Show #105 – September 1, 2012

Guests: Charles Pelkey, Keith Laughlin

Charles Pelkey is an attorney, cyclist, and regular contributor to Red Kite Prayer. With more articles about Lance Armstrong, the USADA, the UCI, and doping accusations, it seems almost impossible to sort it all out.  Charles puts it all in perspective and more.

Keith Laughlin is the President of Rails to Trails and lives in Washington, DC.  Keith is also one of the best informed cycling professionals I know.  He is keenly aware of what is happening in Congress and around the country as it pertains to cycling advocacy.  In this election year, Keith helps us understand what is at stake and what you can do to make syre that bicycles are not shoved under the rug.

Show #104 – August 25, 2012

8/25/2012
It’s one week to Labor Day, and definitely a time in the cycling year when we separate into the ‘glass half full’ and ‘glass half empty’ camps. Is it almost the end of the prime summer season, or simply the threshold of ‘bonus’ season? Regardless of your perspective, one directive is always appropriate: go ride your bike!

Our first guest should have his picture in the dictionary next to the entry for altruism. Bob Lee and his Ride for 3 Reasons have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for cancer research, ALS, and hospice funding. Because Bob covers his own expenses, all donations go directly to his designated charities. He’s headed out on the road again in September, so listen for all the details, including how you can contribute.

In the second half of today’s show, Diane chats with artist and framebuilder Dave Bohm. Dave owns Bohemian BicyclesAcel Tubing and Joining Products, and a framebuilding school. That’s right, if you have 10 days and some cash, you can build your own frame and fork with Dave’s expert guidance. A heckuva lot more useful than that bird house you built in shop class!

Show #103 – August 18, 2012

8/18/2012
We’re cruisin’ like a fat-tire single-speed at the beach this week. Lots of news to tell you about, and two great guests. What could be better?

Hans Rey is a mountain biking legend who has a new coffee table book entitled A Life of Mountain Bike Adventures: 25 Years of Riding the World. He also runs a charity dedicated to providing bikes to people who need them in developing countries. Wheels 4 Life reflects Hans’ passion and integrity by maximizing the direct impact of every dollar donated.

Mike Magnuson is a writer, musician and cyclist, not necessarily in that order. He’s been a contributor to Bicycling magazine for many years, and his latest book is Bike Tribes: A Field Guide to North American Cyclists. Beyond all that, he’s a hell of a fun guy to shoot the breeze with, which is exactly what Diane did this week.

We found a lot of variety in the cycling news which ranges from triathlete deaths to Metroparks sharrows to 13-year old hit and run drivers to trail funding to Route 66. Grab something cold and wet, kick off those cleats and join us for a wild ride on this week’s Outspoken Cyclist.

Show #102 – August 11, 2012

8/11/2012
Temperatures under 80 degrees? Skies that are cloudy (and occasionally rainy) all day? What can these things be? Just glad I didn’t sell my fenders and rain jacket yet. To celebrate the refreshing weather change, we’ve got two great guests lined up for you this week:

First, April Streeter talks about her new guidebook, Women on Wheels. April is a writer from Portland, Oregon, with an emphasis on environmental and women’s issues.

In the second half, Diane talks with adventurer, author and force of nature, Frosty Wooldridge. Frosty’s new book is How to Live a Life of Adventure: the Art of Exploring the World.

Finally, we send our condolences to the family of Stan Bugarcic, a local triathlete who died this week as a result of complications from a near-drowning at a race in Mentor, Ohio last Sunday. Plans for a memorial fund-raiser are pending. Keep listening to The Outspoken Cyclist for details on how you can help.

Show #101 = August 4, 2012

8/4/2012
August has arrived, and here on the (relatively) temperate north coast, that means peak season for local triathlons. The TOC crew (and their animals, I’m told) will be on hand to cheer for friends at the Greater Cleveland Triathlon tomorrow morning at Headlands State Park.

How appropriate then, that our first guest today is IronMadMan Ryan Schneider, who also writes for LAVA Magazine, (and has a day job in the video game industry). Ryan describes himself as the world’s least likely triathlete, and he maintains that anyone with the right motivation and dedication can complete an IronMan. Great stuff!

After the break and some news, Diane welcomes back Steve Magus, the Ohio Bike Lawyer to the show. In addition to his legal practice based in Cincinnati, Steve analyzes bicycle fatalities to see what really happened and if the law enforcement agencies got the story right. Steve also has great statistics that you can use to reduce your risk on the roa

Show #100 – July 28, 2012

7/28/2012
Your bike won’t roll without tires, and what would cycling be without kids to remind us of our roots? We’ve got both this week on the show.

