The Swift Polaris Porteur Bag

I am trying out a Swift Industries Polaris Porteur Bag - a front bag designed specifically to fit on porteur style racks, such as those from Velo Orange and Soma. Handmade in the USA, this is a very large, "everything but the kitchen sink" kind of bag that's surprisingly stable, requiring nothing but the rack for support.I am using it on an upright bicycle with low trail geometry.






Founded in , Swift Industries is a 2-person shop in Seattle. Frequentbike travelersMartina and Jason started out making custom touring panniers, eventually expanding into saddlebags, handlebar bags and city bags. Today they have streamlined their process so that standard models can be customised with a selection of colours and features.






The $230 price tag of the Polaris includes choosing the colour of the fabric, trim, stitching, and reflective strips. Being the boring customer that I am, I chose an all-olive canvas with brown trim, brown stitching, and silver reflective strips. I opted to forgo the optional clear map case.




The boxy22"x14.5"x12" bag attaches to the Porteur rack at 5 points: Two sets of adjustable straps with buckle closures secure to the rear of the rack's platform, two more secure to the sides of the platform toward the front, and an additional velcro strap secures to the rack's "tombstone" at the rear (this last attachment is not shown in the picture).






Initially I was somewhat skeptical about the attachment system. I doubted that such a large bag would be sufficiently stable with only the lower support, and I thought the bag might be time-consuming to attach and detach. But I was glad to be proven wrong on both accounts. The bag contains some very effective stiffeners inside, and combined with the adjustable straps, this keeps it entirely free of either side to side, or fore and aft sway. The straps and buckles are fairly easy to manage, taking no more than 30 seconds in total to attach and less than that to detach.






The bag features a cordura exterior, with a waterproof vinyl interior. At the front is a zippered front pocket and a headlight mount. D-rings are added to the sides for an optional shoulder strap. For those who do not wish to attach a strap, a short carrying handle is attached at the rear. On the left side is an external U-lock holster that fits a standard sized lock snugly and securely.The flap, featuring reflective strips and expandable straps with buckle closures, opens away from the rider.






Both functionally and aesthetically, the design of the Polaris strikes me as a messenger bag that has been converted for porteur carry. The main compartment is immensely expandable. The spacious interior is free of dividers - you just pile things in. There are internal pockets handy for carrying tools and spare tubes.






Given the size and design of the Polaris, it is not feasible to retrieve objects form the bag while cycling. Opening and closing it are multi-step processes. And once expanded, the height of the open bag might block the rider's view on the bike.






Depending on the rider's size, it may not even be feasible to retrieve things from the bag while remaining standing over the bike - the reach to the buckles at the front is fairly dramatic. In short, the Polaris is not designed for easy en route access; it is assumed the rider will access the bag once they reach their destination.





A number of things impress me about the Swift Polaris Porteur bag. The quality is top notch, and the bag has a "production" rather than a DIY look and feel to it; it is apparent that they have made a number of these already and have the process down pat. The waterproofing is well thought out: Not only is the interior vinyl, but the roll top prevents water from coming in from the sides. And, perhaps most importantly, the attachment system really works to keep the bag stable. I have tried much smaller bags that have swayed without additional decalleur support, but the Polaris feels glued in place.






The large size and the messenger-style design of the Polaris offer the freedom to carry a great deal of stuff on the bike in an enclosed, sturdy, waterproof, expandable container. Those who routinely travel with technical equipment, piles of books, and the like, will find the Polaris very handy. Those seeking a more compact bag for commuting, or an easy-access randonneuring bag, will probably want to look elsewhere. I should also mention that I find the shape of the bag slightly awkward for off the bike carry, but not overwhelmingly so. All that said, Swift Industries does take custom orders and can make alternative versions of this bag to fit a customer's needs. They also make front bags for Cetma racks, Gilman front bags for the Brompton, and Ozette rando bags, as well as a variety of panniers and saddlebags. Overall, some great products for a variety of uses.


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POST SCRIPT: Q&A



I've received a number of questions about this bag over email. Rather than try to incorporate the info into the text retrospectively, Ipost the answers below:



Q: Is there a way to attach a cable lock?



A: This is how I am carrying mine. It does shift around a bit, but not enough to affect handling. Fine for city use, though might start to drive you nuts long distance.



