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Show #388 – February 17, 2018

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Guests: Peter Wilborn; Mary Wisnewski; encore interview with Rody Walter

RADIOTHON 2018!!! Yep – it’s time to log on to wjcu.org and pledge your support for the show AND the station. We only do this once a year and all of the money raised goes directly to the station! Any amount is greatly appreciated – and, thanks for listening!

Over the past year, we have reported on cyclists who have been hit – often fatally – while riding. We haven’t however, talked much about cyclists who crash by virtue of obstacles in their paths – obstacles like potholes or sewer grates or raised barriers that are difficult if not impossible to see.

Cyclists have been badly injured – sometimes sustaining permanent disabilities – and their equipment has been damaged.
Now that the roads are beginning to show the ravages of winter, I thought it would be a good time to talk about what you can and probably should do if you encounter these types of issues.

My first guest is Bike Law’s Peter Wilborn. Peter knows all too well about cyclists who are injured and equipment that is damaged as he has devoted his legal career to their causes. We walk about what to do if you encounter a road hazard, what needs to change when it comes to being less vulnerable on the road, and ends with a plea to “keep on riding”.

After a break, Chicago Tribune transportation reporter Mary Wisnewski talks to me about the work she has been doing in her town to shed some light on the disparity among residents who are being ticketed to minor cycling infractions. Her 2017 article “Biking While Black: Chicago Minority Areas See The Most Bike Tickets” was followed up this week with her column Black neighborhoods still see most bike tickets, police data show.

Mary and I talk about what the statistics show and how, while the number of tickets is decreasing, the disparity is staying the same.

Finally, since this is NAHBS weekend – and, unfortunately, circumstances did NOT pan out for me to attend the show, I thought I’d bring back one of my favorite people in an encore interview. Rody Walter from Groovy Cycles in Wooster, Ohio has been my guest a couple of times and was also a member of my frame builder’s panel in Sacramento.

He has a smart and unique view of the custom bike world and I thought hearing this conversation again would whet your appetite for some fancy bikes.

#nahbstweets will be goin on all weekend and beyond to showcase some of the beautiful equipment being exhibited in Connecticut.

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Show #387 – February 10, 2018

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Guests: Heather Dowd & Beppe Salerno; Chris Gillemet; Craig Calfee

Good stuff this week!

My first guests are Heather Dowd and Beppe Salerno – a husband and wife team. They own and operate Tourissimo Bike Tours, and this year they are offering 4 Chef Bike Tours. An American chef will ride with the guests as each tour explores the country, the traditions, the food, and the wine.

Then, we learn about VeloF ix – the mobile repair franchise – with founder Chris Gillemet. Chris takes us into the van, how the mobile app works, and why mobile repair is growing when so many bike shops are floundering.

Lastly, we check in with Craig Calfee from Calfee Designs. As always, he has so many projects in the works. Today we talk about Cyclists for Cultural Exchange and a trip to Cuba as well as Craig’s projects outside of the cycling world.

 

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Show #386 – February 3, 2018

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Guests: Susie Marcks; Richard Fries, Don Walker

I cover a wide range of topics this week starting with toddlers on balance bikes.

My first guest, Susie Marcks, is the media voice of Strider Bikes. When the company was founded in 2007, the founder, Ryan McFarland, realized that his child needed and wanted to learn to ride. As with many children, training wheels were not working – and, Strider was born.

Today, the company has arguably become that “first bike” for thousands of kids from toddler through the 20″ BMX machine.

Then, there are the Strider Cup races, the World Championship, the partnerships, the philanthropy, and so much more.

Then, I have conversation with Mass Bike’s Richard Fries, a frequent guest on the show.

While Richard and Mass Bike are doing some amazing advocacy feats in Massachusetts, our conversation today is once again about the serious issue of police officials getting it wrong when a crash occurs – in these instances killing the rider.

We pick up the story of Dr. Anita Kurmann who was riding in her lane, carefully navigating traffic. In a video compiled from traffic cameras in the area, Richard tells us about the 16 seconds that the driver of the truck had Dr. Kurman in his mirrors, yet turned right anyway. She never had a chance.

What happened in the aftermath is the heart of our discussion about what it is going to take to enforce the laws, teach the police and prosecutors, and in effect change the system.

Finally, it’s time for the 2018 North American Handmade Bike Show and this year it is finally on the east coast in Hartford, CT.

Kicking off on Friday, February 16th and running through that weekend, NAHBS is celebrating 13 years of beautiful bikes, interesting and educational seminars, and a look into the myriad ideas of the handmade machine.

Show director Don Walker will give us the rundown on the event and how it has changed the industry.

