TriSports.com Blog

Live Blogging from TRIFEST ’09

Good Afternoon from TRIFEST ’09!

As you may remember, I work retail at TriSports.com and we have set up a *fantastic* expo tent that I am currently standing in and blogging live from TRIFEST ’09!! Here’s the report as of 1:54 p.m. this afternoon:

*Tons of vendors with really exciting product are set up on the expo floor.  To my left we have FRS, QR, 2XU, Kestrel, Zipp, Zoot, Kuota, Felt, Amica Insurance and bike vendor BH.  Endless Pool has put a single lane pool right in the middle of the expo floor (and I think Leanda is currently putting on a BlueSeventy wetsuit and is going to take a dip and show off her swim skills).  Suunto, Speedo, Ninteen Wetsuits and Team Duke all have great expo booths as well!

*Leanda Cave delivered an excellent speech on the in’s and out’s of being a professional athlete.  She took a half hour to discuss how much time, effort and dollars is required to go pro in triathlon.

*Sam McGlone lead a short run around downtown Tucson.  She along with members of the Tucson Triathlon Club, TriSports.com employees and TRIFEST participants were able to enjoy some beautiful weather today.

*Skins has debuted a new women’s line as well as their bike shorts and bibs. I had a chance to try them out and let me tell you – they’re fantastic.  As a woman, bibs have never been an option..until now.  SKINS has put incredible thought and effort into making a function, attractive Bib.

And finally, Tucson Bicycle Classic, a 3 day stage race, is going on this weekend as well and TriSports.com employees Billy Brenden and Matt Beauregard both delivered excellent performances.   Congratulations to both!

That’s about it for now! I’ll be back blogging live as the action develops.

Look Fast!

Two weeks ago I won the time trial at the Valley of the Sun on my Kuota Kueen K.  I will be testing out this new speed machine once again this weekend at the Tucson Bicycle Classic….see you there!  Here is a look at both of my team bikes.

Kuota Kueen KTeam bike. Yes, thats orange paint and it looks slick!

The sign.

Yesterday began the official physical preparation for TRIFEST.  As the presenting sponsor, TriSports.com provides a lot of the man power to produce and support the event (among other things).  These next few days are jammed packed with small tasks and big tasks alike that need to be completed.  Many of the big projects are coordinated with groups of people and require thought and preparation.  But those small jobs always seem to require the most amount of effort because they often get overlooked in the planning process.

The last project that was completed late into the evening yesterday was simply hanging a sign – a small job in the grand scheme of things.  As expected, this small job turned into a big project because we did not have all the proper materials to hang the sign, but eventually got it up and it felt great.

Over the next several days, there will be a lot of projects completed by our staff, vendors and volunteers that will all contribute to producing our sport’s signature kick-off event.  Tomorrow morning’s ride up Mount Lemmon gets the TRIFEST weekend officially started and the festivities won’t end until Sunday night.  If you are not here, you should be. 

Finished product and the glory of it all…

Eat. Sleep. Train. (and repeat)

TriSports.com’s Retail Staff has had two *HUGE* weeks.  Firstly, we rolled out all the new 2009 clothing.  Secondly: ’tis camp season.   As I’m typing we’re expecting a bus-load (literally a bus filled with triathletes) to roll into the shop any second.

Last week, as I was here at the Retail Store at an ungodly early hour hanging the new 2009 Desoto Clothing (check out the Tri-Capri, what a good idea!) and I heard some splashing and realized that I wasn’t the only one at work early: Mark Walls (our bike department manager) and Lionel Meza (a buyer) were training in the endless pool here in the shop. 

Right about then it really hit me exactly how hard our employes work.  I am constantly in awe in awe of my colleagues.  We are athletes, graduate students, parents and of course we are the bread and butter of TriSports.com.   Check out the races that our employees are doing this season:

Sunrise at Old Tucson Cross Country Trail Run
Dave’s Run for ALS 5k
Sabino Canyon Sunset run 7 mile
Cinco de Mayo 10K
Tucson 5000
Meet Me Downtown 5K
Saguaro 8 Mile
Jim Click Run and Roll 5K
Get Moving Tucson 10 miler
Oracle Run 10K
Turkey Day XC Classic
Skinny Tire Festival
Wildflower Triathlon
Ironman Lake Placid
Eagar Daze Triathlon
AZ Distance Classic half-marathon
Firecracker Triathlon
Tucson Triathlon
Tour de Tucson
Tour of Tucson Mountains
Tucson Bicycle Classic
Lake Havasu Olympic Distance Triathlon
Colossal Cave Stage Race
Wildflower Half Ironman
Lake Sahuarita Sprint Triathlon (best in the US qualifier)
Buffalo Olympic Triathlon
Las Paloms Rocky Point Triathlon
SOMA Half Ironman

Like I said: I’m in awe.

