Panther City Bicycles JERSEYS!

The jerseys are here! We have assorted sizes in stock... come get yours today. Just $75 for a beautiful full-zip jersey made in the USA by Canari Cyclewear.

Texas Time Trials: official report

I've been getting a lot of questions about how the 12-hour ride went Saturday, so here's my official report:

It was a chilly start at 5:30. I opted to wear an undershirt, jersey, armwarmers, and vest, shorts, Surly wool socks, and DeFeet shoe covers. I also had taped all the vents on the front 3/4 of my helmet shut. I did it for aerodynamics, but it helped a lot with the cold wind, too. All were good choices, but the decision not to wear knee warmers would come back to haunt me a little.

We took off on the first lap, and I was a little nervous about missing a turn on a course I'd never ridden. It was dark, after all. So for the first lap I kept the taillights of the fast guys in sight. The course was pretty tough: about 800 feet of climbing per lap. I'd say about 650 of those feet were in the first half of the loop, that also happened to feature a headwind that got stronger as the day went on. That first lap took me 1 hour and 9 minutes. That would put me on pace to finish over 180 miles, so I figured that was probably a little too fast a pace. The next couple of laps I did in about 1:15. Between those first 3 laps I took really short, 30-second pit stops to refill my food/drink and peel off warmers and such.

After the third lap, I took a long break because I had to poop. The 5:30 start had kind of messed up my normal "schedule." After I had that taken care of, I ate two sandwiches, tended to the bike a bit, refilled all my bottles and lined them up, and took off again. The next two laps I rode without a break, except to pick up a bottle. These laps were still taking me about 1:15.

After 100 miles, I again took a brief break, about 15 minutes. I peeled the tape off my helmet, because it was starting to get hot, and my perspiration was condensing in the helmet and dripping in to my eyes, which hurt. I put on some sunscreen. As I got back onto the bike, I noted that I wasn't feeling too fatigued, and wondered what was up.

It was about halfway through the sixth lap that my body started reminding me that I'd never ridden more than 100 miles before. My shoulders and neck started getting pretty fatigued, and I noticed a tiny nagging pain in my left knee. By the time I finished that lap (I had now slowed to 1:30), I knew I wouldn't have too many more laps in me.

When I came in from that 6th lap, I asked Julie to gather a couple of bottles and some food and hand them up to me in a musette between my 7th and 8th laps (Thanks Julie!). I did that because I knew if I got off the bike after my 7th lap, even if it was just to grab a bottle, I probably wouldn't get back on.

My 7th and 8th laps took me more like 1:45. I finished the 8th at about 5 p.m. and called it a day. The extra 7 miles I could have added on a prorated basis just weren't worth making another 20-mile lap.

I have a lot of people to thank. Thanks to Brad for convincing me I could do it, and Julie for helping in the race. Thanks to Arundel Bicycle Company; I asked them two days before the event if I could get one of their chrono bottle/cage combos, and they had it in my hands within 24 hours. Thanks to my business partner, Jason, for manning the shop alone on Saturday. A HUGE thanks to Ronnie and Nanette Bryant, who rescued me with a spare LED rear light about 10 minutes before the start. And thanks to Dan Driscoll for putting on a classy event. I had a good time and I'll be back. Hopefully next year I can trade my medal for a trophy.

Bernie lets his freak flag fly...

Most of you who read this blog have ridden with us at one time or another, or have at least been in the shop, so you've probably seen Bernie's bike. But you haven't seen it like this... in an effort to get ready for the 12-hour time trial he's doing Saturday, he's converted his bike to full-tilt aero-geek status. Take a look:



Now, I'll be the first to admit that the bike looks pretty cool set up for time trials. The part I'm concerned about is how excited he is about getting on his bike and riding for 12 HOURS! But that's another story. Take a closer look at the very cool Arundel Chrono aero water bottle/cage combo (link at the bottom of this post will take you to Arundel's site; They're a Fort Worth company!):



And a nice pair of minimalist Vision aerobars:



And of course, since the race starts before the sun comes up, a nifty sub-aerobar lighting system:





I've been giving him a hard time about his geeked-out bike, and I hope some of you will, too. A 10% discount to every customer who comes in and asks Bernie where the "Flux Capacitor" is on his bike!

