I love my WIFE... more than I love fi'zi:k.

I'm in a kettle of hot water over the last post about loving fi'zi:k. If you check the comments of that post, you'll see that there is one that begs for a bit of clarification as to where my affecctions lie.

So, in hopes of regaining a spot in my own bed this evening, let me set the record straight; I love my wife. I love her even more than a great Italian saddle with titanium rails and a super comfy t-shirt. I really dig the saddle and the shirt, but I can't think of anything or anyone I love more than my wife.

There.

Now, honey, can I sleep in the bedroom tonight and not on the couch or in my car?

Tim

Who do I love today?

Before I forget; thank you Suzette.


Here's my nice new t-shirt, which is super comfy, just as I was told it would be. Then there is a new "skunkworks" top-secret super special saddle to test. I could tell you what it is, but then I'd get my ass kicked by Suzette. Don't let her fool you- she's tough as nails.

I'll let you all know how the saddle rides.

And yes, I know it's a stupid picture.

Tim

My apologies to Gary Fisher.

I like to think of myself as being reasonably not-a-total-dork. Now, my co-workers here think I'm completely out of mind. They would assert that I'm a total wanker, among other things.

You may remember a few weeks ago when I was told "you look like Beeker" and I polled you, the reading public about this dilemna. Well, they are at it again. This time I am told that I look like Gary Fisher. Gary, though a handsome and intelligent man, is no Masiguy. Now, some would reverse that and say that I am no Fish Man (though I can catch fish really well).















Please settle this little argument for me; do I look like Gary Fisher? Yes or no?

Tim

I'm still here, I swear.

I'm sorry this space has been so vacant of posts lately. I have tons of things to talk about, but too little time right now. This is a very exciting time for me and the brand. I want to talk about a lot of things, but have been playing catch up for what seems like months. Maybe tonight, after the wife and kids are tucked away in bed (when I should be sleeping too), I'll put up a few posts.

Don't lose interest, please, I swear I'll be back with new and exciting things to talk about.

Until then, here's a picture from a last minute trip last night;

This time I rembered the camera and got a few good shots of the fishing action. That's a nice looking Bay Bass and it hit the fly like a freight train. Now and again, you just have to take a moment to relax. The Bay was beautiful last night, with glassy water and clear skies... until the wind picked up, the fog rolled in and it got damned cold.

Ok, more later, but back to work now...

Tim

Tragic accident leads to cyclist's death.

On Thanksgiving day, a local San Diego cyclist was killed in a freak accident while riding. I have been racking my brains to figure out if he is somebody I know, but since I am horrible with names I would have to see him and his bike to know him. However, many people I know do know him and their lives have been touched by this tragic death.

If you take the time to read the obituary, you'll see a trust has been established for the family of Dr. Michael Hart, but I am adding it below this post as well. If you can, please make a donation.

As a cyclist and a parent/ husband, this tragic news really struck me. I have to admit that while I was riding yesterday, flying down a hill, I had a moment of terror as I thought of my wife and kids. I've talked to two of Dr. Hart's friends who have both stated that he wouldn't want either of them to give up cycling out of fear of what happened to him, knowing how much they all loved riding. It is true that you have to keep going and not allow fear to take away the things in your life that bring you joy. I'd be a miserable S-O-B if I didn't ride and my wife would likely want to kill me. I've certainly come close to being killed many times while riding. It's always on my mind, but the health benefits and the joy cycling brings me will hopefully extend my life rather than shorten it. I know it is a hollow consolation to say to Dr. Hart's wife and kids that he died doing the thing he loved to do, but it is the truth.

I know that I can never say or do anything that will change this reality for his family, so there is no point in trying. My thoughts and prayers are with them and all of his friends and family. I'll probably think of him a lot for a while, maybe forever, and try to be as safe as I can be.

Tim

Donations are suggested to the Michael Hart Memorial Fund, c/o Grossmont Family Medical Group, 5525 Grossmont Center Drive, No. 200, La Mesa, CA 91942.

Proof that my wife loves me;

Here's a little proof that my wife loves me.

This is an excerpt from an email she sent me from her work- it's titled "The Katie Update";

Katie didn’t want to wear the clothes I picked out for her and she was laying on the floor whining. I said “What is wrong with you?” and she responded,
“Well you know, Mommy, Daddy didn’t make my lunch for me and he didn’t get down my clothes for me and now he’s left for work – and he didn’t give me a kiss and a hug and say goodbye.”
If that doesn’t slay you, I just don’t know what will!

She's out to kill me. You read it here first, just in case they find my body floating in the bay...

Tim

Taliah Lempert show dates;

Jeez, I almost forgot to post this information. As I have stated before, I am a big, big fan of the bicycle artwork of Taliah Lempert. As such, I am also an evangelist for her work. If you are anywhere near her shows, I strongly recommend going to see one.

Here is the latest schedule Taliah has sent to me;

There’s a couple events coming up,
http://www.bicyclepaintings.com/info/upcomingshows.html

I’ll have some work in the Small Works Show at The Harmon Gallery in Wellfleet, MA
There’s an opening reception on Saturday, November 26, 5-7,
the show is up through the end of December,
the gallery will open weekends Saturdays 10am - 5pm, Sundays 12 - 5pm

And

I have a piece in a raffle to benefit the New Orleans Bike Build project, http://www.moscarda.com/nobb/katrina_content.html
which is sending 10 NYC bike mechanics, including my good buddies Arone and Jared, to New Orleans to build bikes for the people.
The benefit is on Tuesday November 29th, 6-11pm, it’s $10 to get in, it will be a good time for a good cause!
Raffle tickets are 1 for $5 and 5 for $20

Drugs in cycling?