Q: What size U-lock will fit into the holster?



A: I am not well-versed on U-lock sizing. A typical, standard one should fit, such as this one from Kryptonite.



Q: Will this bag fit a laptop?



A: My 13" Macbook air, inside its padded carrier, fits, but you won't be able to go any wider.



Q: Will this bag work with drop bars?



A: I have 42mm width drop bars on my roadbike. Just tried to fit the Polaris in between them. It's a tight squeeze that would render most hand positions unusable.



Q: Do the straps interfere with any of the rack's light mounts?



A: The straps do not interfere with any part ofthe VO Porteur rack. I have no experience with the Soma Porteur rack.



Q: Is there any way to tuck in the dangling straps?



A: I don't think so. But while aesthetically not great, they are nowhere near the front wheel, so perfectly safe.



Q: How much weight is this bag rated for?



A: It's your rack and bike that will be the limiting factors, rather than the bag. Be careful carrying a lot of weight on your bike unless it is designed to do so and made of appropriately robust, touring+ grade tubing. As VO puts it: "Parisian delivery bikes were reputed to carry as much as 110lbs of newspapers on similar racks, but of course they had strengthened bike frames and forks, not only racks."

Robert Quillen - An Independent Spirit

One of the most interesting men that I never met, and who just happens to be related to me (first cousin three times removed!), is Robert Quillen. And, in my opinion, as a free-thinker he meets the qualifications as an "Independent Spirit" which is the topic for the upcoming Carnival of Genealogy. Have any of my readers ever heard of him?

A contemporary of Will Rogers, Robert became known as "the Sage of Fountain Inn" and was nationally known as a paragrapher, humorist writer, newspaper columnist, and newspaper editor during the first half of the 20th century.

Born as Verni Robert Quillen on March 25, 1887 near Syracuse in Hamilton County, Kansas (near the Colorado border) he was the son of James Downey "J. D." and Mandella Joslin Quillen. His mother was the sister of my 2nd great-grandmother, Malissa Mariah Joslin Brubaker Bower, and they were two of the fifteen children of Lysander and Lydia Robison Joslin.

Robert's father was born in Missouri, his mother in Indiana. They married in Barton County, Kansas then moved to Syracuse in western Kansas, where J. D. published the weekly Syracuse Independent. In a few years the family moved back again to eastern Kansas, to the small town of Overbrook, where J. D. began publishing the Overbrook Citizen. Here Robert learned the printing trade, setting type and running the presses.

Early in 1904 J.D. decided to move his family to Washington state. But that March, just before his 17th birthday, Robert enlisted in the army, (without the consent of his parents and swearing he was twenty-one) as William Stewart. It was reportedly an attempt to heal a broken heart. In actuality it was probably rebellion against the sternness of his father. Robert was assigned to the 13th Cavalry Regiment and sent to the Philippine Islands. In June 1905, after deciding that military life was not his cup of tea and with some help from his father, Robert was discharged from active duty.

After his release from the Army, Robert traveled for a time, and ended up in Fountain Inn, Greenville County, South Carolina. He had some experience as a printer, gained from working with his father, so he launched the "Fountain Inn Journal" but that enterprise didn't last long. He met and fell in love with Donnie Cox, an "older" southern girl, five years his senior. As can be imagined, her family didn't approve of the young westerner but Donnie was in love with Robert too. Robert moved to Americus, Georgia taking a job as a print shop foreman. Robert pursued his romantic interest in Donnie and when her father finally relented to her wishes, they were married September 2, 1906, reportedly in Atlanta. They lived for a short time at Americus and then Ashburn, Georgia before joining his parents and siblings in Anacortes, Skagit County, Washington where his father was publisher of "The Citizen".

The Quillen family moved closer to Seattle where Robert and his father established the "Port Orchard Independent". In December of 1910, Robert and Donnie returned to Fountain Inn, South Carolina. The following February, Robert published the first issue of the "Fountain Inn Tribune" which he would continue to publish until his death. His parents and sisters joined Robert in Fountain Inn. A brother, LeRoy, had died in 1917. His father died in Fountain Inn on June 6, 1919. His mother passed away February 7, 1943 at the home of her daughter, Della Lucille Quillen Agnew, in Hartsville Township, Darlington County, South Carolina.

It was about 1920 that Robert's writing started getting noticed by prominent publishers and several articles were accepted by the Saturday Evening Post and the Baltimore Evening Sun. His special pages and editorials ran in those publications for several years. In 1922, Robert's wife, Donnie, passed away. By the end of the year he was married again, to Marcelle Babb. No children were born to either marriage, but Robert and Donnie had adopted a daughter, Louise, who became the inspiration for his columns "Letters from a Bald-Headed Dad to His Red-Headed Daughter" that were published in book form in 1933.

In addition to being a writer, editor, and publisher, Robert was also a humanitarian. It was said that if a child in the county woke up Christmas morning with an empty stocking, it was because he didn't know about it.

He was a bit of an eccentric, not only in his writings, but in his actions. Twice he sold his newspaper, only to buy it back again both times. In 1925, he erected a statue to Eve on the lawn of his home, which horrified the townspeople. It was simply an obelisk with the inscription "In Memory of Eve, the First Woman" and carved beneath was an apple with a twig and one leaf. In an editorial in his newspaper, he said: "Eve was a distant relative of mine, on my mother's side. The family has always been proud of her. She was the first lady of the land and the reigning beauty of her time."

Robert Quillen made his living as a commentator on American society. His columns covered virtually every aspect of life in America in the early-to-mid 1900s. Many of his columns were thinly veiled descriptions of the local citizens. One Fountain Inn man warned a new preacher, "Don't get mad at anything Mr. Quillen says. We're used to him and just overlook his queerness."

His opinions were not always widely accepted, in fact, they were often controversial, but his work was published in more than 300 newspapers in the United States and Canada when he died at the age of 61 on December 9, 1948 at Hendersonville, North Carolina. His syndicated features included "Aunt Het" and "Willie Willis," both humorous cartoons, as well as editorials, "Quillen's Quips" and other articles.

He once wrote his own obituary and printed it in the Fountain Inn Tribune, the weekly newspaper he published. He described the service and the last rites at the cemetery. Then he wrote, "When the last clod had fallen, workmen covered the grave with a granite slab bearing the inscription, 'Submitted to the Publisher by Robert Quillen'." The Greenville News added "There will be no copyright. The original work could hardly be reproduced."

A depiction of "Aunt Het", Robert Quillen, Robert with his adopted daughter Louise. Pictures on display in his study in Fountain Inn. Photo taken by Becky Wiseman on March 12, ...

The infamous statue "In Memory of Eve, The First Woman." Photo taken by Becky Wiseman on March 12, ...

Sadly, there isn't much to be found on the Internet about Robert Quillen. This article was compiled from numerous newspaper clippings about him that I received from the Greenville County Library, Greenville, South Carolina as well as an article in The South Carolina Historical Magazine (Vol 102 No 2, April .. pages 110-134 "The Wit and Wisdom of Robert Quillen, 1887-1948" by Marvin L. Cann). After receiving a copy of that article in September .. I was able to contact Mr. Cann. Most of the resources and photographs he used in the article were housed at the University of South Carolina. I contacted them and obtained several pictures of Robert and his family. However, I can't post them here since I don't have their permission to do so.

A recent search of the 'net brought up a new book published last year, "The Voice of Small-Town America : Selected Writings of Robert Quillen, 1920–1948" edited by John Hammond Moore. An article on Wikipedia appears to be excerpts from the Moore book.

A few of Robert's one-liners:

• Acting is not being emotional, but being able to express emotion.
• As we grow older, our bodies get shorter and our anecdotes longer.
• Discussion is an exchange of knowledge; an argument an exchange of ignorance.
• Great art is never produced for its own sake. It is too difficult to be worth the effort.
• If we wish to make a new world we have the material ready. The first one, too, was made out of chaos.
• There are glimpses of heaven to us in every act, or thought, or word, that raises us above ourselves.

Christmas Décor Downsized

Denise Olson at Moultrie Creek has invited the Genea-Bloggers to participate in a Christmas tour to help celebrate the season!

Although I don't put up a lot of decorations (actually, almost none) for the holidays, I do have a small table-top tree. When we moved from our house in .. the Christmas decorations went with my mother, except for a couple of items. My apartment isn't very big and since I'm trying to downsize "stuff" I haven't purchased any decorations other than that little tree along with the ornaments, lights, etc. that adorn it. The tree sits on my dining room table (which is seldom used for actually dining!) and brightens up that corner of the room.

