Show #202 – July 14, 2014

Guests: Dr. Eric Marcotte; Steph Routh; Sarai Snyder

In Cleveland, it’s all about that basketball player; but, here at the Outspoken Cyclist, it’s about bicycling – the Tour de France, The Giro Rosa, and more! (LeBron WHO?)

So, first up we go out to Scottsdale, AZ. I am honored to welcome our U.S. National Road Champion – Dr. Eric Marcotte. What you might find most interesting is not that he won that race; but, rather his philosophy on HOW to win races and what is necessary to have the physical, mental, and emotional strength to take home that first place prize.

Eric also tells us about his team – Smart Stop – and where they might be headed in the months and years ahead.

Then we leave Scottsdale, AZ and boogey up to Portland, Oregon to speak with Steph Routh. Steph is the “Mayor of Hopscotch Town” and a “funnist” (you’ll have to listen to learn what that is.) In any event, she is FUN! We talk about many of the things she’s done (a lot), and the Alice B. Toeclips award she won.

Her new book, How to Move By Bike was just published by Taking the Lane Press and details the steps necessary to recruit all your friends, load up their bikes with your stuff, and pedal it all to your new abode.

Finally, we welcome Sarai Snyder back to the show. Sarai, who is the founder of Girl-Bike-Love and Cyclo-Femme, has just launched an exciting new initiative – “Women Race Bikes” – a platform to showcase women’s racing in the U.S. as well as worldwide. In an effort to get more coverage for women’s racing, WRB is working with Tour Tracker to upload a brand new platform for race announcing and Sarai will tell us all about that and why WRB is an important idea as women’s racing begins to expand and blossom.

Show #201 – July 5, 2014

Guests: Professional cyclist Jackie Crowell; Chairman of the Board of the new American Bicycling Education Association Mighk Wilson; and Patrick Brady

It’s show #201 and with it… we are introducing a new theme song. As Greg said “it’s ear candy” and it was time for an “audio redecorating”. Hope you like it.

This week, we are speaking with Jackie Crowell. Jackie is an 8-time National Champion on track and road, a coach, a mechanical engineer, and a cancer patient. Last year, as she posted her best time and place in some prestigious races, she presented with symptoms that turned out to be brain cancer. But, while she is still in treatment, she is living a life filled with hope, love, work, and cycling! Jackie’s speech at the Breaking Away from Cancer dinner at this year’s Amgen Tour of California will blow you away!

We also welcome back to the show transportation planner Mighk Wilson. Mighk also just became the president of the board of the brand new ABEA – The American Bicycling Education Association. And, that’s what he will share with us today.  It’s a new direction for the education of cyclists, drivers, law enforcement, and transportation specialists.

Finally, we’ll hear Red Kite Prayer‘s Patrick Brady offer his review on the new book by George Hincapie – The Loyal Lieutenant – Leading Out Lance and Pushing Through the Pain on the Rocky Road to Paris  – and you might be surprised by what he has to say.

So, hope you had a great 4th of July and are ready for another great edition of The Outspoken Cyclist!

Show #200 (wooo-hooo) – June 28, 2014

Welcome to our 200th Show! It’s been a privilege to bring you everything cycling for all these weeks and I hope we can bring you many more! Here’s a bit of information on this week’s show.

Discovered through the “twittersphere” by Editor-in-Chief of Velo Magazine, my first guest, Dan Wuori shares his particular brand of cycling – both humorous and serious – with us as my first guest this evening.

Out of an “innocent” comment on his twitter feed, Dan was asked to write for the iconic magazine and has since found himself in the enviable position of being the author of “At the Back” – the humorous-editorializing piece that appears each month on the back page of Velo News.

He also covers races and personalities through his work on Tour Chats (currently on hiatus but about to reappear in the not-too-distant future,) with his on-air partner Neil Browne.

Dan also gives us his views on our U.S. National Championship winners Dr. Eric Marcotte and Alison Powers, the Tour de France, and more…

We’ll also talk with Bike Cleveland’s Jacob vanSickle who will share some positive ideas about how we here in Cleveland are working with government and law enforcement to start making cyclists (and pedestrians) safer on the roads.

Show #199 – June 21, 2014

Guests: Roanoke Times’ columnist Dan Casey; BR&IN web editor Steve Frothingham

Happy Solstice All! Why don’t you stay up late and listen to the show!?

This week saw reports of an almost unprecedented number of bicycle fatalities from coast to coast and from north to south. The admonition “be careful out there” is taking on a whole new meaning in light of these incidents and I decided to go outside my usual purview to look at the Roanoke, Virginia area – which had a triple whammy of fatal bike crashes back in March – from the perspective of an active cyclist who also happens to write for the “Roanoke Times” on these matters.

