Our media van sets off from the Concorde Hotel; at the back of a convoy that stretches impressively over the gradually-rising road’s distant horizon. All other traffic is blockaded for the entire 25km trip from Shah Alam to Kuala Lumpur’s Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square) – impressive, given the multi-lane roads we’re traversing and the fact it’s morning peak hour. Roughly halfway we pass the Champion System team who, courtesy of local riders Anuar Manan and Adiq Othman, can ride in GPS-free bliss to the media conference.  Heck, all team riders have to “kit up” and take their bikes anyway, so it makes sense to ride.

On arrival, as in past years, the pro’s went for a 20 minute “fun ride” with cycling enthusiasts from the public. LTdL organisers estimated 300 people turned up for this year’s ride; roughly 200 fewer participants than a similar event led by Alexandre Vinokourov two days prior. Meanwhile, dignitaries were treated to a small parade during their short walk to an open-sided tent, which stood on a grassy field opposite the presentation stage.

Following the obligatory dance troupe, Kazakhstan’s Astana team was the first to roll onto the stage. Interestingly, Vinokourov’s Specialized bike was the only one not equipped with aerobars. At first, this article’s author surmised ‘Vino’ had secretly stashed a full-blown TT rig for the following day’s prologue, but the race regulations only permit for a road bike with aero bars. Hey, go easy on the amateur.

Whether deliberately orchestrated or not, one of the sponsors – local auto manufacturer Proton, who according to the organiser has supplied 170 vehicles – seemed intent on stealing the show. As each team rolled onto the vast stage under sweltering (34°C) sun, a matching Proton team car wedged itself between the press gallery and the stage.  Big deal, photographers can just stand up and shoot over the top of the car, right? Yes, unless there is a tent full of seated VIP’s behind, demanding that the media sit down so they (the VIP’s) can see. Talk about a rock and a hard place; at least the boys from Astana had a laugh about it.

"Proton cars! Brought to you by... PROTON!" Now, did someone say there was a team presentation on?

Anyway, long presentation short, 21 other teams followed more or less the same routine as Vino’s light-blue brigade. Personally, from the perspective of a optimistic-of-Asia’s-future-as-a-procycling-region cycling fan, it was great to see so many Asian Continental teams; from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Singapore, Malaysia and Iran – also not forgetting other nations like South Africa, represented by its MTN Qhubeka squad. It was also great to see (on a team shirt) one of the best double entendres so far this year.

Tesfay Habtemariam (Eritrea) and Rwanda National Road Cycling champion Adrien Niyonshuti of MTN Qhubeka

The back of Farnese Vini's casual polo shirts. Anyone that has followed Mario Cipollini over the years will know that, intentional or not, this is copywriting as its best.

STAGE ONE
At 20.3km, tomorrow’s Individual Time Trial should provide opportunities for rouleurs to establish a time gap that potentially can be held until the Genting Highlands stage next Wednesday.  The first rider is scheduled to roll down the start-ramp at 09:00 local time (12:00 AEST | 01:00 GMT).

As a complete aside, I’d like to address a very serious issue raised by SBS’s Anthony Tan yesterday; an apparent lack of “real coffee” in Kuala Lumpur. Generally speaking, this is an issue across Asia – though I have found cafes gobsmackingly-exceptional to this generalization in the oddest places; such as Jeju Island off the south coast of South Korea – that threatens to blunt the creative juices of any caffeine-dependent scribe. I’m happy to report that espresso coffee was discovered during a brief pre-presentation detour this morning. It may not have been delivered via the exquisitely naked portafilter of a six-group Synesso, but it was serviceable.

One of only two Hors Categorie stage races on the Asia Tour (China’s ‘Tour of Qinghai Lake’ in July being the other), Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) is a ten day west-to-east traverse of Peninsular Malaysia, covering 1,413.3km from 24 February – 04 March. The race’s management committee hasn’t been shy about their intent to convert LTDL into a WorldTour event – indeed the committee’s Chairman, Dato’ Mohid Mohamed, effectively used his introductory message to lobby the UCI:

“Le Tour de Langkawi in 2012 will be one that showcases the race’s readiness to become part of the UCI World Tour series. With a proven track record, the race is ready to move further forward. We will be preparing for a new chapter by welcoming more top tier UCI Pro Teams, reinstating this race as the foremost cycling event in Asia.”

An experienced media friend (who shall remain anonymous) presented me with an alternative appraisal, describing Tour de Langkawi as “a super friendly event but as a bike race, it’s kind of a joke, and it’s way too long. However, if you have nothing else to do, it’s fun.” Sold!  [Cycling iQ will be flying into Malaysia tomorrow, though some riders (like ‘Vino’) have already arrived, days ahead of the start on Friday.]

In terms of its positioning on the calendar LTdL occupies the same moment in time as a bevy of decades-old European races, such as Omloop Het Nieuwsblad (1.HC, 25 Feb), Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne (1.1, 26 Feb) and Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen (2.1, 02-04 Mar), but manages to slip between events on the other Continental Circuit calendars.

