Page 54 – Trek Travel

Erin Berard, our Race Trip and Hospitality Manager, walks us through a very successful Trek Factory Racing team launch event.

As Trek Factory Racing’s Official Hospitality Partner, Trek Travel was in Belgium last month to help the team kick-off its global launch with a 68 kilometer Fan Club ride along the hallowed Tour de Flanders route. Starting at the famous Tour of Flanders Visitor’s Center and Museum in Oudenaarde, the ride drew 200 participants including fans, dealers, team sponsors, and professionals including Fabian Cancellara, Jens Voigt, Stijn Devolder (Belgian National Champion), Jasper Stuyven, as well as the team’s Director Sportif Dirk Demol.

Trek Travel rest stop at Trek Factory Racing event

Our Trek Travel team supported the Fan Club ride by hosting a Trek Travel signature rest stop a little over half way along the course, driving follow-vans on-course for rider support, and providing team VIPs with Trek Domane bicycles complete with a Spring Classics’ set-up of extra bar tape and tubeless tires in preparation for the cobbles! The day before the ride, while pre-driving the course, the rain was pouring down and wind was gusting sideways. Splashing through the mud puddles along the famous Oude Kwaremont, Patenberg, and Koppenberg cobbled sections of road, we all looked at each other with fright, happy we were in the heated van.

Still remaining on our to do list: 1. Pick-up 300 fresh liege waffles, 2. Coordinate 80 Liters of hot water for our portable thermoses, and 3. Stop by the Trek Factory Racing service headquarters to equip our vans with the required Belgian road safety signage.

The morning of the ride, to our disbelief and great joy, it was sunny in Belgium in January. In true Trek Travel fashion, we unveiled a delicious spread of liege waffles with Nutella, bananas, hot coffee and hot chocolate. The waffles solicited a great reaction from riders and pros a like and became the center of many fan photos. Jasper Stuyven’s family showed up to see him, Stijn Devolder, a national celebrity, barely had time to get a coffee with all the fans around him. Jens Voigt and Fabian Cancellara both posed with the Nutella although Fabian later complained to us, jokingly, that the waffles were cold. And that reminded us to share an important lesson learned – never serve Nutella in cold weather!

This ride marked the start of a full day of celebrations, followed by a Press Conference and then the Team Presentation in the new Roubaix Velodrome, where Trek Factory Racing unveiled its management team, 28 riders, team kits, bike line-up, and sponsors. We wish the team great luck this season and we hope to see you soon on a Trek Travel Race Trip with Trek Factory Racing.

For more photos of the event, visit http://www.trekfactoryracing.com/multimedia/fan-club-ride-tour-flanders

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Trek Factory Racing Launch Event

Posted on February 5, 2014 - 10:30 am by keith_ritter

Erin Berard, our Race Trip and Hospitality Manager, walks us through a very successful Trek Factory Racing team launch event.

Trek Travel rest stop at Trek Factory Racing event

For more photos of the event, visit http://www.trekfactoryracing.com/multimedia/fan-club-ride-tour-flanders

Designing a Santa Barbara vacation

Posted on January 22, 2014 - 9:28 am by keith_ritter

We asked one of our trip designers, Rebecca Falls, to tell us about her creative process in designing a new trip. She takes it one better and told us how she designed our new Santa Barbara long weekend trip for this year. In the cold temps of Wisconsin, this sounds like quite the escape.

It’s a February morning. I’m laying on a broad expanse of warm tile under the bright California sun, waiting for a train. And I can’t keep the smile off my face.

This time of year I would normally be in Asheville, North Carolina, where I live and work from home as a trip design coordinator. The weather in Asheville in February…let’s just say there’s not much sun-basking going on. But on this beautiful morning I am outside the Santa Barbara Train Station with my friend Tim, preparing to test a day of the Santa Barbara Long Weekend bike trip I am designing.

What goes into designing a new trip? I’m sure there are as many approaches as there are people who do it, like any creative process, but I start with a simple question: How would I like to spend my day? Given a short period of time in an amazing place I may only visit once (there are many places to see, after all!)…how would I BEST spend my day.

The train pulls up and Tim and I grab our bikes and climb aboard. Soon we are heading west, along the Gaviota Coast. The views are incredible as miles of unspoiled coastline slip past and seabirds sail over small waves. With the Pacific out the window to our right and coastal mountains and ranches to the left, we can’t decide where to look. So we do our best to take it all in and before we know it the train has rounded Point Conception and we are headed north toward our stop: Surf Beach.