Dan Casey is the Metro Columnist for the Roanoke Times in Roanoke, VA and a 20+ year veteran cyclist. Dan puts an up-close and human spin to three fatal bike crashes that occurred in March in Roanoke as well as an update on a rider who is recovering from a recent and scary crash while on a long-distance training ride. We’ll also learn how Roanoke is starting to address the car-bike situation with their annual “Rally for Road Safety” events.

I also welcome Bicycle Retailer and Industry News web editor Steve Frothingham back to the show for a chat about how bicycle-media embargoes work and how the timing of new product introductions are handled by the media as well as a frank discussion about the changing environment for bicycle dealers in an ever more competitive environment.

Show #198 – June 14, 2014

Guests: Tour of Utah’s Jenn Andrs; Senior Cycling Tours owner Pat Blackmon; Garmin-Sharp team pro Phil Gaimon

Sometimes you just hit a home run with a great selection of guests, news, and commentary.  I think we’ve done that this week.

Jenn Adnrs, project manager, from the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah fills us in on this “Toughest of the U.S. Stage Races” with all the details of distances (LONG), climbing (RIDICULOUS for mere mortals), and sprints (LOTS OF THEM).  Coming to Fox Sports each day or streaming on line, you can watch the 16 teams compete from August 4-10.

Are you over 50? Do you like things “handled” for you?  Well, Pat Blackmon rode cross country with Woman Tours a few years back and said – WOW – I’m going to start Senior Cycling Tours that caters to active seniors.  And, so she did.  With many of her 2014 tours already sold out, I caught up with Pat – who is 75 by the way – at a softball tournament in Henerdonville, TN to tell me all about her tours and what makes them so irresistible.

After a short break with some current events, we head on out to Burbank, CA to speak with racing pro Phil Gaimon (Garmin-Sharp) about his new book, “Pro Cycling on $10 A Day – From Fat Kid to Euro Pro“.

Phil really was a fat kid and without mincing words, tells what it is like to slog through the amateur ranks and come out as an elite pro racer.  Along the way, he relates some hilarious stories and gives excellent advice.

The conversation proves to be enjoyable and fun , just like his book.  (PS – you can get a signed copy of Phil’s book on his web site!)

 

 

Show #197 – June 7, 2014

Guests: NJ Walk & Bike Coalition Executive Director Cyndi Steiner; 6-time National Cyclocross Champion Tim Johnson

Two weeks in a row – Tim has another shout-out for a downed cyclist friend. So – we’re hoping we won’t need to have a third!

After our short commentary on the Maple Highlands Trail, which is right here in NE Ohio, we head on out to Montclair, New Jersey to speak with Cyndi Steiner. Cyndi is the Executive Director of the NJ Walk & Bike Coaltion. From getting the Port Authority of NY to stop before removing all access for bicyclists and pedestrians from the George Washington Bridge to working with World Bicycle Relief in Zambia, seeing first-hand what a bicycle can do for someone who might otherwise remain in abject poverty, Cyndi gets it DONE – with a capital D.

We then head on up to Quebec to speak with 6-time National CycloCross Champion Tim Johnson. Modest, smart, and without a doubt one of the “good guys” in our vast sport of cycling, Tim made the connection between pro cycling and advocacy at the 2010 National Bike Summit and found a new way to promote not just his sponsors and his sport, but the basic connection between the bicycle and those who ride at all levels.

Show #196 – May 31, 2014

Guests: Tech Guru and author Richard Hallett; Traithlete David Brumley; Tour de France announcer and television “star” Paul Sherwen

We’re back with another brand new edition of the Outspoken Cyclist and welcome three guests with very diverse stories.

For those who enjoy the nitty-gritty of cycling, U.K. “tech Guru” Richard Hallett will offer up a delightful “deconstruction” of the machine in his new book: “The Bike Deconstructed – A Grand Tour of the Modern Bicycle” Richard talks about history, materials, the 650B wheel, and what he thinks about disc brakes for road bikes – among a lot of other things. Richard is also a frame builder – specializing in steel frames at RichardHalletBikes.com. The book is a coffee-table quality oversize tome with many lovely photographs and a lot of tech-talk in layman’s terms.

