More stuff

Finally getting more accustomed to being home and the time difference- slightly less jetlagged at this point. Lots has been going on, all over the world and at home, so there is just so much to try and catch up on.

Taiwan was great, again. Going to Taipei and seeing cool stuff and cool people was awesome. As a bike nerd, I live for that stuff.

Keirin beer... how could I possibly pass that up?

The happy Haro family, heading off to dinner at the Velo/ Wellgo party the night before the opening of the tradeshow. (They're flipping me off because I wouldn't stop taking pictures all day...)

Jill Hamilton and I with the incomparable and really wonderful Stella Yu of Velo. She's an icon in the Taiwan bike industry and a true force to be reckoned with- as well as a damned nice person.

You can't go to Taipei without seeing the Taipei 101- world's largest building at 504M high with the world's fastest elevator (600M a minute). It's an amazing building... truly.

I saw this frame and fell in love with it. It's all aluminum, but I might have to find a way to work something like this into the line. I mean, the tube shapes and curves were amazing- and the thing was very, very light. With Masi geometry and sizing, it would be mighty cool.

I know I've been skimpy on development news. So I thought I'd let one of the many cats out of the bag, just to get you all salivating and begging for more...

So meet the new Speciale CX!


It's steel and it's real! Flat crown lugged fork with lugged dropouts. Full chromoly frame. It will be a complete bike, aimed at crossers, commuters, light-touring riders and anybody looking for a sweet steel bike with gears and the ability to mount fenders, fat tires and looking for a great ride. Pricing is TBD, as is final spec, but the target is to keep it at $1,000 or less- if at all possible. It might go a little over that, but not by much... I hope. This will be a late summer intro, or maybe even sooner. As I've said before, we are trying to get away from model years for bikes and simply produce bikes and deliver them to the market when they are ready, rather than waiting for a big product release at one or two points during the year. I mean, why wait to unleash a bad ass bike on the world? (Oh, the lighting in the office does not do the metallic burgundy color justice at all.) I know... I'm a genius.

The seat tube decal was placed a little high on this first run sample, but it is otherwise what we will be planning to ship to shops. A few things may get tweaked, but what you see here is mighty close to what will be sitting on shop floors in the near future. Yes, I love me too.

Ok, I'm going to bed.

Tim
(PS- A special "get better" wish for the Masibestfriend, Blue Squirrel. The Squirrel crashed during a race over the weekend and broke his collar bone... again. Good news is that the Masi was unhurt- I knew you would be concerned. Get well brother!)

Daily Drive

Ok, I'm back. I was back yesterday too... but I'm buried under an avalanche of junk and all those things that pile up when you are out of the office...

Yesterday- (Pictures actually taken on the way home, instead of on the way to work...)



Today-



Bonus; Masidaughter fills in for Daddy- (Yes, she's wearing SockGuy socks too...)


Ok, gotta run...

Tim

Jetlag? What's jetlag?

Sitting now in the airport in Tokyo and feeling like I might just fall asleep with my eyes open... if I haven't already.

The tradeshow was a great experience and I learned a lot (again) and enjoyed speaking with the friends I made in Taichung in January. I plan to post lots of pictures soon, so stay tuned for more.

Should be back on the ground in the US in a little over 12-14 hours.

See you all soon...
Tim

Wow!

How cool for us; we made into one of the English language Chinese newspapers (China Daily?).


I'm the big goober blocked by the bike in the foreground. (Notice I'm the tallest person in the picture...)

Tim

More from Taiwan...

Hello from Taiwan! Today is my last day in Taiwan. Tomorrow morning we head off for another rousing day of "Tim gets his knees thrust under his chin". I'm so glad I'm not any taller than I am.

Sorry for the lack of posts. I'll do my best to update with more photos when I get a reliable internet connection. I have had nothing but problems with internet this time. The wireless networks here at the show have been spotty at best and the plug-in line at the hotel has been very slow and has dropped off numerous times as well. Add in the overall fatigue and the posting has been far less often than I hoped.

