A Missed Opportunity

Gifts which arrived with registration for Trans Iowa v11

Today there is a big registration party going on at District Cycles for the Mid-South event upcoming in March of 2026. District Cycles owner, Bobby Wintle, is the mastermind behind the event, and along with his wife, Crystal, they have leveraged every opportunity to promote their business alongside this event. 

Makes sense when you stop to consider it all. Why would one want to keep things separated - the event and the business - or why would one not want to hitch their wagon, as a business, to an event which draws in warm bodies to your establishment? 

These were my questions back twelve, fifteen years ago, as I was running Trans Iowa. In fact, Jeff Kerkove and I started Trans Iowa out of the bicycle shop we worked at. All along, for fourteen years, one might have thought Europa Cycle & Ski would have wanted to take advantage of what Trans Iowa was capable of bringing to the business.

Post card registrations for Trans Iowa v11

 But oddly enough, the owner did not take advantage of anything we could have benefited the business with. I recall one Trans Iowa registration where we had a dozen people waiting to get in the door to register. That's twelve plus people you wouldn't have had inside your business at any other time, but was there any effort to make anything out of this opportunity? 

Nope. 

And this was, and still is, baffling to my mind. I look at how Bobby Wintle handles this kind of thing and I can only shake my head at all the years of lost opportunities related to Trans Iowa and the bike shop I worked at then. I think about the buzz registration at the shop caused amongst the employees. Heck, even the mailman was excited every year about Trans Iowa. You'd think this would be a clue that possibly there was a nugget of opportunity waiting there.  An opportunity to bring in local cyclists to be a part of something cool and unique, and create goodwill amongst the locals for the shop. Maybe even sell some things. 

Yeah, it doesn't matter anymore. But whenever I see something like Mid-South's registration party, and remember Trans Iowa registration typically happened in November, one of the worst times for cycling retail in Iowa, and I cannot believe all the missed opportunities. 

But what do I know? I'm just some greasy bicycle mechanic.  

The Story Of Guitar Ted: Back To Shop Rat Status

 

A Guitar Ted Productions series

Welcome to this series on G-Ted Productions! This series will jump off from the time where the "Race Against Death Tour" ended and will take you up to the beginnings of Trans Iowa in late 2004. This is an eight year period where my life was transformed. You could say it was metamorphosed from the old to something quite new.

This won't have a lot of bicycle stuff in it at times, but it is all essential to the story of "Guitar Ted". This isn't about where the name came from. That's all here.  No, this is about the person. 

As with previous historical series on the blog, images will be a rarity. Cell phones, social media, and digital images were not available to take advantage of in those last days of analog living.  

In this post we get up to speed to what I was up to just before Trans Iowa started.

Back To Shop Rat Status: Once I walked in to Europa Cycle & Ski in mid-September, 2002, I was walking back into a world that hadn't slowed down for me. There were a LOT of new developments and technologies which didn't exist six years before then when I walked out of Advantage Cyclery the last time. Disc brakes were coming on, pipe spindle bottom brackets, and the beginnings of tubeless tires for mountain biking. There was also this curiosity called a 29"er. Now that I was up to speed on, and that was because of a relatively new thing called a "PC" and the Internet.

Now, you don't have to tell me that PC's and the internet actually go way back. I knew that too. But what had become different was that consumers were buying home PC's by the droves due to the easy access to the internet via phone lines. "Dial up" internet access opened the doors wide for regular folks to begin to cruise the internet and all the free information which was flowing then.

I had first begun to "surf the net" when I met Mrs. Guitar Ted in 1998. The whole internet thing forced me to choose a "screen name". I had been using "Ted Head" as a moniker off and on since high school, but that name was always unavailable. There was a short time I used another alternative screen name here and there, but that faded away.  So, I landed on "Guitar Ted" for everything. With that out of the way, I went on exploring the small world of 29"ers.

By the year 2000 I had heard about and read more concerning 29 inch wheeled mountain bikes. The publication, "Dirt Rag", ran a really early and informational piece on 29"ers in 2000. Keep in mind, there were no 29"ers until 1999, so this all happened rather quickly for me. I ran across a site called "MTBR.com" and they had a 29"er forum. That was that. By the time I had become a "shop rat" again, I knew my next bike was going to be a 29"er.

And that happened rather quickly as well. I started out riding to work on my pimped out Bontrager Race, but by February 2003 I had sold it and ordered a 2003 Campstove Green Karate Monkey frame and fork. The parts were accumulated over the next several weeks, and by April that year I was riding around on the first 29"er anyone had seen around here. So, it didn't take me long to get back into "bicycle acquisition mode"!

It also didn't take me very long to make friends with the other mechanic at the shop. His name was Jeff Kerkove, a fairly successful solo 24hr racer. He was finishing up his studies at the University of Northern Iowa and working at the shop when he wasn't piling on an insane amount of gravel miles on a beat up old 1999 Surly 1 X 1. (Yes, the very same one I have now) What I didn't know then was that Jeff had been known as a pretty quiet guy at the shop. He didn't chat much with his previous co-workers. He spent most of his time keeping to himself. But something happened when I came to work there. I did not realize Jeff was anything other than a funny, "regular guy" that liked heavy metal and rode a ton. One day, our boss came out and confronted me when Jeff was gone.

"Hey", he asked, "What did you do to Jeff?" I was not following. My boss explained further. "Well, usually Jeff is pretty quiet until you came in. Now I hear him laughing. I have never heard him laugh before. What did you do?"

Well, I didn't know I had "done" anything but be myself. So my only explanation was that we had hit it off. There was just something there. That "something" turned into a friendship and then a brief partnership. By the Fall of 2004, we were good buddies, and then something happened that changed my life- again. It has resulted in one of the biggest changes I've experienced in life. That was becoming co-founder of this goofy idea called Trans Iowa.

This draws to a close the series "The Story Of Guitar Ted". I hope that you all enjoyed my journey from touring guy/shop rat guy to auto mechanic, getting married again, having children, and then getting back to being a shop rat again.

My intentions are to now start crafting the "Trans Iowa Stories" drafts here online. There will be a post about this idea later this week. Stay tuned.....

The Story Of Guitar Ted: Back To Shop Rat Status

 

A Guitar Ted Productions series

Welcome to this series on G-Ted Productions! This series will jump off from the time where the "Race Against Death Tour" ended and will take you up to the beginnings of Trans Iowa in late 2004. This is an eight year period where my life was transformed. You could say it was metamorphosed from the old to something quite new.

This won't have a lot of bicycle stuff in it at times, but it is all essential to the story of "Guitar Ted". This isn't about where the name came from. That's all here.  No, this is about the person. 

As with previous historical series on the blog, images will be a rarity. Cell phones, social media, and digital images were not available to take advantage of in those last days of analog living.  

In this post we get up to speed to what I was up to just before Trans Iowa started.

