Tag: Tour de France

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Show #606 – July 20, 2022

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Guests: Bill Nesper; Dan Cavallari

Today, the question is – What is possible by bike?

With a new infrastructure bill, money in the coffers to build protected bike lanes and connect them, and more people riding eBikes, a whole lot more than we’ve ever experienced is possible.

My first conversation is with Bill Nesper, the executive director of the League of American Bicyclists.

Headquartered in Washington, DC, the League is our action committee on the ground to whisper in the ears of Congress about getting bicycle deals done. Bill and I talk about an urgent action alert to stop the defunding of the DOT – wait, what? Who would want to defund a program that is already appropriated?  My guess is you can guess who.

Then, don’t forget to go to bikeleague.org and sign-up for the League’s e-newsletter to get your action alerts and other Bike League news and information.  And, join the Drive Less_Bike More Challenge!

In the second half of the show, I want to introduce you to Dan Cavallari, the Slow Guy on the Fast Ride.

Dan was tech editor for Velo News for 6 years and now out on his own, he’s writing, riding, podcasting, playing guitar, and sipping good whiskey – he’s got a lot of cool things going.

For this year’s Tour de France, Dan Cavallari thought he’d try something different from what he’d done in the past.

Usually traveling with the rest of the journalists, Dan flew himself AND his trusty Merlin Road bike over to Copenhagen to “follow the tour” for a few stages.

He quickly figured out that, a. you don’t need a fancy road bike in Copenhagen, and he got most of the work he wanted to do done in the first five days.  Then, he flew back to the States to follow the Tour from home.

I caught up with him on Day 11 of the race and, if you have been watching, you know THAT was the day… the very day of the most exciting stage in YEARS!  (If you haven’t been watching, Dan says you need to at least see Stage 11.)

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Show #562 – July 3, 2021

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Guests: Leah Goldstein; Russell Newell

Well, this week saw some really cool things happen… Mark Cavendish winning some Tour de France stages, some impressive athletes in many disciplines ready to head to Tokyo for the Olympics, and a record breaker for the ages!

RAAM rider, Leah Goldstein crossed the finish line in Annapolis, MD in 11 days, 3 hours, and 3 minutes – ahead of EVERYONE ELSE!      Walking the last kilometer because she had nothing left, supported by her amazing crew, this endurance athlete says she’s not done yet.

So, who is Leah Goldstein?  Her storied career in sports started at the age of 9 and at 17 she became the world’s champion kickboxer.

While serving in the Israel Defense Forces she was introduced to the duathlon and between her love of the bike and her love of endurance sport – Leah, now 52, has become the first woman to win what is arguably the world’s toughest endurance event – Race Across America.

I knew there would be cameras and journalists and television and radio all wanting to talk with Leah, so I hurried up the moment I heard and sent a message to her crew chief, Lori Moger, and she set up our conversation – which you’ll hear in a moment!

Then, in a different kind of endurance event, we meet Russell Newell. 

Russell, who has been a speech writer for some luminaries in D.C. as well as working for Disney as director of executive communications, and is currently working for United Health Care, is presently living in the D.C. area with his wife and 4 children.

His good buddy, Jim Kane, challenged him to race an Ironman event in 2012.  And, Russell, who would apparently jump off a bridge if his friends did it said – okay.

Out of that race – and more Ironman events since – has come his book, Irondad Life – A Year of Bad Decisions and Questionable Motives – What I Learned on the Quest to Conquer Ironman Lake Placid.

The book is filled with hilarity, a little profanity, and a lot of great stories

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Show #561 – June 26, 2021

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Guests: Dr. Harriet Fell & John Allen; Spencer Martin & Steve Maxwell

Want to hear the best bicycle pick-up line ever?

Harriet Fell chased down Sheldon Brown on a ride in 1979 and her first words to him were “you’re riding fixed gear aren’t you? and the rest as they say, was history.

Sheldon and Harriet were married 8 months later.

 

 


(photo courtesy of Harriet Fell)

So fast forward to June 13, 2021 when Harris Cyclery, in Ma. – the home of Sheldon Brown.com – announced its closing – the shock waves could be felt throughout the cycling world about what was going to happen to Sheldon Brown’s immense archives AKA sheldonbrown.com.

NEVER FEAR! It’s not going anywhere.

In fact, since Sheldon passed away in 2008, the site, which belongs to his wife Harriet Fell, has been lovingly and painstakingly managed by both Harriet and technical writer John Allen.

So, I reached out to Harriet and John to have a chat about the site.

But, as I began to look into Harriet Fell – DR. Harriet Fell actually -I found someone much different from who I expected. So much for expectations!
Harriet has a PhD from MIT. She was a tenured professor in mathematics but moved over to the college of computer science at northeastern university as computers became more mainstream. She retired after more than 50 years with an amazing array of accomplishments in her fields of study.

