Where It All Started

Every year around this time I get a little nostalgic remembering the days of my youth. It must be the chill in the air that reminds me of those cold Midwestern mornings riding my bike. I fell in love with cycling at a very early age. When I was 3-years old I tried to ride my tricycle off the driveway into the street. Luckily my older brother stopped me…by grabbing my arm and accidentally breaking it…I must have been going fast! I was the youngest of seven children and when I needed an escape the bike was always willing to get me out of the house. Of course being the youngest also meant hand-me-down bikes and with mostly sisters I had a lot of step-thru “girls” bikes to ride. I didn’t care as long as it had wheels.

Then came a very special Christmas when everything changed. On Christmas morning there it was hidden behind the big chair in the living room…my very own 10 speed road bike! I flipped out! When you are used to hand me down clothes, toys and bikes a new anything is a reason to rejoice. When that new something is a bike you really thank the lucky stars. It was a yellow Free-Spirit from Sears. It was bright yellow and had black handlebar tape and stem mounted shifters (sure to impale one’s lungs in case of an accident).

To say I rode that bike is an understatement. I wore every bolt, cable and tire off that bike in the following years. I would wake up at 6:00 in the morning and wait for just enough sunlight so I could get out and ride. I would then circle through the neighborhood streets waiting for my friend’s lights to turn on signaling they were awake. At the end of the day I would race the sun to get home before the gas lamp lit on the corner of our yard. There was big trouble waiting for a 10-year old boy when he wasn’t home before dark.

Once I decided my little town wasn’t enough I started breaking the rules and crossing the bridge (a big no-no) into the next town. The bridge was very close to a highway and I was told to never go near the busy streets. I would anyway and I soon found myself little by little exploring new territory. The next town over wasn’t as nice as my town as the roads were a little rougher and the houses a lot smaller. I began to see a difference in lifestyles and economics. I started to really appreciate the hard work my mother was doing keeping us afloat in our part of town.

As with life there are ups and downs and one morning I woke up and my bike was gone. It was stolen from outside our house in the carport (dang I wish we had a garage). I was heartbroken and on top of that in trouble for not locking my bike. If my mother only knew how upset I was at myself I don’t think she would have buried me with further punishment. I had lost my freedom and my favorite bike. For days I hunted the streets hoping to catch a glimpse of my beautiful yellow machine. Even with the patches of missing handlebar wrap, wobbly wheels and shifter housing held down with electrical tape it was still beautiful to me.

I was back on my sister’s bike for the rest of the year. It was a 3-speed bike with coaster brakes. I was missing my speedy yellow machine with caliper brakes and road drop handlebars. Then on my birthday a new surprise was waiting for me in the living room. It was a Schwinn Phantom Mag Scrambler. I actually cried right there sitting on the glossy black bike. Even though we were struggling economically my Mom managed to find a way to buy me a nice bike. I was smarter with this bike and would bring it inside at night to keep unwanted hands off my machine.

I would like to think those moments are why I still ride a bike 30 years later. To me there is nothing better than owning a bike. It is part childhood, part escape, part fitness and a whole lot of fun. It’s small enough to store in the hallway yet big enough to change your life. My mom passed away years ago but I smile every time I think about the real meaning behind the gifts of cycling she gave me. I hope she knows how thankful I am for the independence, the fitness, the adventures and the great career. Thanks Mom!

Happy Holidays-TR Maloney

The Gift of Cycling

I have written a lot of holiday articles about shopping for a cyclist in the family or training tips this time of year when the treats are plenty and the miles are few. This is a crazy time of year. Bad weather and out of town guests push one’s patience to the limits. That is why I have taken the following approach for so many years. Now is the time to invest in you, set a goal and reinvent yourself and start anew.

Don’t waste your time on a New Year’s resolution that rarely survives the first week. Start today, choose a goal and go after it now! A bicycle is a lifeboat in a sea of fatty foods and aging. A bicycle is a very important part of my life. So much so it has become part of my identity.

This year listen close to table talk during the family get together. Over Thanksgiving I heard “Remember Uncle with the beard and the pick-up truck…” and “Oh that is your grandma. She had a lot of cats and when you walked in her house…” You get the picture. When I go home the first thing that is tied to me is my bicycle. My Aunt will say “I heard you rode you bike in Switzerland this year” and “We watched you online at Ironman…” That is how I want to be remembered. Don’t you?