I'm still sitting in a turkey-induced coma and read that Roberto Heras' B sample has come back positive for EPO. How could that be? He's innocent after all.

Honestly, I hope he is innocent because I like the guy. He's a quiet guy who just seems to ride his bike and not get too caught up in his celebrity or in trash-talking. Basically, he appears to be a decent person.

But... it does all seem suspect. I mean, both samples were positive (or "non-negative" as they say in Europe most the time). If you look at how he rode at the Tour in July and the the way he rode at the Vuelta, he does appear to have risen from the dead to kick some serious ass with his stage wins and better-than-ever time trialing. Was he just that off in the Tour and that on at the Vuelta? I hope...

BUT... there is a pattern in our beloved sport. Cry foul, claim that the test is flawed or that the supplements were tainted without your knowledge, you didn't know what the team doctors were giving you, etc, etc... and then come clean in a sobbing breakdown/ confession and suddenly become a media/ fan favorite. Admittedly, it doesn't always work, nor are all of the accused actually guilty. Still, cycling and every other sport in the world has a problem with drugs. The UCI is pretending to make an effort to get rid of dopers, as is USA Cycling. WADA thinks both organizations aren't doing enough and the IOC seems to be somewhere in the middle.

Here are my two gripes on this (for today);
1) Why in the hell is Amgen, maker/developer of EPO, the title sponsor of the new Tour of California? Really. How on earth does this make sense? Cycling needs big corporate sponsors to make races happen, but this one just feels all wrong.
2) Cycling is going to get hammered in the media for this, but cycling actually has one of the very best records in sport for detecting and penalizing dopers. In our sport, people get suspended/ banned and fined... on the first offense. Baseball? Get caught a dozen times and we're gonna fine you a couple bucks and then ask you not to do it again- unless you still want to and are going to hit a lot of home runs. Football and basketball? Here's your drugs, now go play! Cynical? Yes I am. A little bitter too. I admit it.

To borrow a quote from my wife; "Here's the thing..." Doping in sport exists and always will as long as there is fame or fortune to be had by either the athlete or team/ sponsor, somebody. Cheating, in the way of doping, has been around since the dawn of competition. Anybody who believes it doesn't happen is seriously delusional. Anybody who believes that there aren't teams or organizations or national federations that do not actively encourage doping are just as delusional. It's there and it always will be. Are there clean athletes? Yes, most athletes are clean.

Sport has been plagued with the problem for a very long time and it isn't going away any time soon. Let's just stop acting surprised when somebody gets caught. Let's also stop ignoring our roll in this all; as fans we want to see faster/ stronger/ better athletes. Well, we are getting that. The media, the sponsors and the fans place an amazing amount of pressure on athletes to perform. We spend a lot of money on our heroes and that money becomes important.

I hope Roberto is innocent, just like I hope Tyler is innocent, but I'm not going to be heartbroken if either is really guilty. I'll be sorry they got caught- caught trying to give me a thrilling and compelling reason to love my sport.

Drugs in cycling? Yeah sure, you bet there is.

Tim

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am sitting here, after a massive computer crash that saw me lose more than about 2 hours of work in Excel (I know- I should have auto save going) and thinking about being thankful.

Tomorrow, I will be stuffing my carcass full of turkey, some ham, maybe a little prime rib, tons of mashed 'taters and heaping mounds of stuffing. All of which will be swimming in a veritable Lake Superior of gravy. I might just have to slip into my fly fishing waders.

This year, I'm thankful for my family as always. I have a wonderful wife and two great kids. I know I'm lucky to have the people in my life who are close to me. I try to remember that everyday, but sometimes life gets in the way of being grateful. Tomorrow, when I stare at the spread of food at my mother's house and then my mother-in-law's house (yeah, both families are here), I will be thankful for my family the most.

I'm also very thankful for my job. I love this job. Anybody who knows me or who has met me knows that is true. I get pretty excited and passionate about what I do and the brand I get to be the steward of. It's a great gig and even with the frustrations that come with the job, like any, I am very lucky to have this slice of employment heaven to call my own.

Cheesy as it may sound, I am also very thankful to have hooked up with Chad and Team Inferno for the coming race season. Believe it or not, I really am excited about this. I love racing, so being a part of a program I believe can do really well makes me really very happy and excited. Chad and the guys have already proven to be good guys and I am looking forward to hopefully meeting the whole team at their training camp.

A little over a year ago, I was hit by a car in a hit-n-run and left for dead. I obviously came out of that incident ok, but now that the major effects of the incident are fading away and I am left with just a few more inches of scars, I am very thankful to be healthy again. I get to go home to my wife and kids every day (unless I'm out of town) and I still get to ride a bike and have fun doing it. Why wouldn't I be thankful for that.

My thoughts and prayers this year will be with lots of folks, but I am really sending my most positive energies to the folks hit by Hurricane Katrina. Again, as a transplanted Alabamian, I know what those storms are like and still have family in the region. I sincerely wish the foks of Louisiana and Mississippi the very best and hope that their lives return to normal quickly. Every time I see images of the destruction, my heart just breaks a little more.

This year, I hope we all take a moment to take stock of the things we have that others might not and remember that we all have at least something to be thankful for.

Tim

Get them doggies rollin'... Rawhide!

Cyclingnews ran the team press release today (albeit at the bottom of the page- best for last), so the team is once again in the news. Yippee!

More team developments will be following soon... I promise.

Tim