So as most people now know, the GT Bicycles Dirt Coalition is no longer. I was bummed to get the email in February letting all of us know that the program wouldn’t continue. I had a great time representing a company that I love and trust, but I guess all good things must come to an end. I thank GT Bicycles for all that they did for me in 2009 including shipping me a brand new bike just before the Leadville 100. I couldn’t have completed that grueling race without your support.
So while the GT Dirt Coalition is no longer, I have become quite interested in grass roots marketing. I had a blast going to races, writing on this blog, and introducing many new people to the sport of mountain biking and I even was able to refer 3 people to go and buy a $4,500 GT bike on my recommendation. Not too shabby. In continuing my quest to become engaged in marketing, I found out about a new program being launched by Airborne Bicycles.
A lot of people who have been in mountain biking for a long time probably remember Airborne Bicycles being a direct to consumer high end titanium mountain bike company. Well the company is back and they have put out a search for 10 brand ambassadors to help re-launch their brand. In their search they are looking for mountain bikers who are passionate about the sport, can represent a brand, know a thing or two about social media, and can spread the word in any other creative way. So in applying to the team my cousin Dave helped me in filming a short 3 minute video. Yes, it somewhat looks like an audition tape for The Real World Cancun, but you’ll have to decide for yourself….the video is posted below, let me know what you think:
My well used running shoes, Nike Structure Triax 11+
I’ve been runnin’…for awhile now. The mountain bike season has long been over for me and I’ve been keeping busy with some riding, but even more running. This is probably the most running I have done since attempting to run cross country in high school. I’m not doing all this running for nothing, I’m actually training for the Austin Half Marathon which is slated for February 14th. Erica and I will be flying down there to take on 13 miles through the live music capital of the world!
I haven’t been in Austin since 2006 when I was still working for Whole Foods Market. The corporate headquarters for WFM is on 6th and Lamar in downtown Austin. I can’t wait to get down there. Austin is the only Texas city I have visited so far and it really is like a bigger Boulder in my own opinion.
This weekend I’m hoping to increase my running mileage to a 10 mile run on Sunday afternoon if all goes as planned. This will be my longest run in my training leading up to the race. If any of my readers have any suggestions on running training, please let me know.
2009 is in the books and what a year it was. On almost all of my rides/runs/ski/hiking days over the last 3 years I have worn my Garmin Forerunner 305. This could be the greatest training tool I have ever used and yes, it is safe to say I’m a data geek. Garmin has now fully migrated all of my workouts from their old MotionBased.com site to their new Garmin Connect site. Here are some of the highlights and totals from 2009:
All Activities (Cycling, Running, Skiing, Hiking)
Count: 241 Activities
Distance: 4,816.74 mi
Time: 461:06:01 h:m:s
Elevation Gain: 752,949 ft
Avg Speed: 10.7 mph
Avg HR: 131 bpm
Calories: 366,698 C
Cycling
Count: 180 Activities
Distance: 4,169.48 mi
Time: 321:40:49 h:m:s
Elevation Gain: 445,388 ft
Avg Speed: 13.0 mph
Avg HR: 130 bpm
Calories: 288,294 C
Running
Count: 65 Activities
Distance: 238.12 mi
Time: 54:41:40 h:m:s
Elevation Gain: 35,226 ft
Avg Speed: 4.4 mph
Avg HR: 147 bpm
Calories: 26,987 C
Skiing
Count: 16 Activities
Distance: 458.79 mi
Time: 63:00:34 h:m:s
Elevation Gain: 271,435 ft
Avg Speed: 7.3 mph
Calories: 47,433 C
Hiking
Count: 6 Activities
Distance: 40.10 mi
Time: 17:11:59 h:m:s
Elevation Gain: 19,878 ft
Avg Speed: 2.3 mph
Calories: 2,782 C
My 2010 race calendar is highly tentative at the moment, but I’m doing some research to see which events would work best for my schedule and work. If any of my readers have some recommendations on events in and outside of Colorado, please let me know!
Austin Half Marathon, Austin, TX
Front Range 50, Lakewood, CO
Mount Washington Hill Climb, Pinkham Notch, NH
Winter Park Mountain Bike Series (6 races), Colorado
Click the banner to go directly to the REI GT Bicycles Page
I was looking through the REI January Clearance sale on their web site and noticed that GT Bicycles are now being offered. I’m not sure if my local REI here in Denver carries GT yet, but I’m going to drop by tomorrow to check it out.
Update: it looks like GT Bicycles are not available at the Denver Flagship Store, however after doing a little research I found out that the only Colorado REI to carry GT is the Fort Collins location. I may have to check out the 2010 lineup in Fort Fun in the spring.
