BikeForums.net t-shirts coming soon!
By brian | August 30, 2007 - 9:20 pm - Posted in Random acts of typing

Ok, maybe not big news for everyone, but it’s still a scoop. It’s such a scoop that Brad from Velotees doesn’t even know yet that he’s been given the green light to be the official supplier of BikeForums.net t-shirts.

Here’s the good part. Not only are we planning on having the members help in the initial design, but to keep the price low, neither BikeForums nor the parent company, Internet Brands, will be taking a profit.

So congratulations to Brad, and to the members too. They’ve been asking for a while now, and it’s good to see it finally happen.

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Interbike and Bikes Belong Ink Long-Term Partnership
By brian | August 29, 2007 - 6:20 pm - Posted in Press releases

New 10-year pact will support key bicycling projects and increase industry involvement in the world’s leading bicycle trade show

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, Calif. and BOULDER, Colo. - August 28, 2007 - Nielsen Media, parent company of Interbike, and the Bikes Belong Coalition, the bike industry’s advocacy group for the United States, today announced a significant 10-year, multi-million dollar alliance that will boost efforts to get more Americans riding bicycles.

Interbike, which has produced one of the world’s leading bicycle trade shows since 1982, will become a top financial contributor to Bikes Belong and a primary sponsor of two innovative Bikes Belong projects. Interbike will become a top-level sponsor of the Bikes Belong Foundation–Bikes Belong’s sister organization that focuses on bicycle safety and children’s bicycling initiatives. Interbike and Bikes Belong will also partner to support a high profile bicycle project each year in the show’s host city (currently Las Vegas).

For its part, Bikes Belong will officially endorse Interbike as the U.S. bike industry’s trade show and will end its consideration of launching or supporting a competing event. Bikes Belong will also work closely with Interbike’s staff to maximize the appeal of the show and its related events to suppliers, retailers, and bike advocates.

Since Bikes Belong was formed in 1999, Interbike has shown its ongoing support to the advocacy organization in a number of ways, including

· Providing Bikes Belong its first cash grant,
· Frequently paying more than its membership dues,
· Providing complimentary exhibition and advertising space, and
· Creating several significant fundraising programs and events to enhance
Bikes Belong’s work.

“Bikes Belong is doing a phenomenal job of getting more people on bikes, promoting bicycle safety and working with governments to develop bicycle friendly infrastructure,” said Joe Flynn, vice president and general manager of Nielsen Business Media’s Sports Group. “Their efforts have significantly strengthened the bicycle industry. We strongly believe in supporting and working closely with the associations in the industries our shows serve, such as the Outdoor Industry Association, Surf Industry Manufacturers Association and American Fly Fishing Trade Association. Now, we are taking a similar step with Bikes Belong for Interbike.”

According to Lance Camisasca, Interbike’s show director, Interbike has enjoyed a productive, long-term relationship with Bikes Belong. “Now, we’re making our alliance even stronger,” Camisasca said. “This new pact will be key to Interbike’s future success and the growth of the bicycle business.”

Tim Blumenthal, executive director of Bikes Belong said, “This agreement enables us to stay focused on what we do best: maximizing federal bike funding, awarding grants, promoting the benefits of bicycling, and supporting great programs like Safe Routes to School and Bicycle Friendly Communities. Interbike’s increased investment will help us accomplish more in all of these key areas. Additionally, we will be able to work closely with Interbike to develop new ways for the Show to best serve the needs of the suppliers and retailers in our industry.”

About Interbike
Interbike, produced by Nielsen Business Media, the parent company of the Outdoor Retailer (OR), Action Sports Retailer (ASR) and Fly Fishing Retailer trade shows, is a full-service trade show company that creates, markets and produces high-quality expos and educational conferences. Producers of the OutDoor Demo and Interbike International Bicycle Expo, Interbike is the leading bicycle industry business-to-business event management company, bringing together top manufacturers, retailers, industry advocates and media to conduct the business of cycling. Now celebrating more than 25 years of successful events, Interbike ( www.interbike.com) gathers more than 1,000 cycling-related brands and more than 21,000 total attendees annually.

