Cross representation in the NorthWest.
posted on 11.03.09
Craig Etheridge (top) and an unknown unattached rider gettin' dirty at the Cross Crusade race in Rainier, Oregon. Bottom photo courtesy of Mike Davis at PDXCross.
The kit of tomorrow, available today.
posted on 07.31.09
The Unattached Rider kit has been updated for 2010. Features a sun-deflecting white backside, a nipple-masking black frontside, and a new premiere typeface: Akzidenz-Grotesk.
Early-season podiums.
posted on 4.30.09
Tim Ahern (in black and white) chugs what looks to be victory chocolate milk at the Tour of the Battenkill in New York.
And once again Beth Newell shows the rest of us how it's done. She won the Menlo Park Grand Prix in the hardest working skinsuit to ever leave my apartment. Photos by Ken Cowley.
Across the pond.
posted on 12.07.08
Chris Tree of the UK shows us how he feels about his new kit.
Track nationals in Los Angeles
posted on 10.18.08
Beth Newell represents. If I made any money, I'd sponsor her. Photos by Rob Evans.
BCA CX in Hagerstown, MD... is that Maryland?
posted on 10.09.08
Bill Schieken toughing it out after stacking it on a gravel patch. He was afraid he shredded his brand new kit, "but them things are tough and the bibs came through unscathed". Photo by Ryan Dudek.
CX in the MIdwest
posted on 09.29.08
Chris Jensen doing it wrong at Jackson Park Cross in Chicago, Illinois. Photo by Edmund White.
XC in the Midwest
posted on 09.08.08
James Chiappetta at the 2nd annual Palos Meltdown where he "had a ruff day with mechanicals". Suuure... me too.
Action in the sprinter's lane
posted on 04.25.08
Beth Bikes (rockin' one of the only two Unattached skinsuits in existence) taking names at the Hellyer Park Velodrome. Not sure what the event is—looks like a match sprint to me. Photos by Mike Norris.
Must be nice to be racing in February.
posted on 02.15.08
Jeffrey Wat at the McDowell Mountain Regional Park Circuit Race somewhere around Arizona. Out of 30 racers, only 20 crossed the line. Jeff feels mighty good about his 20th place finish. Joe Ebenroth is somewhere in this pack. Hi Joe!
Must be nice to be racing in January.
posted on 01.31.08
Ron Andring at the Southern Nevada Stage Race. I'm not certain, but it looks like he's rolling up to the line for the cat 4 criterium, where he placed a solid 6th. Rock.
Almost forgot...
posted on 01.23.08
Hope everyone is enjoying their time off. Experienced riders have said that the race is won in the off-season. While that may be true, let's not kid ourselves. Trainer, I hate you.
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The second order didn't go quite as smoothly as the first. I had to coordinate the batch from Manila using my phone. Poor judgement on my part—I botched an order because the Excel order form was too big and my phone's screen was too small and the whole process was just cumbersome. Just a bad idea. Stoopid, stoopid, crap, shit (hitting myself).
To get someone a replacement jersey to wear with their bib shorts, I have to start another group order. This one will be placed in early February for a late March delivery. I'm just hoping to have enough folks interested so I don't have to buy like seven jerseys for myself to meet the minimum. Takers?
Competitive debut
posted on 11.05.07
This is most likely the very first sighting of the kit in a sanctioned event. Ryan Gingerich placed 8th in the 4A race of Campton Cross (Chicago Cyclocross Cup). Photo by Edmund White. Thanks for the heads up Luke.
Kits are delivered.
posted on 11.03.07
If you live in California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Minneapolis, Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin there's a chance you'll run into the kit this weekend. Okay probably not so here's what it looks like as close to in the flesh as virtually possible. I'm tempted to put thought balloons on the pic but I'm not gonna. Because this is serious stuff.
The first order is placed.
posted on 10.09.07
After a minor hiccup in the proofing process, our very first group order finally went in on the 27th of September. We're hoping for an early November delivery. Now it's just a question of how many inches I can lose by the time the kits come in.
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Samples of the Walz Cycling Caps arrived. Sweet.
Here we go.
posted on 09.21.07
With just three days until pre-ordering closes, we've received over twenty kit orders. It's more than I planned on when I first decided to do this, but not overwhelming by any means. What is overwhelming is the enthusiastic support that the concept has generated.
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The idea was born on a whim. I downloaded the Pactimo jersey template to kill time at the local coffee shop. Before long I knew what I was going to race in next season. That night I decided to polled the forums to see how my kit would be received. I put together 3 more designs to serve as contrast for the focus group. Of the four mock-ups, the Wrap concept (my first) came away with 26 votes, with Stripes in second with 14. I have to note that 16 people voted for a fifth option, "Just join a team."
The original plan was to enlist a few friends to make the minimum quantity for this custom jersey order. But, as I often do in any endeavor worth pursuing, I got carried away. The next day the domain was registered, that afternoon a parking page went up, and in a few days the site was running with a shopping cart. The concept just took on a life of its own.
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I'd like to thank the others who share my enthusiasm. Former teammate Luke Seemann was one of the first to support and commit to the idea. He was quick to strike a "deal" for advertising on his site, Chicago Bike Racing. He also drilled me on my crappy season and the reason behind the unattached rider kit, placing me among an impressive line-up of CBR interviewees including Tony Cruz and other people who don't get dropped.
Leonard Basobas of Triple Crankset offered to hand out flyers at Interbike. When I told him that I didn't have any at hand, he replied "Can I print out your home page?" Needless to say, I immediately sent him a proper 2-up flyer in PDF format. Later he told me he sent my link to Bicycling Magazine's Style Guy. This man has balls.
And then there's Jeffrey Wat. The last thing he said regarding this endeavor was "How exactly am I supposed to be helping you? Moral support?" He doesn't know what he's gotten himself into.
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One usually ends up unattached as was my case this past season. But racing unattached doesn't have to be an afterthought. Next season, I'm going into it on my own, talking crap, and most importantly in my hot new unattached kit. So I better be fast. Or it'll be sad.
Carlos Cabalu |