Jul
27
Say It Ain’t So!
Filed Under Cycling, Industry News, Interbike, Racing | 1 Comment
My neighbor this morning called out to me as I was leaving for the office, “Hey Lance, did you hear about Landis today?”….and I thought, “Ahhhhhh crap, he’s either dead or on dope.” Of course when your brain works as mine does, to learn he was allegedly on dope was a relief of sorts. Truthfully though, I was shocked, disappointed and I suddenly grew very depressed about the sport I grew up in and have been following for nearly 35 years. My 9 year old son who also heard the conversation I was having asked me if Landis was doping and I said, “Remember, you are innocent until proven guilty”, let’s hope for the best.
It seems inconceivable to me that Landis would risk it all by taking testosterone supplements during an event that was already marred in a doping scandal. How insane is that? I thought the same the day I heard about Tyler Hamilton. Tyler was personally a big shock, particularly after having the opportunity to meet him and present him with the Athlete of the Year- BR&IN’y, which we did at Interbike in 2004. This guy’s reputation was so squeaky clean that I immediately thought there had to be a mistake. He still protests that he is indeed innocent…. and who knows what the real deal is?
Well at this moment it is too early to make judgments about Landis. The “B” sample has not been reported on just yet and perhaps Landis had some sort of biological anomaly after stage 17….doesn’t hurt to be overly optimistic….does it? It is interesting to note that The World Anti-Doping Agency has lowered the limit for the maximum T/E (Testosterone/Epitestosterone) level from 6:1 to 4:1. Some athletes have naturally high levels, and can prove this through a series of tests.
Speaking for the team here at Interbike, we really are hoping for the best regarding Landis. We were working with some of our best exhibitors to have him as a special guest at the upcoming Interbike 2006. His presence would mean a lot for the bike industry, an industry that now needs a post Armstrong hero to keep cycling in the media main stream.
Let’s keep our thoughts positive.
Jul
18
I was reviewing my emails today and noticed an email I received from Scott Wallenberg, publisher of Racer X/Road Racer X, about his memories of the Hockey Tournaments he and Jake Heilbron of Kona used to put on. At the time Scott was the ad director for Mountain Bike Action. Here’s what he had to say…
“Some great memories about Interbike were the Ice Hockey Tournaments. It started back in 1994 as an idea Jake and I had while talking about our love for hockey and wouldn’t it be fun to have a game. I arranged for the ice time and we had our first game at 6:30 AM at Glacial Gardens Ice Rink in Anaheim, CA back when Interbike was in SoCal. There were 2 teams…Canada vs. the World with about 20 guys total.
“The next few years in Anaheim saw the tournament expanding to four teams and over 60 players with Team Shimano, Team Canada, Team West Coast, and Team East Coast. Easton helped sponsor with aluminum sticks and other great prizes. When Interbike moved to Las Vegas we kept the tournament alive by finding ice at various local rinks in the area. My switch to Racer X magazine in 2000 did not stop my involvement, as there are so many bicycle companies involved in Motocross products.
“The Tournament lasted for 10 years with the final game in 2003. It was a wonderful 10-year run!
“The photo is Team Canada in red and Team USA in White. Ironically the last game we had ended in a tie!”
Does this bring back any memories for anyone? Kozo?
Jul
17
Well, I just saw that Tim Jackson made a nice post at the Kool-Aid blog last Friday about our blog here and I realized that the first post new visitors would have to read was the one I wrote about Landis being goofy. I really like Floyd, by the way, and meant only good in my description of him as normal and [a little] goofy. Really. BTW, speaking of how riders are perceived, who do you think comes across better in their segments sprinkled throughout OLN’s coverage: Armstrong or LeMond? I’m a big fan of both, but have my doubts that they are doing their legacies any favors with these spots. Read more
Jul
14
No disrespect to the great Floyd Landis, but seeing him in yellow yesterday got me thinking: has there ever been a more “normal” guy in yellow before at the Tour? There’s no pomposity or pretentiousness here with him. No Hinault arrogance or silent Indurain air of invincibilty there on the podium. He’s a little goofy, too, and he smiles alot. He just seems really happy and comfortable in yellow. He doesn’t seem to be intimidated by the weight of the yellow jersey or take himself too seriously. Love the way he wears his baseball cap backwards on the podium. He’s personable and glad to talk with the reporters post-race and doesn’t spew the old cliches like most riders do.
