When pigs fly....!

Ryan Moody.... airborn on a rigid mountain bike.... sure, when pigs fly! :)

Staff intro: Jason Nestor

Hi, my name is Jason and I have been working here at Baum for a little over a year now.

I'm 35 and currently live in Ballarat (the 'Home of Cycling' as some of us like to call it here..... ok, that might just be me), not too far away from the nationals course at Buninyong.

Like all of us here at Baum, I have loved cycling and bikes of all kinds since I was young and have been involved in riding or racing and working in various bike shops since around 1990.

I would predominately call myself a mountain biker with most of my past racing being cross country events and downhill however these days I tend to be out on the road a lot more and have recently started road racing again since getting my new Corretto late last year.

I now love getting out on the road as frequently as I can although I must admit that has not been very often during this last winter. You would think I'd be used to the cold by now growing up in Ballarat.

My Corretto is a true one of a kind and I love that fact. The frame features an ISP seat tube and BB30 bottom bracket and is finished off with my own custom paint scheme, currently it is built up with Sram Red components, Deda bar and stem and a Reynolds MV 32UL wheelset.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/baumcycles/sets/72157622931425406/with/4157552164/

(I have since changed my saddle to a Black Carbon Fizik Antares.)

My role at Baum, like many of us, is quite varied. I come into the process after the frame has come out of the production and begins the finishing phase, which includes brushing the Ti frames and generally prepping the frames for Jared in the paint department.

Once a frame is out of paint, I take over once again and assemble the frames into a completed Baum road or mountain bike ready to roll out the door.

In addition to the production side of things I am also responsible for working on various design projects that come up, this can include anything from working with Jared to create new paint schemes for our bikes to designing our new riding kit. I am also responsible for all of the post build bike photography that you will see up on flickr and our website.

Hope to meet you soon, either here at the factory or out on the road or trail.

Jason.

New Baum clothing line to be launched at the UCI World Championships

We are very proud to be launching a new Riding clothing line at the UCI World Championships here in Geelong in 4 weeks.

Our new design is modelled around our new GT paint schemes which have been received very successfully on our bikes.

We have chosen to partner up with Santini for the production of these Garments. Santini's reputation within the Pro ranks for high quality and maximum comfort made it an easy decision for us to use them.

Our design brief was to create a classy kit, rich in detail, very high in quality, have a slightly relaxed fit for long ride comfort and use reflective detail to aid in night riding visibility.

Jason and the crew here have hit a home run with this one!

The bibs feature:

Santini's Gel Intech Anatomic Chamois

External Leg Grippers
Reflective Piping

Cover Stitching

Mesh Braces

Radio Pocket

These will have a SRP of $250

The Jersey's feature:

Raglan Cut

Full Zip
Mesh Side Panels

Three Pocket Rear

Zippered Coin Pocket

Reflective Piping across back

Stretch bands at waist and sleeves

These will have a SRP of $150

Pre-orders are being taken at the moment. Don't miss out!

Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact us directly at: handcrafted@baumcycles.com

Rock out with your shock out

Enduro MTB racing is an odd affair, in short you've got a set amount of time to try and go as far as you can. Some race solo, some in relay style teams, everyone hurts. This winter I've done a lot of time solo, mounting up for 6+ hours and just turning the cranks over (and over and over) until the job was done. Still there was one race I wanted to share, the Castlemaine 6 hour and one bloke I wanted to share it with, Steve Caddy.

Racing an enduro in a team is very different from solo, it's almost like being a domestique in a road race. The team needs you to go out each lap and chase down riders. You do it because you're asked. You do it because your team needs you. You do it because your team is doing the same for you. Once your lap is done you've got a short time to consume a can of coke then you get ready to do it again.

Steve will be the first to admit that he hasn't been on the bike a heap this year, young families and a full time job will do that to you, but I gave him heaps of warning and he was able to swing the weekend to race a pair with me on the promise of "fun".