 

 

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Show #385 – January 27, 2018

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Guests: Dr. Tod Olin, Bobby Sweeting, Shawn Spencer

This week we go in three different directions – all of which are interesting, enlightening, and even fun!

First up is a conversation with Dr. Tod Olin from National Jewish Health Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Dr. Olin is a pediatric pulmonologist specializing in breathing issues in athletes.

One in particular, EILO – exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction – is more obscure than asthma and very scary to someone experiencing the symptoms. Occurring at high-intensity training and racing, the runner, cyclist, triathlete, or swimmer suddenly feels as if s/he can’t breathe and emits a hoarse, raspy sound.

Dr. Olin explains the condition and how breathing techniques he’s been able to develop can alleviate and even prevent symptoms from occurring.

Then, it’s a “tech talk” about carbon fiber, rims, hubs, and lacing patterns with Bobby Sweeting, co-owner of Alto Cycling in Sarasota, Florida. From his time as a competitive rider and experiencing some of the issues that occur with carbon fiber wheels, he and his partner Shawn Gravois, both graduates of University of Florida in mechanical engineering, have been developing a “better wheel” design – one that will add stability, stiffness, responsiveness, and comfort.

My final guest is Shawn Spencer, owner of Bike Cycles in Wilmington, NC. Shawn is also the event chair for the 4th annual US Open Fat Bike Beach Championship on Wrightsville Beach, NC.

Evidently, it’s a “thing” – racing your fat tire bike in sand – and it sounds like both a lot of fun AND a lot of hard work. Shawn fills us in on the event and the Wrightsville Beach Foundation, which benefits from it.

Enjoy the show!

 

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Show #384 – January 20, 2018

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Guests: Chris Coursey; Coryn Rivera; Sylvan Adams

Three up this week, beginning with the Mayor of Santa Rosa, Chris Coursey. He’s an avid cyclist, a journalist, and became Mayor in 2016.

Our conversation covers some pretty tough territory as the city lost 44 lives and 3,000 homes in the fires last October. Chris is steadfast in his desire to see the city recover and we talk about rebuilding, the cycling scene, and how the climate has changed over the years.

It’s a tough and hopeful conversation.

Then, I take a Skype trip over to Spain to speak with Coryn Rivera. While she doesn’t make much of a big deal about it, she IS a big deal!

Starting her racing career with a win at 10 years old, she has amassed more than 75 titles – both in the U.S. and around the world – in a variety of disciplines as a junior.

Now racing as a pro for Team Sunweb, Coryn gives us a glimpse into women’s cycling and what she thinks is going to propel it into the limelight.

Last – but absolutely not least – is my conversation with Sylvan Adams, the mighty force behind the Israel Cycling Academy, the 3-stage start of the Giro D’Italia in the Middle East, a new Velodrome project in Tel Aviv, and a host of other cycling related plans for the country of Israel.

Sylvan boasts a host of gold medals earned after he turned 40 when he took up competitive bicycle racing. Two years ago, he and his wife moved to Israel and his love of cycling is showing up all over the country – and the world.

Grab your gear and let’s go…

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Show #383 – January 13, 2018

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Guests: Ben Serotta; Max Leonard

This week, we catch up with the iconic and ever re-inventing himself Ben Serotta.

Like the Phoenix rising, Ben launched his new serottadesignstudio.com website on Monday and I’ll have a lengthy conversation with him about his new venture.

We cover a lot of ground – including the bike models he is offering, why he chose steel and aluminum for materials, and which groupsets he decided to offer.

In the second half of the show, it’s off to the French Riviera to speak with author and avid cyclist, Max Leonard.

Max’s book, Lanterne Rouge, talked about the “last rider” in the Tour de France.

In his new book, Higher Calling, Max recounts stories dating back to the beginning of grand tour racing and bringing us right up to the present – as they relate to the seeming obsession cyclists have with the mountains. He talks of the victories and defeats – great joy and deep sorrows – in a beautifully researched history.

This may just be one of those books we can’t put down.

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Show #382 – January 6, 2018

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Guests: Peter Williams, Steve DelMonte, Sean Walling

Happy, happy 2018!

I hope you are warm and safe – away from the bitter winds and “cyclone bombs”.

For our first show of the year, I wanted to take you far away from the cold and snow; so, we’re going to talk about summer time bicycle tours, a brand new triathlon, and chat with a frame builder who has been on my radar for a long time.

Peter Williams owns Eastwind Cycle, a rather unusual touring company out of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Instead of picking a tour from a catalog, Eastwind tailors your Canadian tour exactly the way you want it. Whether it’s for two or twenty, Peter will offer up routes that include those sites you want to see, the distances you want to ride, the kind of food you want to eat, and the places you want to stay.

There is a new option coming on line in Spring for a Cuba Oriente tour that highlights pristine parts of Cuba not usually touted in the usual brochures and ads for the country.