On another subject, is anyone else enjoying the lack of segments on the culture of France during the OLN coverage this year? I love wine, cheese and learning about the seperatist movement in the Savoie region as much as the next guy, but I’d rather not take valuable time away from the race to see a reporter wine tasting or telling us about the Roman ruins along today’s course. The segments they are running away from the race have been great historical Tour stories on Tour-related topics like LeMond and team 7-11. Nice to see a sport’s TV coverage aimed at the enthusiasts for a change, not just the guy with a passing interest in the sport who might enjoy the non-racing pieces. Good job, OLN.
Jul
12
Bloggers at Interbike
Filed Under Industry News, Interbike | 8 Comments
I’ve been a little slow with posts here recently since we’re getting closer to the show and it’s crunch time here in the marketing department. In rereading some past comments and posts here, a posting from from Tim Grahl of bluecollarmtb.com a while ago on his memories of attending Interbike got me thinking. He also inquired about a blogging “event” at IB and I thought that it was about time to broach the subject of bloggers at Interbike : Are bloggers allowed to attend Interbike as working media? The answer is yes and no.
Jul
7
Carbon nanotubes enter the Tour de France
Filed Under Gear, Industry News, Racing | Leave a Comment
News.com has an interesting article about nanotechnology being used in the Tour de France.
“If Floyd Landis wins the three-week Tour de France, it will be a victory for nanotechnology too. Landis, the leader of the Phonak team and one of the pre-race favorites, rides a bike that’s been enhanced with carbon nanotubes.” via [ News.com ]
What do you think?
Jul
5
Just thought I’d highlight a great comment to one of our Interbike Memories posts from Jim Langley. As his personal website states, Jim is a “Bicycle Aficionado”. Jim is probably most well known for his 10 years as the Technical Editor of Bicycling Magazine and currently works for SmartEtailing. I remember learning alot about bike maintenance from his regular column and Tech Q&A features. I still have the folder at home by my work bench with tech articles of his that I pulled out for future reference when I was getting started in the sport. Thanks, Jim!
Like everybody else, I have lots of fun Interbike memories, too. Here are a few in no particular order that people might enjoy: –I recall Giro founder/inventor Jim Gentes telling me that on the drive down to Anaheim he was actually spray painting one of the important show-sample helmets in the back of his car. I found and find that image pretty funny and a great example of how hard everyone works to make the show a success. –GT & RockShox threw quite a party one year. It was held in a huge industrial building and the place was absolutely packed with people. Suddenly, the guys from RockShox opened a roll-up garage door on one side of the building and idled slowly in on a classic flat-bed truck piled high with one-off RockShox beer in boxes, which they started handing to the crowd. But, they couldn’t drive too far into the crowd so they started throwing the beers and people were catching these 20-ounce beers flying through the air. –Allenax’s lever-drive bicycle booth s howing up year after year after year. –All the wonderful and amazing Robert Egger of Specialized concept bikes. –The incredible Tour de Sewer group rides we used to have at the Anaheim show in the mornings; sometimes over 100 riders strong and some of the top pros, riding a double paceline with Swiss-like precision on the winding bike path toward Huntington Beach. –Bruce Gordon’s SOPWMTOS awards were/are always a kick. –Discovering the secret “kitchen” in the Italian pavilion and sitting down for a plate of delectable pasta. –Taking a wide berth around the Taiwan pavilion to avoid the cigarette smoke billowing out from above their hidden smoking chamber. –Test riding the latest and greatest at the Outdoor Demo and elsewhere. –Getting by by eating the Hershey’s Kisses Bike’alog gives away every year in that huge glass bowl and munching the free Clif Bars and PowerBars.. and sipping the free java. –Discovering back at the hotel on the last night that we had so much pro duct literature, we had to get boxes to ship the stuff back to the office. –Getting to discuss the products with all the ingenious product managers, too numerous to mention, who don’t mind explaining in detail how their stuff is designed and why. –Listening to Ernesto Colnago introduce his 50th Anniversary line-up. –Watching the mechanics trying to win Park Tool’s Fastest Mechanic contest. –And, finally, experiencing Interbike first as a bike shop grunt, then as a bike shop manager, a journalist, an editor, and now as an exhibitor. I could go on, but suffice to say that I’m sure this year’s show will be full of fun memories, too!