Sea Otter Cranks Up Again

More new "old stuff" surfaces- Yeti founder John Parker's new Underground Bike Works Revival

Sea Otter starts tomorrow in California and the press release machine is cranked up. But first- just what is this Sea Otter thing? Well, it is probably the single most important North American bicycle reveal/show/news event since about 2010 or so. Mostly mountain bike in focus, Sea Otter has road racing, mountain bike racing, group rides, a festival atmosphere, and a LOT of vendors showing and selling wares to the public.

There are a lot of companies that coordinate their releases around Sea Otter, even if they are not there. The news cycle created by the activity around Sea Otter has increased the amount of attention, and eyeballs, that the industry craves. So, it behooves any company with anything new for the season to announce it around Sea Otter.

Specialized announced its new Stumpjumpers, there was a 29"er downhill fork announced! Crazy stuff gets announced around this event. This year a lot of gravel oriented product will get announced and already has been announced. My partner, Ben Welnak is even out there for his "Mountain Bike Radio" gig and RidingGravel.com stuff.

I'm certain I'll have some stuff to share soon, so stay tuned....

Sea Otter Cranks Up Again

More new "old stuff" surfaces- Yeti founder John Parker's new Underground Bike Works Revival

Sea Otter starts tomorrow in California and the press release machine is cranked up. But first- just what is this Sea Otter thing? Well, it is probably the single most important North American bicycle reveal/show/news event since about 2010 or so. Mostly mountain bike in focus, Sea Otter has road racing, mountain bike racing, group rides, a festival atmosphere, and a LOT of vendors showing and selling wares to the public.

There are a lot of companies that coordinate their releases around Sea Otter, even if they are not there. The news cycle created by the activity around Sea Otter has increased the amount of attention, and eyeballs, that the industry craves. So, it behooves any company with anything new for the season to announce it around Sea Otter.

Specialized announced its new Stumpjumpers, there was a 29"er downhill fork announced! Crazy stuff gets announced around this event. This year a lot of gravel oriented product will get announced and already has been announced. My partner, Ben Welnak is even out there for his "Mountain Bike Radio" gig and RidingGravel.com stuff.

I'm certain I'll have some stuff to share soon, so stay tuned....

Tubeless: Get With It

I retweeted this yesterday......

The whole tubeless mountain bike tire thing got started around 1998 by a dude named Stan. You know his company, "Stan's NoTubes". The thing was, back "in the day", you had no choice but to convert a regular mountain bike tire, aka: Tubed Tire Technology, to a tubeless state using some new trickery developed by Stan and picked up by XC mountain bike racers at the time. Of course, it was a risky business, setting up non-tubeless stuff tubeless. You could blow tires off rims, have sealant seeping through sidewalls, tape failures, and maybe the worst, a failure at speed, which generally meant you were crashing.......hard. Yet the search went on to make things work better.

Remember, this was almost twenty years ago. Yes, there have been improvements to how you can use Tube Tire Technology in a tubeless state, but in 2017, one has to ask....."Why?" There really is no good reason anymore to do the "conversion dance" with tires and/or rims that were never meant to be tubeless. This now goes for fat bikes, gravel bikes, and increasingly, road bikes.

There are way too many great choices to go tubeless now. I'm not suggesting that you should go tubeless, (Although, you should. Really.) But I am saying that you shouldn't ever consider running Tube Tire Technology with anything other than tubes. That's what Matt McCulley of Mountain Bike Radio was Tweeting about yesterday that caught my eye. But there is also something else I've noted as well.

If you are going to bother doing a tubeless set up, at least get it right.

So, I've seen some "not very well done" things while observing what some folks do to set up tires and rims tubeless. My pet peeve is crappy valve stems. How many ways can companies mess this up? You'd think not many. I mean.....it's a valve stem! You had one job, to create a decent, operable tubeless valve stem......

Yep! Some have horrible base designs, some have slippery shafts that pumps cannot seal against, and some corrode faster than you can blink an eye. I haven't even mentioned valve cores......

Then there is tubeless tape. Oh my! There are some real klunkers out there masquerading as tape. I won't name names here, but I bet some of you are shaking your heads and know a brand that has awful tape. I will praise two brands here: Stan's Yellow Tape and by extension, brands that license that tape, like WTB, and Velocity's Blue Tape. I've had stellar success with both and see no reasons to use anything else.

Finally, there are some real bad tape installation jobs. Tape isn't easy to get right all the time, and I give grace where it is obvious someone tried, but only one run of tape? You are asking for failures there. Tubeless tape doesn't weigh much, and two full runs of tape is so much more durable, safe, and effective that I see absolutely no reason not to do it that way. Plus, the higher pressures gravel riders use will force many tapes to sink into spoke holes in rims and split out if you only use a single layer of tape.

Tubeless tire technology has risen to a level, for the most part, that you don't have to put up with mismatched technology, poor products, or especially mixing in anything not meant to be tubeless. Choices abound in tires. Heck, even a few short years ago there were only one or two tubeless gravel tire options. Now there are so many you cannot name them all.

And finally, tubeless isn't for everyone or for every situation. I still use tubes in lots of my bikes because tubeless maintenance is a chore. I get it. Trust me, I do. But for my "high performance", more demanding riding, I'm using tubeless tire systems and technology that is light years better than it was ten years ago. There just isn't any good reason not to use that stuff.

Tubeless: Get With It

I retweeted this yesterday......

The whole tubeless mountain bike tire thing got started around 1998 by a dude named Stan. You know his company, "Stan's NoTubes". The thing was, back "in the day", you had no choice but to convert a regular mountain bike tire, aka: Tubed Tire Technology, to a tubeless state using some new trickery developed by Stan and picked up by XC mountain bike racers at the time. Of course, it was a risky business, setting up non-tubeless stuff tubeless. You could blow tires off rims, have sealant seeping through sidewalls, tape failures, and maybe the worst, a failure at speed, which generally meant you were crashing.......hard. Yet the search went on to make things work better.

Remember, this was almost twenty years ago. Yes, there have been improvements to how you can use Tube Tire Technology in a tubeless state, but in 2017, one has to ask....."Why?" There really is no good reason anymore to do the "conversion dance" with tires and/or rims that were never meant to be tubeless. This now goes for fat bikes, gravel bikes, and increasingly, road bikes.

