Tag: Caron Whitaker

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Show #684 – February 8, 2026

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Guests: Caron Whitaker; Andy McGrath

I have a bit of housekeeping before we get to our two great guests today.

First – it’s WJCU’s annual fundraiser – RADIOTHON! This year’s theme “Carrying the Torch for College Radio,” is particularly pertinent as another well-loved local college station was recently sold and converted to our local NPR affiliate for a jazz format, much to the disappointment of Cleveland State University! 

But WJCU – 88.7on your FM dial here in NE Ohio, is alive and well.  The station is the on-air voice of John Carroll University and has been the gracious host for The Outspoken Cyclist since our very first show in September of 2010. 

At that time, we produced the podcast as a companion to our one-hour radio show. Eventually we phased out the radio show and continued to offer the podcast. Now, 16 years and 683 shows later, we are so honored that WJCU has seen fit to continue to partner with us.

Here’s just a little bit about why I’m so proud to be a part of WJCU.  The station is the reigning International Student Broadcasting Championship People’s Choice Radio Station and College Media Association Pinnacle Awards Small College Audio Outlet of the Year. It has established itself as a worldwide leader in college radio.

SO – All of this is said in the hopes that you will help support their work, which in turn gives me the platform I am so honored to have. 

Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to the station.  All the money raised during Radiothon goes directly to the station – not the University. 

Just log on to WJCU.org and click the pledge button.  Make sure you let them know you are an Outspoken Cyclist listener too!  And, thanks!

Item #2 is about my conversation with Maynard Hershon and his new book, The Dysfunctional Cycling Club.  I neglected to give you a way to contact Maynard directly: You can find him at buymeacoffee.com and search for Maynard Hershon.

Okay – let’s get to it.

My show this week includes a conversation with Caron Whitaker, the Deputy Executive Director of the League of American Bicyclists.

With the upcoming re-authorization of the Transportation Bill this fall – well, the supposed re-authorization – there is the opportunity to include a bill that would require automobile manufacturers to incorporate automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems that reliably detect pedestrians, cyclists, and other vulnerable road users in real-world conditions — day and night.

Its goal is simple: ensure lifesaving technology that actually works for everyone, before crashes happen.

Caron also walks us through the Magnus White Cyclist Safety Act  along with information on the upcoming National Bike Summit.  

Caron gives us a Cliff’s Notes Course on that bill and what else is happening in Washington as well as how we can help.

My second guest is Andy McGrath.  Andy is an award-winning freelance journalist, and he began our conversation with a super fun fact – he’s a triplet!

I’ve only ever known one other set of triplets; their Mom was a client of ours.  Such a cool fact!

 Andy McGrath’s career as an author pretty much began with an award winning book – Tom Simpson: Bird on the Wire, which won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award 2017.

Anyway, Andy has written a biography of Tadej Pogacar titled “Unstoppable.”   An apt title if there ever was one, yes?

And I think our conversation has to be one of my all-time favorites.  Andy is thoughtful, forthright, and has truly done his due diligence in authoring this book.  I think you’ll agree.

He’s a former editor of Rouleur magazine, worked at Cycling Weekly and Cycle Sport, and has written on cycling for the Guardian, the Telegraph, and Financial Times.

Hi new book, Unstoppable, is the first biography of the cycling sensation, Tadej Pogocar.  Deeply and carefully researched, Andy covers the champion and his development over the years from Tadej’s beginnings as a small child in Slovenia to his meteoric rise as the 4-time winner of the Tour de France.

 

 

Transcript_February 8

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Show #547 – March 20, 2021

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Guests: Paul Tolme & Ethan Campbell; Joe Lindsey: Caron Whitaker

I want to begin with a statement and a question.

We 100% support the wearing of bicycle helmets – for everyone. That said, should there be a legal mandate insisting that everyone wear one when riding?

We begin with King County, Washington, into which Seattle’s boundaries fall. It’s had a bicycle helmet law on the books for YEARS. The law was marginally enforced for a while and then enforcement just sort of dropped off. However, citations are still being issued.

That begged several questions – why had it dropped off? And, if citations are still being issued, what are the circumstances around that?

Now, that law is being challenged and there is a campaign to have it struck down. I speak with PhD student Ethan Campbell – whose field of study is not even remotely connected to the topic of bicycle helmets by the way – and to Paul Tolme, content strategy and media relations manager for the Cascade Bicycle Club out in Seattle.

Then, we do a quick check-in with journalist Joe Lindsey. Like me, he watches the news carefully for bicycle-related stories and we both caught the story about former NBA star Shawn Bradley who was seriously injured back in January while riding his bike.

And while t hat’s a big story unto itself, it is the media’s coverage that irked both of us.

From renown news outlets such as cbsnews, espn, , abc, tmz, and more, the reporting about former NBA star Shawn Bradley, is just wrong. As we have had drilled into our heads over the past few years, these are not ACCIDENTS – they are crashes.

And, since I always like Joe’s straight forward thinking on these types of things, I knew he would have some helpful and insightful things to say.  (Read Joe’s article about this topic!)

