The best way to see a city is on a bike. Doesn’t matter if it’s sunny or rainy, crowded or quiet, hot or cold. You’ll notice parts of town that you just can’t when you’re in an Uber, on foot, or in a bus. It’s a different experience entirely, and one that I wholeheartedly recommend. Let’s talk about Tromsø. It’s a small island city in … Continue reading Fat Biking in Tromsø
The longest days of the year makes for extended daylight perfect for long rides to a spot to watch the sunset. This was something I’ve wanted to do for a while. Ride to Mounds Park in St. Paul with a cooler full of beers and watch the sunset behind the skyline during Solstice week. A group met up at Angry Catfish at 5pm for pre-ride … Continue reading Angry Catfish x Surly Brewing Solstice Ride
Thanksgiving dinner with my family usually involves talk of Black Friday deals. My aunts and uncles discuss where they plan to be and how early they plan to be there. I never understood the urge to go so far out of the way just to buy things. My favorite way of spending Black Friday was always staying as far away from the crowds and consumerism … Continue reading #OptOutside
If you’ve read my posts on biking, you’ve surely noticed how I never fail to mention the positive effects on the environment and mental health. What I don’t always mention is the physical benefits of riding a bike. I’m on a bike six or seven days of the week–biking to work, groceries, coffee, basically anything within a few miles of my house. When I was … Continue reading Your Body Loves Biking
Thirty-five miles separate my house in south Minneapolis and the campground of Afton State park. The road between rides the Mississippi River, before crossing farmland to the St. Croix River, which hugs the park. Most know of Afton because of the ski hill. Fewer know of it because of the golf course. Even fewer know of it because of the stellar state park. I’m OK … Continue reading Afton Overnighter
The best weekday mornings are those in which you have to clean your Jetboil at work because you had an early morning of coffee, friends and bicycles. This morning began yesterday, really, when I got a text from my friend Lucas about getting a group together for coffee. The destination: top of the hill in Gold Medal Park. A handful of others were on the … Continue reading Almost In Time For Sunrise Coffee
7 Bikes for 7 Wonders is the latest campaign for Travel Oregon. To celebrate the seven wonders of Oregon, Travel Oregon connected with seven bike builders to create a one-of-a-kind bike inspired by the corresponding wonder. Each of the seven weeks of the campaign, a new bike is unveiled, then hidden the following Saturday for anyone to find and keep. A video introducing the bike is … Continue reading 7 Bikes for 7 Wonders
The 30 miles each way from my place in south Minneapolis to Carver Park Reserve in Victoria, Minn. is almost entirely on bicycle trails. The exceptions being the two miles from the house to the Greenway and a couple blocks in downtown Hopkins. This makes Carver Park Reserve a popular destination for bike campers. We loaded up our bikes with our gear the night before. … Continue reading Carver Park S24O
When I told Audra I wanted to bike the 31 miles from Park Rapids to Walker and back, she told me I was nuts. We biked from Park Rapids to Akeley and back the previous year. It was a much shorter route, though we picked a hot, windy day for the ride. By the halfway point, we hated it. On that ride, I said I wanted … Continue reading Park Rapids to Walker to Park Rapids
I’d been gearing up for this ride since last year when a buddy made it his first century. Having just upgraded my road bike at the time of the 2014 ride, I was up for anything involving many, many miles. A brewery was the host of the event. Not much more convincing was needed. Friday evening was when Pete, Casey and I decided on heading … Continue reading Fulton Gran Fondo
Birch & Flannel 