The FFB Blog future

As technology marches on, we try to keep up. For awhile blogs were going to be a great marketing tool until they ran into the Facebook juggernaut. A Facebook post just takes a couple of seconds to do and is easy to share with your friends. We have always felt that a blog posting needed to be much more informative and formal which took a fair amount of time. So, we would like to invite you to "like" the First Flight Bikes Facebook page and keep up with the FFB happenings there.

Shop News

Don't forget about the meeting to discuss the Carolina Thread Trail in Iredell County will take place at the County Commissioners meeting on July 19th. We hope to see you there

Feature Bike              Trek Road Bikes $100 to $200 off     This deal is too hot to pass up so we are making it the feature bike one more time. If you are looking for a new road bike stop in before the sale ends on the 24th.    Trek is offering $100 and $200 off select models of road bikes   Rebate Time Frame:   June 10th 2011 to July 24th 2011   $100 Off the MSRP of all versions of the following aluminum road bike models. Men's: 1.2, 1.5, 2.1, 2.3, Speed Concept 2.5    Women's: Lexa S, Lexa SL, Lexa SLX, Speed Concept 2.5 WSD $200 Off the MSRP of all versions of the following carbon road bike models. Men's and Women's: Madone 3.1, Madone 4.5, Madone 4.7, and Speed Concept 7.0

Get 0% financing for 12 months! To go along with road bikes being on sale, Trek is offering another great opportunity to make sure you get the bike of your dreams. During The Big Deal (July 15-27), get up to 12 months of 0% interest financing on purchases of $750 or more when you use your Trek Card. This deal is for any Trek bike over $750, not just the sale bikes.  Terms and restrictions apply If you do not already have a Trek Card you can submit an application in the store or visit Treks website to sign up as well.

Unconditional Comfort, Guaranteed! With the Bontrager comfort guarantee, if for any reason you're not satisfied with your Bontrager saddle, Bontrager technical apparel or Bontrager shoes, return the item(s) (along with the original sales receipt) to the First Flight Bicycles within 30 days of purchase date for exchange. The following Bontrager items are covered by the Unconditional Comfort Guarantee: + Shoes + All Aftermarket Saddles + Technical Apparel (Jackets, Vests, Jerseys, Bib/Shorts, Cycleliners,  Tights, Knickers) + Technical Accessories (Arm/Knee/Leg Warmers, Arm Covers, Booties, Gloves) + Technical Headwear (Skull Caps, Thermal Hats, Headbands, Balaclavas) But wait, there is more, Bontrager also wants to make sure you are happy with your tires as well! For Tires: 1. Consumer uses a Bontrager tire and decides it doesn't work for him or her. 2. Consumer returns the tire with receipt to First Flight Bicycles within 30 days of purchase. 3. First Flight Bicycles will take tire(s) back and determines, with the consumer which Bontrager tire might be the best choice.

Itusi trailwork schedule Jun 25-26 Jul 30-31 Aug 27-28 Sep 24-25 Oct 22-23 Nov 19-20 Dec 17-18 Dates are subject to change so watch for updates.   Right now, we have approximately 1.5 miles of trail left to complete on the Laurel Loop extension.  bOb hopes to have the machine work completed by the end of June so it will be up to the volunteers to hand finish the trail so it can be opened for riding!!  There is still a permit required for the creek crossing which we hope to have in hand soon. Thanks again to all the volunteers who have come out in the past.  We can't do it without you.

June Newsletter

Don't forget about the meeting to discuss the Carolina Thread Trail in Iredell County will take place at the County Commissioners meeting on July 19th.  We hope to see you there

Feature Bike              Trek Road Bikes $100 to $200 off     Trek is offering $100 and $200 off select models of road bikes   Rebate Time Frame:   June 10th 2011 to July 24th 2011   $100 Off the MSRP of all versions of the following aluminum road bike models. Men's: 1.2, 1.5, 2.1, 2.3, Speed Concept 2.5    Women's: Lexa S, Lexa SL, Lexa SLX, Speed Concept 2.5 WSD $200 Off the MSRP of all versions of the following carbon road bike models. Men's and Women's: Madone 3.1, Madone 4.5, Madone 4.7, and Speed Concept 7.0

Your next waterbottle Our most popular waterbottle, the Podium Chill is soft, lightweight, easy to use and insulated.  Double wall construction with thermal insulation keeps beverages cool for hours. Self-sealing Jet-valve podium cap can be locked when not in use.  BPA- free lined with Hydroguard treatment.

Mountain Goat Cycles in Mountain Bike Action Our F.K.R. has been spotlighted in the July edition of Mountain Bike Action. If you are interested in adding one of our herd for yourself let us know and we can get you started.