The next 25 years of Interbike start with the OutDoor Demo in Bootleg Canyon, Boulder City, Nevada, September 24-25, 2007 and the International Bicycle Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada, September 26-28, 2007.

About Bikes Belong
Bikes Belong Coalition ( www.bikesbelong.org) is the U.S. bicycle industry organization dedicated to getting more people riding bikes more often. Bikes Belong lobbies to increase federal bike funding, awards grants to support innovative bike projects, promotes bicycling and its benefits, and backs crucial national efforts such as Safe Routes to School, Bicycle Friendly Communities, and the National Bike Summit. The affiliated Bikes Belong Foundation focuses on improving bicycle safety and enhancing children’s bike programs.

Bikes Belong is run by a 10-person professional staff and a volunteer board of directors that includes top bike company executives, retailers, and media leaders.

# # #

INTERBIKE MEDIA CONTACTS:
Chip Smith, SOAR Communications, 801.523.3730 (wk) / 801.597.7515(cell), csmith@soarcomm.com or
David Politis, SOAR Communications, 801.523.3730(wk) / 801.556.8184(cell), poppa.p@soarcomm.com
European Contact:
Uwe Weissflog, inMotion mar.com, + 49(0)714 1913131(wk) / +49(0)170 3164035(cell), uweissflog@inmotionmar.com

BIKES BELONG COALITION MEDIA CONTACTS:
Tim Blumenthal, Bikes Belong Coalition, 303.449.4893, tim@bikesbelong.org
Avery Stonich, Bikes Belong Coalition, 303.449.4893, avery@bikesbelong.org

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Sunrace Sturmey Archer gets back in the game, in a big way
By brian | August 28, 2007 - 5:50 pm - Posted in Press releases, Random acts of typing

I just saw this on their blog today. Not really too much info, other than the fact that they’re going to be offering new groups for road and MTB, but it looks like some pretty sweet product.

They’ve been kinda laying low for a while, (their websites haven’t been updated in way too long!) and it looks like they’re ready to jump in the fray. Remember not too long ago, when Shimano was the only competitive choice for MTBs? Then SRAM decided to steal a slice of their pie, and hasn’t that turned out to be good for us? Now we’ve got another option, which will breed the kind of competition that can only benefit cyclists.

I’m looking forward to the day when we get to debate SRAM vs Sunrace vs Shimano, or Campagnolo vs Sunrace vs Shimano.

Sadly, I won’t get the scoop before anyone else, as they’re only go to be at the Interbike outdoor demo, and I’m only going to the convention in Vegas. If I can squeeze anything out of them before then, I’ll post it here.

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Odds that really suck
By brian | August 27, 2007 - 10:07 pm - Posted in Random acts of typing

Ok, no link to the original article, since I must have read it in at least 8 places today. But I can only offer sympathy to the family of Kevin Avalar, who was struck and killed by lightning yesterday while riding his bike.

Out of the 62 people that get killed by lightning each year in the US, it really sucks that a 15 year old boy was the latest victim. At that age, you still have some innocence about you, and nothing but the future ahead of you. All cut tragically short by Mother Nature.

As a parent to 4 teenagers, I hope that as we all take our next ride, we’ll take a moment to be thankful for the opportunity, and if we’re so inclined, offer a prayer for Kevin’s family.

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I’m Doping
By brian | August 26, 2007 - 9:19 pm - Posted in Random acts of typing

Not really, but I saw it on a t-shirt and thought it was funny.

Velotees is a company that prints t-shirts you probably won’t find at your LBS. They’ve got some cool designs that are a bit edgier than the usual fare, and are all printed on high quality cotton, not the cheap stuff.

The owner, Brad, is a member of BikeForums.net, and that’s how we met. I liked some of his designs so much, I decided to get a few to wear to Interbike. It was an easy decision, since I want to remain brand-neutral. I’m also running his banner here at no charge, since his business is just growing, and every little bit of exposure helps. I suggest you stop by and have a look once in a while, as we should see some new designs soon. (Nothing like a little pressure, hey Brad?)

Don’t forget that we need to support the little guys - that’s how they get to be big guys.

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