By: Embro News Thursday September 2, 2010

Now Carrying Rouleur

It may, at first blush, seem strange for us to be carrying Rouleur in addition to our own publications. “Why would they carry a competing publication?” you may ask yourself. We don’t see Rouleur as a competing product; we see it as complimentary and a product that does what our company mission statement demands: to cultivate and perpetuate cycling culture in all its forms. We’ve long admired Rouleur’s style, content and presentation and feel it offers a slightly different approach to high-end cycling journalism than our own cycling journals. Their culture and brand image are compatible with our own and we feel the relationship will be mutually beneficial. Indeed Rouleur will probably be the first of a series of other cycling publications we’ll be bringing in to our product mix over the next couple months. And for our growing reader-base in the UK, it’s likely that before too long you’ll be able to purchase Embrocation from Rouleur, thus eliminating trans-atlantic shipping rates. More info to come on this soon.

But for now, Rouleur Issue 19 is available for immediate purchase on our web store.

Embrocation at Eurobike

If you’re one of our British or Continental readers headed to Eurobike this year, you should go check out the Crema Cycles Stand (FG-A5/7). Crema Cycles is the brainchild of our friend Ken Bloomer. We’ve talked about Ken before – he’s an American ex-pat living in Germany and importing some of his favorite American products for selling in Europe. Crema Cycles is his business devoted to selling high-end products like Independent Fabrication Bicycles, Dugast Tires and Embrocation Cycling Journal, amongst others. We just sent Ken a bunch of Volume 5 as well as a package rich in soft goods like T-shirts, track jackets, hats, etc. So, if you find yourself at Eurobike, swing by, talk to Ken and get him to pull you a shot of espresso.

New Products from Mad Alchemy

Our friend and team co-sponsor Pete Smith spent some good time putting together some new products for us last week. In addition to getting fully restocked on Mad Alchemy’s cold weather embrocations, we’ve also received a batch of Pete’s Euro Pro Chamois Cream. This is a similar, but distinctly different product from the standard Pro Chamois cream. The Euro is thicker, stronger smelling and more medicinal than the Pro’s light, citrusy smell. This makes the Euro a much better option for long rides or tough conditions like those found in many cyclocross races. The Euro Chamois Cream is also now part of our Embrocation Race Day Kit.

By: Embro News Sunday August 15, 2010

We have some new products, a new web store and have been getting some good press and making some new friends.

Updated Embrocation Store

We’ve been making some changes and improvements to our web store section. Hopefully these changes will make the store more user-friendly with the ability to see many more products without excessive scrolling. This is first of several improvements we have planned for the site in the coming months, so, stay tuned.

Embrocation Race Day Bag Kit

Speaking of our store, we’ve updated our Embrocation / Mad Alchemy Race Day bag kit. It’s now available with cyclocross-specific products, replacing our warm weather kit with a smattering of our favorite heating embrocations. It’s a good option for the dedicated crosser’s arsenal of race day supplies. The bags are hand-made by Lemolo Bags in Portland, OR and are equally at home filled with embrocations inside of your race bag as they are filled with your toothbrush and other toiletries on any road trip.

Supreme Roastworks


We got a little care package from one of our best customers and friend Joar at Supreme Roastworks in Oslo, Norway. Joar has been a fan of Embrocation since the beginning and runs a pretty cool coffee roster in Norway. He sent through some of his product and we’ve been enjoying some delish coffee for the last week or so. Thanks Joar. Too bad Norway is a bit far from us, otherwise we’d love it if Supreme Roastworks became our official coffee supplier.

India

On to another country and continent altogether. We got a note from our buddy Darren the other day. He’s an Aussie living in India racing bikes there and trying to bring some cycling culture to the South Asian sub-continent. We sent him some Embrocation Journals a while back and he’s been doing a good job at disseminating the good word. Due to Darren’s efforts we got a call-out on this Indian cycling blog which has some interesting content and is worth a read-through.

Belgium
This is Peter.

He’s a good friend of ours from Belgium. Peter and his brother, Stijn, were nice enough to give Jeremy a place to stay on his trips to Belgium. He was rewarded for his hospitality with some Embrocation colors to wear. In turn, we were rewarded by Peter representing us during his racing efforts. Most recently he sent us a note that he was doing some mountain bike racing, and actually doing quite well, coming in second in a big 24 hour mountain race over there. Thanks Peter. Keep up the good work and we’ll see you fellas out in Vegas.