This is SoCal?

After spending a wonderful night in El Centro (Great town, great town…), we drove up the 4,000 feet or so to the mountain town of Boulevard.  Didn’t know I was going into a the great white north of Socal.  After struggling to put my kit on in the freezing, wet cold, some warming gel, and a couple curses, we hit the start line.  On the 2nd lap of 4, I attacked on the climb and went off the front with 3 other guys including Missingsaddles own (Carson Miller) chasing 2 guys up the road. I worked for 15-20 miles together, then my teammate Cam Evans, 3 virgin-blue guys, and Sheldon. I was suffering pretty bad from the cold. Legs were just zapped, frozen. So hard to eat and drink. Shivering… Worked with them for another 15-20 miles, then my teammate attacked a long ways out with 20 mi to go and I just couldn’t respond. Done… Rode by myself for 10 mi or so, then the remnants of the peloton about 25 guys or so (including my teammates Floyd, Rory, and Murphy) finally caught me and I rolled with them to the finish. Finished off a respectable 19th place. A bit disappointed I wasn’t able to hang on to support my teammate.  Although outnumbered by the 4 virgin-blue riders, Cam was able to hold on for 2nd.  All said and done, it was a satisfying day in the saddle for sure.

Bike Race? Your joking, right?

World Bicycle Relief

There seems to be something about the kind of people who work in the bike industry that is inherently philanthropic.  For some reason, many of us just like to “give back” and contribute in a meaningful way.  Many of the companies that TriSports.com works with have programs that promote and/or practice environmentally friendly operations, healthy work environments and charitable contributions to their community.  SRAM Corporation is one of such companies.

We had the pleasure of having Stan Day, CEO and President of SRAM  Corp., visit us a few weeks back to talk about his company and their products.  On top of manufacturing superior bicycle components, SRAM contributes a substantial amount to the World Bicycle Relief Fund.  This program was actually started by F.K. Day, Vice President of SRAM Corp. in response to the 2004 tsunami that devastated the Indian Ocean region.  

The best description of this program can be taken right from their website:

Simple, sustainable transportation is an essential element in disaster assistance and poverty relief. Bicycles fulfill basic needs by providing increased access to healthcare, education and economic development, especially when compared to the alternative of walking. Bicycles empower individuals, their families, and their communities. Our mission is to provide access to independence and livelihood through The Power of Bicycles.

Listening to Stan talk briefly about this organization you could feel his passion, commitment and belief in their mission.  It is absolutely astounding when you compare the efficiency of biking with walking and the life changing impact this program is having in all areas of the world.  The graphic representation of this point can be found on their website – truly astounding.

In 2008, TriSports.com donated 5 bikes to their cause and will continue to support their efforts. 

Many of us have or will establish our own charitable contribution practices throughout our adult lives.  Some may choose to support local public education, churches, animal shelters, homeless shelters and the like.   If you have not yet found an organization you feel passionate about supporting, consider donating to the World Bicycle Relief fund to do your part to keep the wheels across the world turning. 

Sri Lankan Fisherman post tsunami.  Photo by: Leah Missbach Day

Bike Packing 101

I think it goes without saying that when traveling with your bike it’s incredibly important to make sure that it’s packed correctly and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen bikes arrive at our shop with either new scratches or parts missing. So, on that point I want to go over flat packing a box which applies to clam shell style cases. If you’re new to bike packing you should plan on 1-2 hours of time to make sure everything fits and is secure.

On to the instructions: Today we’ll be packing a customers Custom Guru Road Bike which had some clip on Aerobars. The first step is to mark all of the important measurements with either sharpie or tape before beginning the disassembly.

Remove the Wheels & Skewers, Pedals, Handlebars (at the stem faceplate), Saddle & Seat Post, and Aerobars (on a Tribike you can probably leave them assembled but with the Road Bars there is too much height). You might have to remove your Front Brake and Rear Derailleur depending on the bike and box, in this example I chose to do both.

Lay everything flat to figure out the best position in the box, then wrap everything in bubble wrap or towels.