Teams arriving into Malaysia from the recent Tours of Qatar and Oman – having enjoyed opulence necessitating six-star classification – will return to a more business-like standard of accommodation at the Concorde Hotel in Shah Alam, but the upside is a more diverse parcours. 22 teams, with six riders apiece, will be competing for a total prize purse of MYR925,250 (USD306,300).

LEADER’S JERSEYS
Four jerseys will be awarded at the conclusion of each stage:

Leader of General Classification – Yellow
Leader of Points Classification – Blue
Leader of King of the Mountains (KOM) Classification – Red
Leader of Best Asian Rider Classification – White

TEAMS BREAKDOWN
Must have a minimum of four, and maximum of six, riders and four officials. Of the 132 riders, 59 are from Asian nations, 32 are from European nations, 17 from The Americas, 6 from Africa and 18 from Oceania.

STAGES AND PROFILES

Stage 1 | Putrajaya Individual Time Trial* 20.3km
Friday, 24 February 2012

*Aero bars are permitted during the ITT in accordance with article 1.3.023 in the UCI regulations.

Stage 2 | Putrajaya – Melaka, 151.0km
Saturday, 25 February 2012

Stage 3 | Melaka – Parit Sulong, 187.6km
Sunday, 26 February 2012

Stage 4 | Batu Pahat – Muar, 169.4km
Monday, 27 February 2012

Stage 5 | Ayer Keroh – Pandan Indah, Ampang, 190.0km
Tuesday, 28 February 2012

Stage 6 | Proton, Shah Alam – Genting Highlands*, 108.0km
Wednesday, 29 February 2012

*25-30km climb (depending on “official start point” to 1,679m above sea level

Stage 7 | Bentong – Kuantan, 205.8km
Thursday, 1 March 2012

Stage 8 | Pekan – Cukai, 100.8km
Friday, 2 March 2012

Stage 9 | Kemasik – Kuala Terengganu, 165.7km
Saturday, 3 March 2012

Stage 10 | Tasik Kenyir – Kuala Terengganu Loop, 116.9km
Sunday, 4 March 2012

2012 Asian Cycling Championships: Men's U23 road race podium. Image credit: CA photographs

Regrettably, Cycling iQ’s meagre travel budget could only stretch to being at one race (Tour de Langkawi) this month, so I’ve had to stay vigilant to stay connected with day-to-day events at the Asian Cycling Championships. Live feeds have been impossible to find. For this reason, I can’t commentate on the racing itself, but I’m happy to default to my comfort zone – the humble Excel results table. Here’s the top 20 from today’s Elite Men’s Road Race, with a separate column for cyclists who are in UCI registered professional cycling teams.

Click on image to enlarge

Of the 69 starters, 15 did not finish (DNF) whilst Dmitriy Gruzdev (silver medal winner in the Elite Men’s Individual Time Trial on Wednesday) was disqualified for holding onto his team’s car. He was fined 1 UCI lunch meeting for two people, or CHF200 in currency terms. What’s far more interesting than Gruzdev’s indiscretion is the fact that almost half the top 20 are registered with UCI professional cycling teams

Without further ado, here’s the final podium list and medal count from the last week of all road cycling events – copied and pasted from the UCI’s communique template*. The 2013 Asian Cycling Championships will be held in next March in Delhi, India and Cycling iQ intends to be there.

*a special thankyou to Rosnah Osman from the communications team in Malaysia. I’ve never met you in person, but your efficiency has been awesome. Thanks!

Srinagar, the third and final (?) host city in the trio of one day races that form the 2012 Tour De India in March.

Now in its third year, the Tour de India (TDI) – actually a trio of one day professional races and public “Cyclothons” spread over a week – is described by race organizer ID Sports as “India’s parallel to the Tour de France.” The International Cycling Union (UCI), Cycling Federation of India (CFI) & Maharashtra Cycling Association (MCA) are all listed as stakeholders on the Tour De India website. Note that ID Sport’s race director is David McQuaid, son of UCI President Pat McQuaid.

TDI 2012 was originally scheduled to take place in late January – in Pune, Nashik and Mumbai – but the Pune segment was withdrawn in December 2011, due to organizational issues (something about local elections) that were not fully clarified. When the UCI updated its Asia Tour calendar in January, only two one day races were scheduled to take place, on 25 March (Mumbai) and 1 April (Delhi) respectively. Both were/are ranked as UCI1.1 races.

Last week, without any announcement at all on ID Sport’s TDI facebook page, nor the official website, a third stage was added – in Srinagar, 28 March – with a UCI1.2 ranking. So the Tour de India schedule, at least according to the UCI’s 2012 Asia Tour calendar, looks like this:

Odd chronology aside (note that ‘III’ comes before ‘I’ and ‘II’), it appears this will be the final version.  ID Sports states that the teams participating in this year’s TDI “will explore an exciting and a difficult task to compete in India’s longest cycling race ever, amidst the chaos and beauty on the India soil. The participation of one of the best teams in the world** only testifies further India’s new found status of being a favourite destination in the world of competiting cycling.” So far, the nine teams listed as participants are all at a National or Continental level. Watch this space.

