Show #177 – January 11, 2014

Guests: Team Rwanda Coach Jock Boyer; LAB President Andy Clarke

Today’s show is a study in contrasts, and an illustration of how, regardless of the circumstances, cycling is one of the catalysts of change in society. Got an intractable problem? Have you tried cycling?

We start all the way over in Africa, with Jock Boyer, who has been working for several years now to foster bike racing in Rwanda and other African countries. Jock and his now-wife Kimberly Coats are specifically known as the organizational force behind Team Rwanda, which is the subject of the documentary film Rising from Ashes, which will screen on January 23rd at the Cedar-Lee Theater here in Cleveland. Jock joins us to talk about the recent successes of African bike racers, and their plans for the future of the sport there.

Meanwhile, back here in the U.S.A., the League of American Bicyclists is gearing up for the annual Bike Summit. Held in Washington, DC March 3rd through 5th, this year’s theme is United Spokes: Moving Beyond Gridlock. Andy Clark, president of the LAB joins us to talk about the summit, and a number of other initiatives the League is working on. We may not be rising from ashes here in the ‘States, but we cyclists are rising to the challenges faced by an industrialized society.