Mr. Moulton

In case you didn't see the comment from Dave Moulton in the comments of my post from last night, here it is;

Your post and Neil’s before it got me thinking that it was because of my father
that I got into bikes, and racing, which led to framebuilding.I will post the
story on my blog on Saturday as that is my late father’s birthday.

Just in case you don't know who Dave Moulton is, read this interview I did with him.

His book, Prodigal Child, is a great read and I recommend it to you.

Dave periodically stops by and drops a comment on a post and it always makes me smile. Dave is one of my framebuilding heroes. Having him comment here is a real thrill. I hope you'll take the time to remember to go visit his blog and give his book a read. And, if you've never looked at any of the frames he built over the years, you should do that too.

Thanks Dave.

Tim

Daily Drive

A little artsier composition today.

SockGuy sock dujour;


CCCP! Red Rocker... that's me. Sadly, Wayne Doran (our QC Overlord) wore the same socks today. Now I have to go kill him.

Tim

Why do I race?

Yesterday I posted a link to a blog post by Neil Browne, the editor of ROAD magazine, that talked about why he got into racing bicycles. I thought it was really cool because it had a great story about his father racing in Europe and had a nice presonal touch to it- that always works for me. I also said that I would share some of my own reasoning for racing... so here you go...

I wrote an article for a magazine a few years ago that kind of covers the reasons why and how I got into cycling and racing, but I haven't gone over the topic in a while and Neil got me all inspired.

I got into cycling in 1982 after I first saw Breaking Away. That movie, no fooling, is what got me into cycling. Something about the main character, Dave Stoller, sank in and resonated with me. The fact that he was a bit of a dork and that he confused his parents a lot might have had something to do with it. I fit both categories easily- still do too.

By the time I was 15, I was convinced that I would be the next and greatest American cycling hero. I had studied and worshipped guys like Merckx and Van Looy and LeMond and Kelly. Guys with supreme talent sho fought hard and won. I believed I belonged on the cobbled rodes of Belgium and France, on the steep climbs of France and Spain and in the warmth of the Italian sun. I knew I was destined for a greatness nobody else saw in me. (OK, so I was wrong.)

By the time I was 18, I realized my dream wasn't very likely, especially after trashing both knees doing track and field events in high school and nearly destroying the cartilage in my right knee doing the high jump. I took nearly two years off of the bike and poured myself into my other passion- writing (and girls). I worked in a coffee shop and did poetry readings and started smoking until I got up to 3 packs a day. Cycling was still in the back of my mind and I followed it from a distance still. Then, one night while I was at work and having a cigarette on a break, I decided I wanted to ride again and put the cigarette out in the ashtray and quit on the spot. The very next day the parents of a guy I went to high school with and rode with called me to tell me they had my bike in their garage (he'd stolen it from me) and wanted to know if I wanted to come pick it up... after freaking out I borrowed a coworker's car (since I only had a Vespa) and drove to get my bike that afternoon. I was in heaven! I still had shoes, shorts, a crappy helmet and a razor. I shaved my legs and went for a ride as soon as I got home with the bike.

For about 3 weeks, I rode every day as often and for as long as I could when I wasn't at work. Then one day I came home to my apartment, where I lived with two roommates, to get a shower before going to work. While I was in the shower, somebody came in to the entryway of our apartment and re-stole the bike. It would take me another year before I could buy another bike.

By the time I did get a new bike, I was not to be deterred and I rode everywhere all the time. I got rid of the Vespa and didn't have a car. I was a bike-only guy. My ride to work was 12 miles each way. Many mornings or afternoons, I would turn that commute into a 40 mile loop. It didn't take all that long to reach the best fitness I'd had in my entire life. I was racing again and I was doing really well. It felt great.

In 1993 I finally got a track bike after wanting one for years and after riding on the velodrome on my road bike (we had open access to the track in those days). Ever since that time, I have been addicted to track cycling and racing. It is my passion within a passion. I love cycling, but track cycling is what really gets me excited. I was never that great a sprinter on the road until I started racing on the track and now I am a dedicated sprinter both on the road and the track. Keirin, Match Sprint and the occasional Kilo- that's me. Put me in a crit and if I can keep from vomitting and stay in to the end, you better believe I'm planning to win that final sprint.

