Our 1st Annual Turkey Fondo!

On Thanksgiving morning we hosted our Turkey Fondo ride from the shop. We were quite pleased with a huge turnout and had a blast. The Mobile Press Register even showed up to cover the ride.

http://blog.al.com/entertainment-press-register/2011/11/for_some_thanksgiving_is_a_day.html




Post ride we enjoyed homemade pumpkin cinnamon muffins and coffee (with the Baileys Irish Cream option). Mark your calendar for the 2nd Annual Turkey Fondo next Thanksgiving!

Product Review: Fizik Kurve

It's rare that I'll review a new product but every now and then I feel that it is needed. Allow me to introduce my favorite saddle, the Fizik Kurve. We were lucky enough to be one of the first shops in the southeast to get a test ride on this saddle. Katie and I both spent 2 weeks on the Kurve Bull (Aliante shape) and the Kurve Snake (Arione shape). There are 3 shapes to this saddle that replicate the 3 shapes in the Fizik line. All of he shapes use 3 levels of carbon the achieve the perfect amount of flex where needed.

If you look at the first picture you will notice the saddle taken apart. This is easily done with a T-20 wrench. Why you ask? Because you can change out the nose clip which tunes the firmness of the saddle. The saddle comes with a soft clip and a hard clip.

Take notice of the seat rails too. You will notice a strange, yet brilliant shape. Most traditional saddles have seat rails that end right under your sit-bone causing a pressure point where you don't want pressure. The rails on the Kurve scoop through the very back of the saddle and the nose suspending the saddle like a hammock.

Looking at the top of the Kurve saddle you will notice that it has a plastic-looking edge wrapping around. This is actually a flexible material that is very durable, no more ripping up the edges of your saddle.

As far as the ride quality of the saddle, it feels great. I did a 122 mile loop around Mobile Bay without a drop of chamois cream and never felt a need for it. The saddle moves with you and has a very unique feel to it. I developed a preference towards the soft setting.

Unfortunately as with most test products we had to turn our Kurve saddles back in. We resisted but that's how it goes sometimes. Soon we will both be back on Kurve saddles and live happily ever after.

Ribbon Cutting

This morning the Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce and the mayor came by for our ribbon cutting ceremony. It's a few months behind our grand opening but it's better late than never.

USA Triathlon Level 1 Coach Certification Class

Hello All!

Katie here telling you about my adventures to Portland, OR. My mission was simple, become a certified USA Triathlon coach, or so I thought. The schedule seemed harmless enough but once it started my note taking skills had become rusty since I graduated more than a few years back and my brain went into overdrive trying to soak up all the information.

First up was Bob Seebohar; MS, RD, CSSD, CSCS, 2008 USA Triathlon Olympic Sport Dietitian
Sport Dietitian, Exercise Physiologist, and High Performance Endurance Coach. Talk about starting off with a bang! My jaw was on the floor more than just a few times. I learned nutrition periodization, what it takes to fuel the body (I was way off on what I thought I knew!), when to fuel the body (I was way off there too!), what goes on in the body, and so much more!

Bob confirmed a few things that I did know, the difference between an athlete that isn't pushing themselves versus an athlete that has pushed themselves over the edge of overtraining. I know from experience how important it is to do strength training. What strength training exercises are the most beneficial.

Second to bat was Justin Trolle, Level 3 USAT coach, 'nough said. He went over training periodization and planning. I needed some dramamine to keep my head from spinning with all the information I thought I knew but really had no idea! How to write a workout and make it work was enlightening. It all makes so much sense now what my coaches had me doing all those years! I would write more about what Justin taught us but then you would be sitting here for days.

Third in the lineup was Bobby McGee, renowned running coach. Bobby taught us the mental aspects of an athlete. Not just "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can" of mental preparation but also how to wake up the athlete's body to be more efficient. He also went over running off the bike and running in general. "Little Miss know it all" here thought I knew everything since I was a track and field athelte but Bobby still managed to teach me a lot! Go figure, a level 3 USAT coach knows more than me!

Last but not least was Ian Murray, cycling and swimming. I had a very good grasp on the cycling since I am a USA Cycling coach but the swimming was definitely a nice refresher. All is well and good in the pool following a black line at the bottom and smooth water unless kids are playing next to your lap lane, but open water swimming especially when 100 people are surrounding you is a whole other story! How to train and what to do in the many different scenarios was eye opening. Pretty interesting on the tricks to getting in and out of a wet suit!

Other than the amazing information from the presenters Portland, OR herself provided some experiences. Very different world out there compared to the beloved Deep South. We had the opportunity to grill Justin Trolle over dinner. He was brave enough to try Chile Pepper beer with me. If only we had pictures of everyone's faces as they tried that beer! Justin did say we were the best group he had so far! A group run through downtown Portland was fun. The hotel provided crusier bikes that allowed us to go a little further exploring. It made it easy to see the beautiful architecture, rose gardens, . A group of us took the Metro to explore and stumbled upon an outdoor concert by the Oregon Crusaders Drum and Bugle corps. Very impressive!

