The Landshark... a tribute

There's been a lot of talk about this bicycle and the man that rides it. The first time I saw it, I had the same reaction that most do. I began to tremble. Over the course of the season, the bike has seemed to assimilate parts from other bicycles, like something out of a Stephen King horror novel, or a Star Trek episode. I wouldn't be surprised if it comes to life at night and escapes out into the dark night to eat other bicycles.

So here it is... a glimpse into the legend that is... the Landshark.

The frame: Landshark. A Steel/Lead hybrid. Pure power. 

A predator, like a shark. But on land...

Mismatching front and rear Zipp wheels. Nothing says,

"I'm powerful and a little crazy" like mismatching carbon aero wheels.

It's the subtle touches that make this one of the best bikes on the road today. What worked for the guys in 1920's, works for us today. 

Stella Azzurra seatpost? Yes.

Deda. Pure metal.

Stella Azzurra. The more, the better.

Campy Chorus. The metal version. 

This bike wouldn't be complete without a half-pound of bottle cage.

This is the only bike in the entire world worthy enough 

to bear a "Ramrod" sticker. 

The Landshark. Love it. Hate it... Fear it.

A little SDSR inspiration

Channel the power that is Hampsten and ye shall be victorious!

warming up for the weekend.

San Dimas TT technique

well, it's not that steep.

('atta boy Timmy!)

Rules to Live By

Gents - We all should know this Code of Conduct by heart. It meets the approval of our very own Style Man himself. Some snippets are below but the complete list is on the Facebook group (which rocks). Read em, learn it, live it. Enjoy.

1. Image and style shall be your primary concern. When suffering, one must focus first on maintaining a cool, even composure, and second on performance. Winning races is an added talent, and only counts if said euro cyclist wins with appropriate style.

3. You shall NEVER, under any circumstances, wear plain black spandex bibs (shorts, regardless of colour are BANNED) or any team kit containing non-prominent Logo's. Shorts will extend 55-60% of the way down the upper leg. IN NO CONDITION shall it extend any further.

6. The Socks must extend no less than 2cm below the main bulge of your calf muscle, and shall never extend further than 1cm past the primary calf muscle bulge. All socks SHALL BE WHITE in colour with prominent logo placement.

7. Cycling shoes must contain at least 80% white!
The following exceptions apply…
i) Colours combinations such as world cup stripes, or Olympic gold where title has been EARNED.
ii) Shoes which are custom-made for specific riders by companies endorsed by this group. These shoes will be accessible to the particular cyclist only, and shall follow the preceding rules.

8. If white cycling shoes are not available where you reside, white booties with prominent logos shall always be worn. When booties are worn, socks should protrude approximately 7 centimetres above the ankle, and shall always protrude at least 1.5cm from any booties worn.

9. Your bike frame must contain 2-4 colours IN ADDITION TO WHITE. All colours are acceptable as long as they combine tastefully. In addition to this, wheel selection must also match frame and fork.

17. Saddles shall be white in colour only and will be manufactured in Italy or France. Exceptions shall be made in the following cases…
i) Saddles containing WorldCup Stripes or Olympic Gold when EARNED
ii) Italian Flag colour combo when rider is ITALIAN (born in Italy)

18. Handlebar tape is required to be cork as well as being WHITE IN COLOUR. Bar tape will be kept in pristine white condition. This state shall be achieved either through daily cleansing or frequent replacement. These jobs will NEVER be performed by the cyclist as you must maintain your image.

21. Facial hair will be restricted to (at maximum) a goatee, and even this is discouraged. Moustaches, beards, or any combination thereof are EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED in all instances. Stubble is, however, advisable in virtually ALL euro-situations. It is important to note: this DOES NOT apply to the legs!

24. You shall NEVER, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE, associate with triathletes. It is FORBIDDEN to have any number inked onto your body before a race.

It's the TEAM

We had great success at the LA Circuit race over the weekend. Like everyone has been saying it's not the individual effort that matters it's the team. Here are a few pics of what a kick ass team looks like before the big race.

