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Guest: Paul Sadoff – Rock Lobster Cycles
This week, my guest is Paul Sadoff. Paul and I haven’t connected since our last conversation in 2014 and when I saw a post of his come up on FB, I knew it was time.
One of the many victims of COVID was bike shows . From NAHBS to the Builder’s Ball, we’ve missed being able to mingle among the artisans whom we’ve both admired and, in some cases, aspired to emulate.
So, when I saw a post on Paul’s FB page talking about something called “Guest 
House” I wanted to know about it and of course, catch up with him.
Turns out, it was quite the “thing!” From a celebrity chef to some of the high rollers – like Chris King, The Sycips, and of course Paul himself, the show might have been small, but it was attended.
Paul Sadoff started building bikes in 1988 and is still building almost 100 frames a year. He still sponsors a racing team, and he still loves and plays music.
UPDATES FROM PREVIOUS EPISODES:
Afghan Cyclists
Over the last few months, I’ve spoken about the women cyclists of Afghanistan. To date, they are not allowed to ride bicycles or go to school in the country. Many are not back at their jobs. The Taliban is not living up to its promises – although, I’m not certain anyone really believed they would.
The original 25 women who were evacuated by my friend and colleague Shannon Galpin are FINALLY heading to Canada after 7 months in limbo in the UAE. Once in Canada, they will begin rebuilding their lives.
Since then, there are 80 more cyclists who are being safeguarded around the globe and another 70 in safe houses still in Afghanistan who are waiting for the right time to leave. Most are in hiding.
The situation becomes more dire as resources in and to Afghanistan dwindle and, with the world focuses on Ukraine, we might forget the Afghans for a time.
If you want to help, here is what Shannon says and a link to the current fund raising organization.
“All of the fundraising is going directly through the human rights organization iProbono who will be handling all of the funds as it’s a registered charity! I am working with them to ensure a long-term oversight for the safeguarding of the cyclists and ongoing evacuations.”
Dmitry Nechaev
Here is a quick update on Russian frame builder Dmitry Nechaev. As you may remember, he left Russia at the beginning of the Ukraine invasion at the urging of his family and fled to Israel.
His family FINALLY made it out of Russia a couple of weeks ago – his wife, children, Mother, Mother-in-Law, AND the family dog all arrived safely in Tel Aviv.
He is hoping to have his company, Triton Bikes, up and running again soon.
Flags For Ukraine
Lastly, just a reminder that you can help the Ukraine war effort with the 
purchase of a Ukrainian flag or lapel pin at ukraineflags.org. The money will buy medical supplies for the front lines.
One such person is Dmitry Nechaev, the owner of Triton Bikes from Sochi, Russia. Dmitry and I met in Sacramento in March of 2016. He was one of 5 frame builders on a panel I moderated for NAHBS that year. And, I hadn’t spoken with him since.