MY NAME IS TODD NANCE AND EVER SINCE I WAS YOUNG AND CAN REMEMBER,  I LOVE RIDING, WORKING AND BEING AROUND ALL THINGS BICYCLES. IT STARTED EARLY LIKE MOST KIDS DO WHEN I WAS RIPPING AROUND AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOODS AND DIRT ALLEYS WITH MY CHILDHOOD FRIENDS AND ACCOMPLICES. MY FIRST REAL BIKE THAT I CHERISHED AND KEPT IN MY ROOM AT NIGHT, WAS AN EARLY 80'S REDLINE CHROME BMX BIKE WITH RED ANODIZED PARTS AND RED ACS Z RIMS. I LOVED THAT BIKE AND WOULD RIDE IT EVERYWHERE AND EVEN RACED IT A FEW TIMES AT THE LOCAL BMX TRACKS AROUND FLORIDA.

 MY DAD WAS A PRETTY GOOD TRIATHLETE BACK IN THE DAY AND COMPETED REGULARLY IN THE 80'S. DURING OUR TIME IN FLORIDA.  HE WOULD GO ON TRAINING RIDES WITH SOME OF THE FOLKS THAT WORKED AT TEN SPEED DRIVE IMPORTS. ONE DAY HE LET ME KNOW THAT THEY NEEDED HELP IN THE WAREHOUSE AND THAT I SHOULD GO TALK TO THEM AND PUT IN AN APPLICATION. SOME OF MY EARLY MENTORS LIKE DENNIS LEE, JIM INGRAM, BILL WOODUL , ROBERT TEDDER, NESTOR GERNAY AND TOM EASON ALL WORKED OR CAME THRU TEN SPEED DRIVE IMPORTS AND HELPED ME GET TO WHERE I AM TODAY. DURING MY TIME I WORKED DIFFERENT ROLES AT TEN SPEED DRIVE IMPORTS. I LEARNED TO PREP AND PLATE FRAMES AND MAKE SURE THEY WERE STRAIGHT AND ALIGNED BEFORE BEING PRIMED AND PAINTED. I LEARNED TO BUILD ALL VARIATIONS OF WHEELS FROM 24 INCH CRONO TIME TRIAL WHEELS WITH RADIAL BLADED SPOKES TO 32 HOLE HIGH FLANGE HUBS WITH A 2 CROSS SPOKE PATTERN ON A TUBULAR 700C AMBROSIO  RIM. I WAS ALSO THE WEST COAST INSIDE SALES REPRESENTATIVE FOR AWHILE. I GOT TO HANDLE THE SALES ACCOUNTS FOR ALL THE BIKE SHOPS AND DEALERS ALONG THE WEST COAST THAT SOLD TOMMASO, GUERCIOTTI, ROSSIN, WOODRUP AND LEMOND BIKES. THIS IS ALSO WHERE I WOULD SEE HOW FAR MY RACING WOULD TAKE ME AROUND FLORIDA AND GEORGIA. I WAS A LOCAL USCF RIDER AND MANAGED TO RACE ENOUGH AND PLACE TO GET MY UPGRADE TO CATEGORY 2.

 

 I LEFT THE USA FOR GHENT, BELGIUM IN THE LATE WINTER OF 88 AND GOT ABSOLUTELY SHELLED AND BLOWN OUT THE BACK MY FIRST SEASON THERE. THE SECOND SEASON WAS JUST AS ROUGH AND I BARELY MADE IT THRU SOME KERMESSES AND FINISHED ONLY A HANDFUL OF RACES. DURING MY TIME OVER IN BELGIUM, I MOVED FROM GHENT TO WIELSBEKE, BELGIUM. WIELSBEKE WAS VERY CLOSE TO WAREGEM AND THE CITY OF KORTRIJK. MANY OF THE SPRING PROFESSIONAL CLASSICS AND SEMI CLASSIC BIKE RACES WOULD GO THRU THE TOWNS WHERE I LIVED CLOSE BY.  WE WOULD FOLLOW THE RACES ON OUR BIKES AND SEE THEM ON THE FAMOUS COBBLED CLIMBS AND STREETS.. DURING THIS TIME THE 7/11 AND MOTOROLA EUROPEAN HEADQUARTERS WERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD ALSO. BY THEN I WAS GOOD FRIENDS WITH NATHAN DAHLBERG AND PETER STEVENSON. DURING THE TRAINING RIDES WHEN I WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO TAG ALONG OR HOOK UP WITH, WE WOULD SOMETIMES STOP BY THE HEADQUARTERS. NATHAN AND PETER WOULD GET THEIR BIKES LOOKED OVER AND SERVICED AND GET WHAT THEY COULD FOR ANY UPCOMING LOCAL RACES. THIS IS WHERE I MET GEORGE NOYES AND I REALIZED I HAVE A BETTER CHANGE MAKING IT AS A PRO MECHANIC THAN A  PROFESSIONAL RIDER. GEORGE REALLY DIDN'T SHOW ME ANYTHING MECHANICALLY OR TAKE ME UNDER HIS WING, BUT HE WAS ALWAYS WAS SUPER CORDIAL AND ACCOMMODATING TO ME AND ALWAYS ANSWERED ANY DUMB QUESTIONS I HAD. HE WAS ALWAYS SUPER BUSY TAKING CARE OF THE TEAM, BUT ALWAYS MADE TIME TO TALK TO ME AND LET ME WATCH HIM WORK ON THE BIKES AND GET THE TEAM CARS AND WORK TRUCK PREPPED AND READY. I SOAKED IT IN LIKE A SPONGE AND I STILL APPRECIATE HIM FOR THAT TODAY.  I WAS HOOKED AND NEVER LOOKED BACK.

 

 I RETURNED HOME AND STARTED LOOKING FOR WORK ON THE ROAD WITH DIFFERENT CYCLING TEAMS AND GOT TO DO WHAT I LOVE. LET MY EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE HELP YOU WITH YOUR BIKE. IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ASSEMBLY, TROUBLESHOOTING, REPAIRS, SIZING AND MEASUREMENTS OR JUST A BASIC QUESTION YOU MIGHT HAVE. I WOULD LOVE TO SETUP A VIDEO MEETING WITH YOU OR FACETIME ON YOUR SMARTPHONE TO HELP YOU OUT AND STEER YOU IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. I DON'T KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT EVERY KIND OF BIKE BUT I WILL TRY AND HELP YOU AS MUCH AS I CAN. I CAN  POINT YOU IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION AND GET YOU THE NECESSARY PARTS AND SERVICE REQUIRED TO GET YOUR BIKE SAFE AND READY TO RIDE FOR YOU OR SOMEONE ELSE. THANKS AND CIAO FOR NOW! 

TODD NANCE