You’ve been good all year. And I hope your haul for Christmas 2023 included some really cool bike stuff. That thing you’ve been wanting forever—or maybe that thing you had no idea you’d love. (If not—there are always those gifts you give yourself…) As we get older, our collections of bikes, gear and tools tend … More A New Year for Old Racers
On day five, when the road turned easy, Marty coasted up alongside me with a question. “What’ll you say when people ask about this?” “This” was our eight-day trip bikepacking and hiking in Iceland. The ruggedness and the weather. Also, the awe and the impossible beauty. “Like, someone you care about. Do you tell them … More Bikepacking Iceland: Things Pull Apart
I never liked the title, All I Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. I can’t swallow the implication that the rest of our schooling was somehow a waste. (Trust me: It’s good you read beyond a kindergarten level; it’s good your doctor went to medical school.) But I love the notion that fundamental … More All I Really Needed to Know I Learned Racing Gravel
There’s something to be said for finding cycling in your 40s, when your athletic debut and your physical decline come conjoined. It’s so common there’s a name for us—both masculine and emasculating. We’re Middle-aged Men in Lycra (MAMIL). And compared to the faster folks, we’re a different animal. An elite athlete’s arc might look something … More What If You’ve Already Peaked?
I have a weird thing for opposites. Or maybe it’s the opposite of a weird thing. This happy little flickering chill that comes whenever something swings into its opposite—maybe that’s the most human thrill there is. We could just be hardwired to like opposites—to enjoy the jolt of a genius oxymoron. Cycling itself is full … More The Victory of Third Places
I try not to let my day job at Nebraska Wesleyan University cross streams with what I write for my blog job. (Well, I guess there was one time…) But a recent article I wrote about a tremendous athlete at NWU warrants an exception. Reagan Janzen is an All-American 800 runner, a conference champion, an … More Don’t Just Feel the Burn. Understand It.
Around mile 63 of this year’s Solstice 100, the temperature touched 97 degrees; the course turned north; and my well-being tipped south. Sam, Pete and I had ridden well together all morning. And our positivity, pacing and patronage of a particularly well-stocked oasis had all done me a world of good. Knowing my history with … More Hot Routes: Gravel’s greatest course designers shine at high heat
Hey, congrats again on being one of the 110-ish riders invited to take part in Gravel Worlds’ first running of the Long Voyage 300. It’s the hardest course in Nebraska’s biggest gravel race. For a few of us (myself included), this’ll be our first adventure well north of the 200-mile marker. So just getting in … More 5 Reasons YOU WILL FINISH the Long Voyage 300 This Year
My childhood mind popped a serious knuckle the day our science class learned that cold wasn’t really a thing. There was only heat, Mrs. Eberspacher told us, and the relative absence of heat. The vanilla ice cream that gave us headaches when we ate it too fast, she said, was merely “less hot” than the … More The Opposite of Strong
When I learned I was among the 100 riders invited to the Pirate Cycling League’s first 300-mile event, The Long Voyage, I was jabbed with a twist cone of excitement and dread. And right away, I thought of the Barkley Marathons. That infamous off-trail race in Tennessee selects just 40 runners each year, and shares … More We Regret to Congratulate You.
Dirt Tan Bike Club 