When someone asked me if my husband was an “avid cyclist” it only took me a moment to respond with, “No… He’s a RABID cyclist!” I don’t know about you but we are the kind of people that if we see something bicycle related we go a little goofy. Nothing excites us more than finding a onesy for our toddler that has bicycles on it. (Thank you again Grandma May!) So when we had all these ideas for cool designs that no one was making… well, -we are a proactive Tribe- if we can’t find the gear we want to buy, we’ll make it! And so we gave birth to yet another child: Gear for the Rabid Cyclist.
I (Dawn) sat down in front of the computer with sketchbook in hand and got to work. (You may remember a while back when I blogged about my creative process.) The other day my husband asked me to do a cyclocross design (a future endeavor he hopes to tackle) so I had him sit down with me at the computer and together we did a few new designs that I wanted to share.
So here is a brief introduction to a some of our latest designs…
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“Cyclocross: Get Carried Away.”
Those familiar with this up-and-coming sport know that cyclocross is a mix of road racing, obstacle course running and a hell of a lot of carrying of bicycles. A few weeks back at one of the Sierra Nevada High School Race Series events we met a gorgeous woman in a MadCat shirt and we ended up talking. She talked about her family’s participation in cyclocross and “if you think these races (the high school mountain bike racing) are fun for the family you HAVE to go to a cyclocross race!” Her enthusiasm was infectious and ever since then we have had a blossoming interest in learning more about cyclocross. In fact she was so “carried away” with her praise of the sport that she inspired this design.
Those familiar with this up-and-coming sport know that cyclocross is a mix of road racing, obstacle course running and a hell of a lot of carrying of bicycles. A few weeks back at one of the Sierra Nevada High School Race Series events we met a gorgeous woman in a MadCat shirt and we ended up talking. She talked about her family’s participation in cyclocross and “if you think these races (the high school mountain bike racing) are fun for the family you HAVE to go to a cyclocross race!” Her enthusiasm was infectious and ever since then we have had a blossoming interest in learning more about cyclocross. In fact she was so “carried away” with her praise of the sport that she inspired this design.
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“Blood or Mud?”
This one was pretty easy. It was inspired by my husband when he came home from riding one day and he had something red on his shin. From first glance we weren’t sure if it was blood or mud. I am always the one ready to pounce on any scrape with a cotton ball and peroxide but he shrugged off my question, unconcerned with an injury as long as it didn’t interfere with his riding. Rabid cyclist indeed.
This one was pretty easy. It was inspired by my husband when he came home from riding one day and he had something red on his shin. From first glance we weren’t sure if it was blood or mud. I am always the one ready to pounce on any scrape with a cotton ball and peroxide but he shrugged off my question, unconcerned with an injury as long as it didn’t interfere with his riding. Rabid cyclist indeed.
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“Cyclocross: Ride Hard. Run Fast.”
This one we just completed. My husband envisioned the design of the chainring being used to make the “C” and the crank arms to make the cross or “X”. The motto, “Ride Hard. Run Fast.” Actually came about because the design was off-balance and I needed text to balance out the large “Cyclocross” on top. We ended up liking the motto so much that we added it as the motto for our website.
This one we just completed. My husband envisioned the design of the chainring being used to make the “C” and the crank arms to make the cross or “X”. The motto, “Ride Hard. Run Fast.” Actually came about because the design was off-balance and I needed text to balance out the large “Cyclocross” on top. We ended up liking the motto so much that we added it as the motto for our website.
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| Click to see more gear with this design |
“Find Your Balance”
Another design inspired by my husband and his cycling philosophy. Riding is not just a physical exercise to my husband; it is his therapy. When he rides, he finds peace and... balance. We have since met many others who say the same: that cycling centers and balances their lives, their emotions and how they see the world. Where else can your therapy give you great legs? (I also like to think of the design as encouragement to young kids just learning how to ride.)
Another design inspired by my husband and his cycling philosophy. Riding is not just a physical exercise to my husband; it is his therapy. When he rides, he finds peace and... balance. We have since met many others who say the same: that cycling centers and balances their lives, their emotions and how they see the world. Where else can your therapy give you great legs? (I also like to think of the design as encouragement to young kids just learning how to ride.)
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The GroveTribe Logo
Ever since marrying my husband and taking his last name I have been obsessed with “Tree of Life” designs. I wanted to incorporate the tree into our cycling logo. One of my top criteria was “If we ever got a tattoo of our logo, it has to look cool.” Yeah, I know… but it helped me decide that I wanted the tree to be “tribal”, I like the look of tribal tattoos and it fit with our nickname of “GroveTribe”. Next was incorporating the cycling part of it. The chainring is the “root” of power for a pedal stroke so I thought it should be part of the logo as the roots of the tree. Both of our families also have “roots” in cycling.
Ever since marrying my husband and taking his last name I have been obsessed with “Tree of Life” designs. I wanted to incorporate the tree into our cycling logo. One of my top criteria was “If we ever got a tattoo of our logo, it has to look cool.” Yeah, I know… but it helped me decide that I wanted the tree to be “tribal”, I like the look of tribal tattoos and it fit with our nickname of “GroveTribe”. Next was incorporating the cycling part of it. The chainring is the “root” of power for a pedal stroke so I thought it should be part of the logo as the roots of the tree. Both of our families also have “roots” in cycling.
Well, now you know how a few of our designs were born. If you like any of the designs and want to help a stay-at-home mom bring in some much needed income while showing the world that you are a rabid cyclist, please visit our shop and get geared up!
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