Anyhow, back to the interesting developments.

In the first slide of this PowerPoint presentation (clicking will download file) – almost certainly created by an ID Sports official in late January – ID Sports is presented as a “joint venture arm of Global Cycling Promotion Company under International Cycling Union”. Crucially, in a later slide, ID Sports states it is the “only company in India affiliated with (the UCI and CFI to) host both professional and mass participation cycling events.

Sound familiar? This is eerily similar to the stealth by which the UCI, via the almost-invisible Global Cycling Promotion, entered China as the seemingly exclusive owner of top-level professional cycling races.

Additionally (prophetically?), it is further stated in the presentation that the 2012 TDI underpins a longer-term vision to host the World Championships in India by the year 2017. The World Championships, as shown in the UCI’s own annual report, are the standout profit center for the UCI – in fact, profits from the 2010 World Championships basically offset the majority of the UCI’s operating costs in the 2010 financial year.

At an administrative level, the TDI’s logo recently changed. It is now much more closely aligned to the corporate style of the Tour de France, owned by Amaury Sports Organisation (ASO). ASO partnered with Global Cycling Promotion ahead of last year’s Tour of Beijing (operated by GCP) to provide technical support for the inaugural Chinese WorldTour event. Whether ASO is providing similar support for the Tour de India is unclear, but the dots join convincingly.

Old TDI logo on the left; new TDI logo on the right. The 2012 TdF logo is underneath.

Also of note is Mark Cavendish’s inclusion in the presentation as “The face of Tour de India 2012” – this may reveal that Team Sky** will be participating. Or, due to the fact that Cavendish is pictured in the cycling kit of a now-defunct team, perhaps not. I could see no mention of this anywhere online or in press releases.

So, could be we seeing the UCI attempting to gain first-mover status in India, whilst wielding the top-down regulatory power to remove meritocracy from future race selection in this highly-populated and emerging country? Is this the future model we can expect in Russia, South America, etc? More answers hopefully coming soon.

Marcus Leong (Singapore) takes a trial spin around the ITT circuit. Image credit: OCBC Singapore Cycling Team

Held from 08-18 February, the 2012 Asian Cycling Championships (ACC) provide Asia’s national cycling federations the opportunity to show off their local riders* in a truly diverse competitive environment. Track cycling disciplines dominated the first half of the Championship’s schedule, with road cycling events starring this week.

This morning (Malaysian time), 20 riders from 20 countries started the Elite Men’s individual time trial on a 12.8km circuit that was completed three times (for a total of 38.4km). Though five of the twenty starters are on UCI-registered professional cycling teams for 2012, it was hardly a clean sweep by the “pro’s” today. This serves as a reminder that the 2,700 road cyclists on the UCI’s professional teams database are only a drop in the global talent pond.

Though obtaining images from today’s race has proven difficult, a very helpful official from the local organizing committee forwarded Cycling iQ official results moments after Kyrgyzstan’s Eugen Wacker crossed the finish line in first place – as he did in 2011. In fact, the three steps of the 2012 Elite Men’s ITT podium will support exactly the same riders, in the same order, as last year. The 160km Elite Men’s road race will be held on Saturday.

*It’s actually more serious than this. Crucial UCI points are available for the top eight riders in the ITT, and the top fifteen riders in the Road Race.

RESULTS:

Click on image to enlarge

Eugen Wacker - Winner of the 2011 Asian Cycling Championship's Elite Men's ITT, and first across the line again in 2012.

Or, perhaps the first question should be “who cares?” After all, does it really matter where a bicycle is made if it meets a consumer’s definition of value? Why are cyclists – myself included – so fascinated about who stuck the tubes together?

Perhaps it’s because our favourite brands continue to beguile us with origin-based hyperbole, long after migrating to an environment bearing little resemblance to the brand story. After all, what do “heritage” and “prestige” have to do with a factory in China? It’s the question – and image – that shadows every bicycle brand with a hidden-from-public-view manufacturing presence in Asia.

As explained in the ‘vertical limit’ series, bicycle manufacturers can be split into three major categories – Original Brand Manufacturer (OBM), Original Design Manufacturer (ODM) or Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM). OEM factories produce most of the brands that we see in the Tour de France, and it has been this way for many years. Here’s a condensed (following three-paragraphs) recap:

Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM’s) are responsible for taking a bicycle brand’s unique design and fabricating it into a finished product. Depending on the client’s requirements, “finished product” can mean different things. It could be:

-        tubesets
-        a raw, unpainted, frame
-        a commercially-ready frameset, boxed in after-market packaging
-        a commercially-ready complete bicycle, boxed in after-market packaging

Relationships between bicycle brands and Taiwanese OEM’s began flourishing in the 1990’s, catalysed by Giant Manufacturing Co Ltd’s capitalistic push into westernized regions not previously troubled by yawning gaps in market price settings. A factory that branded and sold its own product was not a new idea, but the sheer scale of Giant’s operations gave it significant competitive advantage against its much smaller peers.

