In March 2011, American Bicycle Group announced that bicycle retailer Competitive Cyclist of Little Rock, AR had acquired the rights to the Merlin Metalworks brand. Litespeed purchased Merlin (bicycles) and Quintana Roo in 2000 from Saucony, and trademark of Tomac in 2001. European brands such as Eddy Merckx and Bianchi have contracted Litespeed to construct titanium frames in their own lines. Several professionals have ridden Litespeeds painted as other brands. In the 1999 Tour de France, Lance Armstrong rode a titanium Litespeed Blade painted and labeled as a Trek during time trials. Litespeed bicycles have been tested and ridden by many in the competitive cycling and triathlon world: Tour de France cyclists Greg Lemond, Robbie McEwen, and Lance Armstrong wheel innovator Steve Hed IRONMAN competitors Tim DeBoom and Cameron Brown Olympians Simon Whitefield, Jeff Kabush, the ITU Triathlon World Cup champion Vanessa Fernandes (Portugal), and 59-time French champion and 13-time world champion Jeannie Longo. Thus began the journey that would make Litespeed the go to authority on titanium bicycles. Frame after frame was made until one was deemed show worthy and taken to the Long Beach bike show in 1987.

He used leftover titanium frames from a chemical job to build the first frame in 1986. Its interest in bicycles began when one of the workers took up cycling while recovering from a running injury. They keep going.The company has its roots in a custom machine shop known as Southeast Machine that specialized in exotic metals. Here's a few of our favorite winter running shoes to keep your training regimen on track throughout the rest of the season, haters be damned. Do it for all the people who scoffed at your resolve to keep it up as soon as the weather dipped below 50 degrees. Do it for all the people who doubted you. You've come this far, right? Don't give up now. Beyond that? A well-executed design definitely doesn't hurt. You're also going to want to get something with a rugged sole and lots of traction if you're trying to avoid any ice-related mishaps on the streets or trails. A Gore-Tex membrane or coating is always great for truly slushy days, while water-resistant uppers (or a little bit of breathable mesh) will do fine when the sun is still shining. These days you can snag a variety of hard-wearing pairs as long as you're on the lookout for a few key features. And luckily, the best winter running shoes were made for this shit. In fact, with the right shoes, bad weather will become but another obstacle to overcome en route to a better you, like the snickers you had to put up with from friends and family when they heard about your newfound hobby. Bad weather doesn't have to impede your workout. Sure, the weather's getting colder-and wetter, and eventually *shudders involuntarilyвЂ‹* snowier-but that doesn't mean you need to switch up your routine. All of which is to say, I don't have a whole lot of sympathy for you.

I'm not going to lie, it's taking a lot of self-control not to immediately start making fun of you to deflect from my own inability to stick with anything remotely commitment-intensive for longer than, like, three weeks.

So you started running at the beginning of the pandemic and actually stuck with it, huh? Good for you, man.

Saucony ride 3