The Angel on top of the tree and the Santa stocking on the wall are two of the decorations I brought with me from the house. I also have a small collection of snowmen that adorn a few spots on end tables and some of them hang on the branches of the Christmas tree. It's not much, but it satisfies my needs.



As far as Christmases past, well, turns out we didn't take pictures of the house after decorating it. There are a few pictures that show the decorations in the background, but they don't show it very well. Mom always went a bit overboard with the lights and tinsel and stuff. Now, her apartment is smaller than mine and she has covered every available space with some kind of ornamentation! Perhaps the sparseness of my decorations are a reaction to her exuberance.

Gunsmoke

Newspaper photo of James Arness who played Marshal Matt Dillion on Gunsmoke. There was a question from someone wanting to know if he was too big to ride a horse. Apparently they never watched the show or they would have known the answer.

Weight Distribution Mysteries

One thing that continues to mystify me about frame design, is how different bicycles react to weight distribution. Over the years, I've really found this aspect of a bicycle's handling to be a wildcard. My Rivendell Sam Hillborne is built like a typical mid-trail touring bike, which, it is said, makes it optimal for carrying heavy loads in the rear but only moderate loads in the front. However, I prefer to ride this bike with an enormous handlebar bag, and it does very well with it. It also handles well with a saddlebag and panniers, but interestingly the handlebar bag - with the same amount of weight in it - does not appear to affect speed at all, whereas the saddlebag does a bit. If I am going on a fast ride, Iremove the saddlebag butdo not bother removing the handlebar bag. All of this is just fine with me, because I find it far more convenient to keep my stuff in the front for easy access. But it goes against my understanding of the way a bicycle like this is supposed to react to weight.





Then there is the Moser racing bike, which reacts badly to any weight I put on it at either end. The front gets twitchy with even a small bag attached. And with any saddlebag larger than a tiny wedge the bike feels distinctly rear-heavy. A few times I've affixed a mid-sized saddlebag so that I could carry my camera, and it felt like trudging through mud compared to the speed this bike is normally capable of. On the other hand, a full water bottle on the downtube (the bottle weighing about the same as my camera) has no effect, and neither does my own weight gain when I stuff my jersey pockets with all the things I would have otherwise kept in a bag.



Riding bikes like this has made me understand why some cyclists chose to ride with backpacks instead of baskets or panniers - some bicycles simply do not handle well with weight on either end, but do fine when the weight is part of the rider. This is one reason the argument "If you want to lighten your bike, lose some weight" does not make sense to me.You cannot simply take the combined weight of a bicycle, its accessories and its rider, and assume the handling and speed will be the same as long as the total remains the same.







My first city bicycle - a Pashley Princess - came with a huge front basket, but it did not handle well for me when I put things in the basket. Eventually I removed it and attached a set of rear folding panniers instead. With that configuration the bike handled much better, and faster. When I carried weight in the rear, I could detect no difference in speed, even with a full load of groceries.






On the other hand, the Bella Ciao city bike I now ride - while faster than the Pashley overall - is more sensitive to weight in the back. The handling doesn't change, but I can feel a difference in speed depending on how heavy the load I am carrying is.




With pretty much every bicycle I've ridden over an extended period of time so far, I've noticed some sort of relationship between weight distribution and handling, and it is not always a logical one - or at least not obviously so. I am sure there are lots of factors contributing to these effects, and these factors are just too nuanced to be obviously discernible. It's interesting to figure this stuff out in the process of getting to know a bike.

Roses are Red ...and Welded in Steel

While I enjoy receiving flowers on special occasions, it's always a little sad when they wilt. So for our anniversary a couple of weeks ago, I asked my husband for a steel rose from Spooky Bikes. With Valentine's Day coming up, I thought I'd mention it and post some pictures. These beautiful roses will last, and they make for a lovely way to mark an occasion while supporting a local artisan.I love mine; it is even nicer in person than in pictures.