On the consumption side, emotional connection, status projection, exclusivity, ideals and brand loyalty – to name a few factors – would always prevent Giant’s homogenization of any given market. Naturally, smaller brands (with production in the tens of thousands of units or less) grew curious about the possibility of tapping into scaled-up manufacturing processes – such as Giants – in order to reduce their costs whilst improving upon their hallowed place at an end of the market not regarded as primarily price-influenced.

Today, the outcome of that curiosity is plain to see. Well-known bicycle brands are now effectively sales and marketing departments, with varying degrees of in-house R+D capabilities. Swift progression towards information symmetry – the state whereby a consumer has equal information about a given product – is dissolving brand stories into product-based arguments. Often, the purchase of a high-end bicycle centers around discussion as sophisticated as a pre-school sandpit fight.

And fair enough. Look at what’s happening at the top of the supply chain. Pursuit of all-important market share has distilled consumer feedback into a basic output axiom: create the perception of quality at the lowest possible price. The brands created this mess.

Pushback against road bicycles of Far East origin softened many years ago. Broadly speaking, consumers of high-end road bicycles now accept that the finish quality of Taiwanese-made road bicycles is of the same, or better, standard than the Italian- or US-made products previously accepted as qualitative benchmarks. However, the same consumers generally don’t accept bicycles of Taiwanese or Chinese origin should cost as much as their European or US-made counterparts. Isn’t this simply bigotry?

When Colnago made the decision to partner with Giant Manufacturing in 2005, it was precedent setting. Today, the company produces two-thirds of its annual production (15,000 framesets) in Asia and the rest in Italy – based on value-added origin. Long-term fans of Colnago knew instinctively that a ‘Made in Taiwan’ or ‘Made in China’ sticker could debase “their” hallowed Italian brand. However, Colnago remains a sought after brand which still attracts a premium price. Could this possibly be attributed to Colnago’s openness and modest ambitions, relative to industry peers?

Perhaps if bicycle brands were to focus on the competencies of their manufacturing partners, they could simultaneously regain the trust of their customers and showcase the qualitative aspects that are hidden behind a veil of secrecy; but which make their products valuable to consumers. Could it work?

Cycling iQ contacted– in all cases, by actually picking up a phone; as opposed to “contacted” in the asynchronous Gen Y sense – the communications departments of Specialized, Pinarello, Scott, Felt and Kona with the view to discuss the above proposition. No voice messages or emails were returned.

Interestingly, the 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, availability of the above brands was embarrassed by the 24/7 efficiency of their respective OEM’s in China, Taiwan and Cambodia. All were happy to discuss their relationships, but only to a point. What was their view? [Note: where requested, I’ve chosen to keep the identity of individuals private, out of respect for their trust in me and to guarantee a continued dialogue in future].

ADK Technology (with operations in Taichung, Taiwan and Guangdong province, China), was one of the first factories contacted. ‘ADK’ is an OEM to Felt Bicycles, CSG Group (parent of Cannondale and GT, amongst others), Advanced Sports International (parent of Fuji and Kestrel, amongst others) and “many other OEM customers; there are five main customers whose bike teams have been racing in Tour de France for many years,” according to ADK’s spokesperson.

When asked why bicycle brands were so sensitive about naming their manufacturing partners, ADK’s representative stated it was “because these OEM customers have advised ADK not to mention their information so we need to keep it confidential.” Deducing this was the probable conclusion of the discussion, I moved on.

Ideal Bike Corporation (also with operations in Taichung, Taiwan and Guangdong province, China), is an OEM to Fuji, BMC and Pinnacle (Evan’s Cycles in-house brand), amongst others. A spokesperson confirmed their production lines leading into MY2013 and MY2014 were fully booked by existing clients. Ideal’s Chinese operations produces in excess of 400,000 units annually; the majority of which are for European and US brands. This was all the information given, due to requested “client confidentiality.”

Taipei-based OEM Fairly Bike produces and exports “around 120,000 units” for clients such as Willier and Felt. Fairly’s representative offered to speak to me off the record at Taipei Cycle Show next month.

Advanced International Multitech Co Ltd, OEM for Bianchi, Dedacciai, Look, Decathlon and Specialized (until MY2012) recently featured on Cycling iQ. AIM created headlines – at least in our little industry – by announcing its relocation of bicycle production back to Taiwan. The romantic notion of AIM extending its brand relationships into the public realm was quickly vanquished.

“Cannondale [CiQ: a previous client] and Specialized always want a cheaper price.” said AIM’s representative. “They don’t want to move back to Taiwan (with AIM) but the future will make it all the same. We cannot offer the same price from (our Taiwanese facility), so they need to find another supplier.”

After several more conversations [CiQ: with Hodaka, ATI, A&J, Giant, Merida] similar to these, I grew despondent. Was nobody open to the idea of “coming out” to the market?

Refreshingly, one brand has already embraced a deeper meaning of “manufacturing partner”. Fuji, Advanced Sports International’s (ASI) headline bicycle brand, engages two manufacturing partners in full view. Ideal Bike Corporation owns a majority stake in Fuji, and also acts as the brand’s Chinese distributor. ADK Tech features prominently on Fuji’s 2012 Altamira Geox Team Edition road bike in the form of a logo on the chain stay.

Fuji OEM, ADK Technology, gets some deserved praise for its hand in the creation of Fuji's 2012 Altamira Geox Team Edition

Though coy about revealing too much, Chris Lintaman, Vice President of Advanced Sports International (ASI), guessed that some brands may be reluctant to openly discuss their OEM relationships “for competitive reasons – perhaps they are working with a vendor to develop future models and the vendor being used might reveal something about the nature of the product.” ASI’s VP went on to say that ASI collaborated with vendors based on their ability to “upgrade production technology meeting our design needs, or focus better on certain product categories which fit our plans.”

Whatever the case for other brands, ASI’s collaboration is a rare exception to the bicycle industry’s “manufacturing partner” paradox – ie, an OEM being good enough to make products that provide a brand’s livelihood, but not good enough for said brand to co-operate with publicly. Potentially, this is damaging to brand image as consumers are not able to understand what “it” is that they are investing in. Will any more brands step out from behind the shadow?

UCI Press Release, 10.02.2012 (Click on image to enlarge)

Hot on the heels of Asia’s first UCI WorldTour (WT) professional cycling race – the inaugural Tour of Beijing was held in October last year – the ‘Tour of Hangzhou’ was given approval in principle during the six-monthly meeting of the Professional Cycling Council (PCC), held 9-10 February in Geneva, Switzerland on February 9-10, 2012.

The PCC comprises representatives from the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), International Association of Professional Cycling Groups (AIGCP), Associated Professional Cyclists (CPA) and International Association of Organisers of Cycling Races (AIOCC):

Only three days will separate the 2012 Tour of Beijing, scheduled for 10-14 October, and the Tour of Hangzhou, scheduled for 17-21 October. Interestingly the last “monument” of the European calendar, Il Lombardia, had already been bought forward by two weeks from its usual mid-October position, therefore removing any potential scheduling conflicts for the Tour of Hangzhou.

The Tour of Hangzhou now only needs to gain final administrative approval from the UCI’s Licence Commission to break into professional cycling’s most prestigious racing calendar. Though the abovementioned press release did not mention who the organizer was, it was more of less confirmed by the following tweet from Alain Rumpf (President of Global Cycling Promotion) when he was asked by a follower if he’d be at the Tour de India in March:

When Cycling iQ asked (via Twitter) Rumpf for confirmation, Shane Stokes – writer for Velonation.com – quickly replied to verify this on Rumpf’s behalf, having already received confirmation from the UCI. Global Cycling Promotion (GCP), a profit-making subsidiary of the not-for-profit UCI, is therefore behind the two races most recently awarded WT status, and the only races of WT level in Asia.

Interestingly, neither “Tourofhangzhou.(any domain)” or “Hangzhoutour.(any domain)” has been registered at the time of writing, apart from Hangzhoutour.cn. It should be noted that even Global Cycling Promotion doesn’t have a functional website, only a parked domain. [UPDATE: within hours of this article being posted "tourofhangzhou.com", .net and .org had been privately registered through GoDaddy.]

Cycling iQ contacted Alain Rumpf by email today to request more information. To date, Rumpf has proven to be an efficient and open communicator, so further background will be added when a response is received. In the interim, enjoy this video of the well-embedded cycling culture in Hangzhou courtesy of the local “active transport” initiative

At least we got photos. Image credit: Kristof Ramon | kramon.be

Only days prior, I had received an email from Wade at CyclingTips containing the single-most significant sentence I’d received thus far in my short-lived career as a freelancer – “I can confirm you 30 minutes interview with Jan on Wed, 31st of August at Eurobike exhibition – BR, Falk”. We had secured the only interview with Jan Ullrich at Eurobike, the bicycle industry’s largest trade show in Friedrichshafen, Germany.

Back to the plastic chair. A fleeting moment of catharsis as I reply.

CW: “Just perfect. I just downloaded the dictation. Dead silence for 33 minutes. Absolutely gutted. No idea what went wrong.”

CT: “Oh no! My worst nightmare! When u get time perhaps get all of your recollections down on paper and we can make that part of the story. Don’t stress about it. It’ll work out!

I emailed Falk Nier, Jan’s manager, with the bad news.

“Thanks very much again for the opportunity to interview Jan. The sound file from the interview has been corrupted. Best-case scenario is we fix the file, transcribe the article, and post the interview in the next few days. Worst-case scenario, I might have to send you some questions again for answering by email. In any case, it was great to meet you and I hope we can do a follow-up interview in the future.”

With the same efficient manner in which the dialogue began, a reply quickly arrives.

“Hi Cam, very miserable but things happen…let me check it with Jan next week. Currently he is in vacation with his family. Hopefully I can send you the questions by end of next week before my holiday.”