Jason's first race as a new dad and Marc T.

Ian and Stratton, lookin' gooooood.

They don't know how windy it is on the course.

50% of the 3s team. For now....

Evidently this is what Gary does to prep for a mean lead-out.

A little reminder

As we are starting to really have success, I thought it might be important to go back and look again at what our pre-season goals were. A lot of them are now being achieved due to hard work and sacrifice on the part of some really stellar individuals on our team.

I just hope we continue to work hard, and roll with whatever punches are thrown our way, and continue to succeed. As we succeed more and more, we are either going to be a good example that people will respect, or a bad example that people are going to hate.

I want it to be the first option, and if we all keep doing what we are doing, it will be.

Thanks for being such an awesome team, everyone.

LA Circuit Pics

The classic Bubba Fist pump:

Ian 2nd place finish:

 

Stratton:
 

Cat 4 boys:

More:

April Races -Published & Ready

El Do Race series LB
04/6 Anthill Criterium -Irvine
04/6 Redlands Criterium -Redlands
4/12 Island View Crit. -Santa Barbara
04/13 Garrett Lemire Ojai Crit -Santa Barbara

04/17 -20 Sea Otter Classic- Monterey

04/20 Torrance Crit -Torrance

04/26 Devils Punch Bowl -Palmdale
04/27 Chuck Pontius Mem. Crit.- Valencia

Mays Races

LA Circuit 07 Photos

The Pack -- out in the wind

It's a looong backstretch...

Pulling the field to keep the pace high into the wind -- don't do this

My favorite photo of all time -- courtesy of Josh Horowitz's article in pez on what not to do in a race.

What the finish looks like -- one big mess

The Pro's - Tour of Murrieta Pics

From Rashan Bahati's blog. Check out our guys owning the pack.

images

Murrieta CR Course

Murrieta CR route (pic links to the gmap page). wurd....

JAMfoto

So, I was reading all about the guy who lent Bobby Julich his rear wheel in the TOC (courtesy of Matt Hipp), and I started looking at all of the flickr photos of Bobby on the side. I came across this guy. His photos are ridiculous, not only from a compositional and stylistic standpoint, but also the pictures speak volumes. Very cool. There are also some photos in there of our very own Jamiel Danesh.

Topanga Tuesday

I finally got my butt out of bed in time to join Spencer and Matt for their (developing to be) legendary Topanga Tuesday ride. I couldn’t even tell you what the route is because half-way up Old Topanga, my chain snapped. I was having some issues with it on the ride out….it was skipping…but chose to ignore it and keep moving. Mistake! What to do now?

My first suggestion was to let Spencer and Matt continue on and I’d coast downhill to the PCH…then try to hitch a ride. Well, the great teammates they are, they had none of that idea and began to push me along….which was a good thing because that route is not as downhill as it seems; they both worked hard to get me down to the PCH, and then back to Santa Monica. It was also, despite how beautiful yesterday was, one of the coldest mornings I can remember in Topanga. They must have a different weather system there or something.

After our hike up to Ocean Ave and to my car, we agreed to meet at Peets so I could buy them a latte for their efforts. Unfortunately, Spencer had bike issues of his own and blew a spoke at 26th street. I was glad to return some of the favor and drive Spencer home.

So the day turned out to be a reminder of a couple things.

First…carefully check your equipment before you head out. I’m not sure if Spencer could have prevented his blown spoke, but I could have at least stopped the moment I discovered something was wrong. And, it’s also a good idea to carry some basic chain-repair tools…something I never do. Someone with more experience may want to provide a list of saddle-bag essentials based on their own experiences cycling in this area. That would be helpful.

Second…how lucky we are to have such great and caring teammates. I know we’ve all experienced this in various ways over the years. I was once again reminded of that yesterday. Matt and Spencer didn’t think for a second to leave me at Old Topanga and continue riding…a lot of folks might have. So thanks again fellas for your efforts to get me home safely.

Next Tuesday’s latte’s are definitely on me.

Z