Iceman Cometh Tandem Glory

Ryan and Jeff took home second place honors in the expert tandem division of this year's Iceman Cometh race. They raged hard, got paid, and both vowed never to race tandem again. Money in the bank!

Mysterious R&D advice and the A23

We got this letter in the mail today:
It came in this envelope:


Who are you giver of invaluable research and development advice?! If anyone recognizes this mailer's handwriting, please contact matt@velocityusa.com so that I can properly thank this cycling enthusiast for taking the time to unlock the secrets of the industry to us. I've fast tracked this idea and am proud to announce the newest Velocity rim, the A23.
In reality, this project has been churning for months. At Interbike this September we presented the first bits of extrusion to our dealers and distributors. The idea behind a 23mm wide rim is that when paired with a 23c tire, the internal width of the rim clinches the tire beads just right so that the tire profile is very close to that of a tubular rim. All technojargon aside, it's pretty much a CLINCHULAR setup. You get all the benefits of a tubular tire (glassy smooth ride quality, lower rolling resistance) with the convenience of a clincher tire (ease of installation, easy to repair a flat, low cost). It should weigh in around 450 grams, we'll have them available as rims and wheelsets (cool new road hub coming soon) around the end of the year.

I'm not sure if this is what the anonymous writer is getting at, but I hope they're happy knowing that they were on to something great.

Have a great weekend!

Last night...

...Ryan called and asked if we wanted to go for a ride. JBolt and I met him at Rosa Parks Circle, checked out a bit of the ArtPrize and bombed a few parking garages. There's a helipad at the top of the St. Marys ramp and we weren't bothered by security once. What a great place to drink a beer(s)!! A good break in ride for JBolt's new snowflake wheel. Bob got a few shots of it and my ELVS rims showing off their shine.

The New P35!

Velocity is proud to announce the newest rim to join our line. The Pacenti 35 or P35 will be available in late September of 2009, just in time for the Interbike show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The P35 is named after its co-designer, frame builder and bicycle designer Kirk Pacenti, a nineteen year veteran in the bicycle industry; widely recognized for his work as a material supplier to the best custom framebuilders in the US and his development of the 650b wheel size for mountain bike use.

The P35 is designed for the cross country/all mountain rider craving a laterally stiff yet weight conscious rim that is still tough enough for the occasional Super – D race. At 35mm wide the P35 gives you one of the fattest footprints available which will float over the rough stuff and give you more bite and greater tread use through the turns. All of this and still weighing in at less than 600 grams in the 29er size! The P35 is 22mm deep with an inside width of 29.5mm which will accommodate a wide array of tire widths to cater to your riding preferences. In addition the P35 was designed to easily accommodate a tubeless application.

The P35 will be available in 26”, 650b, and 29”. 32 and 36 hole will be available in all sizes, and 28 hole will be available in 26” black only. We here at Velocity love giving you color options so you can customize your bike. You will see all sizes in black, silver, white, red and the very flashy antifreeze green. The decal bears the trusted Velocity name and flaunts the signature of its designer Kirk Pacenti.

Together we’ve made the rim you have been waiting for, and we think you are really going to like it.

Specs:

Outside Width: 35mm

Inside Width: 29.5mm

Depth: 22mm

Weight:

29”: 595g

650b: 570g

26”: 535g

R.I.P. Kent Scooter

Well, we had a good run but at 11:34am on 8-18-09 Jeff Jacobi backed over the newest addition to our warehouse mobile units with a rental box van. We tried to straighten her out but in the end there was nothing we could do.