More from Eurobike...

Here are more cool pictures of the fantastic sights of Eurobike... as experienced by yours truly...

I don't care who you are... a Ferrari Colnago is simply Bad Ass!

And this was one of the coolest "retro" rigs I found. It was just kind of tucked away in the Cinelli booth- sort of like an after thought. I, of course, made a bee line for it as soon as I saw it.

These guys had some of the most gorgeous city bikes I have seen. Better yet, I saw several of them in use around the city... proving their appeal.

I like simple, understated graphics like these...

... no wait... like these. Cube is one of the biggest and most popular brands in Germany. I've seen the name before, but never the bikes in person before. They have a very large and impressive range of bikes (thankfully for me, not available here).

I thought the TT bike was pretty cool.

Walking around all day makes you thirsty.

Tim

Cool stuff...

Ok, I found this in my email when I returned from Germany and it is just too darned cool not to share... I've always been a fan of Wired, so this is pretty exciting for me.

Now for some bike porn from Germany!


The bike of Theo Bos... I felt insignificant just standing in front of it.

This was one of the nicest old bikes I saw at the show and in Germany.

This was one of the prettiest looking city bikes I saw at the show, but certainly not the only one. There are more useful, simple, utilitarian bikes in Europe than you can possibly imagine. The US is way behind Europe on this front... way, way behind.


This beauty was in the Brooks booth... I nearly had to lie down after I saw it. Ok, I did lie down, but it might've been from the heavy lunch and the jet lag.

This bike came nicely accessorized... to say the least. The brand is called Starshot and they are primarily a clothing company (with really cool stuff), but they are moving into branded bikes too.

I know this is just a tiny little teaser... but you'll just have to wait another day for more (there's only about a thousand pictures left to go through).

Tim

I'm not dead... it's just jet lag.

So I made it to Eurobike and back, without major incident. How is it that one of the very techiest countries in the world can have such bad wi-fi service? Email and internet was barely functional for me the whole week- hence the total lack of posting. Rest assured though, the camera was out and I got plenty and plenty of pictures.


Right now though, the jet lag is kicking my butt... so I'm off to bed!

Tim

Auf wiedersehen.

Tomorrow morning, before the sun comes up, I'll be at the airport leaving for Germany and Eurobike. This will be my first trip to Germany, so it is also my first time at Eurobike. As a bike nerd, I am pretty excited. I'm really looking forward to seeing all of the big Euro brands and all of the smaller ones I've not yet discovered. Needless to say, I'm taking my camera and will do my best to get some cool pics to share with you all.

So, in light of the fact that I will be gone, the posting might be down for a while. I will try to post from Germany, but it always proves harder than I expect when I am traveling. Still... I'll give it a shot.

Ok, it's off to bed now. I have to be up before 4:00AM to get to the airport and checked in. It's gonna be a long day...

Tim

THIS is what I'm talking about!

Sometimes you receive emails that simply make your day... like this excerpt from my good friend David Parrett, over at Thomson;

First, Christian is in Belgium until September 10^th with USA Cycling at that house they have, racing. Obviously I am beyond words with happiness and pride for him. He has worked really hard this year, and has earned this trip. Pat yourself on the back, you have been part of it. Apparently he smoked some mountain Time Trial at National Camp in Colorado Springs last week.

I mean... damn! It don't get much better than that at all... I don't care who you are. Dave's son Christian is riding on a Masi Gran Criterium- that's the extent of my involvement, the rest is great genes and tons of desire. He's been lighting the Southeast on fire and rode the Tour L'Abitibi for a second time this summer. The kid is a total motor! And Dave is a great guy and a very proud dad, as you can tell.

Christian; here's to you! Just know you have fans all over the place... especially at Masi!

Tim

I guess you like it...

Wow, I guess it is fair to say that new the Speciale SoulVille and Speciale Commuter are proving to be "hits". I mean, the SoulVille has been getting press all over the place- all over the world actually. I found blogs in Turkey and Hong Kong talking about the SoulVille and the Commute by Bike blog has seen some good discussion about the Commuter (as has Cycle-licious). Sure makes a Brand Manager happy... believe me. This is the stuff I live for!

There has been a lot of good dialog going on about these bikes and so I thought I'd pose a few questions and see what you all (y'all) think;

1) Is there enough interest in bringing that Masi leather saddle in as an aftermarket item? It'd sell for somewhere between $75-100 probably, unless I bought insane numbers of them. Would you buy one for that kind of money?

2) Should the Masi fenders be brought in too? They will have a laser etched Masi headbadge on the front and rear ends. Not sure yet of the price, but would they be worth bringing in for sale?

