NAHBPC 2012 – Portland United

July 13, 2012 Leave a comment

I got the chance to spend last weekend down in Milwaukee at the NAHBPC. It was great to hang out and have some laughs with the people you normally only talk to through email. The heat was sweltering but there was more than enough water and beer to keep everyone hydrated.

One of the teams I spent some time with was Portland United. Eric, Jason, and Arlyn have been playing together on Portland United for two years now and it definitely shows when you watch them play. Their chemistry is great and they all play to their individual strengths. This is their first year together as part of the EighthInch team and they couldn’t be happier to be riding our Scramblers. Eric told me it’s the best polo bike he’s ever owned. The compact geometry makes it easy to maneuver in tight places and the handling is excellent. The splined crank and sprocket is stiff and responsive making it easy to accelerate and get across the court.

The team finished Saturday with a record of 6-2-1 to put them in the 6th seed going into Sunday’s tournament round. After advancing pretty far in tournament play Portland was eventually knocked out by the Guardians and took home 4th place. It was a nice improvement over last years 9th place finish and it puts them in a great spot going into the World Championship in Geneva next month.

Stay tuned for more NAHBPC coverage featuring EighthInch teams and riders next week.