Back To Shop Rat Status: Once I walked in to Europa Cycle & Ski in mid-September, 2002, I was walking back into a world that hadn't slowed down for me. There were a LOT of new developments and technologies which didn't exist six years before then when I walked out of Advantage Cyclery the last time. Disc brakes were coming on, pipe spindle bottom brackets, and the beginnings of tubeless tires for mountain biking. There was also this curiosity called a 29"er. Now that I was up to speed on, and that was because of a relatively new thing called a "PC" and the Internet.

Now, you don't have to tell me that PC's and the internet actually go way back. I knew that too. But what had become different was that consumers were buying home PC's by the droves due to the easy access to the internet via phone lines. "Dial up" internet access opened the doors wide for regular folks to begin to cruise the internet and all the free information which was flowing then.

I had first begun to "surf the net" when I met Mrs. Guitar Ted in 1998. The whole internet thing forced me to choose a "screen name". I had been using "Ted Head" as a moniker off and on since high school, but that name was always unavailable. There was a short time I used another alternative screen name here and there, but that faded away.  So, I landed on "Guitar Ted" for everything. With that out of the way, I went on exploring the small world of 29"ers.

By the year 2000 I had heard about and read more concerning 29 inch wheeled mountain bikes. The publication, "Dirt Rag", ran a really early and informational piece on 29"ers in 2000. Keep in mind, there were no 29"ers until 1999, so this all happened rather quickly for me. I ran across a site called "MTBR.com" and they had a 29"er forum. That was that. By the time I had become a "shop rat" again, I knew my next bike was going to be a 29"er.

And that happened rather quickly as well. I started out riding to work on my pimped out Bontrager Race, but by February 2003 I had sold it and ordered a 2003 Campstove Green Karate Monkey frame and fork. The parts were accumulated over the next several weeks, and by April that year I was riding around on the first 29"er anyone had seen around here. So, it didn't take me long to get back into "bicycle acquisition mode"!

It also didn't take me very long to make friends with the other mechanic at the shop. His name was Jeff Kerkove, a fairly successful solo 24hr racer. He was finishing up his studies at the University of Northern Iowa and working at the shop when he wasn't piling on an insane amount of gravel miles on a beat up old 1999 Surly 1 X 1. (Yes, the very same one I have now) What I didn't know then was that Jeff had been known as a pretty quiet guy at the shop. He didn't chat much with his previous co-workers. He spent most of his time keeping to himself. But something happened when I came to work there. I did not realize Jeff was anything other than a funny, "regular guy" that liked heavy metal and rode a ton. One day, our boss came out and confronted me when Jeff was gone.

"Hey", he asked, "What did you do to Jeff?" I was not following. My boss explained further. "Well, usually Jeff is pretty quiet until you came in. Now I hear him laughing. I have never heard him laugh before. What did you do?"

Well, I didn't know I had "done" anything but be myself. So my only explanation was that we had hit it off. There was just something there. That "something" turned into a friendship and then a brief partnership. By the Fall of 2004, we were good buddies, and then something happened that changed my life- again. It has resulted in one of the biggest changes I've experienced in life. That was becoming co-founder of this goofy idea called Trans Iowa.

This draws to a close the series "The Story Of Guitar Ted". I hope that you all enjoyed my journey from touring guy/shop rat guy to auto mechanic, getting married again, having children, and then getting back to being a shop rat again.

My intentions are to now start crafting the "Trans Iowa Stories" drafts here online. There will be a post about this idea later this week. Stay tuned.....

Single Speed Mind- Part 2

The Sawyer is ready to roll.

So, like I said in the last post about single speeds here, I have a lot of single speed bikes. I wasn't done fixing up those devices just yet, and to be honest, I'm still not done yet. Got a few more to get to yet.

Well, one of the bikes I did get around to was the Sawyer. You've seen it here before if you've been around reading this blog a long time. The Sawyer is an odd bike. It probably wasn't ever meant to be a Trek branded bike, but the 2010 absorption of Fisher by Trek going into the 2011 season kind of put things off kilter with this bike. So, following is my interpretation of the events which made the Sawyer one of the failures of the shuttering of the Fisher brand.

It is a fact that only a small handful of people had previous knowledge about the early Summer announcement that Fisher Bikes was going to be no more. Obviously, all the 2011 product was well into production. Marketing was being developed for the coming year, and all of that was scuttled after Trek announced the change. One of those marketing ideas was centered around the Sawyer. A retro styled 29"er. A bike that was all about embodying all that Gary Fisher was best known for.

Think about the geared 2X10 drive train. Fisher was often credited for slapping gears on a 30's era Schwinn cruiser frame so he could ride to the top of the Repack course instead of pushing, or hitching a ride on a stake truck. The Sawyer was a nod to that. Also, Fisher was preeminent in pushing 29" mountain bikes into production. This occurred in 2001, exactly ten years previous to the introduction of the Sawyer. The Sawyer featured G2 geometry, a Fisher Bikes innovation, which radically changed how 29"er bikes were designed going forward. This bike was to be a celebration of Gary Fisher's MTB contributions, but with the absorption of Fisher into Trek, all the marketing plans had to be scrapped.

The frame is very detailed and had to be a nightmare for Trek to get it produced. The twin top tube starts at the head tube and then flares out to become the seat stays. Maybe a nod to Breezer's first bikes? The support tubes from the top tubes to the seat tube had to be "just so", and there are a lot of other details to this frame which make it a really interesting production bike. The drive side drop out is split, so I run the bike single speed with a Gates Carbon Drive Center Track belt. The frame can accept really fat tires. I've seen examples stuffed with 29" X 3.0 and 27.5" X 3.0 tires. Mine has 27.5" X 2.8"ers on there. Anyway, enough about that. It's a special bike that failed due to a larger plan Trek had and, of course, after a two year run it was over.

Don't forget your special tools.....

I also got to working on another stalwart of the G-Ted bike stable, the 1999 Surly 1X1. Again, you've seen this before if you've been reading here awhile. It's the "mechanic's bike" of Europa Cycle & Ski. I'm the seventh of the line to have had possession of it.

I've had these Surly Extraterrestrials on the bike tubeless since I built up the wheels for it. That's been.......what? Late 2015? Yeah.... Three solid years. I never have had the tires off to inspect things. So, late last Fall, the rear tire up and goes flat. I figured that it probably was high time I took off the tire and see what was up inside of there.

Fortunately I did not find any balls of rubbery stuff, or any other untoward things, so I did a bit of tidying up and remounted the tires with new sealant. Then I switched back to freewheel from fixed, and the next order of business is a new chain, chain wheel, and perhaps a crank to accommodate a different bolt pattern. So, after that I should be okay to roll another three years!

That'll be two more single speeds gone through. I have to get to my Pofahl, my Blackbuck, and the fixie Raleigh in the garage. Then I think I'll be done, but I was looking at building some new wheels for the Blackbuck with some hubs I was gifted, and so......you never know.

Single Speed Mind- Part 2

The Sawyer is ready to roll.

So, like I said in the last post about single speeds here, I have a lot of single speed bikes. I wasn't done fixing up those devices just yet, and to be honest, I'm still not done yet. Got a few more to get to yet.

Well, one of the bikes I did get around to was the Sawyer. You've seen it here before if you've been around reading this blog a long time. The Sawyer is an odd bike. It probably wasn't ever meant to be a Trek branded bike, but the 2010 absorption of Fisher by Trek going into the 2011 season kind of put things off kilter with this bike. So, following is my interpretation of the events which made the Sawyer one of the failures of the shuttering of the Fisher brand.

It is a fact that only a small handful of people had previous knowledge about the early Summer announcement that Fisher Bikes was going to be no more. Obviously, all the 2011 product was well into production. Marketing was being developed for the coming year, and all of that was scuttled after Trek announced the change. One of those marketing ideas was centered around the Sawyer. A retro styled 29"er. A bike that was all about embodying all that Gary Fisher was best known for.

Think about the geared 2X10 drive train. Fisher was often credited for slapping gears on a 30's era Schwinn cruiser frame so he could ride to the top of the Repack course instead of pushing, or hitching a ride on a stake truck. The Sawyer was a nod to that. Also, Fisher was preeminent in pushing 29" mountain bikes into production. This occurred in 2001, exactly ten years previous to the introduction of the Sawyer. The Sawyer featured G2 geometry, a Fisher Bikes innovation, which radically changed how 29"er bikes were designed going forward. This bike was to be a celebration of Gary Fisher's MTB contributions, but with the absorption of Fisher into Trek, all the marketing plans had to be scrapped.

The frame is very detailed and had to be a nightmare for Trek to get it produced. The twin top tube starts at the head tube and then flares out to become the seat stays. Maybe a nod to Breezer's first bikes? The support tubes from the top tubes to the seat tube had to be "just so", and there are a lot of other details to this frame which make it a really interesting production bike. The drive side drop out is split, so I run the bike single speed with a Gates Carbon Drive Center Track belt. The frame can accept really fat tires. I've seen examples stuffed with 29" X 3.0 and 27.5" X 3.0 tires. Mine has 27.5" X 2.8"ers on there. Anyway, enough about that. It's a special bike that failed due to a larger plan Trek had and, of course, after a two year run it was over.

Don't forget your special tools.....

I also got to working on another stalwart of the G-Ted bike stable, the 1999 Surly 1X1. Again, you've seen this before if you've been reading here awhile. It's the "mechanic's bike" of Europa Cycle & Ski. I'm the seventh of the line to have had possession of it.

I've had these Surly Extraterrestrials on the bike tubeless since I built up the wheels for it. That's been.......what? Late 2015? Yeah.... Three solid years. I never have had the tires off to inspect things. So, late last Fall, the rear tire up and goes flat. I figured that it probably was high time I took off the tire and see what was up inside of there.

Fortunately I did not find any balls of rubbery stuff, or any other untoward things, so I did a bit of tidying up and remounted the tires with new sealant. Then I switched back to freewheel from fixed, and the next order of business is a new chain, chain wheel, and perhaps a crank to accommodate a different bolt pattern. So, after that I should be okay to roll another three years!

That'll be two more single speeds gone through. I have to get to my Pofahl, my Blackbuck, and the fixie Raleigh in the garage. Then I think I'll be done, but I was looking at building some new wheels for the Blackbuck with some hubs I was gifted, and so......you never know.

Iowa Gravel Expo/Bike Party v2 Report

Schwag table at the Iowa Gravel Expo/Bike Party

Last year N.Y.Roll and I put on what N.Y.Roll dubbed as the "Iowa Gravel Expo/Bike Party". I was asked to help promote and facilitate it as the speaker. Our focus was to bring a light to the gravel scene and shine that also on beginners, or what we sometimes call "gravel curious folk", who wonder about gravel riding and if it is for them.

I figured it was only going to attract a few locals. If we got 35 people, or so I thought, it would be considered a success. Now, I have to say that N.Y. Roll thought it would be much better attended than that and in the end, he was right. We had standing room only and something like 85+ people up there!

So, with such an attendance and enthusiastic response afterward, we planned on doing the Expo again the following year. This attendance issue brought N.Y. Roll and I a lot of concern, and we were constantly bouncing ideas off one another for months leading up to the next Expo. Possibilities such as having vendors, maybe some media, and of course, a bigger venue than we had for "Year One". However; in our efforts to keep the event local, we were met with several road blocks.

Things like parking, alcohol serving limitations, how to cater food, space costs, and location of venues all were huge roadblocks for our event as we had meager resources for such big plans. To be sure, Cedar Valley Cyclists and Europa Cycle & Ski, both financial supporters in our efforts, plus our first year and eventual second year host, Doughy Joey's Peetza Joynt, are to be commended for stepping up to the plate and helping us. Without them, nothing would have happened, but the resources we had, as wonderful as they were, didn't have the horsepower to launch the event to the levels we were thinking.

Attendees were treated to free Doughy Joey's Peetza courtesy of our sponsors.

In the end, the attendance issue really became our perceived biggest problem and the one that kind of has pushed us toward a new idea for this event going forward. That will be discussed later. The end result was that we came up with the idea to have two sessions and to kind of corral people into choosing one or the other to attend and we ran with that. This allowed us to use the same venue and its benefits. It ended up working out really well with comfortable amounts of room for everyone in both sessions. Had we run one session as we did our first year, the room wouldn't have held everyone that attended this year. Blame that on fire codes. It is what it is.

So, we had eleven presenters, some from first time events, and all are Iowa based events. We had BikeIowa.com, one of our sponsors, who sell the Pogie Lites I reviewed, and have a great calendar of Iowa based gravel events on their site as well. We also had a great presentation by Andrea Cohen of the Gravel Scouts. Both sessions were well received by attendees and everything went pretty smoothly. We had some nice schwag handouts with cool stickers, chain lube samples from DuMonde Tech, and slap koozies from Bike Iowa.

Doughy Joey's staff kept the pies coming and the beer flowing and accomplished all that smoothly and unobtrusively. The venue was excellent in that way. I think we maybe could have used a small P.A., but that would have brought it's own issues and we would have had a different set of problems there since the upper room we used isn't sealed off from the remainder of the public space there. All in all, it was the best it could have been. N.Y. Roll and I are grateful to the staff and owners of Doughy Joey's for allowing us the opportunity to put the event on.

Dan from the Snaggy Ridge 105 telling us how the gravel based event has affected Tipton, Iowa.

The takeaways I gathered from this Expo were many. I learned more about how gravel cycling events are benefiting small towns like Tipton, Alden, and Lynville, Iowa. I learned how initiatives to promote healthy living are affecting people in Grinnell, the Iowa City area, and Alden Iowa and this from gravel based events and organizations. I saw event directors with a lot of experience rubbing shoulders with inexperienced directors and LOTS of shared information was dispersed during the Expo. We also hosted Mark Wyatt of the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, and his ideas along with those of Scott Sumpter of Bike Iowa are going to help shape what the Expo will become in the future.

Which brings me back to the point I alluded to earlier. The point about attendance. On one hand, we cannot really facilitate more people using the venue we have used. It is limited and we understand that. The event has potential to help more cyclists and event directors. It has the potential to help civic organizations and local governments to promote rural Iowa. The event has growth potential in terms of businesses involved in cycling and gravel cycling in particular. The potential is not going to be realized where we are now, so things must change to get this event where it has the potential to go.

