Review: Fly6 Cam (AKA: "AssCam")

Gentle reader, good to see you're interested in what I think of the Fly6! Welcome!

I've had the Fly6 for over 3 months and have now adapted it to fit on the racks of two different bikes. They're described below.

• The first adaptation is a PVP pipe for my Cannondale. Scruffy, but it served its purpose.

• The second adaptation was for my Surly Long Haul Trucker's rear rack. It was conceived and fabricated by my LBS. It looks sleek and smart and is very sturdy. You can read about this further down the page.

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I finally got the Fly6 camera (http://cycliq.com/) after waiting 3.5 months for it to be produced and shipped from a kickstarter/crowdfunded program. It arrived 6/16 and I was able to test it out on a morning ride 6/17

Pros:

• You don't have to keep deleting files to free up space on it like you do with the ContourCam
• It's a rear blinky too!
• 15 minutes chunks of video are much easier to deal with.
• an extra mount is provided for ease of transfer from bike to bike.

Downsides:

• The Fly6 .avi files don't talk to my Mac, to work around this, I've downloaded an .avi viewer so my Mac can view the video. Another program (Handbrake) is necessary to convert the .avi files into .mp4 files that I can edit in iMovie. (Thanks readers, for your help with this issue!)
• The seatpost mount design doesn't take into account we might be wearing a skirt or have a rack and baggage back there. I'd like to mount it further back on the rack. See below for the adaptations to mount on a rack.
• I can't figure out how to properly adjust the date, this is a failing on my part, I'm certain.

Here's the first test video with it mounted on the seatpost. You get a great view of the rear rack and sometimes when my skirt comes down over the back of the saddle, you get an awesome view... well... up my skirt.

I'm hoping to mount this on the back of the rack (with an attachment of some sort) to get a better view of things on the road instead of my rack, panniers and the inside of my skirt.

< insert rack and upskirt jokes here >

So, this is what it looks like to be a pair of bike shorts!

After some adjustments, I was able to angle the camera a bit better. Now, only a quarter or a third is taken up with rack and baggage instead of half the screen.

Wearing a raincape obscures more of the field of view, even when I'm careful to tuck it under my ass.

Even more interesting is the video I found on the camera's card of the women in the Chinese factory testing my device. Ummm. Not sure what to think about that. I mean, I know there are people in Asian countries who make all of our gadgets, but to SEE her on my camera! Wow.

I want to know how long a charge of the battery lasts and if I'll be able to find the perfect spot to mount the camera.

6/23/14 Adapted Mount

I went in search of PVC pipe at Home Depot as an inexpensive means to mount the camera to the rear rack. Not my best work, but certainly not the worst thing I've seen strapped to a bike in ramshackle fashion.

I'll snip off the extra ends of the zipties promptly.

The resulting video from this new mount is much better. However, It's displaced my Busch und Müller rear light. I'll need to find a new place for it.

I used a bit of reflective/hi-viz scraps to try and disguise the fact that my camera mount is a j-bend sink trap.

No rack or bags to obscure the field of view.

6/29/14 Storage and battery life

I went on a day long ride so this would be a great test of how long the battery would last and how many hours of recording the camera would store.
It appears that the battery died sometime around 3:45 in the afternoon (5.5 hours of running time?) and it had erased some of the morning's recordings before I could review them. I seem to have 4.25 hours of video stored. Good, but I may want to look into upgrading a 32GB card from the 16GB card if I want to store recordings of long rides.

7/8/14 Stability of video images while camera is mounted to PVC pipe:

Fly6 manufacturers dissuade us from mounting to anything other than the seatpost for optimal quality.
Judge for yourself!

7/9/14 Hello, World!

So, I'm aware now that Fly6 has posted this blog entry at their "Reviews" page. Awesome, welcome to my blog, potential Fly6 customers!

Turnabouts are fair play, I suppose... because Fly6 seems to have reviewed my bike in turn:

I'm sure the Aussies at Fly6 meant 'bonza', not 'busy'.     Right? RIGHT?!?

Also, I dig being called "PVC Chick"

7/10/14 Comparison of the brightness/visibility of the Fly6 lights next to various other rear blinkys.

A dark room was used for this but at some point I'd like to try the comparison at night from several car lengths back.

Rear lights compared:

• Fly6
• Blackburn Flea
• Cygolite Hotshot
• Planet Bike Blinky3

I hired a serial killer to create the text on this image. Scary, huh?

Again, this is a personal preference. There's a clear winner as far as brightness goes and that's the Cygolite Hotshot. Personally, I use more than one rear blinky at night and that's because I'm a bit of a spaz. I like the circular pattern the LEDs flash at drivers. The flashing pattern is something different that they aren't used to seeing and it may get their attention.
Is it bright/visible enough? Sure.


Now, bear in mind the Fly6 isn't just about catching asshat motorists engaging in dangerous driving, you might catch some funny and interesting things on your camera back there. I love this image I got on a group ride when two ladies riding behind me discovered that there was a camera pointed at them.

Yes, that's a camera.

8/21/14

Since I've started this review, I've obtained a second bike that I also wanted to attach the Fly6 to. I tried using the aero post adaptor that Fly6 provided and attach it to the rear rack of my Surly. I was forced to use *gasp* duct tape to keep the adaptor in place. I hated putting duct tape on my bike! In addtion to the ghastlyness of duct tape, the camera wobbled around a fair amount as you can see in this video.

My lovely new bike had duct tape on it AND I wasn't getting optimal video.

So when I was at my LBS (Thick Bikes in Pittsburgh for those of you keeping score) the next day,  I asked Chris, the owner if he had any suggestions to get a stable mount for the camera. He disappeared with my bike and returned a few minutes later with this thing of beauty:

The sturdy, sleek mount next to the ugly duct tape.

He'd grabbed an old seatpost tube they had lying around, ground off the sharp edges and drilled a hole to attach it to the center of the rack; Surly racks have an accessory-mounting hole.

I was ecstatic. I almost hugged him.

Here's some video from the new, sturdy Surly rack mount:

9/9/14 SD card bites the dust.

My microSD card died and I felt this was an excellent excuse to get a 32 GB card and see how many hours the max size card could hold. I'll have to follow Fly6's instructions on how to re-format my knackered 16 GB SD card.

Tunnels, runnels, flowers and steamrollers

Saturday, I was stuck tending to the needs of my car, it needed an inspection, oil change and recall work done. We dropped it off and I wasn't about to wait 2 hours in a car dealership, so I walked down to Dormont's main street and found a used book store.

I needed some good reading for upcoming car/plane trips

After the wait for the car, we picked up Ruby for a Montour ride the next day. I tooled around the neighborhood briefly, maybe a mile or so.
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Sunday, I woke up early and got on the road before 8. My intentions were to get to Boggs and make up for the day I'd bonked and only made it to Quicksilver.

There's a wonderful aspect of riding the trails, it's the delightfully intoxicating scents that accompany it. Yes, there's a really nasty smell once and a while along the rivers, but in the Spring there's the lilac week and the city gets inundated during honeysuckle week. I was treated to the lilacs a few weeks ago and now is the time when the honeysuckle blooms and impregnates the entire city with their aroma. I love it.

When I worked nights, I would have the advantage of riding home in the wee hours of the night, when it was cool enough to roll down the windows of the car on the drive home and revel in the scent. No other cars at 4AM to adulterate the experience with car exhaust, just a clean breeze full of honeysuckle. I can do the same again, but now on my bike in the daylight. There's a huge patch of it on the South side of the Smithfield bridge which I've taken to riding by this week, just to breathe it in early in the morning. (EDIT: it seems the flowers near the Smithfield bridge aren't honeysuckle, I'll have to find out what type of flower is putting out that wonderful smell.)

Flowers are a wonderful thing, they're gorgeous, they smell nice and they make lovely gifts. They make a bike ride even better.

Here's some of the flowers I encountered today:

The common daisy

Foxglove at Boggs

Appendaged Waterleaf

Viper's Bugloss

There are 2 interesting tunnels along the route, the Enlow tunnel and the National Tunnel. The latter is often clogged with ice in the winter because so much water seeps down into it.

Here's a video of my travels through National tunnel today.



Then there's the runnel, which I enjoy taking a heavily laden bike up and down. It's a workout.

For those who've never heard of or used a runnel, here it is:



It was a gorgeous cloud-free day with low humidity.

I noticed a part of the trail was paved very nicely, it was so very flat and densely packed, the sides where the limestone ended were very angular, as if it was just laid. In fact, it was! Ahead I saw some idle equipment and learned that they use a large spreader for the limestone and a steamroller to pack it down.

After I passed the equipment, the trail was muddy, slick and in terrible condition. It's very good to see work being done to improve the trail.

I lunched here:

A wonderful quote to go out on.

While I was resting and lunching, a pair of young men came along to use the fountain. One of them asked about my grips and if I liked them, I noticed immediately he was wearing a Sriracha tee shirt, we exchanged pleasantries about our love of the Rooster Sauce and they were on their way.

I made it to Boggs!

I made a small trek onto the Panhandle Trail, just to say that I was on it. This may be my next excursion.

I rested at the Arabian horse farm

Jackson the Westie stopped to rest with me,
he enjoyed the ear-scratchings I gave him.

 I saw several deer in Bethel park, and a set of twin fawns.

This fawn's twin ducked behind the bush before
I could get a shot of the both of them.

