Baby Announcements

January 29, 2016 Elijah Szasz

Ryan Li Efthimos. Born January 23, 2016 at 8:25 a.m. 8 lbs, 13 oz. 21.5 inches.

Dear members,

I am delighted to inform you that my wife and I recently welcomed the newest edition to our family, Ryan Li Efthimos. Ryan and mom are doing great, and big sister Katherine seems to have accepted the reality that she needs to share the spotlight with her little brother. With two small babies to look after now, I of course needed some time off the bike. So I didn't ride for 4 days straight. Crazy, I know.

But that is not the only birth announcement that I have for you. Please allow me to introduce you to the Michelob Ultra La Grange Sprinter Van:

Michelob Ultra La Grange Sprinter Van. Born January 29, 2016 at 12:09 p.m. 5,434 lbs, 0 oz. 274.1 inches.

While certainly not the same as a newborn child, I nonetheless consider the Van "my baby." I conceived the idea last year and excitedly presented it to the club's board of directors. After the board briefly considered the possibility that I had gone truly insane, we engaged in many months of discussions and deliberations before giving the green light to proceed. And from there, I enlisted an elite team of volunteers to bring my vision to fruition:

Will Hughes helped us source the dealer for the Van, identified vendors for the bike cargo area customization and graphics and generally served as project manager.
Joe Camacho not only managed the finances for the purchase of the Van but also picked it up from the dealer, got it registered and insured and then oversaw the customization of the bike cargo area, including test fittings with road, track and time trial bikes in the back.
Tom FitzGibbon pitched in on insurance to make sure we're covered and legally compliant.
Jaycee Cary and Will Zhang completed the graphics design for the Van, which includes logos for all of our 2016 sponsors.
Even David Miller got into the action, driving the Van approximately 1.9 miles through the mean streets of Santa Monica to get the graphics applied.

The Van's first stop will be the Santa Barbara Road Race tomorrow. The Van will continue to support our racers as they lay it on the line for the club and their fellow teammates, but it will also support non-race activities for the club. We will have a party on the side of the road for a key Tour of California stage, and the Van will provide us with a base camp for that party. We expect to organize several "home grown" La Grange century rides this year, with the Van serving as SAG for riders. And you know that when it comes to this year's La Grange Cup, the Van will be there at all three events! (and you should be too). We are looking forward to all of the potential ways that we can leverage the Van to improve the La Grange experience.

Want to see it in person? Come out for the World Famous Nichols Ride on Sunday, and you just might get to see it at the post-ride coffee session at sponsor Peet's Coffee & Tea!

Vive La Grange!

Robert Efthimos
President, Velo Club La Grange
www.lagrange.org
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Velo-Club-La-Grange/280123768478
https://vimeo.com/channels/lagrange
http://app.strava.com/athletes/337152
https://vimeo.com/user11846099/videos

Thank you to our 2016 sponsors: