Pedal Chic Grand Opening-Roadways are the new runways.

The beginning of March marked the grand opening/fashion show for Greenville, SC ladies-centric shop, Pedal Chic.






Here's a brief walk through at Pedal Chic the afternoon of the Grand Opening. Things were quite full and a buzz later that evening!

Maintaining the theme of 'Roadways are the new runways', business owner Robin Bylenga assembled her team of fashionistas and summoned my presence for the grand opening.



The 10'x30' stage went together, from what I gathered, rather quickly and in no time, Robin had her mom out there with a paint roller, putting on a coat of black on the freshly built stage.

During business hours, I managed to assemble a couple of bikes and snap some photos of these really cool paintings by local artist Tonya Morris. [click for more...]



Her images are cleaver, witty, deep and zen related.




This one matched nicely with the painting of Big George. The photo of him was a signed piece too.




The decor of Pedal Chic is modern, comfortable and easy to shop. A classic Bianchi Milano Citta sits next to the table.




Pedal Chic handles commuter, road and sport hybrids. Her bag line is also very much in line with the bikes that sit on the floor. I like this bag on the Milano Citta. The hits of celeste on the bag really jump out when on the rear of the Milano.




More artwork from Tonya. Love it!

Pedal Chic's selection of women graced the runway that evening wearing the latest apparel from the world of cycling, tennis, yoga and running. I was the middle man at the head of the back stage, determined to not let any of the bikes fall of the stage as the models handed me their Bianchi Bicycle (other brands from the shop too), strut out to the end of the 30 foot long runway and then back to me for the hand off.






Here's a Dama Infinito in action. You can see in the background of this clip that there were a lot of people there. I'd guess a couple hundred in attendance and many walked over from the surrounding bars and establishments, to sneak a peek of the action.




The masses gathered inside after the fashion show. Quite full but the vibe was high and everyone was loving the beverage sampling and vittles. I'd have to say this was the most powerful presentation I've attended for an opening shop. Robin is obtaining massive local coverage of her business, building her customer base and creating a culture in Greenville, SC which otherwise has been dominated by men.

Here is a piece covering this event by Carolina Cycling News. [more...]

Great work Robin, I'm proud to be of service to you!

Look fast, ride fast.

Warmer weather will be here before you can say, 'Clenbuterol laced Jager shots for everyone!'. Are you really going to head down the road in the same old pair of clapped out Nashbar bin close-out bibs or that flappy jersey from that disease ride you did back in 2002? No, you're going to man up and get yourself a new matchy matchy kit to boost that group ride average by 3 mph. Enter- Capo.




I've been digging Upland Sports Group and their Capo Apparel since 2006. I received a team kit ala pro-bono from a team guy back then in exchange for a bit of wrenching on his race rig.


The reason for this blog post is because at Interbike 2010, we received some major bike love from Capo. They asked if they could have several Infinito bikes for their 2011 product shoot. This video exposes some of the photos which were displayed on the top walls of the booth. Needless to say their booth looked amazing. Not just because of the Infinito but the line from soup to nuts is well constructed and covers all the cycling goods a cyclist would need, on and off the bike.

1 yr anniversary party for Just Riding Along Bike Shop.

Travis and the guys at JRABS celebrated turning the big, '1' this month.

Here's a clip from the event, [...more]

In addition to a few photos I snapped during the well attended party.


Everyone had lots of food thanks to the Laytonsville District Volunteer Fire Department. The Potomac Peddlers launched a group ride early in the afternoon. When the ride ended at the shop, beverages provided by Sierra Nevada brewing were waiting to be sampled.


Travis is probably explaining to his customer what his new flavors of Clif-Bar would be if he ran the company.


JRABS mechanic. 'nuf said.


(l-r) JRABS crew Chad, Barry, and Travis. Getting ready to cut to the cake. What you can't see out of the frame of this photo... the showroom was packed with more party people. There was a raffle that evening and Bianchi kicked in a San Jose frame set. Sierra Nevada had some t-shirts, and various bike maintenance swag was given away too.


John has a knife and is starting to regret not paying closer attention to fractions in middle school. How many pieces do we need here?


This had to be the best cake I've had in a long time. (sorry babe). Straight up devils food cake, not your bland chocolate or vanilla cake.


(l-r)Chad, Mike, Travis, Barry, me, and John. The Bianchi Bowling Team?

Thanks Travis and Mike for a wonderful first year out of the gate. You slayed it man!

Team Androni-Jose Serpa's Oltre upclose.

Full photo album here...[click!]

Love the wheels!