I woke up to this note from Allen Jones, the executive producer of the Epic Rides series of Indoor Cycling Class Videos and DVDs.
Hi John,
I just wanted to give you heads up on our newest epicRIDES release, Epic Amelia Island AND a special Epic Affiliate Coupon Code for a 20% discount on this title for one week (ending 9/15/13) that you can share with your followers.
COUPON CODE: amelia
Here are the details:
Epic Amelia Island
Join three avid cyclist riding the 62 mile route of the Katie Ride for Life, a major springtime cycling event held in Amelia Island, Florida, north of Jacksonville on the Florida-Georgia border.
With 13-miles of beautiful beaches, abundant native wildlife, and pristine waters, Amelia Island has long been a beloved destination for visitors and locals alike. For the sixth consecutive year, Amelia was voted among Top 10 North American Islands by Conde Nast Traveler's Reader's Choice Awards.
With it's flat terrain and consistent level of intensity, this Epic Amelia Island is an ideal Endurance training ride to build your aerobic base. 

Now, you can preview this route for yourself and get some serious training accomplished at the same time!
And, as an extra incentive, a percentage of the profits from Epic Amelia Island will go to the Katie Ride for Life to further it's mission of organ donor education.
DVD – $29.95, Download – $19.95, Combo Pack – $39.95
“He has taught us a new way, challenged us to reach higher, and motivated us to never quit. He has changed us.”
Celebrate the joyful life of an inspirational man. Angela Karanas…
I was asked to pass along this invitation to Jim's friends – which are many 🙂
Jim Karanas Memorial Celebration
Host:Angela Karanas
When: Sunday, September 15 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Where: Wildwood Acres Resort 1055 Hunsaker Canyon RoadLafayette, CA 94549
Let me know if you're planning to attend and we can coordinated room/ride sharing for those of us coming from out of town.
My flight gets into San Francisco Saturday afternoon @ 4:40pm
Chuck Cali has a line on bicycle rentals if you want to participate in the 4.5 mile bike procession from the Lafayette BART to Wildwood Acres Resort. I'm there all day Monday. Maybe a bunch of us can ride that morning?
I'm excited to attend the MINDBODY FitPro Conference in Los Angeles at the end of this month for a bunch of reasons. Are you planning to attend?
Please say hello if you are at the Friday morning networking breakfast. Or, if you're not afraid of heights, at the Saturday evening party up on the helicopter pad. In between you can text me 612-868-0064 so we can meetup.
There's a good chance you'll run into me at the Spinning® booth where Performance IQ will be showing off their display system, connected to the new Spinner® Blade ION indoor cycle with power. I don't have all the details yet, but it sounds like Performance IQ will be integrated at some level into the Spinpower education program. Very cool and I'm excite to hear what studio owners have to say when they see it in action + get their thoughts about using rider performance data as a retention tool.
This all connects with your MINDBODY Online system!
Tae Yoo and Mark Davids from Performance IQ invited me to attend this year and are sponsoring my trip. Thanks Guys 🙂
There are a number of workshops featuring Josh Taylor, Natashia Iacovelli, Marci Williams and others. I'm waiting on a response from Josh to know if there will be any power based classes and will update this once I know more.
Studio owners can partake in a ton of informative business sessions. Here are a few I'm hoping to attend:
Corporate Wellness: Making it Your Business — David McAtee
Join David McAtee, Sales Manager for MINDBODY Exchange, to review the latest trends in the corporate wellness market and learn how to promote your practice through the new MINDBODY Exchange.
Connecting the Dots: How to Build a Breakthrough Business– Rick Stollmeyer
Join MINDBODY Co-Founder and CEO, Rick Stollmeyer, for an inspiring discussion of what it takes to build a business from the ground up. Rick will share his own entrepreneurial journey from garage start-up to global leader, highlighting the “dots” every entrepreneur needs to connect before a business can truly break through the barriers to success.
Creating, Cultivating and Living Your Brand in the Fitness Industry — Jessica Matthews With a plethora of information and services out there, what makes you or your business different from the rest? The road to becoming a recognized and respected name in the world of health and fitness begins with identifying and embracing who you authentically are, clearly establishing what it is that you uniquely offer, and ultimately building trust and maintaining the loyalty of those that you interact with. From leveraging your knowledge and skills to optimizing your reach and enhancing how you communicate your message, discover how to establish and grow your personal brand while inspiring others to live happier, healthier, fitter lives.