New Team Sponsor – Pedro’s

Last week we sealed a deal with Pedro’s who will now be our official supplier of tools, lubes and other support items. We’ll be sporting their goods at all of the upcoming Expo events at cross races this fall. The partnership is a natural one – Pedro’s is a New England staple and have been supporting local, regional and international racing of all kinds for decades. We’ll be bringing our team up to Pedro’s for a visit and product clinic in the next couple weeks. At that point we’ll have some more information about their products and company posted on our team site.

By: Embro News Wednesday July 28, 2010

Our newest team equipment sponsor is the legendary Cinelli, who have gone completely above and beyond the call of duty to create these little honeys for us:

That’s right. You saw it correctly. Imagined and designed by our very own Jeremy Dunn; produced by Cinelli, these are custom painted Cinelli Ram integrated bar/stem units. Embrocation Team Edition custom painted Ram bars. You can’t get them – at least not yet, but we may be working on it… maybe. Anyway, enough words.

Hole Shot by Backyard Blam

We’ll be at it. And if you’re in the general Portland area, so should you. Go visit Amanda’s blog for updates on this event and to check the list of sponsors as they come in. We’ll be kicking down some Embro goodies for sure, so stay tuned.

JDK Design to do Soft Goods
Those who’ve been paying attention to the goings on here at Embrocation will know the name JDK Design for a couple reasons: 1) They were guest designers for Embrocation Volume 3 and 2) their CEO, Steve Francisco is an integral member of the Embrocation race team. As of this week, JDK will be our newest supplier for custom soft goods – T shirts, jackets, etc. They’ve already contributed to our lineup of clothing by designing and producing our special edition Dope shirt. Look for more goodies in the coming months lovingly produced by JDK.

Pro Bar

We got a little care package in the mail the other day – a sample package from one of our new team sponsors: Pro Bar. If you’re not familiar with these guys, you should be. These are the best tasting, most satisfying and healthiest energy bars around. They’re food made from real food – read the ingredients and you’ll be shocked to recognize each and every one in the bar – no fillers, no chemicals; just delicious stuff. We’re busy handing these little beauties out to the team and should have some reviews on the team site before too long.

Team Schedule and a Special Deal

Cyclocross is coming. Can you feel it? Can you? We can, and we’re getting our gear in order, including our team bikes provided by Ridley. International Bicycle Center in Boston is our team’s official retail sponsor. They’re also one of the biggest Ridley dealers in the US and, come fall, they have one of the biggest selections of Ridley cross bikes you could possibly imagine. If you happen to bump into one of the Embrocation team riders in the coming months, you can score a special team discount card – pictured above. This card, when presented at either of the International Bicycle locations, will give you a discount on the Ridley of your choice. It’s a pretty good deal on some pretty great bikes, but you can only get this with the card; and you can only get the card from one of the Embro boys or girls. You can find them in the coming weeks at these events:

July 30th thru August 1st – Tour of the Catskills; Hunter and Windham, NY
August 1st – Norwell Circuit Race; Norwell, MA
August 4th – Gran Prix of Beverly; Beverly, MA
August 8th – Concord Criterium; Concord, MA
August 9th – Tokeneke Road Race; East Hartland, CT
August 11th – Witches Cup Criterium; Salem, MA
August 14th – NY Capital Region Road Race; Albany, NY
August 15th – Fall River Criterium; Fall River, MA
August 18th – Greylock Criterium; Pittsfield, MA
August 21st – D2R2;
August 28th – Topsfield Circuit Race; Topsfield, MA
September 3rd thru 6th – Green Mountain Stage Race; Waitsfield, VT

And more to come…

By: Embro News Wednesday July 14, 2010

Dope Shirts

These seems to be no end to our appetite for new soft goods, especially shirts. We just can’t get enough. This newest, and most limited edition shirt is the brain child of Team Embrocation rider Steve Francisco, who also just happens to be the CEO of a cool design firm in Burlington, VT called JDK Design. It spells the word “Dope” out in blood-like lettering, which is our tongue-in-cheek homage to our sports darker side… just in time for the Tour. This shirt is available in limited sizes and quantities. You can pick one up on the Embrocation store.

