I’m not a quitter. When I get something in my head that I want to do, I’ll go to great lengths to accomplish it. That’s how Downtube bikes got started – sheer determination that my folding bike idea was a good one and worth sharing. Years later I got the idea that I should involve some financers who had contacts, money, and chutzpah.

So, back in 2015 I traveled to Houston, Texas to attend a Shark Tank open curtain call. Shar Tank, you know, the TV show that has a bunch of successful business type on a dais, checking you and your product out to see if they can make some money by buying into your invention. Unfortunately, it didn't work out. Check out my first Shark Tank article. Then in the summer of 2016 they had an open curtain call that was only one hour from my home in Raleigh, North Carolina. With a determined smile on my face, I rounded up the whole family, and we took four bikes to do another try out.

The event was held in the children’s museum, which, of course, my kids loved! They played for hours and were as happy as clams while I waited in line for what seemed like forever. There were about 200 people waiting with me, and most did not have a business or product in hand, so I thought my chances were good. I ended up auditioning last because no one wanted to follow our cool bikes. That should have told the Shark Tank producer something. Oh yeah, you don’t stand in front of the big wigs during the audition process – there is just one person who judges you and your business or product.

My pitch went very well and the Shark Tank rep was very impressed. He also mentioned that he was in the market for a folding bike, and it seemed by the way he was talking that a Downtube was in his future.

A week after the open curtain call I got an email from my interviewer. He stated that we made it to the next level. Picture me with a big smile on my face. He asked for a short video, and a sample. Sample? Actually, he asked for more than one! Hmmm. I found it awkward that the email was sent not from the show’s email account but from his personal account. Regardless, I made the video you see below and sent it off without sending him the samples he requested. Can you imagine shipping several hundreds of dollars worth of bicycles with no guarantee of ever seeing them again? I was never contacted again from the show or the producer personally. I got the feeling that Shark Tank people get a lot of samples send to them which end up for personal use and which, of course, they don't return. So, if you want to be a Shark Tank star great, but be careful you don’t get bitten.