When it comes to magazines, cyclists of all flavors have plenty of choices. Mountain bikers have multiple rags to choose from. Roadies have a few choices. And there’s no better mag for newbies than Bicycling. But until Urban Velo dropped on the rack a few years back, the urban cyclist didn’t have a mag to call their own.
Finding the happy medium between the professionalism of a magazine — but maintaining the roots and passion of a DIY ‘zine of yore — issue #16 of Urban Velo is a keeper. For the digital set, it’s available as a free download at www.UrbanVelo.org/download.
For readers who like to get away from the computer, it’s available in print for $3. The print run is small at about 5,000 copies. But even after it’s read and thumbed through, it will probably grace your coffee table. A subscription is $18/year for the current six annual issues.
The subtitle of the mag — “Bicycle Culture on the Skids” — is an accurate double entendre that describes the mag’s city-focus and some of its crowd, the skid-loving fixed-gear set.
The November issue includes a travelogue by fixed-gear freestyler Prolly, a primer on bike advocacy, one man’s quest to discover as much diverse terrain as possible using his only bike, a story on how to diagnose a stuck stem, and a bunch of mini-profiles of riders from all over the world.
If you’re someone who loves riding in the city, consider giving Urban Velo a read. urbanvelo.org
—Stephen Krcmar