Now that I'm almost 37 years old, I have finally given up on winning Olympic medals or turning pro. I still believe that I had the talent at one time in my life when I was younger, but I'm not complaining or saying I was denied. Life has been pretty good to me. I have a great family and a great job that is a dream come true, so I can't complain. Sure, I still believe that if I can find a way to train "for real" again, that maybe I could be a top level master's racer and maybe even compete at Master's Worlds on the track (in Sydney the next 3 years). But mostly I race now when I can and because I love to do it. I love to race my bicycle. I love to be in the thick of the action. I love the speed, the exhiliration, the bumping elbows, the fighting for position, the last corner on the last lap of a crit... getting sweaty palms thinking about it. Every year I tell myself that I'm done. No more racing. No more training. No more pressure. And then that urge comes back just as strong as when I was 12 years old and wanted to be bouncing on the cobbles of Flanders.

I love to race- that is why I do it.

Tim

Daily Drive

Masidaughter's amazing cuteness makes up for my need to shave.

SockGuy sock dujour?


You'll never go wrong with the Lion of Flanders!

Tim

Nice read...

Neil, the Editor of ROAD magazine, has a blog and has a great post on why he got into racing. It's a pretty good read, so go check it out.

I will expand on this topic myself, but it is a great conversation starter; why did you/ do you race bicycles?

Tim

Daily Drive

A chilly morning today. It's not supposed to get warmer than 60 today... brrr....

SockGuy sock dujour? Custom Royale;

Adams Ave still has a place in my heart, even after the very controversial race...

Tim

Spokesmen Podcast #8

Early this morning we recorded another Spokesmen Podcast. Another good listen and a tad shorter than the last one. I think I did a little better job of not talking the entire time... I think.

Tim
(PS- No Daily Drive today because I am home with my daughter who has a nasty cold, as do I, so she couldn't go to school. I am however wearing SockGuy white Royale socks...)

Daily Drive- Thanksgiving Edition

Off to my Mom's house for the Big Feast...

SockGuy sock dujour; brown wool. (Yeah, I know the link is to the wrong color... gimme a break it's Thanksgiving!)


As predicted, I carved the turkey(s)...

This is my newest nephew, Jack, in his Daddy's lap at the dinner table; clearly an unhappy child.

Masidaughter likes her cousin too.

I know there were requests for the "I'm gonna barf" face, but you'll have to settle for the...

... "I ate so much I fell asleep while testing the chair for suitable comfort" face. it has to be said that I was pretty doped-up on cold medication at the time too. I've got one of the worst colds I've had in years, but modern medicine will bring me back to life... I just know it will.

So once again, from the Masiguy and the Masifamily- Happy Thanksgiving!

Tim

Thanksgiving fun from Masidaughter

Masidaughter has her own blog now- thanks to Masiwife.

She's in the Thanksgiving spirit!

Tim
(Hope you are having a wonderful day!)

Happy Turkey* Day (*or turkey flavored tofu product)

Here we are at another Thanksgiving. Holidays like this are frequently full of too much commercialism and Hallmark sponsored moments, running from one family house to the next, cramming kids into cars, then pulling them out, then getting back in, etc, etc... However, Thanksgiving is one of those holidays that actually holds some sway over me.

Thanksgiving, for me, represents one of the occasions where I get to see my extended family and have great food and great fun. Since I am the one with the knife reputation in the family, I usually end up carving a turkey or two and maybe even a ham or two. As official holiday food carver, I get to sample along the way, so I'm not complaining.

I come from a reasonably large family that expands and contracts like all families do. Over the years some of may favorite relatives have passed away and I miss them terribly. All of my Grandparents have passed away, a favorite Aunt and all of the Great Grandparents years before. Each of these big family shindigs remind me of them and the wonderful memories I have of them. It ends up being a good thing- not a bad one. Over the years, the family has been blessed with children, including my own. I have nieces and nephews and cousins aplenty. I will invariably end up on the floor of the den or living room, tickling a nephew, niece, daughter or cousin. Screams will ensue, giggling will turn to shrieks and somebody will end up bonking their head on the coffee table (usually me) and fun will be had by all.

At some point, I will eat way too much and will give my wife that "I'm gonna explode" face that grosses her out (and makes me laugh). The couch will call my name and I will come close to falling asleep until I'm called into the kitchen to discuss something (could be anything). I might get out on the porch with a brother-in-law and have a nice cigar, or maybe just a good beer. Undoubtedly, I'll feel bloated when I climb into the car for the last time for the day.

By the time we get home, my daughter will likely be asleep in the backseat and I'll carry her up the stairs and her hot breath will make my neck sweaty. And I'll be smiling the whole way to her room where she'll likely sleep with her dress on. Our son will flop out on the couch and find something on TV and my wife and I will be exhausted. I'll probably shoot her the "I'm gonna barf" face again just to watch her cringe.