The show has been really cool. I have seen a lot of products that have been really cool. Lots of photos to share. New products that I can't even mention- I could tell you, but then somebody would be out to break my legs. It is so funny how many times I've been told, "oh yeah, we make the frames for (insert famous European brand name)." Seriously folks... this really is the seat of the cycling world. Your favorite products may be "designed" in the US, Italy, France, Spain, etc, but they are made here in Taiwan or China. Trust me on this one... seriously. This really just highlights my many previous comments that geography has nothing at all to do with quality. Buy what you like- for whatever reason- but don't get hung up on geography... it is irrelevant.

Ok, gotta go wander a little more and see if I can find some more stuff I can't live without (and yes, I have found some). Here's a few more pictures to hold you over...

I can't remember what booth this was... but this was from the first day of the show.

I have no clue what the other 50% is.

If you are a track geek like me, then you'll have a soft spot for the Miche Primato track parts too. It was really nice to see the Miche parts again.

Ok, done for now- this post has required about 12 tries. Since I keep getting dropped... I'm crossing my fingers this will work!

Tim

More Taiwan stuff...

Have just a second between meetings and wanderings- got a distributor meeting coming up in a few seconds.

Just wanted to make sure that folks don't think I've died here in Taipei.

He really isn't a clown or all that sad... he's our boss though, so maybe I'm wrong.

They aren't real! It was a billboard and was funny... to us anyway.

Ok, time for my meeting.

Tim

Hello from Taipei!

Finally here in Taipei, Taiwan. After nearly 25 hours of travel, I am here and almost recovered from the travel/ time difference. All four of my flights, yes 4, went smoothly enough... with the exception of having my knee caps just inches from my face for the entire time. Needless to say, I'm happy I'm not any taller, but bummed I don't get to travel 1st class!

Here are some pictures and captions to get you started. I have decided to try to create a Flickr account finally so that I can just have an online photo album. Stay tuned for more info on that.

Happy travelers at 5:00AM!

Sock du jour- Ride Clean

This picture doesn't really give you enough of an idea of how cramped life is for a guy who's 6'3" tall. However, you may notice that my knees touch the seat in front of me... for 15 hours straight on this flight alone!

In Nogoya, Japan- I love these signs.

My boss, Joe Hawk, interviewing my replacement.

Taipei at night- from the front of the hotel.


Home away from home for the next week.

Ok, time to go look around before the working part of the day kicks in.

Tim

It's good to have friends...

Look what I got!


I am so excited! I was just whining about my back, on my way back from DC, and how I wanted to get a good backpack. Well... now I have one! This thing, like my new camera, is smarter than me. It's gonna take me forever to figure out exactly what I can do with it, but I'm excited to have it just in time for the trip to Taiwan.

Thanks DZ- my back thanks you (as well as my travel companions who won't have to listen to me whine as much now).

Tim

Daily Drive

Since my picture yesterday has caused a lot of fear about my current frame of mind (did I really look that stressed out?), I tried to smile this morning.

The flash on the new camera is really potent, so I got totally whited out. Still learning how to use this thing... it's way smarter than me. And yes, I know she's far too adorable for words.


The socks are an old favorite of mine... and we have cool socks in stock so go get your local Masi retailer to order you some... RIGHT NOW!

Posting will be light for awhile as I jump on another series of flights and head off to Taipei, Taiwan tomorrow before sunrise. The Taipei show is exciting to me because I have never been before and going now is really cool. Taipei is the launch pad for many of the cool new products we'll see in coming months, as well as a showcase for all things bike. I will try to do a bit of posting from the show- I'll certainly be taking tons of pictures as usual.

Tim

Daily Drive

The drive;



The socks;


Tim
(Yep, I'm that busy right now...)

Catching up... and Happy Birthday to me!