There are way too many great choices to go tubeless now. I'm not suggesting that you should go tubeless, (Although, you should. Really.) But I am saying that you shouldn't ever consider running Tube Tire Technology with anything other than tubes. That's what Matt McCulley of Mountain Bike Radio was Tweeting about yesterday that caught my eye. But there is also something else I've noted as well.

If you are going to bother doing a tubeless set up, at least get it right.

So, I've seen some "not very well done" things while observing what some folks do to set up tires and rims tubeless. My pet peeve is crappy valve stems. How many ways can companies mess this up? You'd think not many. I mean.....it's a valve stem! You had one job, to create a decent, operable tubeless valve stem......

Yep! Some have horrible base designs, some have slippery shafts that pumps cannot seal against, and some corrode faster than you can blink an eye. I haven't even mentioned valve cores......

Then there is tubeless tape. Oh my! There are some real klunkers out there masquerading as tape. I won't name names here, but I bet some of you are shaking your heads and know a brand that has awful tape. I will praise two brands here: Stan's Yellow Tape and by extension, brands that license that tape, like WTB, and Velocity's Blue Tape. I've had stellar success with both and see no reasons to use anything else.

Finally, there are some real bad tape installation jobs. Tape isn't easy to get right all the time, and I give grace where it is obvious someone tried, but only one run of tape? You are asking for failures there. Tubeless tape doesn't weigh much, and two full runs of tape is so much more durable, safe, and effective that I see absolutely no reason not to do it that way. Plus, the higher pressures gravel riders use will force many tapes to sink into spoke holes in rims and split out if you only use a single layer of tape.

Tubeless tire technology has risen to a level, for the most part, that you don't have to put up with mismatched technology, poor products, or especially mixing in anything not meant to be tubeless. Choices abound in tires. Heck, even a few short years ago there were only one or two tubeless gravel tire options. Now there are so many you cannot name them all.

And finally, tubeless isn't for everyone or for every situation. I still use tubes in lots of my bikes because tubeless maintenance is a chore. I get it. Trust me, I do. But for my "high performance", more demanding riding, I'm using tubeless tire systems and technology that is light years better than it was ten years ago. There just isn't any good reason not to use that stuff.

Friday News And Views

The new Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast features tales of Almanzo and more.

New Podcast Is Live: 

Ben, Matt, (of  the "Just Riding Along" podcast), and myself have just put out the latest "Riding Gravel Radio Ranch" podcast for your listening pleasure HERE. It is also available through the Mountain Bike Radio app, Stitcher, and most podcast outlets.

It is a rambling show where we talk about the Trans Iowa experience, our volunteering at the Cherry Grove checkpoint for the Almanzo 100 and Royal (or "Royale", as Matt thinks it should be), 162 events held in Spring Valley Minnesota a couple of weeks ago now. Ben also gets a kick out of #bikeshophorrors and "chain sculptures'. Finally, we touch on what will be coming up in the next update on the podcast, hopefully which will be available for download in a couple of weeks or so from now.

I apologize to listeners for the unusual timing between podcasts, but Ben has been in a big moving phase in his life right now going from North Dakota to Wisconsin and that has put a big obstacle in our way as far as producing these podcasts. At some point, it will become more of a regular thing.

Someone with this sticker on a Subaru Forester was not very patient Wednesday!

Not My Red Light:

I commute to work by bicycle and have used the same basic route for probably 13 years plus. So, folks know me out there. It isn't often that I see something I haven't before, but Wednesday proved different.

I rolled up behind an sage green Forrester with the bumper sticker shown here plastered on the back of it. I hadn't seen the car before, but it had Black Hawk County plates. Heading West on Falls, you have to wait at the red light to allow oncoming traffic to turn left. It takes a few seconds to wait. That turn signal for left turning traffic maybe lasts 30-45 seconds. I know. I go through that intersection a lot.

Well, apparently "Not My President" thought that the red light wasn't his red light, because he tried to poke his nose up the street, clearly alarming those who had the right to turn. Eventually the Forrester caused one car to stop and the Forrester blew the intersection and raced up the street.

Nice!

Sometimes it might be best if you didn't put any stickers on your car at all. Or maybe it would be better if you obeyed traffic laws for all of our safety? I don't know. Maybe I'm just not in touch with reality..........

So.......Guitar Ted? Where'd that come from? Image by Jason Boucher

Frequently Asked Question:

If I had to chose what I get asked most about, I would have no problem identifying that subject. It would be why I am called "Guitar Ted" and where that came from.

Matt from Mountain Bike Radio asked me that point blank when we met up in Cherry Grove. Many folks have asked me that question over the years.

It has been that way for years. In fact, I have a permanent page explaining the story which has a link just under the header up there. For those of you that have never noticed, here is that same link. I think it was like the second or third blog post I ever wrote for this site. I did not have any images for it back then, but I have added a couple since.

Anyway, Matt from Mountain Bike Radio says that I need to tell the story on the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast, so I guess that will be out there sometime soon. If you can't be arsed to read about it, well at least soon you can listen to it at your leisure while you do whatever. Just a fair warning there......

Okay, that's all for today. I hope to be having a good ride in Kansas tomorrow and if you are riding, I hope you have a great, safe ride as well.

Friday News And Views

The new Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast features tales of Almanzo and more.

New Podcast Is Live: 

Ben, Matt, (of  the "Just Riding Along" podcast), and myself have just put out the latest "Riding Gravel Radio Ranch" podcast for your listening pleasure HERE. It is also available through the Mountain Bike Radio app, Stitcher, and most podcast outlets.

It is a rambling show where we talk about the Trans Iowa experience, our volunteering at the Cherry Grove checkpoint for the Almanzo 100 and Royal (or "Royale", as Matt thinks it should be), 162 events held in Spring Valley Minnesota a couple of weeks ago now. Ben also gets a kick out of #bikeshophorrors and "chain sculptures'. Finally, we touch on what will be coming up in the next update on the podcast, hopefully which will be available for download in a couple of weeks or so from now.

