One the love you're with — at Bike Festish Day

By Aaron Short 

Peddling paramours will demonstrate their devotion to two-wheeled transportation at Bicycle Fetish Day in Williamsburg this Saturday.

But rest assured, the only leather present will be vintage Brooks bicycle seats and the only chains will be locking up two-wheelers to a bike racks on Havemeyer Street.

Instead, the street will be teeming with fixies, BMXers, vintage roadsters, handmade velodrome-ready racers, and shiny custom machines that are the pride of the Puerto Rican Bicycle Club.

Organizer Lacey Tauber promises that the all-day affair, now in its seventh year, will have something for everyone — unless you drive a car.

“I really enjoy the fact that it’s a space for different cycling communities to come together,” said Tauber. “But it’s all about fun, not about all the tough issues.”

Yes, there will be advocacy literature on hand, but there’ll also be a killer grill manned by City Reliquary, BMX tricks by Grime Cycles, and lots and lots of bike swag.

Now that’s something that will keep your wheels spinning.

Bicycle Fetish Day (Havemeyer Street at Meteropolitan Avenue in Williamsburg), May 28, noon-6pm. Free. For info, www.cityreliquary.org. 

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Babes and bikes

By Meredith Deliso

This burlesque show really shifts gears.

“Bikes, Brews and Burlesque” is a new monthly show at Legion Bar in Williamsburg that conveniently combines three of our favorite things.

Heather Loop, aka Ms. Spoke, started “bikelesque” — burlesque performed with a bicycle, natch — as a way to reclaim her femininity.

“As a bike messenger, I am restricted in how feminine I can be — I can’t really wear make-up, high heels, pencil skirts, or do my hair super fancy,” said the Bushwick-based performer. “So I took my bicycle and started doing burlesque with it and took back my femininity!”

That may mean wearing a costume made out of bike tubes, using homemade bicycle wheel fans — a spin on the traditional feather fans — doing tricks on a kid’s bike and, one of her favorites, performing a playful skit where she “learns” how to ride a bike — her custom-made Squarebilt track frame — and gets some help from the audience in the process.

At the next show tomorrow, Loop will be joined by Frida Schwinn and Lucille Ti Amore for some cheeky bikelesque. Just leave your camshaft at the door.

“Bikes, Brews and Burlesque” at Legion Bar [790 Metropolitan Ave. at Humboldt Street in Williamsburg, 718) 387-3797], April 7 at 10 pm. $5.

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Gear up for this tweed ride

By Adam Warner

Get out your 19th-century knickers, gloves and shirtwaists — it’s time for the Tweed Ride.

In May, organizers of the first throwback bike ride drew more than 100 riders, most gussied up in their old-school finery as they competed for “awards” such as “Most Distinguished Lad,” “Most Ravishing Lass,” and “Most Magnificent Steed” (a reference to the bike).

It was so successful that aficionados decided to bring it back, perfectly timed to catch the fin-de-siecle fall foliage.

“We’re like a moving time machine that is paying homage to a timeless period and having fun doing it,” said Tweed Ride organizer, Maude Delice — or, as some know her, Lady Gray.

The journey will begin in Grand Army Plaza and continue through Park Slope before finishing at Flatbush Farm, a restaurant at Sixth Avenue, where riders will be able to refuel with an Old English style brunch and live music.

It’s like a posh Halloween in November!

Tweed Bike Ride [meet in Grand Army Plaza, Union Street between Flatbush Avenue and Prospect Park West in Park Slope, (646) 263-4520], Nov. 21 at 11 am. $20 (suggested donation for House of Hope). For info, visit www.bigappletweed.com.

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Gates opened on Navy Yard

By Meredith Deliso

Hop on your fixie and explore one of the most exclusive spaces in Brooklyn this month.

On Sept. 26, Urban Oyster leads a bicycle tour of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, a historic naval shipping yard on the East River — an enticing, yet off-limits, paradise for cyclists.

The tour gives you a chance to explore the grounds, get a behind-the-scenes look at the Navy Yard’s transition from a prominent shipbuilding facility to a model of sustainable urban industrial parks, thanks to hosting the nation’s first multi-story green industrial building; solar- and wind-powered street lamps; building-mounted wind turbines; and other green features.

There are also some wonderful views of the waterfront.

The bike tour comes ahead of the Navy Yard’s visitors and community center slated to open next fall. At that point, the Yard won’t be as frustratingly exclusive, so get in while you still can’t.

Brooklyn Navy Yard Bicycle Tour [meet at Sands and Gate streets in Fort Greene, (347) 599-1842], Sept. 26 and Oct. 17 at 1:45 pm. Tickets $24, $20 for members of the Brooklyn Historical Society and the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative, advance purchase required, as is a helmet. For info, visit www.urbanoyster.com.

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Pumps & Pleats: Ride your bike in style

Photo by Ted Levin

Story by Michèle De Meglio

Any fashionista knows that you must look chic at all times.

So with spring in full swing, it’s time to break out your bicycles for some fun in the sun. But wait! You can’t ride around on any old beat-up piece of junk. You need a chic cycle — and so do I.

I scoured the borough (and even hit Paragon Sports in Manhattan) for the perfect beach cruiser. Why a cruiser? Well, it’s much more comfortable than the folding bike I own and comes in crazy colors and prints that are definitely cuter than my gunmetal gray Breezer!

Roy’s Sheepshead Cycle Shop on Coney Island Avenue off Avenue X has tons of bikes but a limited selection of cruisers by Electra, a California-based bike brand.

If you’re looking for a gorgeous lemon yellow Amsterdam cycle painted with delicate red flowers, stop in at Roy’s. It’s a super feminine and super pretty ride but I was set on scoring a blue bike. C’mon, wouldn’t it be sweet to ride an ocean blue beach cruiser on the Coney Island boardwalk (during permitted hours, of course)?

So I headed to Ride Brooklyn on Bergen Street between Flatbush Avenue and Fifth Avenue, which sold a color-block cruiser to a friend of mine last year.

Only a few Electra styles were in stock and I immediately passed on anything bearing the word “Townie” down the frame. Lame-o!

Since they didn’t have the Coaster One model I was really digging, I took a test ride on a baby blue bike decorated with white tropical flowers.

All it took was one quick trip around the block for me to fall in love with the Hawaii bike’s slick ride and flashy style. It certainly helped having a cute fella scream, “Awesome bike!”

I nearly bought the sucker but wasn’t pleased with the three-speed style or steel frame. So I ordered the Coaster.

After five depressingly long days, my bike arrived in Brooklyn looking even better than I could have imagined! The white frame was smooth and shiny and the blue splashes on the fenders, frame and seat were more vibrant than azure blue Caribbean waters. There has never been a prettier bike in Brooklyn!

For my first adventure, I sped down the rolling hills in Prospect Park. The bike rode like a dream — and turned heads. If I had a buck for every person who screamed, “Oh, that’s a nice bike,” I’d be a rich gal. Now that is cruising in style!

Michèle De Meglio is a native Brooklynite addicted to all things chic. Check out Pumps & Pleats each week for more adventures as she scours the borough for fab duds and accessories.

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