Sorry for the lack of posts- it's been a way bit busy with the travel and then the getting over the travel. I get to get back on a plane on Wednesday and return to Taiwan for the Taipei tradeshow.

So, first things first; today is my birthday. Yep, 37 now. I know I look more like 57 with all the grey hair, but I'm still under 40 for now. So, it's nice to get older today. For my birthday, I went for a nice long ride. I rarely ride on weekends because of family commitments, so getting out for a 6 hour ride is very rare. I bit off more than I should have tried to chew... and bonked harder than I ever have! It was actually kind of comical- the swerving, the incoherent babbling to myself, seeing spots and all that cool stuff. I thought I was going to have to walk up a few hills- it was that bad. But... I got to ride my new rig... which made it all better.



Go ahead, slobber all you want.

The DC National Bike Summit was amazing. I will put up a longer post soon, with lots of pictures... but for now you can read my cohort's version of things.

Here's some scary proof I was actually there.


I'm as scared as you are... I promise.

Tim

Daily Drive

The time change has me feeling a little groggy and the lighting was just all wrong... AND I'm getting used to a new camera...


Since I'll be in DC for the rest of the week, I have to A) get the Evil out of my head and 2) prepare for what I will be facing in the nation's capitol.

The fine folks at SockGuy can make you Evil too... trust me.

For the record- today was the first day in at least three months where my legs felt really great. The bronchitis is still lingering, but the legs felt strong and ready to make people cry. Be warned- if I ever freakin' get healthy and am on the ground long enough to train again... I'm gonna be bringin' the pain! Of course, I leave tomorrow for the rest of the week and then have the Taipei show right on the heels of that. But I'm just sayin'... I'm making a comeback!

Tim

Daily Drive

I know... she's way cuter than me... but that goes without saying...

And you can't deny the awesome awesomeness of these beauties from SockGuy...


Blue Camo! Yes... I am that cool!

Happy weekend friends.

Tim

Daily Drive

Another beautiful morning... and the beautiful Masidaughter.


Can you guess who I work for?


Thanks to SockGuy for making the best custom socks around!

Spent the day today with Brian Billington of SRAM... yes SRAM... THAT SRAM. Had a good product discussion, then went for a ride and then went to lunch (yes, our favorite local sushi place again). Sometimes it is really cool to have this job! (Ok, almost all the time... ok, all the time.) Thanks Brian!

Tim

Some of the reasons why my head hurts.

The blogging has been taking a hit around here for a long time (too long really). Between health, travel and other issues, it has been really difficult to get back into a rhythm. It hasn't been a conscious decision, just a matter of division of labor.

There are a lot of different issues that have been consuming my time (some that I won't cover here), but one of the biggest right now is wrapping up all of the bikes for the next series of product. For the record- I am very, very excited about these bikes and the new models that will be coming out. Ooh, wait... did I say new models? Forget I said that. No... really. There are some really, really cool things on the horizon and I am really confident that you will be really happy with these bikes. I feel pretty confident about that statement, given the success of the new models introduced recently like the Speciale Fixed, Coltello, Coltello Aero and CXR. Things are only getting better... trust me on this.

The thing is, all of these new bikes (I didn't say that), require a lot of work to create. From the very mundane detail of selecting a color to the much more rigorous task of determining the target retail price and the needed parts/ features. It's such a difficult process, for a new product or product category, but it is also very rewarding. Let me tell you, working on the models listed above was a labor of love, but when the bikes showed up and they started selling... my heart skipped a few beats. The bikes I'm working on now are every bit as exciting to me and I am pretty sure that you will like them too. I'm pretty lucky to be working with my new Product Manager, Wayne Doran- you may remember Wayne as our former QC Manager. Now he's a full time nuts-n-bolts guy and works with me to make Masi the coolest road brand around.

Here you see Wayne inspecting the structural integrity of a Taiwan beer pyramid. He's very detail oriented.

The point is, it really is a huge process, even for a very small company like Masi, to bring a bike to market. Again though, it's worth every single moment spent sweating the details. Especially when the feedback starts rolling in and folks utter those first "wow" comments.