Eventually I'll finally get to go back to bed. Maybe I'll snack on some leftover turkey before I actually end up in bed. Ok, probably I will. Ok, fine, I definitely will.

In the end, I'm thankful every day, but days like Thanksgiving do remind me to stop complaining about the crap that doesn't matter and to just bask in the good things in my life. I have a family that I love very much, a job that I love very much, friends (both here and all over the place- you know who you are) who mean the world to me and I get to ride my bike more days than not.

I hope you have the chance to bask in the things that make you happy too. Be thankful for what you have and don't sweat the things that you don't have. Enjoy your families, friends and loved ones.

Tim

Daily Drive

More fog;... but as usual it burns off and gets sunny...

SockGuy dujour?


V is for Victory. Some people might want to remember that for Saturday night... 3-Peat!

Special thanks to the Squirrel for the Guinness last night... yummy.

Tim

Daily Drive

A little foggy on the way in this morning...

Oh, we all know who the winner is today;

SockGuy dujour; limited edition Atari...

Skinny didn't bother to post yesterday and I'm sure today will be the same. I am the King of Socks... or at least the Viceroy.

Tim

Special sock post for fritz.

Fritz has been complaining that the sock dujour posts have not shown the socks in their natural and intended environment, so I got a special shot today just for him;


Quite possibly the most significant sock ever created by SockGuy. from what I hear, they had a team of engineers working on these socks around the clock until they were done. Using only the finest craftspeople available in the sock world. It really makes sense if you think about it.

Happy Fritz?

Tim

Daily Drive; Thanks Al!

Today I became one of the beautiful people, thanks to my pal Al Bellon. The hat and jacket put me into a new category of beautiful... or at least not as dumb looking (I hope). A&F rocks, thanks to Al!

The SockGuy sock dujour; Blue Camo

You can never have enough blue camo or timeless, classic Adidas Campus shoes.

Thanks again to Al- much appreciated my friend.

Tim

Spokesmen Podcast #7

This last week I was a guest once more on the Spokesmen Podcast. It's a great listen, so go there... NOW!

Among the topics we discussed:

Eurobike Challenges Interbike

How Will the U.S. Elections Effect
Cycling?

French Lab Hacked

Dick Pound Says We Need Facts

Why is Tyler Hamilton Being Treated Differently than
Others?

Tyler Hamilton Competes in a Triathlon

Lance Armstrong Competes in New York City
Marathon

A Brief Discussion of Carbon Composites

It's less than hour... and I even periodically let the other guys get a word in. (I apologize again to my fellow Spokesmen for rambling a bit much... I can't stop myself.)

Tim

Smooth.

Since I was 12 years old, I've been shaving my legs for cycling. I've missed a few years along the way, due to injuries and a short break from cycling after high school. Still, for the better part of 24 years, I've been putting razor to skin at least once a week and very often 2-3 times a week- especially during the racing season.

There was a time when I was a kid and in the early years of my racing carreer when I sincerely believed that I was going to turn pro and be the next LeMond. In fact, when I began shaving my legs in 1982, LeMond had just gotten 2nd at the road World Championships (he won his first World title the next year).

Over the years, I've grown comfortable with the knowledge that I will not ever win the Tour de France or the World Professional road championships. I'm fool enough to still cling to the hope that one day I could maybe win the Masters World Championship on the track... it's still my dream (I just have to outlive all of my competitors).

In the 24 years that I've been shaving my legs, I've answered the "why" question more times than Jack Abramoff handed out checks to Republican Congressmen. That's a lot folks... At my advanced age now, I probably shave my legs as much for the reason that it's just "what I do" as much as any "real" reason.

In the early days of cycling, riders shaved their legs for multiple reasons; one was to allow bandages to stick to the skin better after crashes (which were frequent at the time) and the other was to ease pre and post ride/ race massage (no painful hair pulling). As things modernized and races were won by tenths, then hundredths and now thousandths of seconds, shaving became more popular for aerodynamics. Many riders now even shave their arms- especially for important time trial races.

For those of us who don't have to worry about pre or post race massage or winning or losing big races by narrow margins, shaving is the number one way we identify ourselves as cyclists in this world. Other cyclists know we are "serious" about our sport or our riding because they can see our smooth legs. Granted, we could just be swimmers or triathletes, but the legs look different usually (and they usually have the upper body strength that most cyclists never will). It has really come to be a cycling status symbol more than anything else. It is the badge of seriousness, dedication, passion or belief. Over the years I have known many guys with shaved legs who you'd never ever know rode bikes otherwise. Shaving sets us apart from the unwashed masses of non-cyclists (or those dirty little mountain bikers who don't shave).

