If you live in Costa Mesa, CA or any of the surrounding towns, c'mon down to Two Wheels One Planet on Saturday night. Kryptonite is hosting An Evening with Bob Roll starting at 5pm.
Bob will be talking about his experiences racing in some of the classics as well as his observations commentating on some great Tours now.
And, we all know Bobke isn't shy about sharing his opinions...ask him pretty much anything you want. What does he think about Lance and the comback, Rock Racing and the state of cycling today? Ask him. He'll let you know.
Here's the info:
420 E. 17th Street
Costa Mesa, CA 92627
Phone: 949-646-7717
Showing posts with label bike shop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bike shop. Show all posts
Monday, November 03, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
Get a Free Bike...
...if you are a college freshman and don't bring your car to school. How cool is that? Great article in the New York Times about many colleges that are getting creative with students to eliminate over flowing student parking as well as making campus more green. Some are even giving free bikes.
Hat tip to Holly at our parent company's offices in North Carolina. She's heading up an alternative transportation day this week at their facility, too. Helping out? Our friends at Cool Breeze Cyclery.
I hear there is a prize for the most creative alternative transportation method. Last week someone told me he/she may row over....that would be different, eh?
Hat tip to Holly at our parent company's offices in North Carolina. She's heading up an alternative transportation day this week at their facility, too. Helping out? Our friends at Cool Breeze Cyclery.
I hear there is a prize for the most creative alternative transportation method. Last week someone told me he/she may row over....that would be different, eh?
Monday, September 08, 2008
Get Out and Ride!
by Roby Holland, National Sales Manager
I just came back from a very relaxing local vacation. I was supposed to have my brother visiting and the plans for his visit were golf, fishing then repeat. Unfortunately he was unable to make it so I changed my plans to spend my days with my family, which is more appealing. When you live in an area that has so much to offer it is hard to decide what to do.
I had been pushing my wife to get a bike all summer and she has been reluctant to do so because she was unsure she would like it. Unexpectedly, she asked if I would be interested in going down to Brewster, MA and rent a couple of bikes, to ride the bike trail. I was in! This was a great opportunity to spend sometime with the family and do something that I really enjoy. In the morning we headed to Cape Cod Rail Trail Bike and Kayak on our adventure. It was a great morning to do this, like a perfect early fall morning. We got our bikes, a trailer for Owen, my son,(attached to dad's bike ). I did a quick review with my wife of the bike components and how to use them. I tried to keep it as simple as I could so she would get the maximum enjoyment out of the ride.
Before we took off I grabbed a lunch from The Brewster Lunch Box then we headed off along the trail. I was apprehensive that my wife was going to have a difficult time adjusting to the new technology on these bikes. The last time she was on a bike was over ten years ago, in Ireland, and the bikes were equipped with 3-speed Strurmy Archer shifters and old school breaking. For about the first half mile I was tense and constantly asking how things were going. I even asked Owen to ask Mommy how thing were going. As only Owen could say it "Mamma how doin?" Mamma how doin?". To my surprise and relief she was enjoying it! Now, I could relax and enjoy the ride.
We rode for a while, passing lakes and cranberry bogs along the way. The bike path was in great shape, smooth and wide. There were plenty of people using the trail, bikers, runners, and in-line skaters. There was a ton of families like us. Owen was a little too quite while he was sitting in the trailer and now I had a new concern, my son's enjoyment. I had to investigate whether or not he was having a good time and the best way to do this with my son was to say "Peanut, Peanut butter ". If he was in a good mood I would hear him respond "JELLY" . So I got his attention and said "Peanut, Peanut butter" with no responses. Oh no, this is going to be a short ride. I tried it again a little louder this time "PEANUT, PEANUT BUTTER" and waited. A few seconds later he popped out "JELLY" and then " jazz hands". He was having a great time! He only says "jazz hands" when he is shaking his hands, which is an indication that he is really having a good time. I know I was having a great time and now the circle was complete.
We rode for several miles and then decided it was time to turn around. We wanted to have lunch at one of the lakes that we had passed on our way. Once we arrived at our destination we broke out the lunch and sat down to eat, but that was only for a brief second or two. The next thing I heard out of my son's mouth was "DUCKY, DUCKY" and "Owen down please, Owen down please" He wanted to go play in the water with the ducks. How could I say "NO", he was having fun and so was I. So we played in the water and fed the ducks and just relaxed. We took a few photos to remember the day and headed back to the bike shop. By the way awesome sandwich from The Lunch Box!!!!! Once we got the bikes back, and our helmets and stuff in the car we headed home. As I watched my son drift off to sleep on the ride back I thought about how awesome that day was and how much fun I had with my family. I would recommend to anyone in the area, take the family to ride the trail and stop by Cape Cod Rail Trail Bike and Kayak, as well as The Lunch Box while you're at it!