On top of all the product stuff, lots of travel is on the horizon. Just got back from Taiwan at the end of January and now I am heading to Washington DC for the National Bike Summit next week and then it is back to Taiwan for the Taipei Cycle Show and then Sea Otter in April... so it's a busy time. The travel is great fun, but also a lot of work. Sure, I get to do what I love doing for a living... but I also have to do the run around stuff and spend a lot of time away from home and the office. When I'm gone, especially when there is such a time difference, work gets done at a much slower pace. Since I have a lot of work to do... that kind of becomes an issue. However, I'm not complaining because I realize that I am lucky to have a job I enjoy so much. I know there are a lot of people waiting for me to get fired so they can take over when I am gone (give up already).

Ok, my eyes are crossing because I am really tired, so I'm going to bed.

Here are a few bonus items for this evening:
1) Finally got back in on the Spokesmen Podcast- episode #13 is now up for your listening pleasure. (I need to learn to shut up.)

2) My friend, Skinny, conducted a little informal interview with me. It's fun, so give it a read. Maybe it's scary... maybe it's not. I'll let you decide for yourselves. I'll be paying him back with a little interview over here soon too... that'll teach him a lesson.

Good night!

Tim

Daily Drive

Pretty day again...


And the socks today are pure love for my good friends (and former employers) at Canari...


How on earth could you not love Otter Pop socks? Six zippy flavors, after all. Summer was all about Otter Pops for me as a kid. Hell, I still get Otter Pops each summer. To be honest though, I can't remember if these custom socks for Canari were made by SockGuy or not. I think they were... but I'm not positive.

Anyway, here's to wishful Spring/ Summer daydreams.

Tim

Daily Drive

Another day in paradise...


Another classic sock for today...

You can not go wrong with the Lion of Flanders... trust me on this one.

Tim

Happy 2nd Birthday Masiguy blog.

In my absentminded scrambling around, I failed to pay attention to the fact that yesterday (March 4th) was the 2 year anniversary of the Masiguy blog.

Dang!

It seems like so much longer, just because of all that has happened around here in the past two years. It's been such a whirlwind. Seriously, I can't believe it has only been two years. It seems like a much longer time... but in a great way. On the other hand, I can't believe it has already been 2 years.

I'll keep this short and sweet, but I really want to thank all of you- the readers and supporters of this blog. I'd keep doing this even if you folks didn't keep coming back, but it is because of you that I have become so addicted to this blog and blogging in general. I know that I have said "thanks" before, and I will likely say it again, but I mean it more than you know. This blog is a piece of my life and all of you are like family- even if weird and dysfunctional.

In the two years that I have been blogging, I have learned so many things and made countless new friends. I feel very lucky. It has been a great ride and I thank all of you- sincerely- for coming along.

Thank you!

Tim

Daily Drive... another late one.

So, once again I am late with a post. It's a struggle right now because so very much is happening and I am behind with my blogging duties. More blogging will follow... I promise.

The drive today was nice, as we are heading out of "winter" and into "spring", here in SoCal (that just means our one week of rain/ cold is done for the year).


Today's sock choice was a very simple standby...


It's a simple SockGuy sock... but it is a classic just the same.

Tim

Auf wiedersehen Jan!

Oh hey, did you guys read anything about Jan Ulrich retiring from racing to become an advisor/ consultant for the Team Volksbank UCI Continental pro team in Austria?

I didn't figure any of you would have read that or heard about it. It wasn't exactly newsworthy, or anything...

WOW!

Jan was a worthy winner of the Tour de France in 1997, taking over the helm of T-Mobile from his then-mentor Bjarne Riis (current director of Team CSC and former winner of the Tour in 1996... just for background). After that fateful Tour win in '97, the wunderkind had a rollercoaster career with many flashes of his brilliance, like winning the Olympic road race title in 2000 and the World title in the Time Trial in 99 and 2001. Along the way, Jan also managed to be in the wrong era for Tour contenders by finishing second to Lance Armstrong four times (along with finishing second behind teammate Riis in '96).

