OK, so rarely do I get this excited but I have to share my excitement since I’m in China and nobody really cares my Kestre RT just won the 1st stage.
I figured I would share will all of you how thrilled and excited I am. I was watching it on my computer in the lobby of a hotel in China screaming at my computer.
Hope everyone got a chance to watch it!
Was that the new Kestrel? Couldn’t see a damn thing with the rain/coverage except an AWESOME ride by XXX (don’t want to spoil it). But, as they say, with that performance, he could have won on a Schwinn …
Congrats!
How dare you advertise your product here! 
As rroof said, I didn’t even realize what bike it was, due to the blurry images and rain. Congrats on the stage win!
That was a very impressive performance for sure.
i did.
very gutsy move.
congratulations… i’ve always had a lot of respect for kestrel, and i hope there are more successes for your bicycles in the future.
They are riding the RT 800. We could only get them the RT 800 in time, RT 900 our better bike is shipping now. Part of the reason I’m in China is to push their bikes out of the factory and ship them.
Chinese don’t seem excited as I am. Kind of a let down but everyone from my work has called and emailed so at least getting some love from the USA!
Hopefully RR can pull off a few more wins for me on a nice dry day 
Congrats on your win. Where are you in China? Hopefully you are enjoying the food! I may be heading over next week (trying to stay home thought…)
Many congrats Steve! I was glued to the TV watching the win. Big day for Kestrel!
Dave
Congrats! Huge guts by the winner, very impressive and convincing break!
Congrats.
.
Part of the reason I’m in China is to push their bikes out of the factory and ship them.
Chinese don’t seem excited as I am. Kind of a let down but everyone from my work has called and emailed so at least getting some love from the USA!
So sad…I was looking for an American made alternative to the mass-produced Asian bikes (ie: not “pushed out of the factory”). Guess I will be looking elsewhere for my next ride…although I was anxiously awaiting the new Talon.
No love here.
You want a mass produced american built bike instead eh? Sorry guy, there’s not much of a difference.
Congrats on the win Kestrel
Congrats on the win! Mancebo deserved the win after all the work he did all day in crappy conditions. It was great to see him power away in the final stretch.
Maybe I used the wrong term for you.
I’ve been here 2 weeks working with some top engineers at our factory. The goal is to improve our bikes based on feedback from the team. We’ve been working over a year to get the new RT 900 right so your term “Mass Produced” is somewhat ironic. My job now is to make sure they get to the team in time for their upcoming races so yes, “Pushing” is a good term and not something you would understand unless you worked in China as I do.
As for the quality, I guarantee you that Kestrel is producing some of the best bikes in the industry.
But hey, the RT 800 still won today so you can’t rain on my parade!
Better question is where haven’t I been!
I’m just outside Shenzhen now.
I love it over here. It is so different then home (Philadelphia PA) it’s a real experience. Not saying I want to come over to often though! 32 hours from my hotel to my doorstep to come home.
I head to another town tomorrow just for a day, can’t remember the name and then finally home on Wed. I go through HK, by far the coolest city in the world.
I have to say that as much as I enjoy it over here, I count my lucky stars I am a Proud American and love the USA. You don’t know how good we have it until you travel the world.
You’ll want to make sure someone gets plenty of photos of him in the leaders jersey on his kestrel for you. Here’s hoping (for your sake) he can hold it for a few days so you can enjoy the feeling that little bit longer.
Hey Baby Face Sevilla wasn’t going to bad on his Kestrel either. I wouldn’t be suprised to see another Kestrel win with all the climbing to come.
Steve
Thats was very good news on the RT winning first stage TOC. Our shop is very excited about the new RT-900 as well.
A couple years ago our shop furished the RT to a Ram team and it helped set the trans-continental record, we knew it was a very fast bike and the results help prove it. With the updates on the 2009 RT-900, time will only tell how fast much faster this new updated bike will be.
We will invite any slowtwitcher that wants one to get your order in now, the line starting to build, e-mail us at bicycledoctor@att.net and get more information.
steve Dodds
Congratulations!! I got to see it in person and it was pretty darned exciting.
clm
Congrats Steve…nice to see the brand coming back to life. My first “real” road bike was a 200 EMS. I was on the second turn of the circuit and Mancebo seemed to be flying around the turns faster than the chasers. Those conditions were a pretty good test for all the bikes and riders…it was nasty.
Congrats. I suspect that you will have many more nice moments this year.
Derek
I head to another town tomorrow just for a day, can’t remember the name and then finally home on Wed. I go through HK, by far the coolest city in the world.
Frankly, if I don’t have to go to Shenzhen, then I am a happy camper. However, if you stay at the Crowne Plaza, it has a great indoor and outdoor pool and awesome gym and just 1K out the door a great track is located in the school at the OCT (Overseas Chinese Community) that was supposed to have been started by rich Chinese living in Malysia. Good spot for a triathlete to stay in Shenzhen. Also the all you can eat buffet is simply awesome…just do more laps of the track!!!
I do agree that Hong Kong is perhaps the coolest place on earth. Great to visit, and I think I could handle living there for 6 months to a year, but after that it would loose its novelty…
When you fly home, take a cab to the ferry at Shekou. You can check in your stuff for Hong Kong Airport right at the ferry terminal. When you arrive at the Hong kong Airport ferry dock, you end up spilling straight into security check. The ferry ride across the bay is awesome, and you see a cross of old and new with old chinese dinghy’s run by fishermen straight out of the 16th century and then you so the supersize cargo ships being loaded with Chinese goods from the Pearl River Delta (including your Kestrels) bound for markets all over the world.
Sitting in Hong Kong airport is also very cool. Unlike most airports, the flights from this place are going everywhere…east, west, north, south. All the faces look different and when there, I sit with my coffee, looking at the faces rolling by, everyone rushing to get to their gate, each with a different story coming from or bound towards some distant corner of the world. It truly is like any other “world city”. Ultra cool place.
Dev