I just came back from a very relaxing local vacation. I was supposed to have my brother visiting and the plans for his visit were golf, fishing then repeat. Unfortunately he was unable to make it so I changed my plans to spend my days with my family, which is more appealing. When you live in an area that has so much to offer it is hard to decide what to do.
I had been pushing my wife to get a bike all summer and she has been reluctant to do so because she was unsure she would like it. Unexpectedly, she asked if I would be interested in going down to Brewster, MA and rent a couple of bikes, to ride the bike trail. I was in! This was a great opportunity to spend sometime with the family and do something that I really enjoy. In the morning we headed to Cape Cod Rail Trail Bike and Kayak on our adventure. It was a great morning to do this, like a perfect early fall morning. We got our bikes, a trailer for Owen, my son,(attached to dad's bike ). I did a quick review with my wife of the bike components and how to use them. I tried to keep it as simple as I could so she would get the maximum enjoyment out of the ride.
Before we took off I grabbed a lunch from The Brewster Lunch Box then we headed off along the trail. I was apprehensive that my wife was going to have a difficult time adjusting to the new technology on these bikes. The last time she was on a bike was over ten years ago, in Ireland, and the bikes were equipped with 3-speed Strurmy Archer shifters and old school breaking. For about the first half mile I was tense and constantly asking how things were going. I even asked Owen to ask Mommy how thing were going. As only Owen could say it "Mamma how doin?" Mamma how doin?". To my surprise and relief she was enjoying it! Now, I could relax and enjoy the ride.
We rode for a while, passing lakes and cranberry bogs along the way. The bike path was in great shape, smooth and wide. There were plenty of people using the trail, bikers, runners, and in-line skaters. There was a ton of families like us. Owen was a little too quite while he was sitting in the trailer and now I had a new concern, my son's enjoyment. I had to investigate whether or not he was having a good time and the best way to do this with my son was to say "Peanut, Peanut butter ". If he was in a good mood I would hear him respond "JELLY" . So I got his attention and said "Peanut, Peanut butter" with no responses. Oh no, this is going to be a short ride. I tried it again a little louder this time "PEANUT, PEANUT BUTTER" and waited. A few seconds later he popped out "JELLY" and then " jazz hands". He was having a great time! He only says "jazz hands" when he is shaking his hands, which is an indication that he is really having a good time. I know I was having a great time and now the circle was complete.
We rode for several miles and then decided it was time to turn around. We wanted to have lunch at one of the lakes that we had passed on our way. Once we arrived at our destination we broke out the lunch and sat down to eat, but that was only for a brief second or two. The next thing I heard out of my son's mouth was "DUCKY, DUCKY" and "Owen down please, Owen down please" He wanted to go play in the water with the ducks. How could I say "NO", he was having fun and so was I. So we played in the water and fed the ducks and just relaxed. We took a few photos to remember the day and headed back to the bike shop. By the way awesome sandwich from The Lunch Box!!!!! Once we got the bikes back, and our helmets and stuff in the car we headed home. As I watched my son drift off to sleep on the ride back I thought about how awesome that day was and how much fun I had with my family. I would recommend to anyone in the area, take the family to ride the trail and stop by Cape Cod Rail Trail Bike and Kayak, as well as The Lunch Box while you're at it!
Friday, May 30, 2008
Off the beaten trail
by Roby Holland, National Sales Manager
This week I was on the road once again and for those who know me it usually means flying from Boston to where ever. This time was differnt, my trip was to up into Canada and the airfare was outrageous. Instead I decided to drive, it would cost half as much as the flight and with a new Thule bike rack atop my car I could bring my bike along and maybe get a ride or two in along the way.
On my way from Montreal to Toronto I was feeling the need to pull over and take a break. I pulled over in this town just north of Cornwall to fill up on gas and see if there was a bike shop around that could point me in the right direction for a afternoon ride. The guy behind the counter pointed me down the highway to a shop call Kalrim. Mind you I was in the middle of nowhere and I had a feeling that the shop was going to have a "gone fishing" sign hung on the door when I got there, I was wrong.