From here we ride our bikes inland, enjoying a terrific tailwind! Ahh, glorious and the miles zip past. Once we reach Lompoc and the western end of Santa Rosa Road (home to the Santa Rita Hills Wine Appellation), I am on familiar ground, having guided trips in this area before. On the new trip, guests will continue riding to a winery for a tasting and picnic, then on to the wine country towns of Solvang and Los Olivos. But, for Tim and I, our research for the day is done and we explore Lompoc for a coffee stop before riding back to the train station into the wind that had been at our backs before. We laugh as we scream stories to one another over the gale and arrive back in Surf Beach in time for our train and a repeat of the morning’s gorgeous ride.

Back in Santa Barbara I wander over to the impressive Moreton Bay Fig Tree on the train station grounds, then start the walk back to my hotel. The sunshine, our companion all day, is fading to pink hues in the west-southwest. My mind is full of moments from a day well spent. I’m putting it all together in my head…and I decide that I’m probably not the only one who would like to spend my day this way.

Intern Chronicles: Part 1, working for Trek Travel

Posted on January 15, 2014 - 9:25 am by keith_ritter

How did a 21-year-old college senior end up with a four-year summer internship at the world’s best cycling vacation company on her résumé? At 17-years-old I was a washed up soccer player, bored summer lifeguard, outdoor enthusiast and recent high school graduate. Over the years multiple broken legs have forced me take up a low-impact fitness alternative and as a decent athlete native to the cycling industry mecca of Madison, WI, cycling was the easy choice. I quickly took to the bicycle and after a few hours in the mailroom each week I had found my place at Trek Travel as well. The people, the mission, the product—it was all such a perfect fit. I was hooked.

Let’s start with the people. At Trek Travel we like to use the word ‘rock star’…a lot. But after many years of working alongside best in class employees I can honestly say that every person on the Trek Travel team is truly a rock star. That first summer I asked hundreds of questions each day. To be honest, I probably still do. Maybe I’d broken the postage machine, jammed the printer, or couldn’t navigate the online database. Pretty small problems in the grand scheme of things, but no matter what I threw their way it was always met with unwavering patience and a true desire to help.

Over time I’ve watched as this same attitude is applied day in and day out with guests. Four summers in a small office has given me opportunities I could not have imagined, the most unique of which is the ability to work with many different departments. Not ironically, this same benefit extends to guests as well. Each and every employee, from sales and customer service consultants to trip design and logistics specialists, work together seamlessly to provide guests with solutions to all their problems and answers to all their questions. Always with unwavering patience and a deep desire to help make yours the best vacation possible. There really is no better way to describe everyone who works at Trek Travel than ‘rock stars’, and there is no better place that I could have worked during the ‘best years of my life’.

Kari talks Blackberry Farm luxury

Posted on January 8, 2014 - 9:11 am by keith_ritter

Our private trip coordinator, Kari K., was recently able to travel to and stay at our newest hotel partner, Blackberry Farm. She got to experience the slower pace of life in this little paradise. Here are her takeaways from her own break from reality.

Traffic lights, car horns, overloaded inboxes, and the bottom-less pit of meetings and conference calls. If your substitute these everyday things with the likes of fly-fishing, farm-to-table gourmet cooking, the crackling of a campfire next to a moonlit pond, wine-tastings from an oak cellar, and rides through the majestic Smoky Mountains then Blackberry Farm might be the place for you.

Let’s talk about the unique and extraordinary cuisine you will experience at Blackberry Farm; known as the “Foothills Cuisine”. Your taste buds will be moving more than your legs as you taste the fresh and local flavors recognized as the number one hotel for food lovers by Bon Appetit in 2013.

Some getaways leave you feeling anxious, ready to get back to the daily grind because they are a one-trick pony–sitting on the beach, laying by a pool, but not at Blackberry. The array of activities will provide you with an enriching experience, one that challenges and inspires mind, body, and spirit. Cycling through the mountains will make the private yoga class and massage at the new wellness facility feel well-deserved. Fly-fishing with seasoned instructor’s in the pristine Hesse Creek, and kayaking in one of the nearby lakes will make your wine from the best producing wine-regions in the world taste even sweeter that evening.

