Happy New Year!

So, it's the end of the year....a time for reflection and looking ahead, right? Ok, I can do that...

2007 was a big one here at Kryptonite. We started a transformation of our brand, which was quite time consuming, but fairly successful. We tripped up a few places - the new stickers weren't such a big hit. Street stencils? What were we thinking there? Total bust. But, the posters were received very well (who doesn't like penguins?!). The outdoor campaign with billboards and ads were good.

Being involved with the bicycle valet programs was fantastic! We also loved placing bike racks in cities around the country. We hope that both of these programs assisted, and will continue to assist, cyclists in these cities.

2007 was also the year that we caught up with the rest of the world and totally revamped our website. It seems like a hundred years ago that I was cramming to get copy and photos to our agency so we could put up the site in just over 6 weeks. I'm not kidding....soup to nuts in just over 6 weeks. I never want to do that again! Don't get me wrong, creating a new site from scratch is a blast! Doing it in 6 weeks is a complete stretch. We had a few growing pains in the beginning and we are still adding to the site, but all in all we love it and hope you do, too.

Then there was this blog. It's still not what I want it to be, but it's an evolving process. I think it's a good start. Thanks to everyone who has given us feedback and supported this effort. Personally, I'm quite thankful to you all. And to those who shared their Unbreakable Bonds, thank you. We couldn't have asked for a better group of people to share their stories.

The products in 2007 were pretty darn cool, too. How about that oval crossbar on the Evolution series 4? Sweet, huh?! And then there was the complete cable redesign. Yikes! That was a lot of work, but so worth it.

Team Kryptonite grew by one this year when Nicole Hoffman signed on with us. And Jody Perewitz became an 'unofficial' Team Kryptonite member. Both represented us well at events and races and even blogged their thoughts here when their schedules allowed.

Our internal team grew, too, with the addition of our regional managers. We're happy to have them aboard!

There was much more, but hey, these are just the highlights.

So...2008...what will that bring? So much stuff, I can't even tell you....ok, I can tell you some, both professional and personal.

Products - yup, there will be new products. First up are some products for the motorcycle market that dealers will see at the Dealer Expo show in February. That's right around the corner, which means we need to kick some butt with a few things to get that all worked out in time. But, we will. We work well under pressure.

There will also be some upgrades to a few products that will be hitting sooner rather than later. Big and bad, I promise you!

We're also in the process of working on something that will dazzle you. That won't be until later in the year, but I'll keep you posted as we move along with that project.

Marketing - it isn't official yet, but there will be some major news to announce probably in the next month between us and.....ok, I can't tell you that, but it will be big. Huge. You'll know as soon as the ink is dry on the contract. I'm so excited, but I can't say just yet because, well the ink hasn't even hit the paper yet. We're working on it. You will be the first to know, of course.

We are also looking to support bike valet programs again this year and place bike racks in some more cities. We are already working on getting this program together and have identified cities that we'd like to work with on this. As soon as we know more we'll let you know.

The website will continue to evolve. Soon (January, I think) we'll add some new functionality to the site which will be very different for us. We'll also have some new folks telling their stories on the front pages - I'm working on that right now. I'm going to try to keep up with the website changes a little more frequently this year, too.

As I mentioned, the blog has had a good start, but I'm not totally happy with it. Life happens and I've slacked on getting some more Unbreakable Bonds stories, but I've got a few folks that I'm going to have do this at the beginning of the year...and if you want to share your story, please send me an email! Share your story, c'mon this is a partnership here....I give...you give...c'mon..share.

What else would I change? Having more people from here contribute. Aren't you sick of me yet? Seriously. There will be more participation from the sales team and some other folks here. Really. There will. You'll also hear from Team Kryptonite some more.

Speaking of Team Kryptonite...we'll officially be adding a new member in the new year. That should give you a hint as to who it is. And, we'll be starting some new programs with two of the Team Kryptonite members. I can't wait to share all the details with you soon (February).

Oh, and there will be weddings....at least two that we'll share with you in the new year (one maybe very, very soon).

We've got a few other things up our sleeve for the new year, too, but I'm still working out a few of them. One I'm so psyched about I'll be telling you before I've got it all done, I'm sure. I won't be able to contain myself. It's not quite on par as the partnership deal I mentioned, but it will be cool (I hope).

So, that's a lot of stuff...without really saying too much, right? I know, I know, I'm teasing a little bit, but some of the things aren't finalized yet and 1) I don't want to jinx anything, I'm superstitious that way and 2) we really can't say something about partnerships and such until they are signed.

However, I can tell you some things that I, personally, am hoping to accomplish in the new year.
- Lose weight. I watched several people here drop pounds like they were going out of style and then there was Susan Perewitz who made a fabulous transformation over the summer. Truly, they are all inspirational. Tomorrow, I start. We'll see how it goes.
- Chalk the roads again! It's been way too long since I chalked the road at a pro race. But, it's not a professional goal. This year, I have a personal reason to get to a race, chalk the road and cheer on my friend Tyler who will be back in the peloton where he belongs. When the schedule comes out I'll let y'all know which race I'll be at. I'd love to meet some of you on the roads.
- I WILL participate in more Spokesmen podcasts. I'm very thankful that my fellow Spokesmen have been so patient with me and my crazy schedule. I feel embarrassed to even say that I'm part of that group because I didn't make many of the episodes this year, but I've got a new headset, no shortage of opinions and I'm ready to go.
- I'll start blogging again over on my blog. I let that go when we started this blog, but I've always got a lot to say and not all of it is work related...my opinions have been bottling up now and it's the right time to start again for me personally. Don't know if I will have retained any interest there, but we'll see. I know that Masiguy has started to video blog (bravo!), but that's not something I'll get into (I have a face for podcasting and blogging!). So, yes, the new year will bring more Tidbits from me.
- I started contributing to the new Plog (Perewitz blog) this year, but only once. You'll see more from me there, too.
- Get a camera again. I lost mine at Interbike in Vegas and I've missed taking photos both for the blog and personally. I'm looking for a good sale and I'll pick one up. You'll start to see more photos here then...like sneak peeks of new products etc...
- And....I'll ride this year. Really ride my bike. Not just one little jaunt around the neighborhood. I'll get back on in the spring (c'mon it's snowing here and I'm not big into riding and freezing...I am a fair weather rider, get over it). You'll hear all about my trials and tribulations here about that, too.

So, that's it from here for now. Thank you, thank you, thank you all for your support this year. We all appreciate it more than you know.

From all of us...to all of you...happy, safe new year!

Kryptonite Bike Racks

When we started our brand relaunch planning back just about a year ago we had a plan...and then we modified that plan...and then modified again. Sometimes a plan doesn't come together for whatever reason. So, not everything we originally planned for happened. Ah well...that's life.

One thing that was always on the plan was to provide some great cycling cities with permanent bike racks. We wanted to give cyclists in these cities and towns more places to secure their bikes when they were off exploring the city - or just doing daily errands.

It was a long process, longer than any of us expected, but in the end 4 cycling cities and towns will have bike racks installed - or already do. Portland, Oregon was the first city to see the bike racks. The first group was installed at the Pacific Northwest College of Art and seem to be full just about all the time.

Thanks to Rachael Allen for the photos of the Portland racks!

The school actually took away some car parking spots to put in a bigger bike rack area. How cool is that?! Now, to be fair and tell both sides, some people in Portland aren't happy that the racks have a company name on them, but most people seem to think more bike racks are a good thing and will use them. As you can see by the photos, dozens of people don't mind the little logo on the bottom of the racks. They just care about having a safe place to lock while in school or around the area. Photos like this just make us smile!

All full in Portland!

