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squaretree
there are intelligence tests i have seen that consist of presenting unfortunate victim(s) with disparate and seeminlgy unrelated items which have then to be combined in some way or other to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. now when it comes to be my turn, unless those objects are a wheel, a tyre and an inner tube, i can imagine myself sitting staring blankly into space for a longer time than is ideal for a member of the contemporary pelotonese. for surely, though modern conveniences are at our very fingertips, it is a factor of modern cycling that we should be at least modestly resourceful. the ability to construct an electronic derailleur system out of some fishing twine, an egg cup and an empty yogurt carton ought to be as easy as falling over a cyclocross hurdle.
happily, amongst us there are those who would not only sail through such tests, but laugh in the face of such distraction before turning it into a business. those would be the folks at squaretree in edinburgh who are happy and content to offer startlingly fine re-claimed timber married with formica in the shape of bicycle mudguards.
i recall many years ago when the inestimable matt seaton provided weekly entertainment by way of his two wheels column in the guardian, my protesting against his endorsement of mudguards on road bikes. in the winds we regularly receive hereabouts, i protested, any rain that might be dispersed by way of fenders would likely be blown about one's person. such exuberant ignorance, however, was brought to book by michael hutchinson pointing out that mudguards on a road bike were not cool in the way that a brown stripe up the back of one's jersey obviously is.
suitably chastised.
my cielo has worn a pair of full wood fenders for almost two years, sourced from river city bicycles in portland. while the bicycle itself is quite superb, its visual appeal is immeasurably enhanced by wearing its wooden accoutrements. portland is into this stuff; i figured scotland and south of the border likely wasn't.
wrong.
stacey hunter and simon muir formed squaretree earlier this year. simon is a furniture designer and stacey is involved in design and architecture, so it doesn't seem too bizarre a question to ask where the idea came from to build bicycle mudguards. "The first idea wasn't wood actually" says simon. "it was simply to make a brightly coloured pair. I intended to make a red pair for my city bike, but I saw some wood mudguards on a trip to Portland, and although I liked them, they were a bit 'crafty'. I set about designing a pair that were more streamlined with colour added."
most of us couldn't craft a pair of woodguards out of cardboard, let alone formica and wood, so presumably there is some sort of similarity between designing and making wood furniture and crafting two slivers of wood for a bicycle? "There are similarities in the design process and the techniques used in furniture making. Woodguards are shaped and finished by hand; there isn't as much of a requirement for machine tools as with furniture." stacey muir says that "We both admire the minimalist forms and beautiful detailing of mid-century modern designs by people like Alvar Aalto, George Nelson and the Eames. The similarities between the furniture and the bicycle products is the attitude towards design - noticing the 'ordinary'. The materials, colour and surface are integral to the products and we think that woodguards meet Dieter Rams' (legendary Braun designer) ten principles for good design, in the sense that you can take something quite humble and ordinary and really turn it to something special."
my own full wood fenders are constructed entirely from wood, the accompanying instructions detailing only that they should be treated with teak oil at least a couple of times a year to keep them in the conditions to which they wish to be accustomed. squaretree's woodguards however, have a formica laminate along the splashy side. what made simon add this to the mix? "Formica performs really well at deflecting water and mud and it is really easy to clean; in addition, it comes in so many colours that it's possible to pair lots of different timbers with complementary colors that suit your bike. For instance we put a Sweet Chestnut (stained black) with a color called Arctic Blue on to our friend Andy Fraser's Bob Jackson which is subtle and adds to the bike rather than detracting from its looks.
"Formica is thin but strong so when you add it to timber you can keep a nice streamlined form."
as simon mentioned above, formica is available in almost every colour you can imagine, so colour co-ordination with a much-loved frame ought not to be a problem. wood, however, obeys far fewer rules when it comes to decor. according to stacey "The timber we use is reclaimed from local companies who manufacture on a large scale so it varies. At the moment we have a range of mostly European and some African timber, for example: Macassar Ebony [pictured above], Rippled Ash, Walnut, Teak, Cherry and Sweet Chestnut. We're a very small business and we've tried to develop a product that gives people some really nice choices to finish off a great bike. But you know, we're not Amazon! So, the selection will always be changing to an extent. It's a bespoke, unique product and that's part of the charm of it."
with the addition of the formica to the underside of the guards, is there any requirement to douse with teak oil or similar in the fashion i have already mentioned above? "All the guards are finished with yacht varnish (which is really durable)" says simon, but that's not to say in future, with certain woods, I might switch to teak oil. It's an ongoing process, but at the moment no, there's no requirement to treat the guards."
not that one would wish to suggest for one minute that scotland's east coast has it any easier than my own side of the country, but is it safe to assume that the woodguards are ready and willing to shrug off the substantial amount of precipitation that the country endures? stacey says they have been thoroughly tested in edinburgh, but if that's not wet enough for west coasters, we have had a pair in a bath of water for six months too!" and do they come with a warranty? "Yes, one year. They will obviously last considerably longer with a bit of care. I don't think that folk will take them mountain biking; this is really a product designed for city bikes."
half the problem with niche products (not that i'm necessarily suggesting that mudguards are only for the select few) is managing to get hold of the blighters. though islanders and others in remote locations have come to rely upon the web for such access, it's nice for those in larger conurbations to simply walk into their nearest local bike shop. according to stacey "They will be available in selected cycling shops; we'll stock in cities known for design and cycling [Copenhagen, Amsterdam, London, Reykjavik]. Our identity and e-store is being designed by Graphical House but until then people can order from our blog at woodguards.tumblr.com
all this, however, is predicated on the notion that we'd want mudguards/fenders on our streamlined road bikes in the first place. for nowhere that i've ever seen have there been beautifully posed and photoshopped photographs of next year's steel and carbon fibre with guards in place. a similar charge can be pointed at mountain bikers. that said, it does seem to have become increasingly more cool to be seen fully fendered. has simon any idea why this may be the case? "Maybe cyclists thought they were uncool because they were rattly and plasticky; basically they looked horrible. That might be changing as people are looking at their bikes and considering the whole package.
Mudguards are a necessity for urban cycling and people want something that looks good and performs well. Not an afterthought. An accessory that complements their bike." stacey concurs "Basically people who care about what kind of bike they ride aren't going to want to a) get wet or b) shove a piece of garbage on their bike."
with all credit to the bike shops that have inhabited scotland's capital city for many a year, along with the local cycle lobby, there does seem to be a sea of change happening in edinburgh. this may have been apparent to city-dwellers for sometime, only now more obvious to the casual observer. with the august opening of ronde in the city's stockbridge area, where the cyclists' obsession with coffee has been seamlessly integrated with that of bicycles, along with exhibitions by scott mitchell, andy shaw and dynamo works, is there a possibility that edinburgh is starting to take on the mantle of portland?
having visited portland, simon avers that"Portland has everything nailed. Here, a lot of things are not right and we've got a long way to go before we can compare ourselves to Portland but all of the people you've mentioned are certainly making a big difference to the culture. Maybe Edinburgh cyclists are trying to make up for something councils can't seem to do!" as a student of urbanism, stacey figures "Portland is a landmark city for urban scholarship; its Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) makes it a compact, high density city which in turn makes it easier for local government to tailor an efficient transport system that includes provision for cyclists. Edinburgh is also a landmark city for its rational New Town and elegant architecture. But in stark contrast the local government has sadly failed to learn from the successes of cycling cities and has instead, heavily invested in the infamous tram system. The best way to instigate change is to establish a community, and places like Ronde offer a hub which is critical."
have squaretree any idea why the bicycle is assuming this degree of 'underground' importance in the city? simon:"I think we're only 'underground' because the car reigns supreme. But the voices are getting louder; hopefully in time Edinburgh will place more importance on the bicycle than the car (as we witnessed on a recent trip to Aarhus and Copenhagen) but in the meantime I can only see the emerging trend for city biking to increase because it just makes too much sense to ignore." stacey is perhaps a tad more forceful "If Edinburgh's transport planners cared to notice, urban cycling is on the increase and the appearance of more cyclists on the roads can be interpreted as an index to a bigger picture that is made up of a complex mix of economics, fashion and education. Cycling can be interpreted as tribal; an 'us and them' binary between motorists and cyclists but with many car owners (us included!) taking to their bikes for shorter journeys in the city, this is changing. The 'underground' importance will eventually emerge as an 'everyday' importance with a critical mass that can't be ignored by the city."
if you have an overwhelming need to fit a stylish, yet practical set of homegrown wooden mudguards on your racing or commuting bicycle, you need only click as far as http://www.woodguards.co.uk" target="blank">squaretree. judging by the photos mrs twmp was showing me of flooded glasgow streets only yesterday, sooner rather than later might be a good idea. price is around £142 per pair, plus postage.
posted tuesday 29 november 2011
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