Last night's FW Mobility and Air Quality Meeting

Jason and I went to the City of Fort Worth's Mobility and Air Quality citizen meeting last night. It was a fairly encouraging meeting, as the city was actually taking notes about what the citizens do and do not like about the current transportation and air quality situation.

The bad news: way too much of our city is still in denial that we even have a problem. Out of a total city population of something like 600,000 people, about 35 were bothered enough to show up for the meeting. Of those 35, close to 10 seemed to be affiliated with the agencies holding the meeting (COFW, the T, McDonald transportation, etc). So only 25 real, independent citizens.

Now, the very very GOOD news: Of those 25 citizens at the meeting, about 10 were cyclists. Andy and Dave from CAMBA were there. Jim and Kyle from the LMRA cycling club were there, plus Me, Jason, and a sprinkling of other cyclists. Since we were the only real cohesive group at the meeting, everytime a show of hands was made to get a public opinion on an issue, the cyclist opinion was most favored.

SO, as the MAQ planning process continues we need to get even more cyclists to come and represent our views at the meetings. The city of Fort Worth will have to listen to us if we're the only ones talking! Stay tuned, and we'll try to let as many cyclists as possible know about upcoming opportunities to influence public policy...

Breezer Bikes and Bags are here...

Breezer bikes and accessories have arrived! All bikes are available with U-frames (not just for ladies anymore!) like the Villager pictured above, or with traditional diamond frames.

Use the link below to learn more about Joe Breeze and his mission to change the world with bikes...

New Water Bottles!

New bottles have arrived (thanks Mark)! Come buy yours today; just $6, or ask for one FREE with purchase of $50 or more. Free bottle offer good through Saturday, October 15.

Give Opinion in Fort Worth Transit Study

Thanks to Andy for bringing the following to our attention:

The City of Fort Worth wants your input in their Mobility and Air Quality (MAQ) Study. There will be a meeting Oct. 18 to give citizens a chance to identify how the area’s transportation system could serve them better. The meeting will be held at the Fort Worth Convention Center, West Meeting Room 108, from 6-8 p.m. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. For more information, contact Amber Mitchell at 817-392-2443 or Don Williams at 817-392-8702. For special needs, contact Amber Mitchell or MAQPlan@fortworthgov.org at least 72 hours before the meeting.

Urban Assault...

KHS was showing a sweet new city bike at the show, the UrbanX. Check out those color matched fenders, seat, and stem. And it comes fully equipped with rack and all for just $330. Just think of how much you'd save on gas...

Pitching a tent...

This is one of the coolest, most original new products we saw at the show. A bike touring tent that's lighter and less bulky because it requires no poles:



Stake the fork of the bike down to support the front of the tent...



use the front wheel as a hoop to support the back end of the tent...



and enter from the side.

Vegas Report, installment 2

MMMmmm... look at this delicious new full-carbon Masi. High Modulus Carbon lugs and tubes, with parts so good there's literally nothing to upgrade. It's even got Dura-Ace wheels! Kudos to Tim Jackson, brand manager at Masi, for making this bike happen. It's expensive, but like I said... there is absolutely nothing to upgrade. Slap on your favorite pedals, and you've got a no-compromise professional-level racing machine.

rides resume TONIGHT!

We're ready to get back to our regular weekly ride schedule... bring lights tonight; I don't want to have to cut the ride short. We leave at 6:30...

We're back!

We're back from fabulously overrated Las Vegas! The show was incredible; never have I seen so much bike stuff and so many bike people in one place. It was the greatest freakshow on earth.... We met cycling celebrities, talked bike, ate drank and slept bike for 3 solid days, but it was worth it. We're excited about our new lines, and I think all of you will be too.

Tune in here every day for the next few days, as I'll gradually be adding photos and blurbs about what we saw... above is the first installment, a view from our hotel window.

Dear "Customer with money to spend"...

Thanks for the note; I apologize for the inconvenience. If we could afford employees, we wouldn't have been closed. But since we had business out of town, we were left with no choice but to close for a couple of days. Next year, we hope to be able to hire somebody. Next time sign your name to your note, or just give us a call so we can talk about it.

Thanks,

Jason and Bernie