The Birth of Our Shop's Motto

A motto is a weird thing.  Particularly a bike shop or team motto...

It's not something you normally sit around and think about...

Sure, you could build a big ole bonfire... crack open a bunch of beers, invite your friends, teammates and best customers and try like hell to come up with some inspiring  "motto" for your shop... but at the end of the exercise... everyone will walk away feeling a little buzzed, smelling like smoke, and the list you all worked on got tossed in the bonfire hours ago out of frustration.

Nope... I believe inspiring motto's come from inspiring moments... some of those moments are good, some of the moments are down right awful.   

But sometimes... when you do hear words of inspiration in those moments... it's like getting hit in the face with a bucket of cold water!  You know those words  belong to you, if you want them.  But you better grab them and take them, before they slip away and become lost words. 

Lost words have never inspired anyone...

I want to share, the event and the moment in which our Shop and our Team's motto was born.

Blue Steel's Motto   - I am Blue Steel
 

  

So... here's how our Motto was born...

 

As a preamble... Anyone who has been in the sport of cycling long enough, recognizes that bike crashes are unfortunately part of our sport... we don't like them... actually, we hate them...

But when you put lots of racers on bikes, blow the whistle and then have them race towards a narrow opening... well, everyone goes for the "hole shot" and no one wants to back off and ... Sometimes as they say, "it doesn't go so well". 

So... from time to time, there's a crash. 

 

Some crashes aren't so bad... a few scrapes and cuts and everyone walks away...  With war stories that will cause your hair to stand on end.

 

Other crashes are awful.. They are the ones that leave riders on the ground with serious if not life threatening injuries.   Last weekend, one of my teammates, Kathy Gagnon, was involved in such an accident.. and thankfully she will be enjoying Thanksgiving Dinner with her family this year...

 

Her accident... actually, her email exchange with me... inspired our Shop's Motto... and that's what I want to share with you..    

 

This is the email I sent to the Blue Steel Cyclery Team... after her accident.... 

 

Many of you may know... many of you may not,

I have gotten several concerning calls and emails, and I think Kathy would be okay with my sending out an email with her status...

Kathy Gagnon was involved in a pretty serious bike crash this past Sunday, during a Cross race.

Good news... she can wiggle all her fingers and toes and she's willing, able and is quite freely swearing like a sailor about how she's feeling... which isn't great! Candidly... I don't blame her one damned bit!! She's pretty beat up!!

That's the bad news... she's hurting like hell, feeling like crap and it's still unclear what the full scope of what her injuries are until she see's a few other docs. The soft tissue damage is still unclear at this juncture.

Apparently the crash happened 30 seconds after the start, speeds were high... Someone in the back of the group got crossed up with someone else... you know how it goes. Then someone else, hooked into Kathy. As I understand, the hook caused Kathy's wheel to turn and that was enough to shoot her over the handlebars.

She landed hard on her head, neck, right shoulder and right hand...

Due to the type of hit and potential injuries, she was placed on a backboard and taken by ambulance to the hospital where she stayed on the backboard for close to 4 hours, until they were sure there were no neck and back injuries ... thank God it wasn't as bad as it could have been!

We all play hard... we all know the risk of riding and racing, but none of us... Not one of us, likes to see anyone get hurt. Particularly one of our own!!!

Thanks to everyone for your concerns and I will let her know you have been asking about her...

She's tough! She's got spirit... she's Blue Steel... she'll be back at it before you know it.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!!

 

This is Kathy Gagnon's email back to me and the Team.....

 

Thank you Kathy! With my writing hand not working so well text and emails are quite short today. Thank you all for your thoughts and kind words. And, as Kathy said Yes I am Blue Steel and will be back before you know it!

Kathy's simple statement "I am Blue Steel"... was my bucket of cold water.  Those words inspired me. 

At that moment, I realized that every one who wears our kit, walks in the shop, supports a racer, buys a pack of GU, employees, customers, friends and pets... can answer when asked "who are you"?  We are part of a big family... we are there for each other...

I am Blue Steel!

 

Something that "say's it all", in one simple phrase. 

So...

We just happen to be in need of reprinting our Shop t-shirts and guess what... that motto will be in bold on the back of them!

When we reprint our uniforms... that motto will be on our uniforms!

Going forward, this motto will be part of who Blue Steel Cyclery is...  we are more than just a business... we are part of the community, we are team, we are family.

Yes... and proudly... I am Blue Steel!

Thank you Kathy Gagnon, for helping to inspire me... heal fast!

Happy Thanksgiving to all!