 Lastly lay down a sheet of bubble wrap over the secured bike (a cardboard sheet helps too); then carefully place your wheels on top paying attention to the axel to make sure it isn’t near the frame. *Make sure to put the plastic axel covers on the wheels to prevent them from puncturing the box or frame.

 Tada! Finished!

Most bike shops will give away cardboard bike boxes and packing materials for free. Here at TriSports.com we have a $100 bike build/packing fee which includes initial assembly when your bike arrives at the shop and then an excellent packing job to get it home safe when you’re ready to leave Tucson.

You cant really over pack a bike; as long as it fits in the box then throw whatever soft stuff you’ve got in there to take up space. It’s a pretty simple process but if you are the least bit uncomfortable packing your bike by yourself then its worth taking it to a shop and paying. Nobody likes a $5k bike with a hole in it! Good luck!

IFLYSWA

SWA lots of LUV

Several years back I was visiting a friend and business colleague up in Seattle and I got on my Southwest Airlines (SWA) soapbox.  My friend Ian couldn’t believe how passionate I was about the airline.  Well today I am going to share with the world, okay, at lease those of you who love TriSports.com enough to read this blog, my thoughts on SWA.  As a small business owner I can appreciate what SWA does and here are my top reasons:

• Turn and burn – after you fly w/ Southwest for awhile and then fly another airline you really have an appreciation for how fast they can turn a plane (I think their goal time is 25 minutes).  Most airlines turn a plane in about 45-60 minutes, usually longer.  I love this efficiency.

• Clean it Quick – almost every other airline has a separate cleaning crew that comes on the plane and cleans between the unloading and loading of the plane.  At SWA the crew cleans the plane – this includes the pilots.  Economics meets efficiency

• Customer Service – SWA has great customer service.  Is every interaction I have with them perfect?  Nope.  But considering there are 30,000 individuals working for the company I would say that my customer service experiences w/ them are way above the norm.  I can tell you they are leaps and bounds above the other airlines I am sometimes forced to fly with.  I would say there is a 90%+ chance I will have a good experience w/ SWA and a 90%+ I will have a poor experience w/ another airline.

• Peanuts and Bags – All of the other airlines are really good at gouging their customers – unless you are one of their Platinum Star Super Duper Members you are going to have to pay for your bags and there are no free peanuts.  Seriously, you can’t just mask the price of my baggage into the price of the ticket?  You are going to charge me 3x the price of SWA AND charge me for my bags?

•  Team Effort – I fly quite a bit and I don’t ever recall a time when I saw a SWA employee treat another employee badly.  They are all busting their butts for the customers.  This is in far contrast to other airlines.  I was forced to fly another airline over the holidays and a guy that checked in right in front of me was an employee of that airline.  The guy who helped him might have well been his arch enemy – he was treated like garbage.  Hello – we are on the same team.  Hook a brother up??!!!

I could go on and on about SWA, but the truth of the matter is that I appreciate how lean they run their business and how well they take care of their customers.  This is something we at TriSports.com strive for as well and I hope, as a customer or vendor, you can see the same effort coming from us.  Thanks for flying TriSports.com Airlines – we know you have a choice when you tri, thank you for tri’ing with us!

Winter Training Camps in Tucson

It is 90 degrees and sunny in Tucson today! There really isn’t a more perfect climate for winter training than our beautiful desert city. This, coupled with TRIFEST – an amazing event for triathletes to attend, is re-establishing Tucson as one of the premier spots for camps and pros alike to train.

Riding Gates Pass

In many ways TriSports.com allows campers to have an experience that would go unmatched in other places due to all the amenities our retail store is able to provide. This year TriSports.com was able to ship and build bikes for the camps. Imagine arrive at your desitination and your bike is ready to ride…just throw on your clothes and go! We also offer unique shopping days during which campers can shop at special rates, get a tour of the facility, and hang out with their coaches and the retail staff for some one-on-one attention. Finally, our endless pool with underwater cameras allows coaches to not only show swimmers how to improve their technique, but allows the campers to take a DVD of their swim home with them.

Cliff Enlish Coaching Training Camp

This year there were 11 Camps (6 unique coaches/ coaching services) directly affiliated with TRIFEST. The campers that I have had the pleasure to meet thus far are having a blast (and getting a tan). So to all those who are riding your trainers and buried under 2 feet of snow…next year, go for it, and get your triathlete selves out to Tucson for a week of fun and sun!