I only got two comments about the amount of stuff I was lugging around. One was from a woman who asked if I was going to DC… when I was headed in the direction of Pittsburgh.
the other was from a guy riding towards me who just shouted out a "You need more STUFF!" at me as we passed. I love a smart ass.


56.7 miles, I had no issues with energy levels or dehydration. Yaaa me!

This bumps me back into the top 30 in the National Bike Challenge. Sweet.

Hey, half of these 10 folks are women! HALF!

The heartbreak of saying goodbye and Admiral Fred

I decided that I would sell the Monster. I posted her to Craigslist and within a few hours a woman replied that she loved the bike and wanted to see it ASAP. I priced it fairly for a bike that had so many bells and whistles. It really is a gorgeous bike. Someone should be riding her.
The morning of the day the prospective buyer was to see it, I removed the distinctive purple chain that locked the seat and basket onto the bike. It was sinking in. I may never see the Monster again after tonight... and I became rather verklempt.

Later in the afternoon when she arrived, I learned that she'd just bought a car rack from another Craigslist posting so she could bring the Monster back home and she installed the rack onto her car right there in the parking lot. She told me that she'd recently been to Florida on vacation where she'd borrowed a bike and re-ignited her passion for cycling. She was very excited to be getting a nice, comfortable bike with all the stuff she wanted on a bike already added. She was also in love with the color coordination of everything, especially the yarn-bombed basket. She perked up when I told her the bike had a name.

She even purchased a purple helmet earlier in the day. 

Wow.
If this wasn't the perfect owner for My Monster, I don't know who is.

She was also delighted to let me take her photo with the bike that would now belong to her.

I'm so happy for them. *sniffle*

Afterwards, I went for a ride with Ruby and contemplated my (albeit temporary) existence as a one-bike-woman.

I headed over to Thick to see if they had a replacement seat for the computer I'd cracked when the bike fell a few weeks ago. Sure enough, they did and refused to charge me for it. I didn't feel so guilty taking it because I managed to find a half-off pair of bike shorts. Sweet. To make my feet happy too, I found a nice new toe ring at a shop a block away, I'd broken one recently and needed a replacement. I need to stop breaking stuff!

How NOT to lock your bike: 

When I returned to the bike, I discovered I'd made a fatal flaw in my locking technique.

Oooops.

Left for the South Side trail in a downpour. I encountered a cyclist coming in the opposite direction who was clearly enamored with the rain cape. It just makes some people smile. He sat up from his hunkered riding position to get a better look as he approached and with a gigantic smile, he saluted me.
Sheesh.
Yes, salute Admiral Fred in her dorky rain cape!

A faint rainbow appears above Homestead after the storm.

Passing by a ballpark full of fans cheering is so very, very odd to me. I'm supposed to be IN THERE with them!

I enjoyed a car-free Clemente Bridge.

Chrissy's Phat Tuesday Ride: Impromptu and Spontaneous

I had another free evening and decided to head over to Oakland to snag a photo for Tag-o-Rama, I had debated going to a Fundamentals of City Cycling class at the Wheel Mill, but not being the slightest but familiar with that part of town, I decided against it.

On the way to Oakland, Marko and I ran into one another and he said he was going to the Thick Bikes Tuesday night group ride.
That sounded much better and I changed my plans. It was a small group, but it included a tandem, which is always awesome. There was Chrissy leading, myself, Marko, PaulB, Dan who I'd never met before and the tandem couple Ann and Kevin. They rode on the MS150 so we made nice conversation about that.
I warned Chrissy that I was slow up hills, but didn't mind them. She didn't have a route planned and we just sort of 'rode around', which none of us minded either. I think I may have been the oldest rider… oh, that hurt when it sunk in. I had to work to not lag behind, they were averaging 13-14 MPH

We rode up through Junction Hollow, snuck through CMU, and then up and around the Golf Course ...and there was the back down part: wheeeeee!

Another group ride was passing us in the opposite direction.

Marko poses nicely with Chrissy and I ruin the shot with my finger.

A wonderful evening, the thunderstorms that were predicted never materialized. 20 miles, 27 total for the day.

First flat fixed, finally

I picked up this safety pin this morning somewhere around Gateway Center when I was coming back from a shopping trip in the Strip. I heard something funny happen with the back wheel and ever since then I heard a rubbing noise on the back wheel but couldn't figure out what was rubbing. Then on my lunch hour ride, I found the culprit and just decided to pull it out and change the tube. I wonder how long I could have ridden? The pin was keeping the tube inflated.

Well, there's your problem!

Eww. Am I supposed to get THIS dirty?

Not one cyclist who rode by asked if I needed help this time. One said "It's good to be prepared, right?"
Holy cow, I must look like I know what I'm doing!

This was the first flat that I was able to successfully fix by myself. Oh, joy!
I just need to get faster at it.