Itusi trailwork schedule Jun 25-26 Jul 30-31 Aug 27-28 Sep 24-25 Oct 22-23 Nov 19-20 Dec 17-18 Dates are subject to change so watch for updates.   Right now, we have approximately 1.5 miles of trail left to complete on the Laurel Loop extension.  bOb hopes to have the machine work completed by the end of June so it will be up to the volunteers to hand finish the trail so it can be opened for riding!!  There is still a permit required for the creek crossing which we hope to have in hand soon. Thanks again to all the volunteers who have come out in the past.  We can't do it without you.

We are still posting pictures of the progress of the Downtown Statesville Streetscape Project from the front of our store to our Facebook page so take a look and like the page or comment on a picture and receive a FFB waterbottle on your next visit to the store. Stop in and see us with our convenient parking behind the store.  Sincerely, Jeff and Wes First Flight Bicycles 216 S Center St. Statesville, NC 28677 704-878-9683

Jeff's report from the 1st annual SORBA Southern Conference

Just getting caught up a little bit and figured I would send out a
report on the first annual SORBA Southern Conference. It was held in
Brevard March 25-27 and I heard there were about 160 people attending.
First off, the Trailblazers were EXTREMELY well represented and should
be commended for a great turnout. Edward, Mark, Jim, myself, Bob, Cam
and Frankie (I hope I didn't leave anyone out) all made the trip West.

Friday:
Cam and I left the 'ville about 9 so we missed the opening remarks and
much of the Land Manager's training. I had already seen the
presentation twice and it was oriented more towards the folks who manage
the trails as opposed to those of us who build the trails. After a good
lunch, land manager's told us what to expect when dealing with them.
They kept pushing patience and protecting the resources. It was
interesting to see the different "styles" between the different
agencies. Success stories were up next. Casey and I, along with 2
other projects, spoke about how we got to where we are now. LNSP was up
first and I felt pretty good about our accomplishments (about $125K in
grants and closing in on 30 miles of trail by the end of 2013) until the
next speakers told about their projects. Santos, Florida has 84 miles
of trails and the Coldwater Mountain project in Anniston Alabama is
going to be a super-cool destination and has already raised $600K. All
of a sudden, I felt like I had training wheels on again!! We then got
to ride the greenway around Brevard and did a little bit of trail
riding. The new section of greenway is stunning as it goes along the
river with all the rock outcroppings and mountain laurel. The ride was
followed up by a (free) beer social and then dinner at Dugan's Pub.

Saturday:
Breakfast at the hotel was followed by Sig Hutchinson, who for me was
the highlight of the weekend. Sig has done some fantastic stuff in the
Raleigh area with greenways and trails. He was a very inspiring speaker
and got me revved up to work more with local governments to get our
voices heard. If we could clone him, cycling would be everywhere!
Unfortunately for the forest service folks, they had to follow Sig which
was a tough act to follow. Randy mentioned he didn't want to be after
lunch since it is hard to keep everybody's attention but then said after
lunch would have been better than after Sig. We don't have much
national forest around here so the presentation wasn't as useful for our
immediate area. Lunch was once again catered by Poppie's and was
tasty. After lunch, the officers attended the board of directors
meeting and the rest of us went through the IMBA great trails and club
care presentations. Once again, much of it was common sense but it is
nice to have it reinforced and I always pick up a few new tidbits of
useful information. The constant rain killed the afternoon ride so we
ended up at wandering around downtown Brevard and then to the Square
Root for some local beers. For dinner, we were shuttled out to a camp
where they set up a great meal of the various bbq meats, cornbread, cole
slaw and green beans along with Fat Tire and Ranger on tap. The Pisgah
area SORBA folks held a silent auction to raise funds. I know Jim, Cam,
myself and Ed all picked up some goodies. Might be an idea for a future
Trailblazers fund raiser? Not sure how much they raised but is should
have been several thousand dollars.

Sunday was to have been a ride at the DuPont State Forest but the rain
killed it.

I think the interaction between like-minded individuals was my favorite
part. It was great to hear how others had made their trails better and
overcame problems. There was a great sense of "community" among everyone
who attended. Hopefully, all of us will be able to share what we
learned and be inspired to improve the trails along with the club.

If you ever get a chance to attend one of these events, it is well worth
the time and effort!

--
Jeff Archer
First Flight Bicycles
216 S. Center St.
Statesville, NC 28677
704.878.9683
jeff@firstflightbikes.com
www.firstflightbikes.com

First Flight receives award

Jeff is in Shelby, NC today accepting an award for our recent facade rehabilitation.