Lastly, we speak with Deputy Executive Director of the LAB, Caron Whitaker. This year’s National Bike Summit wrapped up recently and I thought we should all be aware of what resulted in this unusual time of not being able to actually see our legislators face-to-face – well, unless you consider Zoom.

I want to preface my conversation with Caron Whitaker with an apology for the sound quality on Caron’s end. I was unable to clear up some of the distortion in editing; but, the conversation was too good to discard all together.

This year’s National Bike Summit was, of course, virtual. What I didn’t expect though was how incredibly successful it turned out to be!

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Show #496 – March 21, 2020

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Guests: Dr. Michael Lewis; Betsy Welch; Frank Yohannan, Caron Whitaker

Hello and welcome to TOC. I’m your host Diane Jenks and this is our show for March 21, 2020. Happy spring! Well… maybe.

It’s been a really rough week for everyone – regardless of where you live and what you ordinarily do.

So, when deciding what to share with you this week, I was pleasantly surprised by a message about Dr. Michael Lewis. At first, I thought – well, he has more knowledge than probably 99% of us about how infectious diseases work; but, more importantly, he has a lot of things to share that will give you hope and help you to persevere in these incredibly daunting and trying times.

Then, we’ll speak with Velo News’ Senior Editor, Betsy Welch. I wanted to check in to see what the Velo News staff is doing and how they will cover the now mostly cancelled racing season.

I was disappointed that I wouldn’t be able to attend Sea Otter in Monterey next month. I had such big plans! BUT, not to worry… Sea Otter has been rescheduled and we are going to hear all about it when I welcome Frank Yohannan, the CEO of the Sea Otter Classic, to the show.

And, finally, we’ll chat with the LAB’s VP for Government Relations , Caron Whitaker about the now virtual Bike Summit and how they not only pulled it together at the last minute; but, how you can actually participate in every single break out session, the keynote address, and even get in on the Capitol Hill ask.

I want to add one more thing – I am sure you are up to your proverbial ears in what all the experts are saying, with all the day-long coverage of how we don’t have enough masks, ventilators, beds, or trained workers – BUT, if you are healthy, you can jump on your bike and just ride around the neighborhood or take to a local trail, or walk your dog around the block. There is an excellent book, “To Be Healed By The Earth” by Warren Grossman that I highly recommend if you are interested. Check it out on Amazon.com. I think it could be a ray of sunshine in an otherwise gray landscape.

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Show #482 – December 14, 2019

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Guests: Dan Burden; Caron Whitaker; Tori Fahey

It may not seem as if anything is getting done in Washington besides the impeachment hearings, but in fact, there are Representatives who are doing the work they were elected to do – introduce and pass bills that, hopefully will make our lives better.

HR5231 is one of those bills and this evening, LAB’s Caron Whitaker tells us what it is, why it’s important, and what we can do to push it along in the process. Carol will be with me a bit later in the show.

We’ll take a trip across the pond to chat with Tori Fahey about her company Apidura – Tori left the corporate world, found long distance cycling – I mean LONG distances – and, out of her experiences, she started her company Apidura.

She and her team design ultra light bikepacking equipment and offer up an interactive web site that also helps you find the adventures you want to take.

But first up tonight, we talk with one of the original founders of Adventure Cycling. Dan Burden is 75 now and should be retired, right? Um – no… he has reinvented himself and works with Dan Buettner at Blue Zones as the Director of Innovation and Inspiration. (Which he will translate for us in a minute)

What’s a Blue Zone you ask? A Blue Zone is a non-scientific term given to geographic regions that are home to some of the world’s oldest people – like centenarians – you know, people who live past 100. But, I’ll let him tell you the rest.

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Show #429 – December 1, 2018

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Guests: Caron Whitaker; Luke Humphreys, Simon Firth

URGENT REQUEST FROM THE LEAGUE OF AMERICAN BICYCLISTS!

My first guest is Caron Whitaker, VP for Government Relations with the LAB. She is asking that we take action if we are interested in seeing a bill that is currently before the Senate coming up for a vote in it’s current form from being passed.

The AV Start Act, will give manufacturers of autonomous vehicles a ton of leeway in setting safety standards as the bill is currently worded. The LAB is requesting that we call – which is preferable over email – our Senators.

Then, I talk with the new CEO of Pacenti Cycle Design. Luke Humphreys is a long-time bicycle industry guy and recently took over the reigns of Pacenti with some very specific goals for the company. One of them is to bring customers up-to-date with current product and has instituted a “rim amnesty” that will do just that.

Last, and absolutely NOT least, is an extended and delightful conversation with Simon Firth – one of the proprietors of Firth & Wilson Transport Cycles in Philadelphia. Pa.

Originally hailing from England, Simon came over to the States for a vacation and stayed! He’s been involved in the bicycle industry for a very long time, spending over 15 years with Bilenky Cycle Works for example.

Simon and his wife Victoria, along with partner David Wilson opened Firth & Wilson Transport Cycles a couple of years ago and Simon and I talk about his history, the shops, and of course his dog Archie!