Buying a Tommaso bike won’t change your life. It will help, but you need to change your life. The Tommaso bike is just a tool to take you on your way. I will say it every year as long as I live; riding a bike has made my life so much better. All the good in my life can be traced back to riding a bike. My health, my friends and my job all have cycling as the background theme. Being a part of Tommaso Nation is a great feeling.

If you want to get fit, explore the outdoors or feel like a kid again get yourself a bike. In my 16-year career in cycling I have always enjoyed the first moment when a customer is getting on a bike. As soon as they start pedaling the biggest smile appears and they light up with joy.

Get your bike this year, don’t wait. I've never known anyone to get fit buying a big screen TV. Start off with a reasonable goal and go after it. When I started I was overweight and out of shape. My goal was to ride 20 miles in one day. It took me some time but I made my goal and wanted to go farther. A year or so and 40-pounds later I was preparing to ride a MS-150 ride in honor of my mother who I lost to Multiple Sclerosis. I rode my bike so hard the first day I was going through the check points so fast they didn't have water for me. They weren't ready. I had to have a friend pull up next to me in a car and hand me water. I know it is not a race but I just wanted to show my Mom how much I missed her and pedaling as hard as I could seemed like a fitting tribute. The second day I did the same and I knew then that cycling would always be a part of my life.

Whatever reason gets you on a bike embrace it. Ride for fun, to lose weight or to raise money for a good cause. A bike is an investment in you. Fad diets will not get you where you want to go. There is no video game that can create the feeling of finishing your first 100 mile ride. There is no better way explore the roads and scenery than on a bike. You’ve been good this year. Get your bike!

The Tommaso Mondial Rocks!

Every now and then I get a moment to stop and write about a Tommaso bike that I love to ride. Of course as a Tommaso Product Manager I have the chance to ride a lot of bikes, but there are some that catch my attention for personal reasons. This has to do with time in the saddle as well as my history in cycling. Let’s just say I was racing on down tube shifters and wearing a neon pink racing kit…yeah, I’ve been in the game a little while.

One of the bikes that returns to my attention often is the Tommaso Mondial. It comes up more frequently than Kiss songs on my iPod. The Mondial is a rock star in its own right. It has the time-tested Ultegra 6600 STI shifters, Ultegra 6600 rear derailleur and Ultegra 6600 front derailleur. There’s nothing to worry about and no need for an upgrade. The Ultegra is an amazing group that appears on a couple of my bikes. I have Ultegra on my travel bike (it’s been around the world a few times) and it comes out of the case shifting every time. One of the best parts about the Mondial spec is the FSA Gossamer crank. Most people don’t know that a certain World Champion time trial God prefers the aluminum Gossamer over the carbon FSA cranks because of the Gossamer's stiffness. We feel that if it is good enough for him it should be good enough for Tommaso Nation.

Another nice feature of the FSA Gossamer crank is the compact 50/34 tooth arrangement. Compact cranks are great for just about everyone except the most elite cyclists. Then again some pros have used them during the mountain stages of well known races. Choosing a compact crank makes good sense for many reasons. It's lighter and the gear range is better, making it much easier to use than a triple. The compact gives you all gearing options that you need, especially when the road points upward. That's where you'll really enjoy the 34 tooth front chainring.

The cockpit of the Tommaso Mondial is very comfortable. As a product manager I have a collection of handlebars. I travel the world and have been known to amuse others as I try out every bar that I can get my hands on. I maneuver into the descending position, get into sprint mode and climbing position. I ride the tops, drops and hoods. After years of racing, training, centuries and MS-150 rides, I know what fits most hands comfortably. If you check out the Tommaso Blog you will see that I have written a piece on what is involved in choosing good handlebars. If you ever see me on a long ride I will be happy to discuss my insane testing system for cycling saddles, bar wrap and even sunglasses…I’m a little bit of a freak.

The color of the Mondial is another draw for me. In the sunlight the bold blue is killer! It looks incredible with the black paint and white decals. I do enjoy bikes that look fast even when not moving. The 12K weave on the fork legs only enhances the racy feel of the bike. The carbon TRS Tommaso fork is stout with no wimpy fork flex under the duress of white knuckle descending. I am amazed at how much vibration and deflection I have noticed in super-light (READ: Super Expensive) boutique forks that feel great in your hands but offer very little in real-world performance.