With that, the dialogue stopped. Weeks passed with no further replies. Wade, ever the professional, continued to press for a follow-up interview on my behalf to no avail. In hindsight, Jan – and his agent – had  other matters to attend to. Today, CyclingTips published the notes that I had taken during the interview. However, in my own whimsical mind, I remember it differently. Without further delay, I give you “recollections of an interview with Jan Ullrich”**

PROFESSIONAL LIFE

How old were you when you knew, in your heart, your future as a professional cyclist was certain?
What a terrific first question! Already, I am feeling so excited about this interview. Falk, remind me to take his business card at the end of the interview. We could use a guy like this on our team. With regards to the question, there was no particular moment that I can recall when I was certain that cycling would be my profession.

How did it feel to sign your first professional contract in 1995? How did you know the time was right?
Another elegant and probing question. Chapeau! I had been racing since I was ten years old (Jan was born in 1973) and won the amateur World Championships in 1993. It was a natural progression to turn professional. It felt good to sign my first contract.

You first raced in Australia in 1993 at the Commonwealth Bank Cycle Classic, which you won. Why did you travel such a long way to race your bike?
I feel like we have already formed a deep connection, so I will tell you something that I have never before revealed to the media. There was a hidden agenda. After deciding I would win the 1993 Commonwealth Bank Classic, which I did, I spent a week in Sydney doing reconnaissance for the 2000 Olympics, which I also decided I would win. I rode the Bronte Rd hill climb 100 times in six days; on each occasion in the 53 x 11. Oh, I also let Eki win the TT at the Olympics. You can see I was leading at the last time check, but I really wanted to visit the famous “Harry’s Cafe de Wheels pie cart” after the race. If I’d won the TT, the numerous post-race interviews would have guaranteed the cart would be closed, and I could not have lived with that disappointment.

After the 1997 TdF win, you were asked what was your favourite country: you replied you loved Australia the most. Is this still true now? What is it you love about Australia?
The culture, the beaches and the people are all special. And of course, I have very fond memories of the Olympics. The crust of that pie was cooked perfectly! I hope to find a reason to go back there one day.

[At this point in the interview, a large pack of Tim Tams and small box of Weetbix are handed to Jan. He laughs and gives a heartfelt “thankyou very much” in English]

You won a Gold and Silver medal at the Sydney Olympics, the Tour de France, National and World Championship titles and numerous other races. Is there a single race in which were you not victorious but remember feeling the same happiness?
Can I first say it’s a pity this interview is not being filmed. You possess a boyish handsomeness that is compelling. I’ve only ever been happy when I’ve won. I chose not to be victorious if I’d already achieved my previously defined goals for the season.

Before you announced your retirement in Feb 2007, you had seven offers from pro teams. Did you ever get close to signing again? With what team?
No, the decision to retire had fully matured over several months. No offer could have changed my mind.

COMMENTARY ON CYCLING TODAY

What do you think of the way Cadel Evans won the TdF this year?
His win was very familiar to me. He was the strongest rider across all disciplines and really demonstrated panache. The Ullrich household was cheering for Evans throughout the Tour this year.

Has Europe lost it’s dominance in the sport of cycling?
Just because one American has won the Tour seven times, you can’t say that Europe has lost its dominance!

When do you think we will see the first Asian winner of the TdF?
(Laughs) Probably not for a long time – I think at least several years will pass before we see riders from Asia doing well in the Grand Tours.

EUROBIKE

We’re at Eurobike, the bicycle industry’s largest trade show. What’s the main reason you’re here?
I’m representing my bicycle company Jan Ullrich Bikes, to meet with dealers and also potential distributors. Incidentally, I understand you were here in 2007 surreptitiously taking photographs of my calves and limited-edition IWC watch. Is that true?

Ah, I don’t know anything about that. How active are you in the daily operation of Jan Ullrich bikes? What are your objectives for the company?
I am very involved in the operations of Jan Ullrich bikes, taking decisions and holding meetings regularly. You won’t find it mentioned anywhere on the public record, but I want to sell at least as many bikes as Giant. Maybe twice as many. I will decide first and then take the necessary steps.

Would you describe yourself as a bicycle equipment enthusiast?
At first, I only appreciated the bicycle as a tool to help me win races. In recent years though, I have looked forward to learning about the technological improvements in the industry. Yes, I would say I am an enthusiast of bicycle equipment. Tim Tam?

PERSONAL and RIDING

When did you last ride your bike? Where did you go?
On the weekend, I rode the Ötztaler Radmarathon in Austria. It is a mass participation event of 240km and almost 5km of combined altitude gain.

Do you prefer training alone or with people?
I enjoy both. I go riding with Klödi (Andreas Klöden) quite often but I can also enjoy riding with only the sound of the countryside and the gentle sound of my pedals being mercilessly crushed by an extraordinary natural power that causes butterflies to melt as they float by.

Have you kept any of your old bikes? Which is your favourite?
Yes, I have kept all of the bikes from my professional days that were not crashed. It might be obvious that the Pinarello from 1997 is my favourite. Tim Tam?

