He's Done It!

Finally, after weeks of 2nd and 3rd place finishes, Niko Zielinski took first place at his weekly crit! Okay, so it took the absense of his arch nemisis/girlfriend Henna McRae in order to pull it out of the hat, but none the less it was a victory well earned.

It was a small group, maybe 6 kids. Niko saw his chance for victory and snatched it like a hungry dragon and left the pack behind. The next closest competitor showed style, commitment and a "never say die" attitude as he huffed and puffed around the .7 mile track for the one lap event. I think if he would have been on a bike the same size as Niko's, it would have been a real elbow throwing race.

This is a picture of Niko and Henna, with her little sister just squeezing into the frame. Henna is the daughter of 2002 USPRO Champion Chann McRae and Pro Road Racer Jen McRae. She's got racing in her genes. Well that, a lot of training, and a faster bike. Niko just has the advantage of Eload. :)

So, now I need some help. I need to find a bike similar to Henna's. Skinny 20" tire road bike, I think she has a Felt, but I'm not able to find it online. It probably needs to be modified with mtb bars for reach. Niko will be 6 years old May 11th and is about 42-44 inches tall. Anyone know of anything? Got any suggestions? Niko needs your help!

Bragging About Custom

I've just got to brag about some custom products we've recently purchased from a company called Advertising Balloons of America. So far we've purchased two 10x10 tents, two backwalls, two 13' flags, and a bunch of banners.

They have recently hooked up with a supplier that can do digital custom at unheard of prices. The tent quality is exceptional. They are treated on the underside to be water resistant and the seams are sealed as well. We also received backwalls which again are very well made. Dean did the flags for us as a trial because he does not currently offer them but was considering it. When we received them we couldn't believe the rich look and quality. They are also full digital but are made from what feels like silk. Tell you what, at night when the event is over you just might find me curling up on these things.

So if you are looking for some custom tents, flags, backwalls, inflatable logo balloons and now even banners at insane prices, call my buddy Dean at Advertising Balloons of America. They ROCK!

Advertising Balloons of America
Dean Kaiserman
Ph # 888-369-1374 Intl # 760-369-1375
FX# 888-618-0803
dean@abofa.net
http://www.abofa.net/

Ironman Arizona Swim Placing

As any proud company man would do, with great anticipation I stayed glued to the frequent reports from this year's Ironman Arizona race. The hopeful prize? Our sponsored professional James Bonney coming out of the water 1st and wearing our Rocket wetsuit for all to see.

As soon as the feed reported that James Bonney was out of the water first with another guy right on his heels I sent out emails to everyone and immediately posted on my blog like a marketing maniac! It was time to do a HAPPY DANCE!

I kept checking back for more than 24 hours just so that I could see the official results with his name as numero UNO! But, what's this? Why does it say 2nd!!! I went back and checked the race reports. Still the same. But then why does the official results reflect otherwise? I was horrified!

I got with Marcin and asked him if he knew what was going on. Marcin said no, he hadn't heard from James but did find this lovely picture of him on the Ironman Website...

Flustered and frustrated we called James to first congratulate him on a fine show of athleticism as he finished overall in 7th place. We asked all the standard questions like how did the suit feel and fit, and if we needed to make any adjustments. James asked if we had seen the picture and proceeded to tell us the story behind it.

Apparently both the report and the final results were correct. Huh? What you talkin' 'bout Willis? Even though James was physically out of the water first, PROVING his swimming prowess, the actual spot where the timing chips are recorded from the swim was a short jog away from the water line. Remember the guy that was reported to be right on James's heels? Well as you can see from the picture the guy quickly sprinted around James ducking in front of him for the official 1st place result.

This no doubt seems to be a cheap shot to me, however well done none the less. This guy probably gets some sort of a sweet bonus for his placement out of the water. I guess our budget for placement bonuses for James needs to be reconsidered. A temporary Rocket Science Sports tattoo may not have been enough for him to throw an elbow for. Anyone have any thoughts they'd like to share about this?

Next time we'll be prepared! Other than changing our bonus structure (maybe a Starbuck's gift card?) I plan on teaching James some of my much feared ninja man moves. So watch out all you scurvy nave, James "The Ninja Rocket" Bonney coming through!

Ironman Arizona Breaking News!

Online coverage of the 2007 Ironman Arizona reports that fellow Austinite, friend and Rocket Science Sports sponsored triathlete James Bonney was the first out of the water! The report was as follows

"By the end of the swim four of the seven had broken clear, and as they exited the water it was James Bonney in front with Bryan Rhodes right on his heels."

We had a Rocket Suit pulled off of the production line and air freighted to him in Arizona. It arrived by courier on Friday. Whew! That was close!

Below is a full page ad we had last year. The picture was taken of him finishing the swim at the 2006 Ironman Arizona. True story, the first time he swam in our Rocket Suit he bested his prior 200 meter record by 4 seconds! For someone at his level, that's HUGE!

Atta boy James! Too bad we don't make bikes and running shoes!

Who Wants To Be A Super Hero?

My good friend Jarrett Crippen, that's who! I've known Jarrett since nursery school. I've seen him at his best (Detective for the Austin Police Department) and at his worst (platinum blonde mullet, drunk and trying to get out of a passenger side car door with the seat belt still on). Hmmm, I've got to say that is the ONLY time he EVER got drunk. At least he was a silly drunk.

Anyway, Jarrett is off to Hollywood tomorrow to fight for justice as one of twelve contestants on a reality show called "Who wants to be a super hero?". His super hero character is one he made up when he was in 7th grade. He IS "TakeDown". Take a look at his video bid for the role - TakeDown vs. The Punk. Yeah, he's a real goof. Maybe someday I'll tell you about all his mishaps on a camping trip we took to Reimer's Ranch.

Fitness Experts Article

It seems that the founder of Rocket Science Sports, Marcin Sochacki is now famous! He's been featured in the April '07 issue of Fitness Experts. Look for the article about him and accompanying interview starting on page 52.

Cheers!

Tri Under Water

The LoneStar Tri in Galveston Texas this past weekend was something to remember alright. The expo was held inside nothing more than a circus tent with a concrete floor. This wouldn't have been bad except that Galveston starting taking on water. Was it the beginning of the lower plains flooding from global warming? Sure seemed that way.

On Saturday Rianna and I just made it to our booth which we had set up the night before when the rain started. It came down harder than I think I've ever seen rain come down. The intensities varied throughout the day but it was non stop. Forget leaving the building for anything unless you planned on getting dowsed. There was a band playing at 9am but the worst thing about that was that they were moved inside the circus tent because of the rain. It was VERY loud. I had to scream at the customers, literally. All this at 9am was not fun at all.

Around 10am we noticed that the floors had water creeping in from around all the edges of the structure we were in. Dealers starting moving everthing toward the center of the building. I think it was around 1pm there was a sudden flash flood in the building that covered the entire expo floor in water 1-3 inches deep. It was a major scramble to get stowed product up off the floor. Tired triathletes having just finished their race and taking in much needed food and fluids were booted off of tables and chairs to save valuable merchandise. Some dealers and reps weren't so lucky and lost hundreds of dollars of merchandise to the water.

Even though the rains stopped by the evening, we all still stood in puddles through the last day of the expo. The rains killed sales for everyone and I think that overall it was a horrible experience. Had the rain not come, this event would certainly have been a pleaser to the vendors/dealers/reps attending. I'll be back again next year. Overall, Endorfun Sports put on a great event. The weather and a couple of other minor glitches would not stop me from coming next year.