Riding a Tommaso Mondial is pure joy. All the parts come together in harmony and the ride is wonderful. The gearing allows for an all around smooth ride, the Shimano components take care of the work and the comforting shapes of the saddle and handlebar leave your attention where it belongs-on the road. The 32-hole Alex 450 rims were chosen because they are workhorse rims. They can be easily trued and the machined brake surface is a welcome comfort when the weather gets nasty.

When you step on the pedals the Mondial accelerates very quickly. The geometry allows me to sit “in” the bike and not “on” the bike. It's almost as if the Mondial is reading my mind. When I think "turn" it dives in and rips right through. If I see a hole in the pack it jumps right in and when the road goes up the bike answers to standing on the pedals with a healthy return of speed.

The bottom line is that cycling is about your time away from worry, work and traffic jams. Isn’t it nice to know when you get home you can grab a Tommaso and disappear for a comforting ride? The bike is going to last. The parts are chosen to get the job done at a price that is unbeatable. Tommaso wants you to go for a ride and not be taken for one.

After a race this summer I was asked, "Who are the members of Team Tommaso?" I replied “Everyone that is smart enough to buy a Tommaso". In reading the great comments about our bikes on the Facebook Fan Page I am reminded that we are all part of the same great team. Here’s to the long rides and journeys we take on our Tommaso Bikes.

Team Tommaso

Crossing Over For Fall

I blame Damien Rice for tainting my return to cyclocross after an 8-year absence. How did “Blower’s Daughter” get stuck in my head for the whole race? It is hard to get the game face on with such gentle music. I wanted Pantera to provide the theme music for my crushing return! Sure I raced once last year but that doesn’t count as I had just arrived in Colorado 48-hours earlier and I was trying to hold my own at 7,000 feet on a borrowed bike! I might as well have punched myself in the stomach with only a straw in my mouth to catch my breath and jumped on an angry horse without a saddle…that was pretty much the feeling I had racing cross at Pike’s Peak.

Well this year is different! I have my own new carbon Tommaso cross bike and some good fitness left over from Ironman. Of course I don’t know how much help the endurance fitness will be since racing well below one’s aerobic threshold for 11+ hours is not drooling down one’s chin at 20-beats over one’s aerobic threshold while sprinting out of every corner and jumping 18” high hurdles for 45 minutes! I don’t think I could find another cycling sport the exact opposite of Ironman…but there I was toeing the line 20 days later no aerobars or pointy helmet.

Luckily I am on a team with 14 great guys all dressed up in VeloNews team gear. It helps when you are suffering to see a familiar face or at least a blur of red and black through tears…I mean sweat during a race. The Velo boys are friendly, supportive and very fast. I hope to learn from them as the season progresses. More so I hope to prove that the new Tommaso carbon bike is a strong bike that can handle the tough conditions of cyclocross.

If it is going to break…cross will break it. Just ask the bulge sticking out of my shoulder neck area…it is the end of my clavicle detached from my sternum…thanks cross! Actually I mean that point more to the bike itself. Round one went very well and the Kore wheels (same ones found on the Velocita SRAM bike) held up great and the carbon frame felt like a custom bike made just for me. It loves the climb on the Hutchinson tires and it accelerates really well on grass and dirt. Even with too much PSI in the tires the bike behaved well and was easy to control.The SRAM Rival components were spot on and the internal cable routing kept the shifting crisp. While it was not a podium performance for me it was a great day of testing for the bike.

This weekend the bike gets to go for another race test in Boulder. I hope to have some video footage to share or at least some pictures. The best part of this job is the fact that my riding and racing today will make for a better bike for the customer next year. So when it is time for you to buy a Tommaso you will know it has been ridden, raced (crashed) and put through the ringer on the way to you! We want our customers to enjoy cycling as much as we do. We want you to over-play not over-pay! And if my performance doesn't improve soon can we throw in a marathon at the end so I can catch up?

IRONMAN

Well…The Tommaso Sixth Sense carried me to the highly sought after words all triathletes want to hear: “You are an Ironman!” Sure my legs carried me through the run and my arms (with a little steady kicking) pulled me through the swim but the big question mark is always the machine and the carbon Tommaso Sixth Sense rocked!
Late in 2008 we started thinking about a tri line for Tommaso and I thought it would be great to take our first bike straight to the big leagues of Ironman…The true bike test. As the product manager I put myself in the ring as the athlete to go do an Ironman. The months of training with a 112-mile final exam is a great way to test a bike.

