Mike, the raddest dad at SFO.

See more Timbuk2 Showstoppers here and if you spot one, send their photo to social@timbuk2.com.

Amidst the big IPO news of February 1, we ran a Facebook competition that asked folks to share how they’d rock a Timbuk2 bag. The story with the most likes at 5 pm PST would win a new custom Swig backpack. 165 stories were shared.

And at 5 pm PST, we identified the story with the most likes; @Meghan Jenk was the winner!

But then our community alerted us to a potential injustice (gasp!). We may have overlooked two stories that had more likes than @Megan’s story. We dug in and discovered that @Matt DeBlass‘ story had driven 31 likes before @Meghan’s.

And @Elise Gage‘s very clever poem had driven even more likes.

And then we got this email from Meghan:

Such honesty! We’d clearly goofed.

In the end we gave Meghan, Matt and Elise free custom bags. Now all is right and we are feeling very lucky to have you, our competitive but fair, clever but practical, bag-schlepping, bike-riding fans.

Dateline: Dolores Park, San Francisco, USA.
Roman Numerale reporting live with the Not-Be-Duped Group with the scoop.

Here’s the jovial Jen with her 10 year old Custom Timbuk2 Messenger Bag. Mission district tutor by day, intrepid traveler by night, Jen loves her versatile commuter-and-bike-friendly bag. She’s been known to bring it to far-off Italy and a mysterious land called Ok-la-homa. Well done, Jenn: this reporter thinks you’re Timbuktastic. Happy trails, ma’am.

Jen jests, “Just jazzed at this jolly Jaunary jaunt.” Kudos, you.

Cookie in her new Mutt Mover in the Timbuk2 retail store.

Timbuk2 Copilot and Commute 2.0 with a Nanjing Train Station Guard.

Have some fan mail for us? Send your note and/or photo(s) to social@timbuk2.com and we’ll blog it! See more fan mail here.

Doored into retirement. My poor Bianchi cannot be ridden anymore.

Getting doored helped call my attention to three important aspects of riding safely.

• Lane Positioning Matters: Ride too close to cars and you’ll get doored. Ride to far into traffic and you’ll get rear-ended and/or make cars angry. Make the best trade-off you can on every street.
• No Distance is Too Short for Dome Protection: Wear a helmet.
• Palms Are for Protecting: Skidding across pavement on bare hands sucks. Wear gloves.

But the real learning was in what to do after you crash.

I didn’t do much wrong before I got doored; I was in a bike lane, with lights and a helmet, riding quite slowly. But I did everything wrong post crash. I got up too fast, waved away witnesses, tried to ride home and didn’t get the driver’s contact info.* Hopefully you can learn from my mistakes and handle yourself more appropriately post crash.

What to do when you crash:

• Take a Seat: You may think you’re OK, but you may be in shock. Take a seat on the curb until you’re sure you can stand. Get your breathing under control and if/when you’re ready, check yourself out to see how the ‘ol body feels. Call for help if you need it.
• Exchange Contact Information: Body and bike injuries may not be immediately obvious. Protect yourself from paying out of pocket for damage you can and cannot see. Snapping a photo of relevant license plates is not a bad idea either (I actually did this).
• Connect with a Witness: Even if you think you’re OK, collect contact info from a witnesses or two in case you need it in the future.
• Drink Water, Not Wine: If you bonked your head, you may have a concussion. But concussions can take days to appear and drinking with a concussion is a bad idea. I initially refused water – “I’m not thirsty, thanks” – not realizing that I was sweating and totally dehydrated despite the cold weather. A few hours later, I drank a glass of wine, thinking it would calm me down. And it did. But later that night I regretted the indulgence when I had a pounding headache and severe nausea.
• Don’t Ride Home: It’s highly unlikely that you’ll be either calm or alert after a crash. Call a friend, take a taxi, but don’t ride home.

It’s also a good idea to:

• Be Reasonable: Whatever went down in the crash was mostly likely an accident. Being angry won’t make things right and it will wear you out. Chill out and try to get out of the situation before getting emotional makes it worse. I lucked out in that the driver who doored me was courteous and genuinely concerned, but I don’t think it would have helped if I’d screamed at them.
• Take a Break: Consider taking a day or two off before you ride again. It will let you body heal, your mind clear and the drama of “I’ll never ride again!” fade. In my case, two days of public transit sent me directly to a bike shop.

Crashing isn’t fun, particularly if you or someone else is seriously injured. Hopefully the tips above can help your or someone else work through a crash as reasonably and pain-free as possible.

*After dragging my bike into a miraculously convenient bike shop across the street from the crash site, I learned that my Bianchi frame was bent into oblivion. I wasn’t safe to ride home or ever again. But in my post-crash “leave me alone” state, I’d failed to collect the driver’s information. Not smart. Luckily the driver had mentioned they were going to a bar in the neighborhood – horrified by the incident, they’d offered to buy me a drink – so I went bar-to-bar in the neighborhood until I found them (#3 hit the spot). I can only imagine how they felt when they saw me appear mid-way through a cheese plate and giant glass of red.

The Timbuk2 factory on Chinese New Year.

As the Times article explains so well, Apple and many many other consumer electronics companies find it really difficult to make things in America. The skill isn’t here, the machines aren’t here, the scale isn’t here, not to mention labor costs and expectations of work/life balance. This context makes us feel particularly proud, if not a bit charmed, to still be manufacturing in America, and in an America city!

Since our founding in 1989, Timbuk2 has continuously manufactured bags – and since the fall of 2011, iPad sleeves – in San Francisco. We have the skill, the machines, the scale and the team to make it work in America. But we also manufacture in Asia (more info here). This blend of at-home and abroad manufacturing enables us to meet the consumer, product, and market demands required to compete globally. We’re proud of what we make, wherever we make it, and we hope to see more dialog and discussion around manufacturing of the products we love.

Since our recycling program started in 2009, we’ve recycled nearly 2,000 bags. We donate recycled bags to our primary partner, At the Crossroads (ATC), as well as other local non-profits. We’re particularly stoked to have recently supported YBike because bike safety is on our minds — December was dangerous for Timbuk2 riders — and more folks on bikes is always a good thing!

YBike kids stoked on bikes!

Stoked young YBike riders with a recycled Timbuk2 Candybar.

The Timbuk2 Recycling Program offers 20% off a Timbuk2 purchase in exchange for your fully-loved but still worthy of loving Timbuk2 bag. Learn more about the program here.