Cyclists on group rides without shaved legs are frequently marginalized due to their "Fred" (goober) status. The funny thing there is that I have also known some guys who could kick most pro riders to the curb in a race who had hairy legs. Walk in to a "pro" bike shop with hairy legs and it might take a few hours for a salesperson to acknowledge your presence. Walk in with shaved legs and you might still wait forever, but you have better chances anyway.

I've been shaving my legs for so long now that I don't know if I'll ever be able to stop. Each time I stop for a while, the hair just freaks me out and I feel dirty and gross. And I'm pretty neurotic about the shaving too- I've been known to get pretty upset if I find that I've missed any offending hair after a shave. My wife, bless her amazing heart, is less worried about her legs than I am of mine... which raises some concerns about my mental stability. I'd dare say that I am the one most likely to offer our daughter tips and advice when she begins to shave her legs. (Daddy is already her wardrobe assistant after all.)

So whether you shave your legs or not, enjoy each and every ride you take. I'm gonna keep obsessing about my own shaved legs, but I won't pass judgement on you for having hair or just a little stubble. Either way, you're part of my weird little family and I love you just the same.

Tim

Daily Drive; the Smackdown Edition

A little love for my brothers at Adams Avenue Bike Shop...

And today's SockGuy sock dujour; Che.

My skinny little buddy over at iheartbikes has thrown down a challenge on sock choices. He's in for the biggest butt-whoopin' of his skinny little life. Bring it! It's been broughten!

You can not deny the sheer raw power of Che with old school Airwalk flame shoes. Seriously, I'm unstoppable.

Tim
(Happy Friday folks!)

Since you people seem to like bike pictures...

A special thanks goes out to my good buddy Matt at Kenda Tires for providing the new pictures. AND, class, Matt is thinking of blogging, so let's all give him a big round of support and encourage him to get going!

Nuova Strada frames drying after painting and washing...

Here they are going through the wash process...

Waiting to get built into complete bikes...

Enough to make a Brand Manager cry into his Scotch.

Tim
(PS- Yesterday's pics were provided by our very own Wayne "Taiwayne/ Wainbow" Doran.)

Daily Drive

Masidaughter; happy girl today.


Today's SockGuy sock dujour; Blue wool Royale... yummy! (Yes Squirrel...)

Tim

Another real post... products, pictures, cool stuff, etc.

I know I've been whining for months about being too busy to blog much and I know that lately the vast majority of my posts have been the Daily Drive pictures of myself. Well... it's still true. I'm still super busy (you guys want cool new bikes, right) and so the blogging has continued to take a hit. I promise I'm working on it... I promise.

First up, the blatant sales part of this program;

The new Speciale Fixed and CXR are both due to be arriving here this month. Both bikes are on the way and have already been shipped. If you want one of these bikes, I strongly suggest that you go to your retailer and place your order now. There might be a waiting list for the Speciale Fixed especially on this first delivery. We have lots of them coming, but this first shipment is going to sell out almost the second it arrives- in particular the 51 and 53cm sizes.

Here's a Speciale Fixed going down the assembly line...

... and a CXR. Sorry, I can't tell what sizes these are from the photos.

Soon on the heels of these lovely bikes will be the new Coltello Aero. You know you want one, so go tell your local bike shop to order you one- if you haven't already.

If that doesn't make your heart skip a little, then maybe this one will...

Isn't that a beautiful site? I know it makes me smile each time I look at these pictures.

Now we move on to the cool new shtuff part of our program...

Behold-
Carbon. Yummy, yummy carbon. Just so happens it is my size (imagine that). Just waiting on the new fork and a drivetrain and this hottie will be my new steed for the upcoming season. I'll have more info about this frame and the way it rides very soon (I hope). I've already got a sweet set of Easton EC90SLX bars and new Thomson seatpost and stem. Just need to throw my Arione on, bolt on some parts and it'll be off to the scales for a weigh-in. My first guess- 16lbs for a 61cm bike. Pretty freakin' light!

Remember this thing? This is the prototype frame I built up with the SRAM Rival group. So far both are really doing quite well. The group is really good, with the only complaint still being with the front shifting- just a little stiff and you can't adjust the derailleur position in the shifting range. Other than that, I'm still very pleased with the performance of the parts. No issues yet with wear and tear, but it's only been a month.