Spooky Bikesare somewhat of a cult manufacturer, making road, cyclocross and mountain bikes in Bellows Falls, Vermont. I met them at theNew England Builders Balla few months ago and had a chance to see a few of their bikes. The steel roses are a side project, welded by Chris Traverse ("...alone with my cat and my coffee making roses that will make other people smile...").The majority of proceeds will benefit theSunset Ranch BMX Parkin Western Massachusetts, which Chris established and continues to grow.






The roses are made of a mild steel, one petal at a time. The petals, hand-tooled leaves and braided weld-wire stem are then TIG-welded. They are available in a raw finish, or dipped in bright red acrylic paint.My rose is the red-dipped version. Only the tips of the petals are dipped in paint, still leaving sections closer to the base raw. The bare steel and the rainbow rings around the welds contrast nicely with the liquid look of the red. It is a dramatic, visually textured combination. The appearance of the flower is natural and organic, not cartoony.






There is variation in the shape of each petal, each stem, each flower.As it ages, there will be increasing natural colour variation.The steel looks delicate, but feels rather strong.






The roses are available as single flowers ($33), vines ($85), and dozen roses bouquets($250), in both the raw and the red-dipped finish. Order soon in you want yours to be made in time for Valentines Day. Delight your darling and support our local bicycling craftsmen. A beautiful combination.




Says welder Chris Traverse: "The look on my friends faces when they pull into the trails to see what's new to ride is the same look on people's faces when they open up one of my roses." Chris has had an interesting history. Read his full statementhere.

Comfortable Carbon: Trying the Parlee Z5

Looking down at my handlebars around mile 50, I felt a pang of alarm at the sight of unfamiliar decals. Then I remembered: I wasn't riding my own bike. I had gotten so comfortable, I'd forgotten. A stern voice in my head began to chastise me. "Come on, you are doing a test ride. You're supposed to be paying attention to the ride characterisics - not enjoying the scenery." Easier said than done!




To explain how I came to test ride the Parlee Z5, it may help to give a bit of a backstory. For some time, I've been interested in getting a feel for carbon fiber roadbikes. However, my attempts at this have been less than successful. I've ridden a handful of carbon bikes briefly, but either they were not set up for me to do a proper test ride, or I found the ride quality too harsh to actually want to ride them for any length of time. Of course not all carbon bikes feel the same, just like not all steel bikes feel the same. With this in mind, I finally approached the matter more strategically and talked to some industry insiders familiar with my riding style and preferences. A few suggestions kept coming up. Among them was the Parlee Z5.






Parlee Cycles are a small and local-to-me company, based in Beverly, Massachusetts. So the idea of trying one of their bikes was appealing. Later this summer I plan to visit the factory and write about them in more detail. Parlee offers both custom frames, built on the premises, and production models designed inhouse and built in Taiwan. The Z5 is the latter.




The demo bike was lent to me by Cycle Loft, a Boston Parlee dealer. After undergoing a fitting session, my position on the Z5 ended up near-identical to that on my own roadbike, making for a seamless transition. I kept the bike for a week and rode it for about 135 miles.






Even before I rode the Z5, I could see why this bike was suggested to me. To call its appearance "classic" might be pushing it. But the aesthetic is clean, subtle, neutral. I did not find myself biased against it, in a "Meh, this is ugly" kind of way. In fact, I find it rather pretty.






Made from a single carbon piece (what is known as "monocoque construction"), the Z5 frame has a seamless, sculpted look to it. At the same time, the round tubes and the smooth, but crisply delineated joints, bear a resemblance to those of metal bikes. There are no MC Escher-esque bulges or round-to-square taperings here; the frame looks simple and familiar. For those who are curious to try carbon fiber but wince at the look they associate itwith, I do think Parlee eases the transition.






I rode the Parlee Z5 in size Small (Tall), which translates to a 52.5cm top tube and a slightly extended headtube compared to their standard Small. The complete geometry specs are here. The bike was fitted with a SRAM Force group andMavic Ksyrium Elite wheels with 23mm Michelin Pro 4 tires (complete build specs here). Though I have Campagnolo on my own bike, I feel very comfortable with SRAM and have no trouble switching back and forth. The handlebars included in the standard build were 2mm narrower than the (42mm) bars on my own bike, but otherwise the fit was almost identical.






The one disappointment was that the front-center was a bit tighter than I like. With 23mm tires, I had a tiny bit of toe overlap. The amount was minimal, and I still felt comfortable test riding the bike. But with 25mm tires I would not be.