As the lectures and adventures came to an end I was in a daze from all the information I had learned. I was lucky to have been in a class that had great presenters, attentive students, and students that asked great questions.

That's right! I'm official!

Bobby McGee showing us foot strike positions.

Group night out. Great patty melt and beer sampler!

Our group with Coach Justin Trolle.

The brave souls that ordered a whole pint of Chile Pepper beer!

Who knew beer in a can could be so tasty?

People taking their pets for a walk.

Some of the buildings and statues in downtown Portland.

Water fall park in the middle of downtown Portland.

Oregon's state flower is the rose so there were many rose gardens in downtown Portland!

The free outdoor concert by the Oregon Crusaders.

It's been a while since we have last updated the blog. We have been quite busy at the shop and it has been hard to find time. Tipping at its finest.

Last week we held our Free Monthly Maintenance Clinic. As usual we had a good crowd of folks eager to learn.

Katie and I squeaked out a ride between rain bands during the tropical storm.

Chip took advantage of the 15+ inches of rain.

We're in Denver, CO!

We're finally in Denver, CO for some training this week. I'll announce later what it's for so stay tuned. I hate it when people steal my ideas and try to play catch-up so we'll wait until all of our ducks are in a row. Below is a photo I took of Denver's B Cycle program. In a nutshell, you can swipe your credit card and ride the bike and return it. I actually saw a ton of people taking advantage of it. Cool stuff.

I'm sure urban farming isn't new to many of you but it is to me. This urban farm co-op is next door the the bed and breakfast I'm staying at. Tomorrow starts my 3 days of training.

Tour Time

It's that time of year and we have many events going on here at the shop. Every night during the Tour de France we have viewing parties at the shop (except on Sunday and Monday). My custom Guru Sidero arrived. It's built with Columbus Spirit steel tubing. I decided to build it with SRAM Red and Chris King hubs and headset etc. It rides like a dream.

2 weeks ago we had our free monthly maintenance clinic for the month of June.

We got a fresh new keg for Le Tour, everybody seems pleased with it.

Here is Fabian, our warehouse cat. Guarding our warehouse from intruders.

Our kickoff party for the Tour de France was a big success. We had good fun with a great crowd.

The couches in the lounge area got upgraded.

Tour Prep

Its that time of year finally. That time when there is something on TV worth watching all day long. We are getting prepped for our Tour de France parties here at the shop. Our kickoff will be on July 2nd. We spend a good bit of time making sure our new TV is operational. We have also been showing replays of the Tour of Switzerland a few times a day just to be sure that our new dish is working.

Saturday we helped out at RIDEYELLOW in Bay Minette. Our rest stop was 9 miles from the finish of the 37 and 62 miles routes. The atmosphere was loud and exciting since a few of the University of South Alabama football players were there assisting cyclist. We can't wait for next year.

It's been a while since I've updated this blog

We have managed to stay very busy since opening the shop. I'll do a quick update with some pictures in no particular order. 2 weeks after opening Katie and I got hitched.

We hosted our first free monthly maintenance clinic. We ended up with a good crowd and had a good time. Katie has done 2 tri's in 2 weekends and ended up with 2 wins. Not too shabby?

We hosted a LAMB ride (loop around Mobile Bay). A few of us ended up doing the whole lap, only 6 flat tires.

Here is Katie pulling her custom Guru CR.901 tri frame out of the box.

Our group rides have ended up being a big hit.

Chip delivers a fresh keg of Sweetwater 420.

Our trusty grill keeps us entertained after business hours.

Game on!

I haven't had a chance to update the blog lately, I've been a bit busy. With a grand opening and a wedding spread 2 weeks apart there isn't too much spare time. Amazingly everything came together in time. We had a great grand opening celebration. There were times when I had issues walking around the place because of the crowd, especially when I tried to get near the beer keg. I ordered 3 kegs of Great Divide DPA and they all got emptied.

Afterwards a group of us walked to McSharrys and finished off the night. The grand opening was perfect. Hopefully the momentum continues.

Construction Update

We have been going full speed with the construction, we have also had many clients showing up. I've been doing many repairs and bike fits, it's gotten a bit overwhelming at times. Especially when they sneak up and knock on the office window. It has been a fun process and we have had many people show up and help out.

The inventory has been steadily coming in and the bikes are starting to get built.

We have a few touch-ups to do in our fit studio and we are awaiting the flooring.

Above will be the check-out counter,

The changing room is almost complete

Inspector Chip making sure everything runs smooth.

Working on the shower

I am currently working in my office (less than 10ft away from where the above picture was taken) trying to knock out some work while slowly developing a headache. We are less than 1 month from grand opening so I must have my brain rattled one way or another!