Embrocation Team Stuff
It’s the middle of summer and while we’re working on a bunch of fun projects, including the next print issue of Embrocation Cycling Journal, right now it’s all hands on deck for our team program with some of the biggest races just behind us, and some of the most exciting of the year yet to come.

The team just completed the 51st annual Fitchburg Longsjo Classic – one of the biggest races on our calendar. All told, it went well. You can read a full accounting of the Fitchburg race at our team site.

This is also the time of year when we thank our sponsors for their largesse and support of our racing program, which means so much to us and also means that we can give back to the racing community that gives so much to us. This year, our sponsors are largely responsible for making our team the best equipped in the Pro/Am peloton. We’ve done our best to highlight some of our goodies on the equipment section of the team website.

And now a reminder of who makes the team program possible:

International Bicycle Centers – Presenting Sponsor

International is one of the oldest and most respected retailers in the Boston area with locations in Boston proper and Newton, MA and specializing in specialty bicycle products of all kinds. They’re also highly involved in supporting the local riding and racing communities. They have a unique and highly successful business model that features a long and prosperous relationship with Trek as their primary brand and compliments this most respected of American brands with a healthy dose of some of the finest European bicycle brands including Ridley, Pinarello, Pegoretti and Eddy Merckx.

Mad Alchemy Embrocations

Made from all-natural ingredients by one man on the north shore of Massachusetts, Mad Alchemy Embrocations are high quality balms, liniments and chamois creams for all cycling applications. We couldn’t be team Embrocation without an official embrocation sponsor, after all.

Ridley Bicycles – Frame and Fork Sponsor

Ridley comes on board this year as a new frame and fork sponsor. Ridley is a major player in the European market and best known for their domination of the cyclocross race bike market. With a new distribution network in the US this year, Ridley is eager to gain greater market penetration in the northeastern racing scene.

SRAM Corporation – Drivetrains and Brake Systems Sponsor

Chicago-based SRAM has taken the road bike world by storm these past couple years by introducing lightweight, efficient and ergonomic products at reasonable prices. We’re fortunate to be using their Red and Force level parts kits on the team bikes.

Fizik – Saddle Sponsor

Fizik is another new addition to our equipment sponsor list for the 2010 season. Fizik saddles are well-known for their wide variety of cutting-edge shapes and designs for all riders. Like Ridley, they’re a European company with the product and desire to gain more US market presence. They are producing custom versions of their saddles to match our team frames.

Lazer – Helmet Sponsor

We’ve been a fan of Lazer helmets for a long time both because they make great, no nonsense race helmets and because they embrace race culture in all its forms in a deeper way than most companies.

Tour de Toast
Our friend Trackosaurus is throwing a party. The Tour, Waffles, juice… what more could you really want? If you’re in the City of Angels you should go to this.

By: Embro News Wednesday June 30, 2010

Oh, it’s almost July. That July / August time is so magical for us cyclists, especially those of us who live in seasonal climates. If you are one of these people, gently remind those that complain of the heat what it’s like in the middle of February and it takes half an hour to dress yourself for a ride. And now, having said that, on to a few news items from this past week:

Embro to be Featured in Stack Magazines

Stack Magazines. What a great idea. These guys basically scour around the world and find cool indy magazines of all various kinds and subject matters, then deliver one of these every two months to their subscribers. It’s like a little present in the mail every couple months – something new and exciting if you’re into print publications. Stack America has selected to offer Embrocation Cycling Journal, Volume 5 as part of their offerings for the next subscription cycle. Naturally, we’re psyched to be part of this and really dig what Stack is all about. If you’re into independent publications of the same ilk as Embrocation, a subscription to Stack might be one of the best $70 you can spend.

Now Carrying Embrocation

Last week I made mention of Ride.Studio.Cafe, which is a new coffee shop, Bike Studio recently opened in Lexington, MA. They’ve been a supporter of Embrocation from day one and now we can add a similar style of business to the growing list of places you can grab a copy of Embrocation, should you be in the neighborhood. This particular business is in London and in typical, cheeky British style it’s called Look Mum No Hands! They call themselves a Cafe-Bar-Workshop. Sounds like pretty much everything you could want under one roof.