The frame is also doing really well. It would be something that would be our second-tier carbon frame, not our lightest most bad-ass frame. Still, it has proven to be a very good riding bike. In fact, at 50mph on a downhill near the office, I let go of the bars and sat up and the bike stayed straight as an arrow with no hands on the bars at speed. That's a stable ride there. It so far is riding well and looks like it might even have a good chance of making the cut for the line-up. More details as I can share them.

More Shimano...

I am still kind of geeking out over the new tubeless wheels and how well they ride. I rode my Dura Ace wheels today with some nice Kenda Konstrictor tires that I've been riding since Las Vegas in September. I love the DA wheels- they have held up to every ounce of my weight and the punishing riding I've done on them and have stayed perfect. The only complaint I've ever had is about the weight. For a high-end wheel, they're just a little heavy. BUT they do accelerate well and have been flawless. The new wheels are very light and the tires are also light. Hutchinson has done a great job with the tires, though I am told that some other folks are soon going to have tubeless road tires available. There are some other things that have me geeking out, but I can't say anything about them yet... just cool stuff. Trust me. Also, since Shimano is the distributor (and the maker/ owner) of PRO products, I am looking forward to learning more about that stuff. From what I've seen, there is some really great product in that line as well.

Ok folks, I'm losing consciousness and have a podcast to do at the crack of dawn. I'm off to bed...

Tim

Daily Drive

Happy drive this morning... because the traffic wasn't so stupid today. I watched three idiots spin off the freeway yesterday in the fog/rain (frain?)...

SockGuy sock dujour;
iheartbikes socks... as if I really need to tell you that.

Tim

Coolest video of the day!

I'm ripping this off from the Blue Squirrel- he can use the traffic anyway...

That's an amazing video. Very well done and so many levels of interest.

Tim

Daily Drive

Foggy and a little rainy today- maybe that explains the glum look.

Today's SockGuy sock dujour; Red Royale baby!

Tim

Cobbles Baby!

Urgent news release from the inimitable Jessi Pacetti;

He's done it again! Gonzo filmmaker and cycling
wild man Scott Coady has just finished Cobbles Baby! which chronicles his non
stop, over the top adventures at Paris-Roubaix, the bicycle race usually called
The Hell of the North. The world premiere of Cobbles Baby! will be
November 16-21 at some of the most fabulous theaters in northern California
including the Art Deco masterpiece Grand Lake Theatre and the utterly charming
Orinda Theatre. Check out all the details below.

Coady's first
film The Tour Baby! was a breakout success earning cult status among cyclists
around the world. Cobbles Baby! chronicles Scott Coady's adventures to get
up close and personal to the hardest one-day bike race on the planet.
Along the way he has full access to American strongman George Hincapie and the
U.S. Postal Service cycling team. Coady's trademark "dumb luck" strikes
again when he finds himself drinking in a pub with commentators Phil Liggett and
Paul Sherwin. The scene gets even wilder when Irish cycle racing legend Sean
Kelly wanders in for a pint. Not to be missed.

Pez Cycling News
said the film put viewers "right in the middle of the action...I could easily
imagine standing on a dirt path along one of the famed cobbled sections, and I
think I actually smelled the dirt!"

Filmmaker Scott Coady will
attend each and every screening, and furthermore will sign his DVDs (which will
be on sale), chat with the audience and answer all your questions. Also, there
will be a raffle each night of valuable stuff from Fox Racing, Mountain
Hardwear, Clif Bar, and CamelBak.

If that's not enough to
get your butt into a seat, check this out: all the proceeds from this six night
movie extravaganza will be shared by two fabulous organizations. The
NorCal High School Mountain Bike Racing League (yeah! get those youngsters on
the single track trails). Check them out at http://www.norcalmtb.org/events/cobbles/index.htm And the Davis Phinney Foundation to improve the
lives of people living with Parkinson's disease. By the way, among those people
is the former Tour de France competitor Davis Phinney himself. http://www.davisphinneyfoundation.org/

Six theaters over six nights, so get your ticket
now now now. This event is sure to sell out just like all of Scott's previous
movies. Scott will see you there! For all the news on Scott and his
latest crazed adventures check out http://www.bigringfilms.com/

Larkspur - Thursday, 11/16 - Lark Theatre - 7
pm
Oakland - Thursday, 11/16 - Grand Lake Theatre - 8 pm
Santa Cruz -
Friday 11/17 - Rio Theatre - 7 pm
San Francisco - Saturday, 11/18 - Randall
Museum - 7 pm
San Jose - Sunday, 11/19 - Camera 12 Downtown - 7 pm
Orinda
- Tuesday, 11/21 - Orinda Theater - 7 pm

Tickets can be purchased
at: http://www.norcalmtb.org/events/cobbles/index.htm Buy your ticket now, and we'll mail it by
Thursday, November 9th. Otherwise, we'll hold it for you at the door.