When thinking about a getaway, Blackberry Farm offers the right mix of relaxation and adventure. I know I can’t wait to get back to the Farmstead.

Why A Smooth Ride Matters On A Bike Tour

Posted on June 14, 2013 - 9:48 am by keith_ritter

Being Trek Travel’s Marketing Manager, I understand how marketing a new product works. You want to get the product in front of as many people as possible and talk up its attributes. In the words of Mad Men’s Don Draper, “Advertising is about happiness”. The Trek Domane road bike delivers happiness.

I spent a week in Solvang, CA recently for our Amgen Tour of California viewing event. Our Ride Camp season had just wrapped up and there were plenty of Domane bikes floating around our warehouse. I grabbed one and spent the better part of the week riding the hills and valleys of this awesome place. To say the ride was smooth is such an understatement. It was velvet.

Trek Travel is sometimes thought of as the “avid bike tour company”. Having all Trek carbon road bikes included in every bike trip probably contributes a bit to that stereotype, even though we also have the industry leading Trek FX hybrid bikes available or the upgrade option to the electric assist hybrid bike. In fact, the first time we brought in the electric assist bikes, a woman rode up Mt. Ventoux during the Tour de France on one. Talk about stretching the bike’s capabilities! The fact is, having a great bike during a bike tour is pretty important.

I was blown away riding the Trek Domane. I heard the hype and honestly didn’t think it would be much of a difference over my Trek Madone. For anyone who has ridden in the Santa Ynez Valley, you know how lovely the roads are. Riding the Fig gives your triceps a serious workout as you navigate the Grand Canyon sized cracks in the road. But riding 50 miles on these roads on the Domane…WOW. It brought me happiness as advertised. I couldn’t believe how smooth the roads felt even when I purposefully steered the bike towards every crack I could find. And, I don’t think I have to mention that the bike is fast. Just look at Fabian Cancellara’s spring classics season to see how well he did on this incredible bike.

Why does this matter from our (Trek Travel) perspective? Imagine taking a Sunday drive in a BMW on a pot-holed highway versus doing that same test drive in an old, rickety Pinto. You’re going to be a heck of a lot more comfortable in the BMW which allows you to sit back and take in the sights. That’s how we think of the Trek Domane on a bike tour. The bike is definitely not all you signed up for with us. You want to taste the Italian wines of Tuscany, or indulge in the spas of California Wine Country. But you did sign up for an active vacation and who wouldn’t want the best fit and smoothest ride when out riding your bike in these scenic areas? That’s what the Trek Domane does. It gives you that extra little bit of happiness on your active vacation of a lifetime.

And I can say that without any marketing hype. The roads of Solvang can attest to it.

Our Sales Manager V2 Tackles the Fig!

Posted on May 2, 2013 - 9:00 am by keith_ritter

Our sales manager Vaughan, reflected back recently on his Ride Camp experience last fall. Who wants upgrades for life? Read on to find out how…

Someone has to stay home and sell these trips.

This past November, I flew into Santa Barbara California to attend our Solvang Ride Camp. I was new here at Trek Travel and “needed to go experience the product that I was trying to sell.” I thought this sounded good and the boss took the bait.

The guides for my Ride Camp were Greg and Jacob. One a seasoned veteran who heads up all the ride camps and the other a newbie guide who looked just as excited as me to be in the Santa Ynez Valley on a warm day late in 2012.

I started my trip trying to help the two guides show our 8 guests a great time. It took me only a few minutes to realize that I was getting in their way. I switched into guest mode. Now I could ride as much as I wanted and experience the life of our ride camp guest.

After two great days of riding around the surrounding valley that is covered with wineries and mountains we took on the challenge of climbing “The Fig.” The Fig is a legendary climb (9 miles at 9%) in the area that has been a training route for many pro cyclists. My goal was to climb it in one hour. With good fitness for this time of year, I set off under good power thinking that I could hit the mark. Halfway up reality set in and my power and pace dropped. With two miles left I was doing about 3 mph on an 11% grade. I was going to miss the 1 hour and it was not going to be close. After my summit others started to arrive, each new arrival cheering on the one that was finishing behind them. It was a great climb and a fun descent. Our group ended the day at a local winery splitting a few bottles of red wine.

In 4 days, I had covered about 180 miles, met some great people and accomplished nothing else of any worth. It was all that I hoped for. The goal for this year is to get to Greenville South Carolina for our Ride Camp in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I hope to see you there.