I apologize to listeners for the unusual timing between podcasts, but Ben has been in a big moving phase in his life right now going from North Dakota to Wisconsin and that has put a big obstacle in our way as far as producing these podcasts. At some point, it will become more of a regular thing.

Someone with this sticker on a Subaru Forester was not very patient Wednesday!

Not My Red Light:

I commute to work by bicycle and have used the same basic route for probably 13 years plus. So, folks know me out there. It isn't often that I see something I haven't before, but Wednesday proved different.

I rolled up behind an sage green Forrester with the bumper sticker shown here plastered on the back of it. I hadn't seen the car before, but it had Black Hawk County plates. Heading West on Falls, you have to wait at the red light to allow oncoming traffic to turn left. It takes a few seconds to wait. That turn signal for left turning traffic maybe lasts 30-45 seconds. I know. I go through that intersection a lot.

Well, apparently "Not My President" thought that the red light wasn't his red light, because he tried to poke his nose up the street, clearly alarming those who had the right to turn. Eventually the Forrester caused one car to stop and the Forrester blew the intersection and raced up the street.

Nice!

Sometimes it might be best if you didn't put any stickers on your car at all. Or maybe it would be better if you obeyed traffic laws for all of our safety? I don't know. Maybe I'm just not in touch with reality..........

So.......Guitar Ted? Where'd that come from? Image by Jason Boucher

Frequently Asked Question:

If I had to chose what I get asked most about, I would have no problem identifying that subject. It would be why I am called "Guitar Ted" and where that came from.

Matt from Mountain Bike Radio asked me that point blank when we met up in Cherry Grove. Many folks have asked me that question over the years.

It has been that way for years. In fact, I have a permanent page explaining the story which has a link just under the header up there. For those of you that have never noticed, here is that same link. I think it was like the second or third blog post I ever wrote for this site. I did not have any images for it back then, but I have added a couple since.

Anyway, Matt from Mountain Bike Radio says that I need to tell the story on the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast, so I guess that will be out there sometime soon. If you can't be arsed to read about it, well at least soon you can listen to it at your leisure while you do whatever. Just a fair warning there......

Okay, that's all for today. I hope to be having a good ride in Kansas tomorrow and if you are riding, I hope you have a great, safe ride as well.

Randomonium- Vans, Single Speeds, & T.I. Radio

People on Facecrack were going ga-ga over this pig of a vehicle. Why?

Okay folks, if you haven't been around long enough here to know what a "Randomonium" post is, then here is the deal. I ramble, rant, and randomly moan about all things cycling in one, incohesive, bizarre post. "Randomonium", okay?

Yesterday I was amazed by a weird post on Facecrack about a van on Craigslist. People were going nutso over this pig of a Chevy van and thinking it would be the bees knees for adventuring around in. Frankly, I just do not understand why. I know, I know....... "Van life". But this Vandura? Really?

Maybe it is the recent "Dirt Rag" issue that came out extolling the purported virtues of "van life" and cycling. C'mon people. Living out of a van? Have y'all gone Matt Foley on me here? I cannot think of a worse way to spend a weekend, much less a month, going around to cycling destinations. I know, because I have done it.

And I know that the Vandura that the folks were falling all over themselves to "like" on Facecrack is a giant turd of a vehicle to drive, and to work on. I know this because I have done both with and on Vanduras and their variations. See, I used to work at a car repair shop for five and a half years. I am fully aware of what's under the "doghouse" in a Chevy van. It ain't pretty either.

Gah! Just the thought of those vans brings back all the smells and feels. Uggh!

Oh so wrong, antiquated, and stupid. Ah.....yeah. Whatever!

I read another amusing bit that, for all intents and purposes, is likely just clickbait to inflate the "BikeRadar.com" website's numbers. It was about why single speed mountain bikes are stupid. The following quote was my favorite:

"These things are all terrible in that they simply don’t need to be that way any more. Nowadays we have inflatable tyres, commercial jets and simple cash. We have the technology to change gears."

I liked it because it exposes the flaw in the logic of the piece. You see, if single speed mountain bikes are terrible and one of the reasons why is because we have "better technology", then by that measure all human powered vehicles are to be regarded as stupid. Because "technology", right? I mean, at that point, why pedal at all when you don't have to? Why do we not review all bicycles as being technologically backward? 

See, that whole line of thinking is what is really stupid. It is so obvious, and I know all the health, "green", and community enhancing benefits as well as you do. That is why that article is clickbait and why I am not going to link to it. You'll just have to go look for yourselves if you want to see it, but keep in mind, that's playing right in to their hands. Besides, if you want the real low down on why single speeding is a bad idea, just follow me on a gravel ride in hilly territory someday. I'm sure you'll come to understand quickly.

Home of Trans Iowa Radio

And now for something completely serious and maybe even.....useful? Yes. Useful. 

My RidingGravel.com partner, Ben Welnak, has decided to sacrifice a weekend of time he'll never get back and facilitate "Trans Iowa Radio". I did not ask or cajole him in to doing anything. He offered to do it again of his own volition, and honestly, had he not, I would have completely understood. Trans Iowa Radio is a huge time commitment and while I know Ben would say it is "no big deal", it is a big deal. Trust me. 

I know this because back in the early days of Trans Iowa I did "Trans Iowa Radio" as kind of a way to have fun and pass the time while driving around Iowa's backroads like some stray dog on an all night bender. I made up fake sponsors and did fake commercials. I had noisy toys and sounds that led into vague updates and quasi-serious rantings on course conditions and progress of the leaders of the event. I didn't think anyone was taking any of it seriously.

Boy! Was I ever wrong about that!

People would send me angry e-mails after the fact because I wasn't covering their second cousin who was in the event. They would tell me I was doing it all wrong and would tell me what they thought I should be covering and how often and when. It was completely annoying, unnecessary, and the whole intent and purpose for Trans Iowa Radio back then was completely misunderstood. I vowed not to do it again several times. Then I would do it and get another round of criticisms. 

The thing got set in stone once the mini-documentary, "300 Miles of Gravel" came out since my TI Radio updates were sprinkled throughout the piece. Ben came along shortly afterward to facilitate Trans Iowa Radio on his Mountain Bike Radio site. That's when it started to open up to having rider call-ins and it didn't have to be something that relied on myself stopping to call in occasionally. Ben helped put things to right with the "audience" and what it was they wanted- updates from people they wanted to hear about, straight from the "horses mouth". It has freed me up to do what I do and not have to be concerned with trying to please every listener. It has been a great arrangement.

That said, I know it is a huge investment for Ben in terms of time and energy. That is why I cannot ask him to do this. I know how taxing it is. So, if you have the chance, give him a shout and let him know that you appreciate the efforts. I know I sure do. 

 

Randomonium- Vans, Single Speeds, & T.I. Radio

People on Facecrack were going ga-ga over this pig of a vehicle. Why?

Okay folks, if you haven't been around long enough here to know what a "Randomonium" post is, then here is the deal. I ramble, rant, and randomly moan about all things cycling in one, incohesive, bizarre post. "Randomonium", okay?

Yesterday I was amazed by a weird post on Facecrack about a van on Craigslist. People were going nutso over this pig of a Chevy van and thinking it would be the bees knees for adventuring around in. Frankly, I just do not understand why. I know, I know....... "Van life". But this Vandura? Really?

Maybe it is the recent "Dirt Rag" issue that came out extolling the purported virtues of "van life" and cycling. C'mon people. Living out of a van? Have y'all gone Matt Foley on me here? I cannot think of a worse way to spend a weekend, much less a month, going around to cycling destinations. I know, because I have done it.

And I know that the Vandura that the folks were falling all over themselves to "like" on Facecrack is a giant turd of a vehicle to drive, and to work on. I know this because I have done both with and on Vanduras and their variations. See, I used to work at a car repair shop for five and a half years. I am fully aware of what's under the "doghouse" in a Chevy van. It ain't pretty either.

Gah! Just the thought of those vans brings back all the smells and feels. Uggh!

Oh so wrong, antiquated, and stupid. Ah.....yeah. Whatever!

I read another amusing bit that, for all intents and purposes, is likely just clickbait to inflate the "BikeRadar.com" website's numbers. It was about why single speed mountain bikes are stupid. The following quote was my favorite:

"These things are all terrible in that they simply don’t need to be that way any more. Nowadays we have inflatable tyres, commercial jets and simple cash. We have the technology to change gears."

I liked it because it exposes the flaw in the logic of the piece. You see, if single speed mountain bikes are terrible and one of the reasons why is because we have "better technology", then by that measure all human powered vehicles are to be regarded as stupid. Because "technology", right? I mean, at that point, why pedal at all when you don't have to? Why do we not review all bicycles as being technologically backward? 

See, that whole line of thinking is what is really stupid. It is so obvious, and I know all the health, "green", and community enhancing benefits as well as you do. That is why that article is clickbait and why I am not going to link to it. You'll just have to go look for yourselves if you want to see it, but keep in mind, that's playing right in to their hands. Besides, if you want the real low down on why single speeding is a bad idea, just follow me on a gravel ride in hilly territory someday. I'm sure you'll come to understand quickly.

Home of Trans Iowa Radio

And now for something completely serious and maybe even.....useful? Yes. Useful. 

My RidingGravel.com partner, Ben Welnak, has decided to sacrifice a weekend of time he'll never get back and facilitate "Trans Iowa Radio". I did not ask or cajole him in to doing anything. He offered to do it again of his own volition, and honestly, had he not, I would have completely understood. Trans Iowa Radio is a huge time commitment and while I know Ben would say it is "no big deal", it is a big deal. Trust me. 

I know this because back in the early days of Trans Iowa I did "Trans Iowa Radio" as kind of a way to have fun and pass the time while driving around Iowa's backroads like some stray dog on an all night bender. I made up fake sponsors and did fake commercials. I had noisy toys and sounds that led into vague updates and quasi-serious rantings on course conditions and progress of the leaders of the event. I didn't think anyone was taking any of it seriously.

Boy! Was I ever wrong about that!

People would send me angry e-mails after the fact because I wasn't covering their second cousin who was in the event. They would tell me I was doing it all wrong and would tell me what they thought I should be covering and how often and when. It was completely annoying, unnecessary, and the whole intent and purpose for Trans Iowa Radio back then was completely misunderstood. I vowed not to do it again several times. Then I would do it and get another round of criticisms. 

The thing got set in stone once the mini-documentary, "300 Miles of Gravel" came out since my TI Radio updates were sprinkled throughout the piece. Ben came along shortly afterward to facilitate Trans Iowa Radio on his Mountain Bike Radio site. That's when it started to open up to having rider call-ins and it didn't have to be something that relied on myself stopping to call in occasionally. Ben helped put things to right with the "audience" and what it was they wanted- updates from people they wanted to hear about, straight from the "horses mouth". It has freed me up to do what I do and not have to be concerned with trying to please every listener. It has been a great arrangement.

That said, I know it is a huge investment for Ben in terms of time and energy. That is why I cannot ask him to do this. I know how taxing it is. So, if you have the chance, give him a shout and let him know that you appreciate the efforts. I know I sure do. 

 

On The Radio

Yesterday I got to speak with a couple of fine gentlemen. LeLan Dains and Jim Cummings of the DK Promotions were our guests on the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast. It was a good episode and I think folks will enjoy it once it goes live, likely by tomorrow sometime. The main thing we speak about is that the registration for the Dirty Kanza 200 is happening in less than a week next Saturday at 8:00am CST.

Podcasting is kind of a weird deal, but I guess some folks do get in to it all. I enjoy recording them, but I will say that I am not necessarily a huge podcast consumer. I do listen to a few out there from time to time. I'm a stock car racing fan from way, way back, so my favorite podcast is the Dirty Mo Radio's "Dale Jr. Download". My Dad used to be involved in auto racing, so that's where I got the bug. But as far as cycling podcasts go, I don't regularly listen to anything anymore since the "FredCast" went dark a year or more ago. If you are in to mountain biking though, there are a lot of good episodes on Mountain Bike Radio, so check those out.