As mentioned in an earlier post the first plan was to rip it on the bike and suffer (walk) though the 26.2 mile marathon if need be. The idea was to rock Ironman with a top ten bike time so we could have bragging rights. As the training progressed I realized that Ironman isn’t just about the bike and people soon weed out the dummies that burn the bike only to go up in flames on the run. People think the homerun hitters are so great for hitting balls over the fence until they hear the same hitter usually has the highest strike out percentage. The distances of the Ironman (2.4 mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2 run) are also very humbling and deserve the respect of the athlete no matter what level.

I can say without hesitation that the Tommaso Sixth Sense is a great triathlon bike. I’ve ridden a lot of tri brands before coming to Tommaso and I would put this bike at the front of the pack with Cervelo, Scott, Trek and Quintana Roo. It really is that good. It is light, handles like intuition and because it is a Tommaso will be far more affordable than the rest. I know this because I have lived on the bike for months and raced it as hard as I could without one (and I mean it) complaint.

Some bikes I’ve raced before were wind tunnel tested and looked sleek but once you removed your hands from the bars became a jackhammer gone crazy! The bike would shimmy and shake on descents and take away any confidence you had in the machine. Other bikes I’ve owned like to go straight but when the corners came up they needed to be coaxed like a kid with broccoli on his plate. The Tommaso Sixth Sense loves the gas, corners like an Indy Race car and I can eat, put on/take off a vest or arm warmers and move bottles around without a wobble.

If you need numbers to be convinced I can give you two. I moved up roughly 600 places during the bike leg of the Ironman and I ran a negative split on the marathon. That means I ran the second half faster than the first. Most people fade from fatigue during the run. I started out steady and built on that with energy towards the end. When you consider the 112-mile bike ride to get to the marathon you know the bike is comfortable.

Now that Ironman is over I am looking forward to the next race where I can get the Tommaso back out on the streets to show it off. The production models will arrive in a couple months and soon the rest of you can experience what I have had the great fortune to experience. The Tommaso Sixth Sense is going to carry a lot of us to productive training rides and well deserved podiums along the way! Thanks for following Tommaso’s Road to Ironman. I hope you enjoyed the ride as much as I did.

TR Maloney
Tommaso Product Manager / Ironman

Iron Prayer

Ironman must be close. Last night I had the dream where I wake up an hour late for the swim start! Luckily my Timex watch alarm went off and I was on time for my easy swim at the YMCA. Most of the stress for me leading up to a race involves forgetting something. I have a checklist and I’ve been lucky so far with only one slip that occurred at the Rock and Roll half Ironman distance triathlon in Georgia.

I had my normal swim and made a quick exit with the bike onto the roads of Macon, GA. Within the first mile I looked down at my long shadow from the rising sun and low and behold I forgot my seat bag with tube, CO2 and tools! Worse yet is knowing I left it on the ground in transition! Knowing I had 55 miles to go I started the “Race Prayer.”

Dear Lord…I know I’m not one to ask for favors from you but I do need a little help here. It seems in my haste I forgot my seat bag (in transition no less!!!) and need 55 miles of debris free roads so I can keep the air in my tires. Yes, yes, yes I know I yelled at the guy who gave away my hotel room last night but it was late and I did fly 1300 miles to get to the race. Sure I could have been a little more patient with the age grouper floating on his back in the middle of the lake but I was in a hurry and a little push never hurt anyone…right? I’m really a good guy Lord…I don’t cut corners at races and don’t littler gel packets when I train. When I pass people on training rides I always wave and when someone has a flat tire I always ask if they are OK…sure I might not stop when I am racing but it is a race after all.

OK…how about a trade? You can have my shoelaces come untied during the run if I can just get back to transition without a flat. C’mon big guy…I’m already half way through the 56 mile bike…why waste a good thing? Is that glass in the road?! Are you toying with me? I know you have a sense of humor; you allowed recumbent bikes to be created.

OK we are only 5 miles from the finish. Just a little more sunshine sent my way please. How embarrassing would it be for me to flat 5-miles from my AWOL seat bag? It just wouldn’t be right…you know?

All right! We are in the home stretch! We did it! I mean…you did it! Thanks, thanks for letting me get away with one today. I appreciate the love. Is it too much to ask for flat-free racing for the rest of the year? What is that noise? Is that thunder?

Respect

Team Tommaso’s march to Ironman started in December of 2008. I informed some of my potential sponsors that I could pull a top 10 overall bike split at Ironman Louisville. A big boast that I would not have made if I did not believe I could back it up. I try not to write checks with my mouth that my legs can’t cash. To pull of this feat I would have to turn a 4:50 and change on the bike. I would have to average about 23mph.