What will that look like? Well, I cannot say for certain. We heard a lot of ideas, and there has to be more people brought into this to help guide the future of the Iowa Gravel Expo. One thing is for sure, maybe two- That is that Waterloo/Cedar Falls is probably not where the event will end up, although there is one idea floated out there which would make the event "multi-centered", so to speak. The other thing is that N.Y. Roll's and my guidance in this event is not enough, and has the distinct possibility of ending. It's something that has to be on the table for this idea to grow, and in my opinion, the idea is too good to be limited by my and N.Y. Roll's limited resources.

In the meantime, what N.Y. Roll and I have started is a success. We think, and many others do as well, that it is an awesome concept that has great potential. I know that I will be involved in the short term, at the least, in where the event goes from this point.

THANK YOU: Sponsors- Europa Cycle & Ski, Cedar Valley Cyclists, Dave Roll, Riding Gravel, Bike Iowa, Doughy Joey's Peetza Joynt, Andrea Cohen/Gravel Scouts, Scott Sumpter/Pogie Lites, The Event Directors, DuMonde Tech, Mark Wyatt/Iowa Bicycle Coalition, and most importantly- all the attendees who came to learn more about Iowa based gravel events!

Iowa Gravel Expo/Bike Party v2 Report

Schwag table at the Iowa Gravel Expo/Bike Party

Last year N.Y.Roll and I put on what N.Y.Roll dubbed as the "Iowa Gravel Expo/Bike Party". I was asked to help promote and facilitate it as the speaker. Our focus was to bring a light to the gravel scene and shine that also on beginners, or what we sometimes call "gravel curious folk", who wonder about gravel riding and if it is for them.

I figured it was only going to attract a few locals. If we got 35 people, or so I thought, it would be considered a success. Now, I have to say that N.Y. Roll thought it would be much better attended than that and in the end, he was right. We had standing room only and something like 85+ people up there!

So, with such an attendance and enthusiastic response afterward, we planned on doing the Expo again the following year. This attendance issue brought N.Y. Roll and I a lot of concern, and we were constantly bouncing ideas off one another for months leading up to the next Expo. Possibilities such as having vendors, maybe some media, and of course, a bigger venue than we had for "Year One". However; in our efforts to keep the event local, we were met with several road blocks.

Things like parking, alcohol serving limitations, how to cater food, space costs, and location of venues all were huge roadblocks for our event as we had meager resources for such big plans. To be sure, Cedar Valley Cyclists and Europa Cycle & Ski, both financial supporters in our efforts, plus our first year and eventual second year host, Doughy Joey's Peetza Joynt, are to be commended for stepping up to the plate and helping us. Without them, nothing would have happened, but the resources we had, as wonderful as they were, didn't have the horsepower to launch the event to the levels we were thinking.

Attendees were treated to free Doughy Joey's Peetza courtesy of our sponsors.

In the end, the attendance issue really became our perceived biggest problem and the one that kind of has pushed us toward a new idea for this event going forward. That will be discussed later. The end result was that we came up with the idea to have two sessions and to kind of corral people into choosing one or the other to attend and we ran with that. This allowed us to use the same venue and its benefits. It ended up working out really well with comfortable amounts of room for everyone in both sessions. Had we run one session as we did our first year, the room wouldn't have held everyone that attended this year. Blame that on fire codes. It is what it is.

So, we had eleven presenters, some from first time events, and all are Iowa based events. We had BikeIowa.com, one of our sponsors, who sell the Pogie Lites I reviewed, and have a great calendar of Iowa based gravel events on their site as well. We also had a great presentation by Andrea Cohen of the Gravel Scouts. Both sessions were well received by attendees and everything went pretty smoothly. We had some nice schwag handouts with cool stickers, chain lube samples from DuMonde Tech, and slap koozies from Bike Iowa.

Doughy Joey's staff kept the pies coming and the beer flowing and accomplished all that smoothly and unobtrusively. The venue was excellent in that way. I think we maybe could have used a small P.A., but that would have brought it's own issues and we would have had a different set of problems there since the upper room we used isn't sealed off from the remainder of the public space there. All in all, it was the best it could have been. N.Y. Roll and I are grateful to the staff and owners of Doughy Joey's for allowing us the opportunity to put the event on.

Dan from the Snaggy Ridge 105 telling us how the gravel based event has affected Tipton, Iowa.

The takeaways I gathered from this Expo were many. I learned more about how gravel cycling events are benefiting small towns like Tipton, Alden, and Lynville, Iowa. I learned how initiatives to promote healthy living are affecting people in Grinnell, the Iowa City area, and Alden Iowa and this from gravel based events and organizations. I saw event directors with a lot of experience rubbing shoulders with inexperienced directors and LOTS of shared information was dispersed during the Expo. We also hosted Mark Wyatt of the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, and his ideas along with those of Scott Sumpter of Bike Iowa are going to help shape what the Expo will become in the future.

Which brings me back to the point I alluded to earlier. The point about attendance. On one hand, we cannot really facilitate more people using the venue we have used. It is limited and we understand that. The event has potential to help more cyclists and event directors. It has the potential to help civic organizations and local governments to promote rural Iowa. The event has growth potential in terms of businesses involved in cycling and gravel cycling in particular. The potential is not going to be realized where we are now, so things must change to get this event where it has the potential to go.

What will that look like? Well, I cannot say for certain. We heard a lot of ideas, and there has to be more people brought into this to help guide the future of the Iowa Gravel Expo. One thing is for sure, maybe two- That is that Waterloo/Cedar Falls is probably not where the event will end up, although there is one idea floated out there which would make the event "multi-centered", so to speak. The other thing is that N.Y. Roll's and my guidance in this event is not enough, and has the distinct possibility of ending. It's something that has to be on the table for this idea to grow, and in my opinion, the idea is too good to be limited by my and N.Y. Roll's limited resources.

In the meantime, what N.Y. Roll and I have started is a success. We think, and many others do as well, that it is an awesome concept that has great potential. I know that I will be involved in the short term, at the least, in where the event goes from this point.

THANK YOU: Sponsors- Europa Cycle & Ski, Cedar Valley Cyclists, Dave Roll, Riding Gravel, Bike Iowa, Doughy Joey's Peetza Joynt, Andrea Cohen/Gravel Scouts, Scott Sumpter/Pogie Lites, The Event Directors, DuMonde Tech, Mark Wyatt/Iowa Bicycle Coalition, and most importantly- all the attendees who came to learn more about Iowa based gravel events!

What's Up, GT?

A new fork on the Raleigh....

The end of the year business and the "State Of The Gravel Scene" posts have gobbled up all my space for recounting the day-to-day stuff around here. So, without further adieu, here's what has been happening since, or, around Christmas time.....