Team Embrocation to the 51st Fitchburg Longsjo Stage Race

Game face on.
It’s one of the biggest stage races on the east coast and we’re sending our team into the fray for 4 days of racing. The race starts on Friday and the team will be posting updates as they go. Stage order is circuit race, road race, TT, crit. Bring it.

By: Embro News Wednesday June 23, 2010

For starters, it’s summer and we have a great number of projects in the works, maybe even a new print issue (actually, yes, another print issue) and a bunch of other stuff. Where to start?

Embrocation Decal Kits

Another project that’s been in the works for a long time, our decal kit was made to adorn our team’s Ridley Helium road bikes and is now available for purchase on our web store. The kits feature Embrocation logo decals in several specific types, such as chainstay protectors and specially shaped stickers to protect your headtube from cable rub, etc. And then there are some decals that don’t really have any specific purpose – they just look cool. Add one to your next order.

New Helmets for the Embrocation Team

We’ve been impressed with Lazer Helmets for some time now. They’re represented by some of the best (and most fashionable) pro riders we know, see Team Katusha and local pro Adam Myerson. They’re a company that gets racing, racers and the whole scene that we’re part of, so it was a natural fit for us. Our team just received a shipment of Lazer’s Genesis Helmets and so far, everyone seems psyched on the new lids. Look for more on our team site in the coming weeks.

Open House at Pedro’s this Thursday

This Thursday, our friends up at Pedro’s will be hosting a Grand Opening Party. While Pedro’s has been around for years and years, the company has undergone a rebirth of sorts recently with a new management team; the hiring of a bunch of new staff and a new facility up in Haverhill, MA. Their doing a great deal of outreach to the local riding community, including hosting group rides on a weekly basis, and sponsoring a handful of teams, including a new elite cross program come fall. The party should be a good time.

Check out Ken’s Shirt
Here’s a little video from the European Handmade Bicycle show earlier this year. It has two features: One dude who made some funky stem and an interview with Ken Bloomer, an American ex-pat who’s been living in Germany for a bunch of years and doing a good business importing and marketing American-made goods, such as working with our friends at Independent Fabrication.

European Handmade Bicycle Exhibition – Day 3 from e r t z u i ° film on Vimeo.

Did you see him? He’s rocking our Big Moka shirt in Cranberry, and dare I say, it looks pretty good. We’ll be hearing more about Ken in the coming months – he’s a big fan of Embrocation and will likely be helping us with some projects in the near future.

Ride.Studio.Cafe
We got some love this week on the Ride.Studio.Cafe blog. For those not in the know, this is the new bike shop / coffee shop in Lexington, MA owned by Rob Vandermark of Seven Cycles. Good little place, with some scandalously good coffee and wicked bikes to boot.

Vermont Solutions Festival
This is something else we’re getting involved with toward the end of August. We’re a cycling culture publication, and while that does focus on racing a good amount of time, we’re equally interested in bicycles as tools for everyday life, not just for racing. As such, we’re particularly interested in the Vermont Solutions Festival, August 27th and 28th in Stratton, VT. It’s a couple days of events and discussions all focusing on sustainability and other efforts to provide green transportation and living solutions. There are a few dedicated bicycle portions of this event and we’re sponsoring them. Stay tuned for more details on this event.

By: Embro News Wednesday June 2, 2010

It’s June, which means it’s basically summer and road race season is in full swing. Here at Embro headquarters we’re slammed, in the best possible way, supporting our team program and doing the occasional consulting gig with other area teams.

But there’s more than just out team program going on. We’ve been working diligently on our next print issue, due out in about a month. We’re always excited when we’re on the verge of releasing a new issue and the lead-up to Volume 6 is no exception this rule. It’s going to be kick-ass, and you’re going to love it – I promise.

We’ve also been working on bolstering our selection of soft goods, including more shirts, socks and some other new items. Read on.

Classic Logo Shirts

Our classic logo shirt is the most popular item we sell that’s not Embrocation Cycling Journal itself. Until now it’s been available only in the classic black with white logos. We’ve decided to add a little color to the line with the addition of Olive Green and Orange shirts, both with white logos. Get ‘em all while they last.