What equipment exists today that you wish you had access to when you were still racing professionally?
Actually, all of the equipment I used when racing was the best at the time. Even with today’s lightweight wheels – no, no, don’t get me started on the ADA/Lightweight nonsense! – and carbon frames, the UCI still has limitations on overall weight. I was most concerned with reliability.

What cycling tip could you pass on to our readers to improve their enjoyment of cycling?
Don’t forget to have fun in your cycling. A lot of people, especially the media, were critical of me for having a life off the bike. It’s about balance and enjoying all things in life.

Do you plan to visit Australia again? Would you accept an invitation to ride an Australian Gran Fondo event if offered?
Sure! I’ll be doing more of these races in the future, so I don’t see why not.

What else in your life gives you as much joy and satisfaction as riding a bike?
My family.

What a poignant way to end the interview. How about we all squeeze into a lift and do a quick photo-shoot?
Excellent idea. I have never enjoyed an interview so much. Falk, let’s make sure we get a copy of the audio for my website. Sehr gut!

**Post-script
A reader, in response to the actual interview, commented on CyclingTips (following 50 generally positive comments from other readers) that “publishing half-remembered interview responses in a  ‘verbatim’  Q & A format is not credible journalism and bordering on irresponsible.”

Firstly, I shouldn’t need to clarify that the story-telling posted above is mostly fictional. However, the same does not apply for the interview posted on CyclingTips. This is why:

1) the questions were asked exactly as posted – they were also emailed to Jan’s agent, Falk Nier, two days prior to the interview. Yes, it is common to be asked for a list of questions prior to an interview.

2) a professional photographer and translator were organised for the shoot – even though Falk speaks excellent English, we (Wade and I) wanted our translator to be independent of Jan’s inner circle to remove the possibility of translative “editing”.

3) I took notes during and immediately after the interview. This is why Jan’s answers in the CyclingTips interview are brief – my short-hand is still developing.

4) further to the above, the audio file was sent to the support team at Dictamus (the app producer) who said (copied from email): ”I downloaded and checked your file. I’m sorry, it really is entirely empty, the audio signal is all zeroes in the entire file. We haven’t yet seen a file like that. I’m afraid that there’s nothing we can do to salvage anything from that specific file.”

5) The same reader asked “What’s to stop someone from copying/pasting Jan’s responses and reproducing them somewhere else, sans excuses for blank audio file?”
Nothing, this is happening more and more. Media can be lazy. On the other hand, we arranged an exclusive interview, flew to Germany - I changed already pre-booked flights and other travel arrangements to accommodate this interview - organised a professional photographer and translator and sourced completely original content. It was a shame the interviewer (me) let everyone else down by not having a back up recording device.

- Cycling iQ | 13 February 2012

This article assumes that readers will know the name Chris King – a person, and a brand, synonymous with exquisite bicycle headsets. Perhaps less well known is King’s background as a frame builder, under the marquee ‘Cielo’. From the Cielo website:

“Starting in 1978, Chris began fabricating steel road racing and touring frames from his small shop in Santa Barbara, CA. While many Cielo frames were sold to individual clients and bore the Cielo marque, the majority of Chris’ work was done for racing teams. Many Cielo frames were raced in the United States under the names of several prominent manufacturers and pedaled by some of the day’s most notable racers” 

In summary, the labour-intensive process of frame building proved a burdensome opportunity cost as Chris King’s headset business accelerated. Almost three decades passed before the auspicious appearance of a Cielo branded frame at the 2008 North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS). King’s eponymous business no longer revolved around his personal manual output, so Cielo became properly operational again soon thereafter.

In the Northern Hemisphere summer of 2011, King was offered a project brief by Shinya Tanaka of SimWorks; the Japanese distributor for Chris King components and Cielo. Shinya promoted the concept of a limited edition Cielo frameset to help sustain earthquake and tsunami advocacy efforts. The project called for a small batch of ’11.3.11’ CX Racer frames to be produced in time for the late November Nobeyama Cyclocross race, with all profits being channeled into selected disaster relief funds.

In December 2011, Cycling iQ contacted Shinya by email to get some background on the collaboration with Cielo and a sales update. [Truthfully, I was also besotted with the 11.3.11 concept and wanted to know if Shinya would sell one to me in Australia – regrettably the ‘XS’ small size had since sold out]. As an owner of two very busy companies, it wasn’t until Wednesday this week that Shinya had a moment to elaborate. A small portion of Shinya’s email follows:

“When I was a middle-school boy, I found an abandoned bicycle at the station and repaired by my own hands…. this was a start of my bicycle life. Years later, I got so into MTB culture when I studied abroad in the U.S. and perfectly fell in love with it like a crazy bike geek. After all, I thought myself that I needed to become a bike shop owner and started “Circles” [refer to ‘more information’ below] 5 years ago. I have been dealed with my customers who want to ride “SURLY” and others for real. I also started importing some bike products and hand made frames [through his import company SimWorks] which are made by the people who know what “LIFE” is all about….