The course we got to play with is set near the mining town of Castlemaine, like most of the trails in the old gold belt there are rocks, lots of rocks. The best thing you could do was ride faster. Faster meant you skimmed over the rough stuff and minimised the loss of momentum, better yet with enough speed you could get airborn and clear it completely.



We went lap on lap off for 3 hours, one on the bike railing the mostly single track loop, the other sitting trying to re-hydrate, re-fuel and find some warmth in the late winter sun. By the 4th hour Steve was looking wan and I decided to do what anyone loving the trails would do, I doubled up and stole his lap. :)

I'll have to accept his word that he was happy for the extra rest, if it was me I'd be dark. At the time I had more to worry about than Steve's ultimate happiness, I was feeling worse for wear after 20km of hard effort. There was only one solution, caffeine!

A shot of espresso was all it took to get on the bike and finish of the best day's racing we've had all winter. Clear sky, dry earth, awesome flowing trail and hard competition.

Our result was good, but it was that we'd done another race together that mattered most. It's fun to hurt your mates, but it's better to hurt for them.

Intro: Jodie Clausen

My name is Jodie. I am a mountain biker at heart and race in the State Enduro Series.
Steve, my husband and teammate rides a Baum and loves every minute he is on it. One day I am going to pin Darren down to get a titanium hard tail built. In pink, thanks Jarred.

My favourite courses are Kurrajong, Beechworth, Albury, Castlemaine and Mount Beauty. I love a good technical course with a few hills thrown in. I occasionally get out on the road bike and get in some rolling hills out of the back of Geelong. My favourite rides are Stieglitz and Ceres. There is a special place in the Otways too, that I get down to every now and then. Benwerrin, Scenes Creek and Turtons Track are a great proving ground for your new Baum road bike when you pick it up.

My role at Baum Cycles is predominantly administration. My day usually involves ordering exotic parts from all over the world and co-ordinating them with the painting and building of your bike. It is my job to make the journey from your first visit to delivery, as smooth as possible for the staff and most importantly you.

The reason you have decided to even begin to research a hand built frame, is that you are a little bit different. More discerning and more focused on details. Your parts maybe high specification or specific to your needs. Therefore, your expectations of the finished product will be higher. I completely understand this and will endeavour to transfer your dreams into a delivered machine, that some of the most talented craftsmen in the country have poured their heart and soul into.

I look forward to meeting you when you come out to the factory or even at a race somewhere soon.

Jodie.

Jarrod's Introduction

To the extended Baum family,

We are kicking off our Staff introductions on the blog and of course Darren's asked me to kick things off as i'm the newest addition to our team.

My name is Jarrod Hopkins, i'm 31, live in Melbourne and have been an avid MTB and Road cyclist for 15yrs. I've mainly ridden steel bikes, then onto carbon and now i'm patiently awaiting a lovely Baum Corretto later in the year (yes I have to wait just like our customers!)

I don't race bikes -although that might change in summer, but love getting out on the bike whether it be along Beach Rd, through the north east suburbs, out to Kinglake / Christmas Hills, to Lysterfield, out the back of the You Yangs or simply anywhere my bikes take me. Getting out on my own or with friends helps me clear my mind, relax and just enjoy life!

I've worked predominately in the wholesale Outdoor / Sport industries as a Account Manager for the last 11 years.

My role at Baum Cycles is varied across quite a few area's, generally i'm responsible for Sales, Marketing, Website and PR among other things - I'm your initial contact here for when we get a call or email.

Please feel free to give me a call or email should you have any questions about our current bicycle line or our upcoming exciting redesigned MTB line.

Thankyou and enjoy the ride!

Jarrod

Customer Bike Stolen!

To the extended Baum family,

One of our customer's lovely Corretto was stolen last week and the heartbreak is killing him!

His dream ride was stolen from it's residence in Port Melbourne along with his partners Bianchi road bike.

If anybody has seen this bike out on the road recently or on sale somewhere can you please contact Jarrod here at Baum and we'll do our best to put the bike back in it's rightful owners hands.

Thanks and happy riding!