• Hours cut waaaay back at work. The business climate in bicycle retail has, well.......it sucks. Not just where I work either. But suffice it to say that the purse strings were tightened and Christmas time was a frugal one at the G-Ted household.
• 24hrs of Cumming entry: Sam, my co-conspirator in the 24hrs of Cumming last August started sending me some messages that were......cryptic. Then at the end I get a confirmation that I was in the 24hrs of Cumming and a "Merry Christmas" from Sam. This all a day ahead of registration opening, which.......I don't know how that worked. Point is, I am in with Sam. This time we will be known as "Team Snack Sabbath". 
• 20th Anniversary: Mrs. G-Ted and I celebrated our 20th Anniversary January 2nd. Again- a frugal affair, so no big deal, but it didn't matter because our family was together.  
• Sickness: Yep. Regular readers know I usually get sick around this time of year. Had a 24hr bug, recovered in a few days. 
• Renegade Gents Race 9.0: April 6th. The Careless Whispers are in for their 9th time. Lets see if we can get EVERY team member to the finish on the regulation course! 
• C.O.G. 100 Registration: Opened January 2nd. Sold out two thirds of the field within four hours and we only had a handful of spots left by the end of day one of the registration process. Sold all 75 spots in three days. Added 25 additional spots over the weekend. Pretty surprised by that, I won't lie. I figured finding 75 single speed freaks would be tougher than that.

Then this retro single speed stuff showed up.

Speaking Of Single Speed..........

I got a message between Christmas and New Years from Grannygear. He asked me if I might be interested in some single speed hubs he had, some old White Industries ENO hubs. I said yeah, and he said, no problem. Okay, so filed away for some other time.

Then on the day of my 20th wedding anniversary, I got a heavy box of pretty decent size. What? I opened it, and besides the vintage hubs, there were two Shimano square taper cranks with rings, a White Industries free wheel, two saddles from WTB, and to top it all off- the White Industries ENO freewheel tool!

Thank you, Grannygear! Wow! This is so cool. One of the cranksets is even a 180mm length! That one, a 9000 series crank, has a rare 34T Onza Buzzsaw chain ring too. The stuff needs cleaning and a touch of TLC, but hey! I ain't complainin'! First thing to do after a bit of polishing up will be to get a new set of bearings in the rear hub. Then I'll build up a wheel set for my Blackbuck rig with some rims from Velocity of some sort. Probably some Velocity Blunt SS rims. Anyway, these wheels are gonna be sweet.

That White Industries free wheel will probably end up on the Blackbuck at some point. It's a 21T or 22T job, too low for any gravel travel. The cranks...... Dunno yet. I probably will put one set on the Blackbuck and retire the ano-green Suginos I've run on there for the last ten plus years. One of the saddles is a Pure V, my favorite, so I'll have no trouble finding a home for that. The other is a well worn, possibly an OG from the 90's, WTB SST saddle. I have one and have broken my other. Good time to replace that.

So, there ya go. Some catching up, housecleaning, and whatnot from late last year till the present. Back to "regularly scheduled" postings tomorrow.

What's Up, GT?

A new fork on the Raleigh....

The end of the year business and the "State Of The Gravel Scene" posts have gobbled up all my space for recounting the day-to-day stuff around here. So, without further adieu, here's what has been happening since, or, around Christmas time.....

• Hours cut waaaay back at work. The business climate in bicycle retail has, well.......it sucks. Not just where I work either. But suffice it to say that the purse strings were tightened and Christmas time was a frugal one at the G-Ted household.
• 24hrs of Cumming entry: Sam, my co-conspirator in the 24hrs of Cumming last August started sending me some messages that were......cryptic. Then at the end I get a confirmation that I was in the 24hrs of Cumming and a "Merry Christmas" from Sam. This all a day ahead of registration opening, which.......I don't know how that worked. Point is, I am in with Sam. This time we will be known as "Team Snack Sabbath". 
• 20th Anniversary: Mrs. G-Ted and I celebrated our 20th Anniversary January 2nd. Again- a frugal affair, so no big deal, but it didn't matter because our family was together.  
• Sickness: Yep. Regular readers know I usually get sick around this time of year. Had a 24hr bug, recovered in a few days. 
• Renegade Gents Race 9.0: April 6th. The Careless Whispers are in for their 9th time. Lets see if we can get EVERY team member to the finish on the regulation course! 
• C.O.G. 100 Registration: Opened January 2nd. Sold out two thirds of the field within four hours and we only had a handful of spots left by the end of day one of the registration process. Sold all 75 spots in three days. Added 25 additional spots over the weekend. Pretty surprised by that, I won't lie. I figured finding 75 single speed freaks would be tougher than that.

Then this retro single speed stuff showed up.

Speaking Of Single Speed..........

I got a message between Christmas and New Years from Grannygear. He asked me if I might be interested in some single speed hubs he had, some old White Industries ENO hubs. I said yeah, and he said, no problem. Okay, so filed away for some other time.

Then on the day of my 20th wedding anniversary, I got a heavy box of pretty decent size. What? I opened it, and besides the vintage hubs, there were two Shimano square taper cranks with rings, a White Industries free wheel, two saddles from WTB, and to top it all off- the White Industries ENO freewheel tool!

Thank you, Grannygear! Wow! This is so cool. One of the cranksets is even a 180mm length! That one, a 9000 series crank, has a rare 34T Onza Buzzsaw chain ring too. The stuff needs cleaning and a touch of TLC, but hey! I ain't complainin'! First thing to do after a bit of polishing up will be to get a new set of bearings in the rear hub. Then I'll build up a wheel set for my Blackbuck rig with some rims from Velocity of some sort. Probably some Velocity Blunt SS rims. Anyway, these wheels are gonna be sweet.

That White Industries free wheel will probably end up on the Blackbuck at some point. It's a 21T or 22T job, too low for any gravel travel. The cranks...... Dunno yet. I probably will put one set on the Blackbuck and retire the ano-green Suginos I've run on there for the last ten plus years. One of the saddles is a Pure V, my favorite, so I'll have no trouble finding a home for that. The other is a well worn, possibly an OG from the 90's, WTB SST saddle. I have one and have broken my other. Good time to replace that.

So, there ya go. Some catching up, housecleaning, and whatnot from late last year till the present. Back to "regularly scheduled" postings tomorrow.

It's About Materials Technology

The things that come down the pike never cease to amaze me.

The shop where I work at, now going on past 16 years, is a wealth of old knowledge. I've heard, seen, and done, so many things I never would have dreamed about, that it makes my head spin to think on it all. One thing I've learned is to never think you've seen it all. 

Many times this can be applied to something new. My boss and I always shake our heads and say, "It's all about the materials technology". Many ideas have existed in cycling for years, decades even, just waiting for technology to catch up so it can become a viable product for you and I.

Take these wheels, as a for instance. They are from Enve Composites. Ten years ago now I got to test some 700c hoops from them, back when they were still called "Edge Composites". This was for the old "Twenty Nine Inches" gig I once was involved in. Well, you know, ten years ago, anything carbon meant for 29"ers was rare. Like super rare. So, rims for 29"ers in carbon? I mean, we were barely seeing mountain bike rims of any sort made from carbon fiber in 2008. It was an amazing thing.