Richard Goodwin joins us to talk about Hutchinson, one of the oldest surviving makers of bicycle equipment. Hutchinson is still manufacturing tires in France, and they are one of the leaders in tubeless technology for bicycles.

The Richmond Cycling Corps is just a couple years old, but their motto “Can’t Stop. Won’t Stop.” is a testament to their determination to use cycling to get kids from Richmond, Virginia out of public housing. Director Craig Dodson is one of the most passionate people you’ll ever meet, and we’ll hear from him about what Richmond Cycling Corps is doing, how, and why.

Show #99 – July 21, 2012

7/21/2012
As this year’s Tour wraps up, we hearken back to the 1986 TdF and the drama that existed between teammates Bernard Hinault and Greg LeMond. Freelance journalist and author Richard Moore has written a book about the two iconic riders entitled Slaying the Badger: LeMond, Hinault and the Greatest Ever Tour de France. It’s a well-written and riveting story, and we caught up with Richard Moore while he was in France this week covering the Tour.

We know that framebuilders build bike frames, but who builds the tools that framebuilders use? One of the people who makes those tools and fixtures is Don Ferris of Anvil Bikeworks in Golden, Colorado. Besides being a helluva toolmaker, Don is a really interesting guy with a knack for explaining complex concepts in a way even I can understand.

Show #98 – July 14, 2012

7/14/2012
It’s a week of questions and answers (some of the answers are even even correct!) on this week’s Outspoken Cyclist…

Should women be encouraged to ride bicycles? We don’t need the LAB’s Carolyn Szczepanski to tell us the answer to that one is “yes!” But we do need her and the National Women’s Bike Summit to help us figure out how to bring more women into cycling.

Does Indiana get more hours of daylight than Ohio? Does it rain more in Indy than in Cleveland? No and maybe, and you can find out for yourself by riding across Indiana in one day on the RAIN ride. Get all the details from RAIN Ride Director Jim Schroeder.

Workplace rules or unconstitutional witch hunt? You be the judge as Diane and I kibitz on the validity of the USADA investigation into Lance, Johann, and the Disco/Postal machine.

Should everything on your bike be made of carbon fiber? Only if it’s designed and made in the U.S.A. by Enve Composites. Get the stiff yet light scoop on this ubiquitous material from Enve CEO Jason Schiers.

Show #97 – July 7, 2012

First up is a return appearance by Chuck Harmon and Rachel Apple and their group of students from the Bronx Lab School, who are cycling around Ohio this week as part of the school’s innovative “Explore Weeks”.

If you’ve ever wanted to maintain or repair your own bike, Daimeon “Daimo” Shanks can help you with that. A former pro tour mechanic and co-owner of The Service Course (a repair-only bike shop) in Boulder, Colorado, has written a new book called Essential Bicycle Maintenance & Repair. The book targets the DIYer, and includes anecdotes from Daimo’s days wrenching on bikes in the pro peloton.

Finally, if you’re a mountain biker looking for a bucket list challenge, consider the TransRockies Challenge, coming up in late July. It’s a 3, 4, or 7-day mountain bike stage race in the Canadian Rockies with full nightly camp support. On the line from Seattle and Vancouver, we have Aaron McConnell & Simon Parker to tell you about this unique event, and how you can enter.

Show #96 – June 30, 2012

It’s the start of the Tour de France and we begin this show with some insight into what might be coming up by by welcoming Bicycling.com editor Daniel McMahon, who gives us his take on the array of disarray heading into the 21012 Tour de France. Who’s out, who’s in, who was out, and is now back in: Daniel sorts it out for us.

Then, we switch over to a journalist I very much admire who has a broad and interesting perspective on transportation, cities, and the socio-political scene. Salon.com columnist Will Doig writes a regular column called Dream City, and I always enjoy reading them.

To get a first-hand impression of the impact of the wild files currently raging in Colorado, we check in with Jim Rutberg of Carmichael Training Systems. Because of the fires, the air quality in the Colorado Springs are has degraded to the point where it’s unsafe to train outdoors. So Carmichael has opened its facility free of charge to anyone in the area who wants to ride or run indoors.

Wrapping up, we head for Berkley, California to speak with Ozzie Zehner, visiting scholar at UC Berkley, and author of a new book entitled Green Illusions: The Dirty Secrets of Clean Energy and the Future of Environmentalism. More recommended reading and listening, especially if you think you’re living a ‘green’ lifestyle.

Enjoy the show!