Sold out shows are expected, please purchase in advance or plan to
arrive early. TICKETS AVAILABLE AT DOOR unless otherwise stated. Check http://www.norcalmtb.org
day of event.

Go see it!

Tim

Daily Drive

Sunny and "cool"- about 56 this morning (but I'm still wearing shorts)...

SockGuy sock dujour; Evil in the tall wool. (Sorry, no link to this sock...)

Tim

Daily Drive

You can not deny the power of a denim jacket- that's all I'm saying.

Today's SockGuy sock of choice (since I wear SockGuy socks every day); Dopers Suck.

Tim

Hairy scary!

I can't believe you people; I hear more from you about shaving my face than I hear about almost anything else... you crack me up!

So here you go- new haircut too;


The test is of course whether or not Masiwife approves...

Tim

Daily Drive- Change is good

Figure it out...

Tim

Top Secret; my visit to Shimano...

Yesterday was my yearly visit to see the fine folks at Shimano for information regarding new products and whatnot... oh baby...

Sadly, the only bummer about the trip is that there was no sushi involved. However, I did get some yummy Mexican food for lunch and was promised another visit for sushi. Fwew!

As is the case each year- I can't really say anything about the new products. All of the things we saw and info we received has timetables for when it is ok to mention it. Needless to say, I am sticking with those guidelines again this year. I did the same before and have done the same with SRAM.

So... all I can say is there are cool things coming. AND... it's amazing how technology has progressed. The things that show up on bikes now are amazing. Prices are insanely cheap on bikes when you consider what is on them these days. I am always amazed by exactly how much we get on bikes now. Components are just incredible now.

What I can tell you about is the new WH-R7801SL Dura Ace wheelset. These are the Scandium rim wheels that are tubeless compatible with the new Hutchinson tubeless tires. There is obviously a lot of marketing hype behind these wheels and the tires- especially since Hutchinson is currently the only tire supplier with a tubeless road tire on the market and Shimano has the only tubeless compatible wheelset on the market. However, I have to admit that the marketing is at least mostly true. I was very impressed with the wheels in the half hour I was able to ride them. Since they are tubeless, you can run them at lower pressure, since there is no tube to worry about pinching. This gives the wheel a much nicer road feel- much like a sew-up. On top of it, the wheels themselves are pretty darned light and the Scandium rim provides a very comfortable ride. Add the wheel weight to the rim ride quality and the tire suppleness and you have a very comfortable wheel system. I was very impressed and I can honestly recommend the wheels after my ride.

Hiding in the shade is Daniel Limburg. Daniel is not just my OEM sales guy at Shimano, but somebody I call a friend. And yes, I admit it, I'm jealous of his trips to Japan to work with the Shimano important people. Why? Because of the sushi!

The important bike in this picture is the gorgeous Masi leaning against the Shimano truck, towards the front... ummm... Masi...

In the background of the photo is "Q". Q is one of Shimano tech support guys. One of the roving, traveling mechanical nomads you see at events. One of the important people who works for months on end without a day off, traveling to event to event to event to event... So if you see the guys at an event, take'em a case of beer (preferably already cold) and give'em a big thanks. They do what they do because they love it, but it is very tough work keeping folks on their bikes.

If you see this in your rearview mirror, hopefully you're on your way to the same event. If not, just move out of the way and give'em a smile and a wave!

So even though I really can't say anything about the new Shimano product yet, I will do what I have done for the past two years and just say... wow! Being a bike nerd is really cool on days like yesterday, when you get to sit in a conference room and fondle new parts that only a few other people have ever seen. That's pretty darned cool.

Thank you to Daniel and Shimano!

Tim

Daily Drive

Ok, no bugs in my eyes this time...Glasses keep the bugs out... but so does keeping the window rolled up.

More later...

Tim

Daily Drive- late night edition

Something came in through the window at the exact wrong time... too funny.

Bigger post to follow- this post was late due to being at Shimano for the day looking at super-duper new stuff that I can't talk about yet... but it's cool.

Tim