http://youtu.be/X22x1Wc-Jcw
Have fun and ride fast and far,
Robert
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Robert Matson
New York City Recumbent Supply
The Innovation Works, Inc.
copyright 2013 Robert Matson
Tag: racing
This just in.
Maria Parker’s following van in accident. She and crew are all okay.
At the time of writing they are in meeting and haven’t yet determined their next course.
NO DNF. Rumors of a DNF are unfounded.
The team will continue to work to promote brain cancer research and will continue to raise money towards this end.
According to a crew member with whom I spoke on the phone, Maria’s following vehicle was rear-ended by a motorist who was driving about 65 mph. This motorist claims to have been text messaging and dropped her phone. Presumably, she then took her eyes off the f***ng road while she tried to pick up her phone.
This is why there’s a law against text-messaging while driving in New York with extreme penalties. It should be a federal law with a minimum prison sentence. (Call your congressman.)
Two of M’s Vendettas, which were on the van’s rear-end bike rack, were destroyed. These were her hill-climbing and her back-up bikes. The following van was totaled, but the driver and passengers are all okay!!!
This section of road is particularly hazardous. In past RAAMs, there have been horrific accidents in this stretch.
John Tolhurst of Cruzbike put out an emergency call for replacement Vendettas (which your faithful servant responded when he received it this morning). However, upon calling to offer my shop’s Vendetta, I learned that she and her crew are undecided about their next course of action.
Total production run of the RAAM Vendetta now consists of 23 bikes. Please no more accidents.
Ride fast, ride safely,
Robert
————
Robert Matson
New York City Recumbent Supply
The Innovation Works, Inc.
copyright 2013 Robert Matson
Categories
Maria’s Start
All class. Nothing but class.
Have fun and stay healthy,
Robert
————
Robert Matson
New York City Recumbent Supply
The Innovation Works, Inc.
copyright 2013 Robert Matson
Categories
RAAM starts today.
 |
| The 3000 Miles to a Cure Team in Oceanside, California! |
Many of you may already know that The Race Across America starts today. I’m rooting for Maria Parker who is riding a Cruzbike Vendetta for the team “3000 Miles to a Cure.”
Speaking personally, I’ve been thoroughly impressed by every aspect of Cruzbike, whether it’s the people in the company, the bikes, their commitment to R&D and race-testing, or their approach to production, with continual improvement to bikes even in the middle of model years.
My own experience has shown that their entry-level “Sofrider” holds its own with bents at twice the price and their Vendetta racer, in the right hands, is so fast it should be controlled and licensed, if not outlawed…in UCI races…. Oh wait, it is. I’m stocking their full line, including the new Vendetta, which arrived just yesterday. I’m generally able to teach people to ride the front-wheel drive in less than an hour.
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| Maria Parker’s three RAAM Vendettas, each optimized for different conditions. This is a remarkable sight, given that the RAAM Vendetta’s production run consists of only 25 frames. So, what you’re seeing here is 12% of all RAAM Vendettas in existence. |
Commercial over. Here’s how to follow RAAM and team “3000 Miles to a Cure.”
CoverIt Live on our Facebook Page
News Media
There is a Wall Street Journal article about Maria that is set to be published Tuesday June 11th.
Al Jazeera English says they’ll broadcast their coverage of Maria on Tuesday.
More info. about 3000 Miles to a Cure:
http://www.3000milestoacure.com/donate
http://www.3000milestoacure.com/
https://www.facebook.com/3ktoacure
All best,
Robert
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Robert Matson
New York City Recumbent Supply
The Innovation Works, Inc.
copyright 2013 Robert Matson
The New York Cycle Club’s March 8th meeting will include a presentation about the Race Across America (RAAM), a ride famous with bent riders because it lets us race.
6pm.
NYCC Club membership and RSVPs required.
6pm.
NYCC Club membership and RSVPs required.
“George Thomas, Executive Director of Race Across America (RAAM) and 6-time RAAM finisher, will join NYCC’s March 8 Club meeting to deliver a riveting presentation on Race Across America.”
Join NYCC and go.
Best,
Robert
————
Robert Matson
New York City Recumbent Supply (TM)
The Innovation Works, Inc.
copyright 2011 Robert Matson
Chris Malloy, publisher of Recumbent Journal (http://www.recumbentjournal.com/) is looking for a few good women and men to crew for him during the Race Across the West. I’ve never worked with him, but I have spoken with him and he sounds like a good guy. Consider it.
If you’re interested, drop him a line. He sent me this note where he summarizes his needs.
Race Across the West (raceacrossthewest.org) is an 860 mile non-staged race with a 90 hour time limit. I am racing in the Solo Recumbent category, the only one so far. Racers need at least three, preferably five people for crew support during the race. The time would be June 13th in San Diego to about June 21 to leave Denver. The race starts June 15th. I have a crew chief and could use a mechanic and general crew members. This is very much a team effort. The crew is just as sleep deprived and overworked as the rider, but their legs don’t hurt as much. I can pay expenses during the race if you can get yourself to San Diego and home from Denver. Reply to Dinotrail500@yahoo.com
Thanks,
Chris Malloy
Bozeman Montana
Let me know how it goes.
Best,
Robert
————
Robert Matson
New York City Recumbent Supply (TM)
The Innovation Works, Inc.
copyright 2011 Robert Matson
I’m no fan of the silly debate about which bike is better: a bent or a diamond frame (“DF”) “standard” bike. As far as I’m concerned, people should sit on whatever they like, as long as it’s not a car seat.
Still, from time to time, I find myself lured into an annoying conversation where I feel compelled to defend the performance of bents, usually to male standard frame riders of a certain age. They don’t buy the comfort angle; they want to know how fast they are on the hills.
The results from the 2010 Race Across America, in which bents are permitted to race alongside diamond frames (over mountains and hills), illustrate how bents perform against DFs. All things being equal — and they never are — they’re pretty much equal. However, in RAAM 2010, there were very few bent riders overall, so it’s noteworthy that bents placed in the top of several categories.
Meanwhile, sadly, I find no mention of drug testing on the race’s website (maybe it’s there, but not anywhere obvious). Doping can decide a race and, without drug testing, ultimately, race results are meaningless. If there is no drug testing at RAAM, then I personally would assume that some athletes are doping.
Summary:
The under-50 solo women’s category winner, Barbara Buatois, was on a recumbent. Out of the five starters, 2nd and 3rd place were on standard frames. Among the DNFs (did not finish) were one standard frame and one bent. (This result is particularly interesting to me because women are a minority among bent riders, but the few I’ve worked with are among my most enthusiastic customers.)
Times, from 1st to 3rd were:
1: 11 days 19 hours 48 minutes Avg. speed: 10.59 (Barbara Buatois)
2: 12d 16h 36m Avg. speed: 9.87 (Sabrina Bianchi)
3: 12d 18h 31m Avg. speed: 9.8 (Michele Santilhano)
The age 50-59 solo male category was won by Timothy M. Woudenberg, a recumbent rider, who was the only finisher out of six starters. (This is additionally interesting to me because the “over 50 market” is a demographic I commonly see for bent riders.)
Time:
10 days 23 hours 14 min. Avg. speed: 11.42 (T. M. Woudenberg)
In the four-person male under-50 (years old) category, a bent team holds their own in a field of 11 teams, taking 3rd place, with standard frames taking 1st and 2nd place.
Times, from 1st to 3rd were:
1: 6 days 2 hours 39 minutes Avg. speed: 20.49 mph (Team: Bandwidth.com Inc.)
2: 6d 6h 59m Avg. speed: 19.9 mph (Team: Team doc2doc)
3: 6d 9h 35m. Avg. speed: 19.57 mph (Team: Bent Up Cycles)
Does that tell us anything meaningful? Maybe the idea that bents aren’t inherently slower (or faster) will help convince a few pain-ridden standard frame riders to get onto something a little more comfortable.
Best,
Robert
————
Robert Matson
New York City Recumbent Supply (TM)
The Innovation Works, Inc.
copyright 2010 Robert Matson