When I went in the store I met Parminder "Cookie" Kalsi, the owner. The store was small and decorated with pictures of hockey stars and cycling events from days long along. If you took the time to look closely you would see that Cookie was in most, if not all, the cycling pictures. In fact he was a top mechanic back in the day over in Europe and was on the circuit for a long time.
His craft brought him over to Canada working for companies like Speedwell and Yamaha. Yes, Yamaha was in the bike business back in the day. The companies that he worked for ended up going out of business and so he opened up Kalrim. In my conversation you could see that he loved the work that he was doing and that he was very passionate about cycling.
We had a great conversation about his ski tuning machine parked out in the back of his shop. The machine was similar to the one that I used when I was working as a ski tech and the conversation brought back memories of the fun times I had working in the shop.
After talking for awhile Cookie showed me the local bike trail and pointed out the route that I should take. I wanted to stay longer but I still had a long drive ahead and daylight was creeping away. So, with a farewell to Cookie, I headed off for my ride on the Cornwall bike trail.
Forty-Four miles later I was still eager to ride some more. The trail took me downtown and along the river through islands, it was awesome. I had never ridden a trail before on my road bike but it was great! No, cars to worry about - smooth pavement with no potholes! It was the way cycling should be experienced. The ride and my time meeting Cookie made my trip all the more worth it!
The long boring drive ahead of me passed quickly as I played back in my mind the day's ride. I will never forget this and I will look forward to doing it again in the next time I have to do this trip.
To Cookie,
Thanks for the maps and the direction, the ride was more then I was expecting! Take care and I look forward to seeing you again!
This week I was on the road once again and for those who know me it usually means flying from Boston to where ever. This time was differnt, my trip was to up into Canada and the airfare was outrageous. Instead I decided to drive, it would cost half as much as the flight and with a new Thule bike rack atop my car I could bring my bike along and maybe get a ride or two in along the way.
On my way from Montreal to Toronto I was feeling the need to pull over and take a break. I pulled over in this town just north of Cornwall to fill up on gas and see if there was a bike shop around that could point me in the right direction for a afternoon ride. The guy behind the counter pointed me down the highway to a shop call Kalrim. Mind you I was in the middle of nowhere and I had a feeling that the shop was going to have a "gone fishing" sign hung on the door when I got there, I was wrong.
When I went in the store I met Parminder "Cookie" Kalsi, the owner. The store was small and decorated with pictures of hockey stars and cycling events from days long along. If you took the time to look closely you would see that Cookie was in most, if not all, the cycling pictures. In fact he was a top mechanic back in the day over in Europe and was on the circuit for a long time.
His craft brought him over to Canada working for companies like Speedwell and Yamaha. Yes, Yamaha was in the bike business back in the day. The companies that he worked for ended up going out of business and so he opened up Kalrim. In my conversation you could see that he loved the work that he was doing and that he was very passionate about cycling.
We had a great conversation about his ski tuning machine parked out in the back of his shop. The machine was similar to the one that I used when I was working as a ski tech and the conversation brought back memories of the fun times I had working in the shop.
After talking for awhile Cookie showed me the local bike trail and pointed out the route that I should take. I wanted to stay longer but I still had a long drive ahead and daylight was creeping away. So, with a farewell to Cookie, I headed off for my ride on the Cornwall bike trail.
Forty-Four miles later I was still eager to ride some more. The trail took me downtown and along the river through islands, it was awesome. I had never ridden a trail before on my road bike but it was great! No, cars to worry about - smooth pavement with no potholes! It was the way cycling should be experienced. The ride and my time meeting Cookie made my trip all the more worth it!
The long boring drive ahead of me passed quickly as I played back in my mind the day's ride. I will never forget this and I will look forward to doing it again in the next time I have to do this trip.
To Cookie,
Thanks for the maps and the direction, the ride was more then I was expecting! Take care and I look forward to seeing you again!
Thursday, May 08, 2008
THIS WEEKEND
There are so many things to do this weekend....here are only a few of the VERY coolest!
BOB ROLL at Landry's Boston store. Friday night at 7pm. C'mon out. Roby, Eric and I will all be there, too.....but we won't be offended when you tell us that you're there to see Bob...
Barb's Harley-Davidson in New Jersey is having their annual Open House on Saturday. Dave Perewitz will be there -- and, bonus....Susan and Jaren will be there, too!
Austin's latest bike shop, Mellow Johnny's, is opening on Saturday at 7am. They expect "special guests." Why's that so important? Lance Armstrong owns the joint. You figure it out. If you go let us know how it was....and take photos that you can share.
There's Cyclism Sunday on Versus! The Giro is going on, don't cha know!
