The Hincapie interview. What he left unsaid: the BMC Hincapie Sportwear clothing clause.

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The Hincapie interview. What he left unsaid: the BMC Hincapie Sportwear clothing clause.

Dressed for success. The Lycra CEO.

Just why exactly did George Hincapie leave Columbia for BMC? The question has yet to go away and in his recent interview with Velonews he gave his reasons yet again.

What he left out though, was the real reason: he wanted to make a fortune selling his Hincapie Sportswear and BMC now wears Hincapie every time they step off the team bus. If you saw his contract, you’d see the big fat Clothing Clause.

Let’s go over the verbatim transcript of his interview and just insert the missing words he wanted to but couldn’t say.

“I think people now understand why I came here [selling Hincapie Sportswear, baby]  The vibe among the team is great [Evans digs the Hincapie compression shorts]  the ambiance among the team has been fun [Ballan is all over the Hincapie socks and shorts!]’

“For me, it’s important to keep things new [like the new Signature George line!] and have new challenges [double Hincapie Sportswearsales by end of 2010] So, for me going to BMC, and me helping them become a world-class team was very appealing to me [Even the Hincapie womens’ line gets a boost]”

“I enjoyed the Giro. I really enjoy and appreciate the Italian culture [Ha! They wear that cheap De Marchi crap] and the ambience amongst the fans. I would love to do it again [not!] but obviously I want to do the Tour of California this year [Hincapie market share is USA heavy, baby, I don’t need the euro market right now]”

“Mark (Cavendish) and I still talk several times a week, we still have a great relationship, and he understands my decision to come to Team BMC and why I came here [I left him a pile of free Hincapie sportswear. Mark’s good for a plug.]”

“My inspirations are easy [duh, move merchandise! Buy more Hincapie!] — they’ll come from the team being successful [Wearing my branded Hincapie product]  the team being cohesive, and the team gaining worldwide attention [even showcasing my Hincapie Skin Defense stuff.] Whether that comes from winning bike races, I don’t know, but inspirations are simple, for me. [this Hincapie clothing clause was brilliant.]”

There you have it. The inside story on why George Hincapie left Columbia. In three words: no clothing deal. When BMC called him, George’s first question was, “who’s your team wear supplier?” Bingo.

P.S. George, I don’t know how long I can keep plusing your sales figures without, you know, a small token of appreciation. Don’t forget my post about the sexy Hincapie compression corsets, either. Money in the bank. I’m an XL, big fella, just like you.

By |2019-02-03T16:29:59-08:00February 18th, 2010|BMC, Columbia, Humor|0 Comments

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