Those ended up being sub-1500 gram wheels. At that time it was considered super-light for a 29" wheel set with disc hubs. Now days? Pffft! That's average. Why? Materials technologies. Plain and simple.

These Enve wheels pictured here? Sub-1300 gram wheels. Not only that, but they have a wider internal rim width, wider rim edges, (for anti-pinch flat characteristics), and through axle compatibility. They are tested to mountain bike standards, and are tubeless compatible. Those old Edge wheels were narrower, had clincher hook beads, and weren't tubeless. Crazy how far things have come in ten years. Heck, Tour de France riders weren't on wheels this light ten, fifteen years ago. Now anyone can have wheels like this. Well...........if you can afford them.

Remember- never think you've seen it all.

It's About Materials Technology

The things that come down the pike never cease to amaze me.

The shop where I work at, now going on past 16 years, is a wealth of old knowledge. I've heard, seen, and done, so many things I never would have dreamed about, that it makes my head spin to think on it all. One thing I've learned is to never think you've seen it all. 

Many times this can be applied to something new. My boss and I always shake our heads and say, "It's all about the materials technology". Many ideas have existed in cycling for years, decades even, just waiting for technology to catch up so it can become a viable product for you and I.

Take these wheels, as a for instance. They are from Enve Composites. Ten years ago now I got to test some 700c hoops from them, back when they were still called "Edge Composites". This was for the old "Twenty Nine Inches" gig I once was involved in. Well, you know, ten years ago, anything carbon meant for 29"ers was rare. Like super rare. So, rims for 29"ers in carbon? I mean, we were barely seeing mountain bike rims of any sort made from carbon fiber in 2008. It was an amazing thing.

Those ended up being sub-1500 gram wheels. At that time it was considered super-light for a 29" wheel set with disc hubs. Now days? Pffft! That's average. Why? Materials technologies. Plain and simple.

These Enve wheels pictured here? Sub-1300 gram wheels. Not only that, but they have a wider internal rim width, wider rim edges, (for anti-pinch flat characteristics), and through axle compatibility. They are tested to mountain bike standards, and are tubeless compatible. Those old Edge wheels were narrower, had clincher hook beads, and weren't tubeless. Crazy how far things have come in ten years. Heck, Tour de France riders weren't on wheels this light ten, fifteen years ago. Now anyone can have wheels like this. Well...........if you can afford them.

Remember- never think you've seen it all.

Pink MCD Update: Wolf Tooth Head Set

The purple Wolf Tooth head set is in my grasp now waiting for the Pink MCD

The parts are coming in now and soon the frame and fork will also be arriving. It's gonna be a scene when it gets here! The latest bit to hit my grimy paws is a Wolf Tooth 1 1/8th purple head set.

My image here of it makes it look more magenta-ish, but indoors it looks more grape-ish. It has a very deep, rich color to it which should play well off the pink of the frame. I'm pleased with it. The Wolf Tooth head set I tested for RidingGravel.com is a fine example of what I can expect here as it has been flawless so far.

Purple against the pink is the color splash I have chosen and I thought there should be another bit of purple somewhere on the bike. I had considered Paul Components Klamper brakes in the "special limited edition" purple, but there are two reasons those are out. One- they are not going to be shipping the purple stuff they get orders for now until August sometime, which is too late for my plans. Second, and more importantly, they are just too expensive for me. Wait........there is a third reason. I have perfectly good TRP Spyre brakes calipers just sitting down in the Lab. Case closed!

But I still wanted something else purple, and I finally figured it out. A CroMag purple seat collar to replace the stock BMC one that is black. That's on its way now. I think those two splashes of color will do it. I was looking for a purple outboard bearing bottom bracket that wasn't "Chris King" expensive and there wasn't anything out there better than the $75.00 MSRP Wheels Manufacturing angular contact bearing bottom bracket, which is made in the USA. The cups are anodized gray. Meh! Whatever. They will be covered in dust soon enough anyway and I wanted to test their bottom brackets for my own satisfaction. So, that is also on the way.

So, beyond cable housings, cables, crimp ons, and maybe some other small details, I will have everything here to build the Pink MCD. I need to get a cassette, probably. But that won't be hard to find. I can probably pick up something that will work from the shop. So, barring any weird delays in getting the frame and fork, I should be good to go and a new rig should be under me for Gravel Worlds, if not before.

Stay tuned.......

Pink MCD Update: Wolf Tooth Head Set

The purple Wolf Tooth head set is in my grasp now waiting for the Pink MCD

The parts are coming in now and soon the frame and fork will also be arriving. It's gonna be a scene when it gets here! The latest bit to hit my grimy paws is a Wolf Tooth 1 1/8th purple head set.

My image here of it makes it look more magenta-ish, but indoors it looks more grape-ish. It has a very deep, rich color to it which should play well off the pink of the frame. I'm pleased with it. The Wolf Tooth head set I tested for RidingGravel.com is a fine example of what I can expect here as it has been flawless so far.

Purple against the pink is the color splash I have chosen and I thought there should be another bit of purple somewhere on the bike. I had considered Paul Components Klamper brakes in the "special limited edition" purple, but there are two reasons those are out. One- they are not going to be shipping the purple stuff they get orders for now until August sometime, which is too late for my plans. Second, and more importantly, they are just too expensive for me. Wait........there is a third reason. I have perfectly good TRP Spyre brakes calipers just sitting down in the Lab. Case closed!

But I still wanted something else purple, and I finally figured it out. A CroMag purple seat collar to replace the stock BMC one that is black. That's on its way now. I think those two splashes of color will do it. I was looking for a purple outboard bearing bottom bracket that wasn't "Chris King" expensive and there wasn't anything out there better than the $75.00 MSRP Wheels Manufacturing angular contact bearing bottom bracket, which is made in the USA. The cups are anodized gray. Meh! Whatever. They will be covered in dust soon enough anyway and I wanted to test their bottom brackets for my own satisfaction. So, that is also on the way.

So, beyond cable housings, cables, crimp ons, and maybe some other small details, I will have everything here to build the Pink MCD. I need to get a cassette, probably. But that won't be hard to find. I can probably pick up something that will work from the shop. So, barring any weird delays in getting the frame and fork, I should be good to go and a new rig should be under me for Gravel Worlds, if not before.

Stay tuned.......

Friends And Family

Celebrating on Saturday evening at my workstation

I've worked at my job I have currently over 15 years now. That in and of itself isn't all that remarkable, but when you consider that I am a bicycle mechanic, it might be. Most mechanics move around a lot, or quit the trade entirely for more lucrative and stable employment.

Also, consider that bicycle shops are closing their doors at a steady pace, so being able to work in one place, even if you wanted to, isn't always an option. My first bicycle shop job ended that way. I didn't want to quit wrenching on bicycles, but with no openings in the area, I had to move on to wrenching on automobiles for five and a half years before coming back again to wrench on bicycles.