You can download the full schedule, session descriptions and register here. You can save 20% on the registration fee using the coupon code READY4FITPRO
Jim Karanas – a true artist of Indoor Cycling Education.
Stuff like Jim Karanas' death is really hard for me. I felt compelled to write something, a eulogy of sorts that would express my feelings about Jim. My appreciation of him as a person, my respect for him as a fitness professional and my admiration for him as an artist. He really was an artist. The articles and Podcasts we've published here easily demonstrate his incredible passion for fitness and skill at communicating what he knew with others.
I spent the better part of yesterday trying to come up with the words to put in this post, that expressed how I felt about all of this – unsuccessfully. This morning I woke up frustrated that I still couldn't form the words that accurately conveyed how I felt.
I think best when I'm aerobic. So this morning I went out for a ride. Nothing intense. Spent most of the time enjoying the morning JRA (Just Riding Along). Not sure where I was exactly, but I began to understand my confused feelings… starting with;
I was really upset that Jim and I had kept rescheduling a phone call for over a month.
Now we'll never connect. I was frustrated with myself that I hadn't pushed Jim harder to connect with me. Too easy to accept that he was too busy or out of town to connect. But then it wasn't ever about me – Jim's focus was on the business needs of Team ICG – The Indoor Cycling Group of North America.
In December of 2011 Jim and Team ICG became sponsors of ICI/PRO. Their goal was to introduce our readers and listeners to their brand of Indoor Cycling education and promote the new MYRIDE+ virtual ride system. As I rode along I realized that Jim being too busy to return my call was a good thing – they had achieved some of what they intended when they signed on 🙂
Having sorted out my initial anger, a song came to me; Ian Hunter — Michael Picasso which was Ian Hunter's very moving tribute to his friend/guitarist Mick Ronson after his death from cancer in 1993.
Mick was a true artist. IMO (and many other's), without Mick Ronson's arrangements and guitar work, no one would know the name David Bowie today. Mick's early work on Bowie's breakthrough album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars established Bowie as a superstar. Bowie rewarded Mick and the rest of band by publicly firing them all at the height of the band's popularity.
Like Mick Ronson, Jim Karanas was a passionate artist who worked tirelessly for others. I felt it fitting to apply the same nickname to Jim, that Ian Hunter had given to his friend.
Jim Picasso
I'll let Mr. Hunter communicate the rest…
P.S. I'm also upset that I can't find a picture of me with Jim. If you happen to have one, I'd really appreciate you sending it to john@indoorcycleinstructor.com
Hopefully some of you will catch that reference to a very awkward scene from one of my all-time favorite movies – Animal House.
It astounds and amazes me that;
A: These guys are still performing (very well I should add) when most people their age are in a nursing home and…
B: They still command some serious $$$ to perform… $30,000 to $150,000 a night serious.
If you were to ask Randy why people are willing to pay these old bands such big dollars to perform, his response would be; “Each band has had one of more Top 10 hits. Each is very recognizable and everyone in this room knows them – many by heart.” “Venues have a choice; bring in some unknown local band that no one has ever heard of, or, treat the baby boomers to a night filled with the music they listened to growing up… it's pretty much a no-brainer which will pack-em in.”
Most of the bands managed by Randy's company have gone through multiple member changes. Last year Amy and I got to hang out with The Guess Who – only the drummer and bass player are original members. Forgive me when I say this. When we were introduced I thought they were the grandparents of the band members 🙁 Which, when you figure they formed the band in 1958 and these two joined the year after I was born (in 1962), was an understandable mistake for me to make. That was until they played. If you had told me they were 30 year olds, wearing old-people masks, I would have believed you. They came alive on stage. Which maybe the secret to their success long into their late 70's and probably beyond .
At times Randy sources bands for private events when the event organizer has a special request. Last night we were treated to a show from the band formally know as ELO & ELO2, now simply going by the name The Orchestra. That link will take you to a page showing their tour dates and locations. Those guys are performing all over the world. Last week they were in the UK and later this Fall they have a bunch of shows in Eastern Europe. How fun would that be?
ELO/The Orchestra played a 90 minute set last nigh. I knew every song and from the energy in the crowd, so did everyone at the event!
I'm thinking my class would enjoy hearing some of these old hits as well. So I've but together this playlist from the bands Randy manages. No super serious profile – just something I hope brings a smile to everyone in attendance.
