IN THIS ISSUE OF ROAD

Jan-Feb 2008 Issue

Page 026.

We sent Neil@ROAD a 2007 Supercourse last year and he decided to make it a "project" bike. In this issue of ROAD "Raleigh Revisited Part-II" is a short write-up of how Neil upgrades his Supercourse - which wears the same carbon frame as our TEAM, Prestige, and Competition road bikes - only it comes in at a wallet friendly price point of $1525.

Back in Sept. we invited Neil out to participate in our local MS150 ride - we put him on a 2008 Prestige for a good two days of riding (1st day 100 mi. 2nd 75mi. - click here and here for the full story)...so he went back to sunny California and got inspired to upgrade his Supercourse.

"After several good climbing surges, it became apparent that the bike's classic geometry and unfaltering gruppo were designed for riders who like to go hard..."

"...at speed, the A.C.E. Evolution carbon fiber frame smoothly rolled with minimal power being wasted."

Spec. Update:
Wheels set: Mavic R-SYS
Tires: Continental Grand Prix 4000
Brake Levers: Shimano Ultegra SL
Brakes: Shimano Ultegra SL
Handlebars: FSA K-Force Monocoque
Headset: FSA
Saddle: fizi:k Arione
Seatpost: FSA K-Force
Shifters: Shimano Ultegra SL
Stem: FSA OS-099
Drivetrain: Full Shimano Ultegra SL

Page 036.

An article titled, "Unique Needs of Novice Racers" explores and breakdown the world of novice racing and its relation to professional racing; from season scheduling, to peaks for riders, to tactics, and so on. On the second page of the article is and awesome photograph of a Raleigh - First Rate Mortgage rider Kenny Williams claiming victory on a Team frame at this years Interbike Industry Cup.


Page 005-006.

On the first opening pages we also placed this beautiful ad for our ACE Evolution/Direct Connect carbon Team frame/set.

BOULDER CITY DIRT DEMO

Monday September 24th - Dirt Demo

Dirt Demo is a chance for dealers, magazine editors, and media to test ride 2008 product from every bike company that sets up tents and brings demo fleets. The bikes we brought were:

Sojourn
Prestige
Detour
XXIX
XXIX+G

The wind was blowing, the sun was hot, the racks were full, and we were looking forward to a busy day of swapping out pedals and talking bikes.



Dan N. (Avenir Product Manger) helping turn bars - Trevor happy to be in the shade of the Penske - Chris S. getting a Prestige ready for a test ride.

We packed the grill and Mike H. cooked up some stellar breakfast burritos - black beans, hash browns, bacon, avocado, tomato, cheese, grilled onion, salsa, and eggs!

We had about 4+ workstands up and ready to change pedals and do minor adjustments. We were a well oiled machine ready to get as many bikes out and under people as we could; which wasn't very hard as our racks were consistently empty the entire day.

The bike that got the most attention was the Sojourn, our new touring bike (look for a full post on this bike in the next couple of days).




Mike B. feeling a little left out.

After 9+ hours in the sun & wind, changing pedals, adjusting seats, talking bikes - a 15 min nap sounded pretty good.

Dirt Demo Day 1 was complete and was a great success for both us (Raleigh) and Diamondback; people were stoked on all the bikes.

Night:

After a long day of work we hit the local brewery, nourished our bodies with liquid, food, and laughter. I passed the camera around the table for a self portrait session; minus a couple folks this is the result.


Curious objects on the street:

Being Seattlelites we really don't have to worry about heat as much as we do flooding, tsunamis, and volcano eruptions.
The plaque that accompanied this sculpture read:

"At the height of Hoover Dam construction, more than 7,000 men labored in Black Canyon. Some jobs were glamorous and exciting, such as the high scalers who swung over the canyon on ropes or the cable way operators who kept concrete buckets moving 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Other jobs were mundane, but no less important:...like the man you see here, those who swept the outhouses and kept them well supplied with paper."

I couldn't resist climbing atop this "mundane" worker.


The signs of Boulder City were super cool and I wish I had taken more photographs of them. The one bellow had to be recorded, after all we have a whole series of mountain bikes called MOJAVE'S.

One more day of Dirt Demo and then off to the show.

Until then - Enjoy the Ride!

INTERBIKE BOULDER CITY SETUP

Sunday Sept. 23rd: Dirt Demo setup went super smooth and by the time the product team arrived it was basically done! So, we all decided to hit the trails for a couple hours to play on the new bikes, loosen our bodies, and avoid the crowds that would plug the trails for the next 2 days.

{CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE}

Unfortunately we got one flat:
Mike H. (Diamondback BMX Product Designer) fixing his flat.

Kyle C. (Raleigh Product Designer), Mike B. (Diamondback Product Designer), Paul G. (Parts & National Brands Manager), Chris S.-doing his Jim Carrey impression (Director of Product Development), & me behind the the camera (Carey S-H - Raleigh Brand Manger).

After the ride it was time to eat; we walked about 300ft down to Bob's All Family Restaurant

Trevor was kind enough to escort us into the diner.

Though it said Bob's on the outside, it was Bradley that would be treating us to some traditional BBQ.

Mike H. and Chris S. getting excited about the BBQ selections.

The half rack was the choice of everyone at the table except me, I went for the hickory smoked sausage.

Chris S. was thoroughly enjoying his "RIB-CICLE" as the sun was setting. To say the least we all walked away with bellies full of BBQ ready to tackle the next day of Dirt Demo.

INTERBIKE ROAD TRIP DAY 3

Day 3:
After a lovely breakfast at a local bakery, Trevor and I hopped on our bikes to watch Diogo take some practice runs before competing in the BMX Park Finals. Our time of take off for Boulder City (where the Interbike Dirt Demo takes place) was 2pm (the exact time the finals started) so practice was the only thing we were able to check out.

{CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE}

Diogo putting his pads on.
Diogo cranking.

2pm hit and it was back to the Penske; we decided to grab some snacks at the Salt Lake Wild Oats before hitting the open road. Let's just say there was no place to park the truck but over the sidewalk.

Once outside of Salt Lake the rains came a tumbling down - we were happy to not have been on the road when this semi jack-knifed.

I was making sure we were on track.

After the rains, we were welcomed into the state of Nevada with sunny skies and beautiful farm land.

Still pushing the Penske past 65 mph - the governor of Penske county wasn't as sharp as he thought.
Ah...filling a truck that size isn't so friendly on the wallet.

As the darkness of night approached so did the lights of Las Vegas - we had finally hit our destination where we would be for 7 days.

Dirt Demo up next!

INTERBIKE 2008 ROAD TRIP DAY 2

2 weeks of bikes, bikes, bikes, more bikes, and a bit of bike riding in Moab; now I am back in Seattle and ready to fill you all in on the happenings photo essay style. Enjoy and check out our new 2008 line at raleighusa.com

Here's Day 2 of our road trip:


Trevor and I needed some breakfast before the long haul to Salt Lake City; we stopped at a diner in Boise, ID that was saturated with home cooking - if you get what I mean!

I was loving the traditional diner brown coffee mug and the drab decor.

My breakfast consisted of two eggs sunny side up, hash browns, four (yes, four) pieces of bacon, and a side of wheat toast with raspberry jam. Once I was finished I had left at least half of every object on the plate which baffled the waitress - I guess in Idaho you finish everything on your plate.

As a kid I always loved watching the DOT paint the lines on the interstate; to say the least I was happy to come across this exact vehicle painting the center lines in Utah.

Trevor had the best sun coverage I've ever seen - I asked if I could try them on for the drive.

Pringles for Trevor.

Terra chips for me.

Finally...Salt Lake City! Not only was the Dew Tour happening, but the Ringling Brothers were in town as well. We grabbed our BMX bikes and rolled around Salt Lake in search of the Dew Tour Venue.

Once we found it, it was straight to the dirt track to watch Diamondback BMX rider Nate Berkheimer roll the course in the prelims. Trevor and I had Team Manager passes which put us front and center with a VIP view.

Ogio landed in style with their private helicopter.

With our Team Manager passes we were granted passage to the Athletes lounge for a hearty meal; I could pass up the opportunity to get a photo with the skeleton figure that greeted us.

After dinner we headed over to the evening dirt finals - Trevor on the sidelines.


Trevor's transportation.

My transportation - diamondback Lucky 24 - thanks to Mike Brown (Diamondback Product Designer) for letting me borrow his custom bike.

Diogo Canina (black shirt 2nd one in from the right) hanging with other BMX athletes atop a motocross jump watching the dirt finals.

James Foster was the winner of the dirt finals with a run that blew my mind; it went a little something like this but better:



After the excitement of the dirt finals and 7 hours in the Penske it was time to hit the hotel for a night of slumber.