Exergy – PROBIKEWRENCH

After working USPRO Championships with Team Exergy in May, I sold my trusty Park Tool PRS-21 repair stand to a buddy back home, so I could purchase a new stand I had seen on some cycling blogs, the Feedback Sports Sprint repair stand. The SRAM NRS West Coast crew and Josh from Team Exergy had already been using the Sprint stand since Sea Otter, and being a fan of the fork-mounted repair stand, I wanted to get my hands on one. I called Feedback, and placed one on backorder to ensure delivery as quickly as possible.

Fast forward a few months… no Sprint Stand yet. I called back and forth to Feedback to see if there were any updates, and they told me that they had received some feedback (pardon the pun) on the stands from the prototype units that had been sent to the race teams, and were making improvements before they put them to market. I completely understand that, and as an end-user, I’d rather not hassle with additional modifications needing to be made after the initial purchase. It should be as simple as pulling the stand out of the box and getting to work.

Unfortunately, the delivery date on the Sprint stand is August 9th-10th, and I’m flying out for the Tour of Utah on the 5th of August, so… I had to make a switch. This time around, I had to pass on the Sprint stand for the good ol’ Feedback Pro-Elite stand. I’ve used the Pro-Elite in the past at several events, and used the same clamp in a Park floor-mounted shop stand before. It works well, and I’ve had no issues with the ones I’ve dealt with on previous occasions, so I don’t mind making the switch. It will be here next week, just in time for the Utah trip.

Thanks to Feedback Sports for not compromising the integrity of the product by pushing it to market before it is ready, and ultimately looking after the customer. Even though the outcome isn’t exactly what I had hoped for, I appreciate the honesty and the willingness to work with me to get me taken care of in a pinch. I look forward to dealing with Feedback Sports again in the future, because of their great products, but more importantly, because of their amazing customer service.

(Another quick customer service note about Feedback Sports: Earlier this year, at the CTS Bucket List Tour of California Race Experience, we didn’t have any racks to hang the bikes from before or after rides, and were in a bind. We had been leaning the bikes against the truck and trailer for the first two days of the event, which was not very safe, especially with the quality of the bikes that the CTS clients were riding. One of our mechanics, Mike Hetrick (Mr. Goodbike, Gainesville, FL) called his friend Doug (founder/president of Feedback) and he was able to ship us two A-Frame portable event stands NEXT DAY from Colorado, allowing us to be safe with the bikes, and to be more efficient in our work for the remainder of the trip. This is one reason I decided to choose Feedback Sports for my repair stand purchase. Kudos to the staff of Feedback Sports for all their good work!)

For the last few weeks, I’ve been getting back in the swing of things. My traveling mechanic gigs are over for a while, and I’m finally settling back into the rhythm of the daily grind again. Family, church, work, and school, are all becoming the norm again. One thing I’ve been missing out on for the last year and a half, though, is my bike riding.

Since I started back to school last January, I’ve really neglected the time I’ve spent on my bike. I’m not saying that all that other stuff shouldn’t take a priority, but without an outlet like cycling, I’ve been frustrated, bitter, unhappy at times, and had just gotten out of shape. Something had to change.

After hanging out with performance athletes for two weeks at the Amgen Tour of California Experience with CTS and sitting in the Team Exergy car during the USPRO Championships, I kind of got the bug to get back out on the bike again. After Greenville, I kicked it into gear and… signed up for a race. Why would I do such a thing? To motivate myself to get in gear, get some miles in my legs, and actually give it a go.

I signed up for the State Road Race Championships on July 7th. It’s a course I’m familiar with, one I’ve raced before, and a course that suits me: rolling hills and power climbs. I’m not a skinny little climber… I’m a big dude that does good on flats and downhills. This course is okay for my strengths.

I’ve been putting in a lot of riding the last few weeks. I started writing courses to my Garmin Edge 500, and started uploading them to Strava, which is a very addictive training tool. It’s been fun so far. Last week, I put in close to 10 hours on the bike, which is unheard of for me over the last few years. I’ve been riding a lot, and I can feel myself getting stronger.

Meanwhile, I’m missing the 2012 SC Ride 4 Life, which started today in Seneca, SC. There’s around 60 cyclists and 25 support staff making their way across the state of South Carolina to raise money to help the Foothills Pregnancy Care Center. It’s a ride that I’ve ridden and supported over the years, and I wish those guys and gals the best of luck as they make their way to the coast. Right now, I’m going to go ahead and clear the schedule to do the ride next year… that’s a promise.

Got some other cool things in the works, which I’ll talk about later. Got a ride with a good friend early in the morning, so I’ve gotta get some rest. I don’t necessarily think that he’s gonna hammer me in the ground, but it is getting late, and I’ve been at it all day, so… goodnight.