TriSaraTops Takes a Spin

By TriSaraTops

Aside from being on cloud nine from receiving my new BMC TT02, I was lucky enough to have this bike fit perfectly by the guys at Spin Bike Shop in Lakewood, Ohio. Spin is an area shop, and is rider-owned and operated, so I knew I was in good hands. Their shop has tons of fantastic gear, awesome rides, tools, clothes, and nutrition--not to mention a wealth of expertise and knowledge in all their mechanics! Greg and John were wonderful to work with and answered all my questions in a simple and easy to understand manner.

John was the one responsible for doing my fitting, and I could tell he had done his homework by all the framed certificates of his training seminars all around the room. He did a range of activities before I even got on the bike so that it would fit perfectly to my body, including flexibility and range of motion tests. He also looked closely at my feet, which, let's just say, have changed dramatically since my son arrived last October! After he added several layers of support and a new insole, I felt like I had a whole new pair of shoes. You know how you never know how old and worn out your running shoes are until you slip on a pair of new ones? Yeah, it was something like that.

Speaking of that feeling, it about sums up how I felt as I sat on my new Time Machine for the first time. I've been riding an entry-level road bike with aerobars I threw on there since I bought it for my first MS 150 back in late 2002. The feel of this new ride is so much sleeker and is such a different position than I'm used to, and John made sure that it was comfortable at every step of the way. He tweaked the pedals, saddle, and aerobars until the angles and measurements were perfectly aligned with my own frame. I've already added a few hundred miles on my TT02, and I feel better and more comfortable than ever!

Thanks so much to Greg, John, and everyone at Spin Bike Shop! If you're in Northeastern Ohio, be sure to check them out...you won't be disappointed!

Wrenching with Sweet

By Chris Sweet

It's been more than 15 years since I first started racing triathlons. For those first races I borrowed my mom's steel Ross 10 speed (that's 10 gears total for you newbies!). The bike was too big for me and never intended for racing in the first place. During one of my first kids triathlons my chain fell off at least two times during a six mile ride. I think I managed to win the race, but the important lesson I learned was about bike maintenance. While I was fixing the chain and getting passed, I vowed to learn everything I could about how my bike worked. After that race I began taking bikes apart and putting them back together so that I knew how each piece worked. In the long run, this has saved me a lot of money, but more importantly I have a dialed in bike on race day as well as the knowledge to handle almost any mechanical problem that may occur.

When I found out that my new Evotri teammate, Charlie who lives in the boonies did not have a BMC dealer anywhere in the vicinity to assemble his new bike, I said no problem, I'll put it together. This video compresses Charlie's bike build from a couple hours down to a couple minutes. Hey, I'm good, but not that good!

Here's how the 2008 Evotri Team Bikes are spec'd:

BMC TT02 Frame
Easton EC 90 Aero Fork
Zipp 606 clincher wheelset with Wireless Powertap
Zipp Vuka aerobars
Zipp VumaQuad Crankset
Full SRAM Force groupset

If you want to improve your wrenching skills I recommend either of these books: The Bicycling Guide to Complete Bicycle Maintenance and Repair (5th edition) or Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance (2nd Edition). A few of the best websites are: Sheldon Brown's Bicycle Technical Info and The Bike Website.

Don't be afraid to try something yourself. Yeah, you'll probably screw something up along the way, but figuring out what you did wrong is one of the best ways to learn!

The BMC Family

With the new episodes of LOST not kicking off for another few weeks, we thought it fitting to revisit Scott Thomson, Brand Manager for BMC Bikes at Frostbike, and ask some very important questions - specifically, which bike would he bring to an island?

Get to know the charismatic man behind the brand, as well as more about the entire BMC familiy by clicking here.

Chillin' Out at Frostbike, '08!

One great to look forward to when the cold weather comes is all the hot gear on display thanks to QBP's Frostbike show in Minnesota. The annual event took place a few weeks ago, and featured over 100 of the top tri-brands on the market including our very favorites, BMC, CycleOps, Zipp and SRAM.

Team Evotri was among the invited guests, and as you can see from the pictures below, they had an awesome time! Thanks to QBP for their hospitality, and to all the sponsors who took time to sit and talk with us and show us around. To see more photos and to learn more about Frostbike, please visit www.frostbike.com.

TJ Tollakson and Becky Lavelle were among the crew at Frostbike who stopped for a chat with our own Simply Stu and Rural-Girl.

Dave Ripley - Product Manager for Zipp, and Rural-Girl present the latest and greatest in speed technology.

Simply Stu interviews the always charming Scott, brand manager for BMC.

A tricked out and fierce BMC TT02 - the official bike of top pro triathlete Tyler Stewart and Team Evotri.

BMC athlete and 3-time Xterra World Champion Melanie McQuaid chills out with Simply Stu at Frostbike, 2008.