Over the years, especially after winning the Tour in '97, Jan suffered the indignity of mistakes (like that little problem with the authorities after taking X at a club during the offseason and then later having a little drunk driving problem) and being in the constant focus of the press and pundits. Jan's winter training took on mythical proportions as his weight and waistline increased each year. Early season races were a time for the press to question Jan;s commitment to the sport when he showed up doughy and out of prime condition. Yet each year, he managed to make it back to the top (nearly) by Tour time. Enough to remain Lance's confessed biggest rival.

Last summer, just before the start of the Tour, Jan was implicated in the Operation Puerto scandal and kicked out of the race that served as his burning goal in life. Not long after that, his T-Mobile team fired him. He spent the rest of the summer defending himself against the accusations that mounted. Ultimately, nothing has ever been proven. However, in the sport of cycling, implication is as strong as proof. Our beloved sport is so paranoid with fear of doping that all whispers and rumors become far heavier than they should. (No, I am not trying to gloss over the very real problems in cycling. I'm no fan of doping or dopers at all.)

All of this led to Jan's ultimate decision to retire from the sport, as his choices of teams were limited (despite his claims to the contrary). I always had a soft spot for the soft spoken German superstar of cycling. His sheer power and talent were both amazing and never reached their full potential- possibly. As pure, raw talent goes- very few thought of him as anything less than the ultimate cycling machine.

Now that his racing career is over and he will be freer from the incredible scrutiny he once faced, hopefully he will be able to live a more normal life. Many of us who watched the Tour each year, waiting for the slow, powerful pedaling style of the redheaded German on the climbs or time trials will be sad when this next July comes around. I know that I will be. Jan was always one of my favorite riders to watch and I'll miss his face in the peloton. However, I hope that the happiness that seemed to allude him will now land at his feet. Now that he has new direction, I hope he gets what he needs from life.

So, Jan, auf wiedersehen. I wish you the very best and hope that you tackle your life now with the same determination that saw you win so many wonderful races.

Tim

(PS- I know I'm way late to this little conversation... but I've been busy and sick... so get over it!)

5 Reasons Why I blog

My good friend and Blog Best Friend (BBF) Toby Bloomberg tagged me with another meme going around about 5 reasons why I blog.

So, in good blogger fashion... here are my 5 Reasons Why I Blog;

1) Community- I blog because of the community of bloggers that I am now connected to. I get to share and grow and participate in a rich and vibrant world. The members of this community are some of the smartest and most generous people I have ever known. I've only ever met a few of them and yet I count them as friends- dear friends at that.

2) Learning- I blog because the blogosphere teaches me all kinds of things nearly every day. From marketing, to politics, to music, to cycling, to... you name it... the blogosphere is a great teacher.

3) Practice- I blog because, as a writer, I need the practice. I don't write poetry, essays or other literary endeavors nearly as often as I would like, but I keep my writing mind "sharp" by coming here and sharing thoughts and ideas. It's like training my mind, rather than my legs.

4) Communication- I blog because blogging allows me to communicate with a large audience very easily. I can let the world know a new product is on the way, a new color is being considered, a new idea is being hatched or simply that I am going to be in Washington DC for the National Bike Summit from March 13-16th trying to help further promote cycling related issues at our nation's capitol. Simply hitting the "publish" button means that millions of people will potentially receive a message from me. (That's really cool!)