And, of course, on Sunday it's Mother's Day. Celebrate by going on a Tour Day Neighborhood with mom. Just please make us and your mother happy and WEAR A HELMET, please!
Have a great, great weekend! And, Bostonians...we expect to see you on Friday night!
BOB ROLL at Landry's Boston store. Friday night at 7pm. C'mon out. Roby, Eric and I will all be there, too.....but we won't be offended when you tell us that you're there to see Bob...
Barb's Harley-Davidson in New Jersey is having their annual Open House on Saturday. Dave Perewitz will be there -- and, bonus....Susan and Jaren will be there, too!
Austin's latest bike shop, Mellow Johnny's, is opening on Saturday at 7am. They expect "special guests." Why's that so important? Lance Armstrong owns the joint. You figure it out. If you go let us know how it was....and take photos that you can share.
There's Cyclism Sunday on Versus! The Giro is going on, don't cha know!
And, of course, on Sunday it's Mother's Day. Celebrate by going on a Tour Day Neighborhood with mom. Just please make us and your mother happy and WEAR A HELMET, please!
Have a great, great weekend! And, Bostonians...we expect to see you on Friday night!
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
East Coast Demo?
Last week, I read on the Bicycle Retailer site that Interbike is contemplating an East Coast Demo. For those outside the industry, Interbike is the bike trade show that is held every fall in Vegas. You've heard me talk about it enough here recently, but for any new readers, I like to clarify. But I digress...
Anyway, I didn't think much about this whole East Coast Demo until read it again today at Bike Europe (trade publication for..duh...Europe). Well, that got me to thinking and we all know that is a bad idea....
They are thinking of doing this demo time so that retailers on the East Coast that maybe can't make it to Interbike (it can be friggin' expensive) can have a chance to see the new bikes. Sounds good for the dealers for sure! They are even talking about having a consumer day. Imagine all the bike nuts that would line up to ride the brand spankin' new bikes that won't even be out until spring. I envision some riding buddies getting up early, making the trip down to Providence and spending a morning riding bikes like little kids on Christmas morning with a new bike. Cool image, huh? It will be a fun, fun, fun day for them. So far, so good...bring it on, right?
And then there are the industry companies in New England who will be pretty stoked to do a big event in their backyard. We don't have bikes for you to ride, but they talk about seminars and clinics and networking opportunities all of which we could possibly partake in. Getting to hang out with some dealers for the day is always a good time. And, we'd actually get to ride some bikes, too! We don't get to do that in the desert because it's always time to put up the booth and finalize last minute details before the doors of the trade show open. So, we'd get to be those kids in the candy store, too, for a couple of days.
Still....all good, right? Then I started to wonder about the bike companies. Not Seven Cycles or even IF (this is in their backyard, too). I started to think of Giant and KHS and Haro and Masi -- all located in Cali. They are all pretty drained after spending a week in Vegas - few days in the desert and a few days in the convention. This all on the heels of a pretty event-packed summer, I'd think. They'd have to almost go straight from Vegas to Rhode Island. Are they up for that? I know that the point of all this is to get your bike into the hands of the buyers - the more buyers that see your products, the more chance that they will like the product and buy it. I get that. Guess I just understand the fatigue side of it, too. And, let's not forget the expense. Maybe some of these companies have big, huge marketing budgets (I'm pretty sure a few have gigantic ones compared to ours), but maybe not. Shlepping multiple bikes and gear cross country isn't cheap.
And then I start to think....how many retailers don't go to Vegas from New England and the Mid-Atlantic States (because this would draw people from NY, NJ and PA, at least)? Would it be a lot of overlap? Some, I know, but most? Don't know. Or, would they choose not to go to Vegas next year just because of this opportunity and miss all the other companies that they'd want to see - small companies that can't afford to go to both - or even have the opportunity to be at both. Remember, you don't ride locks.....or bags....or lights....we can go and hang out and ride those shiny bikes, too, but would there be other spaces for us? Not really...ok, we can do a seminar, but would that show all the new products? Don't know - haven't thought that far yet, folks, just spinning thoughts here. And it's not about us, we're right here so we'll represent just fine, thanks...it's smaller companies that don't have those budgets to do Interbike and Providence - even to come and network.
Let's not forget Mother Nature...Oct 16th in New England? You could have that dirty four letter word...snow. No, I'm not a snow person - get over it - hate it. I certainly wouldn't want to be out in it for three days....although I know some people who would love to ride in those conditions.