Who is going to be the first person to do all five ride camps (Solvang, Greenville, Moab, Boulder and Mallorca)? I hope it is me! If you beat me too all of them, you will have a standing free upgrade with Trek Travel for the rest of your life.

Cheers,
Vaughan O’Brien
Sales Manager

Photo Credit: Greg Lyeki

Outside Online Includes Vermont Family In 50 Great Family Adventures

Posted on March 15, 2013 - 10:28 pm by keith_ritter

HIGHLIGHTS: For six summer days, take in the quaint New England scenery of central Vermont from the saddle of a bike rolling down some of America’s most scenic roads. Pedal past barns, covered bridges, log cabins, and old-fashioned towns (including Middlebury and Stowe), with views of the green Champlain Valley and the Adirondacks all the while.

Men’s Journal Approves California Wine Country Weekend

Posted on January 4, 2013 - 10:23 pm by keith_ritter

The Sonoma wine country bike vacation is no secret. Thousands of cyclists take to this region north of San Francisco every year to climb its long, scenic hills, hopping from winery to winery by day, and sleeping it off in a cozy inn at night. The problem? It’s often a logistical nightmare that either costs more than you’d expect or ends up being a headache to rival anything brought on by all the wine. More…

Ride Camp Video

Posted on December 17, 2012 - 11:34 am by keith_ritter

We have finally produced a Trek Travel Ride Camp video. It highlights what we think are the great aspects of these unique bike tours. Based around one hotel and offerring the independant cyclist a week long vacation to ride their bike, it's a model of bike trips not typically seen in the US. In Europe this model is all over the place, from Mallorca to Italy.

For this video, we worked with Justin Bomberg from Story Me This, who has produced videos for the likes of the Rolling Stones and major television networks. He has been a breeze to work with and we think has a nack for cycling videos;)

Enjoy and let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

A Painting in Prague

Posted on October 9, 2012 - 9:00 am by keith_ritter

When my husband and I were planning our fifth Trek Travel vacation, we knew exactly where to go to celebrate this milestone. So together with our 23 year old daughter and my 78 year old father-in-law, we signed up for the Prague to Vienna vacation.

This trip was especially meaningful for us because my family has a historical connection to the great Czech painter Alphonse Mucha. My great grandfather was a diplomat and art patron who helped introduce Mucha to America, and commissioned him to paint a portrait of my grandmother which now hangs in the National Gallery in Prague. Of course it was a priority for us to see the painting, so we arranged to arrive in Prague two days before the start of our Trek Travel trip.

This is when Trek Travel went the extra mile.

We contacted the trip designer to see if she could help us make the most out of our time in Prague. She put us in touch with a local tour guide who became our resource for all things Czech. Not only did he get us into the National Gallery, and made sure we would be able to photograph the portrait of my grandmother, but he also knew the Mucha family and was able to arrange a visit with Mucha’s daughter-in-law. She graciously gave us a tour of her family home, which was full of original artworks, and talked to us about Mucha’s life and work. This was an amazing experience we never would have found on our own!

The rest of the trip was equally grand, with beautiful scenery, great bicycling, fabulous food, wine and beer, and lots of quality family time. The chance to see the Czech Republic as it emerged from behind the Iron Curtain, and to hear about that transition from locals, was quite amazing. The guides were adept at dealing with changing circumstances, from finding a fabulous restaurant with a private room for lunch when rain would have made picnicking difficult, to arranging for travel by riverboat on the Danube when the weather was a bit wet for a few of us “fair weather” riders. Especially for my father-in-law, who does not ride a bike, this cruise became his favorite part of the trip!

For myself and my family, it was these experiences not on the itinerary that became the highlights of our trip. We still reminisce about that serendipitous meeting and unexpected wow’s many years later.

– Peggy Timmerman

Older posts

Newer posts

Trek Factory Racing Launch Event

Designing a Santa Barbara vacation

Intern Chronicles: Part 1, working for Trek Travel

Kari talks Blackberry Farm luxury

Why A Smooth Ride Matters On A Bike Tour

Our Sales Manager V2 Tackles the Fig!

Outside Online Includes Vermont Family In 50 Great Family Adventures

Men’s Journal Approves California Wine Country Weekend

Ride Camp Video

A Painting in Prague

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