Then it was off to Blue Island, Illinois, which is just outside of Chicago. They are a city that is trying to get back to more of its roots of being a walking and cycling city. The racks were just installed there a couple of weeks ago and Roby went out to meet with some people in town, including Mayor Peloquin, to christen the racks.

Julie Sklom a resident of Blue Island and member of MainStreet,

their Open Space Committee, rides over to meet Roby)

Mayor Peloquin and his office were gracious hosts to Roby when he was in town and were happy to have these racks provided (read the mayor's thoughts here). All of the cities and towns we've partnered with have been so great to work with during this project. But the local advocacy groups have been fantastic, too. Chicagoland Bicycle Federation really helped out with getting racks placed in their area and have been very supportive of this initiative. They even came out to the christening in Blue Island (thanks guys!).

(l-r)--Keith Holt (Chicagoland Bicycle Federation), Roby, Julie Sklom,

Mayor Donald Peloquin, Nicholas Crite (Land Planning Manager)

There will be more racks installed soon in one other Portland location as well as in Austin, Texas and Palos Heights, Illinois. In all, over 75 racks will be around the country for cyclists to use when they are out and about.

As soon as the rest of the racks are in place, we'll let you know...and get some more pictures up.

Austin Farmers' Market

As you saw, we had a billboard campaign in Austin, Texas last month and promised that there would be more to come in Austin. We weren't kidding.

Earlier this summer we partnered with the Austin Cycling Association to sponsor their bike valet program. They've been providing bike valet areas all over Austin recently so you can ride your bike to events and not worry about it being gone when you come back. It'll be there.

Thanks to all the volunteers who are helping us to make this all possible!

Check out a recent bike valet area at the Austin Farmers' Market!

Portland, San Fran & Del Sol

Last week we had photos of our new billboards in Austin. This week we have photos of some new placements in San Francisco and Portland, Oregon. This is pretty exciting stuff to us because we've never done anything like this before.

Here are some shots from Portland, Oregon..

My favorite is the penguin one. I just love them. They are too cute.

Here's a shot in San Francisco...

Why the crazy, "out there" places to secure a bike? Part of that is to catch your eye as you are going by the photos. Part is to really convey that we know there are fascinating adventures to be had off the bike - Go. Do. Explore. We've got your back; no matter where you properly lock your bike.

Speaking of bikes....I'd like to thank Del Sol for jumping right in and providing the bikes for our new campaign. They were so eager to help and got a bike right to us for photography; they made the whole process an easy one. The bike is perfect for the photos. I hope they are happy with the results, too. Thanks, Jill!

So, look around when you are riding or walking in Portland and San Fran....I'll bet you'll see some of these placements. Let us know what you think. And, if you see one while you are out and about, let us know!

Hellllooooo Austin!

As part of our brand relaunch this year we've done some 'out of home' advertising. Check out these billboards in Austin, Texas.

There are more than two in Austin. Let us know if you spy one. Send a photo, we'd love to see it.

We aren't stopping there either, Austin. There is more to come...something very different - on ground level. Stay tuned!

MASH World Premiere in San Fran

A few days ago we talked about supporting the bike valet program in San Francisco with the SFBC. We've just recieved a photo from the first event in the relationship. This is just a cool shot regardless of sponsorship - look at all those bikes!

Sure, you could park your own bike. But where's the novelty in that?

This is at the premiere of MASH, a locally made bike themed movie. Here's a quote from the directors that you can find on their website.

"It's not about stopping - it's about going as fast as you can. Commitment to every line, corner, and hill is what defines the style of these San Francisco riders. Come roll with us."
-- Gabe Morford and Mike Martin, Directors

Check it out!

Hello New York City!

Anyone in New York City seeing a little more Kryptonite these days? We know the folks in the Five Boros Bike Tour may have...looks like they had a great day for the ride!

Let us know if you are seeing a little more Kryptonite in your urban area. Post a comment. Send an email with a photo - we can't wait to see them. donna_tocci at irco.com