Mike’s Bikes Announces New Master’s Team in 2013

  San Rafael, CA - January 8, 2012 - Mike’s Bikes, locally owned and operated since 1964, announces the formation of a men’s Masters race team.

Matt Adams, co-owner and President, said he is proud of the spirit and philosophy of Team Mike’s Bikes Masters.

“My motivation for assembling this team is not to create a strong masters team just for the sake of having a strong masters team. My motivation is to put together a great group of strong riders who want to commit to each other and who want to help us give back to the next generation of racers by supporting our Elite program.”

The mission of the Team Mike’s Bikes Elite program is to develop, inspire, and nurture the potential and happiness of the next generation of racers on and off the bike. “That is what matters to me, and that is what I think is important,” said Adams.

Our idea for the Masters team is to get a group of strong 35+ 1/2/3’s together who share our values of service, mentorship, and teamwork. Members will receive the personal gratification of helping to make a difference for the next generation of elite and professional racers, as part of the best team in Northern California and the vibrant Mike’s Bikes community, dedicated to getting more people on bikes.

Members will also enjoy the race day support that the elite team receives and a strong group of teammates who are dedicated to the team’s success. Further, they will be able to tap into the collective knowledge of the entire team, whether that’s training or nutrition advice, race tactics, or equipment choices. The roster includes nine men who have stepped up in support of the Team MB philosophy.

Matt Adams Marcel Appelman John Barbicas Jacob Berkman Mike Foley Chris Hobbs Michael Kopp Oli Ryan Dan Vigil

Mike's Bikes currently operates 11 stores throughout Northern California, is the largest local bike shop in America, and holds the title as #1 retailer in the US for both Specialized and Raleigh.  Mike’s employs over 250 cycling enthusiasts in the area, all with the singular goal of getting more people involved in the cycling community.

For additional information: http://www.mikesbikes.com or http://www.teammikesbikes.com/

2012 TMB Specialized Team Bikes are up for Sale!

Interested in a great deal on a carbon road bike? 2012 Team Mike's Bikes custom Specialized bikes are up for sale! Best part, all proceeds go directly into the 2013 budget to send the team to more NRC level races.

Team Mike's Bikes Tarmac Race Machine

Wanna check one out? We'll be showing the bikes this Sunday in GGP!When: This Sunday 1/13/13 from 10:00am-1:00pm Where: Nancy Pelosi Dr & Bowling Green Dr in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park http://goo.gl/maps/xuUSW

Bikes are freshly tuned up and come with complete 2011 SRAM Red Black group, Zipp Service Course SL Beyond Black Bar/Stem/Post (Tarmac), Specialized Saddle, and other goodies. Bikes are being sold for $4,000 with Zipp wheels without tires, $2,800 without wheels. We will only be selling the wheels individually if a bike is sold without them. They do not come with a warranty or have any affiliation or benefits of buying a new bikes from Mike's Bikes. Here is what's available:

Team Mike's Bikes Venge Race Machine - 1

2 x Tarmac - 54 2 x Tarmac - 54 2 x Tarmac - 56 1 x Tarmac - 58 1 x Tarmac - 61 2 x Venge - 54 1 x Venge - 54 available in February

We have Zipp 303/404 Front and 404/808 Rear carbon clinchers to choose from. First sold, first pick from depth, most are 303 Fronts and 404 Rears. Most all are brand new rims just rebuilt in box from the Zipp factory, the remainder very minor wear.

Shoot me an e-mail with any questions or for more details! hank.scholz@mikesbikes.com

-Hank Scholz

Team Mike's Bikes Tarmac Race Machine - 2

Team Mike's Bikes Venge Race Machine - 2

Winter Miles

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Winter miles are always better with friends.

San Bruno Hill Climb

CATEGORY 35+ 1/2/3

AUTHOR Jacob Berkman

TEAMMATES Appel, Oli

COURSE DESCRIPTION "7-8% up Guadalupe Canyon, right turn into San Bruno Mtn County Park, back under Guadalupe Canyon to Radio Road with narrow switchbacks and grades to 10%. Total distance is 3.5 miles."

Basically 3 sections of climbing, with false flats between the first two, and a short descent before the third. PREVIOUS RESULTS 2010: 3rd, E5 2011: 3rd, E3 2012: 6th, P/1/2

WEATHER Beautiful sunny morning, chilly. Bit of a headwind in the top half.

GOALS 1. Win. 2. Sweep the podium. 3. Get a PR for the course.

PLAN Mostly sit in the first half, and try to finish strong on radio road where it gets a bit steeper. Try to stay on Appel's wheel.

RACE SUMMARY Going in I figured the main competition was (friend) Greg McQuaid (Thirsty Bear), but he has a cold and was DNS. I didn't think the ex-Taleos (Scotts Cox & Bromstead) would really pose a challenge. For some reason they were merging start fields this year, and started us with the 25-strong 35+ 4/5 field. They were supposed to line up behind the 1/2/3s, but one of them was in the front, wearing full tights, cap, long sleeve jersey, booties, ski gloves, and sporting a saddle bag (with light attached) and a bottle half out of his cage already. Maybe he had fenders. I lined up sort of behind him, next to Appel (who looked strange in all black!), prepared to get around that guy as quickly as possible.

They start us off and Appel seems to have a little trouble clipping in so I go around him so as not to get caught behind any riff-raff. Some goof attacks off the left but he's a 4/5 so I don't react. It's 3-wide: John Roberts (Dolce Vita) to my left, and I guess Scott Bromstead (Barclay's Racing) on my right. It's a long way to the finish so I was just riding sorta sub-threshold, and everyone seemed fine with that.