First off, I will say that any other podcaster is way better than I am. But for some reason, I guess folks like listening to me on ours. You can check that out HERE if you ever dare. That link will take you to our 19th episode where I prognosticate on cycling's future, amongst other stuff like Trans Iowa, and more. The 20th episode should air tomorrow. Again......listen if you dare! 

Maybe I'll be the voice you hear on the radio sometime soon. As crazy as that sounds.......

On The Radio

Yesterday I got to speak with a couple of fine gentlemen. LeLan Dains and Jim Cummings of the DK Promotions were our guests on the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast. It was a good episode and I think folks will enjoy it once it goes live, likely by tomorrow sometime. The main thing we speak about is that the registration for the Dirty Kanza 200 is happening in less than a week next Saturday at 8:00am CST.

Podcasting is kind of a weird deal, but I guess some folks do get in to it all. I enjoy recording them, but I will say that I am not necessarily a huge podcast consumer. I do listen to a few out there from time to time. I'm a stock car racing fan from way, way back, so my favorite podcast is the Dirty Mo Radio's "Dale Jr. Download". My Dad used to be involved in auto racing, so that's where I got the bug. But as far as cycling podcasts go, I don't regularly listen to anything anymore since the "FredCast" went dark a year or more ago. If you are in to mountain biking though, there are a lot of good episodes on Mountain Bike Radio, so check those out.

First off, I will say that any other podcaster is way better than I am. But for some reason, I guess folks like listening to me on ours. You can check that out HERE if you ever dare. That link will take you to our 19th episode where I prognosticate on cycling's future, amongst other stuff like Trans Iowa, and more. The 20th episode should air tomorrow. Again......listen if you dare! 

Maybe I'll be the voice you hear on the radio sometime soon. As crazy as that sounds.......

Friday News And Views

Stick 'em up!

Riding Gravel News:

There are a couple of things to chat about here regarding the site I am partnered in with Ben Welnak, better known for his Mountain Bike Radio podcasts. Of course, that site is RidingGravel.com. Ben is definitely better at the promoting thing than I am. He's got t-shirts and stickers, and who knows what all going on for his various ventures. So, it shouldn't come as any surprise that he's been tweaking the look of the site, adding an "About" page and even something for anyone wanting to advertise. Ben is the man when it comes to all of that. Heck, all I know about is rocks, rock and roll, and bicycles. I'd never be able to do all of what Ben does so well.

So, anyway.......Ben came up with a plan to revamp the look of the logo and he sent me about two dozen renderings and we finally came up with the new logo, as seen on the stickers in the image here. Yep.....there is a heck of a lot of stickers there! If you want some, give me a holler and I'll work out how to get you some.

Beyond stickers and web design, we are active in the gravel road community putting on events, and now......helping support them with real labor!  Yep. I'll be working Checkpoint #3 with Ben and a couple of others for this weekend's running of the Almanzo 100. I've actually never been to this seminal gravel road event, so it is about time I did that, yes? Yes, I believe so, and helping to cheer on the riders is a good way for me to do that, I think. Oh......and yes- we will have stickers to hand out. Be nice! I'm planning on having my son be there and I think I will put him in charge of those. We will see..... Anyway, this all happened at the last minute when another entity pulled the plug on helping so Ben decided we'd step in and fill that void. Hopefully we can pull it together and give a good showing.

Rubber godz

The Religion of Rubber:

I don't think anything else about bicycles engenders more passionate feelings than tires. Just those rubber skins we either put a tube into or use sealant with. That one component that touches the ground, goes round and round, and gives us feedback from the surfaces we ride on. Tires. Those odd, mostly black, sometimes knobbly bits of circular goodness. They are just tires. 

But with the near zealous, religious fervor these mere things engender, you'd think that people were talking about gods. It's weird. There is no doubt that, more than anything else I write about, tires generate the most interest than anything else. Then it is maybe geometry of bikes, and finally, Trans Iowa.  I could probably write about new tires for months and no one would notice I wasn't writing anything else. Tires.......yeah. It's just really a weird thing.

So, I will be writing more about tires, real soon, and that shouldn't be a surprise at all. I have the Panaracer Gravel King 40's to wrap up, but I will say those are some very nice tires. Then it's on to a couple of unknowns. One I am doing some consulting on, so I cannot talk about that, but the other is coming and it is something brand new. New tires from a new brand. I'm sure these will raise some passionate feelings both good and bad. You know, tires always seem to do that. In the future I'll be looking at those WTB Riddler tires too. The ones we gave away a couple pair of at Trans Iowa. They looked pretty interesting.

Sheesh! It wasn't too long ago that every gravel road rider worth his or her salt ran Schwalbe Marathon series tires and that was your only/best choice. Maybe things were simpler and easier back then. I know that there was a lot less chatter about tires for gravel road riding!

Okay, that's a wrap on this week. Maybe I'll see ya at Almanzo, or if not, go have some good bicycling adventure!

Friday News And Views

Stick 'em up!

Riding Gravel News:

There are a couple of things to chat about here regarding the site I am partnered in with Ben Welnak, better known for his Mountain Bike Radio podcasts. Of course, that site is RidingGravel.com. Ben is definitely better at the promoting thing than I am. He's got t-shirts and stickers, and who knows what all going on for his various ventures. So, it shouldn't come as any surprise that he's been tweaking the look of the site, adding an "About" page and even something for anyone wanting to advertise. Ben is the man when it comes to all of that. Heck, all I know about is rocks, rock and roll, and bicycles. I'd never be able to do all of what Ben does so well.

So, anyway.......Ben came up with a plan to revamp the look of the logo and he sent me about two dozen renderings and we finally came up with the new logo, as seen on the stickers in the image here. Yep.....there is a heck of a lot of stickers there! If you want some, give me a holler and I'll work out how to get you some.

Beyond stickers and web design, we are active in the gravel road community putting on events, and now......helping support them with real labor!  Yep. I'll be working Checkpoint #3 with Ben and a couple of others for this weekend's running of the Almanzo 100. I've actually never been to this seminal gravel road event, so it is about time I did that, yes? Yes, I believe so, and helping to cheer on the riders is a good way for me to do that, I think. Oh......and yes- we will have stickers to hand out. Be nice! I'm planning on having my son be there and I think I will put him in charge of those. We will see..... Anyway, this all happened at the last minute when another entity pulled the plug on helping so Ben decided we'd step in and fill that void. Hopefully we can pull it together and give a good showing.