5) You- I blog because of you, the readers of this blog. Sincerely, all of you who come here and read this blog and participate in the conversation and offer up ideas and thoughts spur me on to keep this project going. I openly admit that I started this blog just a few days short of two years ago because I wanted and needed to let people know that Masi Bicycles was alive and kicking. I needed to get the word out and do some guerrilla marketing... get viral. However, it didn't take long for this blog to attract a much bigger audience than I ever expected. This blog has gotten far greater attention than I ever dreamed or thought possible- believe me, I never, ever thought this would get me in the New York Times! The community of readers of this blog have given me so much in trade for my endless ramblings and pictures of my socks! (I never thought you guys would like the socks so damned much!) So really, thank you from the bottom of my blogging heart. You folks have made this far more rewarding to me than I ever dreamed- you have no idea just how much I mean that.

Now, in keeping with the true meaning of being a blogger... I am tagging a few folks to get them to share their reasons for blogging... and this will be fun!

1) Paul McEnany; Hee-Haw Marketing. Paul is my buddy in Texas with a marketing blog and who also knows a little about music. He's a great read and a funny damned guy (and I did a guest post on his site that just might shock a few of my regular readers... sorry. It was all in proper context... I swear.)
2) Gavin Heaton; Servant of Chaos. Gavin is my blogging friend in Sydney, Australia. I also mentioned Gavin a few months ago after his father-in-law was involved in an accident, where a car plowed into his riding group, severely injuring him. Gavin happens to be one of the brightest minds I know and regularly floors me with his intelligence, wit and writing.
3) Nick Navarro; Cornerstone Life. Nick is a fellow San Diego rider and blogger. His blog is routinely funny and often also very insightful and thoughtful. Nick doesn't exactly blog as often as a dork like me, but he blogs enough to have a good library of some really great reading. AND he's a super nice guy, so give him a read.
4) Fritz (aka Richard Masoner); Cycle-licious. Fritz has one of the best bike blogs around. He compiles tons of great information in one location, as well as writes some great stuff on his own. He's another one of the people I love to read everyday... and he's a true computer genius- he's a programming genius with Sun Microsystems. Basically, he knows how to find the "any" key on his keyboard.
5) Donna Tocci; Tidbits and More. Donna is the super-genius marketing/ PR/ media diva at Kryptonite and happens to be one of the best friends I have. I met Donna through blogging and we have become great friends. She's a true Boston girl, so she says "chowdah" and "pocks the caw"... and she's likely to kick my ass now in Vegas at Interbike.

So, tag! You guys are all IT. Thanks to Toby for calling me out.

Tim

Daily Drive

Hey folks! I know I'm a day late posting a Friday drive on a Saturday... but that's just how it goes.

The drive;

(Yes, I shaved.)

The socks;


Nice classic camo... it's ok to be jealous.

I had a visit from a very special rider from Minnesota; Gilby!

Gilby (her code name) is one of my test/ sponsored riders; she races on a Masi steel Speciale and also races on a Coltello track frame. Gilby raced that frame all the way to US Elite Track Nationals this past year! Needless to say, I'm pretty proud of her and her accomplishments.

Gilby is here this week with her boyfriend and fellow Minnesota racer, Andy Kruse. Gilby and Andy rode to Masi Global World Domination HQ with local blog buddy and fellow rider Nick (on the right).


Seeing as to how Minneapolis just got hammered with a massive "dusting" of snow, I'm sure Andy and Gilby didn't mind the slightly cool weather and the light rain.

Since I didn't get to see Gilby race at track nat's this year, it sure was great to have her come by the HQ and get to meet her now. Thanks guys! (Sorry I gave you bad directions and got you lost... I stink with directions.)

Tim

(PS- My thoughts and prayers are with my fellow Alabamans who were recently hit by the severe storms that spawned deadly tornadoes. The town of Enterprise was hit the hardest with 8 high school kids losing their lives when the school was struck by one of the tornadoes. So please join me in wishing these folks a quick recovery from the damage and condolences to the friends and families of those who were injured or killed.)

Daily Drive

Gettin' a little artsy;


(Yes, I still need to shave. I have sensitive skin... so gimme a break!)

My cheesy socks for the day;


I told them I would wear them... I ain't a-feared! (I love those guys...) Go buy a pair!

Tim