Riding the Parlee home, my first impressions were dominated by how comfortable it felt - namely, the ride quality over harsh roads, bumps and potholes. To provide some background, I am pretty sensitive to ride quality and cannot stand a bike that feels harsh. It does not matter how fast it is, how nimble, or how good at climbing: If I feel vibrations from the road or pain from going over bumps, I just can't take it for more than a few miles. This sensitivity was a big factor in my own roadbike purchasing decision a couple of years ago, and a major reason I went with a titanium Seven. So with that as my personal bike, granted I am now a bit spoiled in the ride quality department. Lots of bikes feel at least a little harsh compared to my Seven.



Lots of bikes, but not the Parlee Z5. Nope. The Z5 was flawlessly smooth. As in zero road buzz sensation, zero pain over bumps and potholes. At some point I started intentionally riding it over every stretch of broken pavement I could find, but I couldn't feel a thing.





Of course, whether it feels painful or not, a roadbike with skinny tires will still toss you around on bad roads. And it is here that I could feel a difference in the Z5 compared to my own bike. Until now, I had considered my Seven to be quite stiff. But after some time on the Parlee, I could feel a "give" in my own bike that I had not detected before. In comparison, there is no give to the Parlee at all; on bumpy roads it sort of bounces as one unit rather than exhibit even a slight amount of yield.






But despite being stiffer, the Parlee did not feel harsher than my own bike, even as I rode it longer. To my surprise, neither did it feel faster. I rode alone and I rode with some fast friends. Each time, speed and effort-wise, it felt just like being on my own roadbike.




I decided to ride the Parlee on a 100K New England Randonneurs "Permanent" course I had done alone a few weeks earlier (67 miles, with 3,800 feet of climbing). Just as I'd done previously, I timed myself and genuinely tried to do my best. My average rolling speed on the Parlee was 13.3mph, whereas on my own bike it had been 13.1mph - a difference too small to be significant, considering that my fitness had also increased a bit since the earlier ride. Of course this bit of anecdotal evidence may not mean much. But it reflects my subjective experience of the bike.




One reason I picked this particular 100K route for the test ride, was for its brief unpaved stretches. The bike rode on broken pavement so nicely, I was curious how it would do on dirt and gravel. Just as nicely, it turns out. While I prefer to do unpaved rides on wide tires at low pressure, if I must ride skinny tires the Z5 is as good as it gets.






Aside from all this, I did feel something distinct to this bike in the course of my test rides. It was a sensation in the rear triangle - possibly the chainstays, and it was specific to cornering. It was as if the rear responded to cornering differently from what I am used to. The chainstay area felt lighter somehow, almost as if it wanted to skip or lift off on corners. Well, maybe describing it that way makes it sound too negative. Unfortunately, I don't know how to explain it any better, but I actually liked this sensation. I found the bike to be maneuverable on corners in a way I had not previously experienced.




Normally, I am pretty sensitive to a bike's front-end handling, and less so to other aspects. The Parlee was the first time I was struck by characteristics specific to the rear of the bike.






While technically not the first carbon fiber roadbike I've ridden, the Parlee Z5 is the first one I've put a sufficient number of miles on to warrant a report. In part this is thanks to Cycle Loft, for lending it out and setting it up to fit me perfectly. And in part it's thanks to the bike's comfortable feel, which made me want to keep riding for miles and miles. Much like on my own bike, I did not experience fatigue on the Z5 after strenuous rides. And much like on my own bike, the handling, for the most part, felt "unnoticeable" - encouraging me to focus on the scenery and the ride itself, rather than on the bike.




Going into this test ride, I had several expectations about the feel and performance of carbon fiber: Namely, that it would feel harsher, stiffer and faster than my own bike. The Parlee Z5 felt only stiffer, and even that was only noticeable to me under certain conditions. Granted, I don't race, I don't ride aggressively, I spin rather than mash, and I don't climb out of the saddle. My impressions are limited to the kind of riding I do. And that riding involves 50-100 mile jaunts, sometimes more, usually with lots of climbing and usually on bad roads.I like a fast bike that makes me feel weightless. And I also like to be comfortable. As far as that kind of riding goes, I felt right at home on the Parlee Z5.