Almost more interesting though is her history with bikes – from building an aluminum fixie frame in 1971 that ended up in France for many many years and became an important piece of an industry lawsuit, to riding 8,000+ miles in 2020. And, she turns 77 this year.

Joined in the second half of our conversation by technical writer John Allen, I think you will truly appreciate this amazing woman!

In the second half of the show, we check in with The Outer Line‘s Spencer Martin and Steve Maxwell for a preview of the Tour de France and some thoughts on the 2020 – now 2021 – Olympics and how the U.S. is and has chosen our team.

As Stage One gets going today, Spencer is pretty certain there are only a couple of riders strong enough to stand atop the podium in Paris in three weeks.

And, Steve and I once again discuss the absence of cycling on mainstream media and how our sport would so benefit from it.

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Show #532 – December 12, 2020

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Guests: Phil Liggett; Kathryn Bertine

We have a most interesting show today, highlighting two amazing people and the work that they do.

His voice is unmistakable and his ability to recall facts, figures, names, dates, and stages of any continental race for the past 4+ decades is staggering. Yes, my guest today is Phil Liggett.

Spending the 2020 cycling season at home in England, Phil Liggett was able to continue in his role as the voice of the TdF this year with the help of NBC, technology, and Bob Roll – who was in Connecticut. (How cool is today’s technology anyway?)

Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen had the longest running sports relationship in history – partnering for 33 years,

Paul was an integral part of the team that became the voice of cycling. But, two years ago this month, the world woke up to the news that Paul had died suddenly and the world lost a generous, smart, and dedicated man.

In an effort to continue Paul’s legacy of helping the people of Uganda, where he and his wife Kathryn lived, as well as keeping his memory alive, the Paul Sherwen Project was recently launched.

While we spoke of the 2020 season, what he believes will happen in 2021 and going forward, and other-things-bike, what we finally came to focus on was a new project that is near and dear to him – the Paul Sherwen Project.

Her voice is persistent, compelling, and gets amazing results as a professional cyclist, author, filmmaker and activist for women’s rights

Kathryn Bertine, whose documentary Half the Road still garners a regular royalty check 6 years later, signed her first professional cycling contract at the age of 37 only to experience being benched for one year, suffering verbal and physical abuse from the manager and staff.

Kathryn has taken the high road to success – using what she calls visionary teamwork and benevolent disruption to speak her truth which – it turns out – is what everybody is not only thinking, but what pretty much what everybody wants. – equality or at least equal opportunity.

After she signed her first professional contract, her female team manager warned her to keep quiet about the inequity in women’s sports. “Stop talking about this equality crap. No one will listen to you. You are a nothing, you are a no one.”

But as you will hear in the following conversation, Kathryn says that  Change is possible. Activism isn’t relegated to the wealthy, the famous, the politicians and superstars. We “regular people” have the power to make change happen, too.

(You can pre-order Kathryn’s new book, Stand, too!)

 

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Show #460 – July 6, 2019

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Guests: Aaron Gordon; (encore presentation with)Phil Liggett

Last week, we reported on the death of Robyn Hightman, a 20 year old messenger, bicycle ambassador, and evidently an up-and-coming competitive cyclist in NYC.

Then, 3 more cyclists were killed in rapid succession in NY and that brought the total for 2019 to 15. In all of 2018, there were 10 cycling deaths in the City.

Interestingly enough, NYC has a Vision Zero program on the books and a fairly large number of laws that seem to go unenforced; or, at least that is what you would be led to believe when the NYPD published a notice that said .they would enforce the traffic laws for three weeks beginning July 1st and ending July 21st.

Does that sound as ludicrous to you as it did to me? IF the laws are on the books why aren’t they enforced ALL THE TIME?

Why does it take multiple deaths to decide to enforce already in place laws? And, why do the police take the opportunity, immediately after a high-profile incident such as Robyn’s to begin ticketing cyclists in the area of the crash?

I actually have some answers… well, I spoke with someone who has SOME of the answers and understands the situation pretty well, including being one of those cyclists who was ticketed for an “infraction”.
Aaron Gordon is a senior investigative reporter for jalopnik – yes, it’s a car centered organization. Yet, he thinks that the work he’s doing now helps to inform his reporting on the many sides of transportation.

Then, as the Tour de France kicks off today in Brussels, and with the untimely loss of Paul Sherwen, I thought it might be appropriate to bring you an encore presentation of my 2014 conversation with the “voice of the Tour” Phil Liggett.

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Show #458 – June 22, 2019

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Guests: Eli Griffen; Molly Hurford; Dan Wuori

An item that came across my desk prompted me to get in touch with Rails-to-Trails and with Eli Griffen, the Manager for Trail Development Resources.