The 11.3.11 project is an answer through the idea of what me and Cielo team are able to do for the people who are suffering right now in Touhoku (North East Japan) area. We are planning to launch this idea to public fashion magazines, bike magazines, and culture magazines in March and April to let the people know what we are doing. We are still working on it.

Cielo’s team leader, Jay Sycip, designed the artwork and only five frames were produced. We still have four (Small x 2, Medium x 2) frames left and we would love to sell all of them and donate the money to the people who suffer now. 

The 11.3.11 edition CX Racer frame is being sold with an ENVE fork, and is priced at ¥270,000 (AUD3,250). The beneficial part of this sale will be donated through a specific charity (but “who” not decided yet).”

Basically, Shinya would be delighted to sell these frames internationally and is also able to provide estimates on freight to different regions. Payment is possible by wire transfer or by Circles’ Paypal account*. As mentioned, four framesets remain. The frameset is based on standard Cielo Cross Racer geometry, which can be viewed on the related product page.

NOTE: the Cielo ‘11.3.11’ CX Racer is clearly not within everyone’s budget. However, we can still help – the Japanese Red Cross Society has an earthquake and tsunami relief page through which international donations can be made HERE.

It is well beyond the scope of Cycling iQ to provide a distilled comprehension of how the people of Japan are still coping with the aftermath of an unimaginably cruel series of intertwined disasters. However, I’d encourage anyone with a spare 15 minutes to read the ‘Road to Recovery’ (December 2011, PDF) document on the official Prime Ministerial ‘Great East Japan Earthquake’ website.

More information and contact details

SimWorks: Email | Website
Circles: Email | Website
Chris King website
Cielo website

Left to right: Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson (Paralympic Olympian, retired), Ian Robertson (BMC), David Stubbs (LOCOG) and rower Mark Hunter (Olympian, current) - image credit, BMW

BMW’s involvement with the Olympic Games extends back to 1972 – incidentally, only one year before Mavic began supplying ‘neutral race support’ to professional cycling races; beginning with Paris-Nice in 1973 – when its first electric vehicle guided the marathon at the Munich Games.

As reported in the UK’s ‘Daily Mail’, the total – and exclusive – partnership is worth an estimated GBP150m (AUD220m). Ian Robertson, BMW’s global head of sales and marketing, was quoted by the Daily Mail as saying “we will supply almost 4,000 vehicles, in addition to the 400 bicycles, from diesels to electric cars, hybrids to motorcycles, as well as innovative new products like the Pedelec (electric bicycle).” Amongst BMW’s Olympic vehicle fleet are: 

318d, 320d and 520d diesel cars
‘5 Series’ Active Hybrid
200 electric vehicles (40 MINI Es and 160 ‘1 Series’ ActiveEs
Motorcycles (R1200 RT, R1200 GS, F650 GS)
400 Cruise bicycles
Electrically-assisted Pedelec bicycles

The BMW Cruise bike is built around a robust-looking aluminium frame, reportedly weighs 13.9kg and retails for around USD1,199 (AUD1,100). Inconceivably, the Cruise won a RedDot design award after its release in 2009. Friends on the committee?

Relatively speaking, BMW appears to have established a genuine long-term interest in cycling when compared to other automotive manufacturers – Porsche, Mercedes, Jeep, Volkswagen, Range Rover to name a few – who have merely dabbled as trends have ebbed and flowed; even supplying BMW Williams F1 drivers, Juan-Pablo Montoya and Ralf Schumacher, with BMW Q8-R road bikes almost ten years ago. In a similar vein, the German marque has also delved into television campaigns promoting cycling as transportation.

BMW has also recently supported – admittedly by popular vote, but BMW still supplied the platform to make it happen – emerging American female road cycling phenomenon Evelyn Stevens on her way to the 2012 Olympics. [Stevens' story is an inspirational one - I recommend that anyone involved in recent discussion about the disinterest in women's cycling should read more about Stevens, starting here]

On the downside, BMW is responsible for bringing some truly bland bicycles to life – a BMW Group subsidiary, ‘DesignworksUSA’, designed Neil Pryde’s ‘Diablo’ and ‘Alize’ road bikes but they aren’t part of BMW’s core bicycle design team – over the years. Cycling iQ eschews responsibility for loss of appetite, should anyone choose to peruse the following gallery over their lunch break. Warning, it gets better before it gets worse.

BMW's Q8-R road bicycle

Mercifully, BMW's branded road bicycles have improved since the Q8-R, but the auto maker could still try harder

Stock version of BMW's 'Cruise'

POST-SCRIPT: Bicycles at the Olympics are clearly not new, but neither is the concept of BMW supplying an “official bicycle” to the Games. A BMW-branded folding mountain bike, made under contract by American bicycle brand Montague, was the “official mountain bike” of the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics. ‘Popular Mechanics’ reviewed the bike in its April 1997 edition.

BMW/Montague mountain bike - built for 1996 Atlanta Olympics (from Popular Mechanics, April 1997 edition)