Second up is triathlete David Brumley. By all rights, David should be happy to just walk to the end of his driveway and pick up the local paper in the mornings, but a question from his then 3-year old daughter in 2008 made him take a more proactive role in the management of his chronic and incurable disease CVID. We’ll learn what it is, why it often goes un-diagnosed even though the patient is ill much of the time, and how David has become a super Dad for his daughter! Since his “epiphany” about his situation, he’s decided to share his experience and give back to the “Primary Immune Deficiency – PI” community with his Triforbetter.com organization.

After a short break, we’ll scurry back with some news and then head on over to Uganda to speak with one of the most famous cycling voices on the planet. Paul Sherwen is the historian and storyteller at the major races like the Tour de France, The Amgen Tour of California, and many more. What you’ll learn though is more about Paul and his how his background reaches back many decades into our sport. It’s a delightful chat!
Enjoy!

Show #195 – May 25, 2014

Flying solo this week! And, I’ve got a jam-packed show for you.

We start out with our friend Charles Pelkey – The Live Update Guy (AKA “LUG”) – as he’s blogging and covering the Giro D’Italia. In what was a clear upset, Rigoberto Uran (Omega Pharma-Quick Step), snatched the lead from Cadel Evans in last Thursday’s only time trial of the 3-week event. Charles thinks there is still a lot left in the last week of the Giro with all the mountain stages still to come.

We’ll speak with Kate Powlison from People for Bikes, who gives us some information about “United for Bikes”. a special month-long initiative from PFB and World Bicycle Relief for National Bike Month. In addition to raising funds for both organizations, a generous anonymous donor has pledged another $10,000 in matching funds over the next few days!

We’ll hustle on down to my hometown, Cincinnati to speak with Ohio Bicycle Federation board member and “the Ohio Bike Lawyer” Steve Magas.  Steve will fill us in on an upcoming State House Bill 145 AKA “The 3 foot bill” – which is running into opposition but perhaps not for the reasons you might originally think.

After a short break, I’ll speak with endurance athlete and former junkie (yep, you heard that right!) Shane Niemeyer. He unfurls his no-holds-barred, raw, and unfiltered story in his just released book “The Hurt Artist – My Journey from Suicidal Junkie to Ironman” (by St. Martin’s Press). This is one of the best books I’ve read this year AND it is quite the page turner.

Show #194 – May 17, 2014

Guests: Photographer Gil Garcetti; Amgen’s Kathryn West; Journalist Warren Cornwall

Things are always better in threes and tonight is no exception.

First up, we’ll speak with award winning photographer Gil Garcetti. Gil started out as an attorney, became the Los Angeles Prosecutor, and was then elected L.A.’s District Attorney; but, a photograph of the iron-workers building the Walt Disney Concert Hall led to a book that led to more books that led to the one we are going to discuss this evening: Paris: Women & Bicycles. Gil’s approach to his subject matter and his subsequent finished projects show a much deeper relationship between Gil,  his subjects, and the social issues that are evoked in his photographs.

Then, we’ll talk with Kathryn West, Director of Advocacy for Amgen.  As the Amgen Tour of California winds down this weekend, a series of events will be taking a place right alongside the racing pros from the Breakaway from Cancer foundation.   Honoring those who have given back to the cancer community at large, Breakaway from Cancer partners with four non-profits to make living with, surviving from, and being a supporter of a person dealing with cancer easier.

Finally, I listened to a great show on NPR West from last weekend titled Athletes Chased by Technology in the Sport of Anti-Doping – the interviewee was Warren Cornwall and I decided right then and there that I wanted to talk with him.  In doing my research I found that he not only had explored this topic but also the scary topic of why a number of seemingly otherwise healthy triathletes never make it out of the water alive.  Warren spent time at Mass-General in Boston with Dr. Aaron Baggish – who is the Associate Director of the  Cardiovascular Performance Program.  We’ll learn what Warren found out about testing and whether you should be worried.

Show #193 – May 10, 2014

Guests: Author Terry Kerber; Craig Calfee

In his foreword to the new book “Major Taylor – The Inspiring Story of a Black Cyclist and the Men Who Helped Him Achieve Worldwide Fame” – Greg LeMond wrote: “In order to reach the pinnacle of their chosen sport, all professional athletes have to endure countless setback and unforeseen hardships.”

Major Taylor WAS at the pinnacle of bike racing in his day and his hardships were excruciatingly difficult to imagine; but, brothers and authors Terry and Conrad Kerber captured Taylor’s life, career, and history eloquently in their new book. My interview with Terry barely scratches the surface; hopefully, you’ll want to know a lot more!

When you think carbon fiber and frame building the first name to come to mind is Craig Calfee. Craig joins me to talk about his new bike, The Manta, as well as some innovations in materials as well as his involvement in a new project in the Congo.