Virginia's New Ride

I got to build a TI cross bike for a girl named Virgina who lives in Ogden, Utah. She is a cross racer and was super stoked to come up North to pick up her new ride. She came up and hung out over the weekend and did the triathlon while she was here. Here are a few pics of Virginia and her new cross bike. As a fitter I like the photo of Virginia riding the bike, usually you view the rider on a trainer while doing the fit and that is what we did the night before. In this photo she is actually racing the bike, rather than spinning on a trainer. On her previous ride she had a difficult time getting comfortable on the hoods, let alone the drops. The picture displays her going straight to the hoods with a good torso, arm, and knee angle. Sometimes a angle finder is no substitute for a good photo of someone racing their bike, and feedback on comfort and performance after a race. The bike also allows her some adjustments in reach and handlebar height without having to purchase new components. I have noticed that fits need to be periodically changed as individuals gain or lose fitness and flexibility, it is always nice to have a bike that can change with you.

CLICK ON PICS FOR CLOSER LOOK.

Oven Baked Goodness

The past couple of days I have been nailing down this carbon fiber project, and have come to the conclusion that my wife wants me out of the house. Well, I have taken over her baking oven to burn serious chemicals in it. I don't know that she is approving of the fact that when she now bakes something yummy it comes out tasting like bikes parts. Well, that is what I call Oven Baked Goodness. The smell of carbon fiber curing in the oven, and now in my food. I bet she can't wait until I get my new commercial oven.

Our good friend Tim came over last week to get his bike looking SPANKIN NEW. He has a Kelson Ti road bike that is a few years old. He has taken amazing care of the thing, but it has seen some serious miles. The cool thing about Ti is that you can make it look brand new with just a little love. We took off all of his parts and sandblasted it with new etched Kelson logos. It looked like a brand new bike. He bought all new parts and finished it off. It's amazing what a little LOVE can do. (Tim and his new ride)
We had the annual bike party last night hosted at the Anderson's home. What an amazing host they are, and what a turn out. Music, games and good food makes for a great end to an amazing summer.

Carbon Fiber Frames -

So, for the past several months I have been working on several mold ideas trying to master the art of carbon frame building. I have visited with several engineers, and have worked endlessly on the carbon mold to get it just right. I am SO close to being able to be one of few builders out there who can weld titanium, steel, and coming soon build CUSTOM carbon fiber bikes. I am super stoked for this opportunity.

Previous to Kelson, I had another small business

where I designed and sold custom carbon fiber kayaks. Hundreds of hours I spent sniffing epoxy resin, and shaving, kayak molds to make them just right. It mainly started out making them for friends, but grew into something that people wanted from all over. It was a super fun time in my life.

Here are a few of the pics from our kayak days and the boats that made my life exciting.

One of the few pics of me working on the carbon fiber boat

What a busy summer I have had. Frame building has been going well. We have built several steel and Titanium road bikes, And have been doing some conversions on some steel frames. I built earlier in the summer a 650b bike for a long time customer. No photo's yet, He took it before I had a chance to snap any. But the feed back was very positive. I have never rode one myself (other than this one around my yard). He said it climbed like a goat. He was able to conquer some climbs that he was unable to do in the past, and it was very comfortable. It was originally built with the thought of beating a PR on the white rim trail in Moab Utah. We wanted something that would be light, comfortable, and maintain momentum at speed. I can't wait for him to smash his record.

I have been fortunate enough to get in several races this summer. I have been having some problems with leg cramps, I think it is genetic. I have tried everything. I think I nearly OD on endurolytes at the last race. Anyone have some idea's, I would be happy to hear them. I am looking forward to the Cyclocross season. I have a new bike in the works for myself, something completely different than what is available on the market. I think it might be just the ticket as far as durability and weight. I have also just completed two Ti cross bikes for customers, one is off to spectrum for a custom paint job, and the other has etched logo's. I will post pictures soon. So check back. If anyone has some content they would like to discuss on this blog, please let me know.

Thanks for lookin, Brian