I'm rambling. But, what do you think? Will New England dealers forego Interbike for Demo Time in Little Rhody? Will the big bike companies want to do both demo areas? Will they have the man/woman power and budgets to do both?
It's still all tentative and Interbike is sending, or has sent surveys, to dealers. We'll all know around Feb. 1st, which is the date to have exhibitor materials and pricing info by then. Interesting....let's hear what you think.
Anyway, I didn't think much about this whole East Coast Demo until read it again today at Bike Europe (trade publication for..duh...Europe). Well, that got me to thinking and we all know that is a bad idea....
They are thinking of doing this demo time so that retailers on the East Coast that maybe can't make it to Interbike (it can be friggin' expensive) can have a chance to see the new bikes. Sounds good for the dealers for sure! They are even talking about having a consumer day. Imagine all the bike nuts that would line up to ride the brand spankin' new bikes that won't even be out until spring. I envision some riding buddies getting up early, making the trip down to Providence and spending a morning riding bikes like little kids on Christmas morning with a new bike. Cool image, huh? It will be a fun, fun, fun day for them. So far, so good...bring it on, right?
And then there are the industry companies in New England who will be pretty stoked to do a big event in their backyard. We don't have bikes for you to ride, but they talk about seminars and clinics and networking opportunities all of which we could possibly partake in. Getting to hang out with some dealers for the day is always a good time. And, we'd actually get to ride some bikes, too! We don't get to do that in the desert because it's always time to put up the booth and finalize last minute details before the doors of the trade show open. So, we'd get to be those kids in the candy store, too, for a couple of days.
Still....all good, right? Then I started to wonder about the bike companies. Not Seven Cycles or even IF (this is in their backyard, too). I started to think of Giant and KHS and Haro and Masi -- all located in Cali. They are all pretty drained after spending a week in Vegas - few days in the desert and a few days in the convention. This all on the heels of a pretty event-packed summer, I'd think. They'd have to almost go straight from Vegas to Rhode Island. Are they up for that? I know that the point of all this is to get your bike into the hands of the buyers - the more buyers that see your products, the more chance that they will like the product and buy it. I get that. Guess I just understand the fatigue side of it, too. And, let's not forget the expense. Maybe some of these companies have big, huge marketing budgets (I'm pretty sure a few have gigantic ones compared to ours), but maybe not. Shlepping multiple bikes and gear cross country isn't cheap.
And then I start to think....how many retailers don't go to Vegas from New England and the Mid-Atlantic States (because this would draw people from NY, NJ and PA, at least)? Would it be a lot of overlap? Some, I know, but most? Don't know. Or, would they choose not to go to Vegas next year just because of this opportunity and miss all the other companies that they'd want to see - small companies that can't afford to go to both - or even have the opportunity to be at both. Remember, you don't ride locks.....or bags....or lights....we can go and hang out and ride those shiny bikes, too, but would there be other spaces for us? Not really...ok, we can do a seminar, but would that show all the new products? Don't know - haven't thought that far yet, folks, just spinning thoughts here. And it's not about us, we're right here so we'll represent just fine, thanks...it's smaller companies that don't have those budgets to do Interbike and Providence - even to come and network.
Let's not forget Mother Nature...Oct 16th in New England? You could have that dirty four letter word...snow. No, I'm not a snow person - get over it - hate it. I certainly wouldn't want to be out in it for three days....although I know some people who would love to ride in those conditions.
I'm rambling. But, what do you think? Will New England dealers forego Interbike for Demo Time in Little Rhody? Will the big bike companies want to do both demo areas? Will they have the man/woman power and budgets to do both?
It's still all tentative and Interbike is sending, or has sent surveys, to dealers. We'll all know around Feb. 1st, which is the date to have exhibitor materials and pricing info by then. Interesting....let's hear what you think.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Newest "Shop" in Texas
by Craig Glab, central regional manager
Holy smokes! The newest bicycle repair shop is in Wal-Mart. I went into this brand new Texas store, which happens to be in my region, last week and ran into some folks that looked like they were scouting the new store, too. I think they might have been from a big, red competitor.
The whole store was only open for a week when I went in. The bikes ranged from kids bikes at $65 to $1,800 for adult’s bikes. It was a clean, bright store and bike shop. The bike shop was in the back corner and the signage was pretty good.
During my scouting, I snapped a couple of photos.
The whole store was only open for a week when I went in. The bikes ranged from kids bikes at $65 to $1,800 for adult’s bikes. It was a clean, bright store and bike shop. The bike shop was in the back corner and the signage was pretty good.
During my scouting, I snapped a couple of photos.
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