Embrocation Cranberry Big Moka Pot Tee Shirt

We’ve also expanded our alternate line of logo shirts if you’re not into the whole classic logo tee thing. Our Big Moka Pot shirt is a variation on the theme that is the magical moka pot logo. This used to be known as our Cranberry shirt – a name that somewhat hemmed us in to use colors that were only, well, cranberry red in nature. So, Big Moka Pot shirt it is, and it’s now available in the original Cranberry and a new Navy Blue, which is essentially our team issue shirt.

Embrocation Race Day Bag

When you think about it, this product is a no-brainer and something we should have been offering all along. Let it be known, we absolutely love our Baileyworks Whalemouth bags. In fact we couldn’t imagine race weekends, or life for that matter, without them. They hold all our stuff securely, fit in overhead storage bins on airplanes and refuse to bow down to heavy use in all elements. If there’s a downside to these beasts of burden, it’s that (aside from a couple nifty side pockets) they lack internal storage – they’re just one huge pocket into which our earthly goods disappear. Racers or travelers in want of greater organization to their packing will have to resort to the bag within a bag system. Given this reality, and the fact that we love embrocations, use embrocations and have a publication named in honor of embrocations, we figured we’d make a specific carrying bag for, you guessed it, embrocations. Boom!

Our Race Day Bag is designed to securely contain and transport your embrocations within your larger gear bag, holding them safely and preventing embrocation from contaminating your clothing and other items, should one of your jars leak. It’s then designed to be brought out at the time of use, unfolded, laid out or suspended for easy access to your pre-ride products of choice. You can read more about it’s features and origins here.

We’ve partnered with Pete Smith at Mad Alchemy Embrocations to bring this package to market. We’re selling the bag along with a Mad Alchemy towel and three season-specific jars of Pete’s all-natural embrocations. Right now, for the warmer months, the package includes Gentlemen’s Blend, Mango Love and 2010 Team Edition embrocations. All perfect for hot weather road or mountain riding. Sometime towards the fall, we’ll switch over to offering the kit with cold weather embrocations.

Track Jackets

They’re not new; they’re just back in stock in all sizes. Originally made for our team, now sold to you.

You can check out all of these products in greater detail on the Embrocation store.

By: Embro News Tuesday March 2, 2010

I just now walked in the door from my return trip from Richmond, VA and the 2010 North American Handmade Bicycle Show. This has become an event that we, and many cycling enthusiasts like us, come to look forward to every year. This year drew the biggest crowd yet of any NAHBS show and with it some of the best bikes, displays and personalities in our industry. It would impossible for me to recount all the highlights of the show to you in any one sitting, or even multiple articles, so I’ll go ahead and give you a little recap of the show and Embrocation’s involvement in this year’s edition.

If you were at NAHBS, you might have visited us in the Embrocation booth, number 245, located just in front of the awards stage, just next to Dinucci Bicycles (who went on to win the official NAHBS award for best lugged bike) and across from Dromarti, a company that makes some classic leather cycling shoes that I may or may not be obsessed with… Anyway, it was a great show for us. We met many of you who follow our online articles, read the journal and are general fans of what we have going on. Needless to say, we more than appreciate the support and talking with you. We also met a bunch of you who hadn’t heard of us before – now you have, and I hope you’re reading.

Speaking of awards, I have to mention that we’ll be unveiling the NAHBS Embro Awards – our own unofficial, somewhat scientifically derived awards – in the next day or two, once we’ve finished counting the ballots. Unlike our end of the year Embro awards, in which we basically just picked categories and winners that arbitrarily appealed to us, this time we turned to you, our audience, to give us some feedback and decide for yourselves. It’s our way to get the pulse of the show, get you involved, give some attention to some of the crowd favorites and have a little fun. Many show attendees were kind enough to fill out our ballots in several categories as they walked the show floor. Jeremy was also walking the floor getting pictures and talking to all the builders who emerged as front-runners over the first two days, so he’ll be bringing you the results before too long.

