Hello everyone,
My name is Rod Holmes, my wife is Laura, and if you've closely examined the early 90's Cannondale catalogs, ('91, '92 & '93) you may know of us as the Mobile Holmes. Here are some screenshots I lifted from those scanned catalogs.
We both grew up in South Dakota where we met in college, where I studied math and computer science education and Laura studied journalism. I also worked as a bicycle mechanic during college. When I received a letter from Boeing retracting their offer to hire me as a computer engineer due to a strike, I had to figure out what I'd do after graduation. I had bought a Cannondale touring bike with my bike shop employee discount and loved it, but it had a creak in the bottom bracket that would not go away. I called Cannondale as a consumer (not mentioning I worked at a bike shop) and they shipped me out a replacement frame. As I was trying to figure out where to work, I remembered how well C'dale had treated me, and decided to give them a call.
My call was routed to Joan in HR. I asked if they were hiring and Joan said, "YES!! You're hired! When can you start? What do you know how to do? Where do you live?" They clearly needed people. I said I was a mechanic and knew a lot about computers (not all that common in 1985) and that I lived in SD. She paused a long time and then asked if I realized the job was in CT. I said I did and was very interested in relocating. (#1 export from SD is educated young people!) I agreed to fly out (People Express to the rescue of a broke college kid!). I flew to Providence RI, had an interview with Rhode Gear (which was pretty unimpressive), and then drove to Georgetown, CT where I immediately fell in love with the area, the offices, and the culture of C'dale. Laura and I took the plunge and agreed to move.
I started, as everyone did in 1985, in customer service. I worked the phones for about a week until Graham in R&D realized I was a mechanic and pulled me back into the shop. I worked for about 9 months on spec'ing bikes (working with the team deciding how many links of chain were needed for a SunTour derailleur with a particular freewheel, how tall the steering tube needed to be on each size of a particular model, etc.) and running the testing program: making sure new bikes, components, and clothing got into the hands of the employees who went out at lunch on long training rides, and we got feedback. I also got to spend many mornings going on 20 to 30 mile rides, testing one thing or another. I know...tough job. Then Ron in purchasing showed up at my desk, said he was returning to VT, and said he'd told Joe Montgomery (C'dale's owner) that I should be his replacement in purchasing. Ron was responsible for buying everything that made the bike frames: tubing, extrusions, decals, and cable guides were the main responsibility. I loved that job and my boss (Scott Montgomery) was fantastic. I did a bit too well at purchasing. When Barry, the director of accounting, decided to leave, Joe asked me to replace him. I was 100% UNqualified to do the job, but begrudgingly agreed, leaving perhaps best job I've ever had in my life. That began the worst year of my work life and the job I've hated the most. I was working 60 to 80 hours per week trying to keep my head above water and felt like I was drowning every damn day.
On my first day of work, Joan commented that she saw I was married. She asked if Laura would be interested in a job. Laura started shortly after that in accounting. She was the only person at C'dale at the time that I knew of who didn't start in customer service. At first she was in AR, and then her last year she was in AP. She was not trained in either, but her fastidious nature made it a perfect fit and she excelled.
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My name is Rod Holmes, my wife is Laura, and if you've closely examined the early 90's Cannondale catalogs, ('91, '92 & '93) you may know of us as the Mobile Holmes. Here are some screenshots I lifted from those scanned catalogs.
We both grew up in South Dakota where we met in college, where I studied math and computer science education and Laura studied journalism. I also worked as a bicycle mechanic during college. When I received a letter from Boeing retracting their offer to hire me as a computer engineer due to a strike, I had to figure out what I'd do after graduation. I had bought a Cannondale touring bike with my bike shop employee discount and loved it, but it had a creak in the bottom bracket that would not go away. I called Cannondale as a consumer (not mentioning I worked at a bike shop) and they shipped me out a replacement frame. As I was trying to figure out where to work, I remembered how well C'dale had treated me, and decided to give them a call.
My call was routed to Joan in HR. I asked if they were hiring and Joan said, "YES!! You're hired! When can you start? What do you know how to do? Where do you live?" They clearly needed people. I said I was a mechanic and knew a lot about computers (not all that common in 1985) and that I lived in SD. She paused a long time and then asked if I realized the job was in CT. I said I did and was very interested in relocating. (#1 export from SD is educated young people!) I agreed to fly out (People Express to the rescue of a broke college kid!). I flew to Providence RI, had an interview with Rhode Gear (which was pretty unimpressive), and then drove to Georgetown, CT where I immediately fell in love with the area, the offices, and the culture of C'dale. Laura and I took the plunge and agreed to move.
I started, as everyone did in 1985, in customer service. I worked the phones for about a week until Graham in R&D realized I was a mechanic and pulled me back into the shop. I worked for about 9 months on spec'ing bikes (working with the team deciding how many links of chain were needed for a SunTour derailleur with a particular freewheel, how tall the steering tube needed to be on each size of a particular model, etc.) and running the testing program: making sure new bikes, components, and clothing got into the hands of the employees who went out at lunch on long training rides, and we got feedback. I also got to spend many mornings going on 20 to 30 mile rides, testing one thing or another. I know...tough job. Then Ron in purchasing showed up at my desk, said he was returning to VT, and said he'd told Joe Montgomery (C'dale's owner) that I should be his replacement in purchasing. Ron was responsible for buying everything that made the bike frames: tubing, extrusions, decals, and cable guides were the main responsibility. I loved that job and my boss (Scott Montgomery) was fantastic. I did a bit too well at purchasing. When Barry, the director of accounting, decided to leave, Joe asked me to replace him. I was 100% UNqualified to do the job, but begrudgingly agreed, leaving perhaps best job I've ever had in my life. That began the worst year of my work life and the job I've hated the most. I was working 60 to 80 hours per week trying to keep my head above water and felt like I was drowning every damn day.
On my first day of work, Joan commented that she saw I was married. She asked if Laura would be interested in a job. Laura started shortly after that in accounting. She was the only person at C'dale at the time that I knew of who didn't start in customer service. At first she was in AR, and then her last year she was in AP. She was not trained in either, but her fastidious nature made it a perfect fit and she excelled.
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are you still connected to cannondale-buddies from that time?
