Cap Tex Tri, Rain Rain Go Away!

Memorial weekend is a time we celebrate our freedom and the cost of it. We celebrate our military personel, those currently serving and those who have given their lives to secure our freedoms.

In Austin, Memorial Day brings memories of the terrible flood in 1981 which killed 13 people and caused $36 million in damage.

This year fears of a repeat came when forecasters announced that they expected 100% chance of rain and thunderstorms from a very slow moving system on Saturday, 90% on Sunday and 90% on Monday. The already saturated soil was expected to add to the misery. Regardless, droves of athletes (apprx. 2,500) came to participate in the 2007 Capitol of Texas Triathlon.

We were planning on setting up at the expo on Saturday at noon. I got up early to do my morning ride but the forecast was not looking good. Lots of scattered showers all around. I decided to forego the ride and save my energy for setting up. Jack and Adam's Bicycle Sports was also going to have an event that day. Desiree Ficker who happens to be an Austinite was going to do a signing at the shop. I was invited by Jack to set up there. After saving a spot at J&A I was off to set up at the expo with Marcin. The expo was really small for the amount of people who were expected to be there, maybe 20 in all.

We were fortunate enough that all the scattered showers danced around us and not on us. The signing went off without a hitch and we set Desiree up with some of our dimpled water bottles and chip straps. She loves them!

Sunday came and the expo opened. We were slammed from the start. I think we broke our sales record from last year of 20 bags. Down the street, Marcin monitored the Bikini Bike Wash. I'm not sure if it was the weather or not, but even though the event got local news coverage we did not raise as much money as we had hoped. It did rain a bit in the last couple of hours before the close of the expo, but it wasn't bad. It was however just a small taste of what was to come.

Monday morning. Up at 4:30am. Set up a tent at one of our water stops. Marcin met me down at the Start/Finish line to set up our other tent and put up our banners around 5:40am. It began to rain. After about 10 minutes it began to pour. It didn't let up either. We put up banners, hardly able to see what we were doing. People were getting body marked and huddling under the various tents available. The large pvc framework of the start/finish line came crashing down right next to me as I was hanging the last banner. Hmm. That was a close one!

Then I got a text message at about 6:40am that the swim had been cancelled and that they would make a decision about the race starting at all at around 7:30. Marcin and I were due at 6:50am to present the Governor of Texas and the Mayor of Austin with custome wetsuits we had made for them. I searched all around for them but could not find. Is it any surprise? The time of our great publicity event came and went. At 6:55am, a sound from my phone. It's another text message. Cap Tex Tri has been cancelled. A mass exodus ensues. Is everyone's head down to shield their eyes from the rain, or would they all have their heads down anyway? An enormous amount of preparation has just been flushed away. Sad day, Memorial Day.

Custom wetsuits for Mayor Will Wynn and Texas Governor Rick Perry.

City of Austin Seal

Bikini Bike Wash!

Austin, Texas, May 16th, 2007 – In an effort to raise awareness of bicycle safety in Austin, Rocket Science Sports and other Austin based businesses will be sponsoring the Bikini Bike Wash. “Rocket Science Sports is an Austin based company, this is were we got our start and we are very close to the athletic community here,” explained CEO Marcin Sochacki. “We love getting involved with activities that can also help out the cycling community, it is going to be a fun event”.
Created for Austin area bicyclists, the bike wash will be benefiting the Be Kind to Cyclists program www.bekindtocyclists.com on Sunday, May 27th from 11am to 5pm at Austin TriCyclist located at 923 Barton Springs Rd.
Not only will you be able to get your bike washed by bikini sportswear models but there will be products raffled off by Rocket Science Sports, Blackwell Research, and Road ID. In addition, Pure Austin Fitness is giving away a year membership, valued at nearly $1,000 and local restaurants are donating gift certificates as well.
The event is taking place to support the Be Kind to Cyclists Cause, and coincides with the Capital of Texas Triathlon on Monday, May 28th.

When: Sunday, May 27th from 11am to 5pm

Where: Austin TriCyclist 923 Barton Springs Rd. Austin, Texas 78704

Why: Capital of Texas Triathlon is on Monday, May 28th. Get your bike clean for the event and support the Be Kind to Cyclists cause.

Bonus: you don’t have to compete in the triathlon to have your bike washed!

Wildflower Triathlon

This year was my first time at the Wildflower Triathlon in California. What an event! It's the largest triathlon in the United States with 8,000 competitors and a total of 20,000 people camping out at a venue which is 40 miles from civilization. This means a captive audience for all the vendors promoting their products at this 3 day festival. Just take a look at the transition area! Have you ever seen anything like it?

This is our booth after we had to put away our wetsuits. Someone got skeered and made us stop showing them. Oh well, we sold lots of bags!

This is our new hire, LaFonda. She didn't talk much. She probably didn't have much energy because we never fed her. How horrible are we! Funny thing is that each time we passed a border patrol check point we got some strange looks from the officers. I'm surprised we were never pulled over for closer inspection.

Gophers were everywhere out there. It would have been wise to wear ankle braces for all the holes we stepped in. This is a visitor we had right in front of our booth. He was not shy at all and allowed a few people to have their picture taken with him before he decided there was too much going on. It was nice that he plugged up the hole he made before he left. He was friendlier than Chucky Cheese, and no children ran screaming in the opposite direction.

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!