When we weren’t doing awards, or talking up the publication we were entertaining a list of celebrities. Whit Yost spent a good deal of time with us. If you’re one of the many who enjoys Whit’s musings here on the Embro site or at his blog, then I’m sure you’ll enjoy Whit’s take on NAHBS, coming soon. Molly Cameron also stopped by for a little while and did her thing, talked to the crowd and might have even signed an autograph or two. All the while, Ira Ryan and Tony Pereira were making the occasional appearance as they walked the show – neither of them had decided to exhibit, opting instead to take the lower stress option of attending as guests.

Dario Pegoretti stopped by with a few of his buddies. He said he liked Embrocation and even signed a copy for one of his fans.

Actually, come to think of it Ira Ryan signed one for one of his fans, too, since we have an article about Ira in Volume 5.

Then there was your typical trade show weirdness. Some fellow was, well… here, why don’t I just show you what this guy was doing:

Then some roller derby ladies showed up and tried to get us to attend their next bout. We never did do that, but I might look up my local roller derby chapter sometime this year.

Brian Worthy from Vermarc is a bicycle industry legend and might be the nicest person in the world. He hung out for a while and hugged Jeremy.

Lots of love all around. So, it was a good time. And we have some really cool new T-Shirts. Look for those soon and like I said, look for the Embro Awards coming soon as well.

By: Embro News Thursday December 24, 2009

While I am positive that none of these items will be appearing below my indoor pine tree in the next couple days, it doesn’t mean I don’t covet them intensely. So, here’s my list of most-coveted stuff that I hope to acquire, one way or the other, next year… in no particular order.

Chris King Bottom Bracket

Well, truth be told, I already have one of these on my X-Fire, but I want more. King will be introducing their SRAM compatible bottom brackets within the next couple months, which means I’ll be grabbing a couple more of these bad boys. It’s like a highly functional piece of jewelry for the bike, and it comes in pretty colors.

Bontrager Aeolus clincher wheels

JD’s been longing for some carbon clinchers for, well, I guess for about two years now. These might be the ticket. I rode some of these in the fall on a test ride and found that they rode a lot like Cosmic Carbones from Mavic, but lighter. They also have the best braking performance of any carbon wheel I’ve tried. picture from bontrager.com

Fizik Aliante Carbon Twin Flex saddle

I’ve been a big fan of the Tundra saddles we used on our cross bikes this year, but I think for road season, with butts firmly placed on the saddle for long miles, that I might be more of an Aliante guy. It has more of a cradle for the behind than the long, flat Arione and will probably work better for me and my poor lower back flexibility. This is one wish that I expect will come true before too long – I’ll report back on whether or not my inclination proves accurate.

Ford Transit Connect

Switching gears for a moment… So many of my coveted items pertain to the upcoming race season – bike stuff, clothes, equipment, etc. So what are we missing? Why a team vehicle, of course. Probably the gold-standard for team vehicles is the Dodge Sprinter, but these are very large and quite expensive. So, maybe someday. Instead, Ford has introduced a slick little van called the Transit Connect, which is basically a mini Sprinter. It’s something that I’m sure they’ve been selling in Europe for years and I could fit a bunch of Ridleys and a few team riders in there on our travels. I want one. picture from hybridsmile.com

Podium Shoes

I know, this is wishful thinking, especially now, as I sit here with glass of wine in hand, block of cheese slowly disappearing into my mouth and T minus 2 hours until I gorge myself on pie. But, maybe that’s what makes the whole idea of podium shoes – the one specific item of cycling gear you get to put on ONLY after you’ve had a day at the top of your game – so utterly badass. Here are some options I’ve been tossing around. The Bontrager Wing Tip looks pretty cool and while it’s not a podium-specific shoe, it certainly would be a classy way to go. Cary was rocking his Sidi podium shoes at NBX Cross and catching some admiration from Dan Timmerman as a result. There are also these DMT podium shoes, but my feeling is the podium shoes should resemble exactly their riding-specific brethren with the exception of the sole. You know what? Maybe we should just design some podium shoes of our own…

29” Wheel Mountain Bike

I think this might be the way to go for me. I’m not going to race mountain bikes. I’ll leave that for the guys with skills and coordination. I would like to have mountain bike for training and for general fun purposes and I think one with 29” wheels might be my style. So, full suspension or hardtail? I’ve heard nothing but good ride reports about the Pivot Mach 429. It’s also hard to ignore how cool the Gary Fisher Superfly is. I wish Mickey over at Spooky made the Darkside in a 29” version, but I’m sure he has a litany of reasons why he doesn’t offer one yet.