So, while I have some part in being at the job so long now, my boss has the other important factor in hand which is keeping the shop alive these past years so that I have that place to work. That was why we gathered Saturday evening to celebrate his owning of Europa Cycle & Ski for 30 years.

Interestingly enough, invitations to past mechanics of the shop were answered and several of them showed up for the event. The mechanic who originally purchased the Surly 1X1 I have now was there and was blown away that the bike has stayed in the Europa "mechanics family" now all these years with myself being the seventh mechanic to own it. Other mechanics going back to the early days were there and we all heard some great stories of the past 30 years.

There was beer, snacks, and great conversations. I attended with Mrs. Guitar Ted and we both had a great time. After things wound down at the shop we went to a local brewery and had more conversations and got to know some nice folks connected with the shop.

"New" single track in an unusual place was scouted out Sunday with my son.

The next day I spent with my family. I had heard about a bit of new single track added in at a point I found rather intriguing, so I asked my son if he would go on a bike ride with me.

This was going to be a bit of an exploration trip, as I had no clear idea of just where this track was supposed to be taking us. It was vaguely mentioned at the shop by a customer and from his directions it was not clear as to just where the trail started. Fortunately, since I was looking for "something", I found the track.

It was on the other side of the "elbow" lake which runs along the South Riverside Trail between Greenhill Road and Ansborough Avenue. An old oxbow of the Cedar River has generally been full of water here ever since the expressway went in during the early 90's. There along the highway on the other side of the paved bicycle path there stands a bit of a grove of trees which splits the highway and the oxbow lake. I often looked across that shallow lake to those woods wondering if there were any good reasons to try riding back there. Flooding typically ravages this area, so I didn't take it very seriously when I had the urge to explore back there.

The track has all the hallmarks of a cleared deer trail. It stays relatively high and probably clear of water. Well, that is if water was there! This oxbow lake is almost dry now. I've never seen it like that before, but this impending drought we are staring at might make it so I could traverse the mud flats of the old lake bottom next year. I'm keeping an eye out for that opportunity.

Anyway, the track is very off camber in spots, and it isn't really "burned in" all that well, so that if it gets slippery, I suspect that it would be a treacherous traverse. But Sunday it was dry and easy enough to navigate. That it runs right next to the DOT fence for the expressway isn't my cup-o-tea, but I doubt I will ride this when the roads are icy anyway, so the possibilities of a car coming off the road and careening through the fencing when I happen to be there will be very low.

This new trail section gets you up close and personal with the HWY 218/27 fencing in many spots. My son is off in the distance here.

Of course, the legalities of such a trail existing are questionable, but....... It is there now. So, in keeping with my quest to have ridden all the local tracks since 1988, I had to try it at least one time. I hear I have one other to hit up, but that trip will happen another time as my son was not having anymore of this bushwhacking adventure! Seems that the "adventure gene" may not have passed down to him. But he was a trooper and indulged me on this ride anyway.

I ended the weekend by taking a four mile walk with my daughter and then we went out and viewed the Christmas lights around town. It was a great way to spend the weekend and with the weather being tranquil, it was great to add a ride in to the mix too.

Friends And Family

Celebrating on Saturday evening at my workstation

I've worked at my job I have currently over 15 years now. That in and of itself isn't all that remarkable, but when you consider that I am a bicycle mechanic, it might be. Most mechanics move around a lot, or quit the trade entirely for more lucrative and stable employment.

Also, consider that bicycle shops are closing their doors at a steady pace, so being able to work in one place, even if you wanted to, isn't always an option. My first bicycle shop job ended that way. I didn't want to quit wrenching on bicycles, but with no openings in the area, I had to move on to wrenching on automobiles for five and a half years before coming back again to wrench on bicycles.

So, while I have some part in being at the job so long now, my boss has the other important factor in hand which is keeping the shop alive these past years so that I have that place to work. That was why we gathered Saturday evening to celebrate his owning of Europa Cycle & Ski for 30 years.

Interestingly enough, invitations to past mechanics of the shop were answered and several of them showed up for the event. The mechanic who originally purchased the Surly 1X1 I have now was there and was blown away that the bike has stayed in the Europa "mechanics family" now all these years with myself being the seventh mechanic to own it. Other mechanics going back to the early days were there and we all heard some great stories of the past 30 years.

There was beer, snacks, and great conversations. I attended with Mrs. Guitar Ted and we both had a great time. After things wound down at the shop we went to a local brewery and had more conversations and got to know some nice folks connected with the shop.

"New" single track in an unusual place was scouted out Sunday with my son.

The next day I spent with my family. I had heard about a bit of new single track added in at a point I found rather intriguing, so I asked my son if he would go on a bike ride with me.

This was going to be a bit of an exploration trip, as I had no clear idea of just where this track was supposed to be taking us. It was vaguely mentioned at the shop by a customer and from his directions it was not clear as to just where the trail started. Fortunately, since I was looking for "something", I found the track.

It was on the other side of the "elbow" lake which runs along the South Riverside Trail between Greenhill Road and Ansborough Avenue. An old oxbow of the Cedar River has generally been full of water here ever since the expressway went in during the early 90's. There along the highway on the other side of the paved bicycle path there stands a bit of a grove of trees which splits the highway and the oxbow lake. I often looked across that shallow lake to those woods wondering if there were any good reasons to try riding back there. Flooding typically ravages this area, so I didn't take it very seriously when I had the urge to explore back there.

The track has all the hallmarks of a cleared deer trail. It stays relatively high and probably clear of water. Well, that is if water was there! This oxbow lake is almost dry now. I've never seen it like that before, but this impending drought we are staring at might make it so I could traverse the mud flats of the old lake bottom next year. I'm keeping an eye out for that opportunity.

Anyway, the track is very off camber in spots, and it isn't really "burned in" all that well, so that if it gets slippery, I suspect that it would be a treacherous traverse. But Sunday it was dry and easy enough to navigate. That it runs right next to the DOT fence for the expressway isn't my cup-o-tea, but I doubt I will ride this when the roads are icy anyway, so the possibilities of a car coming off the road and careening through the fencing when I happen to be there will be very low.

This new trail section gets you up close and personal with the HWY 218/27 fencing in many spots. My son is off in the distance here.

Of course, the legalities of such a trail existing are questionable, but....... It is there now. So, in keeping with my quest to have ridden all the local tracks since 1988, I had to try it at least one time. I hear I have one other to hit up, but that trip will happen another time as my son was not having anymore of this bushwhacking adventure! Seems that the "adventure gene" may not have passed down to him. But he was a trooper and indulged me on this ride anyway.

I ended the weekend by taking a four mile walk with my daughter and then we went out and viewed the Christmas lights around town. It was a great way to spend the weekend and with the weather being tranquil, it was great to add a ride in to the mix too.

Friday News And Views

Olympus Tough TG-5. The replacement camera has been sourced!

Camera Problem Solved!

Last week you may remember that my Olympus Tough TG-3 went for a flyer out of my Chaff Bag and slammed into the pavement which ended up, (my diagnosis- I could be wrong), displacing the sensor. The camera fires up and electronics funtion but only about an eighth of the LCD screen shows an image and that is blurry. Everything else is black. If I give it a slap I can see the image move slightly, which tells me that the sensor is probably damaged inside or has come loose from its moorings, or.......something! 

Whatever happened wasn't good, and the camera is useless in that state. So, I had posted about that on social media where a good friend, Jason of "Barns for Jason" fame, got a hold of me via a private message. Turns out that he had a brand new TG-5 he decided he was going to part with. So we made a deal and soon I should have this camera in hand and be posting some good non-iPhone shots. (Yes, that's all I have now.)

The TG-5 has some upgrades over what I had. Ergonomics are slightly improved, there are some technical upgrades, like RAW capabilities, but it is essentially much the same as what I had before.

I'm pretty stoked that the situation is being taken care of so quickly and with a camera I was eying anyway. I was pretty satisfied with the TG-3. I really had no issues with its performance and I was not looking to replace it anytime soon. But a silly little mistake on my part cost me and I will end up getting a new camera far sooner than I figured on. But that said, I am excited to get this camera and start using it. I'll have more to say once I get the thing in hand. Stay tuned......

Funded by French auto maker Peugeot, this "car" could overtake e-bikes in the future. Image from "Bike Europe"

The Future Of E-bikes May Have Four Wheels:

I've often said that e-bikes = motorcycles and when the motorcycle manufacturers get involved, the e-bike will quickly fade away. What I didn't see coming were electric/gas powered "micro-cars" from a well know manufacturer. Sure, I've seen the cheapo Asian made four wheeled electric vehicles before, but nothing as refined and with such high design as this Peugeot. To be fair, it is actually classified as an "LEV" (Light Electric Vehicle) and is positioned to compete with "speed pedelecs". This rig has heating, regenerative braking, and can travel at speeds of up to 70Km/hr.

It is a working prototype to see how common platforms might be developed for future versions of this project. You can read about it in more detail here.

The idea seems tailor made for the bigger urban areas in the colder regions of the country. You just are not going to sell commuters e-bikes in the latitudes where Winter rears its ugly head. Not to current, non-biking folks, at any rate. You know- the people the bike industry keeps saying should have their "butts in saddles", to paraphrase a popular catchphrase of one distributor. Well, good luck with that when the commutes are measured in tens of miles and the wind chill is under zero.

A heated, zero emission LEV though? Maybe that might work. Maybe. I ain't holding my breath on any of this taking over here though.

Europa doesn't look anything like this, by the way.....

Party Time:

My employer has owned Europa Cycle & Ski for 30 years now. The momentous occasion is being feted with a party on Saturday. You can expect the following:

Discounts on merchandise store wide from 9:00am to 5:00pm.

From 7:00pm to 9:00pm there will be a celebration with beer, vittles, and tomfoolery of some sort not yet known to me. You'd have to come and find out. I'll be there later in the day. So, if you want to tip a few with me and some other Europa crazies, be there.

I'm also going to put this out there now. I will be helping to put on a "gravel curious clinic" at an establishment known as Doughy Joey's in Cedar Falls on January 13th, 2018. I will be talking about how to ride gravel roads, local routes, and what gear to use. What a "gravel bike"is, whet tires and pressures to use, and how to deal with dogs and more.

I'll be talking about this more in the near future, but for now I'll share the Facebook event link with you. CLICK HERE. Stay tuned.....

And that's a wrap for this week. Stay warm and stay active!

Friday News And Views

Olympus Tough TG-5. The replacement camera has been sourced!

Camera Problem Solved!

Last week you may remember that my Olympus Tough TG-3 went for a flyer out of my Chaff Bag and slammed into the pavement which ended up, (my diagnosis- I could be wrong), displacing the sensor. The camera fires up and electronics funtion but only about an eighth of the LCD screen shows an image and that is blurry. Everything else is black. If I give it a slap I can see the image move slightly, which tells me that the sensor is probably damaged inside or has come loose from its moorings, or.......something! 

Whatever happened wasn't good, and the camera is useless in that state. So, I had posted about that on social media where a good friend, Jason of "Barns for Jason" fame, got a hold of me via a private message. Turns out that he had a brand new TG-5 he decided he was going to part with. So we made a deal and soon I should have this camera in hand and be posting some good non-iPhone shots. (Yes, that's all I have now.)

The TG-5 has some upgrades over what I had. Ergonomics are slightly improved, there are some technical upgrades, like RAW capabilities, but it is essentially much the same as what I had before.

I'm pretty stoked that the situation is being taken care of so quickly and with a camera I was eying anyway. I was pretty satisfied with the TG-3. I really had no issues with its performance and I was not looking to replace it anytime soon. But a silly little mistake on my part cost me and I will end up getting a new camera far sooner than I figured on. But that said, I am excited to get this camera and start using it. I'll have more to say once I get the thing in hand. Stay tuned......

Funded by French auto maker Peugeot, this "car" could overtake e-bikes in the future. Image from "Bike Europe"

The Future Of E-bikes May Have Four Wheels:

I've often said that e-bikes = motorcycles and when the motorcycle manufacturers get involved, the e-bike will quickly fade away. What I didn't see coming were electric/gas powered "micro-cars" from a well know manufacturer. Sure, I've seen the cheapo Asian made four wheeled electric vehicles before, but nothing as refined and with such high design as this Peugeot. To be fair, it is actually classified as an "LEV" (Light Electric Vehicle) and is positioned to compete with "speed pedelecs". This rig has heating, regenerative braking, and can travel at speeds of up to 70Km/hr.

It is a working prototype to see how common platforms might be developed for future versions of this project. You can read about it in more detail here.

The idea seems tailor made for the bigger urban areas in the colder regions of the country. You just are not going to sell commuters e-bikes in the latitudes where Winter rears its ugly head. Not to current, non-biking folks, at any rate. You know- the people the bike industry keeps saying should have their "butts in saddles", to paraphrase a popular catchphrase of one distributor. Well, good luck with that when the commutes are measured in tens of miles and the wind chill is under zero.

A heated, zero emission LEV though? Maybe that might work. Maybe. I ain't holding my breath on any of this taking over here though.

Europa doesn't look anything like this, by the way.....

Party Time:

My employer has owned Europa Cycle & Ski for 30 years now. The momentous occasion is being feted with a party on Saturday. You can expect the following:

Discounts on merchandise store wide from 9:00am to 5:00pm.

From 7:00pm to 9:00pm there will be a celebration with beer, vittles, and tomfoolery of some sort not yet known to me. You'd have to come and find out. I'll be there later in the day. So, if you want to tip a few with me and some other Europa crazies, be there.

I'm also going to put this out there now. I will be helping to put on a "gravel curious clinic" at an establishment known as Doughy Joey's in Cedar Falls on January 13th, 2018. I will be talking about how to ride gravel roads, local routes, and what gear to use. What a "gravel bike"is, whet tires and pressures to use, and how to deal with dogs and more.

I'll be talking about this more in the near future, but for now I'll share the Facebook event link with you. CLICK HERE. Stay tuned.....

And that's a wrap for this week. Stay warm and stay active!