The topic is rail banking and I wanted to know more about it. Rail banking isn’t a new phenomenon; and, in fact, hundreds if not thousands of our rail-trails are due to the practice. Eli will explain it when we talk with him in a moment. He’ll also fill us in on some of the progress of the Great American Bike Trail.

We’ll have a quick chat with writer, coach, endurance athlete, and the proud author of Shred Girls – Lindsay’s Joy Ride. The much anticipated book was just published by Random House Kids and is the first in the Shred Girls series.
Last and always interesting, fun, and informative is our pre-Tour de France chat with Velo News’ Dan Wuori. With Chris Froome’s untimely crash at the Dauphine and a so-far lack luster spring for 2018 yellow jersey holder Thomas Geraint, it just might be anybody’s guess as to who will stand atop the podium in Paris this year.

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Show #450 – April 27, 2019

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Guests: Dan Wuori; Inga Thompson; Dr. Jonathan Hersch

First up, it’s time to check in with our man-in-the-pro-know Dan Wuori. With the Spring classics well under way, Dan will talk with us about some of the big stories from the cobbles, what’s going on with world champ Peter Sagan, and more.

Then, it’s a warm welcome back to retired pro and fierce women’s advocate, Inga Thomspon. Inga and I have been planning to chat for some time; but, we needed to wait until one of her new projects was in place.

The Inga Thompson Foundation – which is a not for profit enterprise – has launched with the goal of enabling women’s cycling with support of promising riders.

It’s especially timely because, after last week’s article about Rebecca Twigg, Inga has also dedicated a piece of her work to helping Rebecca.

Then, as promised, we have the first of our 4-part series on injuries that many cyclists face with orthopedic sports specialist Dr. Jonathan Hersch.

Dr. Hersch practices in Boca Raton, Florida and our episode tonight is about clavicles – collarbones if you will.

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Show #449 – April 20, 2019

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ENCORE PRESENTATIONS:

Guests: Shannon Galpin; Paul Sherwen

It might be an encore presentation this evening; but, I’ve reached back into the archives and pulled two GREAT conversations you might want to revisit or… perhaps you will be hearing them for the first time.

In this age of so much angst among women, one person stands out to me as a shining example of commitment, grit, and grace. Garnering the title of National Geographic’s Adventurer of the Year in 2013, Shannon Galpin has gone on to do some amazing things since our first conversation in 2015 and a subsequent catch-up in 2016, Shannon has since been around the world with her daughter to bring endangered species to the fore through art – a broad and successful project that took them to the far corners of the world.

Tonight, we revisit our April 30, 2016 conversation.

Then, as the 2019 pro season continues with the spring classics and then moves on toward the big events of the summer, I thought my chat with Paul Sherwen would be appropriate.

Although Paul passed away last December, he will be long remembered for his 3+ decades in the sport from 7 Tours de France and 2 British Cycling Championships to his witty and knowledgeable coverage of the Tour along with Phil Liggett.

Enjoy this week’s encore presentations and I hope you have a Happy Passover and Happy Easter (or just a happy weekend!)

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Show #430 – December 8, 2018

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Guests: Jacob VanSickle; Stephen Swift; Joe Roggenbuck

This week, we can congratulate ourselves for taking action and getting the AV Start Act language changed before the bill comes up before the Senate. Your calls and letters made a difference!

Then, we say a brief. sad goodbye to one of the most famous voices in our sport, Paul Sherwen. His untimely death at the age of 62 will leave an enormous gap in our enjoyment of the Tour de France in July.

Then, we welcome back Bike Cleveland‘s Executive Director, Jacob VanSickle. Last month, the advocacy organization presented a one-day Strategic Summit to re-cap where the organization is, what it has accomplished since its inception in 2011, and where it’s going… all of which is pretty impressive.

We speak with Stephen Swift who is about to wrap-up a 6 years, 26,000 mile journey that has helped him recover from unbearable loss and gives him hope for the future. He’s been both helped and harmed along the way; and, his forthright and honest description of life on the road tells a story unlike any we’ve heard in the past.

Our final guest this week is Joe Roggenbuck from Cobra Frames in Syracuse, NY. He’s a frame builder, a tool maker, and a very refreshing young man who sees his craft from the eyes of a 28 year old but with the wisdom of someone so much older.

 

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Show #408 – July 7, 2018

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Guests: Dan Wuori; Brent Curry

Tour de France time! And, Giro Rosa. Two great events. And, with me to discuss them both is the “man-in-the-know Dan Wuori.

We talk Chris Froome, whose anti-doping case was recently dropped by the UCI and WADA, some of the other teams who just might make waves at the Tour, and that new and very short 17th Stage.

Then, it’s a conversation with BikeCad‘s Brent Curry.

We talk about his couch-bike, treadmill-bike, and all about BikeCad – how it works, who uses it, and why it’s so popular.