We caught the guy and then someone else attacked, but no reaction from anyone to that either. He was caught before the turn into the park. I'm sure someone was dropped but I think pretty much the whole field was there.

Scott pulls in front so I sit on his wheel; going into the park he goes around the little shack on the left (technically over the centre line), and I sort of sheepishly take the inside corner, trying to avoid the puddle. The road kicks up and I put in a bit of a dig but out of the "forest" there seemed to be 4-5 guys on my wheel. I didn't know who they were, but it didn't look like Appel was right on my wheel.

I tried to keep the pace high and the field was finally separating, with Scott on my wheel and I could finally see Appel coming up behind us. I didn't want to pull this guy to the top by myself, so I eased up a bit hoping Appel would catch back on. Before he did, Scott made an attack which I followed briefly but he really turned it on and I didn't stay with him. I know that extra adrenaline rush you get from thinking you're going to win and I sure didn't get it.

RESULT 2nd

TAKEAWAYS * I think, as a team, it was our race to lose and we lost it (or I did). * During the race, I should've communicated more and found Appel so he could set the pace for the upper half, letting me attack instead of getting attacked. * Before the race, if we'd thought Scott was stronger, we probably should've had Appel attack earlier and let him do the chasing. We were the team with cards to play, but I don't think we played our hand very well. * It's early. I didn't really target this race & haven't been doing much intensity. Yet. * It was still fun and we got some Clif bars. Looking forward to improving on the team riding aspect. * No podium, medals, or girl scout cookies this year?

NUMBERS Distance: 5.9km Elevation Gain: 362m Avg Grade: 5.9% Time: 16:40 VAM: 1273 Power: ~297W Avg HR: 168bpm Max HR: 181bpm

app.strava.com/activities/35181537#575345418

raceshape.com/strava-segments/378701?rides=575345418-575336604-575392082-576276295-575333341&sd=2012-12-32

Cheers, Jacob

MB employees Zach P. and Ian C. from MB Sausalito, and J.P.R. from MB S.F. were also in the mix. Way to represent, guys!

Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase Cycling Team for 2013

Press Release San Francisco, CA., Dec 31, 2012 - Team Mike's Bikes elite cycling team is again poised to dominate Norcal racing and will also pursue success at NRC and NCC races with the announcement of new recruits: Daniel Holloway (25), Roman Kilun (31), Marcus Smith (19), and Nick Newcomb (20).   Returning riders are:  Eric Riggs (26), Dana Williams (37), James LaBerge (19) , Andy Goesling (25) , Travis Lyons (19) , Shawn Rosenthal (26) , Ryan Johnson (22) , Hank Scholz (24) , Rainier Schaefer (26), and Steve O'Mara (30), and Steve Pelaez (40).

As the best Elite team in Norcal  with 50+ wins in 2012, Team Mike's Bikes will turn their attention to more quality wins at the national level.   Daniel Holloway, 2010 US PRO Crit Champion, and Roman Kilun of Kenda 5 Hour Energy are both seasoned professionals who will add tremendous strength and leadership to the team.

"We are very excited to have Daniel and Roman on the squad.  And I'm equally optimistic about the new young riders, Marcus and Nick.   They will blossom in our U23 program, like James did in 2012.  James will step it up this year in the national level," said team director, Steve Pelaez.    "Riders like Eric Riggs, Dana Williams, Andy Goesling, Shawn Rosenthal will add serious horsepower and results potential to an incredibly talented team."    Each rider was carefully picked from a long list of applicants.   "It's easy to find talented riders, the hard part is finding selfless riders who share our team's values."  said Pelaez.

At the team's recent team development camp on Dec. 8, 2012 in the headlands, Team Mike's Bikes focused on establishing the foundation that will see the team propel itself to greater success in 2013.   "It's important that we develop the effective habits of a successful team from the beginning.  We need to be a team first and foremost.  Then the rest will take care of itself."   Consequently, team director Steve Pelaez, who is also a leadership and team development consultant, is devoting a lot of attention and energy to making sure that the team's atmosphere and goals are inline with the team's core values and mission.

"It's going to be a fun year for Team Mike's Bikes, and I hope we can deliver a lot of happiness to the cycling community."

Here's the link to our team development camp:  Enjoy!  http://vimeo.com/56497993

LOOK Keo Blade Carbon Pedals - Mini Review

Pedals are fairly simple component that serve one vital purpose: Keep your shoes locked on to the bike in order to throw down the watts. I pushed the pedals around many many times in 2012, and I've been notably impressed with the Look Keo Blade Carbons that were issued to Team Mike's Bikes.

Having been a stalwart user of the ubiquitous chunks of aluminum called Shimano Dura Ace for many seasons, I was initially skeptical of the Blades incredible light weight, composite construction, and crazy carbon leaf-spring retention system. What if I clip a pedal and snap the thing off? Won't the composite cage wear out prematurely?

Well, after a full crazy year of riding, It's January 1st, 2013 and the Blades feel as crisp as they did when we picked up our brand new bikes last January. I'll be the first to say I'm not the easiest on my equiment, and the Blades have held up to some serious abuse on some very tough terrain. I also love how easy it is to clip in and out of them; the light but solid engagment belies the fact that the pedals hold my zero degree float cleats tighter than any other brand I've used.

Overall, these pedals have performed far above and beyond my expectations. I'm stoked for to pedaling the Look Carbon Blades around again in 2013.

The Look Keo Blade Carbon are available at your nearest Mike's Bikes for $289.99.