We chat about all of this and talk a bit about Canadian Wine Country too…

Then, I speak with Steve DelMonte from Delmo Sports, a boutique racing organization that offers events within a very small area of the east coast. Steve’s award winning race series will add the Philadelphia All Women’s Sprint Triathlon this coming July.

I wanted to know why he stays within the small radius of his home in the southern tip of New Jersey, why he’s producing an all-women’s tri, and what matters to him as a race director.

Lastly, it’s a long chat with Sean Walling from Soulcraft Bikes in Petaluma, California.

Back in 2012 when Brian and I were on the west coast, we drove up to Petaluma to visit the original Salsa Cycle guy, Ross Shafer. There, on the quirky and extensive property that Ross and his wife own, was the workshop for Soulcraft Bikes.

Proprietor Sean Walling worked with Ross for many years until striking out on his own along with Matt Nyiri to form Soulcraft. Today, Sean is the owner, framebuilder, and janitor at the company and we’re going to delve into his philosophy and ideas about building steel frames.

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Show #381 – December 30, 2017

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Guests: Evelin Bourne; Dan Wuori

Our final show of the year! WOW – it went by super fast it seems.

Tonight, it’s once again round-the-globe to Christchurch, New Zealand this time to speak with Evelin Bourne. Evelin and I “met” on FaceBook and as I followed some of the things she was doing and saying, I wanted to know more about her.

American born and raised, Evelin and her wife, Karen Taylor, took a bicycle tour to New Zealand to celebrate 20 years together… and Evelin decided THAT was where she wanted to live.

Along with their Corgi Potter, they moved “down under” in 2006 and they absolutely LOVE the country that is now their permanent home.

We talk about Evelin’s journey to NZ, why she rides, and how that fateful bicycle tour resulted in the move.

Then, it’s my year-end cycling news wrap-up with Velo News‘ Dan Wuori. Dan covers the competitive news while I expound on a variety of 2017’s “other” newsworthy cycling stories.

We talk Chris Froome (how could you not?), heart issues, Coryn Rivera, legislation, and more…

Lastly, let me take a moment to thank you all for listening to the show and wish you a Happy, Healthy, ans Safe New Year.

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Show #380 – December 23, 2017

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Guests: Keith Laughlin, David Coventry

Happy, happy holidays everyone!

This week, I speak with Keith Laughlin from Rails-to-Trails as our last end-of-year charitable gift idea. We talk about the vast numbers of trails, the future of the trail system, and some programs that will be launched in 2018.

Then, award winning author David Coventry joins me via Skype from Wellington, New Zealand to talk about his book The Invisible Mile.

The story revolves around the 1928 Tour de France and the Ravat-Wonder team – the first English speaking team to compete in the grueling race. The story is told from the first-person perspective of an “unnamed” protagonist and delves deeply into the psyche of racing.

Then, I once again offer up Maynard Hershon‘s “Nice Wheels” as a “feel good” story for the holiday season.

The show isn’t long – but, it’s full of good stuff!

Happy Holidays!

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Show #379 – December 16, 2017

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Guests: Leah Missbach Day; Aimee Ross; Patrick Brady

Twas the week before Christmas and there is snow on the ground here in NE Ohio.

But, we’ll bring some conversations to warm the heart as we look at our last “gift giving” show for the season.

My first guest is the co-founder of World Bicycle Relief, Leah Missbach Day. When Leah and her husband F.K. learned of the devastating tsunami in 2005, they flew to Indonesia to see how they could help. Out of that trip, World Bicycle Relief was founded and now, 12 years later, the organization is approaching 400,000 bicycles on the ground and working in a variety of African and Indonesian countries.

Leah gives us some insight into who needs these bicycles and how they help to keep people healthy, educate the young girls and women who receive a bike, and keep businesses thriving.

Then, IMBA‘s director of brand development Aimee Ross tells us about the “Dig In” campaign that is giving 68 mountain bike projects a lifeline in the form of grants and assistance. Aimee takes us back to the beginning of the mountain bike era and propels us forward explaining how IMBA helps facilitate projects all over the U.S. with its local chapters and millions of volunteers hours.

Lastly, Red Kite Prayer’s Patrick Brady gives us his first-hand insight into the fires that have been and are still devastating California. Evacuated from his home for almost two weeks, Patrick tells us about the scores of boxes that have arrived to help local riders who lost everything to the fires as well as what the Sonoma Pride campaign is doing to get peoples’ lives back on track.

If you are ready to write those year-end giving checks, perhaps one of more of these three conversations will help you make up your mind.

Happy holidays from The Outspoken Cyclist! And, here’s to a peaceful, healthy, and happy 2018!