3) I'm already planning more versions of the SoulVille. Wayne (my product manager) and I are already working up different ideas, but what do YOU think the next version should be? 3 or 4 speed? 10 speed? Drop bar or flat/ curved bar? Frameset? Racing frameset- I admit I really want to do this personally- Reynolds 631 or 853 tubing and race geometry. But what fork? The same steel fork or a lightweight carbon fork? A fixie version?

4) Bringing back the Speciale steel road bike with carbon fork and 105/ Ultegra drivetrain. Do we keep it as it was in 2006, with 105/ Ultegra or do we go higher market? Do we even bring back the Speciale Carbon frameset or bike? That Speciale Carbon was the best riding bike I've ridden in 25 years of racing... but that Dedacciai tubing is darned expensive stuff... are you going to buy it? If so, is it a complete bike or just a frameset?

I know I had more... but I'm tired and my brain is turning to mush. So I'll be posting more questions in the near future. Maybe it's time for more Polls to be created for your enjoyment.

(Germany/ Eurobike just two days away.)

Tim

Out of the bag...

Good news travels fast... so now that the bag is open and the cat is running around, might as well make the big announcement;

Say hello to the Speciale SoulVille!


Ain't she a beauty?! (The answer is "yes", of course...)


Double butted chromoly steel with steel fork with lugged crown.


Alloy fenders- very minimal to keep the lines nice and clean. This sample doesn't have it, but we got these with the Masi head badge artwork laser etched on the fenders.


And the custom Masi embossed leather saddle is an awfully yummy touch! I mean... how can you argue with this thing? Oh yeah... you can't!


Though it's really hard to see in this bad photo I took, the grips are fo-real natural cork.

I know... you're already getting sweaty palms and beginning to get dizzy- it's pretty common.

Here are the other pertinent details to get you all hot and bothered;
Internal 8spd rear hub with Revo shifter
Coaster brake (for doing cool skids!)
Simple arc bar
Ritchey adjustable stem
Rack and fenders mount
Cool leather saddle with springs
Super sweet steel tubing and steel fork

It's gonna retail for a little over $800 and is worth every penny- it's just a beauty...


AND it comes in two colors!

Here's the deal- it's designed to be a great all around city bike. Perfect for cruising around town, one hand on the bars, sipping your favorite cup of coffee, wind in your hair and a smile on your face. This bike isn't about "fast"- it's about "fun"... lots of fun.

Ok, discuss amongst yourselves...

Tim (Oh yeah... and this is mine too.)

How to tell I rode my mountain bike...

Tim

Guilt by association...

I almost feel bad for my fellow judges... but not too bad!

I've been meaning to post this news for quite a while, but I've been a tad busy and I'm terribly disorganized these days (stop it). I will be a video contest judge with the likes of Phil Liggett, Bob Roll and my fellow members of the Spokesmen Podcast (David Bernstein- the Fredcast, Carlton Reid- BikeBiz, QuickreleaseTV, Tim Grahl- Crooked Cog and Donna Tocci- Kryptonite). Yep, me with my frequently flailing arms in the same booth as arms-a-flailin' Bob Roll and the voice of cycling himself... Phil Liggett. I'm so beyond unworthy of this, it's amazing. BUT... I'm still gonna do it! The judging will be done at Interbike, so it should be a pretty fun gig.

Here are the details- the contest is sponsored by Shimano and New Belgium Brewing- the folks behind Fat Tire Ale. The rules are here... so go read them and then start filming. Who knows, maybe your video will be the one we like the most. Wouldn't that be pretty cool?

Seriously, I ain't that cool, so I consider this pretty danged exciting for a bike dork like me.

Tim

More Sales Meeting stuff...

Sales Meeting is still done and I am still glad... though it still took me about an hour to type up all the notes that I took during the meeting. At least now I have some good feedback on the bikes and validation of ideas for further development.

The meeting began with a recap of the previous year and an address from our esteemed Boss Man; Joe Hank... I mean HAWK. What you can't see in the picture is the flip flops he's wearing- they were his dress flip flops at least and not the ones with the bottle opener in the sole.

I get a lot of love from folks at work...

... and they're always happy to see my camera come out of the bag.

This is our MTB Brand Manager, Jill Hamilton, and that's a monkey she's spanking.

This is Dave Law, who was recently promoted to Inside Sales Supervisor. The kid is a great artist, as well as a musician and a pretty darned good salesperson too. We might keep him... if he gets that face-thing fixed.


And this is James Ayres, one of our two Regional Sales Managers. He's only been with the company a short while, but he's already proving to be a pretty good asset... despite the silly looks.

This is Brennan Scully, who used to be in our Warranty Services, but he's now in Sales as an Inside Sales Rep. If you ever meet him, like at Interbike this year- ask him how he got the scab on his forehead...

Ok, that's tonight's update. More to come, including a few product pictures even... because I love you.

Tim