Pedro’s Master Tool Kit

We here at Embrocation are big fans of Pedro’s products and the fine ladies and gentlemen at the Pedro’s company. They sent a couple torque wrenches our way earlier in the year, which are quite handy and effective little gadgets. What I really want is this bad boy. Any cycling team worth their weight in salt needs something like this – the last tool kit one is likely ever to need. Plus, it comes in a kick-ass hard plastic case, kinda like the nuclear football case the goes wherever the president goes, but in this case full of helpful tools, not launch codes.

Schwood Sunglasses

Last, but not least. I fully admit that I’m not so into clothes or fashion, at least not as much as I sometimes want to be. The one exception to that is eye wear. As a glasses wearer, I feel like I might as well try to put together a collection of cool specs if I have to wear them anyway. JD sent me a link to the Schwood website and I was immediately hooked. Now, can I get them with RX lenses? I’m sure I can…

By: Embro News Monday December 14, 2009

‘Tis the season, after all, and now that racing is over for the moment, we’re thinking about business, the next year and some new stuff. One note about shipments in time for Christmas: Our last full shipping day, and thus the last time for us to get goods out the door to you in time for gifting will be Monday, the 21st of December. We can’t guarantee arrival of any orders placed after 4PM on this date, just so you know.

So, with one week to go, here are some of the best gift ideas we have to offer:

Embrocation of the Month Club
This is one we’ve been thinking about for a long, long time. The Embrocations we carry are some of our best selling items and we pride ourselves on being one of the preeminent suppliers of hot leg goo in the world. So, with that in mind, this year we’re introducing our Embrocation of the Month Club. It’s a pretty good deal for serious cyclists, especially those who are devotees of the lineaments. You get one hand-picked Embrocation at the beginning of each month along with a product card describing the properties and benefits of each embrocation, a Mad Alchemy Embrocations towel and a custom carrying case – as yet to be released. If you don’t have embrocating needs 12 months a year, no problem – we offer the club in a couple different half year options as well: One for road and one for cyclocross. It’s a cool and unique gift idea – something that will give people months of enjoyment and a few surprises along the way.

Embrocation Cranberry T-Shirt
Jeremy, being the t-shirt nut that he is, has come up with some pretty good designs over the past year. But, if we’re being honest, and I always am, then I have to say that our newest shirt is my favorite. It’s a deep red color with light blue logos on the front – our now-famous moka pot in a new configuration but still classy and unique. Tim Johnson likes it and he just won the National Championships. So there.
Moving on…

Taza Embrocation Edition Chocolate
This isn’t exactly a new product, but what is is running out. At the time I write this I have about 12 packs left in stock. In fact, I’m tempted to take all that’s left and keep it for myself, my friends and loved ones. Think of this as one of the ultimate stocking-stuffers. Chocolate Santa? Chocolate gold coins? Um, no. This is the best chocolate you’ve ever had, I promise.

Socks
Not to toot our own horn too much, but, well, our socks are awesome. Everyone seems to love these things, and for good reason. They fit well, look good, hold up well and, of course, they’re tall. We’re now offering them, for a limited time, in a two-pair-pack, one blue pair, one white pair for a savings of over six dollars. Check it out.

Embrocation Cover Prints
The cover photos for Embrocation Volumes 3 and 4 were both taken by Chris Milliman, one of our favorite photographers and a good friend. They’ve become extremely popular and, dare I say, iconic images of cycling culture. Love or hate the image content (I’m talking to you, people who dislike the bloody knee) it’s hard to deny the quality and originality of the photos themselves. Chris has graciously provided us with very high quality prints of these last two volumes for us to sell individually. So, if you’re thinking about buying someone one of those black and white posters with Tour de France riders from the 1930’s smoking cigarettes, don’t. Buy one of the new classics from one of the best contemporary cycling photographers current working.

And there you have it. These are some solid gift options for the cyclists on your gift list, or as one of the many to: me, from: me options under the tree this year.