The set up for me was perfect. I live and train with my coach. I have a cycling background, an amazing Tommaso prototype bike to ride and the grit to get the job done. So I signed up for the race and hired (yes, hired my roommate) my coach (Like the Joker said in The Dark Knight: “If you’re good at something never do it for free.”). I was surprised she agreed to the challenge. She is a pro triathlete and what I was asking was a little insulting to the sport. I wanted to float through the 2.4-mile swim, kill the 112-mile bike and take a nice 26.2-mile walk. She knew right away that I would be too destroyed to think about running. I was still surprised she agreed.

Starting on January 3^rd I was training to be an Ironman. I’ve run marathons and raced enough tri to know my way out of a transition area. I spent 10 years racing road bikes and the occasional mountain bike event. My first day found me in the pool. Soon I was swimming, biking and/or running almost every day. Most days I had two workouts so my personal life died quickly. Work was of course the most important boat not to rock. I love my job and refuse to let work suffer due to my athletic ventures. I don’t get paid to ride bikes…I get paid to make great bikes. You don’t screw up a gig like that.

Before I knew it I was in Atlanta running a half Marathon and visiting friends. I had my best run ever! Then I was back in Colorado racing an early season tri event and had the second fastest bike split and another solid run! The training was changing my body and there was newfound power. During this time I gained 8 pounds but was going faster. I let my coach steer and I provide the engine.

My favorite days were on the bike. I just wanted to kill everyone I saw up the road. As most of you know it is how I came up with the name for the Tommaso tri bike. I finished a race and told my girlfriend: “When I ride the Tommaso and look up the road all I see are dead people. I should call this bike the sixth sense!” A little humor from the movie The Sixth Sense.

As the training and the racing progressed I started to learn a lot about the sport and myself. You have to respect all the disciplines. I started to wonder if my coach knew what I would find as I progressed down the path to Ironman. The more I trained the more I wanted to improve all the aspects of my game. While I didn’t get much faster as a swimmer, I could easily swim 4000 yards straight and go out on the bike for hours. My biking continued to improve in that I was cruising along playfully whistling with a heart rate of 130bpm while tearing down the road. It was going so fast, so easily, it was frightening at times. My run was the biggest surprise. I was doing long runs and wanted to keep running. Before I knew it every Saturday or Sunday I was running at least a half marathon on top of all the other training! It just seemed normal.

So now I am 13 days away from the big show. The Ironman awaits and I still have a decision to make. I’ve worked so hard and come so far for this day. I realize that anything can happen between now and the finish line. I could twist an ankle, get sick or even crash the bike. Just this past weekend my coach crashed and broke a rib and my girlfriend looks to have broken a bone in her foot running. So today I sit and wonder…what side of me will show up on race day?

When all this started the goal was to torch the bike and show the world that the new Tommaso carbon tri bike is a killer! I would like nothing better than to post a super fast time so the people would see that this bike means business. No pro-athlete and no over-hyped wind tunnel data. Just one man on a machine he believes in. Or will the triathlete that I have become dive into the water to swim, crank out a descent bike so I can let my legs finish off an amazing day? Will this be enough to show the world what I know: The Tommaso Sixth Sense tri bike is a KILLER!

The bike is amazing. It is light and fast and fits perfectly. It accelerates really well and descends with all the confidence you could ask for in a bike. Bikes are really only as fast as the pilot pushing the pedals. If you’re going to buy a bike buy it because you know it will perform as a bike and he price is right. Don’t buy a bike because some amazing athlete won a race on it. He could have won the race on any bike out there. It’s the warrior more than the weapon. Tommaso does a great job in getting people on “weapons” at low prices. We (and by “we” I mean “you” through higher prices) don’t pay athletes to pimp our product).

Yeah, I make silly videos on race day and while training. I want everyone to feel like they are training and riding with me. That is how much I love this bike. Could I tear it up and post a crazy-fast bike split? Yes. I could bury myself and put up a good number for the sake of promoting the bike. The rest of the day would be walking to a slow finish. Could I race to the best of my ability and place well and finish like a true Ironman? I believe so. That’s the big question with less than two weeks to go. What is going to happen when I get on the bike? Please tune in to see what happens on August 30^th in Louisville, Kentucky. It is the coming out party for the Tommaso Sixth Sense.