus on the crews here and in Seattle to try to think of better names....that was a few months ago. So here's the deal: We need some help, guys! This is officially a bag-naming contest. Please email with any name suggestions. If your name is chosen, guess what? We'll send you a free version of the model that you named!

Japan Reunion Spring 2006

A few weeks ago I went to Japan for the fifth time...the main purpose being to hang out with Seiya and his family and friends, and attend the grand re-opening of Depot (Seiya's store and R.E.Load's Japanese distribution hub). I also brought my parents along for the ride, since they had never been to Japan, and there was no Kyotoloco event this year (side note: Kyotoloco is now slated to take place on alternating years due to the sheer amount of work it takes for Handa and the other organizers to run the thing...easily the best event of the year, every time). This is Seiya and his wife Mami.

Depot carries everything handmade and bicycle-related. They've got bags (probably more R.E.Load bags at any given point that we actually have in our own store, along with some Frietags and one lone Chrome joint that simply refuses to sell), keirin frames and parts, clothing, hats, bicycle jewelry, books, dvd's, and more. It's amazing what's packed into this little store. The grand re-opening took place on April 1st and celebrated the new renovations aimed at maximizing efficiency of the display space. They also added equipment for serving coffee to their customers while they pore over R.E.Load color samples in an effort to figure out exactly what they want for their custom bag.

Seiya got a ton of customers, both old and new, the day of the opening. Since the Seventh Annual R.E.Load April Fools Extravaganza was taking place the same day back in Philly, I was a little nervous. I had organized and planned the whole thing, drawn up the course, and gotten all the prizes together. And it WAS the 7th event. Carrie and Gerik had been through one or two of 'em themselves and i had the utmost confidence that they would pull it off this time by themselves, but i still couldn't help but worry...anyway, I didn't really have that much time to dwell on it, because I spent the day as the "special guest manager" of Depot.

Funny thing about Japan - people love for me to sign their bags! I think here I have signed maybe three or four bags, and that includes the show bags I've made for the various "Seam Rippers" art openings. Over there I wind up signing about 50% of the stuff. Crazy. Anyway, so i passed the time talking to customers, signing stuff, and giving demonstrations on how to properly use the main strap.

For the most part, there were usually too many people inside the store to actually stay in there and not be in somebody's way. So I hung out a bunch outside with the crew. Shin had recently quit his job and started working as Seiya's first employee. Keiji, Atushi, Gen, and a bunch of other people were lounging around drinking beer and playing with a strange, bike-like contraption. I think "contraption" is actually the perfect word for it...

I don't think this picture can do justice to just how silly a thing this is. Basically, what you have here is a unicycle, with an offset seat and handlebars, and a rear rollerblade wheel about 3" from the front wheel. It was literally IMPOSSIBLE to ride. I believe the record length that somebody stayed on (everybody was trying it) was about four feet. Atushi had bought it; i believe mostly to laugh at people as they attempted to actually get anywhere on the thing. I don't know what it's called, but I'm sure the inventor got a nice little booth at Interbike next to the dude who invented the bicycle that goes forwards when you pedal backwards...oh, and did i mention that the wheel wasn't built with actual spokes, but instead had an arrangement of three mountain bike shocks connecting the hub to the rim? Classic.

Here's Miki (Wataru's wife) with their one year-old son. We made him a special Aika bag when he was born. Yoko (Shin's wife) is in the background. Yoko and Miki are actually the first people I met the first time i visited Seiya in Japan.

On April 15th, Yoshi and his girlfriend Junko (aka Yochiid and Junquita) were set to get married...they stopped by the store to say hello. Unfortunately, this was the only time i'd get to catch up with them. Yoshi's a dancehall dj, i'm a hip hop dj, and we usually go record shopping together in Shibuya. Next time...anyway, congratulations to you both!

After the work day was over, we went to a local izakaya (aka "bar that serves food") for dinner. Shin ate all the food. Gyoza (dumplings), ramen, sushi, karage (basically little chunks of fried chicken)...didn't matter. he downed it all. Peep the look on Mami's face as she watches him eat yet some more noodles! We drank beer and lemon hi (japanese vodka mixed with seltzer and lemon juice). Lemon hi doesn't sound very crazy, but the stuff is POTENT. Very potent.

After dinner and drinking, we decided to go...drinking. I love walking through the streets at night in Japan. I grew up in NYC and have lived in Philly ever since college, so it's kinda nice to feel like there's not a care in the world when you roll out to the bar late at night.

The bar we were headed to is called Ajito, and is owned by a friend of Seiya's (and proud R.E.Load bag owner) and his wife. It's probably the narrowest bar ever to exist. There's literally room for one line of about ten people. Oh, and it's a "stand up" bar - no chairs. Still, it's one of my favorite places in Japan...the owners are super-nice, the rockabilly theme is tinged with just enough of the Japanese culture to keep it refreshing, and the glasses of chu-hi and shochu (japanese vodka) are very well proportioned. Plus, they serve food. Anything from a simple bag of microwave popcorn to tasty appetizers and pizza. Things started getting pretty rugged at a fast rate, based on the fact that we had already been drinking for a while...

I decided to spice things up a little bit by buying everybody some rounds of the classic Philly "special". This is usually a shot of Jim Beam and a can of PBR (which we can get here for a combined $3 at a ton of bars). However, this was Japan, and they had not JB and PBR, but instead stocked Jameson and Bass. PINTS of Bass, to boot. So we started doing Philly Specials, and proceeded to get loose. Here's me with Shin and Keiji. I think at this point I has just berated Shin for attempting to drink tomato juice all night, and had thrown a special in his hands.

Do a few souped-up specials, and THIS is what happens. Wataru bugging the hell out. Me trying to keep my composure. Somewhere in the background Seiya is probably laughing hysterically and making fun of Shin. Note that I've changed into my new "Ajito" tee shirt at this point. Gotta rep for the fam.

Japanese girls can DRINK! You wouldn't think so from looking at them, but I'll tell you - these ladies took in their weight in booze that night and held it down like champs. Meanwhile, the guys were over near the taps looking like...

...THIS. Atushi had just handed me a glass full of shochu. I had had a number of beers at dinner, a few specials here at Ajito so far, and now dude was handing me a glass full of vodka on the rocks?!? I had no choice but to keep it real and represent America up in there. Note the look of utter destruction on my face. Like the drunk uncle in your family....and at this point, poor Shin doesn't even know what to do with himself.

Which is probably what prompted this response from the ladies when I suggested we all do another round. The bottle of Jameson had found permanent residency on the countertop; there was no reason to be putting it away after pouring because somebody else was always doing a shot. Where is Seiya in all of this? Hmmm.....

Atushi, Keiji and Shin.

This is where we started losing people. Too many drinks, too many drinks. We decided to go to a ramen shop (the rough equivalent of getting a slice at Lorenzo's or a cheesesteak at Geno's at 3:30 in the morning in Philly). I seriously do not rememeber where it was, but i do remember sitting down, ordering a bowl of ramen with pork, and then waking up, looking around, and seeing that everybody had finished their ramen, and that there was nothing in front of me...i'm assuming Shin did his dirty work on my bowl of ramen. Anyway, turns out i dozed off for roughly 30 minutes, but i awoke in perfect time to ride five minutes back to Seiya's house and pass out.

To be continued....(no, i don't have any photos of the ramen shop! I was asleep...remember?)