Rubber godz

The Religion of Rubber:

I don't think anything else about bicycles engenders more passionate feelings than tires. Just those rubber skins we either put a tube into or use sealant with. That one component that touches the ground, goes round and round, and gives us feedback from the surfaces we ride on. Tires. Those odd, mostly black, sometimes knobbly bits of circular goodness. They are just tires. 

But with the near zealous, religious fervor these mere things engender, you'd think that people were talking about gods. It's weird. There is no doubt that, more than anything else I write about, tires generate the most interest than anything else. Then it is maybe geometry of bikes, and finally, Trans Iowa.  I could probably write about new tires for months and no one would notice I wasn't writing anything else. Tires.......yeah. It's just really a weird thing.

So, I will be writing more about tires, real soon, and that shouldn't be a surprise at all. I have the Panaracer Gravel King 40's to wrap up, but I will say those are some very nice tires. Then it's on to a couple of unknowns. One I am doing some consulting on, so I cannot talk about that, but the other is coming and it is something brand new. New tires from a new brand. I'm sure these will raise some passionate feelings both good and bad. You know, tires always seem to do that. In the future I'll be looking at those WTB Riddler tires too. The ones we gave away a couple pair of at Trans Iowa. They looked pretty interesting.

Sheesh! It wasn't too long ago that every gravel road rider worth his or her salt ran Schwalbe Marathon series tires and that was your only/best choice. Maybe things were simpler and easier back then. I know that there was a lot less chatter about tires for gravel road riding!

Okay, that's a wrap on this week. Maybe I'll see ya at Almanzo, or if not, go have some good bicycling adventure!

Minus Ten Review- 9

Ten years ago, the shop was visited by this bird.

Ten years ago on the blog the week was dominated by my second "Ted-terview" and it was with my then co-worker, Carl Buchanan. He was into 24hr endurance racing and XC racing back then and had just secured a sponsorship with Cannondale Bikes to ride their rigs for the '06 season.

The interview deal was a ton of fun, but in reality, had I known at the time I could have done a podcast, I would have quickly moved to doing that. Having first Jeff Kerkove, and then Carl, doing my interviews, it didn't take me long to figure out that transcribing from a dictation recorder wasn't very efficient, or fun. But I soldiered on, and the four part interview with Carl came out over the course of the week.

Now I get to do the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch and that pretty much is what I was trying to do with the "Ted-terview" idea, only I do not have to transcribe an hour plus long conversation! I still have to rely on the expertise of my partner, Ben, in getting it all up on the web and distributed, but it is still far easier this way. My hope is that the program can become a bit more regular at some point, as we have been a bit random in our output since last Spring.

Previous to the Radio Ranch, I filled my desires for something along the lines of a podcast by finding out about "audio blogging" and using that platform for "Trans Iowa Radio". I thought of it at first like I did back when I used to do mock radio programs by taping myself on a portable cassette deck. So, there was a lot of silliness and off the cuff humor in that first Trans Iowa radio blast, and it was in no way meant to be serious. However; folks were upset that I wasn't being "more professional" and I found out folks were listening internationally besides the folks here in the US. Later on Ben heard about what I was doing, and my first go-round with him was when Mountain Bike Radio took over the production of Trans Iowa Radio for T.I.v9's running in 2013. Then we were able to get rider call-ins, and that became immensely popular.

It all started with the cassette recorder when I was a kid. Then the "Ted-terview", and Trans Iowa Radio, which then led to where I am now with the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch. Things have come a long way!

Minus Ten Review- 9

Ten years ago, the shop was visited by this bird.

Ten years ago on the blog the week was dominated by my second "Ted-terview" and it was with my then co-worker, Carl Buchanan. He was into 24hr endurance racing and XC racing back then and had just secured a sponsorship with Cannondale Bikes to ride their rigs for the '06 season.

The interview deal was a ton of fun, but in reality, had I known at the time I could have done a podcast, I would have quickly moved to doing that. Having first Jeff Kerkove, and then Carl, doing my interviews, it didn't take me long to figure out that transcribing from a dictation recorder wasn't very efficient, or fun. But I soldiered on, and the four part interview with Carl came out over the course of the week.

Now I get to do the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch and that pretty much is what I was trying to do with the "Ted-terview" idea, only I do not have to transcribe an hour plus long conversation! I still have to rely on the expertise of my partner, Ben, in getting it all up on the web and distributed, but it is still far easier this way. My hope is that the program can become a bit more regular at some point, as we have been a bit random in our output since last Spring.

Previous to the Radio Ranch, I filled my desires for something along the lines of a podcast by finding out about "audio blogging" and using that platform for "Trans Iowa Radio". I thought of it at first like I did back when I used to do mock radio programs by taping myself on a portable cassette deck. So, there was a lot of silliness and off the cuff humor in that first Trans Iowa radio blast, and it was in no way meant to be serious. However; folks were upset that I wasn't being "more professional" and I found out folks were listening internationally besides the folks here in the US. Later on Ben heard about what I was doing, and my first go-round with him was when Mountain Bike Radio took over the production of Trans Iowa Radio for T.I.v9's running in 2013. Then we were able to get rider call-ins, and that became immensely popular.

It all started with the cassette recorder when I was a kid. Then the "Ted-terview", and Trans Iowa Radio, which then led to where I am now with the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch. Things have come a long way!

The Radio Ranch Rides Again

A view from Masie's route

 When thinking about gravel rides in Kansas, the Dirty Kanza 200 comes up right away, and you could be forgiven if you thought that was the only event on gravel in Kansas. Obviously, that is not the case at all. In fact, there are plenty of events in Kansas on gravel that deserve your attention. (For more Kansas gravel events and others besides those across the nation, see RidingGravel.com's event pages.)

One of these events that has always intrigued me is "Gravel Ride For Masie's Pride", which, besides the strange name, is an event that also happens to use the Flint Hills as their playground. I'll spare you all the details here because my partner, Ben, and I just wrapped up and published a great podcast about the event with it's founder and director, "Uncle Dudley". Check that out by clicking HERE.

This post will be more about the getting of this show back up and going again after about seven months of being dormant. It wasn't our intentions to have let things go this far. However; there are a couple of reasons, in my opinion, for why this all happened the way it has.

The first thing is that Ben is the founder and head honcho of Mountain Bike Radio, which is the entity that hosts and produces the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch. Now MBR.com has tons of great podcasts. While Ben doesn't have to shepherd them all, he has a busy time riding herd on the ones that he does have a direct hand in. That takes a lot of time. Secondly, Ben and his family moved during the time we were off, and that interrupted things a bit. Then it got to be Summer, we both got busy with other stuff, and next thing ya know, it is Fall.

I was doing everything I could during the Fall to squeeze in some review work before Winter came. Doing a Radio Ranch show wasn't on my radar then. So, I wasn't really even thinking this would happen again. I mean, maybe someday, it would, but I was not thinking very positively about it. That was until Uncle Dudley got a hold of me and asked if doing a podcast might be possible. So, I'm blaming him for all of this getting cranked up again.

The result was that it did get cranked up again.  I was glad to find out we were getting the generators dusted off, plugging the mics in, and doing sound checks. I happen to enjoy doing these, and I sure hope folks like listening to the podcasts. Hopefully we won't be letting things slip into forgetfulness again, and another Radio Ranch podcast will happen again sooner than later.

The Radio Ranch Rides Again

A view from Masie's route

 When thinking about gravel rides in Kansas, the Dirty Kanza 200 comes up right away, and you could be forgiven if you thought that was the only event on gravel in Kansas. Obviously, that is not the case at all. In fact, there are plenty of events in Kansas on gravel that deserve your attention. (For more Kansas gravel events and others besides those across the nation, see RidingGravel.com's event pages.)

One of these events that has always intrigued me is "Gravel Ride For Masie's Pride", which, besides the strange name, is an event that also happens to use the Flint Hills as their playground. I'll spare you all the details here because my partner, Ben, and I just wrapped up and published a great podcast about the event with it's founder and director, "Uncle Dudley". Check that out by clicking HERE.

This post will be more about the getting of this show back up and going again after about seven months of being dormant. It wasn't our intentions to have let things go this far. However; there are a couple of reasons, in my opinion, for why this all happened the way it has.

The first thing is that Ben is the founder and head honcho of Mountain Bike Radio, which is the entity that hosts and produces the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch. Now MBR.com has tons of great podcasts. While Ben doesn't have to shepherd them all, he has a busy time riding herd on the ones that he does have a direct hand in. That takes a lot of time. Secondly, Ben and his family moved during the time we were off, and that interrupted things a bit. Then it got to be Summer, we both got busy with other stuff, and next thing ya know, it is Fall.

I was doing everything I could during the Fall to squeeze in some review work before Winter came. Doing a Radio Ranch show wasn't on my radar then. So, I wasn't really even thinking this would happen again. I mean, maybe someday, it would, but I was not thinking very positively about it. That was until Uncle Dudley got a hold of me and asked if doing a podcast might be possible. So, I'm blaming him for all of this getting cranked up again.

The result was that it did get cranked up again.  I was glad to find out we were getting the generators dusted off, plugging the mics in, and doing sound checks. I happen to enjoy doing these, and I sure hope folks like listening to the podcasts. Hopefully we won't be letting things slip into forgetfulness again, and another Radio Ranch podcast will happen again sooner than later.

Friday News And Views

With the end of the week at hand, I am heavily into "Interbike Mode", as I leave to attend the show Sunday. Here is a Special Rant Edition of Friday News & Views based on the coming show and trends. Enjoy!

NOTE: Large doses of "my opinion" will be handed out in gloppy dollops today. You've been forewarned.....

Just call it a "gravel grinder" and it'll sell!

 A bit of back story is in order for today's post. This Interbike, you are going to hear a lot about "gravel grinder bikes", or bikes designed for such, or good for that activity. On the surface of it, you'd think I would be pleased to announce this. Well, I am not. I am actually a bit annoyed by it. Here's why....

Several years ago I started talking about what I thought would make a good bike for gravel riding. Remember- most folks were of the mind that cyclo cross bikes were all we needed. (Many still hold to this idea to this day.) Many would say, whatever bike you ride on gravel is a "gravel grinder bike". You do not need a specialized bike for this. (Said as they roll away on their very specialized road, mountain, or urban bike that has been sub-divided into so many categories of specialties that I cannot keep count.) Whatever.... These people are not using their noggins. Anyway....

I began to discern, dissect, and theorize on what it would take to get optimal performance from a bicycle on gravel roads. I asked trusted friends what they thought, and I bounced ideas off of some industry acquaintances. I was going to pursue the custom bike angle, because, you know, why on Earth would anyone else even care about this? 

Along the way, a very bright and talented man I know also got the bug to do a custom design like this and he coined the idea we had "fat road". (Others have also used this terminology, we laid no claim to being original!) I liked it because it wasn't so specific as to exclude use on "any road". That's inclusive. That's getting a broader, more versatile mindset about this sort of design than "gravel grinder bike". But for convenience of conversation, I continued to use that term out of the thought that this wouldn't get anywhere anyway.

Something truly different.....

But I was wrong. The terminology and idea of such a bike took root and got sucked into the vernacular of the cycling industry and the next thing I know, and that I see, is a bicycle that comes out here and one over there that is a "gravel bike" in CX clothing. What? 

Yes, the marketing wonks are rebadging CX geometry and  calling the bikes "gravel grinders". Even the very few bikes that are truly different from CX bikes and would do well on gravel, (or I should say, "better on gravel"), are called gravel grinder bikes. Why? Because gravel road riding really is catching on, which is cool, and the marketing guys want their business, which is alright, but the "snake oil" is getting deep and it stinks of "nothing new here". At least in some aspects of the ploys I have seen of late.

So- first of all, calling these bikes, (even if they are different), "gravel grinder bikes" is completely wrong. Here's why: What do you think of when I say "snow bike"? Okay? That conjures up a certain image- maybe of a cold, windy, snowy landscape where you would be shivering, uncomfortable, and rather be snuggling in with a significant other and, well......you get the picture! You don't ride in snow so why bother with a bike that does that, right? Now call it a "fat bike". What does that do to the previous image? It is a completely different way to think about a fat tired, all terrain bicycle, isn't it?

Calling these new, all road capable, "go anywhere there is a path that resembles a road" bicycles "Gravel Grinders" does the same thing that calling a fat bike a "snow bike" does to those wonderful, fun, capable machines. It pigeon holes them into a certain mindset that discounts them as a possibility for anyone looking for a road bike that can do anything.

....or a rebadged CX bike.

And even worse, just tweaking a basic CX design isn't doing a "gravel grinder" bike. Not in my opinion. Yes- a cyclo cross bike does a fine job of cruising gravel. However, there is a better way to do it, just like a road bike is a better way to do pavement riding than using a cyclo cross bike. See? For sure we don't need a "gravel specific" bicycle, but you don't "need" a road specific bicycle either. However; it is nice that you have that choice.

So when you read about all the "gravel grinder" stuff coming out of Interbike, just be wary. Just like you should be wary of all the 27.5"er and fat bike conversations you'll be reading about. There is a lot of marketing "hoo-hah" swirling around these facets of cycling and the industry is pushing hard for "the next big thing" since 29"ers are milked out now.

I will be commenting and reporting on my thoughts about Interbike 2013 and what I see as trends there on this blog and on Mountain Bike Radio over the coming days and weeks. Stay tuned.....

3GR: Yes- there will be a 3GR Saturday at 8:30am at the starting point of Gates Swimming Pool parking lot in Waterloo. (The construction on the highway is ongoing, so plan accordingly.)  See you there!

Have a great weekend and Ride Your Bicycles!

Friday News And Views

With the end of the week at hand, I am heavily into "Interbike Mode", as I leave to attend the show Sunday. Here is a Special Rant Edition of Friday News & Views based on the coming show and trends. Enjoy!

NOTE: Large doses of "my opinion" will be handed out in gloppy dollops today. You've been forewarned.....

Just call it a "gravel grinder" and it'll sell!

 A bit of back story is in order for today's post. This Interbike, you are going to hear a lot about "gravel grinder bikes", or bikes designed for such, or good for that activity. On the surface of it, you'd think I would be pleased to announce this. Well, I am not. I am actually a bit annoyed by it. Here's why....

Several years ago I started talking about what I thought would make a good bike for gravel riding. Remember- most folks were of the mind that cyclo cross bikes were all we needed. (Many still hold to this idea to this day.) Many would say, whatever bike you ride on gravel is a "gravel grinder bike". You do not need a specialized bike for this. (Said as they roll away on their very specialized road, mountain, or urban bike that has been sub-divided into so many categories of specialties that I cannot keep count.) Whatever.... These people are not using their noggins. Anyway....

I began to discern, dissect, and theorize on what it would take to get optimal performance from a bicycle on gravel roads. I asked trusted friends what they thought, and I bounced ideas off of some industry acquaintances. I was going to pursue the custom bike angle, because, you know, why on Earth would anyone else even care about this? 

Along the way, a very bright and talented man I know also got the bug to do a custom design like this and he coined the idea we had "fat road". (Others have also used this terminology, we laid no claim to being original!) I liked it because it wasn't so specific as to exclude use on "any road". That's inclusive. That's getting a broader, more versatile mindset about this sort of design than "gravel grinder bike". But for convenience of conversation, I continued to use that term out of the thought that this wouldn't get anywhere anyway.

Something truly different.....

But I was wrong. The terminology and idea of such a bike took root and got sucked into the vernacular of the cycling industry and the next thing I know, and that I see, is a bicycle that comes out here and one over there that is a "gravel bike" in CX clothing. What? 

Yes, the marketing wonks are rebadging CX geometry and  calling the bikes "gravel grinders". Even the very few bikes that are truly different from CX bikes and would do well on gravel, (or I should say, "better on gravel"), are called gravel grinder bikes. Why? Because gravel road riding really is catching on, which is cool, and the marketing guys want their business, which is alright, but the "snake oil" is getting deep and it stinks of "nothing new here". At least in some aspects of the ploys I have seen of late.

So- first of all, calling these bikes, (even if they are different), "gravel grinder bikes" is completely wrong. Here's why: What do you think of when I say "snow bike"? Okay? That conjures up a certain image- maybe of a cold, windy, snowy landscape where you would be shivering, uncomfortable, and rather be snuggling in with a significant other and, well......you get the picture! You don't ride in snow so why bother with a bike that does that, right? Now call it a "fat bike". What does that do to the previous image? It is a completely different way to think about a fat tired, all terrain bicycle, isn't it?

Calling these new, all road capable, "go anywhere there is a path that resembles a road" bicycles "Gravel Grinders" does the same thing that calling a fat bike a "snow bike" does to those wonderful, fun, capable machines. It pigeon holes them into a certain mindset that discounts them as a possibility for anyone looking for a road bike that can do anything.

....or a rebadged CX bike.

And even worse, just tweaking a basic CX design isn't doing a "gravel grinder" bike. Not in my opinion. Yes- a cyclo cross bike does a fine job of cruising gravel. However, there is a better way to do it, just like a road bike is a better way to do pavement riding than using a cyclo cross bike. See? For sure we don't need a "gravel specific" bicycle, but you don't "need" a road specific bicycle either. However; it is nice that you have that choice.

So when you read about all the "gravel grinder" stuff coming out of Interbike, just be wary. Just like you should be wary of all the 27.5"er and fat bike conversations you'll be reading about. There is a lot of marketing "hoo-hah" swirling around these facets of cycling and the industry is pushing hard for "the next big thing" since 29"ers are milked out now.

I will be commenting and reporting on my thoughts about Interbike 2013 and what I see as trends there on this blog and on Mountain Bike Radio over the coming days and weeks. Stay tuned.....

3GR: Yes- there will be a 3GR Saturday at 8:30am at the starting point of Gates Swimming Pool parking lot in Waterloo. (The construction on the highway is ongoing, so